Family Matters: Part 5

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Off Camera

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One’s family legacy, one’s heritage, is a very important thing.  In professional wrestling, it carries perhaps even more weight, especially when you have such famous families as The Streets, the Chases, and the Joneses competing in Supreme Championship Wrestling, Global Championship Wrestling, and yes, in the Uprising Wrestling Alliance as well.

All of her life, Julia Braddock has been proud to be a Braddock.  All of her life she had been proud of the Braddock name.  She knew that the Braddock name represented wrestling greatness.  Her uncle, Glenn Braddock, was an amateur wrestling legend.  Her sister, Glory Braddock, was a professional wrestling world champion and hall of famer.  Everyone all over the world recognized the greatness of the Braddock name when it came to pro-wrestling and it made Julia proud to know that she came from such a rich history of greatness.

Having such a great wrestling heritage and such a famous last name can have its downsides.  Julia wanted to follow in her uncle and sister’s footsteps, so she began training as a pro-wrestler.  Her uncle Glenn would not be lenient on her at all.  In fact, he expected more from her than he did out of his normal trainees, all because of who she was; she was a Braddock.  And she didn’t just get flack from her uncle either.  She got it from the wrestling world at large.  Fans and her peers alike both felt she should be able to rise to the occasion quickly and be just as good and successful as her sister Glory and her uncle Glenn.

Still, despite the pressure she received from being a Braddock, the pride of being a Braddock was there.  Being a Braddock was something to be proud of because of their famous heritage.  Even when she was under the thumb of Aphrodite Noel, she took pride in taking down her own Braddock family, even if only for a short time, because she knew defeating them was quite an accomplishment.

If being associated with Aphrodite Noel, and the war with the Braddock family that followed, taught her anything, it was to appreciate those that did care for her.  Glenn and Glory were great wrestlers and they were the primary reasons why the Braddock name became as great as it did.  But it wasn’t their fault that Julia was under so much pressure.  They truly did care about her.  Despite everything that they had been through over the years, they had stuck together and had remained strong.  They survived the war with Aphrodite Noel.  They had even made peace with Aphrodite Noel.

Had it stayed that way, perhaps there would have been no issues.  But peace alone wasn’t enough.  Even though they were free from Aphrodite’s clutches, Glory Braddock still refused to acknowledge anyone else but Aphrodite Noel as her mother.  It made no sense in Julia’s mind.  Julia just wanted to work hard, bust her ass, and earn her stripes within the Braddock family.  But why would she work hard to earn the name Braddock when Glory, the most prideful of the Braddock family, wish to retain the Noel name?

It was a mystery that Julia sought out answers to.  If she was to make her Braddock family proud, she wanted to know exactly what it meant to be a Braddock.  And she knew the one man who had all the answers…

…her uncle Glenn Braddock.

Glenn Braddock was hesitant to tell her the truth and Julia could understand why.  All of her life Julia Braddock had thought she was the daughter of Peter and Samantha Braddock, but as it turns out Samantha was just Julia’s step-mother.  Julia’s biological mother was Mary Ford.  Glory’s parents were Glenn Braddock and Mary Ford.  This made Julia and Glory half-sisters.

That in and of itself was tough to handle for Julia.  Her father died and her step-mother is God knows where, but ultimately she is missing in action.  Yet Julia has had a mother all this time, someone who had chosen to keep it a secret.  Julia’s father and uncle both kept it a secret.  Even Glory knew and kept it a secret.  They claimed it was to protect her but Julia felt she could have handled the truth.

Nevertheless, the fact is that Mary Ford cheated on Glenn Braddock with Glenn’s own brother Peter.  Was the fact that Mary was an adulteress enough to make Glory disown her and retain the Noel name instead?  That also didn’t make sense to Julia.  There had to be something else there.  There had to be something else that Mary did that sparked that kind of outrage and anger from Glory.

Glory had offered to tell Julia the truth and to tell her what it meant to be a Braddock, but Glory had lied to her once before and she wasn’t quite certain about trusting her right now.  Julia sought answers from Mary herself but when confronted with the truth, Mary remained stone cold silent.  This left Julia with one alternative…

…she would take Glory up on her offer.  She would seek answers from her half-sister.

Julia sits in the passenger’s seat of a black 2016 Ford Taurus.  She is wearing a V-Neck sleeveless black spaghetti strap blouson bodice top and a textured metallic skirt that falls to just above the knee.  Her feet are encased in black strappy sandals.  Her long blonde hair falls to below the shoulders.  Sitting in the driver’s side is her boyfriend, JaMarcus Avery.  He is wearing denim jeans and a dress shirt.

Braddock is staring out of her window at the front door of Glory’s large home.  JaMarcus, who senses the nerves, places a comforting hand upon her shoulder.

“Are you going to be ok?”

“Huh?”

Startled, Julia turns to face JaMarcus.  She sighs, smiles, and nods her head.

“Yeah, I’ll be fine.”

“Do you want me to go in with you?”

He runs a hand through her long blonde hair.

“You know, you don’t have to do this by yourself.”

Julia nods her head.

“I know, but I feel I need to do this myself.”

She leans forward and kisses him gently on the lips.

“Thank you…”

With that, Julia Braddock opens her passenger side door and steps out.  After shutting the door she begins her approach towards the front door of her sister Glory’s home.  She has been here many times but never before has this walk seemed to take so long and perhaps it is because of the nerves associated with this particular meeting?  Nevertheless, she eventually reaches the front door and then pushes the doorbell.  It isn’t long of a wait until the door opens and a woman, dressed in typical maid attire, is seen there, smiling politely.

“Yes?”

“Is Glory here?”

“Who may I ask is here t see her?”

“I’m her sister…Julia Braddock.”

The maid nods her head.

“Ah yes, Ms. Noel is expecting you.”

The maid steps aside and motions for Julia to enter.

“Follow me…”

Julia nods and steps inside.  The maid shuts the door and then begins to lead Julia down a long hallway.  They take a left turn and enter through another set of doors into the exquisite, luxurious living room.  This is the same living room where Julia had confronted Glory a few weeks earlier and where Glory first offered to tell her the truth about the Braddock heritage and legacy.  The walls of this room are decorated with expensive pained and the floor has a cream colored carpeting.  There is an  elegant chandelier hanging overhead.  The maid leads Julia into the room and motions to the black leather sofa, across from an expensive looking coffee table.

“Please sit down.  I will inform Ms. Noel that you are here.”

“Thank you.”

Julia sits down and sighs as she watches the maid walk off to fetch ‘Ms. Noel’…it’s strange, a part of her still finds it odd to hear Glory referred to as Ms. Noel but, the more Julia hears it, the more common it becomes, the more natural it becomes.  Even Julia is beginning to think of her more as a Noel than as a Braddock.

“Julia!”

Julia Braddock is startled to attention as she turns towards the sound of the voice, a voice which happens to belong to none other than her sister, Glory Braddock.  The elegant elder sibling walks into the room wearing a gold dress and matching high heeled pumps.  A polite smile is on her face as she enters the room, waving enthusiastically as she approaches Julia.  Julia stands up and the two siblings greet one another with a big hug.

“How are you?”

They break the hug and Julia answers with an uneasy smile.

“I’m fine….I guess…”

Glory motions for Julia to sit back down.  Julia does so and then Glory sits down next to her.

“I can only imagine.  UWA hasn’t been too kind to you lately, has it?”

Julia wasn’t expecting that line of questioning first.  Glory is right though, the UWA has not been excessively kind to her lately.  She failed to win the Last Stand Rumble, she was eliminated in the first round of a world title number one contender’s tournament, and she only managed to fight to a draw against Selena Frost in the first match of the Queen of the Ring League.

Granted, fighting Selena Frost to a standstill like that is nothing to be ashamed of.  Frost is a former Queen of the Ring Champion and a current SCW Adrenaline Champion. In the eyes of many, Selena is a favorite to win the league.  To fight to a draw with her could be seen as an accomplishment.  But Julia’s own expectations for herself are much higher than just a simple draw.  She wanted so much more.  She wanted a win.

“Yeah, I guess you could say that.  I didn’t beat Selena on Outbreak.”

“Don’t beat yourself up over that, sweetie.”

“But I should have won.  I am a Braddock, I…”

Glory shakes her head.

“Whoa, now stop right there.  Being a Braddock doesn’t mean anything.  I am a Braddock too, in case you forgot, and I had many draws that I still kick myself over.  I fought to a draw against Dazz at Wrestlecade.  I fought to a draw against Andreas Lasiewicz at Civil War.  But did I let those matches get me down?”

Glory grins.

“No…I got back up, dusted myself off, and pushed forward.  That’s what you need to do.  What do you have next?”

“Siqua.”

“See?  This is the perfect opportunity for a rebound!”

Julia isn’t as certain of a rebound here as Glory is.  Siqua may be a willing slave and punching bag for New Sinistry but that doesn’t mean that she can’t wrestle. Quite the contrary.  When called upon, she can give the best of the best fits in the ring.  Add to that the ever-present threat of Sinistry involvement and Julia realizes just how dangerous this particular match can and will be.

“Well…we’ll see…”

Glory tilts her head to one side and frowns.

“What’s wrong?  You seem upset and I doubt UWA is causing you to be this down on yourself.”

“Is it really important?”

Glory smirks.

“Well, a few weeks ago I offered to tell you the truth about our family legacy but you were hesitant.  Now suddenly I get a phone call from you and you are practically begging me to tell you about our family legacy.  Something must have happened to cause you to turn a total one-eighty…”

Julia sighs and nods her head.

“Yeah…”

“So, what’s wrong?”

“I…”

“Yes?”

Julia sighs.

“I…spoke with Mary.”

Glory frowns and sighs with a sense of realization.

“I see.”

“I know you advised me not to, I knew you would probably be upset with me going to her first instead of coming to you, but I just had to…I had to…”

“You had to see it for yourself.”

Julia nods her head.

“Yeah.”

“I won’t lie, I am a little disappointed that you didn’t trust me, but I can honestly understand why you would want to see her.  You always have been the type to want to give people a second chance, even when they don’t deserve one.  That can be a good quality, Julia.  But you need to be careful.”

“I know and I am sorry, Glory.  I am sorry for doubting you.”

Glory grins.

“It’s ok!  All is forgiven!”

Glory embraces her with a quick hug.  After breaking the embrace Glory continues…

“So, what did she tell you?”

“That’s just it!  She told me nothing!  Absolutely nothing!”

Glory bows her head and sighs.

“Oh Julia…”

“And you’re right, I do give people second chances, and had she told me the truth, perhaps I would have given her a chance, I may have even been willing to forgive her.  But whatever it is she’s guilty of, whatever she did, she is keeping it tight-lipped.  She isn’t saying a word.”

Tears begin to form in Julia’s eyes.  Glory hands her a tissue which Julia uses to wipe her eyes.

“My father is dead…my step-mother abandoned me…my biological mother clearly wants nothing to do with me…so I want nothing to do with her, either!”

“Perhaps it’s time then that you heard the truth from me.”

“The truth?”

Glory nods her head.

“The truth is that Mary permanently left a stain upon this family.  Our fathers were not much better, indulging in the vile affair that destroyed your family and mine, and they lied to us about it all of our lives.  The supposedly upstanding Braddock men lied to us, as if a simple affair was too much for us to handle.”

Glory smiles.

“You and I have always been close.  We were closer than sisters even before we knew we were sisters in truth.”

“You’re right, Glory.  We always have been the best of friends.”

“That’s right, and that’s why you and I are what’s important.  The Braddock name as it is, it’s tainted.  Your father is dead and my father is too old now to do anything about it but you and I, we can do something about it.”

Gloria snaps her fingers.  Julia then watches as a man in a dark blue suit and matching tie walks into the room carrying what appears to be legal documents.  He holds them out to Glory, who reaches up and takes them out of his hands.  Smiling warmly and politely she thanks him with a nod and a wink.

“Thank you, James.”

“Of course, Ms. Noel.”

With that the man, James, turns and makes his exit.  Julia watches him leave and then turns her attention back to Glory who is still grinning.  She motions to where the man was just standing.

“That was James, he is my lawyer.”

Julia gazes at Gloria questioningly.

“Your lawyer?  Gloria, what’s your lawyer have to do with any of this?”

“Oh I know, lawyers are pesky little creatures, but unfortunately they become quite necessary when drawing up legal paperwork.”

Julia cocks her head to one side and frowns.

“Legal paperwork?”

Glory nods her head and holds out the paperwork James, her lawyer, just handed her.  Julia takes it out of her hand and begins to read through it.  Julia’s eyes begin to grow wide as she reads it and scans it thoroughly.  Glory begins to speak.

“I know what you must be thinking…”

Julia looks up from the paperwork with a shocked look on her face.

“These are adoption papers…”

Glory nods her head.

“That’s right, those are adoption papers.  And if you will read them carefully, you will find that there is no funny business contained within, no deceit, no deception, and you can, in fact, leave this contract at any time you wish.   It was one of mother’s conditions upon agreeing to this, because she was worried you would not agree otherwise.”

“I…I’m not sure I agree anyway!”

Julia shakes her head vehemently.

“I don’t WANT to be Aphrodite’s daughter!”

She waves the papers at Glory’s face.

“And that’s what these papers do!  If I sign, I become her daughter again!”

“Julia, please calm down…”

“Calm?!  I told you and everyone else that I do not want to be that monster again.  I do not want to be Julia Alexis Noel!”

Glory reaches out and places a hand on her shoulder.

“Julia Alexis Noel…my sister…she was NOT a monster.”

“How can you look back on some of the things I did back then and say she was anything BUT a monster?!”

“Julia, people are not monsters.  The choices they make are the monsters and yes, you made some bad choices, you hurt a lot of people, but you were NOT a monster.  You just made poor choices.  You thought changing your name would be the fix to your problem but you were wrong.  Changing  your attitude is what made you a better person and you could have done that as a Noel.”

Julia sighs, for Glory does raise a good point.  She gazes down at the legal adoption papers again and then back up at Glory.

“Why?”

“Because I want to help you.  Julia, I found out about how Mary Ford, our…biological mother…how she had soiled the Braddock name, thanks to Aphrodite, and that is why I have chosen to acknowledge her as my true mother, the only one who has ever supported me, unlike Mary, who abandoned me and my father.  Mother, meaning Aphrodite, can give you that.  And…”

Gloria takes Julia’s hands and squeezes tight.

“…call me cheesy if you like, but I just want you here with me, by my side, every step of the way as we, together, work to erase the stain Mary left upon the Braddock family and make it noble and honorable again, standing together.”

“I…”

Julia’s voice trails off as she gazes down at the legal documentation.

“…I never thought of it like that.”

“Julia, I WANT to be your sister.  Biologically I may share a bloodline with Mary Ford but I refuse to recognize her as my mother.  My mother is Aphrodite Noel.  Knowing what kind of person Mary is, do you really want her as your mother?”

Julia shakes her head.

“N…no…”

“Then you know what you must do.  Who is your mother, Julia?”

“My mother…”

Glory places a pen down on the nearby coffee table.  Julia reaches out and takes the pen and uses it to sign the contract.

“…my mother is Aphrodite Noel.”

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On Camera

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My name is Glory Braddock and I am the sister of your next Queen of the Ring Champion Julia Braddock.

Now Julia may not be pleased with me putting such high expectations and pressure upon her but facts are facts and the fact is that she is a Braddock and that makes her among the most naturally talented athletes in the Queen of the Ring League.  It’s a disappointment that she and Selena got counted out on last Outbreak.  Had there been enough time, Julia would have eventually won, just as she will eventually win the whole league and the title.

She got caught by a count out this last time but she won’t get caught again, especially not against someone like Siqua.

Siqua, you are quite possibly the opposite of a Braddock.  The Braddock family represents greatness and success while you represent the type of person who has no problem being a welcome mat.  You let the Sinistry walk all over you.  You have no problem being their slave.

Therein lies your problem.  A CHAMPION needs to be a LEADER…not a damn pathetic slave.

It is quite clear that someone like you doesn’t belong in this league with someone like my sister Julia.  And maybe, just maybe, my sister Julia will put you out of your misery on this next Outbreak.  You don’t deserve the title and you don’t deserve to share the same ring as Julia Alexis Braddock.

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On Camera

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The camera feed begins to roll.  We open inside of an empty arena with thousands upon thousands of seats surrounding what appears to be a professional wrestling ring, but on this occasion it could just as easily be a boxing ring as well.  As the camera begins to pan downward to get a shot of inside the ring, we see a banner waving in the background, the image of Wayne McCullough printed on the banner.  Not much longer after that we see the lovely feminine figure of Julia Alexis Braddock stepping through the ropes and into the ring.  The beautiful blonde approaches the center of the ring and then turns to look at the banner of Wayne McCullough.

“UWA’s next stop on the European tour is Belfast, Northern Ireland, so I thought it was appropriate that I acknowledge one of Belfast’s famous citizens, Wayne ‘The Pocket Rocket’ McCullough.”

Julia turns back to face the camera.

“Wayne McCullough, or The Pocket Rocket as he was called, was a boxer.  He represented Northern Ireland in the 1990 Commonwealth Games where he won a gold medal for amateur boxing.  His professional record was twenty-seven wins and seven losses. He was a former WBC World Champion.  I look to McCullough for inspiration as I head into Outbreak live from Belfast and my next contest in the Queen of the Ring League.  The Pocket Rocket, you see, fought in the 1988 Olympic Games but was eliminated early by a Canadian fighter named Scotty Olsen. But McCullough didn’t let that failure get him down.  He persevered, he trained harder, got better, and would go on to be a world champion.”

Julia pats herself on the chest.

“Selena Frost and I fought to a double count out on the last Outbreak.  We managed one point apiece.  As badly as I wanted that win, I failed to get it, but am I going to let that failure get me down?”

She shakes her head.

“Not a chance!  I look at it as a learning experience.  I learned a great deal from fighting with a great such as Selena Frost and now I am more than ready and more prepared than ever for my next match in the league against Siqua.”

Julia points at the camera, as if pointing at Siqua.

“You don’t remind me a man like Wayne McCullough.  People like me and Wayne, we have the heart and the will to win, the will to keep fighting no matter the odds, to persevere no matter what.  Even when The Pocket Rocket went on a skid, a bit of a losing streak, in his latter years, he never gave up, he kept fighting until the bitter end.”

She holds up one finger.

“Only once was he ever knocked out.  Only once was he stopped.  Just like McCullough, I do not plan on stopping.  God knows I will take my share of losses in this league and even past that in the rest of my wrestling career here with UWA, but not one time will I lose because I stopped fighting.  I will fight until there is nothing left of me.  That’s just who I am and that’s what it means to be a Braddock, that’s what it meant to be The Pocket Rocket.  But you, Siqua…”

Julia sighs and shakes her head.

“…you clearly do not have that kind of will to win.  You do not have that kind of drive or determination.  You clearly don’t even care, do you?  Puppets do not have any kind of will outside of the will of the puppet master.  Puppets do not have any kind of drive or determination except the drive and determination of the puppet master.  Puppets do not care, they just obey the puppet master.  And that’s what you are, you are a puppet, you are Sinistry’s puppet, and you have absolutely no qualms whatsoever with being used, abused, and manipulated by those sociopaths.  And yet somehow you find yourself in the Queen of the Ring League?”

Julia frowns.  Her intensity is growing with each passing moment.

“I respect David Helms, he is a legend, but I question the wisdom in allowing someone like you in this league, Siqua.  You had the opportunity to represent this division but you were willing to lie down and let yourself get pinned by Jessica Wilde all because your puppet masters said so?  But then, I guess that shouldn’t come as a surprise, someone like you is probably used to lying flat on your back with your legs spread all the damn time.”

The frown on her face has contorted into a look of full blown anger, righteous indignation is what most would call this…

“You are offensive to this division!  You are an insult to this division!  We have Kathryn Pearson, Selena Frost, Grace Morningwood, and myself, all fighting for the right to represent this division…”

She points at the camera.

“…and then there’s you, someone who does not give a shit about this division, someone who does not care about women’s wrestling!  In the off chance you do win this league and become champion, you’ll no doubt just hand the belt over to Jessica Wilde again.”

Julia shakes her head.

“Not on my watch.  As long as I draw breath I will do whatever I can to make sure some undeserving little puppet bitch like you gets nowhere near the Queen of the Ring Championship and if that means mowing through your sorry ass right here in Belfast on Outbreak, then so be it!  If it means mowing through the rest of the competition to become the Queen of the Ring Champion so that you don’t get it, then so be it!  But I could not live with myself knowing that I didn’t do whatever I could to keep you away from that championship.  The Queen of the Ring Title deserves better than your sorry ass, it deserves better than Sinistry, and it damn sure deserves better than the crazy ass manipulative bitch you would give it to, the whore named Jessica Wilde!”

Braddock motions to herself.

“Wrestling is in my blood.  It runs through my veins!  I will not allow this sport that I love to be disrespected by you or by Sinistry.  So bring your welcome mat ass out to the ring, Siqua, and bring as many of your New Sinistry pals as you like.  New Sinistry is just like a bad movie sequal, it’s a terrible attempt at being as good as the original.  You are a bunch of fakes and I’ll take you all on if I have to, even if it means certain doom for me, but I am not going to sit back and watch wrestling get disrespected.  I will take action and I will take action live right here in Belfast.”

The camera fades to black.