The three men are just casually chatting away from the intrusiveness of the cameras for once, catching up whilst also bringing Hans up to speed with everything. Butch is digging into a rare fillet steak, a pint of Strongbow Dark Fruit half-drunk next to him. Red Dragon has a bacon cheeseburger and a glass of ice water whilst Hans drinks a tall pint of freshly-squeezes orange juice.
(Butch): Thanks for coming out you two. It’s been too long since the three of us hung out. Nice to get away from the Academy from a bit.
(Red Dragon): Yeah, it’s not like it’s been a week since Hans and I had to drag you up from the floor and place you on a hospital gurney like what we did at your bachelor party…
(Hans): And that’s not to mention that outfit we had you in either… I don’t think those nurses quite knew what to think of us.
He takes a sip from his orange juice, the three of them smirking and wincing in equal measure.
(Hans): How are you feeling now?
Butch takes a big gulp from his pint until he begins to chug it down.
Red Dragon smirks as he exchanges glances with Hans.
(Red Dragon): He’s dodging the question, you know that, right?
(Hans): To be fair, I think we have our answer.
He gestures to the nearly empty pint glass in Butch's hand.
(Hans): He's got no taste given that geschissen he's drinking. Clearly not all there still.
Both he and Matthew snicker at Butch's eyes going narrow.
(Red Dragon): Do you want to phone Wisdom or shall I?
Butch places his now-empty pint glass down on the table.
(Butch): Look, guys, I’m fine honestly. The buildup to Havoc and then what went down was just a little much, that’s all. Let’s not make a bigger deal out of this than it needs to be.
(Red Dragon): And have you seen a doctor, Butch-San?
(Butch): Well, not exactly but what’s a doctor going to do? Take time off work? Relax more? Well what are we doing right now? I’m not working and I’m having a drink and lunch with my friends.
(Hans): Well what are you doing when you're not doing that?
He spears a piece of chicken with his fork, chewing it down promptly as he waves the fork in Butch's direction.
(Hans): Are you making adjustments?
(Butch): Like what? I don’t know what I can do exactly. Wisdom’s not letting me train as much. It’s all the crap that goes down at Havoc that I can’t foresee that’s the issue. Maniac being a f**king idiot, assaulting Matt for starts, Fallen and Legion brawling in Wisdom’s office, Eddie’s son showing up again…
Butch takes a deep breath in through in his nose, nodding subtly as he counts back from five. He catches the eye of a waiter walking by and lifts up his empty pint glass indicating he would like another.
(Red Dragon): Butch-San, I know your moniker is The One Man Tartan Army but you do realise you don’t have to take on every problem on your own. Why do you think I came out to help Matt-Kun at Havoc?
(Hans): Don't be your own worst enemy when you don't have to be.
A grimace fleetingly haunts his expression, the memories surging back before being bolted away once again.
(Hans): And you don't want to be the person who ends up manipulating the roster to do their bidding either. You're no puppet master Butch, best laid plans are all good but that goes out the window when the first punch hits you in the face.
There is a long moment of silence where Butch doesn’t say a word. He takes a bite from his steak as the waiter comes to the table with his drink, taking away his empty glass. Red Dragon notices Butch’s silence and rolls his eyes, he’s seen this behaviour from his friend before.
(Red Dragon): Butch-San, you are the most stubborn person I’ve ever met.
Red Dragon glances towards Hans.
(Red Dragon): He does this thing now when he doesn’t say anything because he knows you’re in the right. It happens a lot when Wisdom makes a point he doesn’t want to admit is right.
(Butch): I am here, you don’t have to talk about me like I’m a child.
Ignoring Butch entirely, Hans tilts his head towards Matthew.
(Hans): I had this with my brother when we were younger. Usual childhood fallouts and the telling off you'd get from your mutti or vater. You'd be in such a mood with them that you'd not acknowledge them for the rest of the day.
He tilts his head back towards Butch.
(Hans): Heinrich and I grew out of that phase in our early teens though.
(Butch): Very funny. Anyway, trust me, I’ll be fine. Now if we change the subject please? Now that you’re officially part of the coaching staff, Hans, you’ll need to get familiar with the training schedules etcetera.
(Hans): Ok... jah, we can talk that instead.
Again, the fork jabs into the caesar salad, spearing another piece of chicken.
(Hans): But don't think we're not going to be bringing this up again as and when we need to.
Butch takes another drink from his pint as Red Dragon takes a bit from his burger.
(Butch): Fair enough. Now, the established core of students, your Seans, Matts, Jeremys and Sarahs, they tend to look after themselves. Michelle and Erica are slightly newer than the rest of them but have picked things up really quickly. Matthew still likes to put them all through their paces though.
(Red Dragon): Lack of a decent routine leads to complacency…. that and bringing out Belinda from time-to-time…
(Hans): Mein gott...
He exhales loudly, unable to help himself.
(Hans): You've gone and named it?
Red Dragon smiles and shrugs as they discuss the baseball bat wrapped in barbed wire that Hans used all those years ago on both Butch and Red Dragon when he joined the Horde.
(Red Dragon): What can I say? She has a reputation.
Hans looks over at Butch.
(Hans): One that you're trying to get away from with this 'new HWA' approach, nein?
(Butch): Yeah, but it doesn’t appear to be working. Maniac seems hellbent on wanting to cause as much chaos as possible. I’m starting to wonder if it was a mistake reaching out to the alumni to come back….Matthew, have you spoken to Matt? How’s he doing?
(Red Dragon): Physically he’ll be fine. I caught him taking notes and watching the match back over. You know he wants to take this Asylum Match Maniac is demanding.
Butch scoffs.
(Butch): Aye, that’s no happening. The whole point of our vision of HWA was to move away from that violence and gore. I wanted the word hardcore to emphasise our passion for the sport and not the ECW-style theatrics. I mean, a cage match, a no DQ, falls count anywhere, something like that. But I’ve seen an Asylum Match before, I’ve seen Maniac win one. It even makes my stomach turn. I can’t sign off on it, Matthew. It’s not worth the risk. I’m happy for him to have another match with Maniac after he’s medically cleared but he’s not competing at Havoc in Chicago.
(Red Dragon): You’re the boss.
(Hans): Well, HWA did have it's fair share of...
He searches for the right word for a moment.
(Hans): ... characters.
He pops the piece of chicken still on his fork into his mouth, chewing thoughtfully.
(Hans): If it wasn't Maniac, there was every chance it'd be someone just as off the rails as he can be.
(Butch): Exactly. I mean, when we were recording our shows for YouTube, you know what the most drama was? Trying to figure who was going to main event.
(Hans): This is it though Butch, you're bringing back HWA to the masses. It's like shooting a flare into the sky at night, everyone's going to see it and come running, the good, the bad and the quite insane.
He pauses a second as the waitress passes them by, looking to see if any of them need another top up. As she moves away to the next table, he carries on.
(Hans): So who is needing the most support then from your take on it Butch? I've seen the good work that Matthew's done and I've not been with them long enough to truly get a take on them.
Butch finishes up chewing the last remnants of his steak before placing his knife and fork side-by-side on his plate.
(Butch): Michelle I’d say more than anything. It’s not that she’s not talented, she’s brilliant. Wisdom has been doing some one-on-one time with her but she’s been so busy herself lately she can’t always manage. Sarah’s problem is confidence. She knows what she’s doing she just gets flustered because she doesn’t trust in her own abilities. They all help each other out and the girls have a good thing going between them in term of support. I guess they all do. But yeah, from the more experienced ones I’d say Michelle. I like to take the initiation classes myself, tell them what’s expected of them when they walk through the doors and then I hand off to Matthew. But things are so chaotic now, I guess you that’s something you could set your sights on taking over for me for now?
Hans nods his head at this towards his friend.
(Hans): Jah, I can do that. Do we have anyone coming in soon? Did you hear from Eddie's son?
(Butch): There are a few prospective contracts on the table. There are a few contracts coming to an end in other companies. Drew isn’t sure whether he’s wanting to sign a new contract with WWE or not. Tony will on that like flies on shit so I need to reach out to him soon to gauge his interest. As for Ash, I’ve not heard from him yet. I need to get his insurance sorted and get his induction booked in for the Academy too.
Both Hans and Dragon nod at this.
(Hans): I can see what I can do.
He glances at Dragon.
(Hans): We can maybe have a look at who's making waves over in Japan before long too.
Red Dragon nods as he finishes up the last remnants of his burger.
(Red Dragon): We have a good relationship with New Japan again, that’s how I was able to get Will for Havoc. They want to use Jerem-Kun in a match over there later in the year. We can definitely see about starting some sort of talent exchange. What do you think, Butch-San?
Butch’s attention is interrupted though as he checks his phone and sees several missed calls, voicemails and texts. He brings the phone to his ear, holding out his hand with his index finger extended indicating he’s listening to the voicemail. As he does, his eyes widen.
(Butch): Shit!
(Red Dragon): What is it?
(Butch): Something happened at the academy.
(Red Dragon): What do you mean “something happened”?
(Butch): Some sort of altercation between Alexis Rose and Michelle. I need to go and deal with this, sorry lads.
(Hans): You're not going anywhere right now on your own Butch, you've had a drink.
He grabs his keys to his McLaren from his back pocket.
(Hans): Your choice, my driving or Matthews.
Butch rolls his eyes, forgetting about him having had a drink.
(Butch): F**k. Fine, we’ll take your car but one of you is coming back to get my car later.
(Hans): I'm not driving that scheißhaufen you have...
Red Dragon. snorts with laughter as Butch can't help but be offended as Hans waves the waitress over, his card already in his hand as Butch dials Sean’s number. After a few rings, his nephew answers.
(Sean): Hey, Butch. Where are you? Are you still out with Sensei and Hans?
(Butch): We were at lunch. I just got a message from your Aunt, what happened? Are you at the Academy?
(Sean): Yeah, I just got here, Alexis attacked Michelle.
(Butch): I heard. Hans, Matthew and I are on our way. Is Alexis still there?
(Sean): Nah, she bailed about five minutes before I got here.
(Butch): Well, just hang tight. Tell Michelle I’ll be there soon, I want to talk to her, make sure everything’s okay.
(Sean): Will do.
After Sean hangs up, Butch places his phone back in his pocket as he, Hans and Red Dragon make their way to the valet parking of the restaurant as the scene fades to black.
Message Thread
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