HD: Leon segment

[King Cucaracha 0]

COLE
Fans, we promised you footage here tonight from the home of OAOAST World Champion Zack Malibu and right now, we have that footage ready and waiting. Ahead of, what promises to be one of the most personal and emotional matches in OAOAST history for the OAOAST World Title at School's Out. The ties run deep for Zack Malibu and Leon Rodez. Former tag team partners, former tag team champions. Once best friends. A bond that went beyond the ring and into their personal lives outside of these arenas. But now there's bitterness and hatred brewing between these two, torn apart by months of contrasting fortunes. Earlier this week, we were asked to provide a camera crew to catch up with Leon ahead of his World Title match. But the former champion had rather unexpected plans for them as he paid a visit to the home of Zack Malibu in Providence. Take a look.


~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Stood outside the picturesque home of OAOAST Franchise Zack Malibu and family, an unshaven and less than immaculate Leon Rodez stands with hands in pockets. Scowling, he reaches out and jabs the doorbell once before going back to his sorry pose. A few impatient seconds later, the door opens to reveal former Women's Champion and wife of Zack, Candie, apparantly expecting Leon and not looking very pleased about the situation. Leon doesn't even bother to look up and make eye contact at first but is forced to when Candie doesn't motion him in.

CANDIE
I'm not sure this is such a good idea Leon.

LEON
Why not? What do you think I'm going to do, huh?

CANDIE
I don't know what to think anymore.

Used to the sound of people's disappointment by now, Leon ignores it from Candie.

LEON
If you were worried about what I was capable of, you wouldn't have agreed in the first place. You've known me for five years. You think I've changed [i]that[/i] much in a couple of weeks?

Resigned to agree Candie, albeit a little reluctantly, shows Leon in.

LEON
Where is she?

CANDIE
Playing in the front room. Just... make it quick, okay?

LEON
I just need five minutes to say goodbye. You owe me that much at least.

CANDIE
...fine.

Wandering through the Malibu house Leon finds his way to the front room, not exactly unfamiliar territory. As soon as he steps through the door little Jenna Malibu looks up at her familiar godparent and Leon stops for a second. Leon takes a breath to compose himself, before walking over and crouching down near her makeshift playarea.

LEON
Mind if I sit down?

Jenna carries on playing as Leon sits in silence for a few seconds, perhaps trying to come up with what to say.

LEON
I'm... afraid I'm not going to be able to visit you for much longer. Uncle Leon's enjoyed the time he spent with you. Which is why he's got to go. Sooner or later, everything good in my life goes wrong. Everything good has to be taken away. So I'm doing it now. Because I can't bear to see you grow disillusioned with life like I am.

Leon shakes his head sadly.

LEON
Pretty soon you'll be growing up. What life awaits you? The daughter of two famous professional wrestlers. They'll tell you you can be anything you want. That they'll be proud of you, no matter what. But you'll feel so pressured into following in their footsteps. And when you find out you're not as good as daddy was, not as good as mommy was and you hear those whispers behind your back, you're in for a miserable existance. Doing a job your parents love. Bitter that you can't live up to their expectations. Stressed that maybe they're not proud of you after all. Disappointment and failure. That's all life really offers anyone. Disappointment and failure. And you'll be ruined when somebody decides that famous parents or not, you haven't made the cut. Left to live your life with regret and "what ifs". Until one night you're thrown out of a bar, paralytic drunk, screaming "don't you know who I am!" as you lay in the gutter. I'll know who you are. And I don't want to see it happen to you.

Blissfully unaware of what Leon's actually saying, so caught up in her little game, Jenna hands over one of her dolls to Leon.

LEON
Look at you. Not a care in the world. You've got no idea the world you've been born into. War. Famine. Crime. Corruption. A world where crooks and villians have all the power. And good hearted people like me are stomped into the ground. What's waiting for you? Either you'll get your dreams stomped on like I have... or you'll be the one manipulating people for your personal gain like your daddy. Either way, I can't bear to watch it happen. So, this is goodbye.

Jenna continues playing away while Leon stares distantly towards one of the room's walls.

LEON
Because most of all, I know that one day... one day very soon, you're going to stop loving me, just like everybody else. You'll grow to hate me for what I'm going to have to do to your daddy. See, your daddy took something away from me that meant a lot. Not just my belt. My faith in human kindness. No good deed goes unpunished? With Zack, no deed, good or bad, is punished. Until now. You're too young to understand and to realise what I do at School's Out is for your daddy's own good. To make him see the errors of his ways, I have to hurt him. The way he hurt me. And I'm sure that victory at School's Out will just be a brief moment of happiness before life shoots me back down, punishes me for the pain I inflict, but I've lived the last five years of my life that way so why try and fight it!? If I'm going to be punished, it might as well be for some I deserve punishing for. That way, maybe I can look back when the dark cloud decends back over my head and instead of wondering "what did I do to deserve this?" over and over again, I'll KNOW what I did to deserve it... and maybe instead of emptiness, I'll feel some enjoyment for a change.

Sighing deeply, Leon pulls himself back up. Looking at the doll in his hand he stops.

LEON
Do you mind if I keep this?

Jenna shakes her head. Leon almost manages a smile, as he pockets the doll.

LEON
I'm sorry. When you're older, you'll understand.

Leon starts to leave, stopping short of the doorway. He turns back, waiting for Jenna to look up.

LEON
Take good care of your daddy when he gets home. I think he might need it.

Turning away, Leon looks at the doll in his hands before walking out of the room.

COLE (V.O)
Eye-opening footage of the full scale of this conflict between Zack Malibu and the embittered and turmoiled Leon Rodez. Leon has severed his ties to his goddaughter and the Malibu family, but for who's benefit was this really for? Jenna's, Leon's, or Zack's? What sort of mental state will an already enraged Zack Malibu be in after seeing this footage? We'll find out this Sunday night at School's Out... don't miss it!

[Patty O'Green 0]

mainevent indeed!