A/N: /coughs/ it's been a while, hasn't it? Sorry for the wait guys, life got busy. I hope you enjoy the chapter, nonetheless!

Disclaimer: I don't own anything you recognize from the WWE, or anywhere else.

Chapter 1: Two Sides to Every Coin

"Wildfire is more predictable than I am."

She had reached the safety of the guerrilla when she realized that she had to stay with her new 'clients' at all times. No doubt that'll be a pain later.

"Guys, you have to go prepare for your match," she informed her friends, trying not to let her inner turmoil show. Both Daniel and Punk stopped abruptly, glancing back at her, startled.

"Alexa-"

"You can't go-"

She put up a hand to silence them, offering a confident smile. Truth was, the Canadian borne diva was internally worried about how things with the Hounds of Justice were going to go, but she couldn't let her friends see that. "Both of you momentarily forgot why I was a threat, too," she chuckled softly. "I'll be fine, guys, it'll take more than a few puppies to take me out."

They stared at her disbelievingly for a bit, before relenting. Punk let out a sigh, eyes locking with the brunette in front of him as he ruffled her hair. "We'll get you out of this," he promised, kissing her forehead affectionately. They'd been close since he'd been brought up to the roster, meeting in an unconventional way on the first day that had led to the inevitable formation of their unbreakable friendship. "No matter what it takes."

Alexa nodded, keeping her lips turned upwards as Daniel and Punk both left. She didn't want them to see her fear, to see her nervousness about having to deal with the likes of Reigns, Rollins, and Ambrose. She waited until they rounded the corner to let the smile drop off her face, turning around to go back out and face the music. She knew she could do it. She always made it out alive.

But as she turned, she slammed into a hard chest.

"Where did you think you're going, sweetheart?" Dean Ambrose sneered, gripping her arm. Truth be told, the man was more intrigued about the woman in his grasp than angered; sure, she had beat his ass to the mat outside, but he hadn't been expecting a firecracker to be thrown into their grasp. Hell, he'd been expecting a meek bitch, and certainly didn't get that. "Five minutes into your punishment and you're already breaking the rules, huh?"

And there was no denying how physically attractive the brunette was; he smirked at all the possibilities of the fun he could have with her in his bed. Of course, it wouldn't be easy, but he liked a good challenge when he saw one. He glanced down to find her glaring at him fearlessly, bright, cerulean eyes awash with black. At the back of his mind, he vaguely wondered what was taking his teammates so long to get there.

"Unfortunately, I was just about to come back," she growled, a lopsided grin making its way onto her face. Two could play at this game. "Mostly to kick your sorry ass a bit harder for groping me out there."

"You should use that fire in you for something else, baby," he drawled, moving his hand from her arm down to the small of her back, his fingertips barely brushing the top of her curvy ass. He chuckled to himself internally when he heard her breathing hitch, glad to know he was having the same affect on her as every other woman. Little did he know that was, actually, not the reason she had began to stiffen.

"Let go of me, Ambrose," Alexa snarled viciously, struggling against the man's hold. She couldn't believe his crassness. Less than five minutes alone with one of the three men and she was already about to clock him in the face! How the hell was she supposed to make it through however long she was stuck with them?

Feeling his own anger spike, he backed them up into the wall, glad for the darkness and the lack of people in the area. The roars of the crowd were the only noises they could hear, as Dean towered over the petite Canadian with her wrists pinned high above her head. He tried not to think of how sexy she looked, glaring up at him with her chest heaving up and down due to exertion.

"You don't want to get me mad, beautiful," he murmured, bending low and whispering the dangerous words into her ear before trailing the tip of his nose down the side of her neck. Once he reached the base of her neck, he replaced the tip of his nose with his lips, nipping at the soft flesh lightly before pulling away and locking eyes with her. He tried his damned best not to read into the intrigue-lust?-in her cerulean irises. Again, it was neither. "It won't be pretty."

She struggled in his grip feverishly, her breathing erratic as she fought back flashes. She couldn't lose control, not at a time like this. All she needed was some damn space, and she needed his fucking hands off of her. Dean was reminding her too much of the accident, too much of him. Before she could cry out for help, a voice cut through the eerie silence.

"Dean, man, let her go before she breaks your balls."

Both their heads turned to see Seth and Roman standing there, their faces expressionless. Alexa cursed mentally at what the situation seemed like; first day on the job and she was being seduced by the least mentally stable member of the trio. Or the two of them could sense the burning distaste she felt for Ambrose, specifically for putting her into such a situation. She was sure they had seen her flailing to get away from him...right?

Dean immediately, albeit reluctantly, stepped away from her; no matter how many times one questioned his morals, he'd never force himself on a woman. He knew, to an outsider, that it certainly looked like he was sexually harassing their new valet, but that wasn't the case at all. He was just having some fun, messing around with her. Seth and Roman both knew that, without a doubt, but Dean blinked, shocked at his own stupidity as the realization came to him pretty fast.

Seth and Roman knew it, but Alexa didn't.

Initially, he hadn't paid attention to the desperate flails of the girl when he had her pinned down, instead having chuckled to himself internally over how he was correct in his initial assumption of her being meek. But now, as he intently observed the way her breathing was irregular as she struggled to regain her composure, he felt something akin to guilt strike him in the gut.

Alexa, upon instinct, edged closer to Seth than the other two. The man with the duo-tone tresses just naturally had a more friendly look on his face than both Reigns and Ambrose, but she also knew how much damage he could do in the ring. She knew she might regret the decision, but in wake of Ambrose's sudden attack, all she needed was a whisper of a fake promise that at least someone gave a damn about her well-being among the three of them.

Seth could see the haunted look that was suddenly in Alexa's eyes. He was an observant man; as the architect of the Shield, he had to be. He knew that the scared expression was not one that the diva wore often, and it tugged at his heartstrings to see her so spooked for an unknown reason. Dean alone had not caused it all, that much was apparent.

So when she shuffled closer to him, intentionally or not, he gently placed a hand on her shoulder, guiding her into his side. "C'mon, let's go grab your stuff and head over to where we're staying for the show," he suggested, keeping his voice warm.

Alexa genuinely smiled up in thanks at the man, nodding and letting him walk her towards Punk's room, where she had initially been staying. Dean and Roman exchanged surprised looks, but after a moment began following the two, Dean's guilt intensifying. If Seth sensed something wrong, then something was definitely wrong.

It wasn't until they were a good distance away from the other two that Alexa decided he, Seth, needed an explanation, Shield member or not. "Thank you...for back there," she began hesitantly and quietly, staring down at her feet. She hated being weak, and it wasn't something she was used to. Not to mention this was Seth fucking Rollins she was talking to; that did little to ease her initial worry. Hell, he was the enemy! "I don't normally freeze up like that, but I don't...I can't handle being in situations like that very well."

Seth glanced down at her in worry, mentally cussing out Dean. Leave it to the Cincinnati native to attack her with the one thing she couldn't seem the cope with. His curiosity was peaked, but he didn't push on too hard. "What do you mean?"

She gave him a wry smile, one he could tell was bitter. Besides, Alexa Copeland wouldn't smile at any of them, not after everything they'd done to so many people she considered family. "I can't exactly react properly in a situation where a man's trying to force himself on me, jokingly or not. Fucked up that sense a while back."

Before he could question everything, they were in front of Punk's locker room and Alexa was pushing the door open.

She entered the room quietly, knowing that her eyes were still sullen with the agony of memories. Punk, who'd been sitting in front of the monitor and had been watching the on-going match, only glanced at his childhood friend before jumping out of his seat and wrapping her up in a fierce hug, all the while glaring angrily at Seth. The latter of the two men held up his hands, backing away slightly and letting the Chicagoan deal with the girl.

"Fuck," he cursed softly, letting the girl cling to him as he ran his fingers through her hair. There were only rare occasions in which Alexa was vulnerable, and hell if he didn't already know who caused it. Anger flared up within him, quick and furious, but he stamped it down for now. "Please tell me you're okay, kiddo."

The age-old nickname brought a legitimate smile to her lips, and Alexa found herself coming back from her dark place. A place only a few people knew existed, and even fewer knew how to get her out of. "Yeah," she murmured, pulling away and grinning affectionately up at her brother-like figure. It was weak, but it would have to do. "I just needed a hug from the bestest wrestler ever."

Punk laughed at the usage of the inside joke between them, Alexa always having said the same thing to him before and after a lot of his matches at the beginning of their careers. Satisfied with the return of the familiar fire in her eyes, he let her go, watching her pack up her things. His attention returned to Seth, who had been waiting patiently by the door.

He approached him. "Alright, pal," he murmured, voice light but laced with threat. Seth raised an eyebrow. "It hasn't even been twenty minutes and you got my brat shaken up this bad. I know what probably happened, and I am going to beat the ever-loving shit outta Ambrose tonight for it, but...I can tell you're the one with the biggest heart in the group. So, personal differences aside, keep an eye on her, yeah? Kid's been through some...tough shit."

Before he could ask questions, Dean and Roman entered the room, both of them glancing between Punk, Seth, and Alexa. Sensing the obvious tension between Seth and Punk, the two men stepped behind Rollins, flanking him. Seth, glancing at his comrades, only gave Punk a quick nod. "I will," he managed. Punk knew the vague response was one that wouldn't reveal anything to his stablemates, and he was grateful for that.

Alexa, realizing her time had ran out, stepped back beside Seth after pressing a quick kiss against Punk's cheek. "I'll see you out there," she murmured lowly, offering her best friend a quick grin before stepping out of the changing room with the black-clad men. Seth and Dean exchanges looks as Punk closed the door behind them reluctantly, Dean's curious and Seth's closed off.

The three of them began walking down the hallway, further into the colder, less maintained parts of the arena. Shivering lightly, she trailed behind them, keeping to herself. She was worried for Daniel and Punk, but she also knew that they could take of themselves. Not to mention that Punk had a good idea of who exactly had turned Alexa into a quivering mess; the man was sure to utilize his anger. She also knew that Daniel was one of the very few people Punk trusted, making the duo perfect tag-team partners for each other.

There was a distrust between the men of the roster nowadays, that was for sure. It was hard to find people who would have your back when you need it, and it seems like The Shield, and the Authority, knew it. Maybe they were hoping for someone to turn on someone during the match tonight. Maybe they were hoping Punk would reset, and fall back on his previous ways. But Alexa knew better; her best friend knew what was important, and what to fight for.

"Alexa? We're here."

Seth's voice broke her out of her reverie, and she found herself blinking at the man as the others walked into the storage room. There was a few couches, and the small room was illuminated by some hanging lights that cast a dirty-yellow glow around the room. She sat down in the love-seat, curling up and wrapping her arms around her legs. Dean, Roman, and Seth sat on the sofa in front of her, each of them with a different expression on their face.

"So," Seth spoke up, trying to break the uncomfortable silence. He knew the diva was trying hard not to lash out at them, or scream, so he'd respect that and do the same. "What's it like growing up with The Undertaker for a dad, and with Edge and Christian as brothers?"

She smiled wistfully, memories resurfacing of the times she spent backstage, from infancy and up. Her love for her family was something she could talk to anyone about, that was for sure. "It was great. Dad was the greatest father-figure I could have ever asked for, and Adam and Christian both were the greatest brothers a girl can have. All three of them are still amazing, on that note. And they were probably the biggest reason I wanted to get into wrestling. I wanted to go out there and amaze people like dad did, wanted to give my everything for the fans. And I wanted to make life easier for my mom, just like my brother did with his job."

It was true. The Undertaker had raised her whenever she was on the road with the roster, which was most of her life; she only ever went home when Adam went home on his days off. To her, he wasn't the phenom, he was 'daddy'. Her days were spent with the three of them, along with the rest of the roster; raising her had been a collective effort on all their parts.

"What brought you around backstage in the first place?" Roman, for the first time since the arrangement regarding her valet status had been made, spoke up, curious. Alexa jumped slightly, realizing she had both Roman and Dean's attention as well, all three men paying attention to her. Shifting over in her seat, she offered a smile in a vain attempt to be civil. Not like Roman was about to spear her through anything, after all...at least, she hoped.

"Adam wanted to make things easier on mom, so he took me onto the road as soon as the doctor's made sure I was fit for constant travel," she began to explain the beginning of her journey, a smile playing her lips. She loved telling her story, only because it proved that her brothers and father had a heart of gold. "I was only a few weeks old when he and Christian first brought me 'round backstage. This was back when they were still in the indies...and dad had been backstage one night. According to all three of them, he fell in love with me at first sight. Said it didn't take more than a second for the father-daughter relationship to form."

"Your biological father wouldn't have liked that," Dean spoke up, only blinking once the girl stiffened. He hadn't realized that he had said yet another thing that would set her off, not until her face morphed into a cold, hard mask. Again, the not-so familiar pang of guilt erupted in his stomach.

"I don't give a fuck about what he would've wanted," she spat venomously, heart pounding with anger. She absolutely hated the mention of that man; everyone knew better than to mention her birth parents. It normally ended with her punching said person in the face and stalking off. She took a second to calm herself down, recollecting her thoughts before continuing with her story whilst ignoring Dean. "Anyways, it didn't take long for Addy and Christian to get called up to the main roster, and dad would take care of me backstage whenever they had matches. Slowly, I was introduced to the rest of the roster, as well; Shawn and Steve formed the same kind of fatherly bond with me right away, too."

"Shawn Michaels and Stone Cold?" Seth spoke up, surprised. He had guessed they had all known her since she was a kid, but hadn't guessed they took care of her so often. Alexa nodded, playing with her hair.

"From there, well...long story short, they all helped train me, and got me to where I am today," she finished. Memories flooded back to her, reminding her of the good days. "God knows how much I would suck if they had gone easy on me in the ring during practice."

They all fell silent again, but this time the quietness was much more relaxed. Only it didn't last very long, since Roman suddenly decided he had something to say.

"Look, Alexa...contrary to popular belief, we're not gonna hurt you," he began to explain, voice hesitant. She raised an eyebrow in their direction, and the disbelieving look on her face was one the men found slightly offending, even Ambrose. Roman pressed on. "Yeah, we're going to have to be dicks to you in front of everyone else, but other than that, we're not going to hurt you. We don't roll like that."

Alexa knew the big man was speaking for the three of them, trying to convince her that Ambrose wasn't going to hurt her despite the incident earlier. Instead of speaking, she averted her gaze and nodded once, feeling somewhat uncomfortable. They would have to prove it. "You leave it to me to figure out whether or not I should trust you," she spoke quietly. "It's not like I can just forget you three beat the crap out of the people I love."

Roman nodded, accepting her answer and backing off. Alexa curled up in her seat, eyeing the three individuals with apprehensiveness.

"Our match is on in a bit," Seth spoke up, standing up and cracking his knuckles. He found himself suddenly determined to make sure that, by the end of the week at the latest, Alexa could trust them not to hurt her. Because Roman was right: the three of them wouldn't intentionally put their hands on a woman against her will. "We'll talk to Stephanie and Hunter about the rule where you have to stay with us at all times."

Alexa nodded, grateful, and followed suit as they walked back out the door. Seth and Roman led the way, so Dean was walking beside her. He fidgeted, uncomfortable, before grabbing Alexa's wrist in a light grip.

"Look, about earlier," he began, voice raspy. She gazed up at him with knowing eyes, one eyebrow quirked. "I...was out of line. I'm sorry."

"Is Dean Ambrose apologizing to me?" She couldn't help but taunt, unable to stop the teasing smirk from appearing. Her glared at her, but she could see a different emotion in his eyes. One that made her heart fluttering annoyingly.

"I am fucking apologizing," he growled in defeat. "You accepting it or not?"

She giggled, a sound he found intoxicating, before nodding, a small smile on her lips. He found himself enjoying the warmth that was spread across her face, opposed to the cold mask she'd been looking at him through earlier. "Yeah, Ambrose, all is well. I know you were just messing around."

He nodded, releasing her, and the duo began walking again, catching up to Seth and Roman up the stairs. Alexa had never entered through the crowd before; despite everything, she was excited. She could hear Punk's theme song playing, the song resonating through the arena, and couldn't stop the happy smile that came on her lips. It didn't go unnoticed.

"Alright, Dean's in front, and Alexa's behind him," Seth was explaining. Roman was busying pouring water on himself, his long hair sticking to his cheeks and neck. "That way, we can stop any fans that'll think it'll be funny to grab your ass or something."

She nodded, biting her lip as Dean sauntered out into the arena as their theme song began to play. She followed out, stopping once she realized Dean had stopped to lock eyes with Punk, who was all the way down in the ring.

Dean was in his element. Smirking at the tattooed superstar, he slung an arm around Alexa's waist and the two of them began walking down the stairs, Seth and Roman just behind them. He felt the girl tense up, but some of the tension left her body as they began their descent. The hands of arms of the WWE fans were everywhere, but he just shoved them out of the way and approached the barricade. He knew she could jump it with no question, so he made his way over first, turning in time to see the brunette pounce over and land on her feet without breaking a sweat.

"And announcing the challengers, accompanied by Alexa to the ring, The Shield!" Lillian's voice echoed through the air as Alexa gazed at her friends, a silent conversation going on between them. She knew Daniel knew about her mini-breakdown earlier, which meant nothing good for the trio. Both men were looking fierce and ready to whoop ass.

She wandered around the outside of the ring, standing a good distance away from both teams as the fight began. Punk and Dean were locked up in the ring, and her heart pounded in worry that her best friend would get hurt. She knew he could handle himself, but that did nothing to ease her stress.

Suddenly, Punk was thrown into the Shield's corner, Dean's fists pummeling the man. Punk's forearms were up in attempt to protect his face, and she found herself moving towards the corner without a thought.

"C'mon Punk," she cried when she got closer. "Get out of here!"

Seth, Dean, and Roman all glared down at her, the warning clear in their eyes. They were telling her not to get involved. Well, fuck that! Her best friend was getting pounded on. Were they expecting her not to be affected by that? She then remembered Roman's earlier words, about them having to be jackasses out in public. Well, then that meant she was allowed to be her wildfire self, too.

Seth was tagged in. As he and Punk began throwing hits in the middle of the ring, Alexa cautiously moved behind the duo on the apron, gathering her wits. The backlash would no doubt be intense, but she had to help her friends.

"Uh, oh, what does Alexa have planned!?" JBL watched the little brunette move behind the team she was now valeting. He, much like so many others, had watched her grow up, and the fatherly concern for the girl was strong within him.

Without warning, Alexa grabbed both Dean and Roman's legs and yanked on them, unbalancing the two of them and sending them crashing to the floor. Back in the ring, Punk tagged in a red-hot Daniel, with Seth crawling around. She stumbled away from the remains of the Shield as they shook themselves, dazed, and tried to get off the floor. She had probably cost them the match, and she didn't think they were gonna be too happy about that.

"Dean Ambrose looks furious, John," Micheal Cole commented, unease running through the man as the eccentric leader got to his feet. Alexa stood her ground as he turned to glare angrily at her, yelling things she couldn't hear over the roar of the crowd. It was only when he began stalking towards her that she realized this wasn't for show. This was the Dean Ambrose from earlier, that had pressed her up against the wall and shook her to the core in the worst way possible.

"Let go!" She snarled, as Dean's hand was suddenly tangled in her hair. She pressed her own hands up atop of his to avoid her hair getting yanked out, but the discomfort only lasted a short while before Punk slammed into Dean, sending the man flying into the announce table. She watched as Dean rolled around in pain, Punk stomping on his ribs with no self-restraint. No doubt this was payback for what Dean had done earlier in the guerrilla. It was only when Alexa's hand grabbed his that Punk backed away, instead pulling her close and inspecting her face.

"You good?" He asked, slightly breathless. She nodded uncertainly, hugging him for a brief moment. It was times like this that they reminded the crowd that they had each other's back, times when they threw all caution to the wind and barreled down whatever was hurting their friends. Daniel and Roman were going at it in the ring, the crowd firmly behind the bearded man.

They had been walking towards Punk's corner when Dean had slammed into Punk with a steel chair.

"Punk!" She cried as he fell to the ground, Dean's shots relentless. Short and quick, he slammed the rim of the chair into Punk's ribs again and again for only a few seconds before pulling away. He laughed mockingly as she bent down to check on her friend, who was curled up and shaking. The skin of his rib cage was a bright and angry red, and Alexa bit her lip in dismay as she ran her hands across the marks. She felt pretty damn useless.

Dean watched as the Canadian bent over her friend, arms around him in a protective manner. All he was seeing was red; how dare she fucking push him off the canvas! Who the fuck did she think she was?

"Get up," he demanded harshly, leering as her head bent up to stare at him. Her confusion only lasted a second before an angry snarl replaced it, and she glared as she followed his instructions. He noticed, absentmindedly, that her fists were clenched' a sure sign of anger. He smirked. "What're you gonna do, doll-face? Slap me?"

She punched him.

His head snapped to the side from the force of the blow, mostly because he hadn't been ready. Shocked, he blinked a few times, before twisting his neck down at staring at her dangerously. She had hit him.

"Do you think that was funny?" He asked in a low voice, stepping close to her and sliding a hand into her hair, gripping her head from the base of her neck. His fingers dug into her skull as he shook her head. "Do you think you're gonna get away with that, sweetheart?"

"D-Don't touch her!" Punk coughed from the floor. Dean only laughed, his other hand grabbing her waist as he tightened his hold on her body as she began flailing, arms hitting his chest. He had the size advantage.

"Let's see if little ol' Punk over there can do anything about this, shall we?" He chuckled darkly, before yanking her flush against his chest and pressing his lips against her's harshly. A burst of flavour erupted in his mouth, causing him to moan slightly as he moved his lips against her's forcefully. It lasted a few, long seconds, Alexa flailing desperately the whole time.

Dean didn't regret the intrusion until he pulled away and locked eyes with her, finally seeing the broken look of distrust and agony deep within her cerulean irises.

A/N: /glares at Dean/ c'mon man, Roman said you'd behave! Reviews/comments are much appreciated, I hope you enjoyed! Next'll be the wrap-up of the match, and the reaction's to Dean's (stupid) actions.