To The Hotel - Day 0 (Part One)

Upon being transported away from the ring, Penelope and Kehlani both stumble with their first steps taken out into their new surroundings. While Penelope handles it gracefully enough to stay upright, Kehlani tumbles. However rather than her hands meeting the canvas or a hard floor, instead they sink inwards. Right into the plush carpet that extends from wall to wall, leaving not a single square inch uncovered. As Kehlani picks her head up, her eyes join Penelope’s in an overwhelming sense of wonder. No matter where they look, they see nothing but warm tones, as sunset hues coat the walls and craft the furniture all around them. Whatever isn’t done up in gradient reds, oranges, and yellows are accentuated in black. Of course, the centerpiece of the room is perhaps the most impressive of all: A sprawling bed fit for more than Penelope or Kehlani could provide on their own - or even combined, with a plaque hanging above the mahogany headboard that reads out one simple phrase:

“To find out who you are now, you must first look back to see exactly where it is that you currently stand.”

Pulling herself up to her feet, Kehlani’s mouth falls agape as she allows herself to explore the rest of the room. Instead of exploring the room however, Penelope opts to instead explore the contents of the basket that sits atop the table, pulling one of the chairs out from under the table so that she can sit down and unpack whatever’s inside.

“Wow… Look at this place, Penelope. I guess Serenity really did pull out all the stops, huh?” Kehlani turns towards Penelope, only to find her reading over a pamphlet of some kind. “O-Oh…” Kehlani laughs awkwardly. “I uh, I guess you would be accustomed to stuff like this, huh? Being a big star and all…”

As Penelope continues to ignore Kehlani in favor of the information that has been provided by Serenity, Kehlani shuffles off towards the bed. Sitting down on the edge of the mattress, Kehlani can’t help but flutter her legs, seeing as how she is unable to plant her feet on the carpet below. After a couple moments pass by in silence, Kehlani glances at Penelope, before averting her gaze once more.

“S-So… Why did you stop me?” Kehlani mutters, drawing the attention of Penelope onto herself.

When Penelope doesn’t respond, Kehlani looks down, the motion of her legs coming to a stop. She lets out a sigh, and is about to write her question off as meaningless babble when she feels the bed sink down next to her. Penelope sits beside her, her feet planted perfectly on the carpet. Kehlani’s glance flickers towards her, before she turns away entirely, the sudden eye contact between them surprising the smaller woman.

“You don’t know what your role here is, do you?” Penelope asks.

“W-What?” Kehlani stutters, finding herself caught off-guard by Penelope’s response.

“When each of us got transported here, Serenity made explicit mention of what our roles were here.” Penelope explains, her attention squarely on Kehlani. “But Serenity never told you what your role was, did she?”

Kehlani blinks, still struggling to keep eye contact with the woman she once viewed as a potential idol. “N-No…” She mutters, eyes naturally drifting to the furthest corner away from Penelope’s form. “She just said it would be, uhm… Difficult for me to win?” Kehlani responds, asking more than stating - an attempt to not make as much of a fool of herself in front of Penelope.

Penelope sighs. “...Kehlani, right?”

“Y-Yeah?” Kehlani looks towards Penelope.

“Good. I wanted to be sure I remembered your name.” Penelope softly states, nodding. “Serenity said that you were meant to be ‘The Jobber’.” She then adds bluntly, cutting right to the chase without any attempt of a buffer of some kind.

“O-Oh.” Kehlani’s face falls, the implication settling in. “...Oh…”

“I don’t know if she said it as some twisted form of joke, or if she genuinely wants you to lose just to make the rest of us look good.” Penelope’s face hardens. “But I don’t want you to lose.”

Kehlani’s expression shifts. Confusion spreads across her features, as a quizzical gaze falls upon Penelope. The bronzed woman mentally sighs, having the courtesy not to do so out loud.

“Let me put it to you this way, Kehlani. The reason that I stopped you was so that Serenity wouldn’t wrongfully punish you. Wouldn’t try to make an example out of you, like she did to Linda.”

“B-But… But Linda broke one of the rules, didn’t she?” Kehlani asks, fidgeting in her seat next to Penelope. “Her punishment was-”

Penelope’s gaze steels itself into a glare. “If your next words are anywhere along the lines of ‘deserved’ or ‘necessary’, then this conversation’s over.” Kehlani clamps up completely, shaking her head out of desperation more than anything else. “Sorry,” Penelope sighs, physically this time. “It’s just… Serenity, she…”

Penelope trails off, placing a hand upon her knee. She squeezes it once, twice. Almost testing it. Whatever damage had been there was completely gone. She barely noticed it beforehand, but now that things had calmed down? She felt… Rejuvenated. As if she didn’t even work a match before coming here. No, more than that. It’s as if she never worked a match in her entire career.

“What did Serenity do?” Kehlani asks, mistaking Penelope’s silent awe for fear. “W-What did she do to you?!” Kehlani repeats, louder, more frantic in her tone this time.

Penelope shakes herself out of her own thoughts. “She…” Penelope trails off again, taking stock of the frightened look on the face of her roommate. “She showed me something. Something I don’t think any of us could ever have been prepared for.” Penelope speaks softer, shows more vulnerability. “Y-You know how she mentioned elimination a couple of times?”

Penelope shudders, prompting Kehlani to do the same. “Y-Yeah?”

“W-Well… Serenity, she… S-She showed me what happens to those who get eliminated.” Penelope’s voice trails off as she speaks, getting quieter, more reserved.

“O-Oh…” Kehlani’s voice, for once, is louder than Penelope’s. “D-Do you… Do you want to-”

“NO!” Penelope lashes out, forcing Kehlani to jolt away.

Penelope glances at Kehlani, seeing her practically on the opposite side of the bed as she is now. She sighs, patting the spot Kehlani used to sit in.

“I’m sorry. It’s just what Serenity showed me.” Penelope waits for Kehlani to return to her original seat before continuing. “It’s stuff none of us should have to go through. Not even Renee deserves to be put through that.” Penelope’s emphasis elicits a gasp out of Kehlani. “But you, you said you wanted us to work together, right? Like what Serenity told us before?”

“Y-Yeah. Yeah!” Kehlani beams. “Serenity said that all of us can win, if we can just work together as a unit!”

Penelope nods. “Well, how would you like to team up with me, then? The two of us, working together, just to make sure neither of us get eliminated.”

Penelope’s offer causes Kehlani to gasp once more. The Jobber clasps her hands together for a moment, smiling wide.

“R-Really?! You… Y-You actually want to work together on this?!” Kehlani asks in disbelief.

“Of course.” Penelope smiles. “After all, with the two of us working together? It should be a breeze for us to reach 100 VP. Especially with you currently sitting at 2 VP already.”

Kehlani’s smile turns perplexed. “Two? How did I-”

Before she can finish that sentence, the realization hits her. Kehlani blushes as she remembers what happened after her transformation. Her hugging Serenity, as well as Christian…

“I-I, I didn’t realize-” Kehlani goes to defend herself, but Penelope waves it off.

“No worries. Honestly? I’m glad you did it.” Penelope states, further confusing Kehlani. “If you didn’t do that, then you’d be closer to elimination, right?”

Kehlani nods. “R-Right… Wait,” Kehlani’s gaze softens. “How did you know I was at 2 VP?”

Penelope gestures off to the now-empty basket sitting on the table, surrounded by its contents. Similar to the room itself, as well as seemingly the rest of The Palace at Harem Hotel based on her previous explanation, Serenity clearly put some care into the basket’s contents: Two boxes of chocolates that Penelope presumed to be luxury given her unfamiliarity with the brand name, a couple bottles of what seem to be massage oils, an assortment of scented candles, two electronic devices that vaguely resemble MP3 players, a bottle of champagne, a couple of booklets, two identical pairs of room keys, and another full-sized book that resembled two or three dictionaries smashed together in terms of page count.

“One of the things Serenity sent us was a pamphlet that tracks everyone’s VP and BP totals.” Penelope explains.

“Ohhh… Okay, that makes sense.”

Kehlani nods, before her eyes widen as recognition dawns upon them. Not from Penelope’s earlier words regarding Kehlani’s own safety from elimination, but from the implication within them.

“W-Wait, but… Aren’t you at zero VP, still?” Kehlani asks.

“Yeah?”

“Doesn’t that mean you’re in danger, Penelope? H-How are you going to keep yourself from being eliminated?!” Kehlani panics. “Serenity said that-”

“Kehlani, relax.” Penelope cuts her off, placing a hand upon her shoulder to try and get her to come down from her freakout. “It’s okay. Trust me. All I have to do is to keep my score positive. As long as I don’t lose any VP, I’ll be fine.”

Penelope reassures Kehlani, which allows the smaller girl to physically relax. Mentally however, her mind continues running; Something Penelope sees beneath Kehlani’s softened gaze.

“Look, just… You don’t have to worry about me, okay Kehlani?” Penelope says, the platinum blonde more making a statement rather than asking for Kehlani’s explicit permission. “We both have to wait until the end of the week for our nights with Christian, anyway. I’m sure by then at least one of us will have some sort of plan, and we will both be able to stay out of the negatives.”

After a few seconds, Kehlani nods. Getting up off the bed, Penelope grabs one of the room keys and heads for the door, motioning for Kehlani to follow her.

“Come on. I’m sure that you’re just as hungry as I am, going through everything we went through.”

Kehlani looks up at Penelope, before hopping off the bed. “I… Yeah, I guess. But do you even know where we’d be going?” The smaller girl asks.

Penelope chuckles. “Don’t worry about it. Just follow me. We’ll find somewhere to eat eventually.”

With that, the platinum blonde haired pro opens the door and strides out to the hallway. Before doing the same, Kehlani pauses. She looks back at the bed, and then to the door. A beat passes, and Kehlani opts to tag along with Penelope. Her stomach grumbles, and Kehlani can only hope it’s hunger settling in, and not her nerves kicking into high gear…

From the burgeoning friendship between two opposite ends of the spectrum when it comes to the roles they were assigned, one might think that things would work out a bit better between Linda and Nikkita. After all, a Manager/Monster pairing? An absolute classic in the world of professional wrestling. Here in the real world however? Well...

“I’m going to bed.”

Nikkita had called that out five minutes ago, before tossing off her woefully undersized clothing and almost literally crawling into bed; Her increase in height made the bed almost pitiful in comparison to her, yet all too looming from Linda’s point of view. While the lone bed is too vertically short for Nikkita to comfortably sit down upon, it is more than enough for her to lay in, her feet being the only part that hangs off the edge of the mattress, even with her head nearly making contact with the headboard on the opposite edge.

“She… She really is a monster now, isn’t she?” Linda thinks to herself, before internally panicking at her own thoughts. “Wait, no. Linda, what the hell are you thinking? It’s not like it’s her fault she got made into…” Linda’s thought drifts off, her eyes falling upon the slumbering giant once more. “...That.”

Taking a gulp of air, Linda steps away from the bed, instead turning her attention towards the gift basket. "There's absolutely no need to think of her that way whatsoever. She's still a person, Linda. Just like the rest of your coworkers were. Besides, at least she's not some pothead like Marty, or a horndog like your boss..." Shaking those thoughts out of her own mind, Linda begins rummaging through the contents, only for her to pause upon finding one of the booklets provided near the top of the pile.

“Bonus Point purchase table…?” Linda mutters to herself as she lets her eyes wander over the page.

Bonus Point Purchase Table*

• 500 BP: Challenge another contestant to a “Loser Leaves the Harem” match (Challenge must be issued and accepted immediately.)
• 500 BP: Key to the Master’s Suite (May be used to enter the Master’s Suite outside of weekly obligation. One-time use.)
• 1000 BP: Change your current entrance music (Host’s choice.)
• 1000 BP: Increase the severity of one of your Transformations (severity increase is permanent.)
• 1500 BP: Temporary random Transformation for self (Lasts for 24 hours after purchasing. Cannot be used more than once every 24 hours.)
• 1500 BP: Live audience for next training session at the HHW Performance Center (Favorable crowd reaction not included.)
• 2000 BP: Advanced knowledge of the next challenge (May not be shared with other contestants.)
• 2000 BP: Receive a dream that will reveal a way to please the Master (will trigger the next time the Purchaser sleeps.)
• 2500 BP: Suppress the effects of one Transformation for one day
• 2500 BP: Boost a Contestant’s libido for one day (Lasts for 24 hours after purchasing. Effects stack with multiple purchases.)
• 3000 BP: Choose the stipulation for your next match (Cannot be used to make a match impossible for your opponents to win. Details determined at the time of purchase.)
• 3000 BP: Change your current entrance music (Purchaser’s choice, which is determined at the time of purchase.)
• 3500 BP: Increase the severity of another Contestant’s Transformation (severity increase is permanent.)
• 3500 BP: Lower a Contestant’s libido for one day (Lasts for 24 hours after purchasing. Effects stack with multiple purchases.)
• 4000 BP: Trigger a vote for an additional Transformation for a Contestant of your choice
• 4000 BP: Boost a Contestant’s libido permanently (Effects stack with multiple purchases.)
• 5000 BP: Receive a “big match” entrance for your next Challenge Match (details determined at time of next scheduled Challenge Match.)
• 5000 BP: One day with the Master (On the Purchaser’s next scheduled night with the Master, if applicable, for a 24-hour period starting from 6:00 AM of that day, the Purchaser and the Master will be isolated from the other Contestants on an intimate date, the details of which will be determined at the time of purchase.)
• 7500 BP: Lower a Contestant’s libido permanently (Effects stack with multiple purchases.)
• 7500 BP: Change one of your Transformation paths (Permanently change one of your three Transformation paths to a different path chosen at random. You will still keep all Transformations from the previous path.)
• 10000 BP: Five Victory Points
• 10000 BP: Create your own custom HHW Championship (Upon purchase, the Purchaser and host will work out all details regarding the championship. All championships are to be defended during each challenge, barring stipulations placed by the Purchaser or host on any given championship.)
• 25000 BP: Creative Control Clause (Purchaser will be able to choose their next transformation out of the three options listed for their next transformation vote. This item is automatically used at time of vote.)
• 25000 BP: Iron Clad Contract (Purchaser will receive a totem that can be used before an elimination one time to prevent their own elimination. Totem may be traded but cannot be lost or stolen. Totem may not be used to avoid elimination as a result of losing a "Loser Leaves the Harem" match.)

*New options may be added to the store at the Host’s discretion. Costs and availability subject to change. For Contestant-Specific Purchases, see other side.

Reading over the list of options, Linda’s eyes widen at some of what is available. The Iron Clad Contract, in particular, is one that causes her to let out a soft, yet all too audible gasp. Linda’s head snaps towards the bed in an effort to check if she accidentally woke up Nikkita, but when she doesn’t catch any extraneous movement from her, Linda lets out a sigh.

“This… There are some real game-changers here!” Linda goes to flip over to the opposite side, but then stops herself. Her eyes linger on the lower-cost options, hovering particularly over those that cost 2500 BP or less. Setting down the booklet, Linda’s head turns back towards Nikkita, then back to the booklet. “Hmm, if only I could actually afford one of those options…” Linda muses, before she glances towards Nikkita once more.

Rising to her feet, Linda slowly inches closer to the slumbering giant, before her eyes fall onto the floor. Picking up the discarded clothing left behind by Nikkita, Linda heads over to the hamper to put it in its rightful place, only for her eyes to linger on the shirt that she holds in her hands. As she holds it up, Linda’s thoughts flash back to her earlier transformation - or rather, the lack thereof.

“...Only dependent on having a client, huh?” Linda softly mutters to herself, looking down at the shirt for a couple seconds longer before her brain catches up with what exactly it is she’s doing. “G-Gah!” Linda abruptly drops the shirt to the carpeted floor beneath her, a hand being brought to her heart out of fright.

A sense of alarm washes over Linda as her eyes turn once more to Nikkita. Upon finding her still asleep, Linda picks the shirt back up and dumps it into the hamper. As she closes the lid, Linda’s eyes wander over the sleeves of her suit jacket, before bringing one of her hands to tug at the fabric. Flickering her gaze over to Nikkita, Linda’s thoughts wander once more as she heads towards one of the two closets.

“Only dependent on having a client…” Linda mentally repeats to herself, as though it were a mantra for her to follow along to. “At least that means I’ll still be able to retain my sense of autonomy, right? As long as I don’t take someone on as a client, I won’t have to worry about dressing up like them.” Idly lost in her own thoughts, Linda’s hands drift through the fabric of the shirts hung up in front of her, before pausing at the odd tactile sensations they provide. “Huh? That’s odd. I don’t remember having a shirt like this back home…” Linda continues to rub her hand against the fabric. “It feels nice though. Soft, probably barely used… I should wear this more often.”

As Linda continues to feel up the fabric of the aforementioned mystery shirt, Linda’s eyes glance over to the dresser in the closet… Only for them to widen in response to the sight of a framed picture sitting at the very top. One that depicts Nikkita and someone who Linda can only presume to be related to her hugging each other, the both of them looking quite happy to be in each other’s presence.

Letting out a shriek of fright, Linda scurries away from the closet door, slamming it shut as she not only backpedals from the closet, but rushes away from the bedroom entirely. Moving into the living room, Linda rummages through the welcome basket in order to grab one of the two provided room keys, and scurries out the door and into the hall, not wanting to face the embarrassment of her actions any further than she already has.

As Linda flees from her own actions, a low groan emerges from the bed as Nikkita shifts her position. Sitting up, Nikkita looks to the still open door with a mixture of tiredness and annoyance. Forcing herself up out of bed, she shambles to the door and pulls it shut. The sound of the door slamming against the frame causes Nikkita to wince, before it turns into a grumble of irritation.

Re-entering the bedroom, Nikkita glances at the floor, only to find that her clothes have already been picked up by what she presumes to be her roommate’s doing. Taking in a deep breath, Nikkita opens up her closet and blindly reaches in for a shirt to cover herself with. As she pulls one off of its hanger, Nikkita throws it on without even checking for which shirt she had grabbed. The soft fabric which once fit her body fine enough now clings to her chiseled figure - something that makes her lack of bra all the more obvious to anyone that looks at her for more than a mere glance.

Before she can reach for a pair of shorts to do the same as her choice in shirt however, Nikkita finds herself staring at the same picture that Linda found herself looking at earlier. Her eyes linger on the image of her and her sister smiling together, the sight of it only further irritating the newfound towering presence among the show’s cast.

Growling to herself, Nikkita flips the picture frame face-down before turning herself around, opting to forego shorts entirely as she crawls back into bed, throwing the covers over her form and forcing the side of her head against the pillow.

“Why? Why couldn’t this have gone to someone else? Why do I have to be the big, bad monster?” Nikkita asks herself, grabbing the sheets and yanking them over her head to further darken the rather bright room she finds herself in.

Walls of golden yellows and forest greens intermingle with white highlights and solid oak wood furnishings. All to provide a room that - despite its earthly appeal in both color choice and overall design - only serves to highlight a single message: The same one that adorns the plaque nailed right above the headboard. The one that, upon her entering the room, Nikkita had stared at for a solid few seconds, before making the abrupt decision to head to bed early.

“No matter who you are, or what your standings are, when you’re here at The Palace, everyone’s got a price.”

Just thinking of that phrase causes Nikkita’s body to tense up. Visions of Serenity’s obnoxious cackling dance around The Monster’s skull, bringing regret to the forefront of her mind. Regrets such as not just shoving Christian aside, but also wrapping her hands around the host’s throat and showing her exactly what her ‘Gimmick Tweak’ did to her grip strength. But instead Nikkita stepped aside, refused to give into those urges… And not because of some possible transformation being tacked on as punishment, either. Instead, it was due to a completely different reason.

“Serenity… She’s just like everyone else. Just someone else trying to put me down. Trying to make me into some sideshow act…”

As Nikkita’s thoughts begin to trail elsewhere, her grip on the pillow beneath her head tightens. The dark olive green pillowcase begins to darken even further as wet stains appear right where Nikkita’s tightly shut eyes press against it.

“You heard Renee. She thinks you’re a failure. Too clumsy. Just like everyone else did. It’s why nobody wanted to work with you, you… You giant freak.” Tears continue to pour down Nikkita’s face as her thoughts spiral further. Deeper. Harsher. “The only way anyone would ever work with you was for you to injure them, too. To make the fans feel sympathy for them. That’s all you’re good for, Nikki. To make everyone else around you look better by comparison.” Nikkita howls into the pillow, muffling her own sobs between shaky breaths both taken in and exhaled through her quivering lips. “That's why she always hung around you, you know? Just to make herself look even better than she already does. She was the one who got all the curves! All the brains! What did you get?! These… These stupid, dumb, useless muscles?!" Nikkita's howling sobs reach a fever pitch. The next words no longer are able to remain internalized. "Face it Nikkita, you're just FUCKING WORTHLESS!”

As her thoughts continue to cloud her own emotions, the crescendo of her internal screaming comes to an end. The silence lasts for minutes on end, Nikkita not moving an inch. The tension in her body fades. Her grip on the pillow loosens, as its damp marks begin fading, seeping further into the fabric itself. Nikkita shifts her head, laying to the side. The only sound she makes is that of sniffling. Her mind presses onward, despite itself.

“...That’s all you are, Nikkita. Just some mindless brute that no one in their right minds would ever want for anything more than some extra strength.” Bringing a hand to her chest, where once Nikkita found flatness she now finds flesh. More of it than she ever felt before. That still is not enough however, as it only adds more fuel to the spiteful fire. “Even with these sacs of fat that Serenity gave you, it doesn’t change the truth. They don’t want you, Nikkita. They want your strength. Your body. To make themselves look better than you. Because that’s exactly what they are.” Nikkita flops backwards, her new proportions making it easier to rest lying face-up than it is on her side. As she stares at the ceiling, Nikkita slowly starts drifting off. Another miserable end to another miserable day...