Good To See You Again, Alice Cooper

Basking in Ace's fawning adoration as if the heiress a resplendent beacon of shimmering beauty, Gwendolyn took in every flattering compliment from her humble acolyte as if it was the gospel truth...which it most assuredly was. The ease with which Gwendolyn's mountainous ego was satiated only emboldened her moreso and made her fantasize about how exceedingly generous she was to bestow her blessings upon the downtrodden Haley.

"Ah, think nothing of it, Madam Haley. For what am I but a virtuoso artiste merely searching for a blank canvas whereupon I will create my next acclaimed masterpiece~..." Gwen imparted with her eyes closed and head tilted upward before looking back down at the flattering Haley.

"It may take no small amount of effort to cleanse yourself of all the grit, grime and black-eyes that come with associating yourself with the uncouth reprobates within the Hardcore division, but in time, you will have a sparkling radiance all your own~...perhaps with your own set of majestic silver-haired curls as well~..." Gwen stated with glimmering stars in her own eyes while imagining a haughty Ace with bobbing drills and ojou laugh.

"And never you mind paying me. What are friends for?...I...I actually am inquiring about this. This is what friends do for each-other, correct?" Gwen asked with complete sincerity in her honest, innocent eyes while still hand in hand with Ace. All of this clearly being uncharted territory for her…

Gwendolyn's expansive knowledge about all matters pertaining to the business world and daily experience managing a boardroom of cutthroat executives as the C.O.O. of her company...regrettably did little to familiarize herself with this wholly foreign situation of...well, just having a friend you do favors for. The doe-eyed innocence in her eyes giving way to a cheeky, blushed pout when her honest question was met with laughter and merriment.

But Gwen's lightened up after Ace's reassurance. Though she only just than realized she was doing a remarkably large number of favors for Haley...even if it was meant to reward Haley for her earlier fawning compliments. Upon seeing Ace's smile, Gwen just then felt a warm, comforting, and rather wholesome feeling her chest...which she promptly tried to ignore with a shake of her head, and instead promptly focused on Ace's question.

"HoHo~...your turn to be grilled in the proverbial hot seat, hmm? Let us see~..." Gwen pursed her lips to the side of her mouth while tapping her chin, looking off to the sides while in brief contemplation before getting her eureka moment with a perked up smile. "Ah, I know. Earlier, you offered to pay me for my services in regards to me designing your new outfit. While I indeed adamantly refused, I have little doubt that you actually do possess the capital to procure my services. Not that one would notice from first impressions, but you, Haley Cote, are substantially well off and are fiscally worth a great deal of money. Therefore, my question is..." Gwen raised her hand to brush some of the silver strands out of Haleys eyes so Gwen could better examine the cuts and bruises on her face.

"...why, in heaven's name, do you try so feverishly to hide the fact that you come from money? Your globe-trotting early wrestling years...your immersion into the distasteful barbarity of the Hardcore division...why, it's almost as if you actively seek to run away from your affluence and family lineage..."

One doesn't maintain leadership of a multinational conglomerate in her early twenties by not sharpening her mind to a serrated edge. Snuffing out ideas of corporate takeover's and eliminating dissenters in her company meany being able to pick up on the subtlest of social cues in someone's personality. And Haley was nothing if not methodical when it came to obfuscating her regal upbringing and the substantial wealth behind it. But Gwen had suspicions about Haley's posh background early on when they first tussled in their momentous Avalanche match. There was a certain elegance to Ace's gait that only comes with having a childhood surrounded by well-mannered etiquette coaches constantly correcting your posture as a lady. An in-depth background search by one of her butlers than confirming Gwen's suspicions.

Gwen propped her chin on her hand with a furrowed brow as she leaned forward while attempting to follow along with the winding words and twisting pathways of Ace's response. She briefly wondered if she should have taken offense to that last bit about not wanting to be seen as a rich spoiled b-...you know the rest. Gwen took a moment to mull over what Ace had said while leaning back and extending her legs now crossed over each-other. She tapped her fingers on the wooden beck to her sides for a few seconds before turning her head back to Ace.

"...that...is an egregious folly, I'm afraid. One cannot escape the circumstances of their birth no matter how hard they try. You were gifted a noble upbringing with a sterling silver spoon wedged comfortably into your mouth. And all of those cuts, bruises, and broken appendages aren't going to stop people from judging you for what you were born into, and how you had inherit advantages others would only dream of. Tis a brand burned into your skin that you will be judged with along with all of your accomplishments for the rest of your days I'm afraid, and I suggest you accept that fact post haste. Lest you enjoy endless trips to the hospital in your feverish attempt to run away and deny your past...or not. It's just a suggestion~..." Gwen concluded her insightful advice with a nonchalant shrug of her shoulders and smirk from the side of her mouth. This clearly being a topic she considered herself an expert at. "...and I'm going to assume that present company was excluded in regards to that "rich, spoiled" part. T'would be quite the shame if we ended this encounter on the same terms as we started it." Gwen added before something just than came to her mind, an sly smirk on her face with her gaze than being directed downward towards her feet.

"...*giggle*...a curious thought just occurred to me. Both of us were born into high class society and surrounded by unending opulence from an early age. But whereas you opted to forsake your aristocratic heritage...I embraced it wholeheartedly. It appears you and I are practically two sides of the same coin. It 's most interesting to see how my life may have turned out had I treaded down the other path~..."

There were undoubtedly fewer people more qualified than Gwendolyn to properly offer tutelage on this particular subject matter, that being the permanent branding that comes with being born into money and having opulent riches at your disposal for a lifetime. Gwendolyn did find it quite serendipitous that by conversing with Haley today by mere happenstance that she was able to catch a glimpse of how her life may have turned out had she opted to forgo her aristocratic lineage. It was a passing curiosity that had always nagged her in the more mundane, and trivial moments of her life...a fleeting query that she now had some semblance of an answer for now.

"Oh, don't misjudge. I hold no regrets in regards of the life decisions I've made to this very day. For you see~..." Gwendolyn interrupted herself by standing up from her bench to take a few steps forward, the haughty noblewoman than spinning in place before striking a theatrical pose with her snooty head tilted up and eyes closed as if she were preaching to the heavens. "...Where would the world be without my shining light to guide those low born commoners into aspiring above their innate and mundane mediocrity~...Such a task is only befitting of someone of such a noble and prestigious pedigree~..." Gwen concluding her pompous preening by than turning to face Haley with a hand on her curvy hip and her naturally curly hair having straightened out due to the humidity in the air.

"And you can consider today's bit of sagely wisdom, as well as your new outfit, on the house. Consider it a gift for providing me with such stimulating repartee this afternoon, but don't think I'll be so forthcoming when next we meet...now, what say we conclude today's spa session on that note. I DO have other matters to attend to this day..."

Gwendolyn spoke no falsehoods when she mentioned needing to conclude their quaint rendezvous so she could return adhering to the list of appointments on her stringent itinerary. She was pleased to have accomplished her yearly act of generosity, and converting a former foe into an ardent, humble disciple was most definitely an exemplary bonus to today's excursion. But now she was most definitely ready to resume her high-class lifestyle without anymore interrup-

"..."

Gwendolyn balked whilst stretching out her own spine, her arms which were raised to the ceiling than gradually coming down to her sides. She turned her head towards Haley with a stone cold glower that had no semblance of any lingering empathy, as if all of Ace's well-earned good will had vanished. A look of snooty irritation on Gwen's face as she stormed off in a huff towards the exit without another word being said...