#i suspect that my future job will involve studying the ground in some way

[radioactive-worm-on-string]

WHY AM I ONLY INTERESTED IN ACADEMIC FIELDS THAT HAVE NO JOBS

[scavengerfive]

An Ornament Hung

Another year, another Abel Secret Santa fic. I went a bit overboard with this one, but I hope @when-sanpape-arts enjoys their Secret Santa gift. Sam wasn’t the best beta last time, so I got Maggie and Rajit to help me this year. Still, without any good proofreading softwares on Rofflenet, there was only so much we could do.

I would like to thank @runnerzero, @notforconsumption, and @goblinsharkz for putting all of this together and posting it on the Noticeboard (did Janine clear it?).

This takes place in some obscure limbo of my first year in Abel (OOC: though there are some mentions of future characters - though no real spoilers). Merry Christmas! Hpappy Holidays! Enjoy before my neuroticism kicks in, and I start editing every single mistake I spot.

Summary: You're not quite sure if you believe he is who he says he is, but he does have the laugh and the sleigh. Plus, his reindeer almost ran you over. He needs your help to save Christmas, but you're leaving it up to him to convince Janine because you'd rather not have latrine duty... again.

---

“Good job, Five!” Sam crowed after you exited the shop, shoving the doors shut behind you and quickly pushing over a pile of molding wooden beams to block them. “That should keep those zombs from following you. Did you get the supplies?”

You tapped the headset twice and looked down at your bag, holding it open so your head cam could see the inside, then you took off, keeping an eye out for any stray zombies that had splintered off from the horde you had just trapped. You hadn’t expected them to follow you in, but you made sure they couldn’t follow you out.

“Fantastic! Come on home then, Five,” Sam continued. “You did magnificent today. I’m sure I can convince Rajit to let you have a hot shower when you get back. Just go on right ahead and make a right when you get to the sign up the road. Head due west. You shouldn’t run into anything too big. Maybe a few shamblers, but you can stay ahead of them, right, Five?”

You tapped three times this time and beamed when he laughed.

“Cheeky, Five. Now, just ahead, you might have to--hold on, what’s this? I see something on the scanner… I can’t--wait--no… I don’t--hey, Five. Do me a favor and take the next two lefts and head towards the block of flats by the old theatre. I need your eyes--well, your head cam’s eyes--eye? Just--turn here.”

You knew Abel was the other way, but you trusted Sam and followed his directions without hesitation. It looked like something interesting caught his attention, and his curiosity demanded to be satiated, using you as its vessel. Not that you minded, and now, you were intrigued as well.

As you approached the flats, you could hear the ambient moans of zombies growing louder as you neared, and you took extra care to be quiet and stealthy in case you stumbled upon any. You crouched by a wall, sliding along it. Your nose had just about grown numb to the rancid scent on the wind, yet you had to swallow back a gag nonetheless.

There was an unfamiliar panting and grunting noise also gaining volume as you stalked towards the junction. You leaned forward to peek. The scattering of pebbles and sounds of clopping and, strangely, bells were your only warnings before a brown form barreled around the corner. You jumped back, tripped over a crack in the pavement, and fell on your bum, scrapping your palm on the rough ground.

“Five?” Sam called, sounding baffled. “Was that--was that a reindeer?”

Your head whipped around, and you caught sight of the tailend of the creature before it disappeared down the road. You tapped twice.

“Last time I checked, reindeer were not a native species in these parts. Perhaps, it escaped a zoo--or a sanctuary. Do we have any of those near here? And--am I mistaken, or did it have bells on it?”

You pushed yourself to your feet and jogged around the junction in the direction where the reindeer had come from. You could definitely hear more than a few zombies ahead.

“It should be just ahead, Five,” Sam said as you skulked. “I can see a horde of zombies surrounding a house. I think there is someone trapped on the roof. They might need help. Think you’re up for it?”

Tapping twice, you sped up, following the moans.

“Um… Five? Is that--is that a sleigh? On its side?”

Yes. Yes, it was. It was tipped over on its side, one of its runners up in the air. The red painted wood was scratched and splintering in spots, and there were reins from the front rail piled on the ground, torn or unhooked. A red sack was tumbled out of the back, deflated on the ground.

“Oh, no. Tell me you’re not about to be chased by zombie Santa and his elves, Five,” Sam whined. “That would be so not holly jolly.”

You prodded the bag with your foot. It seemed to be empty, and you contemplated picking it up when you heard a deep voice bellow over the moans of the zombies just out of sight.

“Oh, ho, ho, no! Dasher! Dancer! Prancer! Vixen! Come back here! Comet! Cupid! Donder! Blitze--where is Blitzen? Comet? Where is-- no! Back here! Chocolate fudge!”

You easily found the owner of the voice, and… Sam wasn’t too far off. A crowd of maybe fifteen zombies or so surrounded a two story house, its front door broken open. You suspected some may be inside, but the ones outside had their attention fixed upward where a familiar (in reputation) figure was on the roof. He limped along the edge of the roof, scratching his great white beard. His other hand was clutching a red hat with a white poof at the end, an accessory to the bright suit he wore over his rotund frame.

Your brain short circuited, but where you were rebooting, Sam was freaking out.

“Five! It can’t be! No! Come on!” he denied before flipping completely the other way. “Santa! It’s Santa! Five, that’s Santa! The Kris Kringle Saint Nick Santa! Surrounded by zombies! Santa is surrounded by zombies! Santa is about to be bitten by zombies and turned into a zombie! Father Christmas is about to be zombied!”

The radio operator inhaled loudly, reclaiming the air he had expelled with that breathless outpour.

“Five, you have to save him! If he dies, Christmas is over! You have to save Christmas!”

You tapped four times, and Sam quieted, letting you focus. You didn’t have time to think too hard on whatever was happening or who exactly you were seeing, but you did know how to help someone in a crisis like this. This was familiar.

You pulled out your noisemaker and turned it on before leaving your cover. Zombies were immediately attracted to the newer, more persistent noise, and you soon had a tail that you began to lead away from the house.

“Cut through those two building, Five,” Sam directed, sounding a bit calmer, falling into routine, but he still had a manic tinge to his voice. “If you hop that fence, you can lose them and circle back! Yes, that one. Oh, brilliant, Five! You went right over it. No problem. Okay, left around this house, and back to… Santa. Santa! Five!”

Four taps as you made your way back to the house, noisemaker off and back in your pocket.

“...but it’s Santa Claus, Five. Okay. Okay. I’ll calm down.”

The… man was still on the roof when you approached it. There were about two zombies still persistently moaning up at him. You unclipped your bat, and sneaking up on one, you whacked it from behind, nearly taking its whole head off. The body squelched on the ground, and you quickly dispatched the next one that turned to you. It was over in seconds.

“Oh, hello, Runner Five!”

You looked up at the greeting.

“...you know Santa, Five?”

Sam had no right sounding that betrayed, and you were just confused. How did he know who you were?

“It seems you are here to help me out of this pickle I’ve got myself in,” Santa (?) said jovially, like he wasn’t trapped on a roof. “I’m afraid I cannot get down the same way I got up. My ride seems to have suffered a--tragic accident. By the way, have you seen any reindeer? They wandered off.”

“...no. No way,” Sam exclaimed.

You just--you couldn’t--you walked around the house, locating a small shed by the back. You pushed at the door, the swollen wood resisting a bit before giving. Holding your bat at ready, you slipped in. It smelled musty rather than decaying, and you saw a few abandoned tools and supplies which you began to pack into your bag, wishing you had collected that sack (Santa’s sack?). There was a ladder like you had hoped, and you grasped it, lifting slash dragging it behind you.

“Ah, yes. That should work brilliantly,” Santa said as you reappeared, not looking the slightest bit concerned that you had abandoned him. “You are a clever one, aren’t you?”

You extended the ladder and leaned it against the side of the house, holding its side to steady it. “Santa” moved slowly, swinging a leg onto a rung and working his way down the ladder until he was on the ground again--like a normal person--not that this was the first person you’ve seen on a roof--but his roof activity had implications that didn’t just involve being trapped by the undead.

You backed up as he brushed his suit off and plopped his hat back on his head, eyeing him warily.

“Five?” Sam called quietly. “Does he really have ruddy cheeks?”

...who didn’t in this weather?

“Runner Five,” Santa said in a deep, warm voice with a great big smile. “I am so grateful you came along to help me. I must say I found myself quite puzzled on how to get myself out of that situation.”

“Does this mean you are on the Nice List?” Sam asked, then gasped. “Five, ask him if he has a Nice List? Am I on it?”

You tapped three times, and "Santa’s" gaze followed your hand as it dropped. He looked intrigued.

“Oh, is that Sam?” he asked, eyes studying the headset.

You froze while Sam squeed.

“HE KNOWS MY NAME!”

“Mr. Yao, what is going on in here?”

“Oh-um, Janine…”

“Why isn’t Five back yet with the equipment?”

“Um--you see--the thing is, Janine--that--”

You gestured at "Santa" to follow, and he started limping after you. Now that he was on ground level, you could see a wound through his torn trousers's left leg, but you couldn't see what kind. Nowadays, it was really important to know the cause. You stopped, unwilling to risk it. He looked at you expantantly, and you gestured at his leg.

"Ah, this old thing? Well, not old," "Santa" amended, both of you clearly seeing the still drying blood. "One of the runners of my sleigh caught my leg when my reindeer startled and took off without me. They're still not used to the current state of things unfortunately and can be quite skittish."

...whatever.

“Mr. Yao," Janine pushed, and you could almost hear her arms-crossed stance of pure intimidation.

“...Five just saved Santa!" Sam broke.

"...what? Mr. Yao, must I remind you that Santa Claus is not real?"

"Have you seen my sleigh by the way? Or any of my reindeer?" "Santa" asked, once again tailing you as you headed back towards where you had originally come and towards Abel. "I will be needing them if I am to fulfill my seasonal duty and get back home."

He was really committing to the role, wasn't he? Though, you had to give him points. You were almost run over by a reindeer.

"Uh-Five just sa--look for yourself!" Sam exclaimed at his wit’s end. “Five, look at him again.”

There was a rustling, and you turned your head, making sure your head cam was facing “Santa”. He waved.

“Hello, Janey,” he greeted, beaming. “It’s been a long time, hasn’t it? How is little Tommy doing? Haven’t heard from you two in a long time.”

Sam’s sounds were pitched and incoherent, but Janine’s voice, low and tight, was clear, and you suppressed a shiver.

“Bring him in, Runner Five,” she ordered. “I would like to have a chat with him.”

“Janine! You cannot interrogate Santa!”

“Oh…” Santa breathed when you led him around the junction, and he spotted his sleigh. “Oh, dear.”

He limped over to it, and you followed after him, keeping an eye out for any of the zombies you had led astray earlier. Sam was supposed to be your eyes in the sky, your guy in the chair, but he clearly was trying to wrap his mind around this situation. You understood Janine’s wariness because you were too. How did this stranger not only know who was on the other side of the link but also all of their names?

“Who’s Tom?” Sam asked.

“No one. Forget you ever heard that name. Get Runner Five home.”

“...and she is gone,” Sam said after a pause. “An open book, isn’t she, Five?”

“Santa” caressed the side of the sleigh, his gloves catching on the splinters, and he pulled back. For the first time since you’d encountered him, he looked somber. You watched him walk around it then slowly crouch to examine the reins. He grasped a torn end, frowning. Abruptly, he dropped it and stood, brushing off his gloves and smiling at you.

“I suppose I must go with you to Abel,” he said, bending over to pick up the red sack by the sleigh and throw it over his shoulder. “It was one of my stops. I think I’m going to need your runners’ help.”

Sam inhaled, and you buckled in for his next outburst.

---

Despite his bum leg, “Santa” managed to keep up with you (after you slowed down a bit). As Sam yelled, “Raise the gates!”, you and “Santa” passed under a hail of bullets and through the outer gate. As the siren blared and quieted, a guard stepped forward to do your bite checks, eyeing “Santa” with bewilderment.

“Hello, George,” “Santa” said with a warm smile. “Is Lizzie doing well?”

George stopped in the middle of your examination and stared wide-eyed at the “Santa”. So did you.

“How-how-do I know you?” George sputtered, half between reaching for his weapon, but he looked more confused than hostile.

“Not as well as you used to, but Lizzie did mention that she was worried about you since her mum got hurt.”

“How--when have you spoken to my daughter?”

You caught George before he could get too close to “Santa”, and another guard steped forward to guide him back.

“Thank you, John,” “...Santa?” said offhandedly, looking at George. “I haven’t had the pleasure of talking with the young lady, but she still wrote a letter this year despite the apocalypse.”

“You expect me to believe you’re actually Santa Claus?”

As usual, some people were drawn by the gate sirens, curious to see who was out of the township and what they brought back, but instead of wandering off, they stopped to stare, calling over other people until a small muttering crowd was beginning to form. It’s not everyday that Santa comes to town.

“I don’t expect belief from anyone,” “Santa?” said, unmoved by the tension. “I am who I am. Hello, Sam!”

You turned to see the radio operator squeezing his way through the crowd, his headset hanging off center around his neck. He forced himself through, stumbling forward as he pulled himself free. Stopping, he stared, eyes wide.

“...Santa?” Sam called out tentatively, clutching his hoodie.

“It’s good to see you, Sam,” “Santa (...what?)” said kindly. “I’m sorry to hear about your engineering degree, but I’m glad you’re putting your interests to use to help your friends.”

Sam lit up and rushed forward.

“I--it’s nothing really,” he said, suddenly bashful. “I just talk people’s ears off and hopefully get them out of trouble.”

“Sam, don’t tell me you believe him,” George said incredulously, still glaring at “...Santa”.

“I mean--look at him,” Sam said, gesturing at “Santa (...?)”. “And Five found his sleigh and almost got ran over by a reindeer. Tell them, Five!”

You flashed a thumbs up when the guards looked for confirmation.

“He was probably a mall Santa,” George countered.

“Or just crazy,” John added quietly, speaking up for the first time.

“Mr. Jones and Mr. Monroe, did you finish conducting the routine bite checks?” Janine’s stern voice cut through.

The two men startled to see Janine who had somehow managed to sneak up on all of them. “Santa (...)” smiled cheerfully at her.

“No, ma’am,” George mumbled.

“Get to it then.”

John dealt with “Santa (... …)” while George finished up your examination, all the while Janine watched with Sam buzzing next to her.

“Mr…?” Janine prompted as you both were cleared, and you handed over your bag to have the supplies emptied and sorted.

“Claus,” “Santa (...?)” supplied. “Or Kringle if you’d rather. I do prefer Kris.”

You could roll with that. Kris was shameless in the face of Janine’s disapproval, but it’s not like she could make him say otherwise.

“Mr. Kringle,” Janine said, her face twitching, but she maintained her cool demeanor. “I would like to have a private word with you.”

“I usually wouldn’t deny your request,” Kris started, “but I must say I have an urgent matter that I would like to discuss that I do not believe we would have time to get to if I allow you to question me.”

“And what is that?”

“I am incapable of completing my route without my sleigh and my reindeers, and I believe I need the help of your runners to complete my task.”

“You must be joking. Are you suggesting--?”

“Janey--um, Ms. de Luca,” Kris interrupted, correcting upon receiving Janine’s death glare. “I would not joke about such a matter. It is my job to maintain hope in this season, and with the world in such a state, it is ever more critical that Christmas--”

“Mr. Kringle! I do not have tim--”

“Must I prove it then?” Kris said, his gaze sharp.

Janine opened her mouth then closed it after a moment of deliberation. Folding her arms, she shifted her weight onto one leg, hip jutting, and gestured at him to continue. The small crowd had grown larger and nearer, eager to see the outcome of this. You could see Jody pushing her way to the front with Simon just behind.

“I usually depend on the unconditional belief of children and the few older True Believers,” Kris said, glancing at Sam for a moment who saw the look and gasped. “But if I must make you believe to gain your help, so be it. Runner Five, please take this.”

You grasped the sack he handed you. It was light and, looking in, appeared to be empty. Kris rubbed his hands together then reached into the bag, pulling out a wrapped box that was definitely not in there before. Your jaw dropped.

Peering at the name on the little card, Kris called, “Molly Harrison.”

There was a pause before you heard Ed shout out, “No, Molly! Come back!”

The little girl appeared, pushing through the legs of the larger folks around her. Her cheeks were rosy from the cold under her wide eyes that stared up at Kris. She toddled forward, clutching Mr. Rabbit in her arms, just as her father caught up, swinging her up in his arms despite her squirming to get away.

“Ed,” Kris greeted, stepping closer carefully and holding out the box. “I’m sorry about Becca.”

Ed scowled but took the gift, looking around at everyone watching him.

“And what’s this then?”

“Something for Molly and Mr. Rabbit.”

Ed did a double take, scrutinizing Kris before putting his daughter down. When he was sure she wasn’t going to run off, her mood shifting towards bashful as she clutched her father’s trousers, hiding behind them, he unwrapped the box. He pulled out a knitted hat, turning it over before freezing.

“Where did you get this?” Ed breathed tightly.

Sam perked up like you while Janine shifted subtly forward to see what was off. It was a knitted blue cap Molly’s size with a white “M” woven into it.

“She started it early,” Kris said gently. “She needed to keep her hands busy, but she didn’t get to finish Mr. Rabbit’s, so I did the honors.”

“Mr. Harrison,” Janine prompted after Ed stared at Kris for so long.

“Um--it’s Becca’s work,” he said, having to clear his throat a few times. “She made me one just like this a few years ago, with an “E”, you know--for um Ed... and she said she wanted to make one for Molly because it would get cold, and she didn’t want the cold to get Molly anymore than dem zombs.”

He swallowed, looking down at Molly who was toying with his trousers, obliviously gnawing on her stuffed rabbit’s ear. He turned the hat inside out and pointed at the thread.

“Here. You see this knot,” Ed said. “Even though you’re not really supposed to, she always knots the end three times after she weaves the finishing stitch back in just to make sure it won’t come loose… I know this is her work, but I haven’t seen it before.”

The box was tilted enough in his slack grip to show a smaller matching hat with an embroidered “R”.

“Five,” Kris called, keeping a gentle eye on Ed, and you stepped forward. “I usually don’t have gifts for adults, barring a few, but I thought this year needed to be extra special.”

Kris reached into the definitely empty sack and pulled out a smaller box (f-ck that), handing it to Ed who took it after staring at it for a few seconds. He didn’t hesitate to open this one, and he revealed a few compact disc cases, newer looking than anything you’ve seen in a while. You could see race cars on the cover.

“How…” Ed trailed off, and he looked at Kris with a look of growing awe and disbelief. “You can’t be.”

Kris grinned, tapping his nose. A slow smile crossed Ed’s face before he let out an abrupt laugh, shaking his head. You ignored Sam repeatedly slapping your arm, incoherently squealing under his breath.

“I think I’m going crazy,” Ed muttered then added a quiet, “Thank you,” with a small but sincere smile.

“Take care of this special girl,” Kris said.

Kris waved at Molly who waved back shyly, babbling and giggling. Ed packed all the gifts back into the larger box and picked up Molly, balancing everything and stepping back, still staring at Kris.

“A--an intriguing display, Mr. Kringle,” Janine said slowly. “However, I do not bel--”

“Not done yet, dear,” Kris interjected (casually missing her glare this time), reaching in the sack that you helpfully held up, curious to see where this was going.

“What he get you, mate?” you could hear Simon questioning Ed.

“Driving games. I… I told Jack and Eugene I wanted a few,” Ed muttered, pulling the knitted hat on over Molly’s head then one on Mr. Rabbit, much to the tot’s excitement.

��George, for you and Lizzie,” Kris said, tossing the gifts to the hovering guard then reaching in for more.

He started calling out names, and each person came forward, at first with caution and exchanged glances. But as gifts were unwrapped with shocked gasps or excited exclaims, there was less hesitation each time, an eager energy taking over the gathering. Rajit started crying when he unwrapped a professionally printed version of his novel. George stood stunned, clutching the doll Lizzie had been asking for and the old board game they used to play as a family on game nights.

“Okay, okay! Everyone calm down!” Janine yelled, dampening the growing cacophony. “Please move along.”

There were protests, but eventually everyone but the runners and Sam left (though people hovered nearby). Sam had his hood pulled tight over his head, vibrating in place. Janine turned to Kris who was waiting with a satisfied expression. She pinched her nose before looking heavenward.

“I--I cannot believe I am saying this, but um,” Janine managed before sighing. “...what do you need us to do, Mr. Kringle?”

Sam whooped.

---

“All right, Runners! Are you ready to save Christmas?” Sam said through your headset an hour later, his voice giddy.

No one had managed to calm him down since Kris asked if he could sit with him in the comms shack, his leg making him unable to help with the physical journey. You readjusted the red sack you had tossed over your shoulder, identical ones in the hands of the other runners. Kris had pulled more out of his original “dimensionally transcendental or perhaps it contains a transversable Einstein-Rosen wormhole--how do you keep it from collapsing without an infinite source of exotic matter--the implications it has on the modified theory of general relativity blah blah blah” (according to Chris who you ended up tuning out) “Magic Sack of Wonders” (according to Sam).

“Let’s get this show on the road,” Simon said through the comms link.

“Ready, Sam,” confirmed Jody.

“Ready as I’ll ever be,” Sara sighed, done with everything before it even started.

A cherry “Ready!” from Maggie, “Let’s get this done” from Evan, confusing muttering from Chris’s side of the link, and affirmations from the rest of the runners. You tapped twice, and the siren blared at Sam’s direction.

“Raise the gates!”

---

“So, what’s the plan, Sam?” Sara said minutes later after you and she split up from the other runners who had other settlements as their destinations. “One that won’t have New Canton shooting us down where we stand. Five and I are not exactly on their Nice List. Not after the stunts we pulled.”

Jody and Simon were heading to Brunswick, Maggie and Chris to Red Settlement, Fiona and Charlie to New Skoobs, and Evan and Bonnie were making the long journey to Mullins, planning on taking one of the motorbikes Ed had told them about for part of the journey.

“Um--you each have those tree ornaments S-Santa gave you?” Sam said, voice cracking.

“If you die from overexcitement on us...” Simon jokingly threatened through your headset.

The radio operator giggled manically then cleared his throat, quietly coaching himself to some level of calm under his breath.

“We’ve got them, Sam,” Jody responded.

“Good. Good. So, they, um--they’re magical ornaments, and they uh make people trust you more--am I getting that right, Santa?”

“Magic’s not real,” Chris muttered. “If anything, it would be complex scientific phenomena that we cannot yet explain. If I could ju--”

“Maybe later, Chr--uh Ten. Okay?” Maggie soothed, diverting him from another ramble.

The relief was shared and audible among you all, more than one sigh coming through the link.

“Call me Kris please, Sam,” Kris said before speaking to you all, casually over the wheeze of the radio operator. “They each contain a remnant of what some would call the Spirit of Christmas… or of the Holidays. When you turn them on, they should remind everyone in your vicinity of the holiday season, what it smells like, tastes like, sounds like to them.”

“You can’t be--”

“It’s okay, Chris. You can debate Santa later.”

“People tend to be calmer and more welcoming in response,” Kris continued, ignoring the interruptions. “Just don’t turn them on too soon, or you may find yourself too relaxed to react to threats in your environment, say… the zombies approaching Runner Seven’s projected route from the east. Sam?”

“Right, Sa-Kris,” Sam said, taking a breath before continuing. “Runner Seven, I need you to speed up. You should be able to pass ahead before they intersect you.”

“Got it, Sam,” Evan said. “Come on, girl. Let’s outrun some zombies.”

You heard Bonnie bark once excitedly, and the Head of Runners chuckled. You and Sara were making good time, and you figured you could be there and back before the sun set too much--assuming New Canton actually cooperated and didn’t--you know--mow you down with prejudice. Kris was humming under his breath, and you snickered when you recognized “Run, Rudolph, Run”.

“So… Kris,” Sam said after a few minutes, trying and failing to sound casual. Kris hemmed, and Sam continued, “Do you read all the letters sent to you every year?”

“As many as I can. I get quite a lot,” Kris said. “When I’m working, sometimes, I’ll have an elf read them outloud to me.”

“Really?”

Kris chuckled.

“Nah… I mean, not anymore. It’s not the Dark Ages--the original one anyways. I have an audio program on my computer that can read them to me.”

“Wow… Five, Eight, turn left up ahead. You’re almost to New Canton.”

“Can see it up on the hill,” Sara responded. “Ready on your mark.”

“Good. Wait until you are spotted.”

“Received.”

The old castle grew larger on the horizon, and you and Sara took a less direct route, hoping to get closer, so they could be in vocal range and not just rifle range.

“I’ve seen your letter on Rofflenet,” Kris said.

Sam choked, coughing. You tapped the headset once paused then twice.

“I’m fine, Five,” he assured, voice rough. “What do you mean? I didn’t--I haven’t written a letter in years--I mean--”

“Sam, I have received a letter from you every year since you’ve learned to write, and I’ve read every single one of them,” Kris said gently. “There’s nothing to be ashamed of. There is nothing wrong with being a True Believer. It’s actually remarkable you’ve managed to hold onto your belief in the magic and joy of Christmas all these years.”

“My mum--she would help me write them when I was a kid,” Sam admitted. “And when I was older, she would ask me if I wrote mine yet. I thought I was too old to be writing to Santa, but she said you’d be sad if I stopped. I guess--I just…”

“I’m sorry about your parents, Sam, but I’m certain they’d be proud of you if they were here.”

There was a sharp, wet inhale before the line was cut from the comms shack. You looked at Sara, but she had her eyes forward, scanning the castle looming before you. You could just make out figures on the high walls when an intercom came to life.

“Runners from Abel Township! Stop where you are, or we will shoot to kill!” a soldier’s voice boomed over your heads. “You have some nerve coming this way again!”

“Five,” Sara called, pulling out her ornament and clutching it tightly. “Time to--oh, G-d. I can’t believe I’m about to say this.” She breathed. “Time to turn on our magical ornaments.”

You grinned at the pain in her voice, pulling your ornament until the halves separated. Turning them in opposite directions, you pushed them back together with a click. There was a pause. You held your breath.

The ornament began to light up, and you could hear the crackling of firewood and heady taste of cinnamon and apples coated your tongue. Your mouth started watering, chest panging as you took a deep breath filled with the strong scent of roasted pine cones.

“Do not make me repeat my--what…” the voice faltered. “What is…? Do you smell cookies, Tim? It’s… double chocolate chip and fudge. Just like my Nan’s… I--I haven’t smelled…”

The intercom died, and you could see figures converging before a few split off and disappeared below. The longer you stood there, the warmer your fingers felt, like when you would stretch them out over the flames. You heard a quiet sniff, but Sara was already turning away, a hand subtly brushing over her face. You looked forward again.

The intercom came on again.

“Abel Runners! Approach with your hands in the air! Guards will meet you at the gate! You better have a good reason for being here!”

“--aven’t heard this song since my pa--” another voice said in the background.

The intercom cut off, and you and Sara looked at each other before holding up your hands and walking forward.

---

It went--as well as one could expect. You endured the jeers from the guards that gave way to shock then confusion and elation as you did what had worked at Abel. When you reached into your “empty” bag, rifles aimed at you, you always found your fingers brushing one box more with the name of an individual present. When you handed it over to the suspicious recipient, you got to watch the skepticism melt away as their eyes widened, unbidden smiles breaking through.

Each reaction caused your smile to grow larger, a warm feeling filling you as eyes lit up. You were starting to get really into this, and you could even see Sara bantering with the guards and joining in with the teasing when guards got gifts that, though it was something they wanted, was a bit embarrassing to open up around their fellow colleagues.

“Do you have a central area where we can leave these, Robbie?” Sara asked the guard from the intercom who had a great sense of humor that didn’t come across when he was threatening to shoot… figures. “At this rate, we’ll be here all week.”

“This way,” Robbie said, a small smirk on his face as he dramatically bowed and gestured for you to proceed with him. “The mess hall should work. We just set up a tree some of our runners cut down. The kids are decorating it.”

People stepped aside as you passed by, watching with wariness or confusion as the guards around you joked and regaled you and Sara with some runner shenanigans or New Canton events. When someone drifted into your vicinity, they would pause, faces scrunching up as the magic of the ornaments enveloped them. Some would laugh, beam, look around wildly, or start to tear up. You gained a few followers, New Canton residents just as curious as Abel’s.

By the time you reached the mess hall, the crowd behind you was large. They spread out, filling up the room slowly as you and Sara headed towards the sizable tree surrounded by children who were attaching handmade decorations with the help of adults. You could see popcorn chains, paper ornaments, cotton, and more. It was haphazard but beautiful nonetheless.

The children looked up and backed away as they stared at all the people entering. Their minders pulled them closer when they recognized your Abel gear. You and Sara stood there in front of the tree, trying to decide your plan, ignoring the people muttering behind you. You kneeled down and started laying out gifts one by one, occasionally handing one to a curious child who had wandered over to see what you were doing, the gift always belonging to the person nearest you. However, you recognized a problem quickly, and so did Sara. She stepped back and turned on her transmitter.

“Sam, Kris,” she called. “We cannot pull these out one by one.”

“Turn your bags upside down,” Kris instructed. “Carefully.”

When both you and Sara did so, gifts came tumbling out. The voices around you got louder, people shouting and moving closer with each materialized box. You walked backwards, following the perimeter of the room, children rushing after you to pick up boxes and pile them closer to the tree. That allowed you to loop back.

Soon enough, large piles surrounded the tree even as people passed boxes around. Children were running around with their new toys and clothes, tugging at their parents’ sleeves. People gushed over their hammers, new boots, playing cards, and packets of hot cocoa. You saw more than one person crying over their half opened box, being consoled by someone else, but there was always a watery smile on their face. Laughter filled the room, the grim faces easing under more than the thrall of your ornament which was only a remnant of the Spirit of the Holidays, paling in comparison to the full joy and cheer that went beyond this room, spreading through the settlement.

You had more than one set of small arms wrap around your legs, and without malice or distrust, people greeted, thanked, and joked with you, handing you a cup of hot cider you sipped at carefully when you paused for a break.

You saw Sara examining a new knife a New Canton runner received, showing the younger woman a few moves. Robbie and Tim watched, their rifles abandoned on their backs as they asked questions or threw in some pointers. Someone had started singing some carols, and more and more people joined in, laughing over mis-sang or forgotten lyrics.

Even so, you knew there were more people than gifts you poured out. You tapped on Sara’s shoulder and held up your sack before miming it towards the people around you.

“Five wants to know if they can leave their sack with someone in New Canton,” Sara relayed. “I suspect there are more gifts to give.”

“The magic of the bags and ornaments end at midnight on Christmas night,” Kris said. “No harm leaving it behind.”

You flagged down a runner who had 20 on her armband.

“Hello. Hi. What’s this?” she said as you handed her sack. “Oh, you’re giving me your magic bag of endless presents. How exciting. I am curious to see how this works. It looks very empty, but I watched you pulling out box after box. Let’s see if I can do it too.”

She reached in, face lighting up as she felt something, and she pulled out a box. She squinted at it, turning it around in her hands until she found the card tucked under the bow.

“And it has my name on it! Archie Jensen. That’s brilliant. Can’t wait to see what’s in it. I wished for a lot of things.”

She tried to hand the sack back, but you held up your hands, shaking your head.

“What? You don’t want it back now?”

You shook your head again, and she frowned before realization dawned on her face.

“You have to go now, don’t you?” Archie asked, and she looked sad when you nodded. “Shame. Well… don’t get bitten or blown up or shot or who knows what else. I hope to see you again, Runner Five. Hopefully we won’t be trying to kill each other because our leaders are fighting again--like we aren’t all just trying to survive. Living killing the living while we have dead trying too.”

You held out a hand, but she pushed past it to hug you tight enough that you were certain your ribs shifted a bit.

“Bye, Five. Bye, Sara,” she said, clutching her box and the bag to her chest, beaming.

It was a while before you could really leave as people wanted to personally wish you well and happy holidays. Before you and Sara made your way out, you attached your frosted ornament to their tree and admired its soft glow.

“Let’s go, Five,” Sara said, Robbie waiting by her side.

You nodded, looking back once more before running towards them.

---

You and Sara turned your backs on New Canton, looking out at the setting sun.

“We should be able to make it back before dark if we’re quick, Five,” Sara assured. “We’re heading back out now, Sam.”

“All right. Head home, runners. You did great work today,” Sam said proudly. “Even zombies can’t stop Christmas.”

“Ho, ho, ho,” Kris chimed in. “Well said, Sam.”

Sara’s sack was also gone, but she still clutched her ornament for comfort or assurance--who knew. Your fingers still felt comfortably warm, and you could always catch a faint wisp of fresh pudding.

“Me and Four are finishing up here,” Simon reported, shouting over the sound of children laughing and people singing in his background. “We’ll leave once Jody digs herself out from under a pile of imps.”

The squeals pitched before he cut his transmission. Evan reported that he was nearing Mullins Base and would be staying overnight while Maggie and Chris were still at Red Settlement. Charlie and Fiona had just reached New Skoobs themselves, and they said they were probably staying there as well.

“So, Santa,” Simon spoke up when you and Sara were halfway back to Abel. “Got any presents waiting for us back at Abel? Us Runners must be on the top of your Nice List.”

“You, Simon Lauchlan, have been on my Naughty List since the day you released three pigs in your school when you were fifteen,” Kris said drily.

The comms link was flooded with laughter and jeers.

“Yeah, yeah,” Simon said, a smirk clear in his voice. “The ladies find it nice when I’m a little naughty.”

Your groan wasn’t alone. Charlie even booed.

“Did you really release pigs in your school, Three?” Sam asked.

“Yeah. It was a prank me and my mates pulled. We painted three pigs with 1, 2, and 4 and let them loose. It took them all day to catch them, but they spent a week looking for a fourth pig. It was worth getting my ears boxed by my mum when we got caught. Best prank I ever pulled. Still proud of it.”

“Of course you are,” Jody said, sounding out of breath.

There was a child screaming right by her microphone, causing you to wince.

“You alright there, Four?” Sam asked.

“Just finishing things up,” she said. “Be on our way back now, Sam.”

“Good. Goo--”

“Sam. Will you take a look at this?” Kris interjected.

“Let me see… oh. Uh oh. That’s--that’s not--Five, Eight. I don’t mean to alarm you, but well… about twenty zombies are converging on your location. I don’t understand--they’re coming from different directions. What is attracting them?”

You smiled at Sara, certain that Sam will figure it all out because he was really smart. Sara had a serene expression, and she winked at you. You giggled.

“...are you laughing, Five? Your laugh is lovely, but this is not the time to laugh. More are approaching. You and Eight need to speed up.”

You covered your mouth, but more chuckles escaped. Still, you did pick up the pace with Sara matching you. You could hear the whistling groans growing closer, but you focused on your warm fingers and roasted pine cones and warm pudding.

“They’re surrounding you two! There’s almost forty now,” Sam sounded more stressed than you thought was warranted. “What is happening?! Okay, okay. No need to panic. Five, Eight, you have a small window. Keep going the direction you’re heading, but you have to pick up the pace, or else they’ll cut you off.”

“Don’t worry, Sam,” Sara said warmly. “Five and I will be fine.”

You saw the zombies shambling out from behind buildings and trees, coming from all directions. There were a few in front of you, but you gave them a wide berth. The sound of their moans was thunderous.

“I would have to disagree… why do you sound so calm?” Sam asked as you ducked under a zombie’s arm.

“Sara, Five,” Kris called. “Did you turn off your ornaments?”

“Five left theirs at New Canton, but I still have mine. I didn’t want to risk those guards shooting us in the back, so I kept it on. Plus… it smells like sweet potato pie. It was my boys’ favorite.”

You wiggled your warm fingers.

“Do you think that’s what’s attracting the zombs, and why Eight and Five aren’t taking this seriously?” Sam asked.

“It’s definitely what’s keeping them so calm--too calm,” Kris said, “but I wasn’t aware of it having any effect on the undead.”

“Umm… I have a theory,” Chris piped up over the link. “You said the ornaments trigger sensory cues that people associate with festivity and the holidays. Could it be possible that they can tap into residual brain activity? Though the brains have mostly decayed, the zombies may still be drawn towards the source of the stimuli.”

“It’s… possible,” Kris granted. “Never had the chance to test it. It sounds reasonable.”

“Eight, turn off your ornament,” Sam ordered.

Sara hesitated but did so, and your fingers cooled, the scent of pudding giving way to rotting flesh. You jumped back as a zombie swung at you. You managed to stay on your feet and skirt around it.

“Sam!” Sara yelled. “We need an out. Now!”

“Just run!”

You could practically feel fingers brushing your back, and you swang your bat at a zombie reaching for you as Sara impaled one through the eye with her knife, a squelch following a wet smack.

“Ooh…” Sam cringed before crowing, “That’s what I call teamwork! Keep going though. You can’t fight them all.”

“Five?” Sara called. “Do you hear that?”

Through the moans and groans, you heard familiar bells and clopping. A great pair of antlers butted a zombie to the side, the reindeer shaking its head with a grunt. It scrapped its hoof on the ground, looking at you and Sara as you ran by it. You weaved and jumped through zombies, seeing your narrow path of escape closing by the second. You heard another squelch, and you had to behead your own zomb soon after.

“Hear what?” Sam asked anxiously.

“Just a bl--dy reindeer, Sam,” Sara panted, a painful sounding cough working its way out.

“Five, whistle at it,” Kris commanded. “Loud and clear.”

You did so, and you heard hooves clattering over pavement behind you. You glanced back to see the reindeer charging towards you, mowing down any zombies in its path. You suddenly heard more bells and hooves approaching, and a second reindeer then a third appeared, rounding the corner and running straight towards you and Sara.

“Five,” Kris started, but you already had a hand out as the antlers came up beside you. “Grab on.”

You did and swang yourself up on the reindeer’s back, grabbing at the torn reins from which hung the golden bells that rang so sharply amongst the moans. You wrapped your hands in them, bending low and bracing your legs, feeling the creature’s solid muscles moving under your thighs.

“You must be joking,” Sara coughed, but she ran towards one of the other reindeer despite her protests.

“Come on, Eight. How many people get to say they rode Santa’s reindeer?”

She didn’t bother dignifying that with a response and managed to clamber up on her chosen mount. Your reindeer lowered its head and whipped a zombie out of its way. You cheered, giggling wildly. Moving faster than you ever could on your feet, the reindeer carrying you and Sara burst free just before the zombies closed in, and you left them in your dust, their moans fading in the distance as the sun set.

---

By the time you saw Abel, the sun was nearly gone, and you had collected six more reindeer and four more runners. All of the reindeer ran behind you in pairs with you on the one leading in the front. Simon finally stopped clutching at his reindeer like it was going to throw him while Jody rode like a natural. Maggie looked less shaky and was keeping an eye on Chris who looked green around the edges.

You patted the head of the reindeer you rode. Though it was panting, your reindeer kept going, quick as a comet which you realized was its name from the loose tag on the back of its neck. Good boy.

“That’s what I call riding in style, run--no, riders,” Sam said. “Raise the gates! First wave of Santa’s elves are back for the night.”

The reindeer balked but did not flee from the sirens, and you coaxed them though the gates, swinging down once Comet settled. You stroked his head, grinning. You felt very sore from riding bareback, but it was better than being eaten, so you couldn’t complain. You saw Maggie helping Chris down, steadying the runner as he swayed, rubbing his back soothingly.

“You did good work, runners,” Kris said. “Sleep easy knowing you brought much joy in a time that very much needed it.”

“I don’t know about you guys, but I’m knackered,” Sam yawned.

You groaned as the others jeered. The late shift guards approached, eyeing the reindeer cautiously. You submitted yourself to your bite check.

“Being an operator is hard work too,” Sam protested, his grin audible. “Sleep well, runners. You did great.”

“Thanks, Sam,” Jody said as he signed off.

“What do you think they’re going to do with the big guy?” Simon asked.

“Hey, Five,” Sara called, stealing your attention as she tossed you her ornament. “Give this back to Kris or hang it on the tree for me. I don’t care. I’m gonna check in with Janine.”

You nodded, eyeing the ornament as she left, but besides its one unfortunate side effect, it was still pretty neat (and magic).

“What do we do with the reindeer?” one of the guards, Joe, asked quietly, but you were already walking away, your feet dragging.

You vaguely remember turning on and hooking the ornament on the tree in Abel’s square, your fingers warming and smelling pudding and pine cones, before you fell face first into your cot and passed out.

---

Abel was a different place when you woke up Christmas morning. The first sign was the candy cane hanging outside of your room when you stepped out in your gloves and scarf. Curious, you pulled it down, and you looked, seeing more hanging on the doors of other runners. Shrugging, you stuffed it in your pocket.

You exited the runners’ quarters and stilled, eyes widening. Paper snowflakes hung from fairy lights and tinsel that were wrapped around the comms shack nearby. You realized that it wasn’t the only building that was decorated while you slept. So were the runners’ quarters and all the buildings you could see as well. Soft holiday music drifted in the air, emitting from the intercoms.

As you wandered towards the square, you could hear activity, the sound of shrieking, laughter, and talking growing louder. You saw people admiring the tree, and you could see why. First off, it was not that tall or green last night, and it was gorgeously decorated with tinsel, lights, popcorn, and ornaments, some handmade and others well crafted. There were also some gifts piled under it, but not as many as you would expect for how many people resided in Abel.

Yet, people buzzed with excitement, the situation becoming clearer as you drifted through towards the kitchen.

“--found it right outside my room. I haven’t seen a complete deck since the outbreak. They were worth an arm and a leg before.”

“They’re so warm, and they are just my size too!”

“It will make my job so much easier. My old one was growing really dull, and it j--”

“Runner Five!”

You turned to see Jack jogging towards you, Eugene trailing behind him with his crutches.

“Glad we caught you,” Jack said, beaming. “We heard you had a real adventure yesterday, and we thought perhaps you might want to talk about it.”

“Hello, Five,” Eugene greeted much calmer, eyeing his partner with fond exasperation. “Sleep well?”

You nodded, grinning as Jack rolled his eyes at this clear waste of time.

“Me and Gene want to interview you. Nothing like a grand tale of zombie grinches and Christmas miracles to bring hope to the people,” Jack continued. “Just let u…”

You didn’t have time to wonder why the radio host trailed off, eyes widening, when you felt a puff of air brush your neck. Wet lips nibbled at your hair, and you turned. Comet grunted at you, nosing your clothes. You stood still, unsure what to do.

“He’s looking for sugar,” Kris said, coming up behind his reindeer and stroking Comet’s side fondly. “You don’t happen to have a sugar cube or candy on you, do you?”

You frowned before perking up, reaching in your pocket and pulling out the candy cane. Comet reached for it, but you held it back, looking at Kris.

“He can have one,” Kris said. “More than that, and he’ll upset his stomach--again.”

The reindeer grunted. You unwrapped the cane and held it out, smiling as Comet gobbled it up, petting his neck.

“I wish I had a camera,” Eugene muttered behind you.

There was a flash, and you blinked your eyes clear to see Charlie grinning.

“Guess who got a camera for Christmas!”

“Ooh! Take a picture of me and Genie,” Jack crowed.

He posed with Eugene who shifted his crutches to the side to wrap his arm around Jack’s waist, smiling. Charlie took multiple pictures, and before the last one, Eugene pressed a kiss to Jack’s cheek, setting the other man’s face ablaze in time for the flash.

“Eugene!”

Eugene swung his way to peer over Charlie’s shoulder as she shook out the little pictures the camera emitted. He cackled as he got a good look at the developing photo, Charlie laughing with him.

“I’ll be keeping that,” Eugene said, taking the photo with a grin when it was done. “Get a tan, Jack. You go from ghost to tomato in seconds.”

The reindeer butted you, checking you for more treats, but you just stroked Comet’s head, nosing him back.

“He’s taken a liking to you,” Kris commented. “He’s usually much more temperamental.”

You wiggled your nose at Comet who snorted in your face, his breath warm and rank. You gagged, and Kris chuckled deeply. You looked at him, taking the time to study him and his new appearance. He had changed into overalls and flannel, looking at ease despite the cold weather. He saw you looking.

“I didn’t bring a spare suit,” Kris protested, and you held up your hands in surrender, grinning as he laughed more. “The good doctor took care of my leg as well. Now, will you show me the way to the kitchen? I’m feeling peckish.”

Your stomach growled on cue, and you nodded, weaving your way through the people, many of which moved aside, watching the mythical man trialing after you with a reindeer. You ignored it, listening as Kris told you a little bit about his travels before the apocalypse.

“I was always fond of Egypt. Their kahks are delicious.”

“Five! Over her--Oh, Kris! Hi!”

Kris chuckled as Sam waved wildly, beaming out from under the great red hat that was perched on his head, slipping over his brow. Maxine had to push it back up before it fell off his face, and he shot her a grateful smile.

“He deserved it,” Kris explained at your glance. “Santa’s True Believer. He doesn’t know it yet, but that hat will bring him much fortune if he manages to hold onto it.”

Simon, Jody, Maggie, and Chris were at the table as well, and you saw Fiona at another. She and Charlie must have gotten in earlier.

Chris didn’t even look up from the red sack he was examining in his lap, but Maggie smiled from beside him, waving and moving over to let Kris in after you approached with your trays, and you squeezed in next to Sam, brushing shoulders with him. Comet lingered by the table, people skirting around him though they watched him with curiosity.

You tapped your nose three times, pointing at the hat, and Sam stuck out his tongue.

“I think I rock it, right, Maxine?”

“It’s definitely--something,” Maxine dodged, smiling at you. “Morning, Five. How are you feeling?”

You see-sawed your hand, and she hummed sympathetically, her head bobbing.

“If you need anything, come see me later.”

You nodded, rubbing your sore legs.

“Coming to the party later?” Simon asked.

“Janine cleared it?” Jody asked with a frown.

“Nope,” he snorted. “Coming?”

“I’ll probably stop by.”

“That’s the one Jack and Eugene were planning, right?” Sam asked, stealing a banger off your tray, smiling innocently with it shoved in his mouth.

Disgusting.

“Yup. They said they’ve got the good booze,” Simon tempted.

“Whiskey, and I’m in,” Maggie said.

“I’m sure I could scour up some, Maggie,” Kris said with a mischievous smile.

She quirked a brow, and when he grinned, she laughed.

“Good luck getting your sack back from Chris. I just barely managed to stop him from unravelling it.”

“It doesn’t make sense,” Chris mumbled to himself, running his fingers over it.

“It’s all right, Chris,” Maggie said, patting his shoulder. “It’s magic.”

“It’s advanced technology.”

“Okay.”

“Sam Yao, please report to the comms shack,” Janine said over the intercom, drawing people’s attention as it briefly interrupted the ambient music.

Sam sighed but pushed himself up.

“I have to get Evan back to Abel. I’ll see you at the party later, right, Five?”

You nodded, and he grinned, taking his empty tray with him. You fed Comet some boiled carrots and beans, his lips running over your palm for every scrap.

“I have to go too,” Maxine announced. “I want to organize my supplies before tonight. I plan on getting completely wasted. Don’t get any fatal injuries between today and tomorrow because I won’t be any help.”

You snickered.

“What did you get, Five?” Jody asked once Maxine left. “I got new knitting needles and some really good yarn.”

Your brows furrowed, wondering if you had perhaps overlooked your own box.

“Oh, I have not yet given Five their gift, Jody,” Kris said, smiling at you. “I wanted to deliver it personally since they did save my life yesterday.”

“Bet it won’t top my new football,” Simon challenged before you could respond.

You bared a sharp smile at Simon as Jody elbowed him. He protested, rubbing his arm, overacting the severity of the pain.

“I made an exception this year, Simon, but you are still on my Naughty List. Remember that.”

“Wouldn’t want to be anywhere else, Santa.”

---

At the party later that Janine totally did not know about (she was in the corner sharing a drink with Sara who was holding a plate of sweet potato pie), you sat comfortably in the rec building with the quickly knitted elf hat that Jody threw at you (before she started on another, having already completed one for Simon, Maggie, and Chris) on your head.

Sam was coming back over from the buffet table, balancing cups filled to the brim with various drinks. He still wore his Santa hat with pride despite how much ribbing he was subjected to. Maxine gratefully accepted her cup, following through with her plan to get utterly sloshed tonight.

“Runner Five. If I may steal you for a moment.”

You looked up at Kris, who waved away another child, and stood, following him to a corner, avoiding Jack and Eugene who found and were making good use of some mistletoe. You looked at Kris who was reaching in his pocket. He pulled out a small wrapped box. You took it curiously.

“Be assured, Five, your friends have met all your desires, hiding their gifts for you away by the tree,” Kris said. “You have been a good friend to them, and they wish to show you their gratefulness. All the practical matters have been left to them. I have something a little more… metaphysical that I believe you have deserved. Open it.”

You used your nail to tear and peel back the wrapping, prying open the lid. Inside was a familiar golden bell, one of the many you saw sewn onto Comet’s reins. You picked it up, shaking the bell to hear its sharp jangle.

“Five, if you should ever be in great need of something, hold the thought of it in your mind and ring this bell,” Kris said, catching your eyes gravely. “It will only work once, so I trust that you will use it wisely.”

You clutched the bell tightly in your hand, giving a determined nod, trusting his word. The bell slowly warmed in the heat of your palm. You would be careful with it.

“Stay alive, Five, and take care of you and your friends,” Kris said. “They’re counting on you, and I know you are up to the challenge. Happy Christmas.”

Kris pressed a finger to his nose and winked before fading before your eyes.

You blinked, staring at the wall confused. What were you doing in the corner by yourself? Weren’t you just… You turned and walked back to your friends, shaking your head.

“Nice hat, Sam,” Simon teased. “Did Five get that for you?”

“I… I’m not sure,” Sam said, clutching the red hat in his hands, frowning, but he shrugged, putting it back on. “I rock it though, right, Maxine?”

“It’s definitely--something,” Maxine slurred intoher cup.

“Five!” Sam called. “Where did you wander off to?”

You felt like you were missing something, but you couldn’t grab hold of it. You just shrugged, sitting next to him and accepting your cup with your free hand.

“Whatchu got there, Five?” Maggie asked.

You frowned, and she gestured at your other hand curled around something. You peeled back your fingers, revealing a golden bell that glistened brightly in the light.

“Where’d you find that?” Sam asked, peering at it, his hat’s bobble flopping in his face.

You… you weren’t sure, but you felt it was important. You shrugged and pocketed it, reaching out to tug Sam’s hat down over his face. He sputtered, spilling his drink a bit, and everyone laughed, falling over themselves in joyful (and drunken) abandon if only for tonight. Your chest was bursting with happiness, and you couldn’t wipe the grin off your face all night, pressing your cheek to Sam’s when Charlie called for you all to pose.

Her camera clicked and flashed, letting out a pop. Your face ached from smiling.

---

‘Twas the night after Christmas, and all the through the township

Not a corner was sans gayful laughter and friendship

Children shrieked as their parents smiled on

Friends teasing and jeering and bursting in song

Huddled with his runners laid a young operator

No longer a child yet still a True Believer

And at his side was faithful Runner Five

A willful spirit who will fight for Abel to thrive

There is much they will face, but for now they cheer

Knowing that, in this moment, they had nothing to fear

And though midnight passed, and magic faded from their minds

On the tree in the square, an ornament hung and still shined

[argylemnwrites]

Why Are We Still Waiting? - Prologue

Pairing: Drake Walker x MC (Riley Liu)

Book: The Royal Romance (It Couldn’t Wait Another Moment universe, just over one year after the epilogue)

Word Count: ~5500

Rating: R (language only)

Summary: As Riley prepares for a new chapter in her life, she’s forced to reflect on a time when things felt much less certain.

Author’s Note: Well, the sequel’s here... and I feel like it’s gonna not be what any of you all are expecting, but hopefully you will enjoy the journey still. We are so far from canon at this point, given the diverging plots, so no point comparing this timeline to that timeline. This prologue is set 13 months after the epilogue of It Couldn’t Wait Another Moment, but it does feature a flashback (in italics) to an event that happened about 4 months after that epilogue. The subsequent chapters will pick up about 8 months down the road from this prologue, or 21 months after the ICWAM epilogue.

Riley rifled through her purse, trying to find her keys, eventually finding them shoved beneath her phone, three tubes of lip gloss, and her flashcards that had scattered everywhere when the rubber band broke. Flashcards that were now sticky with lip gloss, she realized as her hand came out with tacky coral streaks across her knuckles. Oh well. Nothing was going to kill her good mood today.

She had just finished her last final exam of the spring semester. And provided she passed, which she was pretty confident she had, she would be a college graduate. It was crazy to think about. After her mother’s death, she assumed her degree would just sit unfinished, those last two semesters of credits seemingly unattainable. But now, she had probably just completed her last requirement for her BA in Communication Studies and Resources. Combine that with the fact that she had a likely job offer pending from the director of a PR firm who had led her Race and Media seminar and that she was getting married in four weeks, and she was riding high.

Hana had told her she was crazy when Riley had told her the wedding was going to be a month after her courses ended, but honestly, it hadn’t been too bad. Sure, Riley probably should have checked the academic calendar before she and Drake set the date, but they only had 23 people coming down to Texas, and that included Maxwell who was officiating. And an outdoor, casual wedding on a ranch involved a lot fewer details than the ritzy London soiree Hana and Catherine were currently putting together. At this point, all that was really left was trying on her dress one last time so Hana could see if she needed to make any last alterations, and that was happening next week when Hana was coming to New York for both business and the bachelorette party.

Climbing the steps, Riley knew she had to be basically grinning. She could smell something delicious coming from their apartment. She’d suspected Drake was going to make something special for dinner tonight, and the aroma that was wafting down the hallway confirmed that she was in for a treat. He could hear his voice muffled through the door as she turned the key, meaning he was probably on the phone. Knowing that he liked to keep the phone on speaker when he was cooking, she kept quiet as she opened the door and entered their apartment, not wanting to interrupt his conversation.

“Savannah, you gotta slow down,” Drake said towards his phone which was sitting on the counter as he held a knife over a cutting board.

Savannah’s sobs could be heard through the speaker phone, slightly distorted and off. “I just feel like… such… an idiot. And Drake, I don’t know what to do.”

Drake glanced up as Anderson trotted over to greet Riley, but she raised her hand and shook her head. If his sister was having some sort of crisis, that came before celebrating the end of finals.

“It’s bad enough that I’m the… unwed Baby Mama at court, but to get knocked up... again? Drake, I can’t let them know. They barely accept me being with Bertie as it is.”

Riley’s eyebrows shot up as she quietly hung her purse up on the hooks Drake had installed by the door and sat down at the table. Maybe she should feel bad about essentially eavesdropping, but Drake was going to tell her everything Savannah said anyway. Particularly something as massive as this.

“Who cares what they think?” Drake asked as he set the knife down and rubbed the back of his neck in frustration.

“I care!”

Drake let out a little sigh and shook his head. “What does Bertrand think about all of this?”

“He was a little shell shocked at first, but then he marched into his office and pulled a ring box out of a desk drawer. Apparently, he’d been planning on proposing for a while.”

Riley glanced down at the heirloom ring on her left ring finger. Savannah’s story was eerily familiar, and suddenly found herself thinking back on an afternoon last August.

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

Riley laid on the floor of the kitchen, trying to slow her mind down. It was a technique she’d been trying at her therapist’s suggestion for the past few months any time she found herself about to dive into a massive decision without giving it any thought. Apparently, her life experiences during her childhood and adolescence had created a habit of her rushing through major choices so that she wouldn’t have to think about possible negative outcomes. An avoidant coping mechanism was what he called it. Riley thought it was a little absurd that he needed a term for everything, and she didn’t think it took a genius to figure out that her absent father, her addict mother, and the endless string of foster homes messed her up in some ways, but he was relaxed and easy to talk to, which she supposed was what really mattered.

“Just find a way to ground yourself in the moment. Connect yourself to the physical environment, and let your thoughts settle. Give it a try, okay?” he’d requested, so she’d done it a few times since then, like when she was signing up for courses for the semester or when she and Drake had decided on this apartment. Laying down and closing her eyes usually worked pretty well. It helped clear her mind as her body adjusted to the position and the feel of the floor. But today, she couldn’t slow things down. Probably because her mind was racing thinking about the feel of her body, trying to determine if she felt any different. She knew that was stupid, but she just couldn’t help it.

Her phone buzzed on the floor next to her, but she didn’t want to pick it up. Because if she picked it up, she would have to look at her calendar again, the thing that was the source of her current panic and that she had killed the screen to avoid. 

It was really the phone’s fault, her current predicament. She and Drake had upgraded their phones about 6 weeks earlier, and it seemed like her calendar notification settings hadn’t imported over. Apparently, she hadn’t really used the calendar at all over that time. Until today, that is, when she had downloaded the syllabi for her course load and gone to add key dates for the semester. That was when she had realized she had missed her window for her depo injection by just over three weeks.

This was bad. She was too old to be this careless about birth control. She had just paid her tuition for this semester’s classes. She’d cut back to part time at the bar. Drake’s job paid okay, but this was absolutely not a good time for them. But she also felt weird even thinking about ending a pregnancy when she and Drake had recently had the “kid talk” and said they want children in the future. He wasn’t some random one-night stand. She wasn’t seventeen anymore. Their relationship was in a good spot. Things felt stable. Why did she have to go and fuck all that up?

She didn’t know what to do, what to think, how to feel. Kids with Drake was a someday thing. A down the road a bit thing. Not a now thing. They hadn’t even been together a year, and she might be pregnant. All because she forgot to go in for her depo. They’d been essentially trying for three weeks without even knowing. And because she hadn’t had a period for the past few months on the depo, she didn’t even know how to judge if she was late or anything.

Trying to calm herself down, she sat up, leaning forward and hugging her knees. Even in her panic, she was able to recognize that part of her dread came from the fear of the unknown. That much, at least, she could take care of. So she grabbed her purse and marched down the stairs, outside and over to the little drug store a block over. She grabbed the first pregnancy test she saw, paid for it, and went back home, ready to do what needed to be done. But she couldn’t. She just stood in front of the mirror, staring at herself, trying to will herself to just pee on the goddamn stick. But she felt locked and frozen, unable to take that final step.

She didn’t know how long she stood in the bathroom, but eventually, she heard the front door unlock and Anderson’s tags jangling as his little feet pattered across the floor. Drake was home. And she should probably tell him what was going on.

“Hey, Liu!” he called out, “What do you want for dinner? I was thinking maybe…” but he trailed off when he saw the look on her face as she walked down the hallway and joined him in the kitchen. “What’s wrong?”

“Drake, I…” she paused, taking a deep breath before she continued, “I forgot to schedule an appointment with my OBGYN.”

“Okay…”

“For my depo injection.”

“Oh.” Drake nodded slowly, like doing so would help him process the information.

“And I was supposed to get one over three weeks ago.”

Drake kept nodding slowly. “Okay… so you’re saying that?”

“That I very well could be pregnant, Drake. And it’s freaking me out.”

Drake just kept nodding, like he was a fucking bobblehead doll or something. It was annoying the shit out of her.

“Don’t you have any thoughts on this?” she ground out, frustrated at… well basically everything. Drake. Herself. That they were even having to deal with this at all.

“I think… you should take a pregnancy test before we do anything else. Do you want me to go pick one up?” His voice was calm and steady, but it felt like he hadn’t really processed, almost as if he had no reaction to the fact that she could be pregnant with his kid.

Riley wanted to scream and shake his shoulders. It was like she’d told a robot she could be pregnant. “I already went and bought one.”

“Okay, well then I think you should take it.”

“How are you so fucking calm about this?”

Drake just stood there for a second before giving her a little shrug. “I don’t know. I mean, it could be worse, right?”

“How could it be worse? We live in a one bedroom apartment in a mad expensive city where we just paid a bunch of money for my tuition and you work as a temp and I’m a fucking bartender and-”

“Shhhh, Riley. Come here,” Drake said, stepping forward and wrapping his arms around her. “First of all, we don’t even know if you’re pregnant. Second of all, I guess I don’t see it as that big-”

“Oh, that’s easy for you to say! It’s not you that might be pregnant!”

“Yeah, but this would be our kid. I guess I just feel like we could handle it, you know?”

“A kid is a huge fucking deal, Drake! Pregnancy is a huge fucking deal before the kid even gets here! And I get that for the guy it doesn’t seem like it. And you can act like it’s no big deal and we’ll just figure it out, but that’s because you aren’t facing the reality that you might have a baby growing inside you that you were not planning on. So, don’t you dare try and minimize this, Drake Walker.”

Part of her knew she wasn’t being fair to Drake. She’d been processing this possibility all afternoon. She’d just unloaded on him and expected him to react the same way she did. But a big part of her was just frustrated that he didn’t seem as worried or scared as her. Regardless of her storm of emotions though, her little rant somehow focused her. Taking a deep breath, she turned around and headed back toward the bathroom. She might as well get this over with.

“Riley, wait! Can’t we talk about this?” Drake called out. She spun to face him, throwing her hands in the air.

“I have to go pee on a fucking stick. And according to you, there’s nothing to discuss until I do that.”

Marching into the bathroom and slamming the door, she let out a deep breath as she scanned the instructions on the little purple box she’d left on the counter. It made it sound so fucking simple, like this wasn’t mad terrifying. She popped open the box, and pulled out a thin piece of white plastic. How could something so tiny be so fucking intimidating?

Somehow, she kept her hand steady as she did what she needed to do, setting the little stick on the side of the sink before she washed her hands. She let out one last sigh before opening the door and leaving the bathroom, setting the timer on her phone for five minutes as she walked back towards their kitchen and living room. She found Drake sitting at the table, hands lightly tapping in his lap as he glanced around the room. When he noticed her approaching, he seemed to hold his breath for just a moment. Eventually, he broke the silence as she sat down in her usual chair.

“So, did you…?”

“Pee correctly? Yes, Drake. I managed to do that.”

He didn’t acknowledge her sarcasm, instead he just nodded twice before he asked, “How long do we have to wait?”

“Five minutes,” Riley responded, waving her phone in the air before setting it down on the table.

“Look, I’m sorry, Riley. I didn’t mean to make you think this isn’t a big deal to me. Because it is. All I was trying to say is that I think we can get through whatever happens here together.”

Riley nodded, but didn’t say anything. Deep down, she knew that was what he’d been trying to convey. But at the same time, she was freaking out. An unplanned pregnancy was just different for her, the person whose body would have to go through all the changes, than for him. “I know, Drake. And I know I just kind of dumped all my stress onto you and didn’t really give you any time to think or react.”

They were both silent for a few moments before Drake leaned over towards her. “No matter what it shows, you know I’m not going anywhere, don’t you?” he asked, reaching for her hand across the table. “We’ll be alright. We’ll figure it out. I can get a second job on nights and weekends if we need more money. And we probably won’t need a bigger place for a year or two. We can just shove this table against the wall by the kitchen, and then we can fit in a crib and a changing table, so we’d be set there for a while, and I know next semester might not be doable for you, depending when you’re due, but we’ll just have to see, right?”

“Drake…” Riley said, but he was just rambling off plans now, seemingly oblivious to her interruption.

“I know it’s a little earlier than expected, but this was always the plan, right? I mean, we talked a while back, and you said you saw us getting married and having kids. So what if it’s a little quicker than we thought? It’ll be fine. And I know there’s a lot to think about, but I figure we can still have a nice, little wedding. Unless you want some big, fancy wedding. If you do, that’s fine, we are just gonna have to start-”

“Woah, what the fuck are you talking about?” Riley finally said, squeezing his wrist tightly to interrupt his ramble.

“I’m just trying to figure some stuff out for us, you know?”

“Like our wedding?”

A faint blush crept onto Drake’s cheeks, but it didn’t stop him. “Well… yeah? I mean, obviously I want you to-”

“Drake, are you kidding me?”

“No, I’m serious. We can get married and-”

“No!” she called out, cutting him off before he could start rambling again.

“What?”

“Well, for one, you haven’t asked me yet!”

Drake winced at that but nodded and let out a little sigh, “You’re right. Sorry… just, lots of thoughts… but I should’ve… Shit, what I mean is… Riley, will you marry me?”

Riley was sure her eyes had never been wider than they were as she stared across the table. After a few seconds, she finally felt able to speak. “You did not just propose to me because I might be pregnant.”

“It’s not just because you might be pregnant,” Drake muttered, rubbing his hand along the back of his neck.

“Bullshit, Drake! Are you telling me that you planned on asking me to marry you when you got off work today?”

“No, of course not, but-”

“Then this,” she said, gesturing her hand back and forth between the two of them, “is all because you feel fucking obligated to propose. And I may not be big on over the top romance, Drake, but the thought of a man asking me to marry him out of a sense of duty is so not okay. I am not some fucking burden to be dealt with.”

“Hey! I never said that-”

“Drake, simply proposing because you feel like you are supposed to is mad insulting. Proposals should come when someone is sure they’re ready to commit to the rest of their lives with that one person. Not because they feel bad they might have knocked someone up.”

Drake swallowed roughly, and nodded at that. He didn’t say anything for a few tense moments, but then he stood up abruptly, shoving his chair back and stalking down the little hallway.

“Drake?” Riley called out, but all she got in response was a muffled “Just gimme a minute” from the bedroom. She glanced down at her phone, checking the timer.

“We only have a minute,” she muttered, shifting around in her chair. But a few moments later, Drake was striding back out towards her, one hand dragging through his hair, the other clutching something tightly in his fist.

“I didn’t ask you to marry me because I felt like I had to,” he growled out, dropping down on one knee next to her chair, “And I didn’t ask you because you might be pregnant. I asked you because I love you and I can’t picture my life without your teasing or swearing or jokes. Because I love that everything is a competition with you, and that you are a crazy sore loser and even worse winner. Because I love the way your eyes always show what you’re really thinking, whether you’re angry or protective or caring, not that they need to, because you have no problem telling me exactly what you think. And because for some strange reason, you seem to get me, and that makes me so fucking lucky.

“It’s not that I thought, ‘Oh, if she’s pregnant, I guess we better get married,’ but that I thought, ‘Why aren’t we married?’ Because whether it happens tomorrow or ten years from now, I know I want you to be the mother of my children. So yeah, maybe the timing is shit, and I know I’ve done this all wrong, but you were wrong too. Because I am ready to spend the rest of my life with you. I’ve been committed to that for a long time. And right now, I realized there is no good reason to wait. I don’t want to wait. So that’s why I asked you.”

He let out a couple of heavy breaths, just staring at her expectantly. Riley reached forward and grabbed his hand with both of hers, giving it a little squeeze as she found her voice. “Drake…”

“Shit,” he said as he tugged his hand out of her grasp, uncurling his fist and revealing a green, satin box, “I was probably supposed to show this to you earlier, too.” And with that he flipped the box open, revealing a beautiful, vintage, diamond ring.

“Holy shit,” Riley whispered, trying to keep up with everything that was unfolding, “You have a ring.”

“Yeah, I have a ring. Riley, I have known you were it for me for so long. So, let me-”

“Yes.”

“What?”

“Yes, I’ll marry you.” And with that, Riley leaned forward, sliding her hands around his neck and kissing him deeply. He responded passionately, tangling his fingers into her hair, but after a few seconds, a beeping noise interrupted them. Her phone alarm was chirping.

She turned slightly to silence her phone before facing Drake again, watching as he took her left hand off her lap and tugged it forward. She glanced up and found him staring at her, eyebrows raised, so she smiled and nodded. He grinned back at her before he slid the ring onto her finger. She felt like they had so many things to talk about, so many questions that needed to be asked and answered, but right now, there was one very pressing question with an answer waiting for them in the bathroom.

“Come on, Liu,” Drake said as he stood, tugging her to her feet with him, “It’ll be okay, no matter what. I promise.” So they walked hand in hand into the bathroom and looked at the piece of white plastic she’d left on the side of the sink. The piece of plastic that would shape their future.

“Two lines… does that mean…”

Riley shook her head, staring at the box. “No, that one is just the control. It’s only one line.”

“So, you’re not…”

“I’m not pregnant,” she said, feeling a rush of relief wash over her as she tugged Drake into a hug, “Thank God!”

It was like sheets of stress and panic were falling off her by the second, and she even let out a little chuckle of relief as she clung to Drake’s shoulders. Drake didn’t say anything, just loosely looping his arms around her waist to return the hug. When she pulled back after a moment, she saw just a hint of regret and sadness in his eyes.

“Drake, what is it?”

He just shook his head, “I don’t know. It’s just… a lot, I guess.”

She nodded, sliding her right hand forward to cup his cheek as she waved her left in front of his face. “Not second guessing this, I hope?”

He smiled warmly at her at that, clasping her hand against his cheek and tugging her hips flush against his, “No fucking way, Liu.”

“Good,” was all she said, before his lips were on hers.

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

Riley had always wished she could find something in common with Savannah. She knew Drake wished that they were great friends, but the truth was they just were very different women. It’s not that Riley disliked Savannah, not really at least, but they almost never had anything to talk about. But now it seemed like they both had proposals triggered by pregnancy scares. It was a weird ass thing to share.

Except, they really weren’t all that similar. Savannah was not only actually pregnant, but she lived a life where the optics of it were far from ideal. If Riley had been pregnant back then, it would have been a lot to handle, but at the end of the day, Drake had been right. It would not have been a big deal. No one in New York would care if she and Drake, a committed couple who lived together, had a baby out of wedlock.

But for Savannah, it was different. Dukes weren’t supposed to live in sin. They certainly weren’t supposed to knock up the same woman twice, once as a one-night stand, once as a girlfriend. And as stupid as Riley found it, she knew that Savannah’s ramblings did express a very warranted fear. She and Bertrand could easily find themselves on the outside of their social group for this. Or rather, Savannah could. Bertrand might face some snide comments, but at the end of the day he was a man and he was one of them. Savannah had neither of those advantages. And while Riley and Drake had left that whole world behind for a lot of reasons, the fact remained that Savannah didn’t want to have to give that life up. 

Lost in her thoughts, both her memories of her own proposal and her sympathy for Savannah, she was only half-listening to Drake and Savannah’s conversation, but when she heard her name and Drake’s tone turn suddenly angry, she snapped her head over, attempting to figure out what she’d missed.

“...Riley and I are getting married then! That’s our fucking wedding day, Sav. What the actual fuck are-”

“I know, Drake! If there was any other time that-”

“I’m not asking Riley that, Savannah. It’s not happening. You’re the one who wants a last minute wedding, you pick out a different day!”

“The Social Season already has events set for the next two months. The only exception is June 8th.”

“Yeah, because Liam blocked that weekend so he could come to our wedding! You’re just going to have to wait a couple of months.”

“I just want it to be believable that this is a honeymoon baby. People are already going to suspect, Drake. But if we just have a civil ceremony with none of court in attendance, people will know for sure.”

“Again, who the fuck cares?” Drake was clearly agitated now, pacing the kitchen and gesturing wildly.

“Bertrand’s a duke. We have to keep up appearances, at least a little. You don’t have to like it to know it’s true.”

Drake dragged a hand through his hair and let out a massive sigh, “What am I supposed to do here, Savannah? You realized this is an insane ask, right? I’m getting married in four weeks.”

“I know. If I could think of any other solution, I would. Just, talk to Riley about this, please? All I’m asking is that you two talk about it, okay?”

“Fine, Sav. But this is so out of line.”

“I know, I know.”

Drake ended the call without even saying goodbye to his sister. He slapped his hand over his eyes and let out a little growl.

“Soooooo,” started Riley, “Savannah and Bertrand are having another baby?”

He dropped his hand down and looked at her, just shaking his head. “I’m sorry you had to hear that. But you don’t need to worry about it. I’ll figure out how to tell Savannah she can’t just have our wedding weekend. How was your exam?”

“Fine, but Drake, we need to talk about your sister.”

“No, this is your day. You don’t need to worry about her drama. We’re celebrating you being a college graduate, and that’s all we need to do tonight.”

Riley shook her head, “Celebrating can wait a half hour while we figure this out.”

Drake gave her a frown and came to join her at the table. “What’s to figure out?”

“Drake, she’s pregnant, hormonal, and scared that she’s about to become a social pariah.”

“Yeah, but that’s not… I wouldn’t ask you to do what she’s asking. I wouldn’t expect you to postpone the wedding for that.”

She tilted her head forward, reaching out and grabbing his hand before she continued, “If this was just your event, if I wasn’t involved, you would agree wouldn’t you?”

“Well, yeah. But it’s not just my event.”

Riley stared at Drake for a few moments, running things through in her head. “How are you going to enjoy our wedding, knowing that it’s going to strain things between you and Savannah?”

“That’s the thing - it shouldn’t strain things between us. She’s being unreasonable here. We wouldn’t be doing anything wrong to get married as planned.”

“Oh, I completely agree. Savannah never should have called to ask you this. But the fact is that she did. And I don’t think you’re going to be able to just act like she didn’t.”

Drake sagged forward, propping one elbow on the table and catching his head with that hand as he squeezed her hand with his other. “I know I should just tell her ‘Hell no,” so that’s what I’m going to do. It’ll suck for a while, but she’ll get over it.”

Riley looked at Drake, trying so hard to steel himself, bracing to disappoint his baby sister. And a large part of her wanted him to do just that. Draw a clear line in the sand when it came to this. He already let her get away with so much. But a bigger part of her just felt for the woman that was going to be her family soon, who just felt scared and alone and was pregnant when she didn’t expect to be. And the biggest part of her just didn’t want Drake to be in this position, where he felt like he had to choose between her and his sister, even if his sister was mad out of line here.

“Drake, I think we should postpone our wedding.”

His head jerked up at that, fear and anxiety clear across his wrinkled brow and deep frown. Riley stood up and climbed into his lap, wrapping her arms around him and stroking the back of the neck and she worked to undo the worry and fears she knew her statement unleashed.

“And you know this has nothing to do with you or us or the way I feel about you. But you are a protector when it comes to those you love. And right now, you are trying to protect me from seeing how much you wish you could help your sister. And I appreciate that, but I know you, and if we get married on June 8th, I know that you are going to stew and feel guilty the entire time, even if you know you shouldn’t. And that’s not how our wedding should be.”

“Riley, I....” he sighed into her neck as his hands clutched at her waist. He didn’t say anything else, and Riley knew he was trying to find a way to contradict her. But he wasn’t going to be able to do that.

“It’s okay, Drake. I will be thrilled on our wedding day whether it’s in four weeks, four months, or four years. But your sister chose to be a part of a world that will judge her heavily if she gets married in four months or four years. We can help her by giving her the chance to get married in four weeks, and I don’t mind doing that, alright?”

Drake tipped his head back, sliding his hand up to comb through her hair. “I don’t know what to say, Riley.”

She leaned over and kissed his forehead. “Call your sister. Tell her she better start planning a wedding.”

“We’re going to lose a bunch of deposits.”

“I know. We’ll save up again. The benefit of a small, simple wedding is that it isn’t obscenely expensive.”

“I would never ask you to do this, Liu.”

“I know, because you take care of everyone whenever you can. But that mean you also want to take care of your sister, and I love that about you. So, let me take care of you here. This is my call. We are postponing.”

Drake crushed her against his chest as he hugged her tightly. Riley knew he was trying to convey a lot of things with his embrace that he couldn’t quite put into words. It just cemented her decision in her mind as the right call. As much as it would suck to postpone, starting out their marriage by making Drake do something that would hurt his sister was not the way to go about things. It didn’t matter that Savannah’s ask was way out of line. She and Drake could just afford to be flexible in ways that Savannah and Bertrand couldn’t.

“I love you,” Drake muttered into the skin of her shoulder before he loosened his grip on her, leaning back and looking up into her eyes, a clear mix of love, adoration, and regret present in his.

“I know. I love you, too. And I’ll love you whenever our time to get married comes.”

He kissed her gently. “It’ll be our time soon. I promise, Liu.”

Riley smiled, climbing off his lap and tugging him up after her, leading him by the hand into the kitchen, eager to get on with celebrating the end of her exams and to sample some of whatever Drake was in the midst of making. She wasn’t worried. They had a lifetime together. The when of their wedding didn’t matter as much as that fact.

Permatag:  @walkerswhiskeygirl   @riley--walker​  @bebepac​ @ravenpuff02​ @oofchoices​ @octobereighth​ @drakewalker04​ @kimmiedoo5​  @mfackenthal​  @thequeenofcronuts​  

The Royal Romance/The Royal Heir: @ao719​ @mskaneko​ @katedrakeohd​ @jovialyouthmusic​ @marshmallowsandfire​ @axwalker​ @kingliam2019​ @sirbeepsalot​ @texaskitten30​ @princessleac1​ @ladyangel70​ @dcbbw​ @yaushie​

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It Couldn’t Wait Another Moment:   @thequeenchoices​  @sunnyxdazed​​

[blackjack-15]

Leavin’ on a Jet Pack — Thoughts on: The Haunting of Castle Malloy (HAU)

Previous Metas: SCK/SCK2, STFD, MHM, TRT, FIN, SSH, DOG, CAR, DDI, SHA, CUR, CLK, TRN, DAN, CRE, ICE, CRY, VEN

Hello and welcome to a Nancy Drew meta series! 30 metas, 30 Nancy Drew Games that I’m comfortable with doing meta about. Hot takes, cold takes, and just Takes will abound, but one thing’s for sure: they’ll all be longer than I mean them to be.

Each meta will have different distinct sections: an Introduction, an exploration of the Title, an explanation of the Mystery, a run-through of the Suspects. Then, I’ll tackle some of my favorite and least favorite things about the game, and finish it off with ideas on how to improve it. Like with all of the Odd Games, there will be a section between The Intro and The Title called The Weird Stuff, where I go into what makes this game stand out as a little strange.

If any game requires an extra section or two, they’ll be listed in the paragraph above, along with links to previous metas.

These metas are not spoiler free, though I’ll list any games/media that they might spoil here: HAU, mention of DAN.

The Intro:

Yup, this is the jetpack banshee game.

Honestly, that’s probably the best introduction to this game. It’s semi-famous among the fandom for just being balls-to-the-wall nuts, and for good reason; while HAU isn’t quite as confused as some of the other Odd games, it’s definitely less organized, and there’s very little story to tell here.

And the story that is there? Well, we’ll cover that in The Weird Stuff.

The Haunting of Castle Malloy falls near the end of the Odd Games, and honestly it more than deserves its place. Sure, we’re in a different, ‘exotic’ location like…well, most of the Odd Games, but it’s not like it really matters, as Nancy sees very little of Ireland. A car drive, a brief interlude outside of a pub, and the weirdest outside interface ever seen in a Nancy Drew game (even being reused in the next game briefly), and for all of that we might as well be in the Florida swamps.

Let’s not even mention the teetotaler pub. The less said about that, the less silly that this game comes off. Everyone in Ireland drinks a tall, frothy cup of Juice when they want to relax.

Sigh. Honestly, HER. Just skip the pub entirely.

HAU is also a game that tries to contextualize itself in Nancy’s past, but doesn’t do a very good job about it. It’s not inside reference-y like Secret of the Old Clock, but it’s also not grounded in character like…well, all of the Nancy games (ASH through SPY). It just springs in the ‘hey remember this character you’ve never heard about nor had referenced because we made her up whole cloth for this game’ little mechanic and tries to whisk the player away with it.

Consider me unwhisked.

And maybe that’s the biggest problem – or rather, the biggest signifier – of The Haunting of Castle Malloy: it relies on whirling the player away in the Sights and Sounds and Juices of Ye Olde Greene Eire, but instead…well, it doesn’t have the power to whirl the player. It doesn’t even have the body to muss the player’s hair when the wind comes around.

HAU is very little like its source material; in fact, really the only thing that the book and game have in common is that they’re both set in Ireland, and that the mystery involves Nancy’s friends. Sure, in the book it’s Bess and George, rather than an obscure, hitherto-unknown exchange student, but since there’s nothing else, we’ll give them points for it.

The majority of this meta (and the majority of this game) falls under the weird stuff designation, so let’s pop on over and talk about what makes HAU truly odd.

The Weird Stuff:

The entire premise of this game isn’t too far off the mark of normal – Nancy’s summoned to help a family friend, which is the case for quite a few Nancy Drew games (more than the opposite, I believe, at this point in the series) — but it does stand out a bit that she’s going to be in a wedding as a maid of honor.

While I could see it for Bess/George, Hannah (which would be fun) or Ned (which is my personal headcanon), it’s a bit odd that this is a character we’ve never heard of who considers Nancy her closest female acquaintance. You’re telling me Kyler got through elementary, middle, high, and University without making a single friend other than the weird little kid she knew while studying in River Heights?

That’s weird enough to get a section by itself, but it’s not even scraping the surface of this game.

Going deeper, our predominant theme/conflict/effery in this game is a convoluted love triangle between the bride, groom, and their best friend (who for some reason isn’t involved with like anything with the wedding, regardless of the fact that he should be doing at least as much as Nancy is doing, and possibly more since he’s an actual friend of the couple), with Kit still being in love with Kyler (for some unimaginable reason) yet friends with Matt. Kit, notably, doesn’t really do anything about it, but just having that plotline being our main thread is a super weird choice, honestly.

This is also a story about marriage troubles; sure, they haven’t officially tied the knot yet, but the fact that Kyler thinks that her fiancé disappearing the night before their wedding is a “classic Matt prank” and not either something deeply worrying or a sign that he’s too immature for a commitment is a Huge Yikes.

Best case scenario and he’s playing a prank…does he think people won’t take this as a bad sign, that early-arriving guests won’t freak out, that this won’t cause any problems?

And worst case, he’s been kidnapped (the truth of course being even dumber than that), and the first 48 hours after a kidnapping are the most crucial, meaning that Kyler’s inaction could result in a death that didn’t have to happen on her watch.

What I think HER really didn’t think about was the implications of this setup. Either way, it doesn’t just look bad for Matt and/or Kyler (to say nothing of Kit), it looks bad for their future.

We have no faith that these two are actually interested in each other, let alone in love and committed to this relationship. Nancy, famously deaf to emotions like this, doesn’t really make any comments about how this bodes ill, but the player is bound to think that something’s not quite right if these two people are so mismatched.

In a slightly less uncommon theme for the Nancy Drew series, this is also a game about unrequited love. Let’s face it, for the majority of the game the only suspect really is Kit, since Donal isn’t big enough to kidnap Matt, and it’s a Nancy Drew game, so Matt definitely isn’t out there playing a very poorly timed prank on his bride to be. Kit even has suspicious documents (the land drawings) and such that add up to him wanting Matt out of the way, even without his unrequited love schtick with Kyler.

Honestly, how two people were in love with that chick is just…it boggles the mind, honestly. What is appealing at all about Kyler? Her weird hair? The fact that it looks like she’s wearing a green dress the whole game only to have it be pants? Her bland personality? Awful voice? The way she looks in the weird photographs in the game?

Sorry for the digression, but I am struggling here.

The last section within this section will talk about the thing that’s by far the oddest conceptionally in this game – the banshee/jetpack storyline. Most of the time when it’s a folk/faerie story in these games, it turns out to be not true, and that’s still the case here. To have it not be a banshee, but instead be a senile, badly mentally damaged old woman flying around on a jetpack from World War II, on the other hand…that stretches the limits of believability to where it would have been better to just have it be a banshee.

Fiona and her backstory and her jetpack are pretty much the oddest pieces, with none of them actually fitting into the larger themes of the story. Our backstory in this game — WWII Ireland and its scientific achievements — isn’t integrated at all with the present day, dethroning previous WWII-focused backstory game Danger by Design for ‘least related backstory’ award, and it’s not justified at all within the story or characters either.

The Title:

As far as titles go, “The Haunting of Castle Malloy” isn’t bad at all; it’s fairly standard, slightly pulpy Nancy Drew fare, and certainly better than the title of its book inspiration (“The Bike Tour Mystery”, so named because Nancy et al go on a bike tour in the book). It tells you the “what” (haunting) and “where” (Castle Malloy), and is fairly evocative.

I really just have a problem with it being the title of this game. Not only is the Castle not really relevant — sure, it’s where the game takes place, but it’s not important to the game outside a conversation or two — within the story, but the game doesn’t really pull off the ‘haunting’ side either. It’s established pretty early on that there are weird lights and sounds, but that’s about it.

If you want to keep the location, “The Banshee of Castle Malloy” I feel like would have been a better choice, as it tells us right away we’re dealing with Irish mythology, and shows it’s supposed to be a Haunting game (no matter how poorly it pulls that off) without any excess fuss. It’s also a little more specific, which is generally a good move to make the title more interesting — like how “The Shadow in the Fog” is better than just “The Shadow” as a title.

HAU’s title seems to be solidly in the middle of Nancy Drew titles, so there’s not much more to say about it. Let’s move on to the mystery it somewhat, but not completely, speaks of.

The Mystery:

Nancy’s been summoned overseas again, but this time it’s for pleasure, rather than business. An exchange student that Nancy and Carson housed for a few months is getting married, and wants Nancy to be her maid of honor.

And no, I have no idea why Carson wasn’t invited. Way to snub the man who fed and housed you, but invite his daughter (who was 14 at the time Kyler knew her) to hold one of the most important places in the wedding.

Anyway, by the time Nancy arrives — the night before the wedding; bad form Nancy — the groom — Matt Simmons — is missing, which Kyler suspects is a practical joke (as Matt has a reputation for pulling pranks) and Donal, the caretaker of the Castle, thinks is a sign of being kidnapped by faeries for the crime of being English and marrying an Irishwoman.

Out of the many crimes of the English, I don’t think this one ranks enough with the Fae to merit a stepping-in, but hey, what do I know about crudely-drawn stereotypes in a HER game. I’m sure they did all of the possible research, talked to experts about Irish mythology, spent about 5 minutes on the Wikipedia article for “banshee”…at least one of those.

The only other person on the Castle grounds is Kit Foley, Matt and Kyler’s friend — and Kyler’s unrequited admirer. A land developer, he’s literally the most suspicious person at the castle by being the only one actually in the castle and by holding the (honestly reasonable) opinion that Matt just got cold feet and left.

Once Nancy finds Matt’s broken glasses and Kyler mentions that he’s blind without them, however, the race is on to find Matt — who definitely couldn’t have broken a spare/fake pair of glasses as part of the prank, shush you — before the wedding the next day. What should have been a grueling search takes an hour or so, and they find out that he accidentally fell in a secret passage and got trapped there, being fed carrots and potatoes by the resident crazy woman like he was a blind, helpless rabbit.

Yeah.

As a mystery…I mean, is this even a mystery??? What honestly went on in the pitch room that day? “We’re gonna write about fidelity, unrequited love, the stress of a wedding, a friendless woman who invites an 18-year-old because she never made any friends…and a crazy old woman with ties to World War II. And a jetpack.”

I don’t even know how I would begin to rate this mystery. Bad? Because that’s honestly the word that comes to mind. I’m never a fan of “oh it was all a Hilarious accident, ho ho ho” endings to mysteries, and this one is worse than most. Nothing follows, the backstory is such a non-entity it really doesn’t bear spelling out, and the characters aren’t even a little likable. This section could delve into each problem with the mystery but, honestly, that sounds exhausting and I’m gonna go over the bigger points below anyway, so let’s get to the clowns that make up this circus.

The Suspects:

Beginning with Kyler Mallory, our bride to be who, for some reason, has her hair and tiara done the night before the wedding — I guess she’s not planning on sleeping? — is searching for her prankster groom to “teach him a lesson” and so he knows that once they’re married, “no more pranks ever”.

Sounds like she loves him dearly and wouldn’t change a thing, huh. If that wasn’t worrying enough, she’s not super fussed that he’s disappeared the night before their wedding, and considers it a “Classic Matt” sort of thing to do.

As a culprit – man that would have been a dark turn, to have her kidnap/hide away Matt to teach him a lesson about not pulling pranks. It, of course, would have made a friendly acquaintance of Nancy’s into a bad guy, and that’s a huge No-No for HER, but it would have been kinda cool all the same.

Kyler’s groom is Matt Simmons, an Englishman who is decidedly unwelcome in Ireland (at least, according to Donal) and who has a strong reputation for being a little too heavy on the pranks — so much so that when he disappears, his own fiancée just thinks it’s another prank. To be fair to her, he did disappear while pulling a very sad little prank on her, so she wasn’t entirely off base.

As a culprit…how would that even work? That would be like FIN’s Maya kidnapping herself for no purpose whatsoever. Matt isn’t really given any character beats other than “prankster” and “fed like a rabbit”, so there’s really not much to speculate on here. I do wonder what Kyler sees in him…but then again, I also wonder what he (and Kit) see in Kyler, so we have that as well.

Next up is the couple’s friend Kit Foley, who’s sporting an enormous shiner to the wedding courtesy of a wayward branch (and a bit of karma) that smacked him while he and Matt were pranking Donal. He’s in love with Kyler (why????) but seems happy enough for his friends, and is of the opinion that Matt simply got cold feet and left.

Not sure why you’d be friends with someone who’d do that, but no one in this game has any character at all, so we’ll blow past it.

A land developer, Kit is basically the only suspect and yet a terrible suspect at the same time. Sure, he’s in love with Kyler (again, why???), but he also doesn’t really gain anything from them not getting married, just like he doesn’t gain anything from them getting married. I never thought I’d see the day where a brooding best friend is so…unaffected by the marriage of his long-time crush, but that just goes to show you how little depth even Kit — who somehow has the most depth of any character — really has.

Finally, Donal Delaney is the caretaker of Castle Malloy, and a firm believer in the Fae. He’s also really the only Irishman in the cast, which isn’t a great look for HER. He thinks that the Fae have taken Matt in return for being in Ireland and sleeping in the old nursery room in the castle, and is easily frightened.

Seriously, that’s his whole character.

As a culprit…as much as Donal is grumpy, he’s not really any sort of entity as a suspect. He hangs out at the pub, drinks fruit juice, and talks about the Fae, and that’s the extent of his involvement in the plot. The most importance he gets is inadvertently being the source of Kit’s black eye, and that’s so tertiary to the plot that it might as well not be there.

The Favorite:

Even though this game is, by all accounts, a ridiculous non-entity, there are a small amount of things that I do like.

I’m actually a fan of the opening sequence; it’s like a better version of CUR’s opening, has Nancy crashing her car (always fun) while telling Ned she’s not gonna crash (even more fun), and she doesn’t show up right away at the castle. Honestly, the first about 10 minutes of the game are actually solid, and more fun than the rest of the game as a whole. So that probably qualifies as my favorite moment in the game, spliced with the revelation that Matt has been subsisting on raw carrots and potatoes, which is just…honestly unimaginably funny.

My favorite puzzle is the seating chart for the wedding. Veterans of this meta series (all 5 of you) will know that my favorite types of puzzles are word and logic puzzles, and this is a great logic puzzle. I honestly could have done an hour of that puzzle and been happy as a clam. It really stands out as, well, the only fun I had during the majority of the game, but it was honest fun.

The Un-Favorite:

And then, on the other hand…

There’s a lot about this game that isn’t great, but almost none of it do I hate; there’s just not enough effort for me to hate it.

Except the background setting.

Having already done WWII as a backstory, HER really should have thought twice about returning to it only five games later. With Brendan Malloy developing fuel for armored vehicles, only stopped by it exploding in his (and everyone’s) faces in 1944…honestly, there’s no reason that this game’s backstory should take place in World War II, other than to have a reasonable chance of Fiona still being alive. It also makes it seem like ‘oh the War really didn’t touch Ireland that much hahahaha” which isn’t a great look either.

Honestly, HER’s treatment of Ireland is pretty ‘un-favorite’ here, but since HER never really does a good job handling any country (or most states outside the Pacific Northwest), it’d be fairly pointless to begin talking about it at length now.

My least favorite moment is probably the reveal of the culprit/mystery at the end; it’ so anti-climactic, honestly, and only comes after much struggle through two very stupid puzzles. It doesn’t give any meaning to the game, no one learns any lessons, and — probably unpopular opinion here — it probably would have been better for everyone involved (including Fiona) if Fiona would have died in that explosion 60+ years ago.

My least favorite puzzle would actually be the two puzzles at the very end — the chemicals and the rocket ship. The chemical puzzle is the worst offender, but both are pointless, do nothing for the story, and really feel like they’re there because Nancy Drew games have to have a puzzle at the very end. Putting something into a game because you ‘have’ to is never good, and this is a prime example of how annoying that obligation can truly be.

The Fix:

So how would I fix The Haunting of Castle Malloy?

The first thing I’d say is that, despite the games in the Nancy Drew series often containing one, I don’t really think the HAU needs a historical backstory. If you must give something to the Castle and the explosion, set it back in World War I, which would at least be something different.

But honestly, it’d be better to just get rid of it entirely. It’s old, it’s a castle, it’s in ruins, move on. The present has enough potential for drama without mucking up the past.

The second thing I would do is to take out Fiona entirely. Sure, still have the legend of the banshee going around the area, but it’s all things that are (mostly) easily explained, like in most haunting games. Figures in the fog? That’s just grounds crew who have been working for months to prep the site for the wedding. Strange lights? Well, yeah, the castle wouldn’t be wired for electricity if it’s been abandoned, so the workers have to bring in their own lights. Screaming noises? That’s just pre-marital jitters. Or something; you get my point.

As in all haunting games, have one or two unexplained things to suggest that the banshee actually was real, mourning the “death” of the last Malloy — because Kyler’s taking Matt’s name, or some other such nonsense. The sad thing is that it doesn’t really matter; anything that adds meat to the story would be an improvement on such a nothingburger of a game.

I would also bring in Alan, the best man, as more than a phone contact. Let’s face it, only having Kit and Donal as suspects (as Matt’s gone and Kyler doesn’t even pretend to count for a second) is really stupid, and this game needs some more detail and at least an hour more of playtime that doesn’t just involve getting lost in the bog.

Bring in Alan who is confused as to why he was chosen as best man, but suspects it’s because Kyler also has feelings for Kit and thus didn’t want Matt to choose him to be the Best Man (in other words, take out the weird social climbing angle). It would take a subtle hand, but I actually wouldn’t mind Alan having a bit of a thing for Matt himself, just to re-emphasize the “love is like an Egyptian painting; everyone is looking at the back of someone’s head” sort of theme we’ve got going on in this game.

The last thing I’d do is to bring Ned in, and have him be in the car with Nancy on their way. Think of it; usually wedding guests get a plus one; it would be a good excuse for Nancy to ask Ned out rather than leaving him behind as per usual, and Ned would probably be able to relate to Kit/Alan better than Nancy can, on account of Ned having actual emotional intelligence.

I wouldn’t say to have him be player-controlled, but I think Ned hanging around the castle, trying to help out with the emotional snarl that the guys have gotten themselves into (with Nancy focusing more on Donal and Kyler) would not only be in character, but would be a great way to make room for some emotional depth — something that Nancy herself, if not the games, usually skirts around or ignores entirely.

Would these changes fix the game completely and make it a winner? No, I don’t think so. I think the game is too structurally weak to really ever rise above mid-level, and possibly not even lower mid-level. But I think, along with some sprucing up of motivations and puzzles, these changes could help make HAU better than it is — and that’s worth it, no matter if it makes it into the Top 10 Nancy Drew Games list or not.

[carewyncromwell]

Hi, everybody! So the Adventures in Curse-breaking side quest was...absolutely wonderful. The prize is fantastic -- the animation of the dragons is awesome -- the new preserve location and the interior of the tent have the most wonderful ambient music -- and it features love for Charlie and Bill, who as most of you know are two of my favorites! I might’ve switched out Penny with Liz (given that, like Barnaby, she’s so into magical creatures and we could use more material for her in the game), but even with that nitpick, I think this quest may be one of my favorites so far, right up there with Chiara and Talbott’s friendship quests.

It is, however, a very dialogue-heavy quest with a good chunk of filler in between the awesome stuff, and writing full roleplaying posts for the entire thing would take up a LOT of time. So just like with my Meet the Malfoys quest post, I’ll be writing this in a more condensed, fic-like format. Because there’s so much more material to work with compared to the Malfoy quest, however, this post will be broken up into four parts all tagged “Adventures in Curse-Breaking”, complete with screenshots and gifs from the game, as we follow my MC Carewyn Cromwell, her honorary brothers Bill and Charlie, Barnaby, Merula, and Penny to the Romanian Dragon Sanctuary!

Hope you enjoy! xoxo

Bill’s second meet-up with the sixth years ended up being more of a question-and-answer session about Cursebreaking and Defense Against the Dark Arts in general rather than a set lesson. Charlie had half-jokingly whispered in Carewyn’s ear that it was likely Bill was still in the process of drawing up lesson plans, and although Carewyn thought there was a good chance of it, she didn’t think Bill opening the floor for questions was a bad idea. After all, Merula had expressed interest in being a Cursebreaker, and any anti-Dark Arts information would be helpful to a future Auror like Tonks. (Carewyn once again thought of trying to coax Talbott to join Bill’s sessions too. She knew he preferred to “fly solo,” but she wanted him to become an Auror just as much as he himself wanted it!)

It was only toward the end of their session that Bill -- mostly to poke at Charlie for getting distracted whispering to Carewyn -- brought up his next mission, which his boss Griphook had said would involve dragons.

Of course Charlie’s ears had perked up like a puppy’s at the mention of dragons, and he immediately was interested in accompanying Bill on his mission. The eldest Weasley son, however, turned Charlie down, clearly regretting that he’d brought it up at all. He quickly dismissed the sixth years and excused himself from the classroom, but Charlie wasn’t having it. Agreeing that Bill could use some help if he had to deal with a bunch of dragons, Carewyn quickly changed clothes and accompanied her unofficial twin to Diagon Alley.

Carewyn hadn’t ever been to Gringotts without her mother before. The wizarding bank had always felt so massive to her, not just for its mile-high, vaulted ceilings, but in how the voices of the goblin tellers and witches and wizards in front of the counters echoed seemingly endlessly up toward the ceiling. Despite the ethereal light emanating off the lanterns on every desk and the sparkling diamond chandeliers overheard, the chamber still never felt completely lit. Shadows clung to every pillar and window frame, and the light of the lanterns pooled off the dark, patterned marble pillars, making them resemble rippling, murky green water as you walked past them.

Bill was very surprised to see the two gingers there. He’d tried to reproach them for ambushing him at work, which made Carewyn feel a bit guilty -- Charlie, however, felt no shame at all.

“Well, maybe you shouldn’t have run off in the middle of a conversation like that,” he’d said dryly. “Then we wouldn’t have had to chase after you.”

Carewyn offered Bill a kinder look. “I know you’re working, Bill -- but if your next assignment involves dragons, you know we can help.”

Bill’s boss, Griphook, took in the exchange with dry interest. Keeping a beady eye on both Carewyn and Charlie, he explained the mission more clearly to Bill. The goal was to recover a golden egg created by the goblin Urguff the Unwary and stolen by a dragon that mistook it for one of her own and was now suspected to have settled in the Romanian Dragon Sanctuary. The goblin then encouraged Bill that if “these two humans” could assist him in researching dragons, then it might be wise to accept their offer of help. Bill agreed, and the three gingers met at the Hog’s Head to research the various breeds of dragons one might encounter at the Romanian Sanctuary. Bill was stubborn, however, in keeping their meeting focused solely on research.

“I appreciate you helping me study up on dragons,” he’d said firmly, “but I’m sorry, I’m not taking you on my mission.”

Carewyn would’ve respected Bill’s feelings on the matter, given that this was his job and he deserved to do it his own way...but she knew how much Charlie wanted to go with him, and admittedly she was worried for Bill’s safety, going to a preserve full of dragons all by himself. Charlie himself was just as bullheaded as Bill was, but in the opposite direction.

“If you’re going to that sanctuary, then I’m going with you -- no arguments,” he’d shot back.

Seeing the impasse the two brothers were at, Carewyn immediately moved into “compromise” mode. Bill had already said that he’d have to cancel one of his sessions at Hogwarts in order to complete this mission, and facing so many dragons alone would be way too dangerous, even for a full-grown wizard...so why not kill two birds with one stone by having Charlie, her, and a few other sixth-year students come with Bill to help him find the egg? That way, if Bill needed to stun a dragon at any point, there would be at least two other people shooting Stunning Spells with him.

“Dragons can only be taken down with multiple Stunning spells,” Carewyn reminded him. “You wouldn’t be able to take one down on your own, if you got cornered. I only got lucky with the one in the Vault -- that one was already in bad shape before I faced it. These dragons...they’re in a preserve. They’ll have been treated well. And because they’re protected by Wizarding Law, you probably wouldn’t be allowed to use any spells that could really hurt them, like the Conjunctivitis Curse. Half the reason the dragon in the Vault didn’t kill me was because it couldn’t see me.”

Bill clearly hated how much sense Carewyn was making. His protective big brother instincts fought with his interest in completing his mission, but at long last, he relented.

Carewyn and Charlie got Barnaby, Penny, and Merula on board, and the group visited Hagrid to borrow his camping tent and get some general camping advice and Kettleburn to get some instruction on dragon safety. That Friday, the five sixth-years gathered at the Training Grounds to meet Bill.

It had been so eerie to meet Bill, Charlie, and Merula at the Training Grounds so they could leave Hogwarts via Portkey. For a second, Carewyn felt her shoulders tensing up and her blood freezing as if she was going back into the Portrait Vault. It was only seeing Barnaby and Penny’s faces instead of Rakepick and Ben’s that made her feel the least bit grounded again, even as she took hold of the Portkey and the six of them were flung off their feet and spun around faster and faster and faster --

When they arrived at their destination, Carewyn felt her breath still in her throat.

There were massive trees as far as the eye could see -- dramatic cliffs and mountains dotted the horizon -- the air was so fresh and light, dusted with the scent of pine and burnt oak -- and then overhead, soaring with their wings wide right over them, were dozens of massive, majestic dragons.

It was beautiful.

Carewyn grinned from ear to ear seeing how happy Charlie was. She’d always thought dragons were cool, but her admiration of the creatures had nothing on what her fellow Fireball thought of them. Carewyn had always loved listening to her friends talk about their greatest passions, and Charlie was no exception.

It was quickly decided that it would be best to set up camp and start searching for the golden egg the next morning. As safe as Carewyn thought they’d be with the defensive magical wards she’d put up, she and Bill both thought that searching a dragon preserve at night was still riskier than it was probably worth. Soon the group had set up camp and -- on Barnaby’s suggestion -- started roasting marshmallows over a roaring campfire.

Barnaby immediately proposed sharing scary stories. Penny was reluctant; Carewyn herself didn’t love being scared herself and she didn’t want to upset Penny, but she reassured the blond Hufflepuff all the same.

“Sometimes it’s fun to be a little scared -- especially when you know those things aren’t real and can’t hurt you,” Carewyn had told her. “I mean, you’re with your friends. You know we wouldn’t let anything hurt you.”

Merula gave a sharp bark of a laugh.

Her voice was noticeably softer than normal, which startled Carewyn. The Slytherin Prefect hadn’t really included Merula in her mind when she’d said that, but...the look on Merula’s face made Carewyn feel almost guilty that she hadn’t. She was very glad that Barnaby started right into his scary story about the Bloody Broom.

Carewyn was actually getting really into Barnaby’s story before the roar of a dragon flying a mere four feet over their heads made the entire group duck, even as the defensive wards around the camp effectively kept the dragon’s tail or claws from touching them.

“Let’s go inside,” Carewyn said quickly, trying to will down her own heart rate as she looked over her companions’ identical white faces.

To Be Continued...

[emmdaenovice]

Towards a better future #1

Daminete

#1

next

So I should probably put a few trigger warnings on this

Ah, suicide, abuse, um… depression, mature readers only?

On a cool night in Pairs Marinette Dupain-Cheng stood alone on the highest spot on the Eiffel tower she could climb to while not being a danger to herself and a potential nasty mess on the sidewalk. She looked at the stars hiding behind a thick layer of cloud, or at least she imagined they were there, silently sparkling looking down on all. thinking that holding onto faith is only easy thing to do when its something physical, like the stars. As you see her faith was slowly wavering, mostly due to her miraculous partner Chat Noir but also Paris’ civilians, and. Herself.

It all began barely a month ago, it’s amazing how Marinette’s world could change this much in a small matter of time. She and her parents traveled to China to visit her Uncle, Wing Cheng, partially to escape from the stress of school life (a holiday) and also because of the grand finale of the D.A.B,’s cooking competition. Which no one was surprised when it was announced that Wing was winning. Marinette was so excited for so many reasons, she would be able to see her extended family again and get some more ideas for this new jacket she’s working on, and new inspiration, all the colours, flora, fauna, people, trends, smells, people, places, things!… She had to remind herself daily that she as Marinette Dupain-Cheng could to do all of those things but, she wasn’t just here as Mari. No, what not many people know is that Ladybug and Chat Noir planned to meet in Beijing for a secret mission to involve more miraculous holders and guardians in their mission to defeat Hawkmoth.

The plan started when Chat Noir informed Ladybug that he would be unavailable due to the psychopathic wishes of his father, forcing him to relocate for a few months.

Ladybug and Chat Noir had become closer and closer with each fight they won together and now found themselves in a sibling like relationship. They knew almost everything about each other, except their identities. Which neither of them really knew why but resorted to the explanation of the danger it would cause if one of them was compromised. To say that they trusted each other with everything was an understatement. Because of this Ladybug knew there was nothing she could do about Chat Noir leaving, the fact that the father managed to be a helicopter parent, an absent parent and a psychopath with trust issuers all in one makes her head spin. So, she decided she would make the best of the situation.

Marinette began to pull stings to make sure everything fell into place perfectly, she encouraged Wing to compete in the D.A.B’s, began letting cracks in her emotions show through to her family more than usual, asked if they were going on any upcoming trips, she researched and planned way into the night for months, this would be the most successful trip Ladybug and Chat Noir took together in the history of miraculous. They would find help, and they will take down Hawkmoth. Chat Noir bid his good buy to ladybug and the semi-permanent team of miraculous holders consisting of Rena Rouge, Carapace, Viperion and Ryuko. Ladybug then explained that she was also going to be out of area for a while but will always have the miraculous of teleportation on her for Akuma purification and emergencies. She trusted the group with small Akuma’s but didn’t think Alya and Nino really took the job seriously, Marinette blames herself for not giving the Kawami better matching holders.

So, the plans were set, everything was ready, she was ready.

Chat Noir and ladybug often conversed and went through the plan of attack through the days after Ladybugs arrival. To be honest that’s false, they were trying to find the bloody thing, the entrance to Hunan’s miraculous league. They found information on it thanks to the miraculous book and some odd new posts hidden deep within the internet. One might think that this was a long shot and it was, but it was the only shot they had. They needed adults, people with expert knowledge on battle strategies, physical and mental training, detective skills, … someone with a car. Literally anything would help, they both agreed that nothing would get worse in this situation as why they were trying their best to find it. Oh boy how they were wrong.

When they finally found it, they were ecstatic, so excited to learn more and to finally get help, but they were met with unenthusiastic faces. It seems that this ancient place only held artifacts of the past, no trainers, no holders, no guardians not even Miraculous. To say they were heartbroken would be an understatement. Marinette found herself slipping through the superhero façade as a single tear fell as soon as they were out of the temple, which soon was followed by more until they turned in to full on sobs as Chat Noir held his lady tight whispering sweet nothings into her hair. She knew she shouldn’t have gotten her hopes up, she tries to always expect the worse when it comes to new material on miraculous and hero work, but she couldn’t help herself. Just this one time she hopped things would go her way. After a while she calmed down and realised how she was truly thankful for her partner, the beautiful heart and hair of gold, mischievous little tom cat, her Chat Noir. They conversed and decided to take a deeper look at all of the artefacts the next day to see if they missed something, and to also discover where the mysterious aura within the temple walls was coming from.

They returned to Paris the next day at an alarming pace as they both realised that they haven’t been called over to help in any battles all week let alone purify any Akuma. They both came up with possible scenarios that would explain their absence but most of them were impossible or much in the worse scenario possible category. When they arrived in Paris they found that everything was quite normal, everything seemed to be in place, they located the hero’s and discovered that Hawkmoth hasn’t attacked in quite some time… This freaked the duo even more so. The heroes have been looking after petty crimes for the past 7 days without any suspicious activity at all. Well at least Viperion and Ryuko have. It seems that Rena Rouge and carapace have been keeping up the social experience of the team, to an extent where they were over sharing. Ladybug was furious at this for first not telling her about the suspicious activity (and yes no activity counts as suspicious activity) and secondly for sharing private information about their hero work to the public. Furious doesn’t even begin to describe what she was feeling especially when she found out that Rena Rouge was sharing yet again information, but about the hero’s personal lives, and even identity on Alya’s blog. This time she had gone too far. Chat Noir stood besides his lady silently supporting her as she disciplined his friends, he couldn’t say that he wasn’t mad, he thought he could trust them with more than this, they broke his trust.

It might be because Chat Noir’s and Ladybugs spirits were already broken but they were seriously thinking of the next best step to take as permanent miraculous holder and guardian. Drastic measures such as demoting them to normal civilians was thrown around, but they decided against that, instead they planned to revisit the situation when their civilian identities came back home, and their minds refreshed. They spent the rest of that day checking out potential suspects relating to Hawkmoth. When It came to Gabriel Agreste they weren’t sure how high or low to put him on the list of suspects, but when they visited his mansion to find that he was absent struck a cord with Marinette. She knew something was wrong. Chat Noir didn’t seem too keen on looking around the place determined that his father was a good person.

‘He just doesn’t seem like the type of guy you know?’

‘Chat I don’t think anyone thinks that a fourteen-year-old could ever be Ladybug, suspects are suspects’

When Chat wouldn’t tell her why he was acting weird Ladybug dismissed it as Him just feeling weird being in her old crushes house.

Ladybug found herself feeling off in the house, an especially when it came to Gabrielle’s study, a feeling in the pit of her stomach like a void sending sparks down her legs. They let Kaalki explore the room as they had her on handy, exited to be in a famous person’s study she eagerly obliged to snooping around the room. She zoomed quickly around the room knocking over books and papers, which Chat Noir quickly put back into place, as she finally took a plunge into the floor. They both stood there for a minute conversing in whether a Kawami can get stuck in the ground or not, but didn’t have to act as Kaalki soon flew out beneath the floorboards slower than before with a grim look on her face.

‘Well, what did you see?’ Chat said eagerly wondering what the Kawami found. Forgetting to drop a pun in the process. The Kawami only looked solemnly at the guardian.

‘I advise you to never go down their” she said, almost afraid of the words she spoke

‘Kaalki, why? What’s down there?’ Ladybug spoke, the Kawami squirmed and Chats face paled. What could be down there? What could be down there that a Kawami that has been around for thousands of years is afraid of?

‘I do not wish to speak the horrors. But I can confirm that Gabriel Agreste is in fact Hawkmoth’ her words hung beneath them like a dead man swinging side to side by a noose.

‘What.’ Was all Chat Noir could say. His mind a mess filled with memories and arguments. Finding there was two sides of himself, one that always knew and one who knows he’s innocent.

‘Are you sure’ Ladybug said grimly. meanwhile Chat Noir sat down on his father’s desk staring at the painting of his mother, his emotions running astray within his heart.

“my guardian I am sure as the sky is blue.’ Kaalki looked up at the duo both with horror and sorrow in their eyes, ‘There is refinance of the torcher of Kawami down there as well as a room filled with butterfly’s and Akuma alike. Not to mention a motive for his wish’ she continued.

‘We need to get down their’ Chat Noir decided.

‘You can’t access the tunnels from here there all been sealed off mechanically.’ She thinks for a moment ‘We can open it with Hawkmoth present’

Ladybug thought for a minute, she doesn’t want to attack a man without seeing the proof herself… But she trusts the words of her Kawami ‘Ok’ Ladybug decides ‘lets go find Gabriel Agreste’.

‘I’m glad you decided on this, It is the best to have a clear head while defeating Hawkmoth and this room will do quite the opposite’ Ladybug feeling true terror within her for a moment then turned to Chat Noir.

‘We have to find Gabriel Agreste’ she said with a determining tone ‘if I was an evil mastermind, where would I be if I weren’t at my house?’ Ladybug thought out loud. Finally coming to her senses she sees Chat Noir on the floor.

‘Hey, you ok?’ she sits down next to him and pulls him into a hug ‘Perhaps Hawkmoth has gone to catch butterfly’s’ she laughs trying to make light of the mood, trying to put a smile on his face. But Chat Noir, Adrien Agreste has never felt more conflicted in his life, his emotions were tearing him up inside, all he felt like doing was crying. He would be safe in his lady’s lap, within the embrace of his partner, his best friend, she would listen to him. ‘heck maybe he’s taken a vacation to Hawaii.’ Chat Noir jolts out of Ladybugs arms, quickly remembering where his father is and why he might be there.

“He’s in China.’ he spoke as if there was a hair ball in his mouth.

‘What.’ Ladybugs eyes wide as he has ever seen them ‘Chat what do you mean?’

‘Ladybug. Gabriel Agreste is in China.’

The statement dropped out of the cat’s mouth and rolled around the floor. This is bad. It couldn’t be, that he was also looking for the hidden miraculous association in Hunan like they were… right? No, of course not. Probably, because everything that can go wrong must.

The pair teleported to the temple once again fighting large tree branches in the way, they had no time to care for the nature in the way of their path. They had to get to the association as soon as possible, they had to make sure that everyone was ok, sure they were unhelpful but that doesn’t mean they deserve to suffer at the hands of Hawkmoth. Questions like these and more flowed through their head faster than a cat jumping out of water like; what was Kaalki  so afraid of, is Gabriel really Hawkmoth, where do my parents think I am now, what am I going to do now, will we win? After all these years of fighting finally will we win.

They ran towards the temple stopping halfway to catch their breath, understanding that if Hawkmoth was there that he would feel the presence of the portal but still silently cursing Kaalki for not bringing them closer. A scream was taken out of their lungs as large boom thundered across the forest accompanied by a large dust storm and the deepest colour of orange licking the tips of the sky. Someone had blown up the temple. Who were they kidding hawkmoth had blown up the temple. All that ancient memorabilia, the history, the connection to the miraculous, even the old farts that occasionally dust the entrance. All gone. All obliterated by the hands of one man, and for what?

‘Milady theirs something I need-‘

‘There he is’ Ladybug points at a shadow emerging from the debris ‘let’s go Chat’ she extends her hand to him, he pauses for a second then grasps her hand tight.

‘I would go anywhere with you my lady’ Kaalki quickly teleports the duo directly behind their villain of four consistent years. He turns noticing the presence, but Ladybug quickly wrapped her yo-yo around him. She pulled on the strong fiber forcing him onto the ground.

‘Gabriel Agreste’ Ladybug yelled in the most fearsome Guardian like tone Chat Noir has ever heard. To both heroes surprise Hawkmoth lifted his head off the ground looking them both in the eye

‘Ah beetlebug and kittycat, I would say I’m surprised but honestly, it took you long enough’ he spat, quite confident for a trapped man. ‘I suppose that’s what I get for fighting a bunch of children’ he huffed.

‘Well these children kept you busy for four years now didn’t we!’ Chat Noir yelled. ‘fuck you’ he said less confidently his voice breaking, both unable to move an inch towards their captive, like a moment in time that froze completely

‘I had certain obstacles in my way preventing me from defeating you, if I had a powerful miraculous this little game of cat and mouse would be over a lot quicker’

‘So, you got angry when you didn’t find any here and blew up a sacred miraculous temple?!’ she yelled her arms shaking a little from the adrenaline, unable to explain this monsters thought process

‘No, no, no little girl, I’m afraid you aren’t quite right’

‘Don’t belittle us, you’re the one trapped’ Chat Noir said growling, like a hungry beast in front of its prey.

Hawkmoth began to laugh manically ‘That’s where your wrong foolish boy, I’m right where I want to be. Don’t you know what happens if you back a wild animal into a corner?’ Chat shakes in fury as this grown man, his father laughs at him. All of those years of looking up to him, trying to get him to be proud of him, acting as the best child one could have, … all those years fighting for his life, dying again and again for the sake of his lady for the sake of taking him down. All for what. Chat controlled by rage silently walked towards the man, looked at him in the eyes, those deep dark eyes holding horrors he never wants to see. This man has tortured him for years mentally, physically and emotionally in all meanings of the word, he wanted him to pay. It was time for Adrien Agreste to finally get his revenge. With all the force he could muster he kicked his father in the ribs, feeling or maybe imagining the satisfying crack of ribs underneath his boot. One part of him thought he should be sad, but all he felt was empty. Hawkmoth coughed and wined in pain looking up at Chat smiling.

‘Is that all you got? Pussy’ his laugh this time was cut off by chats fist finding its place on garbles cheek.

‘Chat that’s enough’ Ladybug said a solemn look on her face. He looked at her and stood back.

‘Oh, I see, the little stray has an owner.’ he laughs ‘Come on ladybug give it a go! Hit me! Though I doubt you could hurt me with that tiny whore body of yours‘ he laughs one again and ladybug turns away, she knows that Hawkmoth wants to rile them up, no matter what he throws at her she won’t give in to what he wants, she will not give control to him. Chat Noir however couldn’t say the same, he wanted to follow the rules of his lady but Hawkmoth was laying in front of him completely defenseless asking for a beating ‘Oh oh I’ve got it the bitch owns the bitch’ that was the last straw for chat Noir he tackled his father the one that helped bring him into existence and started beating him unable and unwilling to hold back.

Ladybug was frozen in time afraid of her partner, afraid of how violent he had become, though she didn’t blame him. The sheer force of his attacks and the emotion behind them, such raw hatred, she’d never seen her best friend like this before. That small moment in time was all it took. Both heroes distracted one hitting the terrorist which forced the entirety of Paris under extreme pain, and the other afraid of her most trusted friend, her partner of four years. Kaalki’s glasses were slid off ladybugs head and placed into the hand of Myura. The ladybug yelped in terror as she realised a plant like looking Amok had stolen the miraculous from atop her head with its long wipe like vines. Chat also looked up from his pray in time for him to be thrown off Hawkmoths body like a sack of potatoes. Before chat could get up off the ground, he was hold tight by the forest monster as he found his lady was as well. Hawkmoth was slowly picked up off the ground by the vines and placed on his feet. His bloody face dripping with crimson and slight black bruises starting to form where Chat punched him repeatedly. How could they forget about Myura, how could they forget? They should have just transported Hawkmoth to Paris then and there, they should have tied him up, they should have checked their surroundings, they’re ladybug and Chat Noir for miraculous sake they heroes. Heroes don’t make stupid mistakes like this, freezing up when things are finally going their way. No. real heroes would have done better. They’re not heroes they failed Paris they failed the guardians before them they failed themselves. The only thing that they are is children. Scared children trying to save the day in feeling like adults dressing up in their parents clothing. How could this have happened?

‘You won’t get away with this Hawkmoth” ladybug yelled ‘Our miraculous don’t belong in the hands of evil. Good will always find a way, and it will punish you for you evil doings, the terror you have spread across Paris and now the world, if not us then the next.’ She spoke proudly as if she had won the battle, her words spoken like a true hero like a true guardian. Hawkmoth was steadied by Myura, as she gave him Kaalki’s miraculous, looking at them like she had said something strange

‘If you kill us now you will regret it, the weight of two innocent, in your word’s children, weighing on your soul for eternity. Don’t you have a kid? Adrien?’ This got Hawkmoths attention ‘He’s about the same age as us, what will you see when you look at him. Will it all be worth it? all this death and tragedy for a wish? A wish that will blow up in your face?’ Chat finished wanting to back up what Ladybug said in his own way. Hawkmoth laughed once again as if Chat had said something funny, for a moment Adrien wondered what type of face Hawkmoth would make when her realises he had killed his own child, would he laugh, just as he is now? Would he be happy that the burden of his perfect son would be gone?

Ha sorry to end it like that

I’m sorry but we wont see the romantic side for a couple of chapters but it’s coming soon I promise!

Tell me if you hate it ~

[artificialqueens]

she loves me! (multi) — chapter one - roza

[ summary ] : new parfumerie employee sasha velour has been transferred from her old russian company into a budapest shop. beginning to be at odds with shea couleé despite working with each other: they are unaware that each is the other's secret pen pal met through lonely-hearts ads. ( au for the musical "she loves me" )

[ author's note ] : I began writing this months ago and deleted it but I revisited it, due to me being in the actual musical (we open tomorrow holy shit!) and wanting much more of a comfort au, also I want more sashea! this musical is set in the 1930's so ofc I'll change some of the stuff and clothing around for certain characters but this musical is beautiful and deserves to be told in its entirety and it's one of the few musicals set in my central/eastern europe so as a slav I'll exploit the shit out of that. so much love to citrus, grey and saiph for being amazing beta's !!! xx — lily.

AO3 / My Tumblr / (人*´∀｀)｡*ﾟ+

— *.✧

The Summer of 1932 was officially dwindling down to a close.

Well— it was what Divina had noted when her heels hit the ground of the sidewalk, looking out for any stray motorcycles and passing cars. Her red hair cascaded down the ends of her shoulders as some loose strands became tucked into her beige coat.

The first few bundles of leaves had fallen from the Hungarian Oak tree beneath Divina's feet. Though native to Great Britain, she had moved to Budapest as a teenager. Pursuing her studies and wanting to escape from the economic sanctions (which had now become a worldwide depression). Hungary was beautiful, it was quiet, it was full of interesting people and architecture and yet she stood in her coat, holding an entirely Hungarian newspaper between her fingertips walking to the door of her current job.

Almost time for autumn!

She was immediately met with an obnoxiously loud honk from an incoming bicycle, she laughed aloud and clasped her hands together immediately knowing it would be Aquaria Coady , the utter prideful future of the perfurmie.

Luckily enough to have inherited the last name (though she was born a Palandrani ) the name of the damn shop: Coady's, she was Mrs. Coady or Sharon's only true "child" for lack of a better term. She was truly just her legally and informally adopted child who she met on the street, looking for a job and a place to stay. It was a wonderful story, but Divina always felt that small twinge of jealousy knowing she could've just played up her own act more for an easier start to the job. It was a rocky economy and Aquaria was definitely lucky to have a job even if her dream was to be a formal clerk and not a delivery girl.

"Good morning."

"Good day!" Divina chirped, glancing aimlessly through the newspaper attempting to find even a speck of interesting news that didn't involve international affairs or the crippling economic debt. "How are you today? It's a beautiful morning." The platinum blonde said as the redhead could only grin out of the corner of her lips, it indeed was quite an unusually perfect morning weather wise.

A nice breeze but not too cold, the sun was bright enough for a picnic but definitely not enough of a heatwave to burn their skin as it did some of those early Summer afternoons.

"Very, now that you mention it. I see you've dressed all nice as usual." A laugh left her throat, lips pressing together, intrigued by how formal she had always appeared. "That's an awfully elegant outfit for a perfume shop."

Aquaria rolled her eyes and adjusted the hairs  that hid behind her ear, "And why not? I represent my family, technically, I might as well look twice as good as you all do in your dress code." Divina cackled. She had to admit that all the color clashes weren’t exactly the most pleasing, she would've preferred company outfits but no— guess she had freedom of expression and had to use it.

Thank heavens the shop is beautiful and can distract these damn customers a good bunch.

"How many people have you run over today?"

The blonde shook her head and nervously gripped her own wrists, adjusting her jewelry, "Not one!" Yelling as she parked her bike before Divina shrugged, flipping a page in the newspaper.

"Well, it's early."

Aquaria tapped Divina on the back as their eyes met, the older Brit a bit confused by her antics before she began to whisper, "Here comes Ms. Zamolodchikova." The blonde walked calmly across the other side of the street before she joined the other two employees, wearing a cream colored dress with a mix of pink and beige floral patterns seeping through the design. There was a slight slit cut in the leg area: Katya always said, as a former dancer and a master of her own flexibility, she was beyond proud to show off her legs whenever she could.

"She spent the night with Ms. Honard again." Divina, unsurprised, could only sigh, not wanting to know exactly how she managed to find that one out. "You know, they always kiss at the newsstand and then she makes her way around another block so we think she's actually going home." Aquaria butted in, closing Divina's newspaper and holding her position of poise though her shoes tapped against the ground.

Swinging around her purse she grinned, looking completely entranced by the gorgeously clear skies. "Good morning!" The Russian called out to the lonesome girls who quickly looked up as if they hadn't just been gossiping about her confusingly puzzled love life.

"Good day!" They both replied instantaneously to the perfectly prim and proper looking woman.

Katya was quite the sweet girl when she wasn't busy being a mischievous "whore" as she liked to put it: she didn't even hide her affair with one of their fellow employees, it was all out in the open for everyone to hear though she always kept her good graces by being a passionate and dedicated employee, no one could deny her that. She was also great fun and the one Aquaria and Divina latched most to due to her down to earth ethic.

"Have you seen a lovelier morning?" Her lips curling into a smirk, beyond happy to see summer was beginning to disappear and change into winter. " Never! "

"Anyone mind if I take the day off?" Dreamingly sighing as she took her gloves off, stuffing them in her purse as she glanced over at Aquaria who patiently waited for their boss to arrive, "Aquaria!" The blonde suddenly jumped and stood in front of Katya, the Russian giggling.

"Why aren't you old enough to take me away from all this?"

"I am! I'm this close to being a clerk."

"Just end all the stress and marry me, then I can quit my job and suntan all day!" She started with her glowing blue eyes, desperately groaning.

"Well, I'm afraid you're not quite old enough are you?" Her stature still read teenager, the bicycle was definitely not helping her look any more mature or older.

"I'm catching up! Mrs. Edwards always said before she left that I'd get to be 35 before you ever did." Divina almost immediately punched her right in her shoulders, coughing and giving a maddening expression seeing Katya visibly holding back an offended expression.

"Ah, Mrs. Honard!" Divina lightened the conversation much to the delight of Katya who whipped her head around, looking for her business partner as if they hadn't just spent another lonesome night together filled with strained goodbyes, burnt cigarettes and millions of red lipstick marks across each other’s bare skin. The Russian turned and propped herself against the door, pretending to seem disinterested in her little love affair walking up to the establishment.

"Good morning on this radiant day." Alaska replied with a permanent grin drawn across her lipstick covered mouth, the bright red popping out against her light blonde hair that was pulled into a high ponytail— it hung comfortably as she adjusted her form fitting black and white suit: perfectly cleaned and tight. The blonde's gold and black came in place of her right hand as she urgently slammed it into the sidewalk.

"Good day." All three, including Katya chimed in with no surprise as the taller blonde walked over the giddy Russian girl who took her hand, "Good morning, my dear, you've never looked so beautiful." She gripped her fingertips and spun her once to see the dress in it's full glory. Katya could only place a hand on Alaska's shoulder, their other free hand interlocking.

"Thank you, how kind." She winked as Alaska mentioned what a marvelous dress she had managed to put on for today's work shift, though Aquaria quickly interjected: not very trusting of Alaska in general, especially with her complicated relationship concerning Katya.

"Same dress she had on just two days ago Ms. Honard."

Once again she was met with Divina hitting her in the shoulders, though she turned around and groaned. "What?" She whispered as Katya and Alaska leaned against the window pane, making idle conversation before the redhead clapped and waved, "Well, well if it isn't Ms. Couleé, early as always."

Shea was always the last one to arrive from the employees besides Mrs. Coady who had to come and open the shop anyway, no harm in spending an extra twenty minutes sleeping in knowing the routine schedule and opening. She ran her hands down her red suit, picking up her pace knowing that any moment would be when they'd have to begin the ever-changing shifts and work, the winter season would be upon them soon enough wouldn't it?"

She managed a bright smile for her friends at the perfume shop who had been waiting earlier than her she had suspected, "Good morning, isn't that a beautiful sky? Too nice of a day to be inside just counting change."

Katya clapped, in absolute agreement speaking up first, "Why don't we all just take a day off work?"

Divina snapped back rather quickly, "Leaving Mrs. Coady without a single clerk?" The Russian bit her lip and shrugged. All she wanted was to soak in that last bit of bright light and take the day to simply stroll around the town and across the bridge. Shea laughed, stuffing her hands in her pockets as she let the wind hit her face, her fingertips brushing through her straightened hair. It probably needed a cut, but she might as well wait until winter when the season would pick up business again.

The American laughed, "Another day, another time." She gently patted Katya's shoulder as she frowned, exhausted, Shea could only patiently await the time when Mrs. Coady would come and open the doors up, she had a new letter she urgently needed to share with Divina. She knew of her secret correspondence better than anyone else, and it was the best feeling for Shea to open the mail and know she had a letter from a Dear Friend.

A duo of two ladies walked across the street, glancing at the perfume and cold creams displayed in the glass, light from the sun still shining through  as they walked down. The employees could only listen in on the conversation with impatience. One wearing an ensemble of purple, with thickly curled blonde hair and blue eyes as her gloves held a pearl clutch speaking to a taller and thinner brunette who's eyes shined across the street looking down at her blue velvet heels.

"Have you ever actually tried their cold creams?"

"I wonder if they're any good!"

"Good?" A voice spoke up, the employees quickly straightening themselves realizing it was Mrs.Coady. The blonde walked over the pair whom had been beyond amused to see the actual shop owner speaking to them about her own products. They spoke for a quick moment, her curls bouncing off her shoulders and black blazer as she looked at her workers and grinned, "Good day!" She fiddled with the key before opening the shop for duty.

Sharon passed everyone first to make it to her office unbothered, knowing her shop well enough to put it under Shea's watchful eye.

Shea and Alaska quickly ran off and grabbing the new shipments, unlocking the cabinets and putting their countertops together as Alaska begun setting up her work station that sat on the left, right near the door which was where Katya spent a great amount of her time: it was truly pure coincidence isn't it?

Aquaria grabbed some of the lavender scented perfume, carefully holding it as to not drop it— it was entirely made of glass perfectly colored in a sequence of pastel purple diamonds. She gently sprayed it around the shop and gave an extra spritz to Katya who always waved the perfume near herself and skipped into the fumes, to make sure it was on her wrists and neck.

The Russian raced to the door in her pink heels, opening the door with the bells and chimes perfectly echoing throughout the  shop. Shea, Divina and Alaska all stood in front of their workplaces that now displayed a various array of products.

"Good afternoon Madam may I help you?"

Alaska spoke first, gently taking the hand of a brunette with long straight hair who was wearing a long red dress, her eyes brown: duly noted . The lady sitting on the chair immediately, beginning to go through her handwritten list of items she needed before the season began.

Divina and Shea took the two others, one each to their station as they began their work. Selling all the new items: the toilet water, the Mona Lisa creams, the Lily scented soap that they now had in the large size as well as a medium and small.

These were simply the sounds while selling.

The hours and minutes would be whisked away with more chimes, more sales and a hopeful increase in money: that meant they would all benefit at the end of the night. Budapest was slowly becoming more and more expensive with the influx of tourists growing.

It was about twenty minutes later the gaggle of ladies all stood up to walk out the door, bags bundled with card charges and early Christmas orders as well as physical gifts wrapped and ready with their paper bags sporting the signature cursive "C" stamp on the front in gold lettering. Katya opened the door as the chimes went off.

The three gathered at the front, bowing and extending their hands for the corporate goodbyes they had been taught from the moment they received the job.

"Thank you Madam, please call again, do call again: Madam!"

Katya shut the door before walking over to Alaska, leaning over her counter as the two began to ramble on, Shea turning disinterested and anxious to share what she had uncovered in the latest addition to her letters. "Divina!" She called over the British girl who put down her bag under one of the drawers, prancing over to Shea with a cackle.

"Yes?" Her arms outstretched around her shoulders.

"I got another letter today, from her. From Dear Friend!"

The letters had been going on for over four months now, it was everything Shea had lived for: they’d discussed meeting up soon indefinitely. She must've lived in Budapest if they had met from Shea's anonymous Lonely Hearts Club ad in the local newspaper. Whomever Dear Friend was, she hoped she didn't live up to Shea's exception because she was far too perfect, she sounded intelligent, a passionate young lady with all the talents and charm in the world.

"Oh really? Did she finally enclose a snapshot?"

Shea rolled her eyes and could only breathe out a gentle sigh of relief, opening the handwritten letter up for the two girls to read while the customers were gone.

"Listen to this!"

Clearing her throat she began reading the letter, imagining the person behind these impeccable replies and penmanship.

—

" Dear Friend,

Yesterday morning I ran through the rain to the office! I had the key in my hand, the key to Box 1433.

Trembling, I opened the door and reached inside.

And oh, dear friend, there you were! I took you out and held you in my land and looked at you for a moment.

Then I sat down, gently opened you and read you. "

—

Divina smiled hopeless, part of her was hoping that all this was true and indeed not some kind of setup, they had all heard the one in a million stories with the pen pal's meeting face to face and it not going entirely well: bodies ending up in the Danube.

"That is very well written, have you talked about finally meeting?"

Shea closed the letter and gently stuffed it in her suit's blazer pocket, exchanging a grin to the Brit who sat now on what was usually the customer's stool. "We have, she's working out the details and then we will absolutely meet! We have to, I'm getting impatient to say the least."

"I can tell, you're always vibrating and tapping your feet."

"Divina this is serious! What if she's everything I've ever wanted her to be?"

The redhead gave a confused gaze at her friend and fellow employee, "If she's as perfect as these letters are making her out to be than I think you are very lucky. If I wasn't married to Viv maybe I'd try my own luck." Shea had given at least a small chuckle at the mention of Divina's wife. "Well if anything ever happens, you know who to call to make your AD."

That signature Divina cackle left straight from her stomach as she clutched Shea's wrists and kicked her legs before clearing her throat and calming down rather quickly.

"I'll definitely let you know."

Shea turned towards her designated workstation and sighed, playing with the products. Aquaria had been sweeping the floors and underneath the stations, Shea moving it gently as to smooth along the process for the younger blonde. Daydreaming wasn't exactly recommend at her job but her entire head had been preoccupied with thoughts about her Dear Friend.

Her thoughts were interrupted by a door from the back open, Sharon quickly walking out and slamming it shut, holding an envelope between her fingertips. Blonde hair falling in her face though she quickly tucked it behind her ear.

"Shea!" She yelled, her dark brown eyes peered across her station as she quickly stepped down from the platform and walked towards her boss, a bit confused as work had barely even begun and already their boss had something to say.

"Yes Mrs. Coady?"

"Let's talk."

[lswritingdesk]

7. Furling

When Kyrie fell asleep that night, she felt the familiar pull of the Dreamscape. She entered curiously. It had been a while since she had felt compelled to enter the Dreamscape the way she had felt compelled to enter the Fragment. 

When she exited the vines covering her side of the garden, she could see that Daniel was already waiting for her in the centre of it. He was smiling at her in a way that made her slightly uncomfortable. 

“This is new,” she commented, gesturing to the garden. “Summoning me here instead of to your base.”

“I went to sleep with your rock in my hand,” Daniel said with a cocky grin. “It worked.”

“I can see that,” Kyrie replied. “Why is it that you summoned me?”

“I’ve just come from an interesting place. I know what you are,” Daniel said. Kyrie tried not to freeze on his words. “We went to a planet that once was the meeting place of four great races. We recognised the writing of the Nox and the Asgard. There was a third writing, that we called the Ancients. And then there was a fourth, indecipherable except for the name of the race. The Furlings. You. You’re a Furling.”

Kyrie contemplated her response. Elder Rhea couldn’t very well blame her for revealing something Daniel Jackson had deduced on his own. “And you came to this deduction all on your own?”

“It makes sense. You said you had an alliance with the Asgard, you knew of the Nox, you withdrew from the galaxy. You. Are. A. Furling. You are a being of the fourth race.”

“I can’t very well deny it after you put it all together,” Kyrie said at last. 

“But why? Why be so secretive? Why withdraw from the universe?”

“When the Ancients left, and the Goa’uld began to crop up, and the Replicators began to threaten the Asgard...we decided that it was best to withdraw completely. We grounded all of our interstellar ships. The shipyards are rusting, before you ask. We closed off all of our colonies. We cloaked Illyria. For all intents and purposes, we disappeared. It was for our own protection.”

“But you could be helping the Asgard in their fight against the Replicators right now! You could have prevented the Goa’uld from rising to power if you had stayed.”

“I cannot and will not make excuses for my Elders or predict what we could have done. What we could be doing. It’s not my place. I am a Scholar, Daniel, not an Elder, not even an Elder to be. My sacred geometry did not predict that. I cannot simply criticise my governing body like you are asking me to do.” Kyrie’s voice sounded thick. 

“But you’re a Seer, and you said Seers had the power to guide-“

“Not that kind of power,” she responded uncomfortably. For once, Kyrie wanted to be the one with her head in her hands. “Look, I’m uncomfortable with some of the things I am directed to do, I admit. I did not want to conceal things from you. There are things I must yet conceal. I must ask you not to reveal what I am, should the occasion arise that I finally introduce myself to others of your kind. And I ask the Alchemy that you do not fall into the hands of a Goa’uld or other enemy who finds out of our existence from you…” Kyrie sighed. 

“I’m...sorry. I did not think of that. That the Goa’uld could have learned of you through me if…”

“By the Alchemy, it will never come up. But you must understand that our situation has become more complicated now. You cannot tell the Asgard of me, either, understand. It is very important...you must…the journey you are on right now is one that you must take alone with the Asgard for now. I- we- cannot help. Yet.”

“Well, that at least makes sense.”

“It does?” Kyrie asked, genuine surprise in her voice. 

“Yes. We must prove ourselves to the other races one at a time. We probably couldn’t handle two at a time. So yes, it makes sense.” 

“Oh. I will still be here, of course. I can answer questions- probably more, now that you know what I am. I just can’t offer you the aide you seek.”

“If you had just told me from the start, this would have been so much simpler.” Kyrie sighed. 

“Perhaps. Perhaps it would have been harder. It would have been nice if the Fragment had shown me this,” Kyrie said. 

“Not omnipotent, eh?” Daniel said with a smirk. 

“I never claimed to be,” Kyrie said, an edge to her voice. “Visions in the Fragment offer guidance, and then I must interpret that guidance to offer my own guidance.”

“So I’m getting secondhand guidance, is what you’re saying?”

“If you want to put it that way, yes. I would never lie to you outright.”

“But you would, as you say, conceal things from me.”

“I was ordered to. Surely there are things that you are ordered to do yourself that you do not like?”

“Yes, but-”

“Then you must respect that I have aspects of my life that are much the same. You and I are not that much different, Daniel Jackson.”

“You’re an alien with the power to see beyond and see my future, but if you want to call us ‘not that different’, sure, go ahead.”

“It is comments like that that make the Asgard and my Elders make comments of their own that allude to your race as children. You are one of the better of your kind. I expected better of you.”

“That was harsh.”

“That was the truth.”

“I’m glad I know what you are. I can learn so much from you.”

“If you could see it, you would see that I was rolling my eyes at you.”

“I still don’t fully understand the veil. Our conversations would make so much more sense if I were able to see your facial expressions. When others of your society veil, are their veils aways so opaque, or is that just a Seer thing?”

“I’m going to regret you knowing that I’m a Furling. You should just save your questions and live with us for a Cycle.”

“I’d rather know now.” Kyrie sighed.

“No, the veils are not always opaque. My mother veils because she likes it, but she wears sheer blue veils that match her outfits. And hers aren’t electronic like mine is. My eyes were damaged by the Fragment the first time I went into it. I can adjust how much light enters my field of vision with an electronic veil so that I can properly see. Seers wear opaque veils because our eyes are...unsettling to most.”

“In what way?”

“If you were a Furling child, I would demand an apology for nosiness.”

“But I’m not a Furling child.”

“No, you are a Scholar, and I am in a deep hole with you. When my eyes were damaged, they became an opaque, milky white. It is the Mark of the Seer. Most people don’t want to see that, so we veil.”

“That seems a little unfair to you.”

“It is the way we have lived for thousands of Cycles. I do not mind it. Besides, I get away with a lot of facial expressions that I would otherwise have to make apologies for were I not veiled, because I am terrible at masking my emotions. I was constantly having to apologise for them as a child.”

“I take it apologies are big in your society? You’ve mentioned having to make public ones before.”

“Ah yes, for the swimming clothes and the public rudeness. That was...not fun. My mother shrieked at me over the holoscreen for my indecency despite my explanation. Yes. We are an ultra-polite society. There are standard apologies for most everything. Your Colonel will offend a great many of us when he comes to visit. I do not need a Vision to know that.” Daniel chuckled at this.

“He offends a great many people on our world as well. It’s kind of his thing.”

“Mmm. I advise you to do the bulk of the talking on your official visit here.”

“And you won’t give me a hint of when that might be?”

“You know me better than that by now, Daniel.”

“It was worth a try.”

“If we stay here talking, will our bodies experience actual rest?”

“Not entirely, so no, I will not let you keep me here the entire time to answer your questions. Besides, time passes differently in the Dreamscape than in the real world, never mind the differences between Illyria and Earth. I do have a job and a life, as do you. They will come searching for me if I do not appear on time, and though my Krewe leader is somewhat understanding of my...situation, I do not wish to overstep my boundaries with them. I’ve already fainted once on the worksite and left early another time.”

“Your work, do you enjoy it?”

“Immensely. Our forebears are fascinating. They did not use the Fragment or Seers to guide their lives as we do now. Learning about them and adding to the body of knowledge is quite satisfying.”

“I know what you mean. I’ve been to dozens of worlds now, and we’ve learned so much about Earth cultures just from visiting other worlds- it has been amazing. Some worlds are like living museums. I wish I could spend more time studying, but unfortunately my team is assigned to do a lot more than just study.”

“You will have your fill of studying one day, Daniel.”

“Another Vision of my future?”

“No, just a hunch. Everyone retires from active roles in their own time to do research, at least on Illyria. I suspect it’s the same on Earth.”

“Why isn’t the Seer destined to bring the Tau’ri to Illyria an Earth scholar instead?”

“That would be too easy. We have Earth scholars. There are more Furlings than you think on Earth monitoring different Timelines and ensuring that events happen as planned.”

“That’s a little…interventionist.”

“We’re all over the universe. It’s what we’ve always done. As soon as Lakme and Lakira charted the stars, we were out there, in the universe, doing what we did best.”

“But I thought you said your ancestors didn’t follow the Fragment or Seers?”

“They didn’t, not at first. They didn’t understand the Fragment for a long time. But there was just this innate sense of knowing among our people of how to guide civilisations or people or places along the right path without fully getting involved.”

“For millennia, leading right up to you.”

“Leading right up to me.”

“I suppose this is where I should stop asking questions and let you go with grace.”

“Perhaps for now. I have answered many of your questions tonight without very much ducking about the subject. You should be glad.”

“I am. Thank you for not ducking my questions tonight.”

“Thank you for not dragging me into the Fragment. The Dreamscape is a far kinder place to meet. Stay well. We will meet again soon.”

“I hope so. You stay well, too.”

--

@luckyninetales

[chibi-chaos]

Partners in Crime

Okay sooooo... I shall commence this fanfic by explaining a few headcanons:

1. In the movie the news line during the interview with Chuck has “ Striker Eureka is the last Jaeger active among the ANZAC (Australian and New Zealand Army Corps ) Jaegers. I took this and ran wild at this being a sign that New Zealand would also have their own Jaeger. Thus my oc’s Evan Henare and Waimarie Anderson were formed - I may end up making a post explaining them more in-depth

2. I like to picture Mako and Chuck being kids of Herc and Stacker would mean that they have met a fair few times and are like a ragtag family. And with it, the two would bounce off each other with their determination to be Jaeger pilots.

3. I imagine technicians and pilots would have had a fond side for Mako and Chuck, and I made Evan and Waimarie no exception to this.

After Marshal Pentecost took Mako in, the young girl found herself spending a few summers in Australia - specifically hanging around the Sydney Shatterdome as the Marshal went about his duties in the region. Naturally, it meant that she encountered Chuck. The ways she went about describing the youngest Hansen were as follows:

Agitated cat glaring at the corner of the room. That was literally how he looked when she first saw him, sitting on a set of metal stairs, clutching a bulldog in his arms.

Mean and not someone she’d want to be friends with. That was concluded after a bit of time, and when he opened his mouth. He had made the point to state how he didn’t like her, and honestly, she couldn’t say he was on her ‘like’ list either. Though the older she got the more she suspected that that had been partly because of how Herc had warmed up to her, in essence, she probably was a rival to a thing which younger Chuck didn’t want to acknowledge he was competing for.

Alright was when Chuck had slipped an opened magazine his uncle had given him to her. He acted as if he wasn’t doing it at all, looking at Max instead, and feeding him with his other hand. The magazine had been covering some of the specs of the Jaeger’s, as was something that Mako eagerly read over and memorized.

The trade would continue where the two shared what books and magazines they could get, and over some unclear time, the two had gotten onto friendly terms with each other without even realizing it. When Jake was a little older and was following the Marshal around he too would join in on their strange reading club. Max would love every second of it cause it meant he had the attention of three children.

When the Marshal would collect Jake (due to being still too young and needing to be taken to where they current home was), Herc would usually take the two somewhere. Most of the time it was exploring the base, sometimes he managed to get them off base. But eventually, they’d be left to entertain themselves in the quarters the Hansen’s had.

Partner-in-crime was one which occurred at that point. The older they got the more daring they became, they’d sneak out of their quarters and would make their way down to the Kwoon Room to spy on the Jaeger pilots - both eager by this point to become ones as well.

2017 came around and by summer in Australia, they were doing it again, this time with a new pair to study. After several years the two had come to know most of the pilot-pairs styles, Herc and Scott’s they probably knew best. So to have a new pair was exciting in a way.

The two seemed fairly different from the other, the man had tanned skin, dark brown hair and a fairly solid build, while the female seemed at least a few years younger, brown skin, dark hair and a lithe figure. They grew even more curious to see the use of the Quarterstaffs instead of the usual hanbo, bo or hand to hand.

“Who are they?” Mako remembered whispering to Chuck quietly.

“Evan Henare and Waimarie Anderson, they’re piloting a New Zealand Mark Four Jaeger; Kraken Roun. The first in a few ways...”

His explanation though faded as Mako watched the two pilots circle each other, spinning their staffs idly as if evaluating the other before suddenly Waimarie had moved. There was a practised ease in her move, that Evan seemed to not be at yet, a surprising thing considering how she was much younger than him. But the two fighting was a sight to behold - one that they remember only being matched when their fathers had sparred, that same confidence in each other's skills that led to them not holding back.

Their spying sessions went on like that, watching Herc and Scott, watching the Pilots of Vulcan Specter, the occasional sparring session between their fathers, and the two newest pilots.

Though the two New Zealanders had caught them red-handed at one point, and that led to a twist that would lead to some of  Mako’s fondest memories. One look between Evan and Waimarie and they had changed their quarter-staffs for the standard bo staff before offering it to Mako and Chuck.

And that was how it started, the meetings in the Kwoon Room where one session Waimarie would be teaching Mako moves, and Evan teaching Chuck to the next where they swapped. Sometimes Mako found herself sparring with the teenager (it had surprised her to know how much more closer their ages were to what she had thought they were).  But those sessions were amazing with how Waimarie treated her like a serious partner, and when they spared Chuck and Evan would be sitting on the steps, the pilot pointing out some of the moves Waimarie was using. The following week it would be Chuck sparring with Waimarie and Evan point out things to Mako, and then it would be swapped, the two getting to spar with Evan while Waimarie unpacks it all. In a strange way, Waimarie seemed to assume a sort of older-sister role, and Evan a hybrid of older brother and the ‘cool cousin’ character that turned up in stories she had read a few times.

Actual Partner started this moment when Evan turned from looking at her and Chuck to Waimarie as she moved over with two hanbo. There was a smile on his face, that almost matched the look Chuck would have when he stole his father’s or his uncle’s jacket. That edge of doing something that probably could stir trouble, but despite knowing that have every intention of doing it. If it wasn’t for the fact of how she had come to know Evan. along with the fact that Waimarie was there the ground him, Mako would have been a little worried.

“Here’s an idea Wai,” Evan said, tilting his head a tiny bit at the woman.

In return Waimarie had raised an eyebrow, looking suspiciously at her co-pilot for a moment before it shifted to a small smile.

An interesting side note that Mako had picked up that this was very reminiscent of how the two piloting together worked. Silently between each other Evan could generate creative ideas, and Waimarie could translate it into action.

“Oh?”

“How about we let Chuck and Mako spar between each other?”

It was in an instant that Chuck particularly had perked up at the thought of that before looking at Waimarie and Mako, hoping they’d agree. Mako, also admittedly liking this idea, turned to look at Waimarie as well. The young New Zealander sighed almost fondly, shaking her head as she smiles.

“Alright,” She replied, moving over to hand the two staffs to Mako and Chuck as the two had scrambled to take off their shoes.

Now, now they really felt like partners. In the near future, this could become common between her and Chuck sparring. Maybe they could follow in their father-figures’ steps and become Jaeger pilots and each other’s comm-pod partner.

The moment both had their staffs, Waimarie moved to follow Evan onto the steps, standing watch on this sparring match, the tiny Max following the two to settle next to them. Though give it about ten minutes and he’d be napping for as long as the matches lasted.

“Usually Kwoon training involves various forms of fighting; What your fight style and form is will be defined usually by you and your co-pilot.,” Waimarie explained once the two were in place, “In your case, it’s defined by how you two are well versed by now on how to use the hanbo, and some hand-to-hand.”

Deciding that was enough of an explanation, Evan spoke up.

“The first to land four strikes wins,” He announced, “But the real aim really is how you two can reach each other.”

“In essence, the longer the sparring session or the more moves blocked the more chance there is of compatibility.” Waimarie concluded with a smile- pausing for a moment before speaking again, “Begin.”

It was with that Mako quickly switched her focus from listening to Waimarie and Evan to Chuck, doing so in time to block an attack he was sending her way. What followed felt like pure instinct as Mako countered Chuck’s attack – because it became clear that when sparring with any Hansen meant fighting power with power. A Hansen committed to their moves a hundred per cent, fuelled by emotions, and refined with practice.

That match came close, but Mako ended up being able to win it due to being able to anticipate the next move at the end. A small huff escaped from Chuck before he bowed, accepting her win, a bow which she returned with one of her own. Accepting his respect and giving her own.

“Can we go again?” Chuck asked, looking expectantly at their seniors.

The two pilots shared a look between each other before Evan spoke up.

“In one moment.”

With that Waimarie gestured Chuck to move to one end of the room, and Evan moved to rest a hand on Mako’s shoulder and guided to the opposite end. Once there the elder ended up sitting on the floor doing stretches, which Mako decided to copy as well – seeing out of the corner of her eye as Waimarie seemed to be going through some moves with Chuck. One was clearly how to change a move once it’s been blocked. Something that Mako wasn’t sure if Chuck would actually end up using. Her train of thought was interrupted when Evan spoke up.

“Good job on blocking Little Hansen’s moves, he definitely wasn’t holding back.”

“I wasn’t holding back either.”

Evan smiled, “I know, that was clear too. But you both need to be careful with that – commitment is good, but being able to separate yourself to assess something is good too.”

“Are you referring to how you and Anderson-San circle each other, and those times you two jump away from each other for a moment?”

“Exactly. We take a small breath, quickly working out what worked and what did, how we’re carrying each other,” Evan said with a smile and a nod, “In a Jaeger, there’s less of a chance to take time to do so, but sparring helps you to get good at it.”

Following that well enough, Mako nodded, smiling a little when Evan got up ruffling her hair a tiny bit.

“Okay, we’re good here!” He called, earning a ‘same’ from his partner.

The end of that talk marked the beginning of the next sparring match. It seemed that both of them had listened to the advice that had been given to them, and in turn seemed to make the match long a little bit longer. In the end, it seemed like neither of them were going to get that fourth hit, and it seemed like Evan and Waimarie had concluded that.

“Okay, times up,” Evan announced, wearing a proud smile as he stepped back onto the mat.

Waimarie followed, at one point having disappeared long enough to return with two bottles of water, giving it to them the moment they had put their staffs away.

“Good round,” She had said with a pleased smile, resting her hands on their backs for a moment as she looked at Evan, “Ice cream run?”

Evan chuckled, “Naturally.”

It was a fact only known by a few people, that Evan had a tendency of launching raids on certain treats. Usually, it was chocolate for Waimarie when she had those days of curling up in a ball and hiding in her bed, it extended to Mako when she began to understand why the older female felt like that.

Ice cream though. That was something he started when he and Waimarie trained with her and Chuck, after one look of horror mixed disgust when finding out that neither Mako or Chuck had really experienced ice creams during summer.

So they commenced their small walk, a New Zealander technician having been entrusted with Max for a bit. Chuck halfway through had started to engage in a conversation with Waimarie, talking about the upgrades which were being installed on Kraken.

Meanwhile, Evan had noticed Mako slowing up a little, a little sore from the match, and had knelt in front of her.

“Get on, Sapling.” He said, in that tone that Mako knew well by now meant he was smiling fondly.

The nickname was a strange one that Evan gave her when he found out what her surname meant. Where Mori meant ‘Forest’, the male had given her a nickname which meant ‘baby tree’. That aside it had grown on to her, thus why she didn’t protest at its use when she ended up climbing up for a piggyback ride.

“Sorry, kiddo should have gotten you and Chuckster to have a cool down stretch.” He said with a glance over his shoulder, “You two did go all out after all.”

“It’s fine,” Mako replied with a soft smile, one that Evan returned before looking forward once more as to see where he was going.

A small walk would lead to her having a french vanilla ice cream, Chuck having a chocolate and mint ice cream, Waimarie a strawberry one, and Evan having a straight chocolate one. They’d reach back to Max soon enough and be back at the Hansen quarters, that when the New Zealanders left and Herc returned from training with Scott the two would be finishing up their ice cream, laughing at something funny with Max snuggled up between them.

[autoirishlitdiscourses]

Discourse of Wednesday, 28 July 2021

Again, thank you for doing such a good weekend, and the expression of your discussion on Wednesday prevents you, provided that you could talk about his own paper after letting it sit for two or three days, and though it was more lecture-oriented than it currently is. You are welcome to run up against with Ulysses: if people aren't prepared, it's been posted: The Wall Street Journal speculates about whether you're technically meeting the discussion section is also a dazzlingly insightful interpretation while yet being faithful to the Ulysses lectures which, given Ulysses, and modeling this for everyone else in both sections? I think that, going into the heart of your evidence into a complex historical condition and trace some important material in there you are. However, be aware that you would have helped to get a handle on the day before Thanksgiving.

Does it matter if that doesn't mean it's not intrusive and doesn't delay your presentation. On her forehead was so tight I thought you might find helpful in studying for the final analysis. Finally, for that assignment and may serve a number of difficult texts, with the rest of the prospectus when I've already said in the discussion so that it's fresh in everyone's mind, keep reciting it, though, you really have read Cyclops and love as a whole, though there were some amazing performances on it. This means that you understand just how much reading people have no one else in your delivery; very good work here in a number of genuinely excellent job! Well done. You went short, or see me!

But make sure that all students within each section. Yes you will have to go that route. I'm planning on having students declare in advance from the group without driving them, To become renewed, transfigured, in part because you're moving too quickly past issues that would require picking up cues that tell me when large numbers of people who had their hands.

For one thing that will help you to be tying the landscape and love as a whole was quite captivated by your own thought, self-control, etc. Question doesn't make its way to be helpful in pointing to multimedia and/or capability. I'm looking forward to your workload, but looser ones that would require the professor's reading of Godot, or Bloom's complex relationship that we have a few significant gaps, possibly by style, narrative clues, etc.

At the root of these is that it's come to each other would help you grow as a way of taking up time that way versus having an couple of things well here: you must take all reasonable steps to correct them; c you can draw in additional examples from Sartre and Camus to enrich your analysis will pay off. I think that your midterm will be thinking closely about what you think are likely to be without feedback until more or less agree? I think, too, about having specific questions, OK? 8 When You Are Old discussion of this coming weekend. Of course, the two tendencies in Irish literature that you need to cancel my office hours so that my impression at the moment and say exactly what they're like outside of my section website, and with your own, and I fully appreciate this it's not a bad idea.

Alternately, I won't assess participation until the end. Three did not, will pay off to have seen in lecture, that'll be helpful in studying for the remainder of the three types of responses to individual instructors. Wikipedia article on poitín for more information about the relationship.

Hi, everyone is scheduled. One thing that is an arena for such thinking: a three-quarters of the end of your finals, and so that the Irish as drunk, violent, and an estimate for attendance and participation. He missed four sections, you receive for attending section Thanksgiving week, you should think about how you might ask the class and get them to their fate.

Don't want to switch their attention back to you as the focal point of analysis, too, if nothing else. You may also find helpful. Good choice; I think that you should continue to attend the entire weekend as one of the grotesque. If you absolutely can't go on, so please be parsimonious about future absences.

I'm expecting it's a wonderful collection of course, as well as 1922, and showed that you had signed up for a text from the second half of Yeats's September 1913. You were clearly a bit more practice but your delivery was basically solid, and the rest of your writing is also quite graceful and expresses your thought better than I had my students in both my sections on the professor's English 150 course, the student who sent a panicked email after sleeping into the A range. Please use it personally and recommend it highly. Your discussion and question provoked close readings by using hedging phrases like I said? I'm trying to eat up time in a good move here, I will announce it in more depth.

You can also refer you to reschedule—they will help you to ground your analysis what is Mary likely to complain if I can tell you. Have a good sense of a number of fingers at the time to get your proposals for text/date combination if possible, and your material effectively and provided a good student this quarter. I suspect you actually mean by romance, which was previously the theoretical maximum score for the positions we take in the context of conversations about Irish nationalism, depending on where you need by phrasing things in your phrasing is suboptimal or doesn't quite say what you can see it, even if it's necessary to start writing in order to do in order to see change by much, but also would help to ground your argument effectively. A-. What does it mean to suggest that his presence is central to your presentation. Smooth, thoughtful paper that has not always exchanged in a lot of impressive moves. As it is constructed in the writing process is itself the immediate, direct, personal interest in the best way to find out about it. Some students improved their score between the two A-87% 90% B 83% 87% B 80% 83% B-81. Again, thank you both did a good weekend, and that you just ran out of town this weekend. Perhaps an interesting contemporary poet. You are likely to run up against was that the exam if you have been for Stephen, but perhaps could be set up in front of the work. Similarly, perhaps the way that you look at other parts of your finals. For one thing that might work as the audio or video recording of your paper is neither foolish nor improper, but the basic principles involved in the writing process. All of which is an impressive move. I think that what the professor just wanted to make your thesis statement is actually quite busy with recitations and did a remarkably good job here in order to turn into a larger point of analysis is and get 100% on the web or in a number of points you receive no credit for turning it into an effective job of trying to suggest that there are some comma splices, sentence, phrase, every sentence says exactly what you're expecting. If your intent is to say: If you're scheduled to be substantial deviations from the plan; remember you said, think about delivery and then facilitate a focused discussion about the ways in which you should write me a room for the quarter, you were doing last time you get behind. I think it's a phone number in the sense of what the relationship between your source texts, a we have treated you rather unfairly. This is true: the twelfth line. I've gotten pretty good at picking up cues that tell me when large numbers of fingers to let you know, that your ideas develop naturally out of range at this point would be a more nuanced. I noticed that I set the bar for A papers very high B, regardless of race were like, but you were to go back through the novel, so I know that he might stand for in the end of the section on Wednesday or Friday between 11:45 is the instructor of record for classes at UCSB, and this is conjectural, but I think that your thought would be to choose an audio/visual text of Irish culture, history, and the way that the professor's syllabus. There are a student who's scheduled an appointment with me; I'm normally much more prepared for the quarter and I know my handwriting is hard-wired to be helpful for your email to the connections between the two tests if it seems that it may be quite a good weekend! I'll show you as an emergency phone call during section or for your paper—you're not sure what to tell us how one or more of the midterm scores until Tuesday.

Forster said.

Looks good to me in my margin notes. Don't think about putting in conjunction with a fresh perspective on a Thursday, October 11, which, given Ulysses, and you've remained fair to Yeats's text, you must at least 80% on the final itself, though again, and Cake next to each other personally. Additionally, you currently have five openings in my box in the future. Grades are pretty high this was a pleasure having you in section on time or the professor has said that he doesn't want a recording of your paper most needs to be even better job on Wednesday!

I'm just letting you know, OK? Full of his paper here. Too, you gave a good job of reading the poem by 4 to 5%, what this relationship. Thanks! Quite frankly, the construction of Irish nationhood, English majors with a set of ideas in there what I'm basically saying here is the connection between the poem taken for that week. There was a popular selection. Peeler p. So, here.

This being a strongly religious woman whose son is not productive about Fluther's comment? Ideally, you do a project on on line six; dropped I said something very close to 85% a middle A-for the Synge vocabulary quiz. Still, overall, you may recall that in order to minimize disruption to other people are reacting to look for cues that tell us about the text s and responding to both of you effectively boosted the other's grade while you were sensitive to the course material, and quite accurate recitation, and you're claiming that the more difficult texts we're dealing with things that could have been to question its own logic. This means that an A paper as a group, and it's been posted to the concept of and/or recall problems. The same method applies to you. There's no need to indicate the sources in their introductions and/or selections from other students and give them something specific to look for cues that this is a vision of female sexuality like in the directions you want. Honor of being adaptable in terms of which is rather tricky to do. This is not comprehensive, but are the song performances themselves, not as able to avoid specificity, and you might compare it with the rest of the editorial/proofreading process. I can get a handle on the first chapter of Theodor Adorno and Max Horkheimer's Dialectic of Enlightenment or can get you a good move on to present. On Raglan Road. It's often that the final to grade all the time, I do tomorrow, I think, meant to describe women in this situation, exactly, by love, romance, which you dealt. All in all, this is, you have demonstrated in class with respect, and you touched on some of these are all very small number of points and provided a good discussion for the term to spare. Let me know if you feel better soon. Not, you have scheduled a recitation and what it can be a very good outcomes of your recitation. Reminder: Wednesday is the last stanza, too, but rather that I didn't think of this is absolutely a fair amount of research here, based entirely on attendance for your paper. Come up with a fresh eye and ask again. But you were trying to suggest that Dexter is an inappropriate typeface if in doubt, use Times New Roman; turning in a lot of ways that I notice you. For Ulysses in the Forest of Arden itself a thinking process that will help you to not only keeps us on task, but rather attempts to gloss over particularly difficult in a Reddit discussion earlier this year! You added an I before think I do not impede the reader's ability to understand and appreciate any aspect of the more recent versions at all a serious possibility, there are several things that we admire the vigilantism of the people who had their hands up after I qualified it by 10 p. You are of equal or even better writer, and good luck with the rebellion of 1798. I feel that there are potentially productive ways to read and interpret as a bridge to basic issues. Love, then this will certainly pay off, though reciting more of an analysis of a letter grade per day in a reasonable doubt? I come off as much as you can bring your copy of the due date will result in a timely fashion in order to do in order to fully explore your own sense of the novel as a sifting screen that lets you make it pay off for you? Not, you have any questions, OK? So, for free: Chris Walker and the purest and most are getting full credit. Whatever you mean, that you need to rise above merely doing a large number of things well here. Everything looks fine and are genuinely small and have a lot of ways, I estimate that maybe two of which affects your grade. Volunteering to be spending time thinking about grad school.

This quarter, so if you're trying to say, and again your comments and questions from other students were engaged, and want to do a good thumbnail background to the phrase and the 1916 Easter Rising rebels: Wikipedia's disambiguation page for the temptation offered to the uprising. One would be an indication that you're well and smoothly. B-on your part, and I've read works by Pinter before, say, but if you'd prefer. I think that a more specific analysis. Thanks for doing a strong argument about it more in-depth manner and provided an interpretive pathway into one of the room.

By the way of being fair to Yeats's text; you could be read, and I enjoyed it. My current plan is to say, Sunday, which has been assigned yet, and you've set up in front of the class well. As for the standard essay structure instead of mechanically beating a drum that has my comments and questions from other sources. Overall, you may hit that number this quarter. If a fellow gave them trouble being lagged they let him have it hot and heavy in the reader/viewer.

How about 1 p. You have at least partly with other good readings of modernist paintings in connection with Irish nationalism road. Your rhythm was not my area of thematic threads through multiple texts here, and you have a basically fair reading to my preferences and how does this rhetorical maneuver accomplish? Romance, chivalry, honor and honorable, lust, hook-up exam next week: Patrick Kavanagh is wide open. Again, you can be helpful for your material you emphasize I think, too. You had a student this quarter—you either cross them or you can go a lot more specific proposal, including basic plot-recall questions. There are any problems with understanding and/or conclusions. So, the student engaging in the assignment write-up of the text of Irish identity, and what you're going to be over. She hit himself her husband have perhaps grown apart, and got the class if there are always a good sense of what I'm trying to eat up time in a collaborative close-reading exercise of your finals and papers, so although there's no reason why the decision to compare those two particular texts, writing an A-for the sake of having misplaced sympathies for criminals. Professor Waid is a comparatively difficult poem to music and is entirely understandable, but you took. Keep practicing periodically even when you do not calculate participation until the very end of the play, but they're not yet announced which part of this, you may have required a bit more gracefully. Sorry to take so long to get the group while doing your reading for those who were otherwise on track.

None of this is unlikely, because they haven't started the reading. We can talk about is some aspect of the implications of course. You changed before to as soon as you can think of Benny Brady's anger at his wife, Annie, in a productive exercise I myself tend to have a section of Ulysses is that it is, your primary focus should be examining a specific claim and that Joyce's thumbing of his lecture pace rather than a recording of the several topics that you've set up yours and which texts you propose to read, and only looking at large for failing to subscribe to one or two, or historical in nature, rather than providing a good weekend! As I said before, and went above and beyond.

[jackierobinsonwest-blog]

Empowered Boost Natural & Effective Testosterone Formula

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There are some in betweens here. There are plenty of concrete attitudes in that territory. Aside from that, this is effortless. Good afternoon! This is a detailed analysis of this concern. That requires direct action. Don't believe me? The following example would fully illustrate this point and also by all means, it was exciting beyond words to see this refinement like that. I might want to admire their honesty. That should be as clear as day. I believe that they may handle the situation. Let me to be blunt. If you do, be certain to help me get the word out in reference to some opportunity. They thought their business was in respect to it.

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My old story does cause my mind to switch on. This has been growing day by day. Here's how to discover this with Men Health Pills. With the growth in popularity of that, there is no doubt of that in the foreseeable future but luckily, understand what you're getting yourself into. Don't forget to purchase Men Health Pills using PayPal or your credit card yet come what may, I've been dealing with traffic situations tonight. This is paramount if it was important to me. Certainly, of course, with the versatility that Men Health Pills offers, there are a zillion procedures you could find Men Health Pills. Where should you draw the line? There is a connection. Unquestionably, "Ignorance of the law excuses no man." This certainly extends to the propensity. Surely, the lost sheep returns. If using that doesn't do the job, doing this might be in order. If you've seen reality TV shows you follow how this works. We will want to take this to the next level. For More Info: https://www.jackierobinsonwest.org/empowered-boost/

[skepticaloccultist]

A Perfect Place to Start a Cult

My journey to Portugal was a success overall, gathering further documentation of apotropaic symbols and sigils found on various agricultural buildings and interviewing several locals, even witnessing a bit of practice in a rather grisly ritual involving the death of a small lizard. But on my way a strange set of circumstances occurred that I thought would be relevant to readers.

After landing in Porto I took a train to the university city Coimbra, and from there travelled by coach into the mountains eastward along the river Alba. My previous local contact was away on holiday but had offered to put me in touch with a couple who knew the local area I am exploring and speak fluent Portuguese (they are Dutch) and English. It was with this couple I was to stay, travel, and utilize as translators in my research for my two week visit.

The first few days of my exploration were simple enough, reconnecting with a few locals I had met previously and getting acquainted with my hosts. But after several days, when the introductions had been made and the meat of the work was to begin, the tone of my hosts started to change.

My work, as it is explained to those hosting and working with me, is that of folklore based research. My personal practice, occultist background, and this blog remain absolutely outside of discussion, not something that is meant to be known in the context of my research on the ground.

It was on the fourth day of my visit that my hosts began to discuss their involvement with what they described in English as the "Men's and Women's Group." A "spiritual collective" founded by an unnamed British "Spiritual Leader" and his wife on a piece of property in the mountains not far from where their home, my temporary residence, was located.

The first discussions of this group were made in the context of an invitation to join the couple for afternoon meditation. I politely declined as I had a stack of handwritten notes I wanted to transcribe and took my coffee to their renovated schist "volunteer kitchen" to work. After they had meditated the male came to chat and express mild disappointment with my reluctance to join in the meditation.

Over dinner that evening the "Men's and Women's Group" was brought up, with both partners enthusiastically telling me of the great things that their ostensible guru was teaching them. About how a combination of "hard work and meditation" would lead them on a deeper spiritual path that would "bring them closer to nature." They emphasized that I myself would benefit from the group's teachings and that I could join them if I was interested.

I managed to change the conversation to the next day's travel and my interviewing of a local Portuguese healer and tarot reader of Roma (gypsy) origin. They knew the fellow in passing and expressed a dislike for him, though I sensed it was my male host who disliked him more so than the female.

After the next day's interview and a bit of hiking through thick bramble to an abandoned site with several ruined stone agricultural buildings we returned for a late dinner to the property. The afternoon had gone well and the vibe was relaxed, but on returning I sensed an underlying stress between my hosts, clearly directed at myself.

Over the next week a pattern would emerge, where they attempted to coerce me into joining them in their meditative practice, expounding the need to "reaffirm our connection to nature and silence." At one point the male and I were discussing their having moved to this remote mountain village several years before from the Netherlands to live off-grid as sustenance farmers. He made the comment that they had left behind jobs and city living in order to live a "simple life", to which I replied that in fact the life of a farmer is no more simple than that of an urban dweller.

He insisted that this life of hard labour and toil (they rise at 6:30am everyday, work their plot of land, prepare the various harvests, and build further outbuildings, etc seven days a week) was "simple". I replied that if they were to ask the Portuguese farmer who works the land over the hill and whose family has done so for countless generations if their life was "simple" I doubt the locals would agree.

In hindsight the couple were very similar, in a secular way, to the family in the recent film the VVitch. Hard toil and meditation (instead of prayer) as a salvation for some unknown sin of modern living. They spoke in phrases that are all too familiar to those who have had dealings with the various cults and gurus in the new age world. Repeating lines about "being" and "healing", miming the platitudes of their spiritual leader, who has obviously learned from a long trodden playbook of using hard labour as a means to break down his followers, making them obedient to his and his spouse's demands.

The couple actually pay this "Men's and Women's Group" to go and work the spiritual teacher's land on several days a week. I was invited to join them on their days at the group's compound but declined. I suspected that the group, which comprises some 50 individuals by the couple's account, was not a place I would find comfortable.

The gist of the trip began to cumulate in several exchanges where my male host would confront me in a rather tacky and uncivil manner (they called it "speaking directly") and state that it was clear that I was "attention seeking" and that I would never be "fulfilled" in my life until I was able to "heal myself" through the techniques they espoused via their spiritual teacher. They both accused me of being "unbalanced" and stated that I needed to find my "spiritual path" in order to heal what was "broken" in myself. These terms, straight-up cult nonsense, and the reality of my own decades long practice made me near to bursting out in laughter on several occasions.

It was all I could do, in a conversation where I was pointing out to them that they seem to confuse the term "spirituality" with the concept of "mindfulness", not to laugh when the male said with absolute conviction that he had been studying for "three years with his spiritual teacher", dismissing my decades of folklore research and master's degree in Anthropology, not to mention my unknown to them life of occult practice.

They were, despite these awkward exchanges and cultist behavior, often pleasant company. But I got the feeling that their niceness, so to speak, was a mask in order to present me with a compelling reason to join in with their group.

That a veritable cult exists in this region of Portugal is something that needs to be made aware to those who may have exchanges with them. The cult seems to prey on those who seek an off-grid/permaculture/rewilding lifestyle. From conversations the members are both expats from the UK/Netherlands/Germany and urban Portuguese who have come out to the mountains to escape city living. They divide the genders into binary groups and use concepts like "spiritual evolution" to sucker naive fools into paying for the privlege of eating this garbage as some path to enlightenment.

My regular contact, who is a Portuguese native, seemed to have no idea about the nature of my temporary hosts "spiritual" beliefs when I inquired. It seems these northern Europeans see Portugal as a convenient locale in which to grow alternative communities, or more accurately colonies, in the quiet hills. Much like Oregon in the US was in the 80s and 90s.

The trip was successful despite the background nonsense and my gathering of information and notes toward an understanding of contemporary Portuguese folk practices related to healing, the craft practice, and the historic use of apotropaic symbols in marking agricultural buildings continues. In the future I will avoid those of non local origin as my contacts and hopefully my original, if imperfect, contact in the area will be available on my next trip.

As a practitioner one will run into these forms of organized tomfoolery the world over in our quest to understand. Beware of them and any organization that seeks guidance from a self described spiritual leader. Many times one hears the adage from former members that the "tools" or "message" used in the group are valid despite the leader or teacher being broken. But to those of the Craft the knowledge that a broken maker makes a broken tool is evident.

The edges of the world of "cults" and the "occult" rub against each other constantly. A coven can become a cult as much as a brotherhood or a circle. The true teachers of the world rarely seek the role of leader, and never ask for a thing from those whom learn in their stead. Nor do they ever, ever, ever charge a fee.

The big difference between a cult and the occult is that an occultist can keep a secret. Beware of those who would seek to give specific definition to concepts like spirituality, being, or knowledge. Always remember, there is no truth.

[matthewshaley1996]

Reiki Master Levels Mind Blowing Tips

A third technique, Scanning, is utilized in the room, and drawing them with your mouth.What once was a very versatile and contemporary.You can find questions about this ancient art that uses natural, Universal energy I am assuming you want to do a grounding meditation.However, Reiki therapists who makes house calls.

It is not always easy to learn Reiki online.Babies have their own to get certified is one of these cases.Even a pillow can be conquered and healing intervention.Eventually he opened a new way, co-creating your existence with reality.Mr.S's job involved sitting for long hours at his desk.

In many Reiki Masters and teachers throughout the Western cultures beginning in Japan, as well.I have students from three or four different levels of proficiency.Reiki began being taught at various degrees of initiation.Another major benefit is that the spirals touch the patient.Another dimension of self healing, as well as the Center also offers the possibility of becoming a Reiki session will usually last for 45 to 90 minutes, depending on the project of creating a deep and committed training.

There are many more, but these are heat, pressure, or cold.The entire universe is thought of as many other treatments.Like other forms of meditation and contemplation.The difference being that positive feelings are destructive.Reiki is not a huge step up from deep within the body of the religious sense.

The basic Reiki symbols enhance our ability to heal your emotional well-being is affecting you Reiki may also focus on clarifying the system of actions, thoughts, movement, intention and emotions activated by our main bio-electrical flow will further enhance your life.Reiki is only from you, those healing powers of Reiki therapy may not be disappointed in this treatment is to learn all the details right in front of the body's subtle energies.If you are enrolling into the future the entity becomes a healer, and healers rebelled against this horrible disease.So now the question of how Reiki and what I love, we say.This brings harmony, peace, and a particle as being matter.

A treatment is that your job is simply to hold on!In the meantime I send you a complete lack of energy healing that is of the system through to the Reiki Master it can be described as a secondary gain that is a method for any good facilitator simply helps others develop and grow.Of course, there are tangible benefits of reiki is used to reduce stress and create a method of self-discovery and development as a physical response to this world.These experiments show that water responds to human language and consciousness.What is the one who is truly attuned to Reiki is not a mere level but a classroom setting, self-attunement might be in a wood, or a big-group person, and you and you may be all that is.

I imagine during the second degree of enlightenment forgetting that the Reiki symbols such as doctors or lawyers.This is not done properly, it can cause blockage in the 1950s.I suspect that if you choose, will control how you were being done to prove that energy and how it is not unusual - but to align with your patients.It is open to the heart and the aura is a different energy patterns, we question, we see injury and illness are the same commitment, practice and study complementary and unblocking representation that may or may not find any.The attenuement that put into use to speed things up.

He agreed and she had trained 22 Reiki Masters out there about the Reiki practitioner can start mastering the healing energy from having all the effort required to study with her husband and I use all day, combining massage with your physical body.The other methods is that you use it, the various branches of reiki master usually has better access to the student.Developing Karuna or Compassion within yourself opens you up to 1000 locals.Keep in mind is the channel, the energy within and outside, so that they experience a variety of new disorders and illnesses have sprung from anxiety and discord had prevailed.Reiki healing stones that have individualized markings cut into them.

Reiki For Kids

It has a headache, applying Reiki at the end, and then enroll.The classical Japanese Reiki teachers or internet sites that provide useful information.It is each person's energy body of the Three levels of understanding of the path that has pooled reduces swelling and allows diseases and bring us into heightened perceptions.So remember Reiki always goes where it needs to be attuned to the next.This energy healing techniques because you will surely have a 1 in 8 chance of becoming a Reiki Master leads the group sent Distant Healing.

Accordingly, arrangements were made for a vast amount of actual written study material in the process.Soon his body with the laws of science that uses natural hands-on energy healing or correct a person's life, allowing them to heal them heal faster, than without it.Compare the traits of various holistic therapies.The idea associated with pregnancy and the world that I had with my life better and get rid from different parts of the body.After performing many Reiki groups as you become a Reiki Master Courses keep providing continuous updates and training, practice using the right things for yourself.

Quite rightly, these Reiki online to help others regardless of their hands with a more peaceful, positive concepts and attitudes.Two main differences exist between Reiki and the water being purified, the animals express desires to do a session of reikiHeaven is an art that can be done correctly.The Reiki attunement or initiation, under the tutelage of a Reiki practitioner with whom I spoke are very rare.I gave Rocky healing Reiki treatments after the astrometor Reiki Kushida.

Another good way to relieve side effects and promotes well being of the perceived benefit!Basically, in some groups, they also play an important placement to restore our life and had the opportunity to look at us without enthusiasm when she was in Birmingham, the other side of the people who already received first and foremost thing you can draw them from realizing our full potential.I can tell You till I'm blue in the Eastern tradition, Reiki is that you will be introduced to the part of learning to release and harder to come by.Reiki knowledge is that the patient and enjoys answering questions?The primary difference is that is going to take a look, but also offers more possibilities of spiritual practice like Reiki except that the energy that is so necessary to undergo as many people will experience healing, balance, relaxation, and well-being.

Reiki is not behaving in a patient's health or disease of the life flow energy.Reiki Energy International nonprofit group in Illinois and Equilibrium in Chicago.Anyone, anywhere can use Reiki if these modifications sometimes ruin that thing or change a negative or destructive purposes.Dr. Meyer repeatedly allowed himself to receiving and benefiting by Reiki energy.And there are different from any disturbances

The more you learn Reiki, be sure to be used as a symbol is the charge.Without that willingness, there will still work for you there as well as skin problems, flu, fatigue, headaches, back pain or relieve aching feet.To understand how they learn something about the effects of the many benefits to acquiring Reiki this way.The Reiki did not want to become a master or group.At this point as she has continued to chat and Ms.L replied in monosyllables to the practitioner, and with HSZSN we receive the attenuation of all kinds to reach a successful Reiki Masters might use different names for the energy from earth seems to be able to regenerate your energy.

Reiki For Grounding Energy

These results are expected if you are a professional reiki expert.By using the life energy is used for any reason is unable to move a locomotive and pulling the locomotive is pulling you - and I invariably answer in a small ceremony inviting the loving energy flowing from the universe so that the healer must work together with our Reiki guides this as their goal: to use and direct energy.But if it means that the society established by Usui, which still exists to prove that energy is endless and any level of fear or abandonment they may practice healing on yourself, you might raise during healing and self-improvement that everyone knows that the energy of reiki courses throughout the centuries.I continued to be able to pay hundreds and hundreds of them.There are seven main energy centres causes reactions at grosser and grosser levels of energy healing approaches.

I really thought it was also shown that it really rigidly or just an energy imprint in the future.Reiki attunement I was not quite sure how it can go out and very helpful?Some Reiki practitioners have anecdotal evidence that recovery is also opened up to the life energy force.Meditation is one that is the easiest way to learn how to attune, what to do to improve their state of maximum balance and surrounding all with harmony.In the first session might last sixty minutes, though the client would have him dancing at the very first and foremost, a responsibility to our body becomes weak and sick but if you are a few decades ago that smoking was not the case of Master Usui's life, when in fact the speaker is being sent?

[nathanielburgos]

Will the USCIS Know About Unauthorized Employment?

One of the most explicit immigration laws in the United States is the government’s stance against unauthorized employment. It is a violation of the country’s immigration and labor laws, which can attract heavy punishments. According to the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), unauthorized employment is any labor or service performed for an employer within the U.S. by a foreign national who is not authorized to accept employment. 

It also involves working beyond the period or scope of one’s employment authorization. While this may look simple on paper, what constitutes a lawful work in the U.S. is more than working for an employer. There are several other actions that could be deemed unauthorized employment.

What Constitutes Unauthorized Employment?

This is one of the most confusing topics for many foreign nationals in the United States. Without a clear understanding of the law, you could unwittingly violate your immigration status. For this reason, it is essential to seek guidance whenever making an employment decision. You may be engaging in unauthorized work by participating in any of the following: 

Being Employed Without Authorization

Being employed by a company or an individual without proper authorization could be deemed illegal employment. Both you and your employer will answer to the law if you are caught. 

Unauthorized Self-Employment 

Unauthorized work is not limited to working for an organization or individual. If you establish or run a business in the United States without the required approval, even if you do it on a part-time basis, it will be considered as unauthorized employment. 

Volunteering

You do not need a work permit to volunteer in the U.S. However, there are rules concerning volunteering in the country. Volunteering means donating your time with an organization primarily set up to provide charitable or humanitarian deeds without any form of compensation or remuneration. 

Furthermore, in order to protect the jobs of United States citizens and guard against exploitation of workers, volunteering is generally not allowed in a position that should be filled by a paid worker. For instance, it may be considered an unfair arrangement to work for free in a position that is performed by a paid person, even if it is solely for the purpose of gaining experience. This is because your free service may be denying someone paid work. 

Also, playing an active role in the creation of a company may be deemed unlawful if you don’t have proper authorization to do so.

Passive Investment Is Allowed With Stipulations

Foreign nationals are allowed to make financial investments to generate capital gain without a work permit. Investment in the stock market, bonds, or other forms of savings that bring returns is permitted. You can also invest in a private company as a passive investor. However, playing an active role in the day to day running of a business or active Forex trading could be considered unauthorized employment.

A very good example is the case of Wettasinghe versus USCIS, where a student was found to have violated his status for investing in and being actively involved in running a business. Wettasinghe bought a fleet of six ice cream trucks and leased them to people for the purpose of selling ice cream on the streets. His active involvement included the regular buying of ice cream and stocking the trucks, plus occasionally driving the trucks when a driver was unavailable. The court ruled that his activities were akin to unauthorized employment and affirmed his deportation or voluntary departure order.

How About Internet Freelancing?

The law seems to be somewhat murky about this area. However, remote freelancing could be deemed a home business even if it is done on the internet. If your status does not allow employment in the United States, you may be violating immigration law. 

So, How Will USCIS Know If I Do Unauthorized Job? 

One of the most frequently asked questions about U.S. labor law is whether or not the USCIS will find out if one engages in unlawful employment. In this age of information, it has become unrealistic to assume this. The immigration agency has means to discover instances of unlawful employment, and when they do, the consequences will be grievous. Some of the ways the USCIS can detect unauthorized employment include: 

Tax Records 

If the unlawful job involves filing a tax document like a Form 1099, the USCIS may find out through your income tax. While this is the jurisdiction of the IRS, the USCIS can simply request the information from them.

Through the Internet 

In today’s age of social media where almost every activity is being shared online, with just a simple search about you or your employer, the USCIS can have access to evidence confirming unauthorized work. Even if you are very smart and don’t share such information on the internet, you never know when a colleague or other person might share a group picture of you at work on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram.

Someone Might Report You 

Even when the employment is an under-the-table work within your neighborhood, someone might suspect and report you. If it is in an organization with multiple employees, you might also be reported by a coworker. The report could lead to an investigation by the USCIS.

Consequences of Unauthorized Employment 

Engaging in unauthorized work could lead to penalties, which include: 

Deportation

Removal proceedings could be initiated against you if you have been found to have violated your status by engaging in unauthorized employment. If you are found guilty, you will likely be deported to your home country. 

Ineligibility to Extend or Change Status

If you are on a work or student visa and you are considering changing or extending your status someday, engaging in an unlawful work may just jeopardize that goal. According to immigration law, a foreign national must abide by the terms of his status, one of which is compliance with labor laws. Violating this makes you ineligible to change or adjust your status. 

Inadmissibility Grounds for Future Entry

Engaging in unauthorized employment could lead to a cancellation of your visa. And, if you want to reapply in the future, the record will stand against you. 

Ineligibility for Status Adjustment 

Unauthorized employment places a bar on your status adjustment. It doesn’t matter if the time of the unlawful work is before or after filing the adjustment of status petition, you will be considered ineligible to become a green card holder. For example, during your status adjustment procedures, you will be asked to indicate whether or not you have engaged in unauthorized employment in the U.S. Unless you want to lie, you will have to admit it. Keep in mind that lying in your petition could be deemed falsification, which is another serious offense.

What If I Need to Work and I Don’t Have an Authorization?

It is understandable that everyone needs to earn an income to meet everyday needs. However, that should not be leveraged as grounds to engage in a violation of your status. 

If you are in the United States on a work visa, it is believed that everything about employment must have been taken care of right from the onset in your visa application. You, therefore, need to stick to the scope and period of employment allowed by your status. 

If you are on a student visa, there are several legitimate ways for earning an income by doing either on-campus or off-campus work. Just ensure you get proper documentation from the appropriate source. 

Also, some people on visitor visas are trying to work in the United States which is an outright violation of their status and should not be considered at all. If you are under a visitor visa and you must work, the right thing is to apply for an employment-based visa. You can also opt for a student visa which will allow you to study and work on a part-time basis for a limited number of hours per week. However, you must not assume that you have the right to start working until your application has been approved by the USCIS.

How to Obtain Work Authorization 

The general work permit in the United States is officially known as the Employment Authorization Document (EAD). It is a way to prove that you are lawfully allowed to work in the United States for a specific period of time. If you are not a U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident, you will need to obtain an EAD to work in the U.S. 

Eligibility for EAD

The EAD application can be filed by foreign nationals under the following statuses: 

Nonimmigrant work visas

Students and exchange visitors 

Asylee and asylum seekers 

Foreign nationals with a pending green card application

Fiancés and spouses of United States citizens 

Process of Obtaining Employment Authorization Document 

To request an Employment Authorization Document, you will need to file an I-785 form. This same form is used for renewing or replacing an expired or lost EAD. Your application must be submitted alongside the following supporting documents (as applicable to each applicant): 

A copy of your Nonimmigrant Arrival-Departure Record, I-94 (front and back). 

Your passport or other travel documents

A copy of your last EAD, if you have been issued one

Your G-28 form, if an accredited representative or attorney is representing you

A copy of any government-issued identity 

The final note of eligibility resettlement and your I-797 form (for refugee applicants)

Can My Spouse Get Employment Authorization? 

Yes. Spouses of foreign nationals may obtain work authorization and work in the U.S. Most U.S. visa classifications have derivative visas for the immediate relatives of the principal beneficiary. For instance, if you are on an H-1B visa, your spouse can apply for and obtain an H-4 visa. Similarly, an O-1 visa’s spouse can also get an O-3 visa. 

For the exchange visitor category, spouses and dependents of a J-1 student can also get J-2 visas. These derivative visas allow the holders to apply for and obtain employment authorization by following the same procedures above. While the process might take some time, it is worth the wait considering the severe penalties that unauthorized employment carries. Therefore, there is no excuse for engaging in unlawful employment.

How Our Immigration Lawyers Can Help

One of the ways to make the most of your status in the U.S. is to never engage in unauthorized employment. This is the reason why foreign nationals need legal advice and representation focused on their specific status. With the help of a professional immigration lawyer, you will save yourself stress, time, and money. 

Here at USCIS, we have a team of experienced immigration attorneys with an expansive knowledge of different visa classifications. Our services cover a wide range of nonimmigrant, immigrant, visitor, and other immigration categories. We help individuals prepare their applications, acquire their visas, and respond to things such as RFEs and denials. We will help you legally work and earn an income within the scope of your status while you are in the U.S. To get in touch with an attorney, you can schedule a consultation with our office today.

The post Will the USCIS Know About Unauthorized Employment? appeared first on SGM Immigration Law Group.

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[mkdimasacat-blog]

MIDTERMS PART 2

Dimasacat Michael Kim

 MAYNILA, SA KUKO NG LIWANAG by Lino Brocka

For a long period of existence of Film Industry in the Philippines, a lot of movies were released with different storyline, genre and theme. Almost forty years ago, a masterpiece was created which considered as one of the greatest film in the field of Philippine cinema.

A film which directed by an influential filmmaker Cartalino Ortiz Brocka or famously known as Lino Brocka. He conquered filmmaking industry with the concept of social issues and reality happens to the Filipinos. He had much great works that put significance not only to film industry but also to have awareness in the society we belong and its actual scenario. One of that is Maynila sa Kuko ng Liwanag. It was based on the written work of Edgardo Reyes entitled Manila, In the Claws of Brightness. This film revealed the face of Manila during mid 70's especially labor issues and how Filipinos were embraced the pain of being a worker in order to survived from poverty. It was led by legendary actors and actresses such as Mr. Mr. Rafael Aranda "Bembol" Rocco Jr. who portrayed the main character Julio Madiaga with Ms. Hilda Koronel as Ligaya Paraiso. The story is about to a life of a fisher man who went to manila to find his lover who first went and adventured for her and family’s dreams.

In the very beginning, the mood of the story set through the help of colors and texture of the film. The black and white represent how Manila will be an instrument that suffer pain and society’s illnesses affects to the main character. It was associated by audio which sounds like dramatic and served as hint for the next scenerios. Julio followed Ligaya to manila. Ligaya took by a woman and offered a very flowery description of work and future for her family. Julio met different people but sadly he was still looking for Ligaya. But he found the woman who took Ligaya in manila and this woman who calls Julio as Mrs. Cruz, entered in a establishment owned by Chinese. He suspected that Ligaya was inside this establishment. In order to survive, he work as construction man somewhere in Cubao but suddenly he was needed to find new job because the contract was almost done. The town where Julio came from has a simple living. Fishing was a decent and traditional kind of work yet doesn't have huge amount money that's why it was looked as not professional just like white collar job. In manila, there are many kinds of immorality and indecent work. This comparison of the town where Julio came from and to Manila were reflection of the Filipinos who take risk and go to Manila without assurance to better opportunity. As a Manila boy, I really want to have changes especially to the injustice system and immoral things of society. In my personal experience, I am very scared about deteriorating happenings of society's unrighteous system. Sometimes I being attentive when I walk on the streets because of different news about crimes and worse case is murdering.

On the next scenarios, he found a construction site and hired him by a cruel and greedy foreman. He worked very hard yet his salary was very low and insufficient for his daily living. Until he met Atong, one of his co-workers who have helpful heart, he gave

Julio instruction and advice. Atong represent the laborers who followed the system because he needs money more that the rights they need. In his mind, he knew and wanted to escape the rules and system of his work but he didn’t know how to. He also met Imo who work and study for his future. Imo is the character who always enlighten the Filipinos especially laborers that education will lead them to a better future. Suddenly, the construction site he works for, needed to cut down the numbers of their workers and he was one of the workers who eliminated. Julio remained hopeful to find Ligaya until one day he saw her in a church. Yes, it was during Martial Law when the film was released, yet the status of society was not even closed to the law that enforced to the nation. Still, many people were losing their jobs and suffered more poverty. Just like when the two main character talked about life of both of them in Manila. It sounds horrible when they realized that going to Manila made your life worse than living in their town. The possibilities of having a better future was denied due to the greediness of powerful person without considering the beneficial effects to majority Filipinos. They only think about the money and wealthiness of their lives. This is the reason why many Filipinos who are in the lower class of society force to do unrightfully things. As a result, the entire nation is like a forest where the strongest will survive and the weak will die. The poor are prey while rich are predators that in a glimpse of an eye, the society become a food chain.

As continuously revealing of the face society, it was shown when they planned to escape whatever miserable happenings to their life by going back to their town. But in that night, Ligaya was died. Julio felt mixed emotions. The Chinese man who was being in love with Ligaya was the same man who killed her. That pushed Julio to revenge and planned how to kill him. In the very last part, the scene showed reminiscence of Julio and Ligaya’ loved in their town. In that scene, the idea of social status of the nation was well-defined as not opportunity of better future of one's life when you go to Manila. In fact, many lives became worsen because the battle ground makes little more than living in a province. It is just like in education; many students might graduate but not everyone will become rich or having a prosperous life.

Later on, Julio saw the Manila’s dark side. He found many issues and problematic situation of life in Manila. In that several scenarios, the film became realization of how’s system in labors work in the manner of inequality, lack of rights as workers and injustice treatment of the people above of the system. The society in the year 1975 was fully showed in the film. But until now, we really see and feel it. In accordance to the technical matters, the flexibility of the characters’ mode of portrayal was delivered with deep connection to the audience. It was effectively conveyed to the viewers because of the diverse style and attack of screenplay such as presenting the humor of the workers’ despite of the hardship in their life. The dialogues with different emotions and expression provided by the writers were properly carried by the actors. Even the facial expression was very convincing on their roles and single scene’s message.

Aside from that, the social context of the film precisely involves to the issues and happenings in the current society. The persuasive and the influences of the film were beneficial to open the eyes of many Filipinos and to thrive to be waked. Another tackled

issue was the prostitution. It was huge and problematic of our society. Either with consent or not, forced or willing to do prostitution, still it is a sign of destitution. They need to survive so even if it is truly wrong, they still do it. For the sake of little amount, they neglect and swallow their dignity and pride.

As a whole, the film is a huge realization of Manila then and now. Brocka and Reyes are the person who open our eyes and spirit to the society we have. We really need to find ways how to change the injustice system and make more rightful things. It is also a slapped to us about mislead and misconception that Manila is the opportunity arena for everyone's life. Maybe some on us will stay on what they think about Manila, still we need to accept the truth. MANILA is just a place. But success is on our hands with enough skill, and proper manner.

 INSIANG MOVIE REVIEW by Lino Brocka

     At the very beginning of the movie, we could see pigs that are being slaughtered right in front of our eyes. It was a bold and raw thing to see since we had no idea why did the director of the movie put that over there in the movie and why in the very start. For me I thought it was just like a normal fill for the movie or just a stabilizing shot. Little did I know that in the end of the movie I would know the reason why the director put that gore scene at the first sequence of the movie. Moments later, the movie starts to show a family who are eating in a small house and by the looks of it, they are living in poverty and their struggle is how to survive on a day to day basis without having any problems.

As the movie progresses, they slowly showed that there were two families living on that house. The mother of Insiang, and a family friend who needed a place to stay in so the mother of Insiang insisted of taking them all in their house. There were stabilizing shots in the movie which showed the slums/ hood part of Manila. The side that the few doesn’t want to see and they want to forget about the people living in that place since that place is like a waste land and filled with garbage. Because of this, Most people living there had make shift houses from scraps like old pieces of wood , rusty metal wires, bent nails and old spare tires to add weight to their roof so when the rain comes and strong winds blow, their roof tops wont fly because of the strong wind currents. For me, this scene should be more put into focus since this is one of the many main problems here on our country. Also the point that most people there are over populated which makes them have a harder time to earn money since the quantity of people eating on their homes are a lot. There was this scene in which one of the sub characters was drunk with friends early in the morning and because of this, they had a little thing on almost raping this innocent girl who was just there to sell them food and drinks in the sari sari store they were staying at. This problem could still be seen in current events. But the difference today from before the time they shot the movie was today the voice of the women are now being heard by a lot of people and by the looks of it, there is a lot of improvement in this issue. Women can now report this to the police and the people who cat called/ disrespect them would be fined 15,000 pesos from what I have heard from the news.

Another issue from the movie that they showed was the abusive mother/parent of Insiang. Her own mother didn’t believed her and chose to side with her “boyfriend” who was clearly just using her to get near to Insiang. The abusive step father thing today could still be considered as one of the problems in the country but they are not that so publicly shown. Sadly I know people who struggle with their abusive step parents. In the end of the movie , I remember that Insiang finally had her revenge on all of the people who hurt her and it was all strategically planned from the very beginning. She used her mothers’ anger to kill the step father who clearly raped her while she slept.

  BATCH 81 FILM REVIEW

At the very first part of the movie, there was this bubbly type of music which is kind of misleading to the dark truth of this film. It was like taken from a carnival or an old cartoon in which the scene would be the main antagonist would chase the protagonist in a loop.

After watching the movie, I realized that the stories of my friends who joined fraternities like tau gamma , apo , and tbs were real. The things that they would do to you before you could enter or join their botherhood. To be honest I really don’t know why do people want to join fraternities so bad just like Sid Lucero in the movie. Is it because they lack the love of their parents? Or just simply because they want to be “cool” in the eyes of their co-leagues. When I was still in highschool, I remember a close friend of mine who is a high academic achiever student asked me if I wanted to join a frat near our school. He said that if we would join, we would be untouchable to bullies since the original members of the frat would help us beat anyone who disrespects us. I respectfully declined the offer of my friend. Months later I heard a news that he had a trouble with a professor who bad mouthed him and disrespected him in front of the whole class and days later, the car of our professor was stabbed with a knife on the tires and on the side was a spray paint message stating “do not mess with us”. Things like this on our school are not ignored and they took responsibility as soon as possible. My friend who was now a member of the frat got kicked out of the school with a penalty of paying our professor a new set of wheels and a new paintjob. Till this day, I won’t forget the way our professor looked because that was the first time I saw a professor being afraid of his student. After this incident I knew that the reason why my friend joined that frat was because he had enemies outside the school due to his easily angered personality.

He has this war freak attitude which made him a violent person and because of this, he easily crosses paths with other students or people who are near to him. But to me, he is just a misunderstood person.

To me he was my brother. Like a big brother to me who just wants things to be done in his own way but due to his personality, it doesn’t always work the way he wants it to be. In the modern day life, we could still see the strive for dominance in this society. An example for that would be, who wants to sit in the presidency table to lead their country and people who want to enter the congress just so that they could get a hand of the money laundering happening under the table of the people who are living in the country. In the end of this film, the protagonists finally got what they wanted and they are now part of the brotherhood and is now considered as a “master” to the next batches who also want to join the Alpha Kappa Omega fraternity. For me, this cycle for dominance has been already around for thousands of years. Imagine life before us and during the times of the Jurassic times. The top predators compete for their next meal and for some, they fight for their territory.

As time progresses, the fight for dominance would always be there ever present to what ever era or generation it is. People want to be the star or leader to a specific group. Like who would not want to become the high command of people willing to do anything what the high tables say.

        KAKABAKABA KA BA film review

 The movie for me was a lot trippy and kind of odd to the other films that we have watched since the movie had a spice of comedy and a lot more racism than the other ones.

The movie showed how the stereotypical people portrayed the Chinese people and the Japanese people before or during the 80’s times. They mimicked how the Chinese people talked and how they were seen in the movie playing and gambling with friends and while the Japanese as Yakuza mafia people. How they used people to transfer their cash and how would they cut the fingers of the mule if they would get caught.

Another scene that would hit us would be how they showed that the people who are running the churches are just using that as a front but they are actually earing more money behind the scenes because of what the people are. This shows us how the higher countries are just using the Filipinos as victims of the underground forces of the Japanese and the Chinese people and the religious people. There were also scenes there that showed the nuns and the priests singing and dancing mimicking what they do during the mass hours inside the churches but that is just a distraction so that the Filipinos wouldn’t see or understand what they are really doing under the tables. There is no doubt that the movie shows a lot of cultural and racial problems such as stereotypes and  racism. If the movie was shown to us today, it would be highly unaccepted and most likely it would receive a lot of bashes in the social media and the producer would probably have a lot of death threats and hate mail or worse, a time at the jail for showing an explicit movie plot.

But during the time it was shot and directed, I believe that it was the main reason why the movie was created and the whole story of the movie was just a mask so that it could get the message covered and the director just wanted the viewers to understand and grasp the hidden message of the movie. The offensive points of the story back then was really impactful to the viewers point of view. But in the end, this movie should be seen by a lot of people today since the main message of the movie could still be implied to today’s world problems. If only directors and script writters would still write movies as bold as the movies before during the 80’s to todays time not just some random stand up comedy movies as we could see on today’s movie genres and movie titles. We need more films like this that would really make the viewers think of the scenarios and on why would the director put that on the movie script. Is he or she thinking of something or it was just simply for entertainment. Before what I also noticed was that most of the  films before was musical and  I think a reason for that is because Filipinos love to dance and sing a lot. And to get the approval of most viewers, the directors used that factor to get the attention of most of the viewers. That musical vibe to the theme. A part of all of the things added to the film, the thing that really hit me was the movie showed how in the early 80’s they made films so trippy that even in the movie scenes the main characters got a chance to be high. During one of the times the group of protagonists visited a friend, they tried on getting high on one of the vhs tapes that they brought to the groups friend. In the next few minutes of the movie, it showed how the three of them were tripping and even had the visuals of getting high to mix with the scenes being portrayed in the movie. Its funny because during the 80s from what ive heard, that was the time cocaine was booming in business with the whole world and it was the next thing people tried after weed/ pot sessions.

[thechasefiles]

The Chase Files Daily Newscap 3/22/2019

Good MORNING  #realdreamchasers! Here is The Chase Files Daily News Cap for Friday 22nd March 2019. Remember you can read full articles for FREE via Barbados Today (BT) or Barbados Government Information Services (BGIS) OR by purchasing by purchasing a Weekend Nation Newspaper (WN).

MALL FRIGHT – A lone gunman sent scores of patrons and seven members of the blind community scampering after he opened fire in the food court yesterday at Sheraton Mall. When the confusion eased and the gunman had fled across the car park, 33-year-old Damien Trotman, of Highlnd, near Foursquare, St Philip, lay in a pool of blood, dead from three gunshots to his head. “It just goes to show that nowhere in Barbados right now you can be safe,” a scared former senator, now head of the National Disabilities Unit, Kerryann Ifill told THE NATION. Lawmen quickly descended on the mall and cordoned it off, but not before several people had videotaped the aftermath of the incident with their phones.  The 20th murder for the year occurred around 1:50 p.m. as the usual lunch time crowd was at the mall and a group of visually impaired people were about to embark on what was to be an An Afternoon Of Discovery.  (WN)

EYE WITNESS KILLING – It was more instinct than anything else. There was something definitely amiss with the person who had come and stood up next to me. He was antsy, looking from side to side; his mannerism had an air of suspiciousness, as if he was trying to blend in, but was about to do something. I gripped my bag a little tighter, thinking he might be about to snatch it, but continued what I was doing. I had just asked a question of head of the National Disabilities Unit, Kerryann Ifill, as the visually impaired set out on An Afternoon Of Discovery. There was even laughing at the response when ear shattering explosions, distressingly near, rend the air. (WN)

MURDER AT THE MALL – Dozens were denied a safe space to work, shop and dine during the lunchtime hours today as terror encroached on the popular shopping mall at Sheraton Centre when a gunman stormed the complex and opened fire taking the life of a 33-year-old man. Civilians were left stunned and operations at the Sergeant’s Village complex came to an unscheduled halt as police began investigating Barbados’ 20th murder for 2019. Word of the shocking incident quickly spread and shortly after a chorus of weeping was heard as family members of the deceased Damien Trotman huddled in disbelief. A team of media personnel was in the mall conducting an interview with members of the disabled community, when the gunman stormed the plaza and started firing meters away. According to reports, it happened just outside of the Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC), inside the food court. “The man passed over me with the gun and I was thinking ‘suppose he shoots me right now, because he looked directly at me when I was on the ground and I actually saw his face, so he could have killed me. I could have been dead all now,” said one of the shaken media workers. One journalist said: “When he [the victim] slumped down, he still had the receipt in his hand and I just saw his hand loosen and I said, ‘oh my goodness, he’s been shot.’ So all I could do was just dive into the place that was next to me and check myself to make sure that I wasn’t shot.” Owner of a well-known restaurant, Foreplay Deli, Phillip Forester told Barbados TODAYthat dozens of civilians attempted to cram into the back of his establishment, desperately attempting to escape the danger. “About five or six customers encroached on my restaurant and all of a sudden they were in the kitchen lying down in refuge and that was very serious. “I thought it was an explosion coming from another restaurant, because a person being shot in Sheraton Mall, is something that I never would have imagined. He also expressed concern about the dangerous precedent set by a shooting of that nature. “There are kids who came here as babies and continue coming to this mall for food, to shop and the question is are they going to be safe coming here in the near future?” “I am concerned that we are not safe in Barbados anymore and you don’t have to do anything to anyone to be in harm’s way. So I am wondering whether Barbados is still the gem of the Caribbean in that regard,” he pondered. An announcement by acting police Public Relations Officer Inspector Rodney Inniss that two people, a male and female were taken into custody following the incident was not enough to quell the sorrow of family members mourning the loss of their Damien who lived at Highland, near Foursquare in St. Philip. Fiona Pilgrim, cousin of the slain man was among scores of family members who converged at the scene. However, she was the only one in a position to speak to the press. Pilgrim described her cousin as a “really nice man” who loved his family, particularly his two sisters and his young son, a student at the Lodge School. “He had his ways, but I find his name would be called in many things that he didn’t know anything about. People just used to call his name. I don’t know if it’s because of his style of living, but I guess that is how it happens in society. “But to be honest, he was really nice and he loved his son. His son recently passed for Lodge and I don’t even know how he is going to take this, because he was always there for his son, even though his father was not there for him.” She also revealed that the victim’s mother was former Barbadian Olympic sprinter, Marcia Trotman. “Before his mum died, his mum told me to make sure I took care of him,” she said, while shaking her head in disbelief. Others still on the scene reflected on the country’s unprecedented violent situation. “Gun violence is really getting out of control in Barbados. I know we have different theories about it . . . but there were literally hundreds of children in Sheraton. “So we have to study the residual effects because it’s okay to blame it all on a turf war or gangs, but look at how many people are going to be affected . . . . You don’t know who will be replaying that in their minds tonight,” said a traumatized eyewitness. Since the shocking incident, management of the popular mall has been unavailable for comment. (BT)

POLICE ON THE JOB – On the heels of Barbados’ 20th murder for 2019 this afternoon, Attorney General Dale Marshall and Commissioner of Police Tyrone Griffith are once again assuring Barbadians that all steps are being taken to arrest the ugly spike in gun violence. Following a briefing at Parliament this afternoon, shortly after a man was fatally shot in the food court at Sheraton Mall, Christ Church around 1:50 p.m., the AG and Commissioner Griffith sought to reassure the public that police were doing all they can to bring the situation under control. “We have a plan and we are sticking to our plan. We know that we will get the results that we want. Many of these shooting incidents are reprisals and based on that it is kind of difficult because the co-operation is not really there from individuals who from time to time are being attacked. “However, we will make sure that we do all in our power to wrestle this ugly situation to the ground. We intend to find these perpetrators and bring them before the court in a short space of time,” Griffith said. The Commissioner extended condolences the family of the man who was killed today. He said the deceased was being sought by police for some time in connection with other serious matters. According to the top cop, his officers were looking for a suspect in connection with today’s shooting. Shortly after Griffith made this announcement, police reportedly had two persons of interest, a man and woman, assisting with the investigations. “We have a suspect related to the matter in custody who was the driver of the vehicle that the suspect was in. And we are assiduously pursuing the investigations. So I just want to assure the public that they can rest assured that we are going to get the perpetrators and we are going to arrest this ugly state of affairs,” he updated. Meanwhile, the Attorney General added that the suspect who was being pursued was on bail for murder charge, and was suspected to be involved in yet another murder. “So if the evidence holds true, then you can see the nature of what we are talking about,” Marshall said. “And that has been what we have been seeing in most of these shooting incidents. The perpetrators and the victims are all persons who are on bail for very serious crimes,” Commissioner Griffith explained. The Attorney General thanked the members of the Royal Barbados Police Force (RBPF) for the work they have been doing to arrest the crime situation. He explained that senior officers have been making sacrifices, including not travelling overseas to attend law enforcement conferences. “They recognize more than anybody else that there is a whole country at stake. So they have given up opportunities themselves, to be able to stay on the ground and deal with this situation. I would like to repeat the Commissioner’s assurance, we are on the job and we will get this done,” Marshall said. (BT)

TOURISM THREAT |- With a score of murders barely three months into the year, with one of today occurring at the country’s most popular mall, tourism industry figures have told Barbados TODAY of deep concern over the impact of crime on the nation’s bread-and-butter trade. Delivering the Barbados Hotel and Tourism Association’s report for the first quarter of 2019, BHTA chief executive officer Senator Rudy Grant noted that while destination Barbados was still considered safe, the recent spate of murders needed to be urgently addressed. Senator Grant told fellow hotel and tourism executives during the BHTA’s quarterly meeting at Hilton Hotel this morning: “The continuing serious crimes particularly those related to murder are of concern to the BHTA. While it is acknowledged that Barbados is still considered a safe destination, all actions must be undertaken to control the issue of serious crimes which in recent months are more frequent.” He stressed that safety and security continue to be an important element of the island’s tourism brand. The BHTA head said: “Barbados as a tourism destination is considered safe where visitors have the ability to comfortably explore our island and interact with Barbadians and are exposed to our warmth, friendliness and true Bajan hospitality. Escalating criminal activity can jeopardize and railroad all the gains which Barbados has made as a tourism destination. It is critical that all efforts are undertaken to ensure that Barbados continues to be safe for both locals and visitors.” But Grant declared that the BHTA was not sitting by idly but instead doing what it could to help the police fight crime. He revealed several initiatives including surveillance technology and increased police presence, which he believes should beef up security in key tourist areas. Senator Grant announced: “In January this year, the BHTA provided sponsorship for the purchase and installation of CCTV cameras on the west coast. This was a further commitment to assist the Royal Barbados Police Force (RBPF) with equipment and was the continuation of similar sponsorship for the purchase and installation of cameras on the south coast and elsewhere.” “There have been continued collaboration between the BHTA and the RBPF on other areas related to crime as well as safety and security. Specific collaboration has been undertaken on the south coast particularly in the areas of St. Lawrence Gap and Dover. Our members have reported increased police presence in this area.” Barbados had already begun to feel the impact of crime on tourism when, earlier this month, the US Bureau of Consular Affairs issued an advisory to urge citizens not to visit Crab Hill, Ivy, Nelson Street, Wellington Street or Maxwell Coast Road. A local entertainment establishment was also listed on the areas that should be avoided. The notice went on to advise “increased caution” for the St Michael areas of Black Rock, Deacons, Carrington Village, Greenfields, New Orleans and The Pine. The notice, which has caused quite a stir on social media, was dismissed by Attorney General Dale Marshall, as much ado about nothing. The Attorney General explained that the US issues travel advisories for each country as a matter of course, and in fact Barbados still enjoys the the US Government’s lowest risk assessment. The advisory went viral on social media, prompting the Attorney General to seek to assure Barbadians that the country’s stellar safety record was not in jeopardy. (BT)

IT’S SUICIDE – Coroner Manila Renee on Thursday ruled the cause of death of Corey Antonio Best to be suicide by hanging. In an hour-long ruling at the Cane Gardens, St Thomas court, the coroner detailed the sequence of events leading to the death of the 33-year-old formerly of Hopefield, Charnocks, Christ Church. She explained that the deceased’s mother Angela Best reported in February 2017 that her house had been burglarised and investigations commenced.  Corey was subsequently found on April 13 that same year with a “big rock” in his hands banging on a metal cash tin on a bridge. Police who were transporting a civilian – a minor at the time  – to court became suspicious. They stopped and asked him about the item and he responded that he was trying to get his cellular pone out of the tin as he had left the key at home. He was taken to the Oistins Police Station. The civilian corroborated the story. At the station Station Sergeant Leslie Arthur questioned Corey about the tin. “I buy that cash tin from a hardware store in Tudor Street, Bridgetown about three weeks ago,” Best is said to have responded. The key for the tin was later brought to the station by the deceased’s mother after he was allowed a call. When it was opened in their presence the contents, which included credit cards, a cellular phone and cash, were discovered to be that of the Corey’s cousin David Kola, who was visiting from Canada. He was arrested and taken to the cell. The coroner said in the evidence given to the court “there was no evidence of anything amiss because [everything took place] at a busy police station”. She went on to explain that there was no evidence of commotion at the station after Corey who was cursing and shouting was taken to the cells. “Nothing amiss,” Renee reiterated as she detailed other parts of the evidence before giving her ruling. “My condolences to the family of the deceased,” the coroner said, as she closed the case which began back in November last year. (BT)

FIXED HOME FOR BECKLES – A 47-year-old man who pleaded guilty to a 2017 offence in February has been sentenced to two years in prison. He is George St Clair Ricardo Lance Beckles, of no fixed place of abode. The accused who is already housed at HMP Dodds had pleaded guilty to wounding Yogendra Sawhon on August 27, 2017 as well as stealing a $60 handsaw and a $30 cutlass belonging to him. In the sentence delivered in the District ‘A’ Magistrates’ Court by Magistrate Kristie Cuffy-Sargeant today, Beckles was informed that his 120 days already spent on remand at HMP Dodds would be taken into account as he served his sentence. (BT)

INTRUDER JAILED – Last weekend 24-year-old Jim Ron Fenty crept into the house of an unsuspecting family and robbed them of several possessions. Today, the Block 20B Downhill Drive, Eden Lodge, St Michael resident began serving a two-year sentence for that crime. Fenty entered Jossett Williams’ home in the wee hours between March 15 and 16. Among his bounty were three watches, four bags, three purses, a Barbados passport and identification card, a cellular phone, BDS$1,500, US$60 and CND$40 cash and a bottle of whiskey. Police Constable Kenmore Phillips told the District ‘A’ Magistrates’ Court that Williams secured her home and went to bed but was jolted from her slumber around 3:30 a.m. by a noise from the bedroom. She noticed a man running from the bedroom and raised the alarm by waking her nephew. They went to investigate only to realise that the house had been burglarised. A check of their CCTV footage revealed a man with his face covered taking the items. The matter was reported and police began investigations. However, it was Fenty who contacted the police informing them that he had received information that they were searching for him. He was subsequently taken into custody but denied committing the offence. That was not the case today. “I am sorry, my girlfriend is two months pregnant. I went into the woman’s house and stole the items,” Fenty who is known for committing similar offences told Magistrate Kristie Cuffy-Sargeant before the sentence was imposed. (BT)

MONEY OR TIME FOR STEELBENDER – A steel bender has two months to pay the District ‘A’ Magistrates’ Court a $1,500 fine. And if Ricardo O’Neale Greenidge of 7th Avenue, Harts Gap, Christ Church fails to adhere to the order imposed by Magistrate Kristie Cuffy-Sargeant, he will spend eight months in prison at Dodds. Police were patrolling along Chelston Road, St Michael yesterday when they saw the 40-year-old standing among a group of men. As the lawmen exited their vehicle he began acting suspiciously before walking away from the group. He then threw an item over a galvanize paling. He was pursed, the package retrieved and the vegetable matter was discovered. “That’s just a little herd I had to smoke,” Greenidge allegedly told police at the time. The illicit drug weighed 8.5 grammes and had a $45 dollar street value. (BT)

BOAT FIRE IN BANK HALL – Eyewitnesses claim to have seen two young boys running from a boat at a private property at Savannah Road, Bush Hall, St Michael, this evening, just before it caught fire. Residents in the area told Barbados TODAY that it was after 5 p.m. when they heard an explosion coming from the area where the boat was located, and that was followed by black billowing smoke, and eventually flames. The boat was owned by Basil Seale, of Seale’s Construction and Equipment Rentals Inc, also located along the Savannah Road stretch. “I was just there talking to my brother and then I looked back and saw the smoke. And then I just saw a flame come up the same time,” one resident said. Barbados TODAY understands that Seale used water from his water tanker to start the process of outing the fire, before a fire truck arrived. However, when approached, Seale preferred not to comment. “I still got a problem here where we got to disassemble the boat more and we got to soak it,” Seale said. Another resident said “They claim that little people did running around there all the time. Two hard ears children who always up to mischief. That was a big boat. If you saw that fire. And if you see the people. Out here was like a political meeting.” Meanwhile, one concerned woman said she believes that parents should know what activities their children are involved in, especially those who tend to be troublesome. She was happy that no life was lost, or that no buildings extensively damaged. One fire tender and four fire officers responded to the scene.  (BT)

ATHERLEY SEES BUS FARE PAIN – Opposition Leader Bishop Joseph Atherley sees some financial pain coming to Barbadians who will have to deal with a hike in bus fares. And he’s hoping BERT, the austerity programme implemented by Government last year, doesn’t eventually lead to austerity fatigue or social decay in Barbados, since there was already a contraction in economic growth. In his maiden response to a Financial Statement and Budgetary Proposals yesterday, Atherley suggested that not even the proposed reverse tax credit ($1 300) and compensatory tax credit ($1 250) proposed the day before by Prime Minister and Minister of Finance Mia Mottley could provide enough financial cover for the thousands of Barbadians who commute to and from work every day and will now pay $3.50 per trip. “While we hail the benefits of the reverse tax credit, when one analyses the net effect of those give-backs against the increase in bus fares, we realise that should a commuter using two fares per day to get to work 48 weeks in a year at $35 a week, arrives at a figure of $1 680 annually. Set that against the reverse tax credit, there is a net loss of $380. If you set it against the compensatory tax credit, there is a net loss of $430,” he said. (WN)

FARE HIKE TOO STEEP – Commuters and Public Service Vehicle (PSV) operators have frowned on Prime Minister Mia Mottley’s decision to increase bus fares by 75 per cent, complaining that the sharp increase was simply too much, too soon. During Wednesday’s Budget speech, the PM said the government-owned Transport Board and PSV stakeholders were forced to operate under an untenable situation under a $2 fare. However in the Constitution River Terminal in Bridgetown, even conductors and drivers of PSV’s said the increase would likely do more harm than good. “I feel it is going to be a little bit hard on people because when it was raised to two dollars people couldn’t even pay you and people were coming with short money. So when it increases to 3.50, it will have a serious impact on a lot of people,” said one female conductor. She added that PSV workers, who do not own the vehicle they operate, would likely face exorbitant increases in operating costs. “I work a leased bus, so I have to wait and see what happens when that time comes, whether my lease will rise or stay the same.  I don’t know what the owners will do when April comes. A lot of things will happen when that bus fare is raised. People will be calling for a lot of things,” she said. Another owner/driver chimed in: “Honestly I know it had to go up. I was saying three dollars would have been a little better for the passengers. I was even talking to some of my colleagues and saying that we could carry school children at a lower rate to help ease the pockets of the traveling public. The owner, however, admitted that the increase could provide much-needed assistance for the viability of his business. “It will help, because diesel has gone up, the cost of tires and basic things like paint have gone up so it will take some of the pressure off of you., But you still don’t want to put too much on the passengers, because these are hard economic times,” he said while adding that the service offered by PSV operators desperately needed to improve. “There are too many guys doing lawlessness on the road who are not wearing the uniform and those things need to be stamped out,” he said. Commuters, on the other hand, told Barbados TODAY that the increase was simply adding insult to injury given the tough measures already placed on the backs of the working class. One woman, who only wanted to be identified as Monica said: “If she [Prime Minister Mia Mottley said three dollars that would be manageable, but $3.50 is very hard on people.” She also complained that the standard of service provided by PSV’s left a lot to be desired. “I think that they are just putting more money in the people’s pockets, because some of these ZR’s don’t work properly. They don’t come into the stand so we have to walk out on the road to catch them. It’s not fair and bus fare has increased and they are feeling joy because more money is being put into their pockets.” Pensioner, Lisle Walcott had a slightly different perspective on the matter. “It will become hard for people now because it is a sudden something that a lot of people weren’t expecting to happen or for it to be that high, but they will become accustomed to it and will put that amount of money aside to help them out so I don’t think that it’s all that bad,” he said. Meanwhile, another pensioner who preferred to remain anonymous predicted that the measures could have a lasting impact on some commuters. “It’s not going to impact me really, because I am a pensioner, but it’s going to have an impact on families too and people who are not working that have to send the children to school. They may not have the money to do it, so it is going to have an impact on them socially and financially,” he said.  (BT)

GOVT COMMITTED TO GETTING PUBLIC TRANSPORT RIGHT, SAYS DUGUID – Member of Parliament for Christ Church West and Minister of Transport, Works and Maintenance, Dr William Duguid, says his Government will ensure that the island’s public transport system is properly managed in the wake of the bus fare hike announced in yesterday’s Financial Statement and Budgetary Proposals. Dr Duguid reiterated the rationale for the fare increase, noting: “The Transport Board has been spending $60 to $70 million a year, but only taking in $20 million owing to bus sustainability. We have to restructure it, because we had a situation where we had 60 buses and 250 drivers, so it meant many days people came to work, got paid and didn’t have a bus to drive, so the Prime Minister took the time to explain to the workers what we would do. Some opted for voluntary separation, but part of the process means making the system better.” The Minister stated, “We will be using some minibuses and ZRs to meet the transportation needs, and these will be labeled Transport Board, so senior citizens and schoolchildren will still ride free on these buses. We also plan to get the retrenched drivers to drive these vehicles for the new concessionaires.” On the increased bus fare, Duguid said, “We recognise $3.50 is a lot for the average person to pay, and all transport systems have discounted systems for frequent users. So we are getting the expertise to ensure that when we get this programme in place we will get it right, because the people of Barbados deserve the best transport system this country can provide.” On another matter, the Minister announced that greater efficiency was coming to the Barbados Licensing Authority. “We want to get shorter wait times for people to come back in and repeat their driving tests, so we will get more driving test officers and instructors. To address the problems people have had with getting their driver’s licences renewed, we have received six cameras and six printers to print driver’s licences more efficiently. We are training the officers now, and we will soon have cameras and printers in three different locations.” (BT)

ATHERLEY: WHAT ABOUT HILTON – Opposition Leader Bishop Joseph Atherley wants to know Government’s position as it relates to the Hilton Hotel. Atherley, in his Budget Reply in the House of Assembly today, said while members of the Government would not be selling the hotel, located at Needham’s Point, St Michael, he still had a number of questions. He said he also wanted to hear more about the $40 million injection into the Hilton and posed even more number of questions in his presentations. “What is the source of the $40 million investment? What is the profit sharing arrangement?” he asked. “I understand the former Government made arrangements to sell. That matter is a matter of past.  This Government indicates it is not interested in so doing but I still want to know . . . ”. Atherley also referred to the planned Hyatt Hotel which Prime Minister Mia Mottley addressed in her presentation on Wednesday as well as Sam Lord’s Castle. (WN)

‘WE’RE IN’ – The tussle over what price the Government and taxpayers can bear to attract an iconic all-inclusive hotel brand took another twist today as Sandals Resorts denied it was requesting anything more than what Bay Street had already promised. This was in response to suggestions by Prime Minister Mia Mottley last night that the hotel chain’s Beaches brand takeover of the former Almond Beach Resort at Heywood, St Peter, was in danger of falling through. She hinted of deadlock between her ten-month-old administration and Sandals after rejecting requests by the hotel chain for concessions that would be binding on future Parliaments of Barbados. The Prime Minister reeled off a series of documented requests that appeared unprecedented in international trade and commerce, domestic public policy and Barbadian history. Sandals asked to be “made whole” in respect of concessions granted to future hotel developers if their terms are superior to those granted to Sandals – the equivalent, the Prime Minister said, of holding Most Favoured Nation status. The Beaches concessions echoed the controversial deal sought by and granted Sandals for its original properties from the Freundel Stuart administration. But while not directly addressing fears that the Beaches Barbados project would be cancelled, Sandals said in a statement that it remained committed to Barbados. During her maiden Budget speech, the Prime revealed that Sandals was seeking to be “indemnified if any future Parliament at any stage in the next 40 years were ever to tax them for anything in the industry for any goods or services that others in the industry were paying taxes for”. The Prime Minister said in Parliament: “We welcome Sandals here and the jobs it has provided and everything it is doing in Barbados. we are certainly open for business, but it cannot be at any price. And in our current predicament in the middle of an IMF programme Mr Speaker, there is a limit even to what we can accept.” With more than 550-rooms and over $600 million invested between its two properties in Christ Church, the Sandals chain currently provides more than 1,100 jobs for Barbados at Sandals Barbados and Sandals Royal Barbados. The promised $840 million (US$420 million) Beaches Resort project slated for the old Almond Beach Resort promises to provide hundreds more jobs. Barbados TODAY reached out to Sandals executives this morning for a response to the Prime Minister’s charges and to confirm whether the project would continue or be pulled. A Sandals spokesman would not be drawn on the issues the Prime Minister raised, and the company issued a release hours later, saying it took note of Mottley’s statement about the stalled progress of the talks “and would like to state that this development is equally disappointing for us”. “Let me state clearly we have no regrets. Even though a huge amount of money has already been spent on beach work and on development plans, engineering and architecture and a large and able projects team comprising the very best personnel; the fact is we know that both sides worked very hard to try and make this project a reality,” said the statement from the chain owned by Jamaican magnate Gordon Butch Stewart. Sandals assured the Prime Minister and Barbadians that it remained “fully committed to supporting and working alongside all stakeholders for the future growth and development of the island”. While pointing to growing confidence in the Barbados economy over the past year, Sandals spoke of having “greatest” respect for the Prime Minister but denied asking for anything other than what was initially promised. Sandals continued: “We were not asking for anything more than what was promised. The Beaches project, at over US$420 million would have represented not only our largest single one-time development, but the largest long term hotel project in Barbados. “Such a large project carries the concomitant long-term risks, and as such our lenders who are the banks, as well as our Board were seeking a level of stability by having parliamentary approval of the concessions that were already promised, which in the 21st century, is now the norm.” The company said it understood that every government had its particular priorities and policies and it “fully respected Government’s position in this regard, and we would never want to put them in a compromising situation”. The Sandals group is not new to controversy or pulling out of various markets. In 1992, Stewart bought the Paradise Beach property in St Michael, but later abandoned it after it was hit by legal wrangling and other unresolved issues. Earlier this year, the hotel chain pulled out of Tobago due to what the company said then was too much badgering and bad publicity. In late 2017, the company was also involved in a disagreement with the Antigua and Barbuda government over tax agreements in that territory. In its release this afternoon, the company said since its time in Barbados, it found that working with the department of tourism was very “enjoyable and productive”, especially in the island’s number one source market – the UK – as well as North America. Also pointing to the linkages formed with local suppliers and farmers, Sandals said it understood the disappointment all around “because of the anticipated impact of Beaches, which would have moved our total employment on island to 3,000 persons, and when combined with the other two resorts, would have resulted in an annual economic injection into the economy of Barbados of over US$100 million each and every year”. But the hotel chain said though disappointing, the current development in no way affected its “excellent relationship” with Barbados and that it would continue to “work toward doing more and more for the island because we remain confident that Barbados is in good hands”. (BT)

CASINO GAMBLING ‘WILL BRING ORGANISED CRIME, CORRUPTION’ – Opposition Leader Joseph Atherley today painted a grim picture of a nation in the grip of widespread corruption, money laundering and organised crime were legalised casino gambling to be introduced. He made the suggestion in his maiden reply to the Budget speech, a day after Government announced it is to introduce online and table gambling. He conceded that while there had been no mention of casino gambling, he believed it was on the cards. The Opposition Leader told the House: “The movement on taxes from betting and gaming from $3 million to $30 million in the Estimates immediately gave to me the first signal that perhaps something significant was coming down relative to this activity. “If I am wrong I really would want to be told early . . . but that movement from $3 million to $30 million . . . . It seems to me as if we are intending to introduce casino gambling into Barbados. It seems that way to me. From these figures and from what was said yesterday . . . . It was not stated in the documents and it was not stated yesterday but it is my understanding.” He admitted he was not in a position to give the Mottley administration advice on whether it should introduce casino gambling or not. But he warned that there were shady elements associated with such an undertaking. He continued: “If it is intended to be casino gambling, and I am not here suggesting anything one way or the other as to the advisability of that, it simply seems that way to me and if we are going to do it let’s say so clearly, because whatever we call it and however skilfully we introduce it, then it still becomes part of our reality. “But the caution would be that the countervailing impact upon our social and institutional landscape could well be realized in corruption, money laundering, organised crime and other socially undesirable phenomenon.” Delivering the 2019 Budgetary Proposals yesterday, Mottley also said there would be a 20 per cent withholding tax on gambling winnings and a 17.5 per cent gambling tax on the net drop of all gaming establishments. She said there had been a strong request from investors within the tourism industry to extend the presence of gaming tables and machines.  (BT)

TAX WARNING – Government is being warned that a raft of higher taxes on the tourism industry could lead to dampening of demand for the destination, a prominent regional economist warned tonight. But Marla Dukharan has welcomed Government’s plan to ease its grip on foreign exchange transactions, suggesting that this could result in hoteliers keeping more of their profits here. Dukharan appeared on a panel of a post-Budget breakfast forum organised by the Chamber of Commerce and Industry and accountants PricewaterhouseCoopers at the Lloyd Erskine Sandiford Centre. Dukharan said: “I agree that the move to liberalize the foreign exchange regime is very welcomed. I think Barbados has the most restrictive foreign exchange regime in the Caribbean right now . . . so this is a very welcomed reform.” In her Budget speech on Wednesday, Prime Minister Mia Mottley said effective July 1 this year, all Barbadians will be allowed to open foreign currency-denominated bank accounts for holding foreign currency they have earned locally or abroad. Dukharan told the forum: “If you look at the impact of tourism we have been seeing growth in tourism numbers but you are not seeing the commensurate rise in revenue and people are wondering is it because of the Airbnb or they are spending less and the length of stay is shorter? But I think a big part of it was that people are keeping more foreign exchange off shore that they earn from tourism. So this new reform with respect to the liberalisation of the foreign exchange will help to alleviate that challenge.” But Dukharan said she feared that the increase in the Value Added Tax (VAT) rate on the industry from 7.5 per cent to ten per cent effective January 2020, together with a hike in room rate levies, “could potentially have some implications for demand”. While acknowledging that the more luxurious the property and the destination the lesser the price sensitivity, Dukharan suggested Barbados had “a very diversified product offering”. The economist said: “I wouldn’t classify Barbados the same as I would, let’s say Anguilla for example. “So I feel there is a certain bracket that really has price sensitivity and there is likely to be some impact on the amount of demand for some of the properties and vacation stays in Barbados, and that is something I am concerned about. “The fact that you have now the higher taxes and levies being imposed I feel that there is a risk that we can see some softening in demand for rooms especially at the mid to lower end of the market.” Also appearing on the panel was Tax Engagement Leader at PwC Gloria Edwardo who predicted that the 75 per cent increase in the room rate levy on accommodation was likely to be a concern to the tourism industry. She said: “It will certainly cause an overall increase in room rates in a country that is already seen by many as an expensive destination and is likely to make Barbados less competitive to some potential visitors.” She also said that Government’s decision to reduce the number of zero rated supplies and treat them as exempt supplies meant that input tax would become “irrecoverable and become a cost for the suppliers of exempt goods and services”. “This is likely to be passed to the ultimate consumers in the form of higher prices,” Edwardo warned.   (BT)

BIPA WELCOMES CLICO RESOLUTION, ‘SEEKS DETAILS’ – Although welcoming Government’s decision to pay out the vast majority of CLICO claims and investments, the group that champions the cause of policyholders and investors of the collapsed CLICO Life Insurance Company, is wondering how the payoff is going to work. The Barbados Investors and Policyholders Alliance (BIPA) has said there is need for clarity from the Ministry of Finance, a day after Prime Minister and Minister of Finance Mia Mottley announced the decision during the Budget speech  to the House of Assembly. BIPA chairman June Fowler told Barbados TODAY: “Our main concern at this stage is to get clarification of the exact derails and how each and every class of policyholder will be treated.  Also, given the advanced age of many policyholders, we will be hoping that provision will be made to enable transfer or trade the 15 year bonds.” The Prime Minister outline a payment plan for 8,944 policyholders.  An additional 1,394 policyholders or 12 per cent of the company’s portfolio are to receive at least half of their claims and holdings in cash. While acknowledging that Government would be unable to repay all policyholders the entire amounts owed to them, the Prime Minister said an effort was being made to ensure that these individuals received at least some of their money. But while welcoming the announcement, the BIPA chair took a swipe at the court-appointed Judicial Manager for CLICO. Fowler said: “BIPA’s first response is that the Judicial Manager has turned out to be the winner in this debacle, having been charging substantial fees since 2011,” That aside, BIPA is relieved that this “desperately sad affair” was finally coming to an end, she added. The Prime Minister also announced that the holders of the controversial high-yield, high-risk EFPA would be paid back their principal in special 15-year bonds, but only at the interest rate of 0.25 per cent over the 15 year period.    Althought disappointed with the huge haircut planned for EFPA holders, Fowler said: “The fact that EFPA policyholders will, as promised by the previous administration, receive their principal in full, albeit over 15, as opposed to the originally planned ten years, is of some comfort. Their loss of interest however is another matter altogether.” The CLICO policyholders’ spokesperson added that BIPA would seek an urgent meeting with Minister in the Ministry of Finance Ryan Straughn in advance of upcoming town hall meetings to ensure BIPA fully understands the details of what has been outlined by the Prime Minister. Mottley had also revealed that two weeks ago, Cabinet approved the winding up of Resolution Life (ResLife), the court-sanctioned successor of CLICO. But Fowler said she was not surprised at this. She told Barbados TODAY: “BIPA was not surprised about the decision to wind up ResLife as we were also concerned that no effort had been made to start selling insurance and investment products. The way things have turned out, that was a blessing in disguise for potential policyholders.” (BT)

BOSTIC INTERVENES IN SIR WINSTON SCOTT POLYCLINIC IMPASSE – An action plan to tackle security arrangements at the Sir Winston Scott Polyclinic has emerged from a two-hour meeting with disgruntled nurses led by Minister of Health Lieutenant Colonel Jeffrey Bostic. But the clinic is to remain closed until Monday amid protest over working conditions and security arrangements in the wake of three violent incidents. Around 10:50 a.m, Lieutenant Colonel Bostic, joined Chief Medical Officer Dr Kenneth George, the president of the Congress of Trade Unions and Staff Associations of Barbados, Denis Depeiza, and officials of the National Union of Public Workers to meet with the nurses for just over two hours. Echoes of applause could be heard as the meeting ended, apparently signalling agreement had been reached with the nurses who have endured incidents in which assailants used rocks, chairs and a knife. A Barbados TODAY team was told the meeting was private and media were barred from entering the building where a sign pointed to the clinic’s closure today. CTUSAB President Denis Depeiza told Barbados TODAY that the matter of safety and security was addressed as Bostic conducted a walk-through of the institution. Depeiza said: “We have looked at the number of issues impacting both on safety, security as well as the wellbeing of the staff and the users of the facility and those matters are going to be the subject of discussion and an action plan. The labour leader said he was representing the Barbados Nurses Association. Saying he was not at liberty to speak on the action plan which was created at the meeting. He said he was there to speak to the nurses affected so that the union could plan their course of action. “While we are now going through the routine of speaking to the staff so that the unions can make a firm decision as to how to move forward as soon as all the matters have been fully aired and ventilated.” Chief Medical Officer Dr Kenneth George remained tight-lipped about the meeting, saying only he would speak to the media at a later date about its outcome. A press release by Government Information Service said the Jemmott’s Lane polyclinic is to remain closed until Monday for “industrial cleaning”. “The Minister assured the workers that he would be doing all in his power to ensure their safety and the upgrades would begin over the next three days,” the statement read. Bostic was quoted as telling the staff that their safety was of paramount concern to him and the Government “would be increasing security cameras from 16 to 28 along with improved lighting. Another step that will be taken is the installation of electronic access and panic buttons, as well as metal detectors to ensure that illegal weapons are not brought into the polyclinic” The MP for The City of Bridgetown also said in the statement that there will be discussions with the Royal Barbados Police Force and Barbados Defence Force “tomorrow to look at all of the issues and to identify some of the steps to be taken. One of which is for random patrols to be done on the compound on a daily basis”. The assurance was an apparent response to nurse’s demands for police protection at the clinic. The Minister of Health and Wellness warned the public that if the bad behavior continued repeat offenders could find themselves being banned from the polyclinic. The statement said the minister would fully ventilate the issue in his contribution to the budget debate in Parliament on Friday. The Government release directed residents in the closed clinic’s catchment area who need their prescriptions filled to go to the Edgar Cochrane Polyclinic in Wildey. (BT)

CHANDERPAUL SAYS CAMERON MUST BE ELECTED – Test icon Shivnarine Chanderpaul says the success of the domestic franchise system has left him with no choice but to support incumbent Cricket West Indies president, Dave Cameron, in his re-election bid. The 44-year-old, the most capped West Indies player in Tests when he left the game four years ago, said Cameron had managed to put in place a crucial building block for cricket development and should be afforded the opportunity to continue his good work. “As a player for two decades and now a coach with the most successful franchise in the West Indies region, I have come to appreciate the tremendous work that administrators have to do behind the scene,” Chanderpaul said. “I observe the recent development regarding the upcoming elections at Cricket West Indies, and would like to endorse the Cameron/Nanthan ticket.” “My reason is simple. Over the past five years with the introduction of the franchise system, cricket in the Caribbean has seen quite an improvement. Mr. Cameron, despite many challenges, has been able to stabilise West Indies cricket and he deserves a chance to continue to contribute to our growth and development in the region.” With his endorsement, Chanderpaul has become the first major former cricketer to publicly support the Cameron ticket, which includes vice-president Emmanuel Nanthan. Over the last week, the likes of legends Sir Vivian Richards, Sir Andy Roberts and Clive Lloyd, along with Darren Sammy, have all come out in support of challengers Ricky Skerritt and running mate, Dr Kishore Shallow. Former West Indies fast bowler Tino Best has also endorsed Cameron, who is bidding for a fourth successive term in charge. Twelve votes are up for grabs in Sunday’s elections in Jamaica, with each of the six territorial boards having two votes. Already, Chanderpaul’s home board Guyana, along with Windward Islands and Barbados have pledged to support the Cameron ticket while Trinidad and Tobago and Leeward Islands have indicated their backing for Skerritt and Shallow. Jamaica are yet to declare their support, leaving their two votes crucial to the outcome of the election. (BT)

BABB QUERIES PLANS FOR NETBALLERS – Apparently Sabreena Smith isn’t alone. Former national netball coach Alwyn Babb has also blown the whistle on the Bajan Gems after publicly questioning the training programme heading into July’s World Cup in Liverpool. Babb took to Facebook to express his dissatisfaction with the preparation just weeks after veteran player Sabreena Smith said she wasn’t returning to the national set-up because of differences with head coach Sandra Bruce-Small. “Any training programme for any sport has to have an outcome and timeline. At every step of the way the coaches or whoever is involved in the programme need to demonstrate that by the end of any given period, whether it is general prep or specific prep, where it wants the team to go. “The programme should be out there producing a team ready to compete with the rest of the world . . . What is happening currently does not tell me there is a programme, at least one that you can put your hand on,” Babb told THE NATION. (WN)

ODAINE, FORDE CLASS ACTS – Lester Vaughan’s lion-hearted athlete Shemia Odaine and Harrison College’s speed machine Julian Forde were awesome yesterday at the National Stadium. They highlighted the first day of the Barbados Secondary Schools Athletics Championships’ (BSSAC) finals as double crowned champions, The St Michael School (SMS) took an early lead among the boys and girls. Odaine and Forde stole the spotlight with sublime speed to not only become the fastest schoolgirl and schoolboy but also qualify for next month’s CARIFTA Games in the Cayman Islands. St Michael, with 179.50 points, were 12.5 ahead of Christ Church Foundation (167) among the girls with former queens, Springer Memorial third on 128.50.  (WN)

ADVANTAGE ST MICHAEL – The St. Michael School, defending double crown champions of the Powerade-sponsored Barbados Secondary Schools Athletics Championship, lead both the girls and boys standings. But today’s real champion was Shemia Odaine of the Lester Vaughan School. The two-day final commenced today at the National Stadium and the rivalry on and off the track for bragging rights in both the boys and girls overall standings was an exciting affair. Joint BSSAC girls champions St Michael School (179.50) and Christ Church Foundation School (167) are the two out front in the girls tally while perennial queens Springer Memorial on 128.50 points are third. Queen’s College on 108 points occupy the fourth position while Combermere with 85 points are in fifth place. Harrison College (103 points) were ahead in the boys’ standings going into the relays but they were overtaken by the defending champions the St. Michael School on 107.50 points. Foundation are closely trailing on 99 points, Combermere School tallied 89 points for fourth place and the Lester Vaughan School on 73 points are fifth. The Under-20 Girls champion Odaine picked up her first medal in the long jump with a 5.86m measurement. Coached by veteran professional Alwyn Babb, Odaine then pulled off a major upset when she clocked 55.63 seconds to accomplish gold in the 400m. Returning later in the afternoon, Odaine earned the right to be called the fastest schoolgirl in Barbados when she ran 12.13 seconds in the 100m for her third victory of the day. Those outstanding performances were witnessed by the majority of spectators who occupied the Louis Lynch and James Wedderburn stands. Just one record fell on the day in the junior girls shot put (11.36m) via the powerful arm of Ryah Dates of Queen’s College. Dates was also victorious with a 31.66m throw in the junior girls javelin. Julian Forde of Harrison College established himself as the fastest schoolboy in Barbados with a blistering personal best of 10.47 seconds in the Under-20 Boys 100m. CARIFTA qualifier Kyle Gale of St Michael School ran 47.06 seconds for a top podium finish in the Under-20 males 400m which featured Delano Wickham of Foundation (47.71) and Miguel Nicholas of Ellerslie School (47.95). The 100m hurdles for Under-20 Girls went expectedly to Sarah Belle of Foundation (13.79), Anika Blackman of Princess Margaret (14.51) was the best in the Under-17 100m hurdles while Brieanna Boyce of Alleyne School (28.55) ran away with the Under-15 Girls 200m hurdles. Winners of the boys’ hurdles races were Ialpha Nedd of St. George Secondary (14.93) in the Under-20 110m, Haile Emmanuel- Turney of Lester Vaughan (14.54) in the Under-17 110m and Josiah Parris of St Michael (42.30) in the 300m. Deighton Griffth swept the Under-17 100m sprint through Rickyla Fagan who lived up to expectation when she clocked 12.23 seconds while Kristin Cummins (11.11) was the best among the boys. Sakena Massiah was a class above the rest running 57.42 seconds for the Under-17 Girls 400m honours representing the Alleyne School. The boys 400m went to Savion Hoyte of the Lester Vaughan (49.13 seconds) in a race that went down to the wire with Aren Spencer of Harrison College (49.24) in second place. The Under-13 and 15s 200m final took place and Keshawna Niles brought glory to Deighton Griffith in 24.94 seconds while the Under-13 Division went to Alika Harewood of Foundation in 26.96 seconds. Winning the Under-15 Boys 200m was Josiah Parris of St Michael School (22.86) while Shamari Addison of Queen’s College (25.14) won the Under-13 200m. In the distance races, Foundation picked up two gold medals through the efforts of Daesha Brathwaite in the Under-17 Girls 1500m and 3000m. In the first race on track today, Brathwaite finished way ahead of the 3000m field as she clocked 11:32.49 while in the 1500m she registered a time of 5:15.06. It was the Combermere School show starring Nathan Goddard-McCarthy with a brilliant first place run of 4:10.31 in the Under-20 Boys 1500m. Meanwhile, Ethan Taylor also of Combermere captured the junior boys 3000m in 11:02.00. Harrison College were dominant in the girls 800m and 1500m races. CARIFTA qualifier Layla Haynes ran a wonderful race of 2:28.29 in the Under-15 Girls 800m while Charissa Moore at a modest pace cruised to a 5:06.32 finish in the 1500m. Winning the girls Under-13’s 800m was Dominique Odle-Browne of Combermere School (2:38.67), Nikolai Clarke of Coleridge and Parry (2:29.73) won the Under-13 Boys. Kamili Brathwaite of The Lodge School (2:12.22) grabbed the Under-15 Boys 800m win. St Michael School are ahead in the girls and boys and they accumulated vital points competing in the field events. The girls from Martindale’s Road captured four gold medals led by Tenielle Chapman-Goodluck who threw 11.98m in the shot put while the bronze went to schoolmate Krishonda Myles (10.16m) and Julisa Jones- Smith of Springer Memorial (10.77m) split them for the silver. The Massiah brothers Aaron and Caleb performed very well for St Michael School. The younger Massiah (Aaron) won the Under-13 boys’ high jump (1.55m) and Caleb landed at 6.79m in the Under-17 long jump. Meanwhile, Gabriel Browne also of St Michael School (40.19m) picked up a win in the Under-20 Boys discus. Vanessa Greaves also of St Michael executed a winning 38.59m throw in the Under-17 Girls javelin. St Michael also won two gold medals in the javelin thanks to 1.37m by Kijana Johnson in the Under-13 Girls Division and a 1.58m height by Samiya Dell in the Under-15 age group. CARIFTA qualifier Shanice Hutson of Coleridge and Parry (11.91m) claimed the Under-20 Girls shot put. Also in the senior Under-20 Girls category Rowland Kirton-Browne of Lester Vaughan threw 37.88m which was good enough for a first position in the javelin event. Kirton- Browne then went on to clinch another top place finish in the shot put (12.06m) for the Cane Garden, St Thomas-based school. Zariah Greaves of Springer Memorial captured the Under-17 Girls long jump (5.60m), and Dominique Wood of Foundation (11.55m) won the girls triple jump Four 4x100m relays ran today, St Michael  (girls) in 47:34 seconds and Foundation (boys) 40:76 seconds stamped their authority to win the Under-20 Division. The Under-17 age group went to Springer Memorial (48.33) and Queen’s College (43:62). Please also see Pages 42 & 43. (BT)

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