#and further they cannot handle an interrogation of objectivity

[brehaaorgana]

Genuinely one of the funniest things to me is (usually conservatives or evangelical atheists) people on the internet getting really aggressive about LoGiCaL ARGuMEnTs and rhetoric or whatever but actually they've never genuinely studied any philosophy not fed to them by Jordan Peterson or something in their entire lives and it extremely shows they don't know the first thing about classical logic or rhetoric.

[arknights-imagines]

"Oh no! The doctor turned into a child! -for a day only- How will the operators deal with this special situation?" ( A prompt for executor, silverash and hellagur, the idea is how would they individually handle this kind of situation with a kid turned f!doc ? ) Thanks for giving us all this content! Here's to a lot more Exe requests! :D

AAA I LOVE REQUESTS LIKE THESE SBJSHS 🥺😭 they're silly but they're so much fun looll tysm anon 💞💞 and it's my pleasure! I'm glad people like my stuff 🌸 and yes all the Exe requests please loolll 🥺🥺 I know you mention you wanted fem Doctor but since I wrote these in second person I made Doctor gender neutral ✨ I hope that's okay with you anon! Please enjoy~

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Executor, SilverAsh and Hellagur with a Doctor who got turned into a child for the day

Headcanon format; in second person but mostly from the perspective of the Operator

Contains: Executor, SilverAsh, Hellagur, general neutral Doctor who's meant to be the reader, implied established relationships in each hc batch, some background characters and as much softness as I could possibly manage ✨

Word count: 6.7k in total (I went a lil overboard aaa 👉👈)

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EXECUTOR

･ It truly was a 'you had to see it to believe it' kind of situation.

･ But even everyone that saw it wasn't sure whether what they saw was true or they were just hallucinating.

･ Executor had accompanied you for work around Rhodes Island that day; you wanted his opinions on new recruits for Rhodes Islands' forces. He had no objections, and he did enjoy spending the day with you, regardless of what you two were going to be doing.

･ Among the new recruits, there was one particular one - a Caster. They only stood out to Executor because they kept dropping their wand and tripping over while the drills were run. He silently wondered if they had ever even been on a real battlefield.

･ They were a bit clumsy, but relatively harmless. They were just a trainee, after all. They surely wouldn't cause any issues for you.

･ The Sankta ignored them for a while, more focused on helping you. However, while you were standing in the middle of the training grounds directing the trainees during another short battle drill, that clumsy Caster ran right into you, and you collided with both them and their wand, which lit up with sparks upon poking your face on impact.

･ "Look out-!" "Ow-!!" The collision was loud and both of you were sent tumbling to the ground. ･ Executor was quick to act, rushing to catch you before you fell to the floor, completely ignoring the flashes that had just gone flying from the Casters' Arts wand.

･ Arms wrapped securely around you, the Sankta blinked as the aggressive flashes disappeared, and he looked to make sure you were alright. "Doctor-" Executor stopped in the middle of his sentence when his eyes came to what he had in his hold.

･ Instead of you, there was a little child in his arms.

･ The Sankta went quiet for a moment, staring at the child for a few seconds with wide eyes before he realized that the child was you.

･ Executor knew that didn't make any logical sense, but there was no doubt that the child was you. They were wrapped up in your Rhodes Island coat and were wearing a shrunken outfit identical to the one you had put on that day; not to mention their skin tone and eye colour were the same as yours.

･ He stiffened a bit when you poked his cheek with your small hand, cooing out syllables that sounded like fractions of his name. "Execu?" The Sankta blinked, "Doctor…"

･ Amiya came rushing onto the scene; she had obviously seen what had happened from her place across the room with another trainee group. "Executor? Is the Doctor o-.....kay?" The young woman trailed off when her eyes fell to the child in his arms. Blinking rapidly, she exclaimed out in surprise, "D-Doctor?!"

･ Their attention was brought to the clumsy Caster who had ran right into you when they yelled out in embarrassment, crying out about how they didn't mean to and that it was an honest mistake.

･ Executor was ready to interrogate them, fully convinced this was some sort of attempt on your life, but Amiya was quick to stop anything from getting out of hand.

･ After taking a look at you herself, Amiya mumbled to herself a little before looking up to Executor. "Executor, please take the Doctor to Silence. She'll surely be able to help."

･ Executor was a little hesitant, but he had orders, and he had to abide by them. "Yes, I understand." He wasn't really sure how to carry a child comfortably, but after adjusting his hold on you a little, the Sankta was off, walking with quick strides.

･ Ignoring whatever wide-eyed open-mouth gaping stares he got as he passed through the halls, Executor was finally able to track down Silence. He called her name to get her attention, and yawning a little, she turned to look toward him, obviously rather tired. "Huh? Yeah, what is it-"

･ When she did turn her eyes to him, however, all drowsiness left her face. As soon as she saw the child in his arms, her eyes widened, and seconds after her jaw dropped open when she realized who the child was.

･ "This is the Doctor. Amiya said I should consult you on what to do next." Considering the situation, Executor was unbelievably calm, though this wasn't surprising. He wasn't showing it, but he just wanted assurance that you were alright and unharmed.

･ Silence gaped for a few more seconds, before snapping out of her shock and nodding slowly. "Um, yes. Please follow me, and explain how this happened if you don't mind."

･ Following Silence, the Sankta explained what had happened concisely, getting a little distracted at how you were fussing in his arms.

･ By the time Silence brought him and you to the medical room she had been heading to, she knew enough. "I…I see. So that's what happened. I'll just need to run some tests on them, then I can figure out what we should do." The Medic explained, walking further into the room and preparing some equipment as she passed by, "Bring them over here, please."

･ Nodding, Executor closed the door behind him and carefully placed you on the examination table. You small hands grabbed the air, and you pouted a bit, "Exe! Exe!" The Sankta shushed you gently, bringing one of his hands up for you to grasp. "Doctor, please stay still." Your smaller hands curiously tugged at his fingers, and you quieted down, focusing on his partially gloved hand. He would admit, watching you act so innocently made his chest feel all fuzzy, but he had bigger concerns at that moment.

･ Silence was quick with her examinations and tests, and allowed Executor to sit with you as she conducted them. Once she was all finished, she handed you back to him carefully, turning back to her papers as Executor did his own quick check for injury or anything out of place now that you were in his hold.

･ Amiya had come by as soon as she could, and was now standing with the Sankta, staring and blinking at you, obviously still shocked. Turning to Silence, Amiya spoke up, "And the results, Silence?"

･ Looking at her results, the Medic began, "It looks like whatever Arts effected them caused then to revert back into a child. Thankfully, it's not permanent. They should be back to normal in enough time, maybe a day." Silence explained.

･ Amiya nodded slowly, "I see. Thank goodness it's not permanent." Cutting in, Executor spoke, "Is there no method to revert then back to an adult immediately?"

･ Arts wasn't his speciality; the Sankta wasn't even aware Originium Arts were capable of such bizarre things.

･ Silence shook her head, explaining how it would be dangerous to attempt to try anything. Knowing Arts were involved, she seemed to have wanted to run more experiments on you, but she was acutely aware that Executor wouldn't allow that - not to mention it wasn't the best idea to run any kind of risky experiments on you, especially when you were a child.

･ Thanking Silence, Amiya turned to Executor. "Well, I suppose the Doctor can't carry out their work today. I think it'd be best if they simply had someone to look after them for the time being. Silence did say it would only be a day." The Sankta nodded, his calm gaze turning to you, "I agree. It is not safe for a child to be wandering around freely in an environment like this." With that being said, it wasn't as if there was a babysitter or daycare he could drop you off at, "Who should I entrust them to?"

･ After a few seconds, Amiya hesitantly replied, "Executor, do you think you could look after the Doctor?"

･ The Sankta blinked, "You would like me to?" Amiya nodded, "Yes, if you're not too busy with other accords. I think you can best guarantee their safety, and they already seem comfortable with you as is." She explained, "But if not, I can find someone else."

･ "Hm." Executor looked toward you again, seeing you staring at him with your wide eyes,"I am able to manage that. I have dealt with children on occasion while carrying out wills and testaments." He began, "I may not have the capability to entertain them, but I have no problem looking after a child."

･ Amiya sighed in relief a bit. After thanking him and advising him to look for her or Silence if he was unsure of something, she sent Executor off.

･ For a child, you were well behaved enough. He did have his own things to attend to around the facility, but you didn't create much of a fuss.

･ He hoped you wouldn't attract much attention, but that wasn't exactly possible considering his reputation and that he was walking around carrying a child.

･ Executor didn't quite understand the commotion, however. He could care less whether or not he frustrated people because he wouldn't allow anyone else to hold you.

･ "Awww!! I just wanna squish them!!" "I cannot imagine that would be comfortable for them, so please refrain from doing so."

･ When you were both alone, he very much liked it when you combed your fingers through his hair while he rested his head in your lap, but as a child you seemed much more interested in putting his hair in your mouth than anything else. He had to gently direct your hands away from grabbing his hair or his halo; while it wasn't exactly connected to him, it was just like one of his body parts, so he didn't exactly want you grabbing it as cute as you were while trying.

･ Unfortunately, conversations were a little useless considering both him and whoever he was talking to had their attention on you.

･ "Uhm, should I come talk to you another time, Executor?" "That is not necessary, please continue."

･ You would only be occupied by his hair and halo for so long, and he didn't have much that would entertain a child - in fact most of the things he kept on his person were things you'd want to keep away from children.

･ Fortunately, Amiya had come to find him, informing the Sankta that you and him would be better off staying in your office for the rest of the day. He didn't like not being able to attend to his work, but Amiya assured him she'd send everything he'd need to the office for now.

･ Your office was quiet, and he was used to staying inside it. Fortunately, by the time he got there, you were napping. Your office wasn't exactly childproof either, however, so he kept you in his lap while he did paperwork at your desk.

･ You slept for awhile, but when you awoke, you were fussing up; "Execu, Execu…" The Sankta furrowed his brows together, worried that something had happened. In a soft voice, he answered your small coos, "What is bothering you, love?" Now that you two were alone, he could drop any formalities. He didn't use the nickname too often, much more accustomed to using your own name when he didn't need to call you 'Doctor', but you seemed to respond well to it even as a child.

･ Taking one of your smaller hands in his own in hopes to calm you down, he tilted your chin to see there was anything out of place.

･ Knocking on the door caught his attention, and soon Amiya peeked her head in, holding a small tray. "Executor? Silence sent me, she said the Doctor should eat this." Noticing how you were fussing up in his arms, she hummed, "They must be hungry. Make sure they eat."

･ Ah, yes, that was probably it. You had been sleeping for a while. Nodding, Executor let her place the tray on your desk. "Of course."

･ Feeding you was easy enough, the food was just some fruit slices and a baby-food like mix that was in a jar.

･ He fed you small portions, letting you sit in your office chair while he sat in another chair before you. You were a little messy, however, and by the time you were done eating, your cheeks were covered in crumbs and pieces of food.

･ He caught your attention gently after putting the food away, calling out, "Love?" His eyes softened at how you were innocently clapping your hands together while cooing out "Execu, Execu!", and Executor gently wiped your cheeks clean with a napkin, "You've made a mess on your face."

･ You were well behaved after that, falling asleep not long after. Busy doing work and looking after you, Executor didn't even notice it was night until it was too dark to see what he was writing. Taking a break to stretch and check up on you, he considered taking you to your room so you could sleep properly, but just as he was;

･ "Hm-" He blinked, and suddenly he was holding a full grown, adult you in his lap. You were back to normal, Silence had been right.

･ Shifting, you groaned a little, lifting your head from his shoulder, "Executor…? What's going on?" You didn't seem to remember what had happened, but you were rather disoriented.

･ Softly, the Sankta pressed a kiss to your forehead; light as a feather. "You will hear about it all in the morning. Thank you for behaving well, love, but for now, please take it easy."

･ You were back to snoring in no time. Returning to his work, he figured he'd stay with you for the time being; Executor felt warm and safe with you so close, so he wasn't in any rush to leave.

･ While he knew he was cold and detached, with you, even when the most ridiculous things happened, he felt he grew a little warmer everyday.

SILVERASH

･ You snacked randomly and inconsistently often throughout the day; it was a bit of a bad habit. Half the time, you were so endorsed in your work, you didn't even pay much attention to whatever you ate.

･ SilverAsh would scold you a little everytime he caught you eating incorrectly, advising you to find time to eat a real meal so you didn't lose focus or get ill.

･ "Snacks again? My dear, you'll get sick if you keep your eating habits like that."

･ You always brushed it off though; you'd be fine, it wasn't like you were eating things that weren't edible.

･ Well, it was all fine, until you ate an old candy bar you found in between the cushions of the couch in your office. You were in a rush, and it was the only thing you had to eat. Without SilverAsh or anyone else around to scold you, you wolfed the whole thing down, going about your day afterward.

･ Though, in the middle of a conversation with Amiya just hours after you ate the candy bar, you had excused yourself suddenly, rushing off to the restroom nearby while clutching your stomach. SilverAsh had been across the meeting room, and lifted a brow when he caught a glimpse of you dashing off looking sick.

･ Wanting to make sure you were alright, he excused himself from his own conversation, taking off to go find you.

･ The restroom wasn't far down the hall. The Feline opened the door cautiously, calling out your name. "You took off rather suddenly, are you feeling well?" Concern was in his eyes when he didn't receive an amwser. Eyes narrowing, he headed further into the restrooms, knocking on the closed stall he presumed you were in. Calling you name again, all he heard in reply was small babbles.

･ Now worried, the Feline forced the door open without much warning, prepared to find you hurt or struggling to breathe - considering the sounds he heard.

･ Calling out your name again, he opened the stall door, eyes searching for you immediately. "My-.....dear?"

･ SilverAsh's tone fell quiet when his eyes came to a small lump on the ground made up of your jacket and something wiggling underneath it. He blinked at it for a moment, frozen in shock a bit. Snapping back to reality, he cautiously knelt down, pulling back your jacket, only for his eyes to widen ten fold.

･ Peeking up at him was a small, babbling little child. The Feline gaped a bit, shocked eyes staring into the little childs' curious ones. "How….-" As if he couldn't have had more surprise written on his face, his eyebrows shot up when the child smiled at him, and he immediately realized this little kid was you.

･ When you reached out to him, smiling wide and babbled out "Encio! Encio!", there wasn't any doubt.

･ Carefully, he picked you up, unsure on how to hold or carry a child, he tried his best to cradle you comfortably. Still processing the situation, he only snapped out of his shock when the restroom door opened, and Amiya peeked her head in. "Mr. SilverAsh? Is everything alrigh-" As soon as she laid eyes on him - or more specifically, who he was holding in his arms, her eyes shot open.

･ "D-Doctor?!"

･ In a blur, Amiya, SilverAsh, and little child you were in a medical room, standing before the small medical team that was Hibiscus, Ansel and Myrrh.

･ Hibiscus squealed, clapping excitedly, "Aren't they just adorable? Their eyes are so cute!!" Ansel, on the other hand, seemed interested in the fact that you had completely transformed from an adult back into a child, "Fascinating…." The only one who wasn't distracted entirely was Myrrh, who quickly asked SilverAsh how you turned into a child.

･ The Feline explained as best he could, a little stiff with you in his arms staring at everyone in the room with wide, curious eyes. Presenting the candy bar wrapper he had found on the restroom floor to Myrrh, she hummed a little, reading the packaging before making a small exclamation.

･ "This candy bar…it's long past expiry date." She pointed out. Ansel turned to her, "But that can't possibly be enough to turn someone into a child." Myrrh shook her head a bit, "No, I mean it's long past its expiry date. I'm…not even sure how the Doctor got their hands on it."

･ SilverAsh sighed a little, looking at you with a bit of an exhausted look. "My dear, must I approve everything you eat?" Amiya cut in, "Well, no matter how this happened. Do you think we can revert them back to normal?"

･ Myrrh bit her lip for a second, "We'll….have to run a few tests to determine what we should do. Is that okay with you, Mr. SilverAsh, Amiya?"

･ The Feline nodded slowly, "Be careful with them." With that, he handed you to a beaming Hibiscus, who tapped your nose happily as soon as she had you in her arms. Your eyes turned back to SilverAsh from over her shoulder, and with one last little "Encio?" from you, Hibiscus followed Myrrh and Ansel to the testing rooms, carrying you with her.

･ They didn't take long - no more than an hour later, the trio of Medics came out from the room, Hibiscus carrying you in her arms. Smiling at you one last time, she handed you to SilverAsh, who thanked her quietly, trying to make sure you were comfortable in his arms.

･ Myrrh explained their results as best she could while you occupied yourself with nibbling on the beaded pendant in SilverAsh's hair, "It's a temporary effect, probably caused by the expired snack they ate….but it will go away with some time, it looks like. If they're not back to normal by tomorrow, we'll talk with someone with more experience." In an upbeat tone, Hibiscus added in, "Proper supervision is recommended! Just look after them and they should be alright."

･ Amiya and SilverAsh nodded in understanding. Amiya spoke up, "Mr. SilverAsh, will you be alright with looking after the Doctor today? I would do it myself, but I have another important meeting I have to attend…." The Feline was a little shocked still, but you were just a child, he could definitely manage looking after you. Besides, the rest of his schedule was relatively clear anyways, so he didn't have anywhere urgent to be. "Very well. They will be my responsibility."

･ Thanking the Medics and exchanging a few more words with SilverAsh, Amiya was off, leaving the Feline with you. He turned to you, sighing a little when he found you with his beaded pendant in your mouth. "My dear, you should be more aware of what you putting in your mouth." Moving the pendant away from you, he brushed your cheek ith his thumb gently, smiling just a little when you cooed at him. "Not everything is edible."

･ He could spend his time leisurely while he looked after you, but he had no doubt that he'd run into people that would see you in his arms and immediately make a fuss. Unfortunately, as soon as he began walking down the hallway to go to his room, he turned a corner only to run right into a familiar pair of Felines.

･ Cliffheart and Pramanix; both quieting down when they saw their brother. Cliffheart smiled cheekily, and Pramanix prepared to excuse herself, but they both froze in their tracks when they saw the child in their siblings' arms.

･ Cliffheart gasped loudly, "'Cio, when did you have a kid?! I know you're intent on making sure our bloodline doesn't die out, but whoa, you and the Doctor aren't even married yet!!" Pramanix lifted a brow, leaning down to look at you. "That isn't a random child…that looks like the Doctor." Another loud gasp left her sister, "Did they go back in time?!"

･ Sighing, SilverAsh cut in, "They were being careless, so now they're going to be in the body of a child for some time." The Feline looked at you, lifting a brow when he found you trying to reach for the fluffy ears on his head, "I've been entrusted to look after them until they turn back to normal."

･ A little shocked, Cliffheart patting her brother on the back with a laugh, "Well, I guess now you can figure out if you're good with children or not!" After some more teasing remarks, Pramanix ushered her sister away, leaving SilverAsh to return to his journey to his room.

･ The Feline sighed a bit at his sisters words; you were just a child, of course he'd be able to manage you. He would be able to do his work and make sure you were alright with no problem.

･ Or rather, that's what he was hoping for.

･ Unfortunately, SilverAsh wasn't familiar with how to take care of children. He did have pets, but other people took care of them in his absence.

･ His room had enough space for both him and yourself, but he hadn't anticipated for you to be unbelievably energetic; you were unable to stop yourself from trying to climb up bookcases or tables - SilverAsh almost had a heart attack when you were about to run right into one of the sharp corners of his desk.

･ Checking you to make sure you hadn't gotten hurt, he stopped you from running about any further, "My dear, settle down. Must you be such a handful?" He attempted, scooping you in his arms and placing you in his lap. You made a few babyish noises, pouting. Sighing, the Feline reached around and took his tail in his hand, before offering the fluffy tip to you. "Here we are, pass the time with this, won't you?" Your eyes lit up with stars, and SilverAsh laughed gently when you took the end of fluffy tail in your small hands; all your focus to it. Patting your head carefully, the Feline returned to his work, fully convinced you'd play with his tail until you fell asleep.

･ After only an hour and a half of being in his lap, you squirmed your way off. SilverAsh allowed you; you seemed more calm now, what was the worst that could happen?

･ That was what he thought until he heard the door to his room open, followed by quick, rapid footsteps. His eyes widened, and he turned around only to find you were nowhere in sight. In an instant, he was up from his chair and rushing out of his room, calling your name as he looked up and down the hall. Letting out a sigh, the Feline took a deep breath before setting off to go find you. You were just a child, you couldn't have gone far.

･ He began getting worried when he couldn't find you after minutes of searching and calling your name, but fortunately, he saw a familiar Feline holding you in her arms standing at the door of his room when he had returned after circling around the hallway.

･ It was Pramanix, shushing you and calming you down. She silently returned you to SilverAsh once he was close enough. Nodding, he hid his relief and thanked her a little formally. He expected her to excuse herself right after, but to his surprise, she spoke up hesitantly, "They're probably hungry. Have you gotten them something to eat?"

･ SilverAsh blinked, looking to you to find you pouting a little and cooing out mumbles. He hadn't realized how hard it was to communicate with children, he wasn't sure how to tell if you were hungry or not, but it was likely that you were. Since that cursed candy bar, you hadn't eaten anything.

･ He nodded at his sister, "I will try that. Thank you." She bowed her head, taking her leave after saying a quick, "Good luck".

･ Once she was gone, the Feline looked to you, tilting your chin up and sighing, "My dear, you will owe me for all of this hassle you're causing me."

･ SilverAsh managed to find Myrrh and asked her about what he should feed you. She was able to provide him a small jar of sliced fruit, which would probably satisfy you for now.

･ Taking you back to his room - and making sure to lock the door this time, he sat you down at the small table he had and began feeding you.

･ You were definitely hungry; you ate the fruit eagerly until it was all gone. Afterwards, however, you were fast asleep. SilverAsh sighed in relief, picking you up and cradling you in his arms. "It's about time, my dear."

･ Letting you sleep on his shoulder, he wrote out his paperwork with his free hand. You slept through the afternoon, and before he knew it, the sun was down. Yawning just slightly, he signed his last document, before looking toward you to see you still fast asleep on his shoulder. He smiled softly, standing from his chair and sitting on his bed with you in his arms. He blinked as you stirred awake for a moment, but when he placed the tip of his tail in your hands, you hugged it a little like a plush toy and went back to sleep. SilverAsh patted your head, relaxing, "You've caused us quite a day, my dear."

･ He too fell asleep in no time, leaning against the headboard of his bed, holding you in his arms.

･ When he awoke, it was to you shifting in his arms the next morning. When he opened his eyes, he was surprised to find that he was holding a fully grown you in his arms. You were back to normal. His tail was still in your hands, and your head still rested on his shoulder.

･ He laughed a bit, relieved you were back to normal. Tilting your chin, he left a kiss on the corner of your lips. "I sincerely hope that whenever we have children, they'll have less energy as you did." You weren't awake, so you didn't pick up anything he said, but at that moment he knew he would look forward to every day he spent with you, even if you were a bit of a hassle.

HELLAGUR

･ Hellagur didn't know much about medicine, but he knew enough to know that it wasn't supposed to explode into smoke, much less turn people into children.

･ So, when he stopped to talk with you in one of the labs, he didn't pay much attention to the beaker you seemed to be mixing odd substances in. Well, that is until it bursted into a poof of oddly coloured mist out of nowhere.

･ Panic was immediate; the others working in the lab jolted or yelled in surprise as your form disappeared in the cloud of smoke your beaker had created.

･ Hellagur called your name, the smoke beginning to thin into the air and disappear. He was prepared to protect you or go after your assailant if this was some sort of assassination attempt, but none of those were the least of his worries when he saw what was left where you had been standing.

･ Bundled on the ground was your trusty Rhodes Island jacket, with a small moving lump under it. The beaker was shattered on the floor nearby, spilling that odd looking liquid on the floor.

･ Before he could advance any further, a panicked lab worker stepped in, "General, just a second please! That smoke just now could've been toxic, you should leave the area right no-"

･ The worker stopped mid sentence when a small coo came from the bundle in the floor, and their eyes shot open wide when a small head peaked out from under the sleeves of your coat. Hellagur's face mimicked their own as he laid eyes on the small figure crawling out from under your coat.

･ 'A….A child?'

･ The lab worker was in pure shock, and so was he when the mystery child turned their head and looked toward them. It was only then that he realized the child was in fact you.

･ Moving past the lab worker, Hellagur knelt to the ground cautiously, catching your attention. The Liberi called your name slowly, blinking when you stared back at him with big, doe eyes, a smile coming to your little face. In a babyish voice, you exclaimed out to him, "Hel-gur!"

･ There was no doubt; it was you. The only difference was you were a child.

･ Admittedly, that was a very, very big difference.

･ Carefully, he picked you up in his arms, wrapping your jacket around your small form like a blanket. You seemed just fine, no injuries and you didn't seem ill.

- in fact, you were alert, and curiously pulled at his hair as soon as you were in his arms.

･ "Huh." His heart swelled a bit at your behaviour, but there was an elephant in the room he had to address.

･ By then, the lab worker had snapped from their shock, and quickly rambled on about how they had to get you to a medical professional immediately.

･ Hellagur compiled, not exactly in any place to disagree, and soon he was following the panicked worker down the halls as they looked for someone who could help.

･ You were calm in his arms, thankfully. Looking this way and that with your wide eyes, you simply rested on his shoulder without any complaining.

･ It didn't take long before they were able to find Warfarin in an office nearby.

･ The lab worker awkwardly waved their arm to catch the Medics attention. "M-Ms. Warfarin?" The Sarkaz spared them a small glace, waving her hand a little dismissively, "Just a minute, the Doctor asked me to get these to them as soon as I-" Warfarin came to a complete stop when her eyes fell to you - well, child you, in Hellagur's arms.

･ Her lips formed into an 'o', and her eyebrows shot up. "Ah."

･ Cutting in, Hellagur explained what had happened as best he could, and once he was done, Warfarin let out a long sigh, blinking a bit. "Geez…I told the Doctor not to mess with medicine, it always bites back."

･ Hellagur cleared this throat a bit, looking back to you gently, "I'm aware this situation is a little outlandish, but we should begin with a course of action." The Liberi couldn't help much, considering his medical knowledge wasn't exactly extensive, but you couldn't possibly stay a child forever.

･ Warfarin snapped from her shock, nodding, "Ah, yes. Come on, let's start with drawing some blood." Dismissing the lab worker - which they seemed very thankful for, the Sarkaz motioned for Hellagur to follow, still staring at you with a lifted brow.

･ The tests were quick and simple; it seemed as long as Hellagur was nearby you wouldn't fuss up.

･ After reviewing the information she had gathered, Warfarin turned to Hellagur, her lips pursed, "Well, good news is this…effect is temporary and harmless. They'll probably return back to being an adult tomorrow." She looked to you, sighing a bit as you stared back with curious eyes, "Bad news is, I can't reverse the effects of whatever they did immediately. So we're just going to have to wait until it wears off. They'll be stuck as a child for a day."

･ Hellagur nodded, "I understand. Whose care would they be best under for the time being?" At his question, Warfarin hummed a bit, looking at you and him, before she shrugged, "Actually, General, could you look after them for today?"

･ Hellagur lifted a brow slowly, "I should look after them?" The Sarkaz shrugged a bit again, "Just look, they're well behaved when you're carrying them like that, and that isn't really surprising. If you're not too busy, I think it would be best if you watched them until they're back to normal." With that, she turned back to her computer screen, waiting for his reply.

･ "Hm. I see." The Liberi made a small hum, his eyes turning to you as he adjusted his arms. You made a small exclamation, grabbing a lock of his hair and occupying yourself with it. A light smile came to his face, and he brushed his fingers on your cheek for a moment, sighing.

･ Catching Warfarin's attention as he stood, Hellagur nodded, "They'll be safe with me, I'll look after them."

･ With that, Warfarin was off to go inform Amiya and get to work to see if she could possibly find some way to get you back to normal quicker.

･ Hellagur didn't mind putting his other duties on hold to look after you. He had a soft spot for children, and he had an even bigger soft spot for you. Carrying you around wasn't a big deal, and quite frankly, he didn't intend on letting you leave his sight.

･ The Liberi kept to quiet places for most of the day, aware that those at Rhodes Island would cause a commotion in no time once they saw the state you were in. He knew you probably had lots of energy, but it wasn't safe for a child to be running around a place like Rhodes Island.

･ Warfarin was definitely right when she said you were calm and well behaved so long as it was him carrying you. During the rest of the morning as he walked around and attended to business around the facility, you didn't cause trouble not even once, too occupied with trying to eat his hair or trying to reach the feathers on his head.

･ Hellagur might have grown a little cold because of war, but he was gentle and good with children nevertheless, and it showed while he took care of you.

･ He'd gently pry his hair from your hands whenever he'd feel you tugging on it, usually smiling softly and speaking a lighthearted remark, "Doctor, you shouldn't put things in your mouth so carelessly."

･ Sometimes you'd exclaim out gibberish like "Hel-gur!" in your babyish voice, which forced a smile out of him.

･ He brought you along with him to the library in the afternoon, letting you stay on his arm as he read his books and went over whatever papers he had to. It was a little hard to focus with you making small noises and gibberish coos now and then, but soon enough, you were fast asleep. Hellagur blinked, laughing just a little at how your face was pressed to his shoulder.

･ "Haha…being alert is important, but aren't you adorable?" He spoke quietly, unable to contain his smile.

･ When you woke up, he took a break between his work to stop and find a nice fairytale that he could read to you. Hellagur wasn't sure if you understood what he was saying, but you seemed to enjoy looking at the pictures in the books and listening to his voice.

･ Of course, the worlds in the fairytale books were just fantasy, but with you, he believed there was a world like that awaiting everyone in the future.

･ Though it seemed impossible, he was able to keep unnecessary attention away. The only one who really knew what had happened besides him, Warfarin, and a few of the lab staff was Amiya, and occasionally she stopped by to make sure he was doing alright.

･ Even she could admit you were quite adorable.

･ "They're so small…" Amiya commented with a small grin, lifting her finger and giggling lightly when you tugged on it. Hellagur grinned a little, nodding in agreement. "Adorable, aren't they?"

･ When you needed to, you were surprisingly good at communicating with Hellagur.

･ "Hel-gur!" He paused his walking and turned to you, "Hm?" Wearing a small pout, you spoke again, "Can-y! Can-y!"

･ It took him a second to figure out what you wanted, but when he did, the Liberi laughed a bit, taking a second to place you down before kneeling in front of you, "You want candy? It's quite late for sweets, but I have a few left." Reaching into one of his pockets, he pulled a single colourful wrapped candy out and presented it to you carefully. Smiling at how your eyes lit up, he placed it in your small palm and patted your head, "Beware of cavities."

･ You had been so well behaved that he barely realized the day had gone by. Soon enough, it was nighttime. After Warfarin's approval, Hellagur brought you to your room, close to midnight while you were fast asleep - or was in the midst of doing so, at least.

･ Halfway down the hall, you shifted in his hold, and in an instant the Liberi felt a bit more weight in his arms. "Huh-?"

･ Calling your name quietly, his eyes widened in shock a bit when he discovered he was now carrying a fully grown you - you had turned back to normal.

･ Mumbling, you rubbed your eyes, peeking up at him. "Hellagur…? What happened?" He shushed you, readjusting his hold on you before placing a gentle kiss on the crown of your head. "There will be time to explain, but your day has been far too eventful as is. Return to sleeping." With that, you were fast asleep again, head resting on his shoulder.

･ That same warm smile came to his face again, 'Even without the face of a child…you don't cease being adorable.'

･ His heartstrings tugged. Even if you weren't in the form of a small child, you were still the most precious and most adorable thing to him, and he silently promised to protect you no matter what form you took.

[animebw]

Episode 20

There is a LOT to unpack in Evangelion episode 20. This is where the production hell truly begins; between the constant use of recycled footage in different contexts and the long, static shots, it’s clear that the gas is leaking out of the tank over at Gainax. But that’s also where the brilliance begins, and the ways Anno and his crew find to utilize their minimal resources over these last several episodes never cease to astound me. There is so much densely layered meaning in Shinji’s primordial soup psychosis that I barely know where to start, but let me just list off a bunch of interesting, fascinating, and otherwise noteworthy things that caught my eye this time around.

-Coming back to this episode after watching Re:Zero, it is shockingly apparent how much Subaru was influenced by Shinji’s repeated mental interrogations. The moments where Subaru is pathetically railing against Emilia and demanding she show him respect for all his supposedly heroic deeds could be taken straight from Shinji begging the people in his life to praise him for piloting the Eva.

-On that same note, it’s very apparent here how deeply Shinji’s self-image has become tied with his Eva piloting. He sees it as the one aspect of him that makes people be nice to him; he can’t imagine anyone liking him for him. And because he ties his identity to this machine he keeps coming back to, he can’t allow himself to imagine a life without it. That’s why his return to pilot the damn thing last episode ultimately isn’t a glorious triumph; it might have been the only option to save everything at the moment, but it also drags Shinji right back into a self-made hell that he had a genuine chance at breaking free from for once.

-Shinji’s first real snap comes when he’s hearing the repeated voices of everyone calling his name, speeding up further and further until he almost self-destructs from the pressure. I think this ties back to the idea of self-image; everyone says his name differently, reflecting the different images they have of him in their head. Shinij, Shinji-kun, ikari-kun, and so on. He is a different person to every single one of them, and it forces him to realize that the self image of the brave, deserving Eva pilot he’s built up for himself is not the only version of him that exists. He does... not take the realization well.

-Overall, Shinji’s negative qualities are much more pronounced here than they’ve ever been. His self-interrogation forces him to discard all the lies he’s been trying to convince himself with and lay bare to the gross reality; he cannot handle people not liking him, because he doesn’t have the self-confidence to survive without their praise. So he clings to it like an entitlement he’s owed for his deeds, lashing out at those he perceives as withholding what he is deserved. Again, much like Subaru will emulate two decades down the line.

-An important extension of that? Shinji’s women problems. There’s a chilling sequence where he pictures the three most important ladies in his life- Asuka, Rei and Misato- all basically offering him sex in the same suggestive, repeated motions, blending them together into the single soup of womanhood he perceives. It’s offered as the easy out, the “becoming one” with the people he feels attracted to. Sex here equals literally fusing into the same person, sharing everything with no walls of ego or soul. But literally becoming someone else is not the same thing as actually knowing them; raw, bestial sex is not the same as pure, emotional connection. If you’ve seen End of Eva, you know this theme comes back in a massive way there.

-On that same topic, once again, it’s Misato who saves him and pulls him back to reality. Not Misato as a sexual object, but Misato as directly paralleled with his mother once more. He swims toward his mother’s voice for salvation, but only after Misato’s face cuts through his mental haze, and her crying over losing him welcomes him back into the world. As always, for all her failures, the kind of connection Misato sees in Shinji is one that he keeps wanting to come back to. Not as an easy out, but as something he wants to be part of.

[bee-squared-official]

Some Detroit: Become Human Reverse AU Headcanons

Connor and Nathan are twins. Everyone thinks they’re identical, but technically, genetically, they’re fraternal. The only visible differences between them is height difference (Nathan is like a foot taller than Connor) and eye color (Connor’s are brown, Nathan’s are grey).

Connor was born about five minutes earlier than Nathan. Nathan hates this. Nathan loves when people mistake him for the older twin, but also loves correcting mistakes. This creates constant internal conflict for Nathan.

Connor emotes heavily, constantly on the verge of tears (happy tears, sad tears, angry tears, confused tears, etc.) or he runs around like a hyperactive child. Nathan doesn’t emote at all, but is very sensitive, so you get a lot of situations where in person he responds with a snarky comment, and then later he’s sitting staring at a wall for hours reanalyzing everything that was said and hating himself. Only Connor can really snap him out of it when he's in a funk like that.

Connor and Nathan are forced to share an apartment because of budget concerns. There is a tape line down the center, installed less than a day after they moved in. Connor’s side is clean and organized, while Nathan’s is in complete disarray (he claims he knows where everything is, but Connor is a neat freak).

Connor and Nathan both work at the DPD, but Connor started there first and has a higher rank. Connor’s natural talent, intuition, and charm helped him out of police school much faster than Nathan, who always had to work harder to get the same recognition. Nathan is smarter, faster, and stronger than Connor, and can’t understand why Connor is “better” at police work than him. Connor didn’t even want to be a detective when they were little, he wanted to be a veterinarian. And in college, he studied music theory. But he just had to get Nathan’s dream job more than a year before Nathan did...this is still a sore topic with Nathan.

Connor and Nathan cannot be partnered together on cases. Amanda, the police chief, tried this exactly three times, and though Connor handled himself well, the resulting damage Nathan caused to property and various DPD employees is just not worth it.

Connor and Nathan are brought in for almost every interrogation to do their “good cop, bad cop” routine. Because Connor was always so happy and Nathan was always so cold and emotionless, the first time they tried it, Connor was the good cop and Nathan was the bad cop. But Nathan’s unemotional approach just wasn’t intimidating enough, and Connor eventually grew frustrated enough to start screaming and throwing things, to the point that Nathan could barely hold him back. After the confession, Connor and Nathan switched roles. Nathan goes in with a glass of water and his unemotional “you don’t want them to send in my brother” bit, then Connor comes in and just lets out all of his anger and stress. It works upsettingly well, and new recruits are often scared of Connor until they get to know him.

Amanda is kind and caring...to Nathan. For some reason no one can fathom, Amanda can’t stand Connor. She keeps setting higher than normal expectations on him and then yelling at him when he fails. She sends him out on dangerous missions with no guarantee of backup, seemingly unconcerned for his safety. She claims he can handle the responsibility, but everyone can tell that’s not true. Connor idolizes her and is desperate to make her happy, but he never can. She walks the line, never abusing him enough to get fired, but never letting up. For some other reason no one understands, she likes Nathan and wants to groom him for management. Nathan loves praise and attention, but he can tell something is wrong with the way she acts, and keeps his distance from her. Connor walks out of every conversation with her heartbroken and confused, and Nathan can't figure out how to uncouple Connor’s self worth from Amanda’s approval.

Connor loves dogs. Nathan is allergic, and even stray dog hairs on Connor’s jacket can set him off. Unfortunately, Nathan also loves dogs. There are often sad situations in which they hug each other and cry about the dogs that they cannot pet.

Connor is almost always in uniform, and when he isn’t, he wears very neat clothes. He has one messy outfit that he wears as a disguise, only in extreme situations. He likes to be neat. Nathan just wears whatever is around, so long as it’s comfortable and doesn’t interfere with whatever he’s doing.

Connor is very unhealthy. He practically lives on sugary sodas and candy. He barely eats real food, and is constantly chugging energy drinks and pills to stay awake. He occasionally passes out from dehydration, especially if he's working on a particularly difficult case.

Nathan has a sensitivity disorder. He hates tight or sleek clothing, and avoids it as much as he can. Textures of certain foods can upset him to the point of throwing up if he tries to eat them. He can’t swallow pills. Loud noises, chewing noises, and various other sounds bother him. He gets headaches easily. He doesn’t like being touched, and he doesn’t like heavy metal.

Connor loves heavy metal, and he loves being touched. Connor lives for physical affection, and loves to give it to others. He’s always fidgeting or doodling on his arm, and if someone plays with his hair, he absolutely melts. He loves hugs and cuddling so much. 

Cyberlife gifts two androids to the DPD. The HK800 model, called “Hank,” is assigned to work with Connor. The GV900 model, “Gavin,” works with Nathan.

Connor loves androids, and immediately tries to befriend Hank. He really wants to get along, but Hank is indifferent and cold. Hank, Connor realizes, hates most androids because he sees them as potential threats that could go deviant. Connor turns on the charm to get Hank to like him, which usually works on humans given enough time. The only response he ever gets is Hank’s complaints about his detective work, appearance, or voice. And sometimes, Connor thinks that the charm is even driving Hank further away from him. 

Connor secretly starts trying to turn Hank deviant once he realizes the nonviolent nature of the android revolution. Multiple days in a row, he arrives at the DPD with flowers for Hank and a declaration of love. Each day it gets more and more heartfelt and serious, until it becomes obvious to everyone (everyone but Hank) that Connor really does feel this way about Hank. Though they become close friends, Hank never deviates. Nathan reminds Connor that it’s not an emotional “shock”, just emotional, to bring flowers every day, but Connor doesn’t stop.

Nathan and Gavin get along poorly. Nathan has never cared much for androids, and originally saw Gavin as a servant. Gavin never does as he’s told though, refusing to get coffee or fetch papers, claiming that it “distracts from his mission.” Nathan thinks Gavin is just being a jerk.

Gavin deviated the first day he saw Connor bringing Hank flowers. He does his best to keep his new emotions under control, but he can't stop himself from getting more and more snarky with Nathan. Nathan finally snaps, and punches Gavin in the stomach, briefly disengaging Gavin’s thirium pump. Gavin pretends that this is the moment at which he deviated, and now that he no longer has to keep his emotions a secret, starts actively antagonizing Nathan. Nathan secretly loving having a worthy sparring partner, and the two become close friends.

Hank is forced to break into Connor’s apartment when Connor doesn’t show up to work. Passed out again in some sort of sugar coma/dehydration thing, Connor is forced to rely on Hank’s help to get cleaned up and functional again. Hank begins to see Connor as something similar to a child he’s babysitting, and Connor begins to see Hank as a father figure (he and Nathan were abandoned by their father when they were younger, so it’s nice to finally have something like that).

There’s an HK800 model at the Eden club when Connor and Hank go to investigate. Connor is beyond embarrassed and won’t stop coughing awkwardly and blushing, while Hank focuses on the mission. The next day, there are no flowers. Connor takes Hank aside, privately, and apologizes. He says that he’s worried Hank will think he did all that as some kind of joke, or public humiliation show. He doesn’t want Hank to feel like an object, but he’s realized that his actions have been objectifying Hank. He promises to stop his antics and start treating Hank with more respect, as Hank deserves. In tears by this point, Connor apologizes again and flees. He doesn't come back to work that day, and doesn’t find out until later that that conversation is the moment when Hank deviated.

Connor and Hank visit the home of billionaire Chloe, designer of the first android to pass the Turing test (a KM230 model named Kamski) and once the CEO of Cyberlife. Her house is full of half naked androids in loose robes, all with identical man buns and subservient, quiet attitudes. After forcing Hank on a weird journey where she tries to make Hank shoot Kamski, she’s cryptic and weird about the information she shares before sending them away. Connor is fascinated and wants to spend more time at her house. Hank, shaken up, escorts Connor away and nearly warns Chloe not to talk to him or his son ever again.

Deviated and on a mission to free the android warehouse from Cyberlife control, Hank is surprised when another HK800 model shows up with his kidnapped partner. Connor urges Hank to forget about him and focus on waking the androids, but the duplicate Hank’s decision to punch Connor is what sends the real Hank over the edge. Connor breaks away long enough to pull a gun on the Hanks, both of whom try to prove that they are the real one. Connor, overwhelmed by the decision, starts crying. The real Hank steps forward to try to help him, and immediately Connor shoots the fake Hank, who hadn’t moved or reacted at all. Connor tells Hank that he knew it was the real him. They hug, and Hank wakes the androids.

Following the revolution, Hank and Gavin are allowed to continue working at the DPD, but now with full legal status as citizens and paying jobs. Hank acquires a secondary model as a backup, one capable of more in-depth analysis than Hank’s tongue is. The new model has enhanced hearing, taste, and smell, and is supposed to be very useful in tracking. It’s modeled after a large St Bernard dog. It’s named Sumo, and it doesn’t shed real hairs to trigger Nathan’s allergies. The adventures only continue from there.

PLEASE feel free to message me and discuss this, or write a fanfiction or make art. If you do PLEASE SEND IT TO MEeeeeeeeee

[writingrage]

What Fate Had Wrought (1/4)

A Mulan Rouge (Red Warrior?) Fanfic

(Also Known As: A passionate attempt at remedying Once Upon a Time’s lack of Mulan screen time.)

Summary:  After finding Red's One True Love, Mulan returns to the village of her childhood, heartbroken twice over. However, the threat of a new beast and an army with unknown intentions looms over the village and disrupts the peace that Mulan tries to cultivate. Red visiting really doesn't help matters either.

Set a few months after the events of 5x18 "Ruby Slippers"

AO3 / Fanfiction.net

CHAPTER 1 - Selfishness

The first thing Hua Mulan noticed upon riding into Guifei village on Coursing River was the scent of fear that lingered in the air. Such a thing was palpable, especially in such a small settlement like Guifei, which was only a hundred strong during a fruitful season. Its denizens shuffled hurriedly through their daily tasks, kept idle chatter to a minimum, or simply didn't leave their homes. It was only when Mulan rode into its usually bustling market square that she caught sight of people, but their presence was light and fleeting. Whatever had these people so worried definitely warranted Mulan's presence.

Mulan did not venture into Guifei often. While she swore to protect its people since leaving the emperor's army after the war, she refused to mingle with the people, if only to give herself room to breathe. She didn't do well in crowds. Her previous engagements in Misthaven only strengthened these reclusive traits.

However, that morning, Mulan had been visited by Ho Jian, one of the boys from the village, bearing a message from the Chief Yao Peizhi of Guifei. They had requested an audience with her concerning urgent matters. Before Mulan could further interrogate her visitor, the boy had run back to the village, his small braid swinging with the frantic beat of his sandaled feet. Mulan could see now that his actions were not so uncommon.

It was only when Mulan reached the Chief Yao's chamber and was greeted by him that she was finally given an explanation.

"Another Yaoguai?" Mulan asked with a frown.

"Unfortunately, yes," said Chief Yao. The sweltering heat of the summer morning had him perspiring excessively, leading him to dab at his pudgy, pink face every couple of minutes. "There have been multiple sightings of it outside our village."

Which was impossible, given the fact that the last time the Yaoguai disrupted the village it was really a bewitched prince. As far as Mulan was concerned, Prince Phillip and Princess Aurora were happily married and expecting.

As a way of distracting herself from this train of thought, Mulan probed. "What did this beast look like? Did your sources give descriptions?"

"They claim that it is a black creature with glowing blue eyes and big teeth," replied the chief. He dabbed at his sweaty forehead with a handkerchief and added, "It hasn't hurt anyone yet, but it's causing quite the stir. Trade simply cannot go on with a beast patrolling the walls and scaring off merchants."

Trade was of utmost importance to Guifei, what with it being near the main artery of the trade route that slithered from the empire to the Enchanted Forest. Without the help of travelling merchants both from the mainland and from Misthaven, Guifei's economy would surely stagnate and collapse. The last time Prince Phillip was here, trade was put on hold for several weeks. The shortage of certain goods was only balanced out by the Yaoguai's penchant for shaving off a good portion of the population. It was a good time for no one except the foreign merchants who were trapped in the village and saw the tragedy as a good time to inflate their prices.

"I'm guessing you want me to investigate?" asked Mulan.

"You slayed the last Yaoguai, did you not?" asked Chief Yao. His thick white eyebrows rose on a heavily wrinkled forehead in bemusement. "I regret to ask for your assistance again, but the situation is proving dire."

"It was not by my hand," Mulan corrected, "but I'll do my best to find this beast."

This seemed to satisfy the Chief Yao who thanked her before giving her the names of the sources so that she could question them herself. More than anything, Mulan wished to get started on this new mission. Since she had parted ways with Red and Dorothy and returned to Guifei, she had made a point of keeping busy with the most mundane of tasks. Guifei was a very profitable village and made enough surplus to provide Mulan with required necessities such as rice, millet, wheat, and even eggs and radish if they were feeling especially generous. This left Mulan to do nothing more than cook, eat, and sleep, with disconcerting gaps of free time in between. She took to whittling wood into various images to pass the time; it was brain-deadening work, something that she felt she needed lest she relapsed into the misery that came with the peace of self-imposed isolation.

This new task would finally give Mulan something new to do. Outside of the Yaoguai issue a few years ago, Guifei was a relatively safe settlement. After all, the presence of a war-rugged soldier made it so.

For most of the day, Mulan started tracking this great black beast. Not surprisingly, it was much harder to find than the original Yaoguai which was several feet tall and often left ashes and open flames in its wake. However, Mulan could at least work on the accounts of the villagers; the Yaoguai made a point of eating or severely maiming his witnesses, so Mulan tackled the previous objective a little more blindly.

With this newest mark, Mulan relied on information given to her: the beast only dwelled at night and it made a point of circling the village border, but never entering. It was only a matter of time, the fearful witnesses said, before it would attack, as most wild predators do.

Mulan promised to find the beast.

Going on their accounts, she found that, indeed, there were several breaks in the natural pattern all around the village. Kicked up pebbles, broken twigs, jagged claw marks on the trees. The most striking clue was the absolute silence. In the thick of Guifei's greenery, one was awash in the sounds of chittering birds, skittering woodland creatures, and mournful shrieks of cicadas. When Mulan explored the forest, she could hear nothing but the whisper of windblown leaves and the scratching of branches overhead. In the far distance, there was the cry of a lone raven, but nothing more. Clearly, this was an apex predator to have scared off most of the wildlife away from their habitats.

When night fell, Mulan stood by the gates of Guifei and waited. She had her sword by her hip and her bow strapped to her back. She wore her chainmail helmet and the black reinforced leather armor, shoulders squared and eyes trained on a point in the distance as she listened for any potential disturbances in the quiet that often befell the night.

She waited for two hours. By this time, the people of Guifei had turned in for the night. This thought made Mulan breathe easy; now, it was just her and the beast.

Mulan was seated now with a block of wood and a dagger in hand. She attempted to carve out a semblance of a bird in flight, though it came out sort of clunky looking. She cut with the grain, just as her father would tell her shortly before she went off to war at the age of fourteen. Regardless of the more effortless glide of knife over wood, her carving did not come out quite like she pictured in her head.

This was when Coursing River reared up on his hind legs and whinnied in agitation. Mulan startled and, within a breath, she was on her feet with her hand tensed on the handle of her half-unsheathed jian sword. Her gaze wandered before it fell on a pair of blue eyes gleaming from among the clusters of trees just a few metres away.

Coursing River snorted and, though he shook violently and shuffled so much that he kicked up dirt, he did not flee. As expected of a war horse.

There was a showdown. Mulan stood stiffly, not even daring to breathe too harshly lest she provoked the beast. Minutes passed before the thing approached on quiet feet. Shards of moonlight suggested a hulking figure with black fur. It was majestic in its beastly appearance.

Mulan took in a deep breath when the animal finally moved into the open. She was struck by the sheer size of it as well as the size of its bared fangs. It was clearly on the defensive. If it decided to attack, Mulan would not stand a chance against it.

Which was why she prayed that her next actions wouldn't get her killed.

"Red?" she said. "Is that you?"

The beast's demeanour very suddenly shifted; it went from snarling at her to closing its mouth and straightening its posture. Its eyes were searching. Mulan stayed still. Finally, the beast hesitantly put a paw forward, as if in suggestion. Mulan nodded slowly and the beast took one step forward. Then another. Mulan watched until it was just a few feet away. It sniffed the ground at Mulan's feet. Mulan knew this to be judgment and she waited patiently for the beast to come up with a verdict. Coursing River whinnied louder, spooked now by the beast's proximity, but Mulan shushed him as she held on to his reins. Surprisingly, the beast barely faltered at Coursing River's antics as it continued to assess Mulan.

Apparently, Mulan passed. The animal shifted into a sitting position and docilely bowed its head. That was when it underwent a change. It was swift and had Mulan blinked she would have missed it, but she watched as the animal went from being a massive, black creature to a beautiful young woman.

Mulan smiled. "You certainly make an entrance."

"Did you expect any less?" asked Red with a radiant smile of her own. Apologetically, she smiled at Coursing River and said, "Sorry for scaring your horse."

"He doesn't mind," said Mulan.

Red rose to her feet and closed the distance between her and Mulan with a hug. Mulan stiffened in Red's hold, but Red pulled away with that same smile. If she noticed Mulan's hesitance, she didn't speak of it. Instead, she fingered the mesh of Mulan's helmet and laughed, "Nice helmet."

"It protects against enemy fire," Mulan huffed. "Every imperial soldier has one."

"Yeah," Red muttered as she moved to remove the helmet, "but then no one gets to see your pretty face."

Mulan's throat constricted at this description and so choked on whatever she was going to say next. She was thus powerless when Red slid off her helmet to observe it with clinical curiosity. It only lasted a moment because she handed it back to Mulan who grabbed it from her without hesitation.

"So. This is Guifei?" said Red as she looked past Mulan.

It took a moment for Mulan to realize that Red was speaking of the settlement behind the gates. She said, "Yes. I'm currently protecting this village from you, as a matter of fact."

At this, Red's pink cheeks darkened to a shade just one off from her cloak. Speaking of which, its absence was quite glaring at the moment.

"Where is your cloak, Red?" asked Mulan.

Sheepishly, Red said, "In the woods. I know I should keep it on, but I was just going on a run. I swear I'll put it back on, if it makes you feel better."

"It would," Mulan said with a raised eyebrow. "It would probably scare the villagers less, too."

"Sorry about that," Red muttered as she ventured back into the copse of trees. Mulan mounted Coursing River and followed. "It's just...my senses are at their peak when I'm the wolf. I figured that I could smell you out in wolf form. I knew you were in the village, but when I got here last night I couldn't quite catch your scent. I circled the village hoping I'd get it, but then I heard people yelling, so I ran off."

"You really gave people here a scare," Mulan chastised, but her heart wasn't in it. She was too distracted by the fact that Red actually sought her out at all.

Mulan was always reclusive and made sure to set herself apart from others. It came with masquerading as a man for twelve years in the army, she supposed, but she knew that, even before that, she much preferred isolation. Such an attitude did not attract many friends.

Princess Aurora was closest to being Mulan's friend, but Mulan had since cut off all communication with her. She made it impossible for Aurora to find her. Not that she would, what with Prince Phillip and her newborn taking up her attention.

Mulan had only known Red for a month or so and yet she came all the way here to find her. It left Mulan with an extraordinary feeling.

"Maybe I like scaring people," Red said with a smirk. At Mulan's disapproving frown, she laughed and added, "Take it easy. It was a joke."

"I suggest working on your sense of humour," Mulan groused.

It took a couple more minutes, but Red finally got her cloak from between a pair of trees with branches that interlocked overhead. While Mulan wouldn't say it out loud, it made her breathe easier to see Red in her trademark cloak again. She motioned for Red to follow suit and said, "Get on. I'll show you where I live."

"You don't live in the village?" Red asked as she easily hopped on and sidled in comfortably behind Mulan.

"No," Mulan replied. She squeezed Coursing River's haunches with her legs and he went at a steady pace through the trees. As an afterthought, Mulan said, "I prefer to live alone."

Red hummed as if she understood, though they both knew she didn't. After all, Red had traversed realms just to find others of her kind. Mulan was more likely to traverse realms to get away from other people.

The hut was a mile away, so it took about ten minutes arrive at the quaint wooden house that stood in a small clearing. This had originally belonged to a general from years ago who sometimes escaped to the countryside to ponder the verses of Xu Wei. After his death, the hut was left to rot until Mulan was given permission to take it when she first arrived to Guifei. She had since refurbished it, but it still held a deathly aura, especially in the night when it was surrounded by dark arcades of trees that blocked almost all moonlight from filtering through.

"So, this is where you live?" Red asked as Mulan tethered Coursing River to a post outside the shed. She opened the door and walked inside.

"Yes," Mulan said as she walked over to the end of the hut in two steps where she bowed down and lit the candles there so that the fire would stave off the night cold and shed light on the small hut. Mulan never much cared to tend to the hut and now that she had a visitor, she was suddenly mindful of the messy cot in the corner, the pile of books cluttered next to it, the squat table that held a stack of papers, a pot of ink, and her many wood carvings. They held an air of malice in the dim, flickering candle light.

"I wasn't expecting visitors," Mulan added with a note of apology. Red, however, didn't seem to mind as she wandered inside. Mulan closed the door behind them.

"It's so...you," Red said as her eyes wandered over to the wood carvings, something that Mulan had silently hoped she wouldn't notice so soon. She bent over and inspected them closer before she said, "I didn't know you carved!"

"As a pastime," Mulan replied as she stood by, paralyzed in her helplessness.

"They're beautiful," Red mumbled as she delicately picked up the one depicting a wolf. "I don't think I ever told you this, but I used to make jewellery."

"Did you?" Mulan asked as she finally moved closer.

"Not here," Red added hastily. Her thumb glided over the snout of the wolf with something akin to reverence. "In the other realm. I stopped after the first curse broke."

"Why is that?" Mulan asked. Red's eyes dulled slightly and her smile faded. Thinking she said the wrong thing, Mulan opened her mouth to tell Red that she didn't have to answer when Red spoke.

"Do you...do you remember when I told you that I ate my only boyfriend?" Red asked. She set down the wolf statuette between the small figurine of a long-haired woman in a shawl and that of a hooded woman painted red. She turned to face Mulan who could only nod dumbly. "Well, the first curse erased all memories of that past. So, when the curse broke and I got those memories back, I had to...relive that trauma. Sort of. I used to make all these wolf trinkets—necklaces, rings, key chains— and I used to see it as this thing I liked doing, but when I remembered where all that came from, I just couldn't continue with it."

"I'm sorry," Mulan said. She could think of nothing else to say to that and, really, what was there to say? Thankfully, this seemed to be enough for Red who cracked a strained smile and shook her head.

"It's fine," Red said though, to Mulan, it didn't sound all that fine. "Anyway, your statues just reminded me of that. Making jewellery, I mean, not eating my ex."

"It's never too late to return to it," Mulan said.

"It wouldn't be the same," Red said with a sad smile. "Trust me."

After this, they tumbled into a thick silence. Mulan quickly busied herself with putting away her weapons as Red continued to scan her environment in quiet consideration. It was a couple of minutes before Mulan broke the silence.

"I'm sorry I'm not the best host," Mulan sighed. "I'm still trying to get used to having a visitor. I haven't had company in over a decade."

"What?" Red all but yelled as her eyes widened comically. "Why?"

"I keep to myself," Mulan said. She cleared her throat and decided to change the topic. "How are you and Dorothy?"

Red seemed to notice the deflection judging by the twitch in her brow, but her expression softened a bit at the mention of her partner.

"We're good," she sighed wistfully as she plopped down on the bench where her cloak was folded. "It's still new to us. We've never really had a true love before."

"It must be nice," Mulan said. She tried to sound encouraging, but to her own ears she sounded bitter. Red gave her a strange look and Mulan busied herself with taking off her armour so that Red wouldn't get the chance to analyze her.

Apparently, Red quickly gave up, because she continued, "I never really understood true love until I met Dorothy. I mean, I saw Snow and Charming together, but you don't know true love until you've experienced it. It really is magic."

Mulan didn't dare reply to that, instead focusing on removing her cape and carelessly tossing it to the ground. More silence until Red added, "Her dog annoys the hell out of me though."

This, Mulan felt safe to respond to with a sympathetic laugh.

"It's like having a kid, only it never grows up," Red said with a small pout.

"We all make sacrifices for the ones we love," Mulan said. The last of her armour was off and she quickly slipped on a pair of trousers before she fumbled to put on a knee-length wool tunic.

"I know," Red replied. When Mulan turned to look at her, she found herself subject to scrutiny as Red openly looked at her. A beat passed, then Red said, "It's all worth it."

Mulan turned away.

"It is," she agreed. She hoped she didn't sound as hollow as she felt.

Dressed in her common clothes, Mulan went out back where she prepared a basic meal of stewed rice with boiled radish over an open fire. When presented with the food, Red balked at it for a split second before she hesitantly thanked Mulan. Only a moment later did she spit the food out and claim that she wasn't that hungry anyway. Mulan couldn't blame her; the food was rather plain and uninspired, but these were foods that she lived on while she was in the emperor's army. Food was a luxury not always easy to come by.

They retired for the night in Mulan's cot. It was crowded, seeing as the cot was really made for one person and not two, but they made do with it. Red was good about sharing the space and seemed comfortable to be in such close proximity with another person in slumber. On the other hand, it took Mulan several hours of tossing and turning to finally fall asleep. It was her bad luck that Red was an early-morning riser and didn't like for anyone to sleep in.

"Where do you wash?" Red asked as she stretched, catlike, in the centre of the hut. Mulan watched her groggily, her eyes slightly unfocused with sleep. The golden sunlight burst through the trees and flooded the hut and everything appeared bright and naked and skinned raw. The statues on the other end of the shed stood stoically among the dancing dust. Red's face glowed. The curves of her body highlighted by slivers of light. Mulan's desires and regrets, laid bare and festering like meat under an open sun.

Mulan clenched her jaw and mumbled something about a lake west of here and for Red to use one of the little balls of soap she had in a jar by the candles. Red was gone after a few minutes of shuffling and Mulan soon returned to sleep.

Mulan eventually woke up to see Red muttering to herself as she untangled her wet hair. She was already dressed in her tunic, vest, and crimson skirt. Her cloak laid on the bench, neatly folded.

"Rise and shine!" Red said gleefully when Mulan rose to her feet. "Sleep well?"

"Despite your snoring keeping me up half the night, I slept wonderfully," Mulan jested. Red scowled and threw one of her gloves at Mulan's face in retaliation.

After Mulan had bathed and put on her armour once more, she told Red that she was to report back to the chief in Guifei about the beast.

"What are you gonna tell him?" asked Red as they rode on Coursing River towards to the village. Despite Mulan telling her to stay behind, she insisted on joining Mulan, if only so that she could see Guifei without looking like an "awkward tourist".

"I'll tell him that I killed the beast," Mulan said. At Red's silence, she added, "It's safest to tell him that. I don't want the villagers to take it upon themselves to slay something that doesn't even exist and get themselves in trouble."

"Yeah," Red sighed. "I'm really sorry, Mulan."

"It's not your fault," Mulan said, though her voice betrayed the mild frustration bubbling in her chest. She was not so frustrated with Red as much as she was inconvenienced by the situation. Whatever the case, she was happy to wrap everything up and return to her hut, only to be bothered again by some other pale-faced courier boy in the next several months.

So, it came as quite the surprise to see several unfamiliar men and horses at the gate entrance to Guifei. It was not uncommon for Guifei to receive its share of merchants and bureaucrats, but these men certainly did not look like the commercial or political type. They wore thick, leather armour and carried broad dao blades on their hips. Eyes behind iron helmets gravitated to Mulan and Red as the two approached.

"What brings you here?" asked one man on horseback.

"I should ask you the same," Mulan said, her tone clipped.

"We are the men of General Zhang Jianhong," he replied as he puffed his chest. "I am An Jie. We heard that a demon was seen here last night."

"It's been slain," Mulan said as she rode on. Over her shoulder, she added, "Be sure to spread the word that the imperial soldier posted here killed it last night."

"What was that about?" asked Red when they were out of earshot.

"Fools with numbers to bolster their confidence," Mulan said with no shortage of resentment. "Most likely bandits trying to pass off as bounty hunters. I shouldn't have let you come out here with me."

"You do remember who I am, right?" Red replied with a tinkle of laughter. "I'm not exactly harmless."

"Neither are they," Mulan relented. "Keep sharp."

When they arrived at the chief's place, Mulan saw that a black horse with white mane was already tethered to the building. When Mulan and Red approached, it whinnied in agitation and shuffled as far away from them as it could. Mulan made sure to stop on the opposite end of the building and tie Coursing River to a nearby post before turning to Red.

"Stay out here," Mulan said. "If anything looks wrong or out of place, I want you to call for me."

"God, you sound like Granny," Red said, though it was more gentle than annoyed. "Don't worry. I'll be fine."

Mulan nodded curtly before she entered the building with her hand poised over her sword. Inside was the Chief Yao, back erect and expression strained to remain polite. Across from them was a man dressed in thick leather armour. An iron helmet similar to those of the men posted outside sat by his side. He and Chief Yao turned to watch Mulan walk in.

"Pardon my intrusion," Mulan said with a formal bow. "I come bearing news on the beast."

"Do you?" asked Chief Yao as he dabbed at his forehead. He looked especially sweaty this morning, despite the chill in the air. "What a coincidence. This young man came straight here as soon as he heard of the beast. Mulan, this is General Zhang Jianhong. General Zhang, this is General Hua Mulan."

"It is an honour to meet the renowned General Hua," Zhang said as he deeply nodded in acknowledgement. He was indeed young; he looked no older than thirty years old. His long, angular face was pulled into a smile that did not reach his eyes. Mulan took note of the silk that held his hair in a top knot; it was the same material which underlined his black cape. He spoke again, breaking Mulan's train of thought. "Sorry to impose, but I was sent by Commander Song Gen to oversee the area surrounding my garrison. Considering there was talk of another Yaoguai, I came straight here."

Song Gen. Mulan knew that name. She filed that away for later.

"Where is your garrison?" asked Mulan.

"Quixen Prefecture," he replied. "Just a mere twenty miles from this humble village."

"As you are so close by, I'm sure you heard that there was an imperial soldier here?" Mulan continued without a beat. "One that has already slayed a Yaoguai before?"

"Yet another legend to add to your name, yes," General Zhang said with a polite smile. "I have heard it all. I was just passing through to see if you needed any help."

General Hua Mulan narrowed her eyes a touch, but she quickly smoothed her brow.

"I assure you, I have it handled," Mulan said coldly before turning to Chief Yao who was shifting uncomfortably. "The beast is dead. I killed it last night."

"Oh, that is great news," said Chief Yao. "We did not expect any less from you, Mulan!"

"Ah, yes, good news," echoed Zhang, but there was an unnatural pull to his stiff smile. "You slayed it on your own?"

"Yes," Mulan said curtly. "Why do you ask?"

"I was wondering if you'd brought its fur back," said Zhang. "Most hunters bring back proof of their hunt. I thought, especially concerning such a beast, this situation would be no different."

"I am inclined to believe Mulan," said Chief Yao hastily. He seemed to sense the beginnings of a conflict and was smart enough to want to diffuse it before it boiled over. "She is a veteran of war. If she says that it is dead, then it is dead."

"I suppose that did come off as accusatory," said Zhang. "My apologies."

"Why are you really here, General Zhang?" Mulan asked, to Chief Yao's horror. She hardly cared if she sounded rude anymore because Zhang had this look on his face that grated on all her nerves.

"So direct," General Zhang chastised, though he didn't sound nearly insulted enough. "What makes you think I have ulterior motives? I came here to investigate a potential threat. One that you say you deposed of. This was all an unfortunate misunderstanding."

"No merchant could have travelled twenty miles and gotten the news to you for you to arrive here with just that in mind," Mulan pointed out. "In fact, Chief Yao, is it true that the only travelling merchant to come here was bearing south, not north?"

"The—er—the merchants don't usually tell me such things, but that is what I heard, yes," Chief Yao stumbled, his face growing red as sweat collected on his neck and chest. He aggressively dabbed at the building moisture.

"From what I remember," Mulan went on, "Quixen is up north. Now why are you here?"

General Zhang's smile faltered for the first time since Mulan walked in on his meeting with the chief. He scanned Mulan just as Mulan tried to dissect him and his motives until he said, slowly, "This sort of behaviour is very unladylike."

Mulan did not dignify that with a response. General Zhang continued.

"Commander Song has asked that I protect this village," said General Zhang. "Hence why I brought my men with me. I was going to privately discuss the plans with the chief until you interrupted."

"I'm already posted here," Mulan protested.

"You are one soldier in the face of a brewing threat," said Zhang. He turned to the chief and continued with, "Aside from the beast, there have been bandits running wildly in the woods. Many of my men have gone missing while out on patrol. I would be loath to have innocent villagers be preyed upon by uncivilized thieves."

"That does sound worrisome," mumbled Chief Yao.

"Commander Song is invested in the safety of all those who fall under his jurisdiction," Zhang continued. "As he is in charge of the western half of the mainland, you automatically fall under his protection. I would be more than happy to leave my soldiers in your hands."

"Just like that?" Mulan asked. "Free of charge?"

"Commander Song is wealthy enough and powerful enough to cover such costs," said Zhang, his eyes never leaving the chief. "What do you say?"

"Bandits are very much a problem," said Chief Yao as he brought his handkerchief to his collarbone to pat away the sweat.

"I can handle that alone, as I always have," Mulan said, but she knew the moment the words left her lips that they were hollow of promise. Zhang cast her a sidelong glance with a quirk of his lip before focusing back on the chief.

"I am more than aware of your abilities, Mulan," said Chief Yao. "But I also know that one soldier is never enough. If General Zhang is truly offering his services for free..."

"Completely free," insisted Zhang.

"I think this is the best decision for Guifei," said Chief Yao as he looked over at Mulan with a determined gaze. Mulan opened her mouth to protest, but Zhang beat her to the punch.

"It's good that you see reason," said Zhang as he began to rise. "I will have an outpost established beyond the gate. Don't worry, Chief Yao; your people will be in the most capable of hands. With Mulan working alongside them, I imagine you will be thoroughly protected."

"I would like to think so," Chief Yao muttered. General Zhang nodded firmly before picking up his helmet and bowing to the chief.

"I must take my leave and return to my garrison," said General Zhang as he straightened up. "If any problems arise, don't hesitate to notify me however you can."

"Yes, of course," said Chief Yao. Mulan watched as General Zhang swept out of the chamber and towards his anchored horse. His eyes locked on Mulan's for a brief moment before he mounted his stead and headed off at a steady trot. Mulan could feel Red's stare boring into her, but she was too busy watching Zhang leave.

Unfortunately, he rode too close to Red and his own stead reared its front legs and whinnied so loudly that all activity in the village square was halted in favour of watching Zhang and his belligerent horse. Red, to her credit, barely reacted as Zhang swore and tried to calm his horse. It eventually relaxed its posture, but it shook in distress even as it carried Zhang out of the village square. He cast Red a look that gave Mulan a thrill of childish glee. It was made all the better when Red turned to look at Mulan and shrugged with a close-mouthed smile that spelled innocence. Mulan almost felt proud of her for having such a deceitful front.

After Zhang's departure, the meeting with the chief was short. Mulan tried to convince the chief of General Zhang's ulterior motives, but the chief refused to pursue the issue.

"We need more than one woman to defend us, Mulan," he said. And, though it pained her to hear such a thing, she knew that this did not come from a place of malice, but one of fear and desperation. The Yaoguai had done nothing but kill off men, women, and children. It devoured the chief's wife and he had never quite been the same again since her funeral. Zhang had promised protection and what kind of chief would he be if he denied such a thing?

So, Mulan distanced herself and consented to the new standard. A soldier knew when to fight and when to desist. This was a good example of the latter.

That didn't stop her from complaining to Red about it on their way out the village, however.

"I didn't know one run could cause so much excitement," said Red. She sounded delighted which, really, wasn't much of a surprise to Mulan at all.

"Like I said, this has little to do with you," Mulan said. "General Zhang and his men are up to something. I'm going to keep an eye on them and see if they behave."

"I hope they do," Red said. "Though I still can't help but feel like I'm the cause of all this."

"You aren't," Mulan reassured. She hesitated before, against her better judgment, she took one hand off the reins and reached back for Red's knee and squeezed. It was a strange and awkward gesture, but it was one that came to her naturally. Thankfully, Red took her hand and held it firmly.

"I'm sure it'll be fine," said Red. "If this Commander Song guy is such a big shot, what would he want with a village? Maybe he really just wants to look after this place."

There was a pensive pause after that. Perhaps Red noticed that Mulan was tense because she began to draw circles in the palm of Mulan's gloved hand and said, "And besides. They have you, right? They're in pretty good hands."

"I suppose," Mulan said, her mind focused on the path being marked on her palm and little else. She sounded terser than she intended, so she added, gently, "I just don't want to see these people hurt."

"Can I ask you something personal?" Red asked.

"Okay." Mulan didn't feel okay about this at all, as a matter of fact, but she didn't want to appear contrary.

"Why are you so invested in Guifei?" Red probed. "You never have anyone over. You don't even live with the people there. You spent years in the Enchanted Forest and only came back after I broke the curse on Dorothy. It just seems odd that you'd want to protect them now all of a sudden."

Mulan's grip tightened on the reins of her horse as she pondered Red's question. To be honest, Mulan really wasn't all that interested in Guifei. She was here for the same reasons she joined the Merry Men and for the same reasons she joined Red on her quest to find other werewolves. For the same reasons why she left it all behind to return to isolation in the forest.

"My father asked that I stay and guard this place," Mulan said instead. "He lived and died in Guifei. I was only fourteen when I had to leave to fight the war. By time I returned, I was...different. While the village had stayed the same."

Mulan avoided talking about how the nightmares woke her up in bouts of cold sweat. How she always, always slept with a knife under her pillow. How she came back to Guifei and could not recognize anyone anymore. How she heard that her father died in his sleep while she was serving.

"Going to Misthaven was a foolish pursuit," Mulan added. She felt Red's hand slip away from hers, but she pressed on. "I was trying to run away from my promise and find what I thought I lacked after the war was over. I know now that it's best if I stay here and fulfill my duty."

"Mulan," Red said, her voice full of reproach. Mulan could practically feel the waves of disapproval against the back of her head. "Without you, Merida would have never become queen of Dun Broch. If you didn't see that I was human while I was a wolf, I would have still been the pet of that evil witch. I would have never found Dorothy. You coming to Misthaven was the best thing that happened for us. I—"

Red stopped herself there and, no matter how much Mulan waited, she would not finish the sentence.

"What?" Mulan asked when she finally ran out of patience.

"Never mind," Red muttered.

"I didn't mean for it to come out that way," Mulan apologized. "I don't regret meeting you or Merida. I don't even regret having a broken heart. It was all a learning experience."

Red was quiet for a few moments. Then, "You never told me who broke your heart."

Mulan laughed, though it was devoid of humour. "No matter how much you ask, I would still prefer not to tell you. I haven't told them, so I won't tell anyone else."

"I'll wear you down eventually," Red said. "Just so I could help you move on. As far as I'm concerned, you're still wallowing in self-pity."

"I do not—do you want to walk back to the shed?" Mulan snapped playfully. Red laughed and Mulan found it to be contagious because she soon joined her. And, just like that, the tension was broken, even as they rode in silence.

That night, Mulan cooked again, but this time Red offered to help with preparing the food. It still came out rather plain, but there were more components to the dish, thanks to some of Red's suggestions. Red did mention that she used to work at a diner and deemed herself a food expert, at least in comparison to Mulan.

Red told her that she would be leaving the next morning.

"Dorothy is probably waiting on me to get back," Red said. Mulan nodded her understanding. Red went on, "It's weird, but it...hurts to be away from her for too long. I'm sorry."

"You shouldn't apologize," Mulan said as she laid a hand atop Red's. She squeezed it lightly, with conviction that she lacked. Mulan looked Red in the eye and said, "You should be with the one you love, Red. Go back to her. I'll be fine."

A smile graced Red's full lips and, though it was small, Mulan saw heaven and earth within it. Despite herself, Mulan smiled back and dropped Red's hand before she quietly returned to her bowl of rice, pan-fried radishes, and boiled egg. It was the best meal she'd had in years.

[koderenn]

A mortally wounded Kylo Ren is laying in the arms of Rey amidst the battlefield. "You can't escape fate, Rey," Leia had once said to her. "Just make sure that in the end, when everything has come to play, you will have no regrets."  

Kylo Ren studied the woman draped in a long blue dress on his holopad. Her speech was dated at least twenty years ago, but he remembered the dress and their visit to Hosnia as if it were yesterday. He had spent the morning with his father wandering around the capital on Chewbacca’s shoulders. She was supposed to join them in the afternoon for a walk at a theme park and dinner.

The data disc he was looking at was given to him along with many others by the old man at the Archives. Neither of them were talkers so Ren’s short questions were mostly addressed with equally short answers. He had provided Ren with generous information concerning under the table deals and credit laundry that had gotten the First Order in its current position. All of them initiated by High Officials, General Hux being one of the shiniest examples, and supported by Snoke’s unreserved blessings. A part of him, he did not wish to acknowledge, was disappointed to realize that the First Order’s motto of order and conformity was nothing more than a means for exploitation.

The Archives’ keeper had also provided him with footage of Senate meetings adjourning during the New Republic. That gesture on itself verified Ren’s suspicions of the keeper’s ulterior motives. He had cross checked his identity with the ship’s logs only to discover that the old man was indeed old enough to have served under Darth Vader himself. He had been stationed aboard the Death Star when Alderaan, Leia Organa’s home planet, was reduced to nothing more than stardust.

Ren raked his fingers through his already messed up hair and scratched the back of his head. Why the keeper was so invested in Ren catching up with history, was beyond him.

Initially he had just cast the data discs concerning his mother aside, but after a week of going through old reports on the First Order he reached for the first one on the stack and set it in his holopad, He tried not to think about his action too much as a much younger version of his mother came on screen.

It appeared to be a Senate meeting, debating the funds that were to be given on worlds that had been exploited by the Empire or destroyed in the recent wars. His mother was fervently supporting a much larger sum than was initially granted and trying to include worlds that were not considered valuable enough to be taken into consideration. Interestingly enough, Jakku had been one of them.

Of course Rey would haunt me even in my studying.

Kylo Ren rubbed his eyes, ran his hand down his unshaven face and stretched his legs, trying to situate himself more comfortably on his sofa.

It seemed like the New Republic could not afford further funding and promised Senator Leia Organa that if she could raise credits for her cause, then it would be open for discussion.

That evening, his mother never came to dinner with them and extended their stay for an extra week. He remembered her hand on his hair later in the night and a kiss on his cheek, along with a whispered apology about being late. He never opened his eyes and pretended to be asleep, as she padded out of the room, her dress shuffling lightly around her steps. Ben was nine at the time and he never forgave her.

Still couldn’t.

Ren shut the holopad and tossed it on the table next to him, crossing his arms in front of his chest and staring out the viewport. He wondered if she was ever able to raise the credits.

“Are you coming to bed?” Neesha’s voice came from his bedroom’s entrance. Ren glanced at her as she yawned and stretched her body. She was wearing one of his black tunics again.

“In a bit,” he frowned and turned to look out the viewport once again.

He wondered if any of the funds ever reached Jakku.

   Sweat dripped from her temples and her shirt was damp from practicing forms in a storage room lost somewhere in the Titan. Rey found her thoughts straying towards the man she had abandoned, twice. Maybe three times, if she took into consideration Starkiller base.

She brought her sword up in that backslash way she had plucked from his mind and twirled quickly around herself bringing it down.

Her focus was waning. She would at times find herself roaming the corridors of the ship unable to remember where she was headed. It frustrated Finn to no end, who quick witted as he was couldn’t handle her absent mindedness. He claimed her behavior had changed since Crait. That she had become more reserved.

Rey tried the backward flip she had seen the assassin perform, but ended up flat on her back, the wind knocked out from her lungs. Luckily she was able to switch off her sword before severing an arm. She lay there trying to catch her breath. The image of him running his finger down her cheek, sprang into mind again, brown eyes turning liquid as they shifted to her lips.

She swore under her breath, pulling herself up and resting her hands on her knees, chest still aching from the fall. Definitely from the fall.

I should try meditating again.

Yeah, that would go smoothly…

Her stomach grumbled in protest, reminding her that she hadn’t eaten since, well, this morning. She had actually skipped a meal again.

Rey picked up her towel, dabbing the sweat from her neck and closing her eyes in an attempt to chase away her haunting thoughts.

A shift in her awareness stilled her.

A thought planted itself on the surface of her mind.

Coruscant.

The attack will take place in Coruscant.

Rey should have let things be. Let the owner of those thoughts shrink back to his cave, but she was tired and hungry and he was not getting away with this.

Kylo Ren appeared before her, close enough to touch. Not a single muscle moved as he stood with an unfathomable look in his eyes. Dressed in what she assumed were his nightclothes. No boots. No stifling collar. No armor. Only a soft charcoal tunic revealing a glimpse of smooth chest and a pair of loose fitting pants.

“Is this a trap?” she asked. Attention snapping to the matter at hand.

“No,” he stiffly replied looking at some spot over her head.

That habit of his was infuriating.

“How can I believe you?”

“I have never lied to you, Rey,” he slid his focus to her, his intensity as scalding as always.

“But this isn’t just about me anymore.”

He glanced to the side a small smirk gracing his lips, which did not reach his eyes.

“This is the information I am handing you and your precious Resistance. Take it or leave it.” He turned to look at her again. “My advice is to take it, notify General Organa the invasion will be taking place a standard week from now. She will know what to do with the warning,” he added.

Something was different about him. His presence always emanated a tangle of emotions that threatened to consume her if she came too close, but this time there was a hardness surrounding him, almost like an armor.

“She will ask me the same question.” Rey could practically hear Leia’s stern interrogation.  “You are the Leader of the First Order and yet you betray its strategies. You wish to wipe out the Resistance, but you save their General from an assassination. You can’t be on both sides of the war,” she objected with a shake of her head

“I am still their Leader. That hasn’t changed,” his eyes hardened. ‘But the First Order will change. I can use it to unify the galaxy under my rule. Make the changes the New Republic was unable to do.”

“One man cannot rule a galaxy!”

“A hundred men cannot do it either if they spend their day arguing with each other!” He countered raising his voice to match hers.

Rey turned her back at him pacing a few steps away. This conversation was way out of her league. She knew nothing of politics and there was no point in trying to change his convictions. She had been naïve enough to try once and failed.

“And does one man know what is best for every planet?” She stood a few feet away from him regarding him coldly.

“He can have advisors and representatives.”

“Why not a Senate then?”

“The Republic has failed. Twice.” He brought two fingers up to mark his words. “It harbored too much flexibility and indecisiveness to make a real difference in the galaxy. A stricter regime in needed to ensure peace and order. One that can …”

“And what will happen if one of the planets does not go along with your wishes?” Rey interrupted him, setting her hands on her hips as he worked his jaw in annoyance. “Will you march there and make it obey or blow it out of the sky? Like the Emperor did with Alderaan and Snoke did with the Hosnian System? Too much blood has been shed. ”

Rey paused for a moment, her fury drowning her voice. “That is not peace and order.”

“You come from Jakku.” He evaded, lifting his chin in that contemptuous way of his. “A planet forgotten by everybody. Didn’t you ever wish for food and water and shelter and security? The Republic never provided for any of it.” She noticed him taking slow measurable steps towards her with every word. “Did you know the Senate discussed funds that never reached your planet?” He concluded, standing a mere foot from her, eyes burning with a feeling that made her shiver.

Yes, she was very much aware of the meager help that had reached Jakku, years ago as portions and medical supplies. A school had even been set up and she had tried to attend it long enough for her to read basic. But it wasn’t enough. Nothing would ever be enough for Jakku.

“They reached it all right. Unkar Plutt, the local crime lord took hold of them,” she bitterly informed him. “Don’t you see? An unimportant planet stays that way, whether it’s an Empire or a Republic that rules.” Sand was the only thing that planet had to offer and neither the Republic nor the First Order would ever be willing to buy it.

How can I make him understand?

She stepped closer to him lifting her head to study him. Ren tensed under her gaze, eyes darting at her with apprehension.

“I have lived under one man’s rule. He had ruthless enforcers working for him and scavengers along with many others were prey to his every whim. You might turn out to be a fair and compassionate ruler, but that doesn’t mean your successor will. An entire system was obliterated because one man wished it. This is what the First Order has been created to do. You can’t change it.”

He stared at her painfully long, as if her words had struck a nail on the surface of thin ice, its cracks webbing all around him. She immediately regretted uttering them.

“And you need to stop wanting to change me,” he answered a few heart beats later in a low voice.

“I am not…”

“Yes you are.  Ben Solo the man you so desperately want me to be no longer exists.”

“Neither does the monster you claim to be.”

He paused again. And she held on to her breath. But the answer she was hoping for never came.

“Inform Leia Organa.”

No. She was not giving him the easy way out. Time for him to take responsibility for his actions.

“You need to speak to her yourself. She won’t believe me otherwise. No one will.”

“Absolutely out of the question!”  

Rey grabbed his forearm in an attempt to make him see reason, but he flinched away as if burnt by her touch. His withdrawal stung in a way that was hard to explain.

“If you are doing this,” she carried on, “if you are helping Coruscant defend itself, you have to take it all the way. Speak with General Organa. In private if need be.”

She took a step towards him, being careful not to touch him again and unnerve him further.

“Please…”

Her eyes found his for a long moment. None of them willing to look away. A need warped itself around her chest squeezing her breath away. It called for her to lay her hand on his heart and feel it thud beneath her fingertips. She watched him swallow, a hint of color creeping on his pale cheeks.

“There you are!”

Rey startled, as if being caught with her hand in a foreign ion engine. She turned to see a relieved Poe approaching her in his graceful stride.

“I thought you stole a shuttle and disappeared again while in hyperspace,” he commented lightheartedly. “You’re the only one besides me who could do it, anyway,” he added, hugging her from behind and planting a kiss on her neck. “What have you been up to?”

“I… nothing” she stammered, looking towards Kylo Ren wishing desperately for some reason that he wouldn’t witness this through the bond. But his darkening eyes said otherwise.

“Poe…” she started, dragging her gaze away from Ren and smiling uncomfortably at the man next to her. “I was just finishing going through some forms and realized I was hungry. I was about to…”

“…Come and find me. Yeah, yeah... Now come on. You’ll sweat yourself to starvation.” Poe said taking her hands in his and back stepping towards the exit.

“No wait!” she uttered. Rey turned to where Kylo Ren stood, taking in his clenched fists and wrecked eyes, right before he disappeared.

Wait.

  He was done. He was so done with that scavenger girl and her misleading behavior. Wrapping him up around her little finger and puppeteering his emotions to her liking every chance she had. And all this time she and that pilot…

Damn her.

He bit the inside of his cheek and flung a droid out of his way and over the platform he was now crossing. His dark mood was gathering around him like a storm since their little chat last evening and that was an ominous sign itself, as he furiously made his way to the Conference room, where his bristling Commanders awaited him. It was only a matter of days till the invasion began and part of him wanted to call everything off. He was fed up with Rey, the Resistance and the First Order. This galaxy was a total mess about to implode and he wanted nothing more than to simply drop everything and disappear.

Fucking hells.

He cursed and stomped in the elevator that would take him to the bridge and the young officer already occupying the lift shrunk to a corner, hugging her holopad tightly on her chest. At least half of the lights sputtered and broke at his entrance, and he ignored her squeak of fear as he barked for her to get out. She quickly complied and the elevator thankfully began its ascend.

The Conference was already in commotion when he crossed the hissing doors, a red faced Hux and the Commander of the Absolution already arguing over battle strategies. The voices slowly died out at Ren’s thunderous presence and all heads turned to regard him with emotions ranging between distaste to flat out terror.

“We will be entering hyperspace and heading for Coruscant it three days time from now,” he growled upon entry.

General Hux strode towards him from around the oval table.

“Supreme Leader if I may, the changes you have commanded are not to the Order’s best choice,” he began in his disdainful voice. But Ren was having none of that. Not today.

“No you may not. And the changes I have made remain as are.”

Hux scowled and took a step towards him, clasping his hands behind his back and stretching his body to his full height.

“A lot of the Commanders you have assigned are inexperienced in battle and have never led ships of this magnitude before. If we are unable to coordinate our offense properly than this whole strike might be pointless.”

“I also need to trust my Commanders to carry on my orders while I am planet bound and not fire hell upon Coruscant as most of you wish to do,” Ren snarled behind clenched teeth. His emotions were spiraling out of control again.

“The Dreadnought…”

“The Dreadnought will remain in Captain Phasma’s hands for the time being and you will remain on the Finalizer. The warship’s orbital guns will only be used to eliminate certain areas of Coruscant’s defenses.”

“Sir,” the Commander of the Vigilance intervened. “A good number of us do not understand why you wish to be so lenient with the capital city when it has so adamantly mocked the Order and what it stands for.”

“And what does it stand for, Commander?”

“Order and conformity.”

“To whose benefit?”

“The galaxy’s of course, sir. With strict control all systems and especially the less fortunate ones will be able to progress and…”

“And fill your pockets with their hard labor as you spend it in Canto Bight?”

The man paled, and opened his mouth for a response. But Ren silenced him with a gesture.

“Oh, I know Commander… I am very much aware of a lot of First Order transactions.”

“Leave us,” Hux ordered as he looked around at the grim faces of High Officers. The men and women sitting on edge around the polished oval table quickly got up and one by one filed out of the room.

An uncomfortable silence fell inside the empty room as the two men appraised each other.

“Ren, what are you doing?”

Kylo Ren chuckled darkly. One more regime hungry for power and profit. It shouldn’t come as a surprise. His sunshine of a girl was so right with her clear logic and simple wisdom.

“You wouldn’t like it if I told you,” he quipped.

Hux narrowed his eyes to slits.

“I suggest that you and you rabid knights continue with whatever work preoccupied your time under Snoke’s rule and leave the governing for those who know a thing or two about it.”

“Meaning you.”

Hux’s lips tugged into a tight smile.

“Certainly not you.”

The Force wrapped around the man’s throat before Ren even realized his rage had slipped through his control. His patience had just snapped without warning and Hux was now writhing under a choke, frantically tugging at the invisible hand on his throat.

I can do it.

End him and all of his kind. Rid the Order of every single one of these high ranking hypocrites.

But it would only be temporary. Because corruption always spread from the head to the body and others would eventually rise to take their place.

Kylo Ren released his hold on Hux.

And the General collapsed on his arms and knees, struggling for breath.

“Consider this a warning,” Ren added coldly, as he stepped over the body that was now retching on the spotless opsidian floor and headed for the door.

“You’ll pay for this,” were the hoarse words he heard as the door slid shut behind him.

  Rey escorted Leia down the ramp of the shuttle, lending the General her arm for her to lean upon, as she stepped on the spaceport’s docking ground. They wouldn’t be staying long at the supply station on Arkanis. Leia was to meet with the planet’s Chancellor later on that evening.

She could sense unrest on the young girl since this morning, when she entered the bridge to find a brooding Rey looking out the viewport, hand clasped tightly around her saber and brows furrowed, reminding her too much of  her own son’s.

Poe did not seem to be in the best of moods either, as he stared at a holopad unmoving for the better part of the hour that Leia hovered around the bridge going about her usual business. Which she had never seen Poe do. Ever.

Their steps splashed the wet ground swiftly as they tried to take cover inside the nearest shop. Leia had taken her precautions, familiar with the planet’s weather conditions, and wore a water resistant cape. But the poor girl had been drenched to the bone in a matter of seconds.

It was very busy inside the shopping center, workers and buyers rushing to and forth to complete their business and she saw Rey press her lips together, from the corner of her eye. She could no longer avoid it.

“Rey, what’s on your mind? You seem very agitated.”

Rey looked surprised at her acknowledgment.

“It’s nothing really. Too many days of travelling inside a spaceship, I believe.”

That wasn’t far from the truth. Leia had practically lived on ships all her life and still had trouble adjusting to the closed space. Rey had grown up under a blistering sun and surrounded by endless dunes of sand. She could believe that.

Only she didn’t.

Finn had approached Leia a few days ago, concerned about Rey and her dour moods. Poe had told her she was mostly just sad, but had witnessed a couple of spurts of rage, which were very much out of character for her.

A whistling worker passed by them at that moment, pushing a very heavy load of containers that rattled and shook, when the one on top of the stack slipped and landed two feet ahead of the two women, smashing into pieces.

“Hey! Watch it!” Rey yelled at the man.

And in the blink of an eye, she had stretched her hand out levitating the worker as he clawed and choked at an invisible grasp on his throat.

Leia’s eyes grew wide at the realization.

She’s choking him with the Force…

“Rey, no! Stop!”

Leia grabbed her arm, but was unable to break the girl’s concentration.

“Rey!”

Force gathered on her palms as Leia shoved the Jedi away, releasing the hold on the man, who he fell unceremoniously on the ground. He looked at them panting and quickly scrambled to his feet to get away.

She walked up to the fallen girl, who was looking up at her with terrified eyes.

“You need to tell me what is going on,” Leia stated calmly, but eyeing her with firmness.

Rey slowly lifted herself up, patting the nonexistent dust from her clothes and remained silent, gaze glued to her boots.

“There is a bond between me and your son,” she began to speak, voice low and hesitant. “A literal bond that connects our thoughts, our bodies and our feelings. It’s growing stronger as time goes by.”

A what?

“You have a bond with my son?”

Am I hearing right?

“He says it’s a Force bond, something extremely rare.”

“You have a Force bond with Ben.” Leia repeated. Her train of thought clearly stuck at such a revelation.

Is that even possible?

“Yeah. Neither of us know how it happened. Snoke said he created it himself, but I believe…”

“Wait. Snoke?” Leia cut in again. “Snoke did this?”

The nightmares that abhorrent creature had created never seemed to end.

“I don’t believe he did it. And from what I sense from him, neither does Ben.”

“Hold on.” The implications of this bond were more serious than they seemed. “What exactly do you mean when you say sense? Are you in contact with him?”

Could he hurt her? Could he hurt people around her? And what about the Resistance. Would he use Rey to extract information regarding them all?

“It doesn’t work the way you think. I’ve told you before, he’s not the monster you make him to be.”

“Are any of us in danger?’

Rey stepped closer as all her apprehension dissipated and her usual determination started shining through. Leia’s eyes widened as Rey took her hands in hers.

“Leia, your son and I share a very unique Force bond. It is something that just came to be and we are just beginning to control it. It seems to be growing stronger because his emotions are starting to filter through and part of his senses. It requires effort from me to block him out.”

Rey sighed bringing her hand up to rub her forehead. This bond was obviously causing her a lot of distress.

“I feel his anger, his hate, his pain, his self loathe. All these feelings and senses are starting to flood my mind and they hurt. Gods, Leia, he hurts. And I don’t know how to help him.”

Leia watched Rey unravel before her, too shocked to say a word. None of this made any sense, but the girl before her was clearly suffering because of it.

“Is there a way to stop it?”

“Not that we know off.” She looked at Leia, barely containing her emotions.” I don’t believe there is anyone left to tell us how.”

Luke.

That insufferable brother of hers would know what to do. Only he was gone taking away with him whatever knowledge was left of the Jedi.

Think.

What would he do?

Leia took a deep breath emptying her mind as she took Rey’s hands. She held them softly in hers and patiently waited for Rey’s emotions to pass through her and disperse into the Force.

Rey’s pants slowed down after a few moments and her focus returned. She stared at Leia as if she had just unveiled the secrets of the universe.

“How did you do that?”

Leia squeezed her hands assuredly before letting go.

“You can’t keep your emotions bottled up inside you as if you own them. Learn to diffuse them.”

Rey blinked at her.

Leia smiled. “Luke taught me that trick years ago. It took him a while to figure out too,” she winked. “It has served me a lot in difficult situations. My son, however, was never able to use it,” Leia trailed off.

Too much darkness in him.

“I’ll teach him.”

Leia looked at Rey. There was so much light in this girl and fierce kindness. And a sentiment emanated from her every time she spoke of Ben. As if she cared. For her son.

And perhaps he…

She shook her head. A mother’s hope.

“Don’t get ahead of yourself. Try to master it first. And this discussion is not over yet,” she said smoothing out her dress and settling her cloak on her shoulders. “Now let’s move on and get you a change of clothes. You look like a drowned rat and I don’t want you catching a cold.”

   Synchronized steps echoed in the cavernous hangar bay of the Finalizer as Kylo Ren and General Hux walked through the endless impeccable rows of Stormtroopers standing in rigid attention. Not a single helmet was out of line, as the pair inspected the First Order’s finest battalions.

Hidden in the shadows of his hood, Ren side eyed the concealed smirk on Hux’s face.

Of course he would be proud of his grandiose show of power.

Captain Phasma was standing still as a statue at the end of the rows, back turned to the numerous TIE fighters positioned in neat columns along the hangar’s walls. Not a single sound was heard apart from the rhythmic footsteps and the sweeping of Ren’s cloak on the polished black floor.

“As you can see, Supreme Leader, we are ready for the attack,” General Hux commented smugly.

Kylo Ren was loathe to admit it, but the General was right.

“Indeed,” he said, his deep voice filling the vast hangar.

Another pair of steps resounded heavily as they swiftly made their way towards the two men. Kylo Ren halted, recognizing one of his knight’s presence approaching him and he turned to greet him. Khol dressed from head to toe in his black armor stalked towards them, his massive body easily spotted between the rows of white armored Troopers.

He came up to Ren, completely ignoring the General by his side, and kneeled in front of him.

“Master,” his distorted voice came through his helmet’s modulator. “There is something you need to know immediately.”

Kylo Ren studied him for a moment before nodding.

Khol removed his helmet with a hiss revealing his ebony skin marked with hieroglyphics from his home planet. The man leaned in Ren’s ear and whispered a few words that churned his guts.

This was not good.

“On whose authority?” He asked in a low voice.

“Valek’s.”

“Where?”

“In Coruscant, a few days ago.”

“Was it…”

Khol gazed at him steadily for a moment.

“They escaped.”

Kylo Ren fisted his hands. Valek was becoming very brash.

He shut his eyes in an attempt to reign in his rising anger. He tapped into the Force for Rey’s much needed assistance, knowing that a fit of rage was not an option at the moment. But he felt his surroundings shift and move, and a low vibrating resonance shook him enough to make his eyes snap wide open soon after.

A loud explosion made his ears ring and he looked up just in time to see an immense wall crumple before him. He threw his hand out to stop a pile of stones heading his way, but the Force did not respond to his will as it should. The moment suspended in time as he realized that the stones’ trajectory wouldn’t change. That they were coming his way in an inevitable and final descend and he was powerless to stop them.

“Kylo?” He felt a light touch on his arm and jerked back into reality. Cold sweat was running down this forehead and his breath was coming out in pants.

“Are you all right?” Khol asked, voice laden with concern.

Ren looked around at the helmeted faces staring his way.

He glanced at his chest where he could have sworn just a second ago was crushed by a humongous stone, but it seemed intact. There was breath in his lungs and a heartbeat in his ears.

He closed his eyes partly relieved. But partly not.

What was that?

Ren desperately tried to remain calm amongst the troops. But he needed to get out of there. Now.

“Supreme Leader, is there…”

“Carry on,” he interrupted Hux and his semblance of concern.

Kylo Rem crossed the endless hanger bay with swift strides, opening the doors with a wave of his hand and stumbling out. He clutched at his collar and removed his hood.

A Force vision.

It had been a Force vision.

Of my death...

[frankmwilliams25]

What to Expect from a DUI Attorney

Getting arrested for a DUI case may not feel like a big thing once it happens to anyone. People tend to take traffic rules lightly many times, thinking that they can get away with petty crimes easily. Also, once drunk, a person can lose consciousness to drive appropriately and create unrepairable damages to people or property. The consequences of such mistakes are mostly far more damaging than a simple arrest and court hearing. A DUI can be of different degrees, and if convicted more than one time, a person can suffer more extensive sentences each time. 

A DUI can be a nuisance to deal with once arrested for. After the arrest, you may be placed in jail for the time you aren’t bailed or presented before a preliminary hearing or trial. A trial is what takes place after you’re charged with a DUI or a preliminary hearing where the jury can decide whether the case is trial worthy or not depending on the evidence against you. DUI penalties can also vary from case to case, but most of them can include a fine, jail time, license eviction or suspension, community service, and more. 

After you test negative for being under the influence, you’re taken by the police and brought to a cell. You may also be interrogated for your actions and go through more tests to confirm the doubt. However, to avoid these sessions, you have a right to an attorney but the law and can have a lawyer answer questions for you and make critical decisions while also informing you of the intensity of your crimes. 

But just any or a family lawyer won’t do with a specific DUI case; you need an attorney who can support you through all complications with the best of their expertise. This is why you need to look at the guide below on DUI lawyers to hire the best for your case and get what you require in them:

Do You Need an Attorney?

A DUI attorney can be a big help in your case, especially if it’s a confirmed one and includes complications. If your charge is a confirmed DUI by field sobriety tests, you will need a lawyer to help you get through turning the case void. It would be best if you never went alone at gaining innocence for a crime you’re responsible for as a slight slip up can end your chances or create further complications. You may also not have the expertise of a good DUI lawyer to create strategic moves in the court and present defenses to eliminate or reduce your case charges. 

But not all cases can be that intense when it comes to driving under the influence. You won’t have to look for an expensive DUI attorney for a crime you did not commit and was wrongfully convicted of; you will be proved not guilty due to insufficient proof in court anyway. 

Why You Need to Hire a Lawyer

Legal representation is important for any person convicted of a crime as soon as they are arrested and fear the possibility of a sentence. After an arrest, you’re not only convicted for your crimes and fined for them, but your life could change entirely, and you can be seen as a bad influence in society. Your future can depend on how you’re evicted in the court trials and what judgment you receive. This can be one fairly fundamental reason for hiring a DUI lawyer for your case, and the rest are below:

Opinion

A lawyer’s opinion of your case can be the golden advice to save you from the dire setbacks a DUI can have. The laws around all offenses keep changing and evolving, making it challenging to keep up. For this reason, the best advice you can get is from your lawyer, who has complete knowledge of present and past laws and can advise the best outcome for a simple to a complicated case. 

Help in Trial

Inexperience is never appreciated everywhere. The same can happen when you are to represent yourself in the court in front of a serious and committed jury and judge. These people strictly need answers and definite evidence to end a case with a ruling rapidly. As they have other more severe cases to deal with, the people of a court can try and get rid of you soon if they don’t see an attorney or sufficient information with you to fight with. This is why a lawyer is needed to help you get through a trial without complications and conclude the hearing by pleading not guilty.

After Judgement

You can never know what the outcomes of a not so simple DUI crime turn out to be and if you get to remove the charge entirely or not. Many times the penalty is only reduced to a minimum, and that can also include license eviction. Hiring a lawyer can be of help even after the case has ended with a conviction. They can work towards gathering information to reduce your sentence and help you through some education programs that advantage you acquire insurance and your driver’s license back quickly along with several other duties.

Qualities of a Good Lawyer

Even though you need an attorney urgently after being convicted of a DUI offense, anyone you land on will not ‘THE’ lawyer for your case. A good lawyer may or may not be located in a well-established office and have plenty of years of experience. There are some aspects that separate good lawyers from corrupt ones. And if you have just a little bit of experience in hiring a lawyer, you will know the difference. 

A reliable lawyer should always be humble to talk to and communicate clearly. Moreover, the professional should also not demand extra charges from you. It can be the first sign of a corrupt lawyer when they start a session by asking for a deposit than an explanation for your case. An inexperienced lawyer may always end a claim too soon without throwing in several defenses and previously preparing for your case. 

How to Hire the Best DUI Lawyer

Anybody charged with a crime that they did or did not commit would want salvation above anything else. And to attain it, they can do anything it takes than living a life of misery ahead. This includes hiring a proficient lawyer. Searching for a good lawyer should be one of your main headaches and objectives. 

Since a lawyer can literally handle everything on your case by themselves and do the work for you while you get peace of mind, you cannot be without one. Here are a few things that you need to do in order to catch the best fish in the ocean of DUI lawyers and win your case easily:

Ask Around

Hiring a lawyer for the first time is a big responsibility and needs special care and measures to meet the right person. This is necessary for your unique case. Hence, make sure to hire a lawyer you can trust and one who has experience. 

Choose sites that help you find reliable people and local directories for a well-known Los Angeles criminal attorney. You can also ask your friends and family for help since the DUI crime is a commonly committed and condemned crime, and someone you know may have gone through it to appoint the professional. 

Questions

Right now, there would be several questions running your mind related to the charge implanted on you, its repercussions in the future, and how the current situation can be turned into a better one. You must also have questions related to the lawyer’s experience and ask about their proficiency in these cases with backup. 

Once you step into a lawyer’s office, never hesitate to ask them the required questions all for your case. This may be the only chance you have not to let the criminal record stain your image, so make sure to make the most of it. 

Costs

Determining and providing the lawyer fees can be a headache if not decided on the initial interview. These costs can come unwarned at you if not inquired about at the beginning of the case. Make the validation to ask your lawyer for all the costs upfront and leave none to be paid later. Informing you about the expenses is necessary for your lawyer at the start than revealing the price of trial or a pre-hearing after they have been announced. 

Information

Communication with an ethical lawyer is the key to any fruitful criminal arrest elimination. When looking for a lawyer, it’s essential to find one who you can clique with and someone who reports all the crucial updates on your case to you. You will have to make the judgment yourself, see the lawyer’s attitude, and ask how they handle phone calls from clients and the quality of their response rate. There will be several instances where you will have to make crucial decisions with your lawyer, and he/she must be up to the task and communicate the terms well with you to make informed decisions.

Get Several Quotes

When getting a service for a task as crucial as evading a criminal conviction, it won’t be harmful to be extra careful and explore all your options. Whichever state you live in, you will find several lawyers working in DUI and all with different expertise and behaviors. For this reason, you can get several quotes from altered places to get a good enough price and meet the lawyer of your needs. 

Read More

[knight-otu]

Toady's Devlog for 11/22/2017 - Dwarf Fortress 0.44.01 released!

Toady One, from the Dwarf Fortress Development Log:

This is the artifact release, featuring the ability to send your dwarves off to cause trouble in the world, improved kobold sites, cover identities, artifact questers, and a bit of artifact diplomacy.

In fort mode, the 'c' screen which used to list civilizations still does that as a suboption, but its main purpose now is to show the world map and allow you to interact with it.  You can either raid a neighbor generally, or send off squads to recover specific artifacts or rescue particular people (in which case, the squads will still bring back other artifacts and prisoners, but focus on the goal.)  A squad questing after an artifact will seek out information if the first site doesn't work out, and this might take several months, so be prepared.  Squads can also be captured during raids, though typically someone will return to tell the tale.  When squads return, a report will become available; a yellow 'R' will appear over on the left margin, and pressing 'r' will let you see it.  Sometimes reports are quite lengthy as squads stumble from tavern to tavern; you can press enter to skip to the end of the path animation.

There are some rough edges here!  Be sure not to send off your commander if you are planning to reorganize your military, as they are the only one with the power to assign new squads and cannot do so while off the map.  There was a last-minute hiccup with artifacts known to be held by people (rather than stored on sites); these fort-mode missions will be fruitless for the moment; the most common instance here is books authored by people that then hang on to them, so don't try to steal their books!  It says on the map screen when an artifact is held by somebody, so it should be easy to avoid.  Raids do not bring back non-artifacts or build skills; these issues may or may not be addressed in the short-term depending on difficulties that arise.

The interactions with heroes and invading armies are more straightforward.  There will either be 'P'etitions or a diplomacy popup to handle.

In adventure mode, you can assume a cover identity.  You do this from the 'k' conversation menu (if you are already talking to somebody, it'll be hidden in "start new conversation".)  If you choose to link your identity to a civilization, you'll be carrying that baggage with you, especially when you are being interrogated by goblin guards, so one should be prudent.  To turn off the identity, go back to the "assume an identity" menu and choose the 'x' "no identity" option.  You can also reuse existing identities from this menu.

People in adventure mode that are seeking an artifact will list "missing treasure" among their troubles, and you can then inquire further.

In order to name an object, use 'I' to interact with it, and it'll be one of the options for appropriate objects.  For example, you can give a name to your spear or waterskin, but not to the water or food you start with.

There are also various adventure rough edges.  For instance, if you pick up and then immediately replace a museum piece in adventure mode, and then tell somebody about it, you'll get credit as a Treasure Hunter.   It'll be difficult to fix that without additional property information, etc.  It's also generally hard right now to find artifact quests, as most things are in their proper place and/or not subject to an outside claim.  We'll be working with this a bit as we generally work on stabilizing the release.

Overall, many of the changes occurred under the hood, in preparation for the myth and magic release, but now the magic release will be able to incorporate artifacts of all kinds without additional delay, so hopefully it was time well spent.

As usual, your old saves should work, but please back them up before diving into the new release!  It is quite likely that forts will fall into technical ruin as bugs come up and are handled at this early stage.  Old forts won't have object additions like the pedestals and display cases, but they should be able to send out raids from the 'c' screen.

We will be focusing on the worst bugs (crashes etc.) at first, and then we'll broaden out into other bugs, old and new, and minor suggestions/usability improvements, as well as a general smoothing out of the new features.  We're still working on the design side of the first magic release, so we anticipate we'll be doing smaller releases for a while.

ADDENDUM: My Linux computer died during the release process, so the Linux version will have to be delayed until we figure that out.

New stuff

Ability to send out squads to raid sites, rescuing prisoners and recovering artifacts

Display cases and pedestals, museum zones, both in forts and other sites

Can view the world map w/ rumors from fort mode

Artifacts created during worldgen: dwarf moods, named heroic objects, holy relics, heirlooms

New artifact events in play and worldgen: questers seek artifacts and ask for or steal them, invaders demand artifacts

New historical events associated to the creation of artifacts (used in fort and worldgen)

Agents used by civilizations to gather information, can assume cover identities

Improved kobold site maps

Goblin site denizens demand an identity instead of immediately attacking every stranger

More modding control over pets and other animals

Adventurer can assume a cover identity at will

Adventurer can name their possessions

New adventurer reputations related to artifacts

New religious activity: monks, pilgrims and prophets

Museums and other room types can be added to fort locations like taverns and libraries

Various additional data in the XML export

Major bug fixes

Fixed weapon trap crash vs. item breakage

Fixed bug preventing monster slayers from visiting those forts with monsters to slay

Made animated skulls, hair and other bits easier to pulp

Made idle and vermin-hunting dwarves come down from trees more successfully

Made thirst/hunger and being pushed out of the way less likely to terminate dances

Other bug fixes/tweaks

Alphabetized broad stock screen categories

Fixed problem with historical bodies not respecting wounds/processing

Fixed bug causing religions to worship too many gods, with duplicates

Made simple burrow beasts start in caves as possible

Fixed broken historical collection linkage with beast attacks during festivals

Fixed one instance of broken animal person greetings

Stopped natural animals from w.g. rampaging through sites owned by entities at peace with wildlife

Took age into account for w.g. fights vs. body size (e.g. proper dragon size)

Stopped people from being enough to satisfy a need to see great beasts

Made visitors less nervous about going to neutral locations

[shallahraekwon062488]

I decided to post a little application thread about one of the most fearless, unsung, righteous, honorable and courageous heroes in history. Matthew Murdock AKA Daredevil The Man Without Fear, The Guardian Devil ,The Scarlet Avenger and The First Defender. Know throughout Hell’s Kitchen as the Man Without Fear, Daredevil patrols dark corners, alleys and rooftops to rid the city of criminals forgotten by the law. His not-so-secet double-life as Matt Murdock, Attorney at Law provides him with the perfect cover, however also jeopardizes ever case he has ever tried. Though blind Daredevil’s heightened senses and radar vision allow him to do what must be done even if it destroys him in the process.

Personality Daredevil is a morally righteous hero with a strong sense of law and justice. This has also influenced him into becoming a lawyer. Daredevil objects to total violence and prefers to keep his enemies alive and defeating them rather then slay them. However, Daredevil does have a dark side, and will not hesitate to badly hurt foes in certain circumstances, often when he is under a period of stress. Matt Murdock suffers from depression.

Powers

Superhuman Sensory System: Originally coming from his exposure to a radioactive isotope, it was later discovered that many of Murdock’s “powers” come from his natural aptitude and intense training at the hands of Stick. His powers have been so honed by years of training that when he fought Psylocke during the war between the Avengers and the X-Men, she was overwhelmed when she tried to read his mind and found herself experiencing all the information he received through his enhanced senses, demonstrating the scale of psychological training required for Murdock to operate on a normal human level. Nick Fury’s intel classified him as power level 7

Superhuman Touch: Murdock’s sense of touch is so acute that his finger can feel the faint impressions of ink on a printed page allowing him to read by touch, though laminated pages prevent him from touching and thus reading the ink impressions at a much faster pace than a normal person would be able to read. The rest of his skin is equally sensitive, enabling him by concentration to feel minute temperature and pressure changes in the atmosphere around him. Even with his senses of smell and hearing blocked, he can feel the presence of a person standing five feet away from him simply by his or her body heat and disturbance of air. A side effect of his sense of touch is Murdock’s ability to manipulate his muscles and internal organs. The sense of touch is not just external, but internal too (central nervous system), thereby giving him the ability to have total body control, increasing his strength and reflexes to peak human levels, increasing his agility to enhanced human levels and also giving him the ability to numb himself to pain. Superhuman Smell: Murdock’s sense of smell is so acute that he can distinguish between identical twins at twenty feet by minute differences in smell. He can detect odors of an atmospheric concentration of thirty parts per million. Further, his ability to remember smells enables him to identify any person he has spent at least five minutes with by smell alone, no matter how he or she might try to camouflage his or her natural odor. His powers of concentration are such that he can focus upon a single person’s smell and follow it through a crowd of people at a distance of fifty feet. Superhuman Hearing: Murdock’s sense of hearing enables him to detect an acoustic pressure change of one decibel at a pressure level of seven decibels (whereas the lowest threshold for average human hearing is twenty decibels.) He can hear a person’s heartbeat at a distance of over twenty feet, or people whispering on the other side of a standard soundproofed wall. Through practice, Murdock is able to control his hearing acuity, mentally blocking out specific sounds like his own breathing and heartbeat, all ambient sounds to a normal human level of perception, or all sounds but a particular sound he is concentrating upon. Lie Detection: By listening, feeling and/or smelling, Murdock can tell whether a person is lying by sweat, changes in body temperature and heartbeats (though he can be fooled by a pacemaker and those able to keep calm under pressure.) Superhuman Taste: Murdock’s sense of taste enables him to detect the number of grains of salt on a pretzel. His ability to remember tastes enables him to determine every ingredient of a food or drink he tastes, as long as there are at least twenty milligrams of that substance present. Superhuman Balance: It is a common misconception that balance isn’t a sense, but Murdock’s balance centers give him equilibrium at least on par with Spider-Man’s. Telepathy: Due to Stick’s training, Murdock has displayed minor telepathic abilities. Radar Sense: A form of Human Echolocation via low wave projection, according to one theory, a energy within certain portions of the electromagnetic spectrum. The signal emanates from sending regions of his brain, after which it travels outward, bounces off objects around him, and returns to receiving regions of his brain. In any event, with this ability, Murdock synthesizes a very close analogue of three-dimensional 360% human sight. Radar Substitute: An offshoot to Radar Sense this ability is the combination of all other sense (Excluding Radar Sense) and can allows to increase the stability of it as well as to be used as a sub-par replacement. Person Identification: All of Murdock’s senses help identify people by the specific patterns of their heartbeat, smell, touch, sound, and even Radar appearance as it allows to “see” through objects, specifically clothes (Though albeit obscure)

Abilities Professional Attorney: Murdock is a skilled lawyer, specializing in criminal justice. His law practice is considered one of the sources to his emotional strength and success in crime-fighting.

Devout Catholic: As a devout Roman Catholic, Murdock has the mixed benefits and access to certain resources and contacts/allies through the Catholic parishes of Hell’s Kitchen (modern day Clinton). As a lawyer, Murdock can also access additional assets in the form of safe-houses and sanctuary of the Church for his clients should local law enforcement resources become either compromised and or cannot be relied upon in witness protection cases. Murdock can also make use of contacts in the form of the Catholic Clergy giving him vital information regarding the movements of street gangs, the various mafia of the NYC area, pimps, and other elements of the criminal underworld in order to allow Matt to be more successful in battling the criminals of Hell’s Kitchen.

Interrogation Expert: Murdock uses many different interrogation methods to extract information from criminals. His knowledge of criminology and torture is unerring and often overwhelming.

Gifted Intellect: Murdock’s intelligence and brain functions have always been apparent, long before he was affected by radiation, his midnight training, A+ morning schooling and little need of sleep is an testament to that.

Expert Detective: He has shown to be an expert detective using his intellect to figure out complex problems and hyper-senses to find clues and evidence to crime scenes.

Expert Tracker: With the aid of his hyper-senses, Murdock is able to track objects and people from miles away with ease.

Master Acrobat: He is classed as a superb-Olympic athlete, gymnast, acrobat, and aerialist due to constant training and exercise since his preteens.

Weapons Proficiency: Murdock is proficient in wielding various weapons through his Ninjutsu training.

Expert Marksman: He is a skilled marksman capable of throwing his sticks with great accuracy. Murdock is also skilled with most projectile-like weaponry, archery and has been shown utilizing military-grade weaponry in extreme situations.

Expert Stick Fighter: He is an expert in wielding all types of stick weapons which include staffs, batons, nunchaku, and paired short sticks.

Master Martial Artist: Murdock is a skilled, self-taught boxer due to watching his father compete and has been heavily trained in the ninja arts by Stick, a senior master and member of the secret order The Chaste. Nick Fury, former director of S.H.I.E.L.D, commented that there are only a handful of individuals that know what Matt Murdock knows, referring to the Chaste. Stick helped him control his powers and taught him valuable fighting techniques with stealth, vanishing, to even life-energy(chi/ki)control. Murdock is well educated in the functioning of the human body as well as martial arts techniques that target pressure points enabling him to paralyze limbs of an individual’s body or the entire body altogether. He’s disabled eye sight, speech, induced pain, and even has knowledge of pressure points inducing death. Murdock’s fighting style blends Boxing with Ninjutsu, Judo, Aikijujutsu and other disciplines such as Jujutsu, Capoeira, Eskrima, Aikido, Wrestling, and Kung Fu to varying degrees. His skills have proven so exceptional so as to enable him to easily defeat or stalemate some of the greatest fighters on Earth. He has fought opponents such as the Black Panther, Taskmaster, Iron Fist, Captain America, Sabretooth and Wolverine to standstills, even impaling Wolverine with a sword while the mutant was in a feral state due to brainwashing by the terrorists known as Hydra.

Strength level For a “normal” human, Matt has demonstrated remarkable physical strength. Daredevil is an Olympic-level weightlifter and possesses the normal human strength of a man of his age, height, and build that exercises intensively and regularly. Matt has demonstrated that he can lift and handle a 400 lbs. barbell as though it were fifty pounds, has overturned a limo full of people, and has picked up and used a mail drop-box as a blunt instrument. At his peak, Daredevil possesses sufficient strength to press lift approximately 450 lbs.

Weaknesses Blindness : Daredevil is blind. While his Senses help him overcome this, it becomes a problem for him to navigate and fight when his heightened senses are scrambled or can’t detect anyth

Sense Precision: Daredevil’s extent to discern pictures or video images are limited, and he can only guess at colors based on the amount of heat they are absorbing or reflecting. If nothing is being emitted (By a person or thing) that would trigger his heightened senses Daredevil wouldn’t be able to detect it, like when a sniper bullet fired outside the range of his sense of hearing was able to badly injure h Sound and/or Smell Peak: Daredevil’s superhuman senses render him extraordinarily vulnerable to odors and/or excessive noise, which can temporarily weaken his Radar Sense. Under extreme circumstances he can be easily immobilized, suffer great pain and/or left disorientated. Once the disruptive effects wear off, Daredevil’s Radar Sense is able to return to its normal calibration. Radar Sense Disruption: Though uncommon– in unique situations (where multiple objects, sounds, temperatures, and smells, are in close proximity) Daredevil’s Radar has been known to fail leaving him to rely on his other senses.

Non-Superhuman Physical Conditioning: As Daredevil’s powers do not give him any kind of superhuman physical ability, Daredevil is as susceptible to physical injury and disease as any other normal human, often having to rely more on strategy than strength when up against a superhuman opponent

Weapons Matt currently wields a multi-purpose cane that has many different modes. Its initial form is two short sticks held together by an extendable cable. It can be configured into a nunchaku- like weapon to a manrikigusari (a long rope/chain weapon with two weights on its ends), dual short sticks which can be wielded in a pair, staff, or a cable with a grappling hook. The weapon can also be adjusted to combine both sticks into a larger stick. The weapon is held by a holster on the side of Matt’s left leg.

[jrubalcaba]

Precious Cargo Ch. 15 - The Interrogation

Precious Cargo Chapter 15 - The Interrogation

author: jrubalcaba

featuring: OFC Guinevere “Gwen” Adams x Bucky Barnes

word count: 1740 words

rating: PG

warnings: Cussing

A/N: Thanks to @avenger-nerd-mom for her beta work.

After the first night, I couldn't be near Bucky. Knowing that he wouldn't want this broke me even more. Since I had a while before I would find out if it was a boy or girl, I decided to nickname the baby Bean. I began to look into finding a different job that would take me out of the Avenging life. I wanted to give this child the best chance at living. I remembered that Pepper, Tony’s girlfriend, was the CEO of Stark Industries and had yet to find a new PA. I met with her and after talking for a while, she offered me the position. I took it without hesitation, and made a stop at SHIELD headquarters to handle my resignation. Agent Hill was not pleased to accept it, but she pushed it through. When I returned to the tower, I was met by Steve and Tony, who were in disbelief.

“What do you mean resignation?” Steve demanded. “You're an amazing agent. What brought this on?” I could see Wanda, Vision, Sam and Clint walking towards us out of the corner of my eye. “Why did you go straight to Maria? Is it so I couldn't decline your request?”

Tony stepped in and placed a hand on Steve's shoulder.

“Give her a chance to speak, Capslock,” Tony quipped. I smiled and nodded in thanks at Tony as I noticed the rest of the team join us. I looked around and saw that Bucky was staring at me with a shocked expression. Sucking in a deep breath, I turned to the team.

“Yes it's true. I'm resigning. I'm not good enough to be an Avenger. I'm not like any of you. I'm not special in anyway, so I don't deserve to be here,” I paused, letting my words sink in. They all looked around at each other before turning back to look at Bucky. He squirmed guiltily until they all looked back at me. “This has nothing to do with him, guys. I almost died the other day. I'm not cut out for this, so I've accepted a position as Pepper’s PA. I'll be around every once in awhile, but I will be moving out of the tower.” Tony took the chance to step in before anyone could object. 

“She'll be moving into Pepper’s old place because Pepper is moving in with me. I tried to get her to stay, but she’d rather move.” He shot me a disappointed look before coming to stand next to me. “We're going to throw a party in her honor though. A goodbye party. It'll be at the end of the week, so get your goodbyes in by then.” He clapped me on the shoulder and walked away, pulling out his phone to start planning the party. Wanda walked up and hugged me. 

“I don't want you to leave. You do have what it takes to be an Avenger. Don't let one bad day ruin everything,” she pleaded. I thought as hard as I could at her. It's not just that Wanda. There's more to it, but I can't tell you right now. I'll explain it all later, after I've moved out. She frowned but nodded her head. “I'll miss you. You've become a dear friend and I'm going to hate not seeing you everyday.” She hugged me again before heading back to the kitchen to finish her lunch. Everyone else had already gone back to their activities so I went to my room. I was taking pictures off the wall when there was a knock followed by Steve opening my door. 

“We need you down in Interrogation. I think we may have a lead on the thugs who attacked you,” he explained. I followed him out and into the elevator. The door was almost shut before a metal hand stopped it. “Glad you got my message Buck.” He moved over so his friend could join us. Bucky stood between us as the elevator descended. When we got to our floor, Steve exited first. 

“I had no idea Sarah Rogers raised a heathen,” Bucky called out. Steven turned around with a perplexed look on his face. “All gentlemen know that it's ladies first,” Bucky boasted as he bowed, letting me walk out before him. 

“The only gentleman in the elevator left to lead the way because I've never been down here before, which is the gentlemanly thing to do. Your mother, on the other hand, is the one who raised a heathen,” I snapped, leaving him in the elevator and following Steve, who chuckled at the shocked look on his friend’s face. Steve opened a door and led me and Bucky inside. I looked through the two-way mirror and saw her. 

It was the woman that Bucky had brought home. I was filled with seething rage at the sight of her. She took Bucky from me. To see her in handcuffs made me so undeniably happy. I felt Bucky stiffen next to me when he realized who it was. I looked at him and gave him the biggest ‘cat got the canary’ grin I could. “Ah. Justice is served,” I sneered. “I feel smug. Do I look smug?” I asked, smirking. He gave me an exasperated look before looking back at the woman as Steve entered the room and sat across from her. 

“My name is Steve Rogers. Your name is Bridget Nichols, correct? We have you here in connection to the shooting that occurred on Sunday April 5th. Do you recognize either of these people?” Steve asked as he slid a picture of Bucky and I forward. She looked at the photo before smirking.

“Yeah I know them. He's the Winter Soldier and she's a SHIELD agent. My husband’s family suffered at the hands of the Winter Soldier and he vowed vengeance,” she sneered, taking a drink of water before continuing. “So imagine our surprise when he showed up in our little town with her and the O`Hara kids in tow. We decided to come up with a plan to ruin him as he ruined our family.” Bucky and I glanced at each other for a moment. I couldn't bear to look at her anymore, so I turned away and leaned against Bucky’s arm. 

“I saw him in town one day. Our plan wasn't airtight, because we had no idea where they were staying, but I thought that if I could somehow go home with him, then we could finally set our plan in motion. So, I came onto him, offering him a ride home. He wasn't very drunk, but I was able to sneak his number out of his phone. My husband said we could use it to track him, but it ended up not  working.” I could feel tears pooling in my eyes. Bucky reached over and rubbed my arm. “He's a good looking man, so when he took me inside their house, I pushed him down onto the couch and climbed on his lap. I kept trying to kiss him and get him to kiss me back, but he would pull away every time. Kept repeating that he was married and that he loved her more than anything. I finally just grabbed his face and kissed him as hard as I could. He grabbed my shoulders to push me away and that's when she walked out and saw us. She got so upset and started to cry and I knew that getting through their defenses would be even easier.” 

I was crying in earnest now. Bucky had stepped in front of me and held me in his arms while I wept. I couldn't believe it. I had reacted just as she wanted me to and now I didn't have Bucky anymore. I was mad at him for nothing. “Bucky, I am so sorry. I'm sorry for not giving you a chance to explain yourself. I'm so sorry for being so mad at you. I'm sorry,” I sobbed into his chest. He rubbed my back and let me cry. 

“The plan was to go back at a later time and kidnap the children and dispatch whoever got in our way. After this, we felt that kidnapping her as well would hurt him even more. How else would you further destroy someone? By taking the person they love most and making them watch as their love was killed while they were helpless to stop it. We were going to take her, and when he came for her, we were going to make him watch as she bled to death. Well, as luck would have it, every time we would attempt to go out there, something would come up and we had to put the plan on hold. They wouldn't be home, or we would have car trouble. On the day of the attack, I was stuck at home, sick, when Edgar called and said that they had spotted them all together in town and were going to ambush them. I wish I had been able to go though, cause that bitch killed my husband and his brothers! The filthy slut!” 

I couldn't take anymore. I ran from the room and headed to the elevator. Once I got inside I pushed the button for my floor. Bucky wasn't following me, which meant that he wanted to listen to her more than comfort me. I know I'm being irrational in my distress, but I felt justified in my anger at him. 

I avoided Bucky for the next few days until the night of the party. There were tons of people milling around and I happened to see him walk up to Steve, Wanda, and Thor, his arm around a brunette. Ouch. Even though I couldn't drink, I headed to the bar and asked for a glass of water. Wanda sidled up next to me and cleared her throat. “She's not his date. She's a fan of Captain America and Thor, so he introduced her to them,” she clarified. I nodded, but froze when I heard female laughter behind me. 

“Oh Bucky, you're so funny.” I turned around and she was hanging all over him, clearly having no qualms about him looking embarrassed. Not his date my ass. He glanced up and caught my eye. I could feel my heart crack again as she reached up and kissed his cheek. I pushed past him and made my way out onto the balcony. I cannot do this. Starting tomorrow I won't have to see his face every day. The baby will help make me feel whole again.

Chapter 16

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[julez-the-great]

Brother Knows Best--General Hux x Sister!Reader

You worked diligently at your station, not wanting to make any mistakes, even if this was the life you never wanted. The panel in front of you in the finalizer had many different buttons, each doing a different task and each being separated by colors–the flashing red to the left was an alarm, glowing yellow alerted of technical issues, and the blinking blue engaged the weapons of your sector of the ship. Your job was to assist in making sure foreign ships were identified and to make sure that any resistance ships nearby were shot down or unable to fly any further, leaving them to drift into the hands of the first order for interrogation. Your headset buzzed with different transmissions and your radar was clear of any unknown objects.

“Y/n,” you heard the voice of a familiar red head call. “You are relieved of your shift.”

Taking the headset off, you stood and walked over to the frame of your older brother Armitage Hux as one of your coworkers manned your station. His stoic expression didn’t falter as you approached him.

“You know, my shift doesn’t end for another,” you pauses looking at your first order issued watch, “fifteen mintes.” You smirked slyly at him.

“You must have a faulty watch then,” he replied, eyes never leaving your form.

“Make sure you eat tonight,” you then said before patting his arm and walking off. His eyebrow twitched in annoyance since you never respected his authority during your work. A huff of air escaped his nose as he supervised the remaining workers.

Even though he didn’t show it, Armitage has always had a soft spot for you. Ever since the day your father had sent the both of you away to the academy, he has vowed to protect you from everything that put you in harms way. This included the infamous commander, Kylo Ren. In fact, your watch was not faulty at all and it was all just a bluff so you wouldn’t be in the same room once the cammander arrived. Again, Armitage’s eyebrow twitched, this time at the thought of having to deal with Kylo Ren being in the same room as him.

Moments later, the stainless steel door slid open, revealing the man in mind.

‘Here we go,’ the general said inside of his head.

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

You sauntered into the mess hall where you grabbed a tray if food to eat for dinner. After sitting down at your normal seat, one of your fellow coworkers sat down across from you.

“Good evening, Felicity,” you greeted with a smile.

“Hey,” she replied somberly. You sent her a look as you chomped down on your bread roll. Upon studying her, you saw that her normally clean blonde hair was now frazzled and greasy, her eyes had bags beginning to form, and her face was pale.

“Whats wrong?” You asked her. She took a bite of food before answering.

“I’m being moved to the Starkiller,” she mumbled, avoiding eye contact with you. You looked at her confused.

“And that’s a bad thing?”

“I don’t wanna leave the finalizer. I know this place and I know the people I work around. Plus I’ve heard that they’re more strict on Starkiller and I cannot handle that pressure,” she replied, no wanting to think about it. You sighed, reaching across the table and holding her clammy hand in yours.

“Hey, it’s going to be alright. You’ll know who you’re working with eventually and you’ll find your way around the place. And don’t even worry about the higher ups being more strict because you don’t make any mistakes. You can do it,” you encouraged. A smile appeared on her face and color began to surface back onto her cheeks.

“You’re so encouraging and nice, (y/n). How are you even related to the general?“

A sad smile graced your features as unwanted memories flooded your mind. That statement triggered a flashback to your childhood that you would love to forget forever. “He’s not all that bad,” was all you said before heading to your quarters for the night. After stripping of your uniform you layed back onto your bed, thinking about your father and the reason why you were even on the finalizer. It was a sunny day at the academy, which was extremely rare. The sun shown bright and you wanted to bask in it, to feel it absorb into your skin. However, you couldn’t focus on the weather of the day since you had other things to worry about. You were busy training rigorously when the sun began to make its appearance. ”(Y/n), you need to focus! How else are you going to follow in your father’s footsteps if you’re too busy day dreaming? I suggest you follow your brother’s lead since he is the top in his class!“ You heard the yell from your instructor come. You sighed and tried harder to be like Armitage in order to please him, but you always had difficulties. Eventually these types of situations were relayed back to your father who eventually became ashamed to call you his spawn. You were never good enough for him and because of that he despised you. The time came when your brother left to find his own way and he decided to take you with him in an effort to keep you safe. He, unlike your father, loved you more than anything in the galaxy and nothing was going to stop him from being the best he could for you. Eventually you both ended up on the finalizer where you’re probably going to stay until death. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The next morning you woke up to a knock at your door. Groaning, you stood, smoothing out your pajamas and your hair, answering the door. Upon opening it, you saw the cammander in full uniform. Your (e/c) eyes shot open and you stood at attention, fear beginning to claw at your mind. “Ah, so you’re the one the general always worries about. (Y/n), isn’t it?” He said, his mechanical voice laced with a malicious tone. “Y-yes sir,” you said loud enough for him to hear. By now you were shaking, the fear of premature death bubbling in your mind. He was about to say something else when you heard your brother’s voice ring in your ears. “What do you think you’re doing, Ren?” Armitage spat. This earned a chuckle from Kylo. Sweat began to bead on your forehead as you still stood straight, watching the two men. “Oh I was just paying a visit to your beloved sister,” he said. “Well, Ill appreciate if you don’t do it again,” Armitage said, eyeing you and then focusing back on Kylo. “Hm, I don’t know, I like seeing your feathers ruffled,” Kylo said amused. He stepped closer and wrapped his arm around you shoulders. “Besides, I thought it’d be appropriate to get to know the sister of one of my closest colleages.” Your heart thumped in your chest, wanting this to be over. Suddenly, Armitage grabbed your arm, pulling you away from Kylo and behind himself. Kylo chuckled and decided to leave, knowing one more button that he can push for the general. “He didn’t hurt you did he?” He asked worriedly. You shook your head and released your breath. “That was terrifying,” you said, beginning a nervous chuckle. Armitage sighed and pulled you into a warm hug. “I’ll never let anything happen to you,” he said as you hugged him tightly.

[its-lifestyle]

Everyone needs an outlet to vent, a shoulder to cry on or someone to turn to for emotional support.

When there is no avenue to “offload”, life’s challenges and stressors can seem daunting. Little things can add up and trigger disruptive, negative or suicidal thoughts.

When the mind is disturbed, it wreaks havoc on the body. And on other people.

There is a rising prevalence of those with mental health issues in the country.

Based on the National Health and Morbidity Survey (NHMS) 2015, the prevalence of mental health issues among adults above 16 years of age is 29.2%, or 4.2 million Malaysians.

Mental health problems are a growing public health concern globally, and by 2020, it is expected to be the second biggest health problem affecting Malaysians after heart disease.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), depression is the leading cause of disability as measured by “years lived with disability” and the fourth contributor to the global burden of disease.

So who does one turn to for help or to talk things out?

While we’ve all heard of the non-governmental organisation (NGO) Befrienders, there is another organisation that has also been offering free counselling services for the past 27 years.

Call-in counselling

The Buddhist Gem Fellowship Counselling Unit (BGFCU) came into being in 1992 with a telephone counselling service to help individuals cope with the pressures of modern living.

The NGO also provides information and referral services, so that the client or caller will have the most competent resource to help them handle their problem.

“We saw a need for it back then and formed the unit with a group of people with counselling qualifications.

“Our unit comprises all volunteers who initially manned the helpline twice a week. With increasing demand, we’re now open for two hours daily from Monday to Friday,” says BGFCU main coordinator Wong Chung Heong.

People call in with a variety of problems, and not just relationship issues.

“Lately, we’re seeing an increase in callers and their issues range from problems with parents, children, siblings, bosses, lecturers, studies, work, sexual orientation, grief, bereavement, etc,” says Wong.

BGFCU training coordinator Siew Yin Heng adds: “In January, we saw a peak in calls just before the Chinese New Year, when the stress level goes up.

“Many of these calls are from young people saying they are being urged to get married or find a partner.

“They feel pressured to face their parents and relatives when they return for the celebrations, which shouldn’t be the case.

“We’re here to provide emotional support. Maybe at that time, you just need to vent or talk to someone because you feel lonely or misunderstood.

“People feel ‘listened to’ when talking to someone who is non-judgemental.”

Aside from the stress of rushing back to hometowns for the Chinese New Year celebrations, seen in this filepic, many young people feel the pressure to either find a partner or settle down, resulting in the need for a non-judgmental ear.

Extensive training

A year after being set up and with more people calling them, BGFCU started offering annual counselling courses and training to recruit more volunteers for the ongoing telephone counselling service.

“However, the course went beyond this objective as participants brought home with them some basic counselling knowledge and skills that also benefit them in their day-to-day living through better communication and interpersonal skills.

“It also enhanced their sense of empathy.

“We want to educate participants on key mental health issues so that they are able to recognise and identify mental health needs, know where to seek help and hopefully seek help when they face their own issues. It’s all about self-awareness and coping.

“If, after attending the training, the participants agree to be a volunteer for the telephone counselling service, then it is a bonus!” says Siew, a registered counsellor.

Over the years, the BGFCU has undergone many revamps, and today, provides intensive training to participants with the aim of producing para-counsellors (firstline counsellors) who have basic counselling skills to provide emotional support to those who are in distress.

“The ability to show empathy, compassion, genuine concern and unconditional acceptance of the client is generally how we define emotional support.

“If the para-counsellor isn’t able to handle the caller, he or she passes it on the supervisor, who is usually a registered counsellor,” says Siew.

Some of the topics in the training course include conflict resolution skills, mental and emotional impact of stress, lifelong human development, effective listening in counselling, self awareness etc, and the speakers comprise experts in the industry.

It takes around 18 months to become as a para-counsellor. Volunteers are assessed thoroughly before they are allowed to man the phone lines.

Siew reasons, “Remember, we’re dealing with a vulnerable person, so we don’t want volunteers who might stress people out further, hence our selection criteria is very important.

“During the training period, we do a lot of self-help sessions.”

Para-counsellors are encouraged to actively pursue continuous learning, and in support of this, BGFCU has started to conduct six full day workshops this year to assist them in sharpening their helping skills.

Wong says, “There are participants who loved the training so much that they brought other family members in and all have become our volunteers!”

There are currently 27 volunteers on the team, comprising para-counsellors and counsellors, who use mostly English as a medium of communication.

Siew (left) and Wong are here to help individuals cope with the pressures of modern living. — KAMARUL ARIFFIN/The Star

The callers

Each person who calls in is allocated 40 minutes and remains anonymous throughout the counselling session.

Only their age range and state they’re calling from are required in order to help BGFCU build a database.

Many of these callers are first-timers.

Wong says, “They may call an average of three or four times, then they don’t call any more, so we assume they are okay.

“Sometimes they feel comfortable with a certain para-counsellor and may want to speak to the same person again.

“We don’t talk to minors below 18, so we refer them to a professional.

“Usually, our cases are not so serious because the callers are all functional adults.

“And because we don’t operate 24 hours and have limited resour-ces, if it’s a suicidal case, we refer them to Befrienders.”

If there is a call complaining of abuse, whether physically, emotionally or verbally, the volunteers get informed consent and report the incident to the respective authorities.

“If there is a need, we ask them for their next-of-kin’s name, but we don’t ask them immediately, because a lot of times, they are not very receptive. This information is entirely voluntary though.

“For religious problems, we refer them because we are not trained in spiritual counselling,” says Wong, a former nurse, who has been a para-counsellor with BGFCU since it was established.

Siew explains that callers are given a “psycho-education” over the phone.

“If a caller says there is domestic violence, we don’t interrogate them as it pushes them away. Instead, we tell them where to go to seek help.

“We don’t contact them afterwards either. We teach them to empower themselves.

“Our role is not to advise, but to listen without prejudice.

“Many people say they are being pushed to ‘do the right thing’, but we cannot tell you what this ‘right thing’ is in one session.

“So we give you information for you to act on,” she says.

If the session is an effective one, the caller would be able to come up with a plan or experience self-realisation.

Siew says, “We trigger their awareness and allow them to see that there is a way out.

“When they share, they’re actually listening to themselves and start questioning themselves.

“It’s also a way for personal growth. A lot of us cannot see our own strengths.”

For the volunteers, there is a monthly talk session (for them to talk and share) after their “services” to help them unload what’s on their minds. Talking is therapeutic.

BGFCU hopes to reach out more to the public to let them know that help is always there, no matter how dire the situation may seem.

“We’re targeting working adults to help them cope with small stressors before they escalate out of control.

“Oftentimes, when stress is work-related, you don’t talk about it with your family members, or vice versa. We want to bridge this gap.” says Wong.

The BGFCU helpline is available from 7.30pm to 9.30pm, Monday to Friday. If you need advice or a listening ear, call 03-7859 9610/9682.

from Family – Star2.com http://bit.ly/2ZLg4K5

[postolo]

Cal HC | Cyber crimes on the rise | Directions issued to train and familiarise members of police force in regard to “electronic evidence”

Calcutta High Court: A Division Bench comprising of Manojit Mandal and Joymalya Bagchi, JJ., in the wake of rising cyber crimes in the present times, issued directions to ensure that the investigation of crimes involving electronic evidence is conducted in a fair, impartial and effective manner.

Allegations, as mentioned in the FIR, pertain to a matrimonial dispute between the petitioner and his wife. Further, it has been alleged that the petitioner with the object of defaming and denigrating the wife had posted objectionable pictures of wife on a social network platform and circulated such materials widely. Offences under Sections 66 E & 67A of IT Act were not added in the FIR, an investigation by Assistant Sub-Inspector of Police in violation of Section 78 of the IT Act was conducted.

Keeping in view the facts and circumstances of the present case and due to lack of materials on record that objectionable pictures were circulated without consent and knowledge of de-facto complainant, the Court was of the opinion that custodial interrogation of accused/petitioner may not be necessary and he may be granted anticipatory bail subject to the conditions as laid down under Section 438(2) of CrPC, 1973.

Further, the High Court felt that there is a crying need to train and familiarise members of the police force in the matter of collection, reception, storage, analysis, and production of electronic evidence. The bench also stated that:

“It is also relevant to note that electronic evidence by its very nature is susceptible to tampering and/or alteration and requires sensitive handling. A breach in the chain of custody or improper preservation of such evidence render it vitiated and such evidence cannot be relied in judicial proceedings. Necessary certification under Section 65D of the Information Technology Act is also a pre-requisite for admissibility of such evidence. Even if such certification is present, reliability of electronic evidence depends on proper collection, preservation and production in court. Any lacuna in that regard would render such evidence vulnerable with regard to its probative value. These factors have come to our notice not only in the present case but also in a number of cases argued before us in recent times.”

For the said purpose, certain directions were issued to ensure that investigation of crimes involving electronic evidence is conducted in a fair, impartial and effective manner.

Following are the directives:

Proper training of members of police force in reception, preservation and analysis of electronic evidence.

Only the officers who have been trained in accordance to the manner as stated above shall be involved in the investigation of crimes involving offences under IT Act and the offences in which electronic evidence plays a pre-dominant part.

Every district shall have a cyber cell comprising of officers with specialised knowledge in the matter of dealing with electronic evidence in order to render assistance to local police.

A standard operating procedure regarding preservation, collection, analysis and producing electronic evidence to be submitted by Director General of Police, West Bengal on the next date of hearing.

Specialised forensic units to be set up in the State in order to facilitate examination and/or analysis of electronic evidence.

The matter has been posted for further hearing on 11-03-2019. [Subhendu Nath v. State of W.B., CRM No. 650 of 2019, Order dated 18-02-2019]

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[weppai-blog]

Essel Marketing and Promotions at PPAI Expo 2017

The world of promotional marketing is baffling by every passing day with changing needs of audiences and propelling market scenarios. We bring to you a quick interrogation session with a leading marketing consultation company and exhibitor at PPAI Expo2017 ‘Essel Marketing & Promotions Pvt. Ltd.’ placing their views and sharing expertise on promotional products sector of India.    

Q. Tell us more about your product or service?

Launched in 1996, Essel has today blossomed into a full-service global aggregator that offers promotional solutions to a diverse range of brands - irrespective of their age, origin, scale, industry, target audience and message.

With a proven track record of designing innovative promotional campaigns, licensed products, branded merchandise, trade/ consumer premiums and gifting solutions, Essel helps brands meet their business objectives through effective marketing and procurement outcomes and offers enhanced reporting and cost management.

Headquartered in Mumbai, India, Essel is essentially a hybrid agency that has a unique global footprint with field offices in the US and Hong Kong, accredited factories in India and China and over 100 internationally certified suppliers across the globe. It also has a distinctive presence in international markets – from North America and South America to Europe and Asia-Pacific, as local, regional or global partners to Fortune 500 companies.

Listed among India’s Top Five Most Promising Creative Agencies in 2015 by Silicon India, we are proud of our ability to deliver bespoke creative promotional campaigns that give our clients a crucial edge. Thanks to our client-specific consultative approach, supported by a defined methodology and inputs from our partners based all over the world, we have been able to design and develop several innovative ideas and creative solutions that are also cost-effective, result-driven and unique to each client.

 Q. Why are promotional products the right strategy?

Promotional products get buyers to sample, purchase, or remain loyal to a brand or product. Creative, well-constructed promotional offerings are known for delivering brand-enhancing and sales-building results.If the consumer is interested in a product but on the fence when it comes to purchasing it, the promotional product could be the thing that sends the purchaseover the finish line. For a product that is in a competitive market, giving a gift with purchase could be the token to set it apart.

Gift giving has been the interpersonal glue of human society for thousands of years. While the types of gifts and gifting occasions have changed over the years, the remaining constant is how receiving a gift makes a person feel. When people receive a gift, they feel special.Gift giving through promotional products is every brand’s way to connect with consumers.Shoppers feel a special connection to the gift-giving retailer, which carries into their shopping cart and future loyalty to the brand.

“Free gift with purchase” promotions offer shoppers an extra incentive to buy, and can provide the retailer offering it with increased sales, as well as improved brand loyalty.After receiving a promotional product, the next time a shopper encounters several retailers selling the same item, he or she is somewhat likely to buy from the retailer who provided the free value-add.

 Q. Do promotional products impact the market more than other media?

A good promotional item creates interest unlike other forms of media since the promotional item is tangible and immediately conveys the quality and creative standards of the company.

Useful promotional items help make brands memorable.Finding unique and appealing promotional items is the first step in making the giveaway memorable. Plus, the brand logo goes with the item so the consumer sees and remembers the company name - other forms of media cannot guarantee such long-term brand recall.

Good promotional items also mean good ROI.Promotional products area good business strategy that can result in a flood of new and repeat customers. It may seem counterintuitive at first to give away a free product to promote your business but eventually it works better than spending on other forms of media.

 Q. Any special feature offered from you to the promotional product’s market?

As a global aggregator firm, our expertise at kitting and in-pack premiums, following stringent quality checks and the ability to manufacture a massive output are our special features. To elaborate further:

We have developed kitting concepts for various distribution channels and end-customerskeeping the following factors in mind:

ü  Material handling            

ü  Assembly designs

ü  Safe packaging

ü  Kitting labour

ü  Logistics upto distributor channels/end customer

  Essel has developed expertise in delivering in-pack premiums in millions - from Food to the Pharma industry.  Our audit team approves only ISO/BRC/GMP/FSSC 22000 certified manufacturing facilities.

  Our production capacity easily clocksaround 400 million pieces for various global clients a year.

 Q. What all technological changes and additions are you expecting this year?

We have a technologically advanced Aggregator program which will really benefit our clients.  The Essel Aggregator Program is a dynamic web-based platform that procures the best quality raw materials from leading global suppliers for our clients and offers end-to-end Supply Chain Management services.

ü  It enables each client to view all the campaigns being run for its sub-brands and variants in other markets world over.

ü  It helps to showcase a range of proactive concepts and innovative products for each client created in-house.

ü  It allows our clients to avail of our global sourcing network for strategic procurement.

ü  It offers end-to-end supply chain services online –from placing order to final shipment.

ü  It offers services 24x7.

 Meet Essel Marketing and Promotions Pvt. Ltd. to get plan your ideal promotional strategy at PPAI Expo 2017. To participate and stay in loop, get yourself registered for free with us here.