#michael mullany

[project-rosewood-476]

Perhaps in Another Life in a Different Time

For a brief moment in time everything is perfect in Tabby's life. Her step dad is out of the picture, Shes still graduating Rosewood, Horatio is no longer a threat and she has all of her friends back. Something isn't right here...

all characters belong to me so does maplehood creek and Rosewood prep

Tabby stirred awake with a yawn and stretched. She slowly sat up and blinked to take in her surroundings.

This wasn’t her room, oh no.

She was back in her childhood room. Her dresser had a mirror on top of it, including her many dolls, writing utensils, and papers across from her bed that was tucked neatly in a corner with a mound of her childhood plushies. Her coffee table held all of her books on top of it. 

What was she doing back here? Why was she here? What happened? Where are the others?

Tabby didn’t know what to feel. Confusion, dread, hope, excitement. She let out a whimper and grabbed her favorite plushy. A stuffed animal leopard named Simba before swinging her legs over and having her feet hit the sun-warmed hardwood floor. She shakily turned her doorknob, bracing herself for the scene before her as the door swung open.

It was peaceful.

The sound of the news was playing on the TV. Strangely, the house was less cluttered without her stepdad’s stuff constantly there. She’d forgotten how big their apartment was in all actuality. She looked past the living room area into their dining room and kitchen. Adam was sitting patiently coloring in his Spiderman coloring book, and her mom was making her usual Sunday breakfast shebang.   

Still no sign of her stepdad.

Where is he?

It wasn’t long before her rumbling stomach gave her away, and her mom looked over at her daughter.

“There you are, honey! You’re finally awake now! Why don’t you come help me cook breakfast, hm?” she gestured with the tilt of her head to the bread that needed to be toasted.

“Mom!” Tabby cried out as she ran over to give her mother the tightest hug she had given in a long while. Afraid she'd never see her again if she were to let go.

“Jesus, Tabby, what’s gotten into you?” her mother said, shocked at the sudden embrace of her teenage daughter.

“I’ve just missed you so much... You have no idea..” murmured the more petite girl as she held onto her for dear life, inhaling the scent of her clothes and hair. 

“Missed me? Tabby, you saw me last night before you went to bed. And before that, we went shopping and eating together,” she laughed light-heartedly.

“We did?”

Her mother gave her a confused look.

“Oh, I mean, yeah, we did. I remember,” Tabby bluffed horribly.

Her mother nodded before turning back to the stove to flip the sausages.

“Where’s Michael? Either of them?” 

The older woman hesitated before answering for a moment.

“He won’t be coming back. I’ve promised this to you before, and why are you asking such a silly question? You know his eldest son doesn’t live with us.”

Tabby stood there dumbfounded. She was relieved but also angry. Why did it take this long to kick him out? Why hadn't she done that sooner? And what happened? What was the last straw to kick him out? It wasn’t fair that she had suffered for ten years only to be able to enjoy the tail end of her childhood after missing out on so much. 

Still, she looked at her mom, who looked more lively and happier than she’d ever been in all the years she had known her, and then back at Adam, who was happily coloring away, brimming with personality and fully happy and relaxed. She supposed that it was better late than never.

“Are you going to help me cook or what?” asked her mother, tearing Tabby away from her thoughts.

“How can I with my hand-” she cut herself off as she held out both hands and let out an audible gasp as she examined her left hand. It wasn’t broken anymore. She could move it and feel everything again; she had complete control of her hand. 

That means that the Rosewood Massacre never happened.

That meant all of her friends were still alive.

The older woman looked at her daughter with a weird look.

“N-nevermind, I’ll start toasting,” Tabby said quietly as she went to work.

—----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Tabby took her sweet time helping to cook breakfast and sitting down to eat with her family. If this was all too good to be true, then she wasn’t going to miss any of this, and she was going to take full advantage of this. Besides, she didn’t know if she would ever see her mother and baby brother again. Hell, she didn’t know if she could get food like this again!

“This was what a family is supposed to be,” said Tabby in thought as she listened to Adam complain about the 3rd grade, how they’re doing multiplication already, and how the minute timed hundred questions worksheet gave him so much anxiety. Tabby chuckled as she remembered that all too well. Adam never stopped talking, even in between bites of cereal and pancakes. He was always the chatterbox in the family, and she was amazed at how he never choked on anything. The children’s mother ate daintily as she sipped her coffee, watching the news.

“So, do you have any plans today? I was thinking we could get together with the rest of the family and go to the lake since it’s beginning to warm up now, and lake pass season started last weekend!” Tabby’s mom turned to her excitedly with that glint in her eye, watching her daughter scarf down her second plate of everything.

“Um..” she trailed off, wiping her mouth on her sleeve and scrunched down. The lake! She’d forgotten about the lake. It was one of her favorite places to go in the summer. It felt like it’d been years since she returned there. She itched at the opportunity to take it as she didn’t know if she would have this chance again.

“I was thinking of going to see my friends…You know, to hang out and check up on them if that's okay..” she asked meekly. She felt terrible for rejecting her mom, but she had to know if they were still there, okay, and what they were up to.

“Well, why don’t you invite them to join us and make it a family and friends outing?” she offered.

Tabby’s ears perked up.

“Really? You mean it? All 14 of them? But what if they can’t come?”

“Then invite as many as possible.”

“O-okay, I’ll do that…” Tabby said excitedly between mouthfuls of food and scarfing the rest down before jumping out of the seat and trying to do everything simultaneously.

“Jesus, Tabby, slow down!”

“I can’t, Mom. I have to hurry! I’ll be back in a bit! I love you!” Tabby said in a rushed voice as she put her plate in the sink, grabbed her plaid jacket, and gave her mom another tight hug and kiss. She hugged Adam tightly and ruffled his hair before heading out the door.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Tabby walked slightly taller with confidence and pep in her steps. The town was exactly how she remembered it, yet it was more colorful. 

She knew exactly where she was stopping first.

She stopped by the familiar barn red, worn-down house just a few blocks before Rosewood. Tabby knocked briskly before stepping back and praying she would be there.

The door creaked open, and a pale, lanky girl with a ginger pixie cut poked her head out the door to see who it was before opening it fully.

“Autumn!” Tabby said as she ran to her, practically tackling her into a hug.

“Tabby? What are you doing here?” asked Autumn, who was equally confused but always welcomed the shorter girl into her home. She’d never been the one to turn down Tabby’s affections.

“I’d thought I’d never see you again! Or find you here! I missed you so much!” she said, almost bursting into tears and holding onto her for dear life, afraid to let go.

“What are you talking about? You saw me and the rest on Friday, remember? What do you mean you wouldn’t find me here? You’re acting like you returned from a war and had no idea where we were!” Autumn said as she tried to pry Tabby off of her.

“Oh, you have no idea,” said Tabby, sitting crisscross and looking up at the ginger girl.

“So what are you doing here so early in the morning?” inquisitive Autumn said, getting her siblings nice and comfy and turning on the TV for them.

“I was wondering if you had plans today. My mom wants to take us all to the lake today! I still have to see if the rest can come, but I hope you will go,” she answered as she made herself at home with a cup of coffee and set one up for Autumn.

“I can’t”

“What?”

“I said I can’t,” Autumn went about her morning routine.

“What do you mean you can’t? If it’s about Riah and Mere, we can take them along, too! My mom said she was okay with it, and I’m sure your mom will be too!”

“It’s not that. I just don’t belong.”

“Nonsense, you’re like my big sister to me. You’re already family whether you like it or not. Now stop making excuses!”

“No, I mean I don’t belong here,” said Autumn, emphasizing the ‘I’ and coming up to Tabby, resting her thin hands on her shoulders and looking her in the eyes. “You don’t belong here.”

Tabby looked back, confused.

“What do you mean?”

“This isn’t your story. This isn’t your timeline. I don’t know how we both got here, but we’re not supposed to be here.” she explained gently.

“B-but can we just stay here…just for a little longer… I just found you again after months of pain, loneliness, and mourning. I’ve seen my mom happy and Adam… We have everything good again. This was what was supposed to be,” she trailed off, failing miserably at the onslaught of tears streaming down her face. 

“Perhaps in another life in a different time, huh?” Autumn said solemnly, wiping the tears from her chubby cheeks.

“It’s just not fair!” Tabby wailed

“I know.”

“I don’t want you to go.”

“I know, but your people need you.”

“I don’t want to go.”

“I know. That’s why I’m forcing you to.”

“Huh?”

Autumn pushed Tabby as hard as she could back into the abyss that was her mind. It sucked her in like a black hole.

With that, Tabby woke up.

[weirdesplinder]

E se Jane Austen fosse un vampiro?

Ho notato che i post che dedico a Jane Austen hanno sempre molto successo, è un argomento che evidentemente vi interessa, perciò ecco un nuovo post  a lei dedicato, o meglio dedicato ad alcune serie che la vedono protagonista in veste di vampiro però.

-Serie Immortal Jane Austen di Janet Mullany

Inedita in italiano

1. Jane and the Damned  

Link: https://amzn.to/3w0zIXf         

Trama:  Nel 1797, quando l'aspirante scrittrice Jane Austen diventa uno dei Dannati, i vampiri belli, alla moda e sexy dell'Inghilterra georgiana, la sua famiglia insiste affinché prenda le acque di Bath, l'unica cura conosciuta. Ma la città diventa un bagno di sangue quando i francesi invadono e i Dannati sono gli unici che possono rovesciare i francesi e salvare l’Inghilterra. Jane ora considera la sua trasformazione in vampiro come un dono. Rifiuta la cura e scopre un mondo di libertà, amore e avventura come vampiro. Ma essendo immortale, perde la capacità di scrivere e deve recidere i legami con la sua amata sorella Cassandra e il resto della sua famiglia. All'ombra della ghigliottina, Jane dovrà decidere se la vita eterna e l'amore sono un prezzo troppo alto da pagare per la perdita di ciò che significa di più per lei come mortale.

2. Jane Austen, Blood Persuasion, a novel

Trama: È il 1810 e i Dannati sono stati banditi dalla buona società di città e si sono rifugiati in campagna. I vecchi amici non morti di Jane Austen sono diventati quindi i suoi nuovi vicini, scatenando l'inferno nel suo tranquillo villaggio giusto in tempo per interrompere il lavoro di Jane su quello che sarà il suo capolavoro. All'improvviso la nipote di Jane flirta pericolosamente con i vampiri, e un'amica zitella, un tempo rispettabile, ha scoperto le gioie proibite del rapporto intimo con i Dannati (e prende in prestito le preziose calze di seta di Jane). Scrivere è semplicemente impossibile ora, con creature assassine che si aggirano per le viuzze un tempo pacifiche del villaggio. E con il ritorno delle sue caratteristiche di vampiro, una guerra civile che incombe tra le fazioni dei Dannati e un ex amante che intende trascorrere l'eternità incolpandola per il suo cuore spezzato, Jane si trova ad affrontare un anno davvero molto impegnativo.

- Jane bites back, di Michael Thomas Ford

Inedito in italiano

Link: https://amzn.to/3SpCNrm

Trama: Duecento anni dopo la sua morte, Jane Austen è ancora circondata dalla letteratura che ama, ma ora è perché è la proprietaria di Flyleaf Books in una sonnolenta città universitaria nello stato di New York. Ogni giorno guarda i suoi romanzi volare via dagli scaffali, insieme a dozzine di sequel, spin-off e adattamenti non autorizzati. Jane può anche essere un vampiro non morto, ma i suoi libri hanno acquisito una vita propria. A peggiorare le cose, il manoscritto che ha terminato poco prima di essere trasformata in vampiro è stato rifiutato dagli editori ben 116 volte. Jane desidera far sapere al mondo chi è, ma quando un improvviso scherzo del destino la riporta sotto i riflettori, deve nascondere la sua vera identità e respingere un uomo oscuro del suo passato mentre si destreggia tra due corteggiatori moderni. Riuscirà l'inimitabile Jane Austen a mantenere la calma in questa commedia di buone maniere, o mostrerà a tutti cosa può fare una donna con uno spirito acuto e una serie di zanne ancora più affilate?

 -Vampire Darcy's Desire: A Pride and Prejudice Adaptation, di Regina Jeffers

Inedito in italiano

Link: https://amzn.to/3vV5wN3

Trama: Immaginate la trama di Orgoglio e pregiudizio ma con qualche sostanziale variante come il fatto che Darcy per colpa di una maledizione di famiglia sia un dhampir metà umano metà vampiro. Immmaginate poi che Wickham sia un vero vampiro di duecento anni che odia Darcy per colpa di ciò che gli fece un suo antenato, e immaginate che anche l’antenata di Elizabeth fosse una sua conoscenza.

- Mr. Darcy, vampiro, di Amanda Grange  

Edito da Tea

https://amzn.to/3xQsFLH

Trama:  Bè il titolo dice già tutto, no? L'autrice ha deciso di aggiungere  al  fanstico mondo di Jane Austen un pizzico di paranormale. Mr. Darcy,  Vampyre inizia dove Orgoglio e pregiudizio finiva e introduce un'oscura  maledizione di famiglia…….Pericolo, oscurità e amore immortale, i punti  forti di questo libro. Da leggere solo se siete particolarmente amanti  della Austen e del gusto gotico, se amate il paranormal lasciate stare  perchè qui di paranormal in realtà c’è ben poco.

- Altra autrice che ha dedicato una serie di libri a Jane Austen è Carrie Bebris. Ogni  romanzo della serie è la rivisitazione in chiave lievemente, e ripeto  lievemente, parnormal di una delle opere della Austen, quella dedicata  ad Orgoglio e pregiudizio è:

Orgoglio e preveggenza

Edito Tea

https://amzn.to/3m3xO0I

Trama:  È cosa nota e universalmente riconosciuta che uno scapolo in possesso  di un solido patrimonio debba essere in cerca di moglie.“ Ed è una  verità cui non si sottrae Mr. Frederick Parrish, ricco e affascinante  gentiluomo americano, che sta per convolare a nozze con Caroline  Bingley. Un'atmosfera di festa avvolge i fidanzati e il matrimonio pare  suggellare la promessa di una vita serena e felice. Ma presto la gioia  s'incrina e la coppia è turbata da una serie di strani episodi: fenomeni  di sonnambulismo, cavalli imbizzarriti senza una ragione, uno  spaventoso incendio e misteriosi incidenti. Qualcuno sta perseguitando i  Parrish, ma la pericolosità della situazione pare sfuggire a tutti. A  tutti tranne a Elizabeth e Darcy, amici della giovane donna e anch'essi  sposi novelli, che mettono da parte i progetti per la luna di miele per  aiutare Caroline.

- La Harpercollins Italia, ha reso  disponibili in ebook tre dei quattro racconti che quattro autrici  famose hanno creato per  omaggiare Jane Austen,  tre storie ispirate ai  suoi romanzi, ma con un pizzico di paranormal. In lingua originale i 4 racconti sono stati raccolti in una antologia intitolata Bespelling Jane Austen. Mentre da noi in Italia tre dei racconti sopracitati, quelli di Mary Balogh, Susan Krinard e Colleen Gleason, sono disponibili singolarmente in versione ebook:

Titolo: Incantevole Persuasione

di Mary Balogh

https://amzn.to/2VXv2iU

Avevano  cercato di farle dimenticare quel pomeriggio quando, bambina, Jane  aveva dichiarato di essere stata, in una vita precedente, la giovane  figlia del curato. Ma il ricordo era rimasto lì, pronto ad affiorare e  ora finalmente, grazie a quel giovane e avvenente capitano, tutto  riemerge in superficie.Ci conosciamo da una o dieci vite. Da sempre, a  dire il vero… sono le parole che lui ha pronunciato, rivelandole una  verità inconcepibile, eppure inconfutabile. Perché il Capitano Mitford  altri non è che il suo amato perduto. Ma in tutte le vite passate la  loro storia d'amore è finita tragicamente. Sono destinati a non veder  coronato il loro amore, o forse esiste una speranza che, un giorno, il  sentimento trionfi sul crudele destino?

Titolo: Il castello di Northanger

di Susan Krinard

https://amzn.to/3g0CUXK

Caroline  Merrill nutre una passione davvero smodata per i libri e in particolare  per le novelle popolate di vampiri, castelli e buie notti di luna.  Caroline ha anche una sfrenata fantasia, che la porta ad ambientare  storie in ogni luogo che visita e a fare di ogni persona che colpisce la  sua curiosità la protagonista di un racconto. Non ha idea di quanto  possa essere pericolosa questa sua innocente passione, almeno finché non  inizia a sospettare che l'affascinante Mr. Blanchard sia uno di quei  succhiasangue che popolano le storie che tanto ama.

Titolo: Vampiri, orgoglio e pregiudizio

di Coleen Gleason

https://amzn.to/3yON4lE

Non  c'è niente di peggio di un uomo arrogante e presuntuoso!, considera  Lizzie Bennet subito dopo aver conosciuto Mr. Darcy. E poi… che razza di  nome è Fitzwilliam? E da dove esce quel suo modo di parlare affettato,  tutto fatto di Miss Elizabeth, lunghi silenzi e parole ricercate, quasi  lui fosse un damerino nel bel mezzo di un salone da ballo del 1800  invece che un giovane a una festa aziendale nel Ventunesimo secolo. In  effetti, però, quando si ritrovano vestiti entrambi in abiti Regency  durante la festa di Halloween, lui sembra proprio calato nel suo  elemento. E sembrano adatti alla notte delle streghe anche quegli occhi  dalla sfumatura rossiccia e quei denti aguzzi ben mascherati dalle  labbra sensuali, che lasciano immaginare storie oscure di zombie,  vampiri e…

[mitjo-deactivated]

Jonah. Michal. The evil twin villains.

JONAH AND MICHAL FUCK

Jonas Wagner more like?? Jared Walnuts

Mitch Mueller more like?? Michael Mullany

[un-enfant-immature]

Hybrid cloud data specialist Datrium nabs $60M led by Samsung at a $282M valuation

Cloud services — where our data, apps and computing power are all being managed in servers owned by others, many miles from where we are sitting — have taken off like a rocket in the decade with the rise of smaller devices, but in the business world, hybrid solutions — mixing cloud with on-premise architectures — remains the order of the day. And today, a provider of hybrid cloud services has raised a round of funding to capitalise on that. Datrium, a provider of back-up and other services for businesses that store and use data in hybrid environments, has raised $60 million in a Series D round of funding.

The company is not disclosing its valuation — we’re asking — but PitchBook estimates that it was at $222 million pre-money, putting it at $282 million post-money. This was an upround compared to previous raises, but it’s also playing on a more modest field than some of its competitors. As a point of comparison, another notable hybrid cloud back-up and data management startup, Rubrik, raised $180 million at a $1.3 billion valuation last year.

Interestingly, Datrium and Rubrik share an investor. This latest round was led by Samsung’s Catalyst Fund, with Icon Ventures, NEA and Lightspeed Venture Partners also participating. Lightspeed (whose investing partner founded and leads Rubrik) also backs Rubrik.

Large enterprises are gradually making the move to the cloud, but they are doing so while also continuing to use their legacy services and architectures — in part to continue sweating those assets, and in part because if something isn’t broken, it’s tempting fate to try to fix it. As a result of that, hybrid cloud services have been a big business up to now, with estimates that it will be a $44.6 billion market this year, and growing to $97.6 billion by 2023.

“As a world leader in memory and storage technologies, we’re always looking for novel and innovative ways to advance datacenter technology,” said Shankar Chandran, senior vice president and managing director, Samsung Catalyst Fund, in a statement. “At this unique moment in time—when data is powering the economy—cutting-edge infrastructure, like Datrium’s hybrid cloud platform, will help enterprises overcome major obstacles in data analysis and storage. We are excited to be an investor in their future.”

And with a market of that size, startups are not only ones targeting it. Google has gone all-in on hybrid; VMware is also interested; and HPE has made some acquisitions to expand its hybrid computing business, as has Microsoft (at least twice), and Cisco.

Datrium — with its flagship DVX platform — has been one of the hopefuls in providing a specific area of data services to enterprises operating hybrid environments: data management and data backup, with customers ranging from large players in healthcare and finance through to media and entertainment. Interestingly, it’s doing so at a time when others like Rubrik have gradually been building more cloud-only solutions to expand beyond hybrid environments customers relying on these.

With this round Michael Mullany of Icon Ventures — formerly a VP of marketing and products for VMware — is joining the board of Datrium.

“We are thrilled to partner with Samsung and Icon Ventures to expand our technical and geographical momentum,” said Tim Page, CEO of Datrium, in a statement. “Enterprises globally have the same problems in simplifying compute and data management across on-prem and cloud. Where SANs don’t even have a  path to cloud, traditional HCI has too many tradeoffs for core datacenters – backup requires separate purchasing and administration, and cloud DR automation is seldom guaranteed. Larger enterprises are realizing that Datrium software offers them a simpler path.”

[narcisbolgor-blog]

Australian PM demands answers in ‘inexplicable’ killing of Justine Ruszczyk

(CNN)Australia's prime minister has demanded answers to the "inexplicable" killing of an Australian-American woman shot by police in Minneapolis.

"This is a shocking killing. It is inexplicable," Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull told Australian Channel 9's "Today" program Wednesday, in his first public comments since Justine Ruszczyk's death on Saturday.

"I mean, how can a woman out in the street in her pyjamas seeking assistance from the police be shot like that?" he said. "We are demanding answers, something clearly went tragically wrong."

Ruszczyk had called 911 to report a possible sexual assault near her home, her fianc, Don Damond, said Monday.

Two police officers responded, and one of them, Mohamed Noor, shot her in the abdomen, killing her, according to police and an autopsy report.

Police have not explained how the shooting happened, leaving friends, family -- and now the Australian government -- demanding answers.

How Justine Ruszczyk's friend heard of her death

Vigil

Australian friends and family gathered on a beach near Ruszczyk's childhood home to honor the 40-year-old yoga teacher and spiritual healer in a silent vigil at dawn on Wednesday.

Around 200 friends and family gathered on Freshwater Beach in the northern Sydney suburbs as the sun rose, holding candles in silent memory of the Sydney native, according to CNN affiliate Seven News.

At 7 a.m. local time (5 p.m. ET), mourners silently laid her favorite pink flowers into the swell in a low key ceremony led by her father, John Ruszczyk, Australian media reported.

Members of community where she grew up, including former school friends, ex-colleagues and their families, attended the vigil. The community is still coming to terms with her unexpected death on the other side of the world.

Questions asked

In a press conference held by Minneapolis Mayor Betsy Hodges, several Australian journalists probed officials about the experience and training of the officers involved, as well as deeper questions about the country's gun and law enforcement cultures.

Mayor: I wish officer would speak

Who is police officer who fired shot?

What we know and don't know

Woman killed was to marry next month

Seven News reporter Ashlee Mullany demanded to know why Ruszczyk's family in Australia was being kept in the dark as to the progress of the investigation.

Hodges said that the victim's father and brother would be informed when the independent body investigating the shooting had any information that it was able to release.

Another reporter asked why two relatively inexperienced officers were responding to the call, and questioned the effectiveness of their training.

"Why do you have a law and order culture in this city where you have two rookie youngsters arrive in a patrol car late at night, with guns they don't seem to know how to use?" asked Paul McGeough, chief foreign correspondent of the Sydney Morning Herald, one of the country's largest-circulation dailies and the hometown paper of Ruszczyk before she moved to the US.

Mayor: Can't compel officer to make statement

Hodges admitted that the question spoke to the wider culture of policing in the US.

"We are in a country where people have guns but... these were two fully trained police officers," she said.

"What I can say is that, even before we had an officer-involved shooting a couple of years ago, even before that, we as a city were doing everything we could to put a foundation of 21st century policing in place."

In his televised interview, Turnbull said that Australian Consul-General Michael Wood, based in Chicago, is demanding answers of the Minneapolis city government.

"We are providing all the support we can, but this is... it seems inexplicable, but note, there will be some answers given in due course.

"At this point, it is a tragic loss, this young Australian woman and again, our hearts go out to her family with sorrow and with condolence and with love."

More From this publisher : HERE

=> *********************************************** Read More Here: Australian PM demands answers in ‘inexplicable’ killing of Justine Ruszczyk ************************************ =>

Australian PM demands answers in ‘inexplicable’ killing of Justine Ruszczyk was originally posted by 11 VA Viral News

[morganbelarus]

Australian PM demands answers in ‘inexplicable’ killing of Justine Ruszczyk

(CNN)Australia's prime minister has demanded answers to the "inexplicable" killing of an Australian-American woman shot by police in Minneapolis.

"This is a shocking killing. It is inexplicable," Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull told Australian Channel 9's "Today" program Wednesday, in his first public comments since Justine Ruszczyk's death on Saturday.

"I mean, how can a woman out in the street in her pyjamas seeking assistance from the police be shot like that?" he said. "We are demanding answers, something clearly went tragically wrong."

Ruszczyk had called 911 to report a possible sexual assault near her home, her fianc, Don Damond, said Monday.

Two police officers responded, and one of them, Mohamed Noor, shot her in the abdomen, killing her, according to police and an autopsy report.

Police have not explained how the shooting happened, leaving friends, family -- and now the Australian government -- demanding answers.

How Justine Ruszczyk's friend heard of her death

Vigil

Australian friends and family gathered on a beach near Ruszczyk's childhood home to honor the 40-year-old yoga teacher and spiritual healer in a silent vigil at dawn on Wednesday.

Around 200 friends and family gathered on Freshwater Beach in the northern Sydney suburbs as the sun rose, holding candles in silent memory of the Sydney native, according to CNN affiliate Seven News.

At 7 a.m. local time (5 p.m. ET), mourners silently laid her favorite pink flowers into the swell in a low key ceremony led by her father, John Ruszczyk, Australian media reported.

Members of community where she grew up, including former school friends, ex-colleagues and their families, attended the vigil. The community is still coming to terms with her unexpected death on the other side of the world.

Questions asked

In a press conference held by Minneapolis Mayor Betsy Hodges, several Australian journalists probed officials about the experience and training of the officers involved, as well as deeper questions about the country's gun and law enforcement cultures.

Mayor: I wish officer would speak

Who is police officer who fired shot?

What we know and don't know

Woman killed was to marry next month

Seven News reporter Ashlee Mullany demanded to know why Ruszczyk's family in Australia was being kept in the dark as to the progress of the investigation.

Hodges said that the victim's father and brother would be informed when the independent body investigating the shooting had any information that it was able to release.

Another reporter asked why two relatively inexperienced officers were responding to the call, and questioned the effectiveness of their training.

"Why do you have a law and order culture in this city where you have two rookie youngsters arrive in a patrol car late at night, with guns they don't seem to know how to use?" asked Paul McGeough, chief foreign correspondent of the Sydney Morning Herald, one of the country's largest-circulation dailies and the hometown paper of Ruszczyk before she moved to the US.

Mayor: Can't compel officer to make statement

Hodges admitted that the question spoke to the wider culture of policing in the US.

"We are in a country where people have guns but... these were two fully trained police officers," she said.

"What I can say is that, even before we had an officer-involved shooting a couple of years ago, even before that, we as a city were doing everything we could to put a foundation of 21st century policing in place."

In his televised interview, Turnbull said that Australian Consul-General Michael Wood, based in Chicago, is demanding answers of the Minneapolis city government.

"We are providing all the support we can, but this is... it seems inexplicable, but note, there will be some answers given in due course.

"At this point, it is a tragic loss, this young Australian woman and again, our hearts go out to her family with sorrow and with condolence and with love."

More From this publisher : HERE

=> *********************************************** Learn More Here: Australian PM demands answers in ‘inexplicable’ killing of Justine Ruszczyk ************************************ =>

Australian PM demands answers in ‘inexplicable’ killing of Justine Ruszczyk was originally posted by 16 MP Just news

[theinvinciblenoob]

Cloud services — where our data, apps and computing power are all being managed in servers owned by others, many miles from where we are sitting — have taken off like a rocket in the decade with the rise of smaller devices, but in the business world, hybrid solutions — mixing cloud with on-premise architectures — remains the order of the day. And today, a provider of hybrid cloud services has raised a round of funding to capitalise on that. Datrium, a provider of back-up and other services for businesses that store and use data in hybrid environments, has raised $60 million in a Series D round of funding.

The company is not disclosing its valuation — we’re asking — but PitchBook estimates that it was at $222 million pre-money, putting it at $282 million post-money. This was an upround compared to previous raises, but it’s also playing on a more modest field than some of its competitors. As a point of comparison, another notable hybrid cloud back-up and data management startup, Rubrik, raised $180 million at a $1.3 billion valuation last year.

Interestingly, Datrium and Rubrik share an investor. This latest round was led by Samsung’s Catalyst Fund, with Icon Ventures, NEA and Lightspeed Venture Partners also participating. Lightspeed (whose investing partner founded and leads Rubrik) also backs Rubrik.

Large enterprises are gradually making the move to the cloud, but they are doing so while also continuing to use their legacy services and architectures — in part to continue sweating those assets, and in part because if something isn’t broken, it’s tempting fate to try to fix it. As a result of that, hybrid cloud services have been a big business up to now, with estimates that it will be a $44.6 billion market this year, and growing to $97.6 billion by 2023.

“As a world leader in memory and storage technologies, we’re always looking for novel and innovative ways to advance datacenter technology,” said Shankar Chandran, senior vice president and managing director, Samsung Catalyst Fund, in a statement. “At this unique moment in time—when data is powering the economy—cutting-edge infrastructure, like Datrium’s hybrid cloud platform, will help enterprises overcome major obstacles in data analysis and storage. We are excited to be an investor in their future.”

And with a market of that size, startups are not only ones targeting it. Google has gone all-in on hybrid; VMware is also interested; and HPE has made some acquisitions to expand its hybrid computing business, as has Microsoft (at least twice), and Cisco.

Datrium — with its flagship DVX platform — has been one of the hopefuls in providing a specific area of data services to enterprises operating hybrid environments: data management and data backup, with customers ranging from large players in healthcare and finance through to media and entertainment. Interestingly, it’s doing so at a time when others like Rubrik have gradually been building more cloud-only solutions to expand beyond hybrid environments customers relying on these.

With this round Michael Mullany of Icon Ventures — formerly a VP of marketing and products for VMware — is joining the board of Datrium.

“We are thrilled to partner with Samsung and Icon Ventures to expand our technical and geographical momentum,” said Tim Page, CEO of Datrium, in a statement. “Enterprises globally have the same problems in simplifying compute and data management across on-prem and cloud. Where SANs don’t even have a  path to cloud, traditional HCI has too many tradeoffs for core datacenters – backup requires separate purchasing and administration, and cloud DR automation is seldom guaranteed. Larger enterprises are realizing that Datrium software offers them a simpler path.”

via TechCrunch

[project-rosewood-476]

Chapter 10/ Lyra

Adam's missing his sister more than ever but what happens when he unknowingly saved a ghost girl who may be closer to him than he thought. What kind of bond will form between the unlikely pair?

Adam mullany, Tabby Anderson, Michael mullany and maplehood creek all belong to me

some iterations of the creeps and the pocket belong to @creepypasta-shtick and you should go check them out!

Adam stood by his bedroom window, resting his head on his arms and watching the other kids play in the cold weather. He wished he could play with the other kids, but his father would say no, saying that they’re bad people and that he shouldn’t want to associate with them.

But those are the people he goes to school with. He knows those people. How can they be bad people?

He wishes that his sister was here to explain things to him. To spend time with him, to love him.

He wishes he wasn’t so goddamn alone all the time.

Adam sighed before noticing the room getting colder and the hairs sticking up from the back of his neck. He slowly turned around and gasped as he saw the horrifying sight before him with his wide eyes.

It was the girl’s grave he cleared in the cemetery not long ago.

“Wha- what are you doing here? You’re not supposed to be here! Who are you?” stammered the little boy, startled by the ghost’s appearance. His wide eyes widened impossibly more. The Ghost’s appearance was unsettling. Half of her jaw was unhinged and bloody, and her body was covered in loose, bloody bandages. That seemed to be the only thing holding her body together, save for the scraps of fabric that were once clothes. Some limbs were crooked and out of place, all signs of an accident. 

He’d forgotten that spirits usually keep their appearance their last few moments before death. It took forever for the two to stare at each other before the ghost girl snapped and contorted into a less intimidating form of herself.    

“Lyra…You…?” she croaked out

“Adam,” the boy finally said. “What are you doing here? Are you lost?” he asked, tilting his head to the side as he took several steps toward the apparition.

“Help…” croaked out Lyra.

“Help?”

“You.”

“Help me? Why would I need help?” Adam furrowed his eyebrow in confusion.

“Lost…Sister…” Lyra tilted her head to mimic Adam. Almost as if she's struggling to remember what she was going to say.

“Lost? Sister? Are you a lost sister? Is Tabby lost? Am I lost? W-what do you mean?” 

Lyra flowed to him at the speed of light. Adam barely blinked before he could register her movements. She put a crooked and mangled hand to his heart. He gasped and took a step back at how cold the touch was and the suddenness of it.

“Hurt”. The girl looked at him with a mix of sorrow and pity.

“I-” started Adam before gulping, “I guess I am..” he looked away.

“You…Toby..” Lyra pointed at him.

“No, I’m Adam,” he said, confused as he pointed at himself.

She shook her head.

“No. Toby.”

“Who.. was this Toby?” he began to prod gently. Any information to help her out.

“Brother…You..” Lyra was trying to explain but was frustrated at being unable to speak fluently.

“Was Toby your brother?”

Lyra looked down for a long time before answering.

“Yes.”

“I see,” said Adam as he rubbed the back of his neck, not knowing what to say or do next. What was he supposed to do with this information? Was he supposed to find this Toby? Give them closure? Was he just supposed to pass on a message to them?

“I’m sorry…” he said after a while to break the silence.

“Help.”

“Help.”

“Help!”

The ghost girl came towards him with each help, being more desperate than the last, until she got right in his face at the frightened boy. 

“HELP!”

“HELP WITH WHAT?!” Adam shouted back.

There was a knock on his bedroom door before it swung wide open, startling the little boy, turning to see who the intruder was.

“Who were you talking to in there?” demanded his father as he towered over the boy in the doorframe. 

“I was just-” Adam pointed to where Lyra was, only to discover she wasn’t there anymore.

“N-no one,” he muttered, confused,

“Then stop wasting time and clean the house!” Michael demanded

“But I don’t know how. I never-” he was cut off.

“Then figure it out! Or there will be trouble up ahead, do you understand? I didn’t raise a stupid kid, unlike your sister! God, where is she when I need her?!” he snapped, agitated.

“Yes,” Adam bowed his head in submission. Tabby always told him to do as he was told and stay out of the way. Straight path straight A Adam never go astray Adam.

It was nauseating, but it was a way of survival. Tabby made sure of it. But now that she wasn’t here anymore, he’d have to survive alone.

“Good,” his father answered before returning to his solidarity in his room.

Adam flinched when the door slammed shut. He’d better get to work before trouble finds him. He looked to where Lyra was, but she still didn’t show up. He shook his head before leaving the safety of his room to go clean.

[wheezer256]

via Pocket

[ralphmorgan-blog1]

Australian PM demands answers in ‘inexplicable’ killing of Justine Ruszczyk

(CNN)Australia's prime minister has demanded answers to the "inexplicable" killing of an Australian-American woman shot by police in Minneapolis.

"This is a shocking killing. It is inexplicable," Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull told Australian Channel 9's "Today" program Wednesday, in his first public comments since Justine Ruszczyk's death on Saturday.

"I mean, how can a woman out in the street in her pyjamas seeking assistance from the police be shot like that?" he said. "We are demanding answers, something clearly went tragically wrong."

Ruszczyk had called 911 to report a possible sexual assault near her home, her fianc, Don Damond, said Monday.

Two police officers responded, and one of them, Mohamed Noor, shot her in the abdomen, killing her, according to police and an autopsy report.

Police have not explained how the shooting happened, leaving friends, family -- and now the Australian government -- demanding answers.

How Justine Ruszczyk's friend heard of her death

Vigil

Australian friends and family gathered on a beach near Ruszczyk's childhood home to honor the 40-year-old yoga teacher and spiritual healer in a silent vigil at dawn on Wednesday.

Around 200 friends and family gathered on Freshwater Beach in the northern Sydney suburbs as the sun rose, holding candles in silent memory of the Sydney native, according to CNN affiliate Seven News.

At 7 a.m. local time (5 p.m. ET), mourners silently laid her favorite pink flowers into the swell in a low key ceremony led by her father, John Ruszczyk, Australian media reported.

Members of community where she grew up, including former school friends, ex-colleagues and their families, attended the vigil. The community is still coming to terms with her unexpected death on the other side of the world.

Questions asked

In a press conference held by Minneapolis Mayor Betsy Hodges, several Australian journalists probed officials about the experience and training of the officers involved, as well as deeper questions about the country's gun and law enforcement cultures.

Mayor: I wish officer would speak

Who is police officer who fired shot?

What we know and don't know

Woman killed was to marry next month

Seven News reporter Ashlee Mullany demanded to know why Ruszczyk's family in Australia was being kept in the dark as to the progress of the investigation.

Hodges said that the victim's father and brother would be informed when the independent body investigating the shooting had any information that it was able to release.

Another reporter asked why two relatively inexperienced officers were responding to the call, and questioned the effectiveness of their training.

"Why do you have a law and order culture in this city where you have two rookie youngsters arrive in a patrol car late at night, with guns they don't seem to know how to use?" asked Paul McGeough, chief foreign correspondent of the Sydney Morning Herald, one of the country's largest-circulation dailies and the hometown paper of Ruszczyk before she moved to the US.

Mayor: Can't compel officer to make statement

Hodges admitted that the question spoke to the wider culture of policing in the US.

"We are in a country where people have guns but... these were two fully trained police officers," she said.

"What I can say is that, even before we had an officer-involved shooting a couple of years ago, even before that, we as a city were doing everything we could to put a foundation of 21st century policing in place."

In his televised interview, Turnbull said that Australian Consul-General Michael Wood, based in Chicago, is demanding answers of the Minneapolis city government.

"We are providing all the support we can, but this is... it seems inexplicable, but note, there will be some answers given in due course.

"At this point, it is a tragic loss, this young Australian woman and again, our hearts go out to her family with sorrow and with condolence and with love."

More From this publisher : HERE

=> *********************************************** Learn More Here: Australian PM demands answers in ‘inexplicable’ killing of Justine Ruszczyk ************************************ =>

Australian PM demands answers in ‘inexplicable’ killing of Justine Ruszczyk was originally posted by A 18 MOA Top News from around

[tjbowen]

I had the privilege of sitting down with @tarynlafauci, mid tour - right before we played the @enmore_theatre in Sydney - to record the July edition of her podcast, The Top of the World, for @theaureview. It's a heavy listen, but if you have the time, we pulled apart everything that's happened in the last 2 years from touring the country & abroad, my favourite songs, what books I'm reading, car accidents to cancer and all the music & recovery in between. I even sat down and recorded two BRAND NEW songs; 'Angels in Blue' - a tribute to the nurses that took care of me during my treatment at Wollongong Hospital - and 'Anchor' - a song summing up the last few years with my gorgeous fiancé, Christina Mullany (@petitepois). The Episode also features songs from @juliajacklin, @sambuckingham, @clarembee, @shanenicholson & Bonnie Raitt. You can find it by heading to my artist page on Facebook or googling "Timothy Bowen AU Review Podcast". I will also be appearing at the next AU Review sponsored 'In The Round' #002 at @leadbellynewtown, curated by Maples on August 9 in Sydney. A massive thank you to Michael J Roberts and Dianne Forsyth for hosting us and Larry Heath for his support. And to Taryn - Thank you for being the beautiful, easy going person you are. It was a such a pleasure to spend my Saturday morning drinking tea & sharing stories with you. I hope to do it again soon. Happy Friday!🐋🦌💖✨ 📷: @reece.mcmillan

[needyourglowtoglow]

World's 8 Richest Have as Much Wealth as Bottom Half, Oxfam Says

relevant to analysis of wealth inequities & health inequities, within & between countries:

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/01/16/world/eight-richest-wealth-oxfam.html?emc=edit_nn_20170117&nl=morning-briefing&nlid=13652993&ref=world&te=1&_r=0

World's 8 Richest Have as Much Wealth as Bottom Half, Oxfam Says

By GERRY MULLANY<http://www.nytimes.com/by/gerry-mullany>JAN. 16, 2017 -- New York Times

[https://static01.nyt.com/images/2017/01/17/world/17WEALTH-1/17WEALTH-1-master768.jpg]

clockwise from top left: Bill Gates, Amancio Ortega Gaona, Warren E. Buffett, Carlos Slim Helú, Jeff Bezos, Mark Zuckerberg, Lawrence J. Ellison, Michael R. Bloomberg. Credit NYT; Reuters; Reuters; Reuters; Getty; European Pressphoto Agency; Getty; AP

How concentrated has wealth become in the globalized modern world? Here's one answer<https://www.oxfam.org/en/pressroom/pressreleases/2017-01-16/just-8-men-own-same-wealth-half-world>: Just eight of the richest people on earth own as much combined wealth as half the human race.

That's a notable change from last year<https://www.nytimes.com/2016/05/26/international-home/a-global-push-to-address-trade-and-inequality.html>, when it was reckoned to take 62 of the superrich to match the assets of the 3.6 billion people in the poorer half of mankind.

The charity Oxfam does the math each year and publishes its results just in time for the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, where many of the spectacularly wealthy are often among the attendees, along with diplomats, political figures, and business and cultural leaders. The Oxfam report on inequality is on the agenda<https://www.weforum.org/events/world-economic-forum-annual-meeting-2017> for discussion at the forum.

Oxfam bases its figures in part on Forbes's annual list of billionaires and the magazine's estimates of their wealth. This year, Oxfam said, new data gathered by Credit Suisse about the global poor led it to lower its estimates of their assets, and revise its findings about how few rich men - the eight are all men - were needed to equal the wealth of 3.6 billion people.

Here are the eight, with their net worth as estimated by Forbes, whose annual survey<http://www.forbes.com/billionaires/list/#version:static> depends on a range of sources<http://www.forbes.com/sites/kerryadolan/2012/03/07/methodology-how-we-crunch-the-numbers/#51aded421511>:

Bill Gates<http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/people/g/bill_gates/index.html?inline=nyt-per>, the founder of Microsoft, led the list with a net worth of $75 billion. He is scheduled to speak at the forum in Davos this year.

Amancio Ortega Gaona, the Spanish founder of the fashion company Inditex, best known for its oldest and biggest brand, Zara, has a net worth of $67 billion.

Warren E. Buffett<http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/people/b/warren_e_buffett/index.html?inline=nyt-per>, the chairman of Berkshire Hathaway, $60.8 billion.

Carlos Slim Helú<http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/people/s/carlos_slim_helu/index.html?inline=nyt-per>, the Mexican telecommunications magnate, $50 billion.

Jeff Bezos<http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/people/b/jeffrey_p_bezos/index.html?inline=nyt-per>, the founder of Amazon, $45.2 billion.

Mark Zuckerberg<http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/people/z/mark_e_zuckerberg/index.html?inline=nyt-per>, Facebook's creator, $44.6 billion.

Lawrence J. Ellison<http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/people/e/lawrence_j_ellison/index.html?inline=nyt-per>, the founder of Oracle, $43.6 billion.

Michael R. Bloomberg<http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/people/b/michael_r_bloomberg/index.html?inline=nyt-per>, the former mayor of New York and founder of the media and financial-data giant Bloomberg L.L.P., $40 billion.

[devops-sysadmin]

As a massive data nerd, and an investor interested in the container space, I've been tracking Docker momentum using LinkedIN profiles for the last two years.

[project-rosewood-476]

MASTERLIST:

Tabby Anderson's Back Story

Every Rose Has Its Thorns (ERHIT):

-Chapter 1/ A Twist in Fate

-Chapter 2 part 1/ Choices

-Chapter 2 part 2/ Choices

-Chapter 2 part 3/ Choices

-Chapter 2 part 4/ Choices

-Chapter 3/ Seein Red

-Chapter 4/ Two Steps Forward One Step Back

-Chapter 5/ Making Amends

-Chapter 6/ 3 am Endeavors

-Chapter 7/ Adam

-Chapter 8/ Of Mind and Matter

-Chapter 9/ New School New Me or So I Thought

-Chapter 10/ Lyra

Side Fics (for ERHIT):

-I Hate U (NON CANON TO THE AU TW: NSFW)

-A Battle You Can't Win

-The Long Way Home

-Love? What's That?

-House of Gold

-Sentimentality, Sensuality and Sexuality (NON CANON TO THE AU TW: NSFW)

-I'm Right Here

-Something There

-Not All That Bad

-Don't Tell Dad Please

-But Why?

-Underneath the Willow Tree

-Perhaps in Another Life in a Different Time

World Building:

-Plot for ERHIT AU

-How Rosewood honors their dead

-Tabby and her many names

-Rosewood Prep's Honor and Fight Codes

-The town of Maplehood Creek and other neighboring towns

-Types of spirits at Rosewood

-Rosewood Preparatory School timeline

-Worldbuilding questions for Rosewood, Maplehood Creek, Applewood Creek, and Holy Ann but mostly Rosewood

-Tabby HC #1

-Tabby HC #4

-Tabby HC #2

-A Dawning Realization about Tabby

-A Second Dawning

-The 3rd Dawning

-The 4th Dawning

Misc. Stuff for ERHIT:

-Tabby x Toby moodboard

-The Ballad of Tabby and Horatio

-Fever project for Tabby x Horatio

-Fan art of chapter 1 of ERHIT

-Tabby and Religious themes at Rosewood (TW: RELIGION)

-Seein Red by Unwritten Law and how it relates to Tabby in chapter 3 of ERHIT

-Fan art of Tabby x Toby

-Tabbys voice

-Tabby cosplay

-Tabby x Horatio moodboard

-Tabby x Autumn moodboard

-Tabby x Heath moodboard

-Tabby and her siblings moodboard

-Tabby and her stepdad moodboard

-Tabby and Masky moodboard

-Tabby x Hoodie moodboard (NON CANON)

-Autumn moodboard

-Adam moodboard

-Michael Mullaney iii moodboard

-Michael Mullaney moodboard

-Tabby x Horatio playlist

-Tabby x Autumn playlist

-Tabby x Toby playlist

-Tabby x Heath playlist

-Tabby and the fam playlist

-Tabby x Autumn art

-Jeff and Adam fan art

-Happy 20th Birthday Tabby Anderson

-ERHIT incorrect quote #1

-Tabby x Toby fanart #2

-Rivals

-Dirty Thoughts (TW: NSFW NON CANON)

-A little rendezvous in the hallway (TW: NSFW NON CANON)

-Caught and Trapped (TW: NSFW NON CANON)

-Horatio coming to fuck shit up

-ERHIT incorrect quotes #2

-ERHIT meme #1

-ERHIT meme #2

-ERHIT meme #3

-The Anderson Siblings meme

-Nugget

-During Chapter 4 be like

-ERHIT meme #4

-Two meme for the price of one

-ERHIT meme #5

-ERHIT meme #6

-ERHIT meme #7

-Also during chapter 4 be like

-meta for Tabby

[project-rosewood-476]

Not All That Bad

This is another side fic for ERHIT AU. I am going home for thanksgiving break soon and I'm going to see my dad again so I need some way to process this. Anyways there is a hurt/comfort thing with Tabby's dad ACTUALLY being a parent. Tabby Anderson, Michael Mullany, Horatio Galloway and Rosewood all belong to me. Enjoy!

Summary: Tabby comes home after the aftermath of what was essentially a break up between her and Horatio. Nervous about what her dad would say and do she tries to cover up her tears but ends up failing and telling him everything. Sometimes people can be kind though not much.

Tabby felt the familiar sense of dread come over her, making her legs heavy as she continued the last stretch of the walk home from school. Today was a shit day for her. The day she had her first heartbreak from no other than Horatio Galloway. However, she was happy that she had her group back and no longer needed Horatio’s help to survive. However, she did not know that he had changed for the better they could have had and been so much more together. They had no reason to go back to being enemies; they could have been friends; he could have joined her group, and they could have continued to rewrite Rosewood’s history and turned the tables of Rosewood’s cruel game.

But alas, he chose his pride and reputation over everything else. Part of being Karma is giving people free will and giving them enough rope to hang themselves.

Still, he had no right to reject her offer so harshly and cruelly.

Tabby took her time going up the thirteen steps to her apartment. She kept her hand on the doorknob, taking in deep, shaky breaths to get rid of her sniveling breaths and sniffles. She used the sleeve of her signature plaid jacket to dry her face off from tears. Her cheeks were red, and her extensive eyes were puffy, but that was as good as she was going to get.

She knew her dad wouldn’t take too kindly to her visible weakness.

Maybe if she were quiet and avoided all eye contact, perhaps he wouldn’t notice or be up yet, and she could get off scot-free. She braced herself for battle, keeping an emotionless expression as she rounded the corner of the walkway of the entrance and stepped into the kitchen. With a final deep breath, she turned the doorknob and pushed her way in, and gently closed the door behind her. She was putting her bag in the corner for now.

It turns out the bastard was up and was already standing up in the living room and peering into the kitchen at Tabby’s arrival. That made Tabby stop dead in her tracts as she made eye contact with him with a deer in the headlights look even though she didn’t do anything wrong yet. Michael stopped a few feet in front of her to analyze her.

“Puffy eyes, red cheeks, dead on the inside look, uneven breathing. She’s been crying for a while now, so something must have happened at school, and it must have been something significant to her. She tried to cover it up before she came back here,” he thought to himself as he looked her over with his cold, calculating eyes.

Tabby looked down and began crying again, letting out guttural sobs as she ran to him and held him tight. She was burying her face in his chest to muffle the sobs and getting tears and snot all over his shirt. Her dad stumbled a couple of steps back in shock at the sudden outburst and embrace of the twelve-year-old little girl in front of him. He looked up at the ceiling with a look of grimace and held his arms up to avoid touching her.

“I-I tried to do w-what you said I should d-do, and he said n-no,” Tabby said in between hiccups and sniffles and tears.

Then it rang the bell for him. She was talking about their conversion a couple of days ago about what she should do with Horatio. He told her that if she saw change in him, she should try to convince him to join her group as a symbol of forgiveness, and if he genuinely cared for her back, he would gladly accept. Or, at the very least, they could remain friends and go their separate ways.

From the looks of Tabby’s reaction, he knew none of that happened.

“First, calm down so I can understand you. I can’t understand sniveling brats. Now what exactly happened, honey?” he said sternly but couldn’t help but have a softer edge to his voice. He had one arm loosely around her to rub her arm in an attempt to comfort her. Right now, she was fragile and vulnerable; he couldn’t afford to break her spirit just yet.

“Even though it would be so much easier now to do so in the current state she’s in. She’s like a child again. She is crawling to her dad for support when things go wrong and saying that you were right—a true daddy’s little girl through and through. She’s so dependent on you right now why with just the right words, you could break her entirely and make her entirely dependent on your will alone,” schemed the little voice inside his head.

Michael gritted his teeth as he looked down at the child clinging to him for dear life still hiding in his chest. This was not what either of them needed right now. Right now, Tabby was going through her first heartbreak; she was genuinely broken for now. And now he needed to be her hero to swoop in and save the day.

“I asked him to join as you said. I was giving him a second chance because he’s earned it, and I was selfish enough not to want to lose my newfound friend. I could call him a friend until a few hours ago. At first, he kind of looked at me like I was stupid. I’m not stupid! So I asked him to join me again as a friend. He tried to pull the arrogant card of saying how he would never join my group. The rag-tag group of outcasts the merry band of misfits, and he claimed that I didn’t MAKE him change, and he hasn’t changed. I called him out on his stuff because I could see through that, and he didn’t mean it. I tried to convince him that he would have genuine friends who were genuinely loyal and had his back instead of through fear, and I know that he’s changed! I’m not crazy!” she started slowly but was picking up pace as she talked fast.

“I asked him again the third time around. I wasn’t ready to give up on him yet! I tried to go the more understanding route of saying how change isn’t overnight, and we would have to face a lot of hardships before everything settled down, and I was willing to throw away my pride and reputation for him for something entirely new. I told him that he was so much more than his money and his parents, and he could be so much more than what his parents and himself ever expected to be. I also tried to explain to him the odds of us coming together like this and with our combined influence and intellect, we could have turned the tables of Rosewood’s cruel game and go down in Rosewood history as legends. If he would just let me help him because I knew he was scared of taking that step. I could feel it.”

“And?” Michael prodded gently while rubbing her back.

“I don’t want to repeat the whole ending, so to sum it up, he chose his pride and reputation over everything that we had and could have. And well, who was I tell him no?”

He stayed silent for a while listening to Tabby talk, and at this point, it was word vomit, and she was back to crying again.

“He didn’t have to be so vicious and cruel about it! I thought I could save him! But I was wrong..” she said in defeat.

“Unfortunately, you can’t save everyone you meet—especially the ones who don’t want to be saved. I’m so sorry, honey. I hate that you had to go through that,” he said soothingly as he gave held Tabby in a tight hug real quick.

“It’s okay. I hate boys, and I hate everyone! I’ll never trust again!” said Tabby with such conviction and venom laced in her voice.

He smiled to himself a little in triumph as Tabby was still hiding her face. These were the lessons he was trying to teach Tabby all along. All people, especially the ones she liked, will always let her down, and they will never be genuinely kind to her, and it’s safer to hate and trust no one. Maybe this time, this will be the day where it finally sinks in.

“That’s what I like to hear,” he said in that fatherly tone of his as he held Tabby out away from him and patted her on the head.

“See? This is what she gets for being too nice and forgiving! Especially a boy for her! Nothing but heartbreak and pain! Honestly, she should have seen this coming. I don’t know why you’re indulging her,” lectured the voice in his head.

He quickly silenced it and gently led tabby by the sleeve of her shirt and sat her down at the table and grabbed her face and wiped away her tears, and made sure she was listening to him about what he had to say next.

“I want you to take this as a lesson. You never change for anyone. You shouldn’t have to sacrifice something if the other party isn’t willing to do the same. If they can’t accept you for who you are, they don’t deserve you. Since this Horatio fellow wasn’t willing to join you and your little group, he isn’t your real friend, and that makes him your enemy that would make anyone your enemy. Do you understand me?” her dad said coldly, losing that fatherly warmth he had just a moment ago.

Tabby nodded since it was hard for her to speak with her cheeks and jaw being squeezed.

He grinned after.

“Good”

He gave her a heavy tap on her cheek as he got up to make her favorite: peanut butter and jelly sandwich. He supposed that he could be lenient this one time with her. She needed it at the moment.

“Is this what heartbreak feels like?” asked Tabby miserably as she was laying her cheek on the table with her arms spread out also on the table in front of her.

“‘Fraid so honey,” he said sympathetically like he’s been there before as he sat the plate down in front of her.

Tabby sat up and perked up a little at the smell of peanut butter and began to eat it, having a small smile on her face.

Satisfied with that, Tabby’s dad nodded and walked away to head back into his room before turning over his shoulder and speaking to her.

“If you don’t have any homework to do, you can go to bed early as soon as you’re done with your sandwich and do the dishes.”

“Thanks,” said Tabby sweetly and softly

He scoffed at her and looked away.

“Don’t mention it.”

With that, he retreated into his room, leaving Tabby alone with her sandwich and her thoughts. It was sad to say that that was the most kindness she had ever received from him. But it’s those rare times where she keeps thinking that maybe.

He’s not all that bad sometimes.