Hi! If is it possible to consider straight bar dip the opposite of a pull up, then what tipe of dip is the analogue to chin up?

I'm looking for help and to vent by expressing myself here. I'm not comfortable with my marriage.
First, I'm going to try to speak as best as possible without dirtying my wife. I'm not looking for people to agree with me, but rather I'm looking to express myself in case someone thinks I need help or I need to take some action to walk away from my marriage.
I have been married to my wife for 4 and a half years. When I met her, she showed a unique angelic personality and she was someone who had fallen in love with me and that was what attracted me a lot because she was a light in my life cuz I was somewhat lonely. We got married in 4 months. She told me that She was about to give up on man and that I was the last chance. I realized that she was the right woman because she seemed to come from healthy and ordinary path (like me, I don't drink or do drugs just sports and reading). This is also having already realized that with alcohol she is too euphoric, she opens up to anyone and she doesn't know how to say NO. But since I was always going to be with her, that wasn't a problem.
But then after 7 months (already 3 months of marriage) I got a random message from an unknown person (who ended up being a person from her past) telling me to check me out because she had herpes, because almost the entire neighborhood had fuck*d with her. (4 - 5 years ago). I confronted her about it and she denied me about the herpes, because herpes was a thing of the past and was not transmisible, but she didn't deny the rest and she didn't know what to say.
that left me in shock because I remember well what I had thought about her in those first months when we met. I thought "but how is it possible! If she doesn't seem like it" she is such a good and loving person! I don't understand. Chaos broke out! But she swore to me that she was going to be loyal to me and that she did that when she was involved in drugs and alcohol and when she was single and never when she was in a relationship, and she recognizes that it was the worst mistake of her life.. Even so curiosity killed me since I didn't know her (and I actually didn't know because were just 7 months) and I grabbed her phone to check her past conversations because I wanted to know who I had gotten engaged to. And her messages from 4 - 7 years ago were with too many men and they were all too sexual and sometimes more than sexual with photos, and they only spoke to her to fu_ck in a way that was too vulgar, and she accepted and read that she seemed somewhat proud of that. I mean, the message from the young stranger made sense. I went through too much stress and lost body weight because it was very difficult for me to manage all that, and I simply asked her to delete those people from her social media as a respect to me. The rest I couldn't get angry because it was something of the past.
After those 7 months I eventually discovered that she also has problems Premenstual dismorphoc disorder- hormone disorder and some past traumas. And she takes some pills like Prozac because she suffers from social anxiety and also tends to pull out her eyelashes.
And with alcohol, since this is the important issue, she changes radically in her personality, and she likes the way she feels, and even in one of his conversations with the boys (from his past) I read that she told to one of them that with alcohol it is impossible to control herself and she flirts without wanting to, even when she is in a relationship (and that was red flag for me that I never forget).
But then I thought is not gonna be no problem because we were always going to go everywhere together.
But now 4 and a half years have passed and alcohol is still something that makes her change radically and even tough is the only way she talk me with balls and aggresive when I ask something. That doesn't give me confidence because I realized that all the mistakes of the past with Her uncontrolled sexuality was done under the influence of alcohol, because being sober, it was the woman I fell in love with and I know she wouldn't do it that way, but with alcohol it makes sense. That change is very radical I repeat. I have been with other women before and know that alcohol changes people a little, but with her it is too much that I don't recognize her and I don't like what I see.
Which is why this has led me to get upset if she thinks about going out with some friends to the bar because my mind attacks directly because of everything it has seen in her. (because in my past relationships I never had a problem with the woman going to see her friends in a bar or club). It's a mess and sometimes I feel like she stops for me, and I don't want that either. Forced love is the worst.
Now I see that alcohol is something she needs to "have fun" and it is the only way she decide to do it. She uses phrases "I want to relax" "enjoy life" accompanied by alcohol. By the way... I clarify that she does not drink frequently and that she does it very sporadically but I feel that she does it for me. And I don't like that because she has to do it for her. And sooner or later she might get tired of doing it for me and then it would be a problem.
Now the actual problem. My wife and I have 6 plans in these 4 months (Jun - Oct 2024) that involve partying and drinking alcohol, and on her birthday she also wants to make the 7th plan with her friends and buy kegs of beer to have fun and I comment, hey ! I don't agree with it, we already have a lot of plans with alcohol it better not to do something with that, how about something different, like you're just looking for an excuse to drink and "have fun." She got upset and I responded, I'm not that type of person, I see that we are going on a different path. If we continue like this, I think the best thing would be to each take their own path in the most passive way possible and recognize that we are different and end this.
She got angry, and mentioned that there is no problem in being different, but I commented that I'm sorry, but that's me, and I don't want anyone to be with me by force. A few hours pass and she acts affectionate and kisses me, etc. acting like everything is fine. The next day (yesterday) when she goes to work (usually from 6am to 3pm) it's 4pm and she still hasn't arrived home, I dint send a message or anything, so at 5pm she calls me on my cell phone saying she's in a bar and wants to spend the moment with me, my reaction was "what are you talking about?", we didn't plan anything, I always let you know in time to go out together, and since she was already drunk, she answered me very defensively, and told me that she still wanted me to go with her because again "want to relax and have fun' . I didn't answer that I was going because I hung up on her because I was upset, she probably thought I wasn't going to go.
But I grabbed my car and headed to the place. I noticed that she was already some kind of drunk. And when I arrive, she doesn't see me but I do, out of curiosity I sit back to see her because I saw that she was sitting with an old man of 60 years old, short and chubby, I say this because my wife is tall and pretty. And that caught my attention, then I see that she hugs him many times and literally lies on his stomach...I felt so weird that I can't explaing and not believing what I saw, I see that she smiles and grabs her hair while she talked with him and I still don't process that honestly (But here! My BRAIN came YOU SEE WHY MY WARNINGS ALWAYS MAKE SENSE! SHE JUST NEEDED ONE OPORTUNNITIE TO FALL), So then I get closer to both of them and I said "Wow! What a good laugh you're having, share the joke with me because I want to laugh too", and they were automatically surprised. The old man never talked again
My wife introduced me to him in a somewhat embarrassed and she told me that I was a jerk, and that I was being a weirdo, that is, she victimized herself. Because when she spoke to me on my cell phone she said that she had just arrived at that bar (again 5pm) and that she was alone.
So after she didn't talk to me for an hour and she still saying you came like that cuz you thought I were about to do something wrong, and I answered "I have the right to ask question and not assuming so I'm here asking and I see you barely are able to see me to my eyes. Remember when you got jealous because that pretty client I had at the sport club, and I didn't react the way you are doing now to me, so don't play that to me'.
She stayed quiet and she wasn't able to stare at me, the old guy left and she asked me to me and her going outside we went and still she not wanted to see me to my face. Until I pretend everything was OK and acting like nothing happened and mention a random subject out of the blue, then she little by little started being again lovely and invited me dinner. We went and then we went back home. She slept, and again curiosity was killing me. I grabbed the phone and I saw some message, and I read she was talking shit about me with two of her coworkers because of the party alcohol the wanted to have on her birthday and she said that I threatened her on leaving if she do that when I didn't I just oppen myself about if we continue like this in order to avoid problems is better to decide if we gonna go for each one paths.
And then she sent a text at 12pm (so she went out of work early and she arrived at that bar at 12pm not 5pm as she said to me) to one of them, text said "Hey wanna hangout with me I'm at a bar, and I'm here alone wanna come I might tell my husband later because know he thinks "I'm working LOL"
She answered "omg fr" Wife answred "Yes I'm tired of his shit and all that I don't give a fuck I might turn gay for real"
And then at 3pm she texted to her coworker "Hey I'm here playing pool with this old gentlemen" And she sent a Pic with him hugging him and head very close.
So she did all that intentionally and I'm afraid that that becomes a habit.
So I don't know what to do at all cuz deep inside I want the divorce but Idk what stops me. I feel that she never gonna change, and it's OK she can be the way she wants but Idk how to do that step without her doing a lot of drama and shit.
I'm someone who is very calm and like peace and sports and read book I just feel that I can't live with someone like that. The way of how I am is an obstacle for her being the way she wants to be because I don't know what would have happened if I hadn't decided to go to that place. And I can't go after her all the time So I see that and I don't have.problem on move out from there, but I'm not accept or tolerate someone like that. She get very defensively when I said that and see me as if I'm wrong or something.
I'm so sorry if this is too long Yes, my mistake is not waiting more to meet the person more. I recognized that.

This thread is for those who are striving to be as efficient as possible. If you have no desire for efficiency, then you are in the wrong place...varlet.
I am not sure how qualified 750 hours make me to make claims about the best builds in the game, but I feel confident enough about making my case as to post it here. I play exclusively on Auric Quickplay, simply fighting wherever The Emperor sends my way.
Here are my suggestions:
Veteran: Anti-Gunner Gunner
How: Recon Lasgun (mark VII), Combat Shovel, left side talents, Krak Grenade.
Why: Someone on the team has to deal with shooters+gunners etc. and Veteran is simply the best at it when correctly specialised, and thus, this duty falls on his/her shoulders.
Either the whole team shares this responsibility with well-rounded builds, or in a team of specialists, one needs to take on the responsibility to focus hard on things that could shoot the team to shreds. Gunners and Shotgunners especially can instantly delete a player if just one gets close enough to the team, and Gunners+Shooters at range forming dealdy "shooting galleries" is one of the biggest threats to an un-coordinated team, I find.
Details:
Left-side talents give amazing damage boosts in various ways, but with most weapons, overkill becomes an issue...hence Recon Lasgun being the choice, as it's low base damage coupled with rapid fire and the burn stack on crit gives it insane, high-precision dps with minimal overkill, high efficiency and a very-very large magazine, allowing you to single-handedly wipe a whole gallery of shooter+gunners, keeping your Preachers and Ogryns nice and hole-free.
Your teammates may not realise how much easier the game is without getting shot to shit, but every time you pop your "F" and annihilate 30 yellow targets, you will know how much work you're really doing.
Your trusty shovel can 1 shot muties with its special attack (forget the exact type) and by giving it bonus damage vs infested it becomes an amazing self-defence tool, allowing you to rapidly and safely clear large numbers of powalkers.
2nd choice: Hellbore Lasgun with a very similar build and Frag Grenades instead. The idea is similar, but this time you really focus hard on elites and specialists of all types. Amongst other things, a proper Hellbore Lasgun build allows you to one shot Crushers in just 1 second, much faster and with greater precision than even Plasma.
Ogryn: Ammo Pig
How: Ripper Gun (Mark 2), Shovel, Big Grenade, Ranged Ulti, mixed talents, mainly right side.
Why: As I was experimenting with various Ogryn builds, I've always found myself reaching for my Gun, whenever the going got tough...simply put, your damage output is the highest if you go all-in on daka. While Veteran focuses on things that shoot back, Ogryn focuses at annihilating everything else that doesn't by laying down devastating automatic canister fire.
Taking the ranged ultimate also allows you to annihilate heavily armored targets with your ranged weapon and also reload near-instantly, allowing you to reliably shut down massive armored deathballs.
Details:
Mainly right-hand-side talents and in general, talents that maximise your damage output, damage versus elites, bit of rending from bottom left-side etc. Mark 2 Ripper gun for maximum close-range devastation, shovel for self-defence and a Big Grenade for those situations when you really need to make your point clear to the Enemies of Mankind.
2nd choice: Doctor Boom build with a focus on Grenade Launcher and taking similar ranged focused talents on the right side of the tree. This build feels outright unfair against large concentrations of heretics, but suffers from low efficiency vs. individual, low-priority targets such as shooters. Taking a GL makes you heavily dependent on the rest of your team clearing out pesky minor-threats, thus conserving your ammo for the really tough situations.
Psyker: Utility Mage
How: Voidstrike Staff, Force Sword (Mark V), Bubble ult, Smite for Blitz, going left-mid-left overall
Why: Psyker has a lot of interesting options at their disposal, but this build provides such an immense amount of utility for the team that I find it a must-have in all teamcomps. Bubble can save the team from a crapton of nasty surprises and allows you+your teammates to comfortably out-shoot the shooting gallery. Especially useful if you lack a veteran or anyone else dedicated to playing anti-shooter.
Smite can shut down a near infinite number of extremely dangerous elite enemies and is hands-down the best answer to Bulwarks, bar none. (because it instantly shuts down nearly any number of them, allowing you to ignore them and focus on actual threats).
These 2 abilities together can, in the blink of an eye, provide instant protection to the entire team from 90% of threats, while doing this consistently and well. No other build in the game can shut down this many problems, this quickly, this easily. While you may not "kill" said threats, you will buy your teammates invaluable time to do so. Amazing answer to Snipers and Bombers especially.
They (our Blitz and Ability) are best rounded out by a Voidstrike as a choice of weapon for its versatility, as well as a Marc V Force Sword for self-defence, anti-mutie and crusher purposes.
Details:
Unlike the last 2 builds, this one mainly focuses on utility, control and protections rather than killing and yet can still kill a large number of enemies even at extreme ranges and can reliably, albeit somewhat slowly, deal with almost any threat, even by themselves. Their achilles heel is Monstrosities, but that's ok, Veteran and Ogryn can shred those quickly.
Voidstrike is an incredible answer to hordes and the best anti-horde weapon outside of flamethrower range that remains potent against high-priority long-range threats, such as Gunners and Snipers.
2nd choice: Surge Mage is a more aggressive choice, focused on killing Elites quickly. This build can kill very dangerous targets very quickly and is unqestionably a great choice, I simply think that other classes can be just as good killers as Surge Mage, but no class can provide utility for the team as well as the Utility Mage can. (and that this utlity is extremely valuable in keeping the team alive). Similar reasoning to why Veteran gets to be the anti-shooter: they are simply "best in class."
Zealot: Crit Healer
How: Heavy Eviscerator XV, Stub Revolver IIa, Icon Ult, Stun Grenade, Blazing Piety, going left-mid-left overall (important to pick up Scourge from top right!)
Why: Zealot walks into a bar and dumps a crapton of super high-impact abilities onto the table, nearly collapsing the table and making the rest of his team blush. It's not a joke, that's just what they do. Icon ult Zealot is the guy who, upon finding himself in the "Parry this, you casual" Dark Souls meme where the guy pulls out the Machine Gun/Sniper rifle, proceeds to say "ok" and does exactly that. A must have in all teams in my opinion.
For starters, the Icon ult is one of the best if not the best in the game, not only does it shut down EVERYTHING, COMPLETELY (bar Chaos Spawns and Beasts of Nurgle), but it also tops up your team and reduces chip damage, gives them a damage boost and is insanely spammable, giving your team very long periods of invulnerability or big beautiful yellow toughness bars.
Stun Grenade is the best grenade in the game, trumping even the Ogryns Big Grenade (since it does almost the same thing, but comes in packs of 3 instead of 1) and can stop even the nastiest wall of armored heretics pushing your team, or shut down half of a shooting gallery, allowing your team to close the gap.
Eviscerator XV is the best melee weapon vs poxwalker hordes bar none, in fact, with this build we will be using these hordes to rapidly regain our Icon ultimate, allowing us to spam it every 10 seconds, making the team insanely tanky and significantly raising the margin of error in the team's favor. Simply an incredible way of keeping your team safe, while suppressing the foul heretic.
Details: This build is the most particular out of all of them, focusing on maximising crit chance as much as possible and using bottom-left talent "Invocation of Death" which causes crits to recharge our ultimate. By repeatedly spanking a large wave of tightly packed heretics, our ultimate returns at alarming speeds, filling 1/4 of the way with each lucky swing.
Revolver can be quickly pulled out to headshot the odd high-threat heretic and help your Veteran manage shooting galleries and specials. They can do decent damage vs. Crushers, but are not very efficient due to high ammo cost involved (takes 2-3 headshots).
2nd Choice: Flamethrower+Hammer+Charge build is a close second, but struggles against spread-out long-range shooters and becomes similarly vulnerable to them as the Grenade Launcher Ogryn. While taking Knives can somewhat help with this issue, they are simply too weak and the opportunity cost of not taking OP Stun Grenades is far too big to justify them...you'd rather take the vulnerability and pray to the Emperor that your Veteran can aim.
Summary:
By taking these 4 builds in tandem you will have the most optimally specialised compostion, well-equipped for dealing with any number of threats at any ranges and rapidly eliminating threats while maintaining squad-cohesion and multiple failsafes for "oh shit" situations. If you haven't already tried out one of these builds, I recommend you do.

Has anyone been able to get this to activate for the I5N? I put in the last eight digits of the engine code, but the app pulls up the plan for the 2024 I5. When I proceed and enter my VIN for verification it says my enrollment code is invalid. Is the car too new right now for EA?

(Cong Rats u/Xerxes250! You've been FICNAPPED, EKEKEKEK! Thanks to u/Espazilious, u/CaptainMatthew1, and u/T00Dense for supporting me in Group 3 of the Ficnapping!
That's right, I've Ficnapped Hazardous Recovery, a very well-written fic. I'd recommend it to those looking for a more... tech-inspired fic.
So, enjoy the dumb stuff.)
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Memory Transcription Subject: Kimmich, currently dying inside
Date [standardized human time]: October 25, 2136
If I had been made aware that one of the first days we were on Earth was going to be spent sitting in a predator's house, looking at sheets of paper, and listening to said predator prattle on about silly plastic shapes with numbers on them I'd have refused the trip as a whole. The whole concept seemed like a massive waste of time, not only for us but for him too. Unfortunately, I was trapped here by the whims of Vemnka and Sevkan, and they never let up a chance to see new human past times.
Andre, for his part, had been slow with us, letting us ease into the new living situation with relative laxity on where we were allowed to go. We'd already watched a few movies, played a few "video games", and even listened to some of his music. It was... enjoyable. Even with the obvious attempts to cover up a whole heap of predatory behaviors, Andre had managed to get us feeling somewhat welcome.
Until he had us sit at his kitchen table and write out the Venlilian numerical system, to which he responded with a chuckle, "Looks like Skaven Scratch." He did not elaborate. At first, I thought the exercise was going to be a simple lesson on how to read human numbers. But no, it was far worse. Instead, Andre went to his workshop, scanned all the numbers, and began printing a bunch of geometric prisms with the numbers on them. Vemnka was the first to ask about their purpose as she picked up a dodecahedron, each side holding a numeral.
"Well, I figured we'd play a game, and these," he held up a worn version of the same shape Vemnka was holding, this one with human numbers on it, "are how we play."
Not even a minute later we were watching as he 'rolled' the 'dice' across a little pad on the table. "So, basically, these dice, the 'd6's will help us make our characters. I use the '4d6 minus the lowest rolled' method for stats, but there are other ways to do it."
Sevkan picked up a triangular prism and poked his paw pad with it. "And what about the rest of them," he asked as he tossed the plastic shape onto the pad.
"The one you just rolled is a 'd4', it's a damage dice. Same with the d6, 'd8', 'd10', and 'd12'. This," he held up a dice with ten sides, but with two separate numbers on each face, "is a percentile dice. Helps when I need to see what outcome happens when a random encounter starts, though we'll not be using it because we're doing a oneshot." He flicked it up with a click and caught it. Next, he picked up the same dodecahedron as before and rolled it. "Ouph, nat 1, less than ideal when starting a game."
"What does that mean," I asked, looking down at the twenty-sided dice; the side displaying '1' was facing up.
"A nat 1 is the worst roll on a 'd20'. It's a critical failure, which means if you roll a nat 1, something bad happens." He rolled it again as he talked, "The d20 is the most used dice because it's the 'check dice', you use it to figure out how well you did on an action. For instance," he reached across the table for a sheet of paper. Looking it over, I could see it was a 'character sheet', as Andre called them. "This is the strength stat," He pointed at a block on the left side of the paper, "It shows how strong your character is. If I were to roll this d20 and get a 13, but your strength stat is a 14, plus whatever save modifier you have, then I'd fail the check and either nothing would happen, or you'd get a reaction to my failure." He shifted his weight as he reached for the ground. With a plap, Andre brought up a hardbacked book. My translator had a bit of difficulty translating the text due to the font, but in the end, it spat out 'D&D Player's Handbook'. A small script of subtext under the cover art, which I ignored due to its content, read 'Everything a player needs to create heroic characters for the world's greatest roleplaying game.'
"A roleplaying game," Vamnka asked before Sevkan or I could formulate the words.
"Yep! A TTRPG, Dungeons and Dragons, D&D. I played this once or twice before my accident with the reactor room, but I think I still remember enough to DM for it."
This time Sevkan asked the question, "TTRPG and DM?"
"Tabletop roleplaying game, and Dungeon Master. I run the game, so I'm the dungeon master." He laid out three sets of three pieces of paper at each seat. It had the same words and markings as the one before him. "So, as I said, we're doing a one-shot because I can't be bothered with doing a whole ass campaign. Plus you won't be here forever and we have work to do at some point."
"I'll be making your characters with input from each of you. We're doing basic fifth edition rules because the newer editions, sixth up to ninth, all suck." He grabbed four of the d6 and held them aloft, looking at Sevkan, then Vemnka, and finally landing his gaze on me. I felt my fur rise but paid it no mind as he looked down at the dice before him. "Vemnka, you're going first." He picked up and tossed the dice to Vemnka who scrambled to grab all four before they had a chance to fall off the table.
"So, I just... toss them?" The quizzical flap of her left ear was met by a curt nod from Andre. "Alright," she said as her paw flicked the dice across the table. One landed on 1, another on 2, another on 3, and the final one on 6. "Twelve in total," she announced.
"Good, now remove the lowest number rolled and mark it down somewhere on the back of your sheet."
After five more rolls, Vemnka's stats totaled 11 in strength, 15 in intelligence, another 15 in constitution, 16 in wisdom, 16 in charisma, and 13 in dexterity.
Next was my turn. I rolled a 13, which I put into dexterity, a 14 in constitution, a 15 in charisma, a 16 in strength, another 16 in wisdom, and a 12 in intelligence.
Finally, Sevkan rolled a 12, which was placed in dexterity, a 13 in charisma, a 16 in constitution, a 10 in both wisdom and intelligence and, as Andre put it, the ever elusive 18 was put in strength.
With all that tedious, boring, unimportant, and downright torturous work out of the way, now was the time to get into character creation. Andre gave us the book to look over and told us to ask any questions we wanted if we needed to. I pulled up my pad's visual translator and began skimming the text.
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Memory Transcription Subject: Vemnka, having the time of her life!
The book wasn't big, not by a long shot. I'd read books three to four times as long in [a day] or two. What the book contained, however, was an entirely different story. It wasn't just a rulebook, or handbook, as the cover suggested, it was a way to shape the wild imagination, to tame the itch to create.
And by the stars am I creating!
Andre told us we'd start by choosing class, race, and background. Of course, we had no idea what that meant, so he took us through it one at a time at a leisurely pace. He flipped through the book's pages before landing near the beginning, showcasing a stout-looking human with the undertext 'Dwarf' printed to the left.
After running through all of the vaguely human-like races to pick and a few classes that would shape our table-side adventure, I'd chosen to be a gnome cleric, which was a humorous choice. Andre said I'd primarily be healing, helping my team by keeping them in battle. I didn't mind the idea of being a sideliner, as long as I could help.
Dad had chosen to be a human 'paladin'. Andre explained that the term equated pretty easily to a form of holy guardian, in the form of a mortal, who the god of their faith gifted to defend those around them. Dad thought is was a pretty cool idea, especially the idea of "burning heretics away with holy fire," as Andre put it. It took him a bit longer to choose his race because he kept returning to the page with the almost-Arxur-looking Dragonborn. Still, after some coaxing, he finally let up on whatever was going on in his head and chose the easiest option, and the one Andre had recommended.
Finally, Sevkan had looked a bit farther into the game itself, finding a non-classified databook called "Player's Companion". Andre described it as a supplemental read, adding a bit more variety to the already large amount of options presented in the Player's Handbook. Sevkan took one look at it and immediately chose the Aarakocra, causing Andre to flinch. He said it'd be fine because the Aarakocra looked nothing like Krakotl, but Sevkan still apologized as best he could. He chose the fighter class, which was about as self-explanatory as possible.
Next was backgrounds, I chose to be an acolyte. It made sense in my head that a religious healer would have a background in religion. Dad leaned toward Folk Hero as his background, an option that both he and Andrew agreed would suit his character. Sev chose to be a hermit, which caught me and dad off guard after Andre gave us a rough rundown of what it was. An isolationist fighter, the sort of stuff that got you locked away.
"Alright," Andre said, leaning forward, looking between each of us again. I noticed Dad's fur rise a bit less than last time. Progress is progress. "We've got a Gnome Cleric, a Human Paladin, and an Aarakocra Fighter. Pretty good party dynamics for your first time even hearing about DnD. Now, for the most part, we've done everything we need to do together. From here you would have normally gone through stats and equipment, but I don't want to, and this is a oneshot so those aren't that important. Vem, on that last sheet, please mark down 'Spare the Dying', 'Sacred Flame', and 'Guidance'. Kimmich, on your last sheet, mark down 'Lay on Hands', 'Divine Smite', and 'Divine Sense'. Sev... you can just throw that sheet away. You won't be moving past where you are now."
Sevkan looked down at the sheet with a hint of sadness. To be fair to him, 'Spare the Dying' and 'Divine Smite' sounded cool, but before I could ask what they meant, Dad beat me to it. "What are these for? What do you mean?"
Andre rolled a D20 absent-mindedly, "Spare the Dying is a Cleric Cantrip that stabilizes a person who's taken fatal damage and is rolling death saves. Divine Smite is that whole 'BURN IN HOLY FIRE' thing I was talking about. Depending on how you flavor it, it's you wrapping your weapon in divine fire and burning away at your enemy's soul."
Despite his previous misgivings, ones which were practically plastered over his fur, Dad seemed honestly interested in the concept behind the Divine Smite. "And I just get to use it? Any time I want?"
"Well, not really." Andre pointed a finger toward me. "She has three cantrips which can be used at any time, you only have two. Divine Smite is an actual spell, as in its magic that requires you to utilize a spell slot. Lay on Hands is a contrip that can heal and Divine Sense allows you to detect certain types of creatures based on their alignment. Good and Evil in particular."
Sev spoke up, displaying confusion with his ears. "So why don't I get any spells or cantrips?" There was a degree of disappointment in his voice.
Andre leaned back with a chuckle, flexing his dexterous prosthetics as he clutched the d20 he'd been rolling. "Because, as a fighter, you probably have the most useful ability of them all. It's called 'Second Wind' and its essentially Lay on Hands but only you gain from it. It's an ability you can only use once per short rest, which we won't be needing to get into, which heals you for 1d10 plus your level, which all of you will be set at level 2.
"Again, we won't need much of the stuff in the books because this is A. Your first time and I want it to be fun, and B. A oneshot where nothing matters and we're here to have a good time. So, real quick," Andre grabbed a d8s and a d10 and began rolling them. "Vem," the d8 clacked across the table, landing on a 4, "you've got 15 health total. Because you're a light class, always expect to be on the lower side of health. Kimmich, you've got," he rolled the d10, it landed on an 8, "20 health, not a bad roll. And finally Sevkan," the d10 rolled across the table once more, the 5 side facing up. "18 health. Not too bad either, given your ability to heal yourself."
"How did you get those numbers," I asked, looking across the table at each of our sheets.
"While you all were reading, I put your modifiers where they belong, and changed what needed to be changed with your stats." Andre leaned over and pointed at Dad's sheet, "I increased each of your scores by one because you're human." He moved to mine, "I increased your intelligence by two." Then he moved to Sevkan's "And I increased your dexterity by 2 and wisdom by one. I made a slight mistake when asking you guys to roll, as usually, you'd choose race and class before putting your stat rolls anywhere, but you all seem to have put them in pretty good spots."
The three of us gave Andre amused looks, to which he raised an eyebrow. "Humans get an additional point in everything?" Sev asked with a small whistling laugh.
"Oh, uh. Yeah, now that there are actual other intelligent races in the galaxy that doesn't look too good does it?"
"It's fine," I said. It was plenty understandable, thinking you're the best at everything you do when there's no one to compare to. "So are we going to start?"
"Yep! Just one more thing. Weapons and armor are important to this, even if you don't have to use them all the time." Andre flipped to a page with a list of item names which I couldn't make ears or tails of. I recognized 'sword', 'bow', and 'spear' as ancient primitive weapons, but other than that everything else escaped me.
"I'm noting a lot of confusion. Anything you need to know?" Andre looked at us expectantly.
"What's a 'maul'," came Sevkan's response.
"Oh, that's a term for a large, two-handed warhammer. Usually, it's depicted as spiked on both ends. Imagine a very large, very crude sledgehammer with spikey bits."
"And a 'glaive'?" Dad asked next.
"I assume you know what a sword is?" We flicked our ears in affirmation. "Well, it's essentially a curved sword attached to a pole. It's made to look a specific way, if it wasn't then it'd probably just be called a Dao. Or maybe the Dao would be called a glaive. Maybe Glaive is just a type of polearm. I have no idea. Anyway, to speed this up, I'll be choosing the weapons and armor you can have for you, and don't worry, I'll use your attitudes as a reference for what you get. For you, Vemnka, I think the mace and shield combo will do nicely with the scale mail. Kimmich, you'd work well with two long swords to accompany your chainmail armor. And finally, Sevkan, a halberd with your chainmail will work fine. Sound good to everyone?"
I was a little disappointed at the stolen opportunity to continue building my character, I'd yet to come up with a name or backstory, as I was sure was the norm, but with the idea of starting taking center stage, I couldn't help but wag my tail.
-====================================-
Memory Transcription Subject: Sevkan, going down the rabbit hole
Andre put a thin plastic sheet over most of the table, took out a bundle of markers, and began drawing, much to our collective surprise.
The sheet was was smooth and cool to the touch, though not through any internal system, probably just from the back of the garage where Andre had found it. It had a grid printed over it, which Andre seemed to be using as a guide as he drew a boxy shape, marking certain areas with certain colors. There must have been a system he was following, one that none of us Venlil in the room had managed to pick up on, and we didn't want to interrupt Andre as we worked in case we caused him to mess up.
I looked over my character sheet, made mostly by Andre with small additions I felt like I needed to add. I still felt a little bad for not realizing how raw the image of a Krakotl must have been to Andre as I chose the Aarakocra, but he'd brushed it off swiftly and curtly, clearly not wanting to continue the line of thought. Still, I should've chosen a different race. The goliath looked cool and probably would have been a better fighter than a bird with hollow bones, but I also didn't want to drag the others much longer, so I kept silent.
At long last Andre stood at his full height and analyzed his work. "There we go. The battle map is set up, now for the tokens." He reached into his back pocket and pulled out three little white objects. I immediately recognized them as chess pieces. A rook, a knight, and a bishop were placed on the table, along with a dozen white pawns, some of which came from a different chess set, and four black pawns as well as a black king. The black pawns were marked with the colors, yellow, beige, green, and white. We quietly agreed which pieces we would be. Dad would be the knight, I would be the rook, and Vemnka would be the bishop.
Andre sat down and we began. "Alright, I've decided to pull the classic 'wake up in a tavern' DnD start because it's funny and I also didn't exactly plan this. So here we go. Please leave your questions for after I'm done talking."
"You wake up, each of you, around a wooden table in a comfortable tavern with candles above you and empty tankards before you. You look at each other and recognize if only barely, the friends you made last night through a bout of drinking and dancing. You feel the roaring of a hangover in your head as you each groan and attempt to lift your heads."
Andre pointed at the chess pieces, which must have represented our characters. "Please roll constitution to see if the hangover affects you in any major way. It's a d20 plus the number below the stat itself."
We looked at each other with slight confusion. Not at the command to roll, nor for its circumstance, but for the setting. Is this a human board game? I mean, I guess I expected something more akin to chess. but this is nothing like it. It's so... alien.
Dad rolled his d20 first; it landed on a 16, "An 18?"
"Yep, Kimmich, your character brushes off the hangover with ease. You still feel a buzzing in your head, but other than that, you're fit as a fiddle." Oh, I get it now. How interesting. I could see Dad and Vemnka twitch their ears in understanding as I rolled my d20.
It landed on 8. "Plus two, so an 11."
"Sevkan, your head hurts like hell but you're still able to function to a normal degree. If it weren't for your fellow drunkards you're sure you'd have to stumble around by your lonesome for a while."
Vemnka let out a laugh as she rolled her dice. While she had been aiming for the center of the table, the dice had other plans and shot off to the right, flying off the table and rolling under a stool in the kitchen. "Oops! I'll get it," she said, jumping out of her seat and lifting the stool. "It landed on 19," she beeped excitedly.
"Nope," Andre said, much to our surprise. "Rule two of dice: if it goes off the table, its results are null. I didn't make that rule, but I still follow it. Roll again."
Vemnka's ears drooped a bit, but she set herself and climbed back into her seat to roll again. This time the dice did as it was meant to and rolled across the table without falling off. It landed on... "A nat 20!"
"No shit?" Andre lept out of his chair to peer across the table toward the dice. "Well, I'll be damned, a 19 and a 20 in succession. Well, I guess you're just better than those other two. Your character's hangover is completely gone, you felt it for all but a second as you raise your head to see your Aarakocra companion still struggling with his."
"Is there anything I can do to help him?" She asked. Andre's lip curled upward slightly.
"Now you're getting it. It's a role-playing game. You have your roles, the ones you set up for yourself, and now you get to play them. And yes, there is something you can do to help. Roll me a medicine check. I'll add your modifier myself." The sound of a die rattling across the table ended with... "Another Nat 20?!"
We jumped at Andre's incredulous shout as he glared at the die before him. He seemed more angry at the dice than at Vemnka so I assumed we were probably not in trouble. How can we be? We didn't do anything that would make him angry. Why's he yelling?
"Sorry, but the chance of rolling two nat 20s in a row, while not astronomical, is pretty fucking low. Something like a one in four hundred chance, maybe more," Andre said, sitting back down and sighing deeply. "It's fine, just funny is all. Usually, RNJesus is on the DM's side, not the party's. Kinda nice to see a change of pace."
"RNJesus," we asked collectively.
"Don't worry about it, let's continue. Vemnka, you put your hand on Sevkan's shoulder and do some voodoo magic bullshit and pray to your god to heal his aching body. Miraculously, it works and Sevkan sits upright feeling light as a feather. The Aarakocra's headache is now on par with Kimmich's."
"Just like that?"
"Just like that, now let's get on with it. As Sevkan gets up and shakes off the remaining ebbing in his head, you all notice five less-than-reputable figures sitting in a booth at the far end of the tavern. Each wears a hood or cowl accompanied by a cloak, which hides their race and weapons from you, however, you can tell that one of them is considerably larger than the others. If you had to, you'd place it at about 226 cm (7'5") while those around it are around the average human height of 180 cm (6'0"). Roll me perception too."
We looked at each other at the description but shrugged it off as we rolled. I rolled a 7, Dad rolled a 19, and Vemnka rolled a 17.
"Both of you," he said, pointing at Vemnka and Dad with one hand, "See that they are pointing in your direction while the big one holds a piece of paper in his hand. It shows artistic renditions of the three of you, along with a long string of words you can't make out from your current distance. Kimmich, you hear them talking about a bounty and that you are the specified targets. Now it's time for you to react, how do you want to move forward?"
"Well," Vemnka said nervously. I could see her tail flick in my direction, looking for guidance, but I had none. "I suppose I'll confront them? I'm not sure what a bounty is exactly..."
"Really?"
We looked at Andre and the obviousness of the situation. If we didn't know what a word was, we knew it must have been predatory. "Right, sorry. Bounties are orders given to hired people to hunt people. For one reason or another, if someone wants someone dead then they'll place a bounty on their head. I'm not sure if it was ever actually a thing, but bounty hunters were popular during the Wild West days of the US. They usually brought criminals in for trial though, and usually didn't kill them."
"Okay, but why do they want us dead," Dad asked, his ears falling back slightly.
"That's the neat part, you have no idea," Andre said as he leaned forward and moved the green-tipped black pawn a space on the map. "Vemnka, as you get up, you notice that one of the figures is moving towards the door with slight urgency. Before you can make a move, however, the large figure stands up and doffs his cloak, revealing the tattooed grey skin of a Goliath wielding a greatsword in the executioner's style. He shouts over the tavern for everyone other than your group to leave immediately as things are about to get bloody. His three other goons, the one moving toward the door exempt, move in unison towards you. Roll initiative. It's a d20, same as all the others."
I looked toward my sister to see her tail freaking out, her bishop is the closest to the enemy party, meaning she was more likely to be targeted first. I had to protect her, not only because of our sibling relationship but also because she could heal us if we got hurt. The three of us rolled as one, I got a 10, Dad a 14, and Vemnka got a 4. Andre himself rolled a few dice before moving the chess pieces into place and writing down something on a sheet of paper. "Alright, perfect. Initiative rolled, time to start combat. First up, yellow pawn."
He moved the pawn toward Vemnka's bishop, immediately putting her in danger. "One of the vagabonds rushes you, Vemnka, and you see the flash of Tabaxi claws as they raise their hand to strike at you." Andre's dice rolled, clattering to a halt inside the pad on his end, obscuring the results. "Does a 14 hit?"
"How do I check that," she asked, her tail going even crazier. Though, I couldn't tell if it was excitement or panic.
"AC," Andre responded flatly, "Armor Class."
"Right, yep." She looked down at her paper and flicked he ears 'no' then shook her head.
"The Tabaxi's claws swipe right above your head and miss by a hair. You can even feel the air move past you as you flinch backward. Next, the Goliath moves toward you, hefting his greatsword. Kimmich, if looks could kill, you'd be halfway to Valhalla by now. He glares at you with a mighty fire in his eyes. It's hard to tell, but you think he might have it out for you. He takes a swing with his sword and..." Andre rolled and looked back up at the table, his eyes focusing rather intensely on the black king representing the Goliath. "Meh, Nat 1. He swings and you dodge, causing his swing to miss wildly and land on the Tabaxi nearby. She takes," he rolls, "A sizable chunk of damage as blood flows from her lower abdomen."
"Wouldn't she be writhing in pain right now," Dad asked, pointing to the yellow-topped pawn.
"In real life? Yes. Here? I control the game, and while she is certainly hurt, she still has enough will to fight. Money is a powerful incentive for some people, especially bandits and vagabonds. Next, Sevkan, you notice the flash of steel as a dehooded human rushes you with a shortsword in hand. He has a keen eye and sharp nose, but your reflexes are faster as you dodge his swipe. He stumbles a bit, but recovers before you have a chance to harm him." Andre looks at Dad, who doesn't even seem to register the human's gaze as he looks over his sheet. "Kimmich, it's your turn. You can attack, retreat, use a spell-"
"Divine smite the Goliath, I'll use Divine Smite on the Goliath."
Andre lets out a chuckling laugh, "Now we're talkin'. Let's do this. Roll for attack."
Dad rolled, and I watched as the dice skipped across the table and finally landed on 11. "Plus five, so 16."
"Very good, that is a successful hit. Please roll both damage and the Divine Smite's 2d8."
Dad rolled his d8 three separate times, coalescing in a massive 18 damage, a 7, an 8, and a 3. "18 damage total against the Goliath."
Andre did a weird whistle as he marked down the information on what I could only assume was the stat sheet for the enemies. "18 against big guy. Sevkan, your turn. D-"
"Actually," Dad interrupted, "it says here that I have an extra action and a bonus action."
"Oh."
"So I'm going to attack him again."
"Okay."
Dad rolled another d8 which landed 6 side up. "Another six damage and I end my turn."
"Thank you, finally. Sevkan, go, please. Attack or... Well, all you can do is attack." Andre leaned back in his chair, stare planted squarely on me. I looked down at my sheet for any actions I had. I had a normal and bonus action, and that was it. I looked at the section marked features and traits and noticed that I could do three actions with action surge. "Alright, I'll attack three times. Twice with my halberd using action surge and once with that dagger, you forgot to give everyone that we all had the option to take." I glared right back at him.
"Yes, I didn't give you all the tools you could have had because it would have just wasted more time. But fine, if you want to use it, fine. It's a d6 slashing damage."
I rolled the 2d10 for damage. One landed on 8 while the other landed on 9. My d6 lands true on a 4. "21 damage to the beige-tipped pawn. That's the human, right?"
"Yep," Andre nodded as he wrote down the damage. "You take two swipes at the human with your halberd, both connect with both his arms and torso, slowing him considerably. It's only when he remains standing that you pull your dagger from its sheath and plunge it into his chest. You miss his heart by millimeters, but it does the job as he collapses in a pool of blood. Congrats, first knockout of the game."
I shudder at Andre's description of my character, who might as well be interchangeable with a Krakotl, killing a man. A human, for that matter. I look over to see Dad glaring daggers at Andre and Vemnka staring at me worriedly. I wave her off with my tail and focus back on Andre.
"Retribution is in store for you, though, as an Elf leaps over a table with two daggers drawn, ready to avenge her slain comrade. She..." Andre rolls and whoops as he punches a fist into the air. "She comes down with blinding speed and rakes her metal blades across your chest," He rolls again and lets out a slightly disappointed 'oh' before continuing. "You take a total of 8 damage from the Elf's daggers."
Andre, once again, leans forward, this time to remove the beige-tipped pawn from the table and replace it with a red cross, as well as move the green tipped toward where all the white pawns were. I assumed the gap in the markings must have been a door, as Andre had moved all the white pawns out of it when combat started. The green pawn must be escaping or blocking ours. Either way, we have to deal with the three remaining in front of us before we can handle that one.
"I see gears turning, always a good sign, but let's continue. Vemnka your combat turn. Make it count. You can use your bonus action to heal or attack with your mace, it doesn't matter as long as you do a different action when using it."
Vemnka looks over at me, then to the board with a contemplative look. "I'd like to use my first action to bless the two of them, then I'd like to use my bonus action to bonk the -what did you call it?"
"A Tabaxi."
"Yeah, that, I want to bonk that." Her tail swayed with contentment as she rolled her damage dice. It rolled into the batch of white pawns before landing on 6.
"Ouph, 'fraid that's not gonna be enough to hit anyone, but, Kimmich, Sevkan, both of you can now roll a d4 to accompany your attack roll." He flicked his d4 into the air but somehow missed it as it fell. It clattered onto the table and got flung into the living room as Andre tried to grab it. "Fuck, alright, hold on. Damned carpet's gonna be the death of me."
He went looking for the die, leaving us Venlil staring at the table before us.
"So what do you think," I asked abruptly.
"I don't know," Dad responded, his tone careful but gruff. "It's very clearly predatory. I mean, we wake up in a tavern after a night of drinking so hard our heads feel like they're about to explode and once the hangover clears we've got a band of roughnecks out for blood from the get-go." He squinted at the chess pieces representing our characters, they were all next to each other. "And I can't even really argue that we should stop because I'm fine with what's being depicted. Even if his description of you... knocking out that human was a bit over the top, I think that's the point."
"I agree," Vemnka spoke up, "The whole game is very fantastical, not meant to be compared to real life. I mean, sure, the concept of bounty hunters is a real thing, but I don't think there are humans as tall as that Goliath walking around. Or whatever a Tabaxi is."
"Fantastical and weird. If those don't describe humanity, I don't know what does," I said with a bemused flick of my tail.
"How about tired of hearing you talk about me behind my back," Andre's voice shouted from behind the couch, where he was scrounging for the lost die. Finally, he seemed to have found it, poking his head out from the backrest and looking over at us. "I'm joking of course, I don't mind at all. Unless you're insulting my taste in music, then we'll have a problem."
"I-I mean it's just-"
"Not for everyone, yadda yadda yadda. Anyway," Andre stood up, holding the d4 in his hand. "Lets continue. Tabaxi time." He took his seat and leaned forward to adjust the white pawns before rolling the hit dice. "Bruh. Another Nat 1. And here I was imagining the Goliath and Tabaxi to be the leaders of the group. Whatever. The Tabaxi attempts another swipe at you, or so it appears because she ends up cat-scratching the arm of the Goliath next to her. That's five damage, and it moves to the Goliath who is slightly pissed at everyone except for the Elf, who's, y'know, actually put in some work. The Goliath makes a wide swing, hoping to cut you all down in one fell swoop." He rolls the d20 three more times, once with a 'whoop' of success, another with a 'aww' of failure, and a final with a 'oh come the fuck on.' I could only assume it was a horrible failure. Andre's sigh fills the room. "Alright, Kimmich, you take 18 damage, he crit succeeded. Sevkan, you take no damage, and instead duck low as the swipe passes over you. Vemnka, you feel the blade move over you, but it does not connect due to your short stature. No, instead, he once again hits the fucking Tabaxi with his swing because he crit failed. Again. And because the human is no longer available to fight, it's now your turn Kimmich."
"I would like to smite again."
"Oh fuck, right you get two 1st level spell slots." Andre almost sounded annoyed when it was brought up, but relented nonetheless. "Take the hit dice."
Dad rolled, and it landed on 14. He rolled the d4 for the blessing Vemnka gave us. It landed on a 3. "Plus the five-"
"Yeah, yeah, it hits. Roll me damage."
"I'm sensing some hostilities from you," Dad said smugly.
"I'm starting to understand why my DMs hated being DMs, that's all. Please, fuck up that Goliath." And so he did, rolling a 15 in total. "You swing one of your longswords upward and cleave the Goliath's jaw in two, but he does not die. A mere flesh wound such as that would do little to dampen the giant-kin's will. No, what killed him was the bright light that engulfed his head after the strike landed. His face was the first to go as he tried to breathe through the holy flames surrounding him. His screams ended abruptly as his larynx melted away, leaving only writhing agony. He died a pitiable death in all fairness, as any sinner does. The second knockout of the game goes to Kimmich. Yay."
Again, the feeling of discomfort appeared as Andre described in unnecessary detail the visual of... someone burning alive. Oh stars, he planned that out, didn't he?
"Let's move on. Sev, your turn. First, lemme see you all roll perception again."
I rolled a 10 while both Dad and Vemnka rolled 16s. Adding modifiers made their 16s into 19s. "Alright. Again, Vemnka and Kimmich only, you see the figure who'd been moving toward the door at the beginning of the fight, now make a break for it as the Goliath collapses into a burnt-out husk. His hood is removed by the movement revealing it to be a green-scaled Dragonborn." Andre moves the Dragonborn's piece next to the door and through it, stopping it just within our sightlines. "He has a chance to escape, will you let him?" He looked at us expectantly.
I turned to Dad to see him eyeing the piece like a fresh firefruit. "Dad, no. If he leaves then that leaves the Elf and the Tub- Taba- Tabasi, whatever it's called. We can end this soon." Vemnka put her tail on his shoulder in an attempt to get his attention. He flinches at the touch and lowers his raised fur.
"Yes, yeah. Let him go," he says hoarsely.
"Alright, letting the Dragonborn go. Now it's Sev's turn. Go ahead and do something about his pesky elf." Andre moves the Elf's pawn a bit to put it back on the right square.
I shrug, attempting to fight off the conflicting feelings. On one paw, it's a game and no one is going to get hurt by me doing these things. But on the other, if I do this willingly does that make me any better than someone who would kill in real life?
Andre's voice snapped me out of my stupor. "Don't overthink it. It's a game, and this situation is self-defence. Kimmich is the only person here who's killed someone so far. The human will probably live in prison and the Dragonborn might find new meaning in life. It's not like any of this properly reflects the real world anyway. Just focus on the game, nothing more, nothing less."
I shook my body to rid myself of those thoughts and rolled my d20 and d4 from the blessing. "18 to hit."
"And hit it does. Halberd is a go!"
With another roll, it lands on a zero. "Got a 0?"
"Oh, yeah, the model I imposed the numbers on only uses one character for each side, but that's a 10. Good roll. Elf takes 10 damage and doesn't like you right now. I'm super tired of talking, so I'll just roll the hit dice. She attacks you for 19. Your AC is 19. Meets it beats it, that's a hit. Rolling damage, she lands a solid blow of 9 damage for her twin daggers. Now both you and Kimmich should have 3 health. Vem, your turn."
"Hit the tab?"
"Hit the tab."
"Hitting tab." Vemnka rolled her d20 and it landed on a 19. "19 plus whatever, I already know it hits."
"That it does," Andre responded. With a flick of his wrist, he knocks over the Tabaxi's pawn and places a cross where it was, he does the same with the Goliath's king. "Wait, why did you do that? I hadn't rolled damage."
"The Tabaxi had one health, there's no feasible way you do zero damage when rolling a dice with no zero on it. Anyway, let's wrap this up, it feels like we've been at this forever. Kimmich, your turn."
Dad sighed a deep whistling sigh. "I'll just roll to attack the Elf." He rolled his two dice, one landed on a 12 and the other landed on a 7, plus the 5 to his hits. "17 and 12. Rolling damage for that 17."
"Roll for both, the Elf's AC isn't that high."
"Really," I asked, bewildered.
"Really. The Goliath had the most AC at 16, but meets it beats it and Kimmich met it in the first round." The clack of dice interrupted him as Dad rolled his two damage die. Andre leaned forward to announce the numbers. "A total of 13. Congratulations, the three of you have just won a skewed encounter of DnD."
"Skewed encounter?"
"The Goliath had 40 health while everyone other than the Tabaxi had 20. The Tabaxi had 17. The Goliath had an AC of 16 while the rest had between 12 and 14. At least one of you should have died. I was betting on Kimmich because I had the Goliath go after him, but the nat 1s kinda stopped that from happening." Andre shook his prosthetic hands and brought them up to his chin. "Anyway, I'm dead tired. Never want to do that again, ever."
"I can't say I'm in the same cruiser as you, I found it quite fun, even with the gruesome descriptions," I said, probably unconvincingly. I did have fun, but it was a lot to take in all at once.
"I had fun too. Just, if we do do this again, try to tone back the predatory stuff. The fighting was fine, but the description was a bit... spot on I think." Vemnka's tail curled a bit as she probably imagined the images Andre described in her head.
Dad only gave a small 'hmph' as he scooted off his chair and went toward our rooms.
"Well," Andre started, "that's about what I expected from a bunch of scared space sheep."
I let out a whistle as Vemnka gently lowered herself to the ground, marched up to Andre, and bopped him on the thigh with all her might.
===================END=TRANSCRIPTION===================

My partner left me with our two young children after grooming me for years. How do I heal?
I am 26f and my ex partner is 69m.
That’s hard to type out and admit to the situation I’ve found myself in. This has been my biggest secret for years.
I met my partner at 19. I worked as a waitress at the barestaurant he owns. I had a lot of fun I was cute and I loved being around customers. My personality was sarcastic and charming. A lot of people became my friends there. He watched me a lot and he gave me uneasy vibes. I kept it to myself he was a known creep. I didn’t think much of it until I had turned 21 (still working as a waitress) and he started becoming inappropriate with me. He would touch me around corners and spaces where I couldn’t push him away or it would be obvious to others what he was doing. For some reason I didn’t want to get him caught. He stayed in a dark room next to the bathrooms when I went to go pee one drink night after work I was drinking with my coworkers. He held my wrists led me into the dark side of the room and forcibly made me make out with him. That was the beginning.
I didn’t have much family and what I did have was an addict mother and a distant dad. I didn’t have a good example or even anyone to talk to about this. He poured sweet words into my head and professed his love and honestly it felt nice. He had found out I was a virgin after our first encounter. I was too scared to tell him I didn’t want to look like a child. He treated me like a hookup. Once he found out I was a virgin and he was my first he had become obsessive with me.
I found out he was married and had children older than me. He gave me the same story any married man would give you and me being so struck by him I dealt with it. I know I’m wrong. I will be punished in life for what I’ve done emotionally to this other woman. I’m not a victim.
He convinced me to have his child. He was having sex with me unprotected and professed how badly he wanted another chance at fatherhood. He was so busy with his first children he felt he missed out. His parents moved from his hometown in Greece to help him and his wife raise the children. I gave in. I was 23 and wanted a child. I knew he could support that child comfortably. I was very naive.
I was induced and had a quiet lonely labor without him present. I moved in with my mother and raised my daughter quietly mostly on my own. (My pregnancy was kept secret until I gave birth) I loved her so much. My whole life felt changed. It was hard to cope having him pop in and out but I tried to believe his love and made it work. Anytime I asked him for more time he got angry and told me I was asking too much. He was becoming insecure and more controlling. He secretly put trackers on my car. Had my phones location and checked my phone regularly.
I broke it off because I resented my loneliness so much. I became close with a guy my age. He was compassionate, loved my daughter, and enjoyed being my friend. My ex partner discovered my relationship by having microphones and trackers on my car and diaper bag
I was trying to coparent with my partner but he makes it very difficult trying to bring me back to him. Eventually he convinced me to come back to him move out of my home and try to be a family. I give in and try my best to make this work. He is more insecure calling me insults. A whore for being with another man and that I have ruined everything he will never love me the same. He eventually calms down and we get into a little routine with very high ups and very low lows.
Fast forward I accidentally become pregnant with our second child. I was distraught. I didn’t know how I would handle two children on my own with little help. My pregnancy put me in the hospital a dozen times from extreme sickness which looking back was extreme anxiety. I wanted to terminate but I couldn’t afford it and he wouldn’t allow me to. He confessed the affair to his wife and he moved in fully with me. She threatened me and tried to confront me but I was very pregnant and sick I couldn’t handle it. He reassured me he was with me because the kids needed him. He promised he would never leave. I tried to be secure and be excited for our second child. We found out she was another girl. I was happier than I’d been in years.
A few days before I had our daughter his oldest child died in a tragic accident. I tried to wait and hold off going into labor before the funeral. I had my child the morning of his viewing.
Midnight I went into labor he had stumbled home after drinking and grieving. He tried to force sexual acts on me but I had to explain I was in labor. He yelled at me on the way to the hospital for being in so much pain I threw up in his car. He was so different. I chalked it up to his child dying I needed to let him go through it atleast he was here this time.
I had a very hard labor our daughter got stuck but she came three hours later. He seemed disassociated the whole birth. He left an hour after I had her to go home sleep and get ready for the viewing later. He patted my shoulder and said good job. I bit my lip and tried to be positive. My mother brought me home two days later
I learned to breastfeed and give my toddler attention. I never asked him to help me I was on my own again and I was determined to do it on my own. He was in between my house and his ex wives to help . They were both grieving I tried to be understanding but I was alone except for at night. I started resenting him and fighting more than ever before. He started going away on fishing trips more and more. He only came home for sex. I kept the house clean and tried to keep him happy with sex even if my body wasn’t ready. He was getting frustrated and pushing me away. He couldn’t accept my postpartum and said him being financially responsible was enough. I asked too much and I wasn’t happy all I did was bitch at him I was unappreciative I was a whore. Eventually nothings could be said. Maybe I’m wrong for bitching all the time I couldn’t stop I just wanted to pull him in and be there for him while he was grieving
I had a lot of suspicions. He started hating me. He insulted me and put me down sex started to hurt. He was different. I became different and angry when before I would pretend to be happy
It all ended a few days ago. He called on his way back from a fishing trip. He said we were done I pushed him away I caused this. After a lot of me begging for an explanation he finally told me he’s going back to his wife they need to support each other in their grief. He says I played a huge role in this and his child dying was karma for what we did. He packed all of his things and I came home to an empty house. I’m gutted and devastated.
Our last conversation he wants me to live in our current home that he owns and he will make a lease agreement I have to sign. I will not be doing that. I will be moving with my family an hour and a half away and filing emergency custody. I will let him have some time as well. One of the terms in his lease is that I have to agree to never have another man around our kids. I will never sign and let him control me again
How do I heal and coparent with this man that hurt me all these years.

A homeless teenager reaches out to the Shil’vati on first day of the invasion of Earth.
Credit to: who has beta read just about every chapter, and the only reason it's readable half the time
u/bluefishcake for writing the original SSB story.
Pizzaulostin who has been beta reading since the beginning.
Credit to u/HollowShel for getting me started with this!
This story is based in the SSB universe.
Previous
First
Chapter 33:

Reqellia:

It was the darkest part of the night, and yet I could hear the energetic commotion of Ruhal blearily heating up food for a famished human along with the clinks of dishes and silverware.
“One more day.” I felt glued to the bench as I stared back into the silver mask I hadn’t worn for almost [twenty-five years] prior, and had hoped never to put on again. I cursed my old girlish wishes when I first joined up, wanting to be a war hero, and then a mother afterwards. To grow old and see my own child in uniform. I had even wanted a son since I was already demanding the impossible.
I never believed in the gods, but now I’m sure that I’ve tempted Niosa to grant my wishes, but only after I made my peace with them that they would never come true.
Klein bounced around the suite’s kitchen, eating enough for two Shil women and already wearing his armor’s underlayment. The chair creaked a bit as he sat, his own horror-show mask on the dining table next to him staring back at him unblinking.
And It was a horror show.
He’d wake up cheerful and happy, and I’d watch over the day as every bit of his energy was drained out of him. The daily exercise routine of a morning run and gym day in a month being performed in a few short hours. Every time Klein finished a trail faster, or performed a more grueling task, the trainers would make him do even more as his contract offers rose another level.
I didn’t blame the instructors, it was their job to challenge each applicant, but Klein blew through all their expectations, so they just kept piling more onto him. Many of those same instructors had asked me if they were pushing him too far, but all I could do was shrug. Even I didn't even know where his potential ended.
I blinked and looked up. He was in his full armor now, with only the mask off.
“Ready to go?”
I nodded and stood up, quickly heading over to Ruhal, who in turn looked at me with sleep deprived eyes. Worn out as I was, he was worse, playing subject matter expert on all things human around a bunch of high ranking officers desperate for information not tainted by censorship.
“Stay safe out there,” he politely ordered as he kissed me.
I kissed him back and held his hand. “You too.”
Sighing,I left to let him rest, popped my back, and donned my own mask.
As Klein paced the door, I begged for safety. “One more day, please let everything be okay after today.”
I shouldn’t have tempted Niosa again.

Itaro:

I quietly padded out of the children’s den to a chorus of snoring from my siblings. The well carpeted securely fastened to wooden floors muffled my footsteps. I opened the large storm shutters and then pulled open the sliding glass door to the patio. I couldn’t sleep anymore, excitedly bouncing from one foot to another.
Klein and Reqellia were coming home tonight! Reqellia had sent me her contract offers that came from a dozen different Imperial departments and bureaus. Dad already agreed years ago she could move in with us, a pack sister was always welcome. Now she wouldn’t feel like a burden if she had to.
And Klein… Well, I wouldn’t be bothered by a few love-marks.
“I see that smile. Excited?” I heard my father’s deep voice like distant thunder. I turned around to his massive form only a few steps away. We both had learned to walk silently when my siblings were just pups and the discovery that they were light sleepers had been made.
I felt my ears droop just a little to see his melancholic face. He had gone out of his way the last few weeks to spend more time with just me now that I had a pack of my own. There was always a soft smile on his face, but the way his tail hung low to the floor was a dead giveaway on his mood.
I tried to cheer him up. “I am. It’s been weeks since I got to speak to Au’tes, and Klein…” I trailed off, the insinuation clear. He smirked. He had met Klein in passing, but I wasn’t bringing him home yet. Hario on the other hand had made one or two bawdy jokes at the dinner table after a second glass of her favorite liquor.
First time Klein spends the night, you might want to check up on Itaro, make sure she didn’t keel over from exhaustion.
“At this rate I’m going to have to teach you sword fighting to beat back other male suitors from poaching you for their own packs!” My father joked. Stepping off the patio landing, he hit the ground noiselessly, bending his legs to absorb the shock.

After letting out a quiet grunt indicative of an age he tried to keep hidden, he turned around and looked back up at me. “Want to come with me for a walk?”
I jumped down and followed him into our little patch of forest my mother’s terraforming job paid for. The early morning was already warm without a cooling vest, but not intolerable. The chirping of birds and the soft whistle of wind tinged with just a hint of salt made everything feel fresh.
It was like when I came home from school and my father would stop construction for the day. We’d explore the forest, play on the beach, go into town for groceries.
Except now my father didn’t run and have me chase him. He carefully inspected the trees for pests, and our conversation was far more practical than whimsical. “Your mother’s coming home next month. Can you write her a message before she meets Klein, just so she has a better idea of your pack?”
I nodded. “Of course. How long is she going to be home this time?”.
Her terraforming jobs always lasted months, if not years. I never faulted her for the huntress life, but it made connecting with her difficult. She was more a guest of honor than a mother to the household, always bringing a fatted Sou’ta carcass home as a present, but rarely cleaned dishes, or the house.
Or really any chore…
He shrugged before crouching next to a felled tree, trimming away small branches for kindling with a tiny hatchet he hand pulled from his tool pouch. “Might be a good long while this time. The last message I got said her department only had small projects and a few hazard jobs on the periphery. Besides, we might need an extra set of hands more than the money now.”
I scoffed. “Her, a house mother!? No offense, but mom is a terrible cook, and a worse caretaker. Remember the time she nearly burned down our kitchen boiling water?”
He laughed with me as he pocketed the hatchet. Standing up with two sticks, and then threw me one. I caught it as he swung his own stick in my general area. “Defend yourself! I did say I needed to teach you sword fighting. How else are you going to fight off possessive men when they realize what a catch you are?”
He didn’t teach anything but how to rough house on a lazy Shel morning.
We played and swung the flimsy branches until I accidentally hit him square in the chest. The branch, already crumbly and dry, disintegrated on impact. It didn’t stop him from dramatically acting out a death scene. Falling to his knees in an overly theatrical fashion. “Oh, woe is me! Cut down by my own daughter in cold blood!”
I let him pretend to be on stage for a few moments longer before standing over him to offer a hand. He took it, and then yanked me down to the grassy patch, holding me for a long, quiet minute. “I’m going to miss you.”
For the first time I noticed the stray white hairs around his muzzle, I knew what he meant, but I tried to play it off. “I’m not going anywhere.”
He just held me for a silent heartbeat longer, then let go and stood up.
He proclaimed cheerfully to mask his wet eyes. “Now, let’s get you cleaned up. You can’t look like a pup out of a mud bath for your victorious pack! I even scheduled a visit at Tulo’s for a haircut. Ruhal’s treat.”
My mind played with potential futures as we headed home. Between the three of us, we could write our own life together. Maybe I could even stay close to home.
I looked up to the rising light.
“One more day!”

Klein :

The mountains of gear and equipment around us were illuminated by harsh flood lights. We stood in formation with each person, regardless of species, showing physical signs of exhaustion. Drooping shoulders and bent knees, unfocused and slow eye movement.
Instructor Li’kele was wearing full battle rattle today, complete with a compact lasrifle holstered to her leg.
“Good morning applicants! It’s the last day of selection! Your assignment will be to support your sisters in the combat section in the wargames! You see all this critical equipment? Our first assignment will be to load all of it on auto-turoxes and hover-wagons. Unfortunately we don’t have enough capacity , some of you will need to carry gear on your person as we make the [ten mile] trek into the forest. Applicants 849, 734, 236 and 953 step up after we finish loading! You are our extra carriers.”
I knew I was going to be picked. It was easy to not let it bother me though. Reqellia had explained that the instructors were just trying to push us to our limits, and every extra duty and handicap meant a better contract with a brighter future.
Still, after hefting thousands of [pounds/kilos] of stuff onto the squat legged drone’s cargo cages and the little platforms that would float once powered, dread formed in the pit of my stomach as an entire counter-battery system was cinched onto my person. I trudged as we formed up for our road march.
The combat selection team rolled in as we took positions, already covered in mud from what I could guess was their own morning fun, their las-rifles at the low ready. Their own instructor, a severe looking Hyena-like Kortika woman with fur that trimmed short and smooth. She yelled out orders to the gaggle of applicants under her command. “Form on either side of the supply train and defend them at all costs! If they get shot because you weren’t doing your job, then it’s your ass that will be carrying the extra gear!”
We marched out of the base, clinking and clunking as we traveled uphill. The weight wasn’t too bad now that it was evenly distributed on my body, but it would be hell taking it off and putting it back on anytime we stopped.
“Isn’t that the new shock trooper ? What’s he doing with the non-combat selection?” I heard one of the combat applicants say idly. It was easy to pick up conversation in the nearly silent dawn as we marched on a dirt path extending across an expanse of grassland in the reddening sky. It was really pretty, watching the light play on the green forested hills in the distance.
Their Instructor sidled up to the commenting girl silently, ears swiveled back in anger. She grabbed her shoulder, growling low. “Cut the chatter, girl. ”
Silence followed for the next hour in the pre-dawn light.
We got the first taste of the wargames when red beams bolted over our heads and dropped one of our auto-turoxes. “Everyone get down!” yelled one of our instructors, and I threw myself on the path.
With all the weight on me, the impact on the ground hurt . I looked up and saw red beams blink in and out over me. Their flashes brought back memories.
The red glow through convenience store windows . An alien invasion.
I blinked furiously and turned my head to see what was going on with the combat teams on the sides of the road. They had already taken out two of the ‘raiders’ who stood up, hands in the air as they walked away. Another minute clicked by before a squad decided to double check the tall grass and found a third raider hiding. All had the insignia of the instruction cadre commandos.
“Everyone, up !” Instructor Lik’ele belted out in a two-word shout, and I had to push up off the ground, creaking under the weight. My arms burned as I got to my knees, then raised a hand and called out, “assistance!” One of the unnumbered girls gave me a hand to steady myself, and I rocked a bit trying to stand.
“Thank you,” I said, but between the voice distorter and my mask, the girl backed away as soon as I was up, fear registered in her eyes.
[At the bus stop, a classmate backed away from me. scared of me for some reason mumbling ‘you're bleeding’. Warmth on my upper lip, a coppery taste.]

I shook my head, trying to banish the weird memory surfacing, I hadn’t had a nosebleed since I left Earth. I looked back up, but the girl had already gotten back in formation and we started moving again.
It wasn’t quite noon when we stopped for lunch. I got help removing my kit, and stretched to work out the kinks. Reqellia stood next to me as I sat down on the hard packed surface. I took off my gloves, and jammed them under my chest holster.
I was technically ‘armed’ right now. We had gotten the thirty-minute las-pistol training yesterday on how to safely handle them, and then ran through a quick range. They were nothing more than glorified laser pointers though. They could lock up a suit set to respond to the laser signal, but they wouldn’t so much as redden skin otherwise.
Reqellia had let me in on their real purpose, to see if we could be trusted with a dangerous object and not play with it.
Eating was a pain, I had to lift my mask halfway up and eat blind. The meal pack was cold, but eh, it was food. Goddess, I was hungry.
“How are you holding up?” Reqellia asked, the silver mask obscuring any expression, and the voice distorter deadening any intonation, but by the angle of the head tilt, I could guess the question was more concern than curiosity.
“It’s not too heavy, but it’s awkward trying to move around,” I admitted as I put my mask back in place and pulled out my omni-pad. I tried not to boggle at the contract offers I was getting. It was a straight up bidding war, including furnished houses, years of leave after an initial stint, even minor titles.
Ruhal had helped me, even filled out the forms himself with less than a day for submission. He had also messaged me about the fine print of many of these absurd offers. The watch word was ‘Relocation’.
“They will send you back to Earth. Right now, you are the only human any department can recruit who might know an obscure piece of human signage or culture that got skipped during their culture crash courses, has the physical ability to keep up during an operation, and they can implicitly trust it is loyal to the Imperium.”
I scrolled past the too-good-to-be true proposals and to the ones without relocation, not ridiculously overpaying, but still plenty. Maybe I would follow Ka’tel into ICAD, or…
“We need to get moving!” Li’kele barked and I signaled for help again. This time Au’tes was ordered to help me with my gear. Now seeing her up close, she was definitely worse for wear. She smiled, but it was the kind of tired smile that had almost no energy in it. Her usual well controlled movements were slurred by exhaustion, and she leaned on me after buckling the packs on my shoulders, her own extra gear was a large backpack of energy cells.
“Damn, girl runs away in fear from combat selection after spending years in the militia and now plays valet. Bet whatever is underneath that suit is more would eat her alive if unmuzzled,” I overheard one of the combat applicants snicker. Au’tes winced, just a bit, at the barb from her former youth militia group.
“Lift your visor.” I said. It was dumb, it was really dumb, but I wanted to give her at least a reminder of what she had that they didn’t. Au’tes had a flicker of confusion, but flipped up the visor on her suit’s helmet.
I lifted my mask just enough to kiss her. It was honestly a gross kiss and wished I could have brushed my teeth beforehand. But when I dropped my mask down there was the manic Au’tes again, full of energy and gusto. I looked past her to the shocked combat applicants. I put my finger to roughly where my mouth was and whispered in my distorted voice, “No one will believe you.”
Au’tes brought her visor down and squeezed my hand for a second longer before leaning in close “Thank you for letting me know you still exist under there.

Reqellia:

The dirt trail up the hill was easy enough for my legs. I stayed in the same general area as Klein, but with my augments I already had his pinpoint location and medical data, I could even access his helmet camera. I didn’t want to get in his way while the instructors gave him snap secondary tasks to complete on our journey up to the outpost location.
I kept myself entertained by listening in on the comms chatter that I could pick up on the wargames going on about us at large. I had enjoyed playing the no-holds-barred opposing force when I was a commando on rotation here.
Right now there was a particularly fun little drama going on up north of our location. A mechanized assault unit tasked with taking out an anti-orbital battery got one of their exos stuck in mud because of a poor assessment of the ground composition. The armored crane they had first ordered to pull it out was now also stuck.
The Lieutenant was trying to get an exception to the wargame rules to bring a drop ship in to pull them both out, but the higher-ups told her to figure it out. The whole point of these wargames was to discover how things could go wrong. The Lieutenant tried to pull title to overrule them, only to get a nasty conversation from her commander.
A small beep from my monitoring systems told me Klein’s heart rate had slowed and I looked up to see the front of the supply train had been ordered to halt. Up ahead was the “fort,” a clearing on top of the hill with nothing but some half buried holes.
The Kortika woman got to the front of the formation and gave her orders. “Listen up! Combat selection is going to set up a perimeter while the Auxiliary builds us a structure safe enough to hold during an assault. All weapons are going ‘live’, but for those in the non-combat teams I will again warn you to only use them in self-defense. If you wanted to shoot people for a living you should have signed up for it.”
I tried not to flinch as I watched Klein and his compatriots start to offload all the gear they had packed this morning and attempt their best effort at setting it up with basic instructions from Li’kele and the manuals that came with the equipment. Just another test to see how the applicants would handle the technical situation.
At this point they were at their limit, physically and mentally exhausted as they tried to bolt frames together, wrestle antennas, install expandable barriers, and put together the foundations of a forward operating base.
Klein had all but given up on the counter battery system he schlepped here and handed that responsibility off to a Senthe Boy while speaking a rough northern dialect of Satenthia. The boy was more than happy to talk to someone who knew even a few words of his native tongue.
I opened a small window on my HUD and watched with amusement as the early contract offers rose and fell. Klein’s offer from naval engineering, already paltry compared to other, more suitable jobs, dropped to barely above standard. Intelligence and Law branches, however, rocketed upwards again.
I could almost hear the recruiter’s comments as the numbers and terms changed. Does not have familiarity with Shil military equipment. Comfortable with speaking multiple languages. Works well with multiple species.
I watched them work. Klein, in usual Klein fashion, pushed himself. After getting the counter battery laser hooked up, he volunteered for other physically demanding tasks. Pile driving in the foundations that hold the columns of the structure. The rhythmic thump gave me ghost aches when I had done the same thing out in the periphery while getting pot shotted by roaches.
I shook my head. It was going to be another rough night for him by the way he was bunching up his shoulders as he braced the handheld pile driver. Thankfully, tomorrow he’d be home and with an appointment with Cee who might force him on bed rest for the next month.
I started to chuckle at the thought of how protective Itaro was going to get after taking one look at Klein. I came back from deployment once missing three fingers from a plasma grenade and Bahtet waited on me and foot, wouldn’t so much as let me handle a kitchen knife until they were replaced later that month.
A few stray red beams were thrown our way, even a flash bang or two from the commandos tasked with harassing us came and went. As the ramparts of the temporary base were finished, I took up station on the second level to oversee the whole complex. Klien was working with a combat team, helping them put a second defense line in. They had driven stakes into the ground to support parallel knee-high thermocast plates with an arms-length gap between them, which Klein was filling in with dirt to act as a wall and platform for the heavy, crew served lasgun.
I was thankful there would be a shuttle to pick us up soon. I played the opposing force for Selection a few times, and I still remembered the script. Right now we were in a lull that would last until dusk, then at least three full commando teams would assault the base. The battle would be made as realistic and demanding as possible with creeping dark to add to the complexity.
The Selection team would always be wiped out, but it was how they performed against overwhelming odds that would shift the contract offers that last bit before everything was locked in place.
I heard the whirr of a counter battery system swiveling around, and then the crackle of it firing. I turned to see what it was aiming for but all I saw was a cloud of smoke . Then a fast moving object came through the cloud before I heard the crackle again and another exploded .
Blanketing everything in a tar-black fog .
My stomach dropped. This wasn’t the cadre commando team, and they were attacking too soon. I got on the comms with Li’kele “HALT, HALT, HALT! We need to stop the exercise!”
I got a crackle on the comms. Then Li’kele’s voice came in that terrifyingly calm voice used to keep control of a combat operation. “I can’t get a signal out, I need a report on the situation.”
Instead of trying to explain I sent her my video feed as I jumped down from the ramparts and started to sprint for Klein. I needed to get him out of here , but I hadn’t had time to prime my augments. I started the cold power cycle as I cursed myself for letting my guard down.
I was already too late . I watched as our own counter-battery laser weapons were used against us, acting as the triggers for each smoke grenade engulfing Klein’s team right in front of me, their signal dropping right out. I got a response from Li’kele that alleviated at least some of my terror. “Dammit! It’s the 171 st Raiders from the wargames, they mus-”
And then I was enveloped in darkness and static. The smoke was so thick I could only see a few paces away in all spectrums. I tried my internal radio and….
Nothing. I was alone and with nothing to guide me, and then I saw to the right of me a few weak beams of red, and then a ball of light of a simulated explosion. I let my gnawing panic subside and walked their way with a observers flag in my hand. I was practically on top of them before I saw the combat selection team that had been ‘killed’, their frowning faces and hands up as they sat there grumbling.
The Raiders appeared soon after. A four woman squad. Two Helkam, a Rakiri, and a Shil’vati hefting a large antiquated grenade launcher. I called out “Do you have a way to call a emergency stop to the battle?”
The squad leader responded. “Did someone get seriously injured? I can fire off a flare and our medic teams will be here to extract them.”
“No! This is Selection, we aren’t supposed to be part of the Wargames.” I argued, but she waved me off.
“We got orders to assault the base up here. Trust me, our commander is mighty pissed at getting tasked with a frontal assault on the youngest and toughest the Imperium has to offer, with adding insult to injury if we lose to kids. That’s why we broke out the smoke screen.”
“One of the Selection members is the first of their species. Higher ups want them monitored at all times,” I partly lied.
The gears whirred and the team lead brought her weapon up again, eyes a little wider. “ Blue Eyes is here? Shit, girls ready up and head on a swivel!”
The team reformed in a circle facing outwards, a tactic specifically meant for ambushes and roach suicide drones. I stood there, confused. “Blue eyes?”
The team lead started to move into the smoke again, but explained, her eyes darting around. “Yeah, the freaky creature in the mask, toyed with an unmanned Exo before annihilating it with a shipcutter! A close quarters combat specialist with heavy armor and a real mean streak . You’re telling me they’re loose in a forest with enough concealment to sneak up on us and tear us to shreds? Ma’am the only ones in immediate danger are us. ”

My partner left me with our two young children after grooming me for years. How do I heal?
I am 26f and my ex partner is 69m.
That’s hard to type out and admit to the situation I’ve found myself in. This has been my biggest secret for years.
I met my partner at 19. I worked as a waitress at the barestaurant he owns. I had a lot of fun I was cute and I loved being around customers. My personality was sarcastic and charming. A lot of people became my friends there. He watched me a lot and he gave me uneasy vibes. I kept it to myself he was a known creep. I didn’t think much of it until I had turned 21 (still working as a waitress) and he started becoming inappropriate with me. He would touch me around corners and spaces where I couldn’t push him away or it would be obvious to others what he was doing. For some reason I didn’t want to get him caught. He stayed in a dark room next to the bathrooms when I went to go pee one drink night after work I was drinking with my coworkers. He held my wrists led me into the dark side of the room and forcibly made me make out with him. That was the beginning.
I didn’t have much family and what I did have was an addict mother and a distant dad. I didn’t have a good example or even anyone to talk to about this. He poured sweet words into my head and professed his love and honestly it felt nice. He had found out I was a virgin after our first encounter. I was too scared to tell him I didn’t want to look like a child. He treated me like a hookup. Once he found out I was a virgin and he was my first he had become obsessive with me.
I found out he was married and had children older than me. He gave me the same story any married man would give you and me being so struck by him I dealt with it. I know I’m wrong. I will be punished in life for what I’ve done emotionally to this other woman. I’m not a victim.
He convinced me to have his child. He was having sex with me unprotected and professed how badly he wanted another chance at fatherhood. He was so busy with his first children he felt he missed out. His parents moved from his hometown in Greece to help him and his wife raise the children. I gave in. I was 23 and wanted a child. I knew he could support that child comfortably. I was very naive.
I was induced and had a quiet lonely labor without him present. I moved in with my mother and raised my daughter quietly mostly on my own. (My pregnancy was kept secret until I gave birth) I loved her so much. My whole life felt changed. It was hard to cope having him pop in and out but I tried to believe his love and made it work. Anytime I asked him for more time he got angry and told me I was asking too much. He was becoming insecure and more controlling. He secretly put trackers on my car. Had my phones location and checked my phone regularly.
I broke it off because I resented my loneliness so much. I became close with a guy my age. He was compassionate, loved my daughter, and enjoyed being my friend. My ex partner discovered my relationship by having microphones and trackers on my car and diaper bag
I was trying to coparent with my partner but he makes it very difficult trying to bring me back to him. Eventually he convinced me to come back to him move out of my home and try to be a family. I give in and try my best to make this work. He is more insecure calling me insults. A whore for being with another man and that I have ruined everything he will never love me the same. He eventually calms down and we get into a little routine with very high ups and very low lows.
Fast forward I accidentally become pregnant with our second child. I was distraught. I didn’t know how I would handle two children on my own with little help. My pregnancy put me in the hospital a dozen times from extreme sickness which looking back was extreme anxiety. I wanted to terminate but I couldn’t afford it and he wouldn’t allow me to. He confessed the affair to his wife and he moved in fully with me. She threatened me and tried to confront me but I was very pregnant and sick I couldn’t handle it. He reassured me he was with me because the kids needed him. He promised he would never leave. I tried to be secure and be excited for our second child. We found out she was another girl. I was happier than I’d been in years.
A few days before I had our daughter his oldest child died in a tragic accident. I tried to wait and hold off going into labor before the funeral. I had my child the morning of his viewing.
Midnight I went into labor he had stumbled home after drinking and grieving. He tried to force sexual acts on me but I had to explain I was in labor. He yelled at me on the way to the hospital for being in so much pain I threw up in his car. He was so different. I chalked it up to his child dying I needed to let him go through it atleast he was here this time.
I had a very hard labor our daughter got stuck but she came three hours later. He seemed disassociated the whole birth. He left an hour after I had her to go home sleep and get ready for the viewing later. He patted my shoulder and said good job. I bit my lip and tried to be positive. My mother brought me home two days later
I learned to breastfeed and give my toddler attention. I never asked him to help me I was on my own again and I was determined to do it on my own. He was in between my house and his ex wives to help . They were both grieving I tried to be understanding but I was alone except for at night. I started resenting him and fighting more than ever before. He started going away on fishing trips more and more. He only came home for sex. I kept the house clean and tried to keep him happy with sex even if my body wasn’t ready. He was getting frustrated and pushing me away. He couldn’t accept my postpartum and said him being financially responsible was enough. I asked too much and I wasn’t happy all I did was bitch at him I was unappreciative I was a whore. Eventually nothings could be said. Maybe I’m wrong for bitching all the time I couldn’t stop I just wanted to pull him in and be there for him while he was grieving
I had a lot of suspicions. He started hating me. He insulted me and put me down sex started to hurt. He was different. I became different and angry when before I would pretend to be happy
It all ended a few days ago. He called on his way back from a fishing trip. He said we were done I pushed him away I caused this. After a lot of me begging for an explanation he finally told me he’s going back to his wife they need to support each other in their grief. He says I played a huge role in this and his child dying was karma for what we did. He packed all of his things and I came home to an empty house. I’m gutted and devastated.
Our last conversation he wants me to live in our current home that he owns and he will make a lease agreement I have to sign. I will not be doing that. I will be moving with my family an hour and a half away and filing emergency custody. I will let him have some time as well. One of the terms in his lease is that I have to agree to never have another man around our kids. I will never sign and let him control me again
How do I heal and coparent with this man that hurt me all these years.

(At Hazbin Hotel, the cat is sleeping at the sofa, until it hears a hammer sound and sees Charles at a stair in the front of a banner above the entrance door saying "Happy First Week, Miss Pentious")
Charles: That looks perfect! (Screams excitedly) I am so excited that Miss Pentious is staying at the hotel!
Vagner: Um, Pentious was just trying to take over the city with her weird steampunk bullshit a few days ago.
Charles: Well, I haven't seen her try to pull any of that here.
(The cat runs from Miss Pentious pushing a giant ray gun)
Vagner: What the hell is that?!
Miss Pentious: Oh, hello, purple male. It's my new invention: the Skin Flayer 11,000! I'm really looking forward to shooting the other residents.
Charles: What? Why?
Miss Pentious: Everyone is being too nice. Obviously it must be a lie. I can sense they're planning to kill me. But when? How? I must be prepared! Ooh, the new parts of my machines are here!
(Two boys enter the hotel with a bunch of box in a cart)
Oddie: Sign here, please. (Gives a clipboard and pen to Miss Pentious, she signs it and give it back) Thank you for your business. Enjoy your Carmine purchase.
Vagner: Carmine? As in Carmillo Carmine? You are buying parts from an overlord?
Miss Pentious: Uh, of course. He's the top weapons dealer in Hell.
Vagner: Okay, well, that stops right now. (Gets the kart with the boxes from Miss Pentious)
Miss Pentious: Hey!
Vagner: You absolutely cannot build weapons in this hotel! No one is trying to kill you. People are being nice beacause they they want you to feel welcome.
(Miss Pentious looks at the bar Hisky and Angela give her the middle finger and Niffter smiles and laughs creepily to her)
Miss Pentious: I have my doubts.
Vagner: Well it's true. You have to trust us.
Miss Pentious: But I don't.
Charles: Well, why don't we focus on that for today's activities?
Vagner: Not before we lay some ground rules: no more building weapons, no more plotting against the other guests and you need to get rid of these things.
(One of the Egg Girls shoots a laser at the roof and breaks it)
Vagner: Ah! What did I just say? What did I just say?
Miss Pentious: What? Not my little Egg Girls! They do my evil bidding for my.
Vagner: Do you want to stay here and redeem yourself?
Miss Pentious: Yes?
Vagner: Then, no more eggs!
Miss Pentious: Alright, eggies. You've got to go. I (Sniffs) can't keep you anymore.
Egg Girl #1: Okay, boss!
Miss Pentious: No, don't resist, this is how it has to be.
(The egg girls follow Vagner and Miss Pentious cries sterically with Charles patting her)
(Alice is seen eating a dead deer with fork and knife in a table in the middle of a swamp)
Vagner: Alice!
(The screen moves showing the swamp in a room and Vagner at the door)
Alice: Do you mind? I'm in the middle of breakfast.
Vagner: Pentious' eggs are all over the place and I need you to get rid of them.
Alice: Oh! Well, in that case, I'd be delighted to!
Vagner: Humanely!
Alice: Um. Well, that's a lot less fun. But I suppose I can take care of that on my outing today. (Leaves her room)
Vagner: Great! (See the dead deer) Oh, this is disgusting.
(At the looby)
Charles: Hi, guys! Thanks for coming! It's been brought to our attention that there maybe a littleeeeeeeee tension at the hotel!
(Miss Pentious grabs Niffter and prepares to shoot him, but Vagner gets her gun)
Vagner: Tension that can be counterproductive to what we're trying to do here.
Charles: We think that this group could really benefit from...(Jumps in front of a lighthing background) Trust exercises!
Vagner: Trust exercises! Oh, shit! (Falls butt down on the ground and Charles gets him up)
Charles: Vagner, we rehearse this. (Sighs) We're doing trust exercises!
Hisky: So, um, what's with the whole, uh...This?
(A stage is seen behind Vagner and Charles)
Hisky: I'm not about to put on some show for these fuckings chumps!
Angela: Oh, I will! (Puts her legs in Hisky's) But it's cash up first. And I know that one afford me.
Miss Pentious: Gross! I'd think of it, spider!
Vagner: Right, let's get started. Charles?
Charles: Actually, I thought maybe you could take the lead on this one. I trust everyone, so maybe you'd know better about how to build it properly.
Vagner: What? Uh, I don't know I'm qualified to...
Charles: Oh, come on! It'll be easy, I'm sure you can handle this.
Vagner: Yeah, um, sure. I can handle this, no problem. (Inhales) Alright, so we are starting with trust falls! Each of you are going to share something vulnerable about yourself and then fall backwards while the rest lf the group catches you, got it? Who wants to go first?
Charles: Ooh! Ooh! Me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me!
Vagner: Alright, get on up there!
(Charles gets in the stage)
Charles: I...I love you guys. Like, really love you! (Turns around, falls backwards and Vagner catches him)
Vagner: Got you!
Charles: That...Felt...Good! Angela, why don't go next?
Angela: Fine! (Goes to the stage)
Vagner: This time everyone needs to catch her, okay? Unless you want me to hurt you!
Angela: Well, something about myself, huh? Well, how about this? I love to lick...
Hisky: I swear to fuck if you say pussies!
Angela: Lollipops, ya sicko! Get your head head of the gutter! (Falls backwards and Hisky catches her) But ya know? Pussies, too. (Hisky drops her) Ahh! Alright, new girl, you're up.
(A spotlight shines on Miss Pentious)
Miss Pentious: I don't want to leave without my minions! Nobody catch me. (Falls backwards and Vagner, Charlie and Hisky catch her) Damn it!
Vagner: That's great. Wow, you're slimy. Good job. Uh, Niffter? (Niffter runs runs past him and gets in the stage)
Niffter: Sometimes, I kill father bugs in front of their children as a warning to others! (Falls from the stage, everyone backs away and he falls face down in the ground) Yay! Pain! (Gets up, goes to the stage, falls and repeats it) Hehe, pain!
(Charles and Vagner walk away)
Charles: I don't think this really working the way we hoped. Maybe, we should...
Vagner: Honey, you have to trust me here. I got this, okay? I'll figure something out.
Angela: If you're in the market for some ideas, I got just the thing for some trust building.
Vagner: (Sighs) What do you have in mind?
(In the town, Alice is seen walking with the Egg Girls)
Egg Girl #1: Oh, boy! What's the plan, boss?
Egg Girl #2: I like your suit.
Egg Girl #3: What are the antlers for?
Egg Girl #4: Can I touch your staff thing?
Egg Girl #5: Are those your ears or is it your hair? I can't tell.
(A tall woman appears in front of Alice)
Zestia: Hark, Alice. How fare thee this day?
Egg Girl #1: Who's that boss? Want me to ruff her up for ya?
Alice: Follow in silence if you value your shells! Greetins, Zestia!
Sinner #1: Ahh! Holy shit! (Falls backwards)
Zestia: Ah, the weather did become fine this day!
Sinner #2: Oh! Uh-oh! (Hides in the garbage)
Alice: Indeed! Looks like we might have some acid rain this afternoon!
(A demon screams, covers her in gas and combustes her in flames)n
Zestia: If our luck doth hold. I do reveal in the screams. How art thou? (Walks with Alice) It's been an ages since thou hath graced us with thy presence. Some hath spun wild tales of you falling to...Holy arms.
Alice: (Laughs) Oh, I just took a well earned sabatical, nothing serious. Though is fun to keep everyone on their toes. Ha ha!
Zestia: (Chuckles) There too hath been rumor of thy involvement with the prince and his flight of fancy. Tell me, how does thou fall in such folly?
Alice: That is for me to know. But please, do guess, I'd love to hear the theories!
Zestia: (Chuckles) T'would be grander folly by far to assume the workings of your mind, Alice. Thou hath been naught but an enigma since thy manifested in this realm.
Alice: Coming from someone as ancient as you I take that as quite the complement!
(They walk into an alley, pass through a security cam and Alice statics it, the girls get in an elevator and Alice prevents the egg girls from entering with her staff)
Alice: No, no. I have a very important task for you: stay here and guard the front until I return.
(The Egg Girls salute Alice, the elevator closes and goes up)
Egg Girl #1: Oh, look, Frankie is up there!
Egg Girl #2: We have names?
(In the top the building, the elevator doors open and Zestial, Alice and Frankie get out of it, Frankie sees a blck eyes man and a blue skull woman saluting and a dinosaur guy come ou of an elevator and all of them enter a room with a table and chairs and Frankie hides behind Alice, the black eyes man see her, she waves at him and he smiles showing his teeth and she hides scared, and a man appears at the end of the table with the delivery boys from later)
Carmillo: Welcome, Hell's sovereign overlords. I invited you all here because you represent the controlling powers of our city. Together you own millions of souls. Souls at risk with a new extermination schedul. We need to discuss what can be done to minimize the impact. (See Zestia sitting at his side) Zestia, so good to see you my friend.
Zestia: Encanted as always, Carmillo.
Carmillo: Alice?
Alice: Yes, I know, I've been absent some time. I'm sure you've all been wondering.
Carmillo: Not really. But welcome back in ay case. (Snaps fingers and Oddie gives him a clipboard) This year's extermination was brutal. Far more even than years past. We have assessed that about 16% of the population was lost. With the Angelic Legions returning twice as quickly, I think is prudent that we...
(Veener quicks the door and everyone looks at him)
Veener: (At the phone) Yes, I've got it handled, Vix. Are you doubting me? Really? Me? That's what I thought. Ha ha ha! Yes, I know, they're all a joke. (Laughs) Thank you, Vee. (Kisses) Kisses, darling!
Carmillo: Nice of you to join us, Veener. Will your colleagues be joining?
Veener: No. They have better shit to do than to listen to an old windbag that thinks he's tough shit. I'm here to represent.
Carmillo: Charming. (Veener puts a poop filter on him) So, as I was saying, we need to discuss...
(Veener raises and shakes his hand)
Carmillo: Yes?
Veener: On the subject of discussion. (Throws an angel head in the table)
(Everyone gasps)
Alice: Ooh! Tasty!
Carmillo: Where did you get this?
Veener: We found it during the extermination day. If these holy rollers can be killed, the game has changed. We can take the fight to them. The girls and I have come up with a full assault plan...
(Everyone hears sipping noises, and look at Zestia drinking tea loudly and she puts the cup in the table)
Zestia: If it be true thee and thy colleagues desire to war, with such meagre proof. Thou art far more foolish than I be thought.
Veener: (Scoffs) "Meagre proof"? It's a dead fucking exorcist! I'd say that's pretty fucking definitive! You're going blind, old woman?
Zestia: We know not how this perished. Mayhaps it was not by a demon's hand at all. If we rush to war without knowing might, they purge all of Hell for ding an uprising.
(Everyone mutters in agreement and Veener looks to Carmillo worried)
Veener: Oh! I get it. So grandma is too pussy to fight, so I guess there's no point, right?
(Zestia gets angry)
Veener: Oh, what's the matter, fossil? To senile to make a real power grab for...
Carmillo: (Singing) You better show some respect! Check your behavior! No one speaks too Zestia that way! Did you expect us to sir baxk and rake your insolent brazen display?
Veener: Haha! (Singing) You've got it twisted! I'm not the one who needs a attitude! Maybe you missed it, but I'm that #Bitch and I will do nothing else then what I please! Woo! I'm the backbone of the Vees! Mad that I acted respectless? Well, it's 'cause no one could respect this. Sorry group attendin', since when are overlords too scared to fight? You're long past trendin'. Sorry, bae, but I ain't swipin' right. You lost your relevance.
Zestia: We can't act without more intelligence!
Veener: Ugh, no wonder I'm so respectless. I could eat you lot for breakfast. You and the Vees are inane and uninformed, Smug wannabes, who don't heed when you've been warned!
Veener: Oops! Did I strike a nerve? 'Cause when I brought out the angel's head, couldn't help but observe that your wrinkled face was turning red! And why are you avoidin' war? That's what the guns you sell are for. Thanks to my being respectless. One thing I'm starting to suspect is. You know why this angel's headless. Do you have a disclosure?
Carmillo: This meeting's over!
(Everyone stare at the boys)
Alice: That was a productive meeting!
Veener: (Normal) Hmmph, fine. Safe travel back to nursing home, fuckers! Kiss my ass! Hahaha! (Leaves the room)
Zeezo: What the hell? We literally just got here.
Oddie: Father?
(Carmillo walks away and Zestia follows him and everyone else leaves the room almost staping on Frankie, and Alice see Zestia and Carmilla enter another room)
Alice: Well, that's interesting. You little egg creature. I have a job for you.
Frankie: Oh, yes, boss.
Alice: Follow them.
(Frankie salutes and enters the other room, back to Vagner, Charles and Angela)
Vagner: Angela! What the actual fuck?!
(They're seem in a sex dungeon)
Angela: No activity requires more trust them BDSM, baby. No bond stronger than those formed through bondage. That's their motto. (Points to a poster)
Charles: Angela, love the enthusiasm. But umm, uh...Hmmmm...
Vagner: What makes you think anyone would be into this?
(Hisky purrs with a mister messaging her)
Hisky: Ya know, I...I don't hate this.
(Niffter appears holding a stick)
Niffter: I'm ready to punish some bad girls. (Giggles)
Hisky: Uhh...Nevermind, I-I'm out. (Gets up and walks away)
(Misters surround Charles)
Charles: (Laughs uncomfortably) Okay, hello there. Hi. Um. Hm...(Vagner drags him away)
Vagner: Ugh, can't fucking believe I let you drag us here, Angela. This is disgusting.
Charles: It's no big deal, Vagner. You know, maybe I can just help, uh...
Vagner: No. I told you could trust me. And I'm not gonna let you down. I just need to teach them the way I was taught.
(In a tower roof)
Charles: This is how you learn to trust people?!
(A lot of demons are seen fighting in a bettlefield)
Vagner: (In drill sergeant style) There is nothing stronger than a trust between comrades and arms. Buckle up, buttercups, because today you boys become men! You...(Grabs Miss Pentious)
Miss Pentious: Wait, wait! I can't fight without my minions...(Vagner throws her off the building)
Vagner:...Are gonna survive together! Miss Pentious: AAAAAAHHH!
(Vagner turns to Angela)
Vagner: And you...
Angela: Don't you even think about it...
Vagner: Are make this hotel work! (Vagner throws grabs and throws Angela off the building)
Angela: AAAAAAHHH!
Niffter: (Excitedly) My turn, my turn!
(Hisky get out of the roof, Vagner grabs Niffter, but Charles catches him)
Charles: Vagner, no!
Vagner: This is the only way they'll learn, Charles.
Charles: No, it's not. There are other ways. It just take time.
Vagner: Time we don't have. How many exterminations will have to gone by before these idiots get their shit together? How many times we have to watch your people be killed before we make headway?
Charles: Vagner...
Vagner: I took charge today and it all went sideways. I'm suppose to make your dreams a reality. I'm suppose to protect you. I'm suppose to never fail you. (Leans on the edge of the terrace)
Angela: I blame you for this you crazy bitch!
Charles: You didn't fail me, Vagner...You're not...
Vagner: If I can't help you, what's the point of me?
Charles: (Gasps) Vagner, don't say that! You do so much! It's...
Vagner: I'm sorry. I'd like to be alone for a minute.
(Charles turns away from Vagner and see Angela grabbing Miss Pentious in her back getting in the roof and Angela throws Pentious in the ground)
Angela: Made it.
Charles: Let's go home, guys.
Angela: Ugh! I just walked up all those stairs. (Grabs Miss Pentious and pulls her following Charles)
(In Carmillo's office, he pulls himself a drink)
Carmillo: Ay, que barbaridad. (Drinks from a bottle)
Zestia: Carmillo, what troubles thou? Loosing thy composure is unlike thee.
Carmillo: (Sighs) It's nothing, Zestia. Really.
Zestia: The felled angel...'Twas by thy hand, was it not?
Carmillo: Let's not talk abou it. (Walks away)
Clarence: Dad, maybe she should know.
Carmillo: Nobody should know. (Sits in his desk) I did what to do. I am not discussing this. (Zestia puts her hand in his shoulder)
Zestia: (Singing) What weighs on your soul, old friend? I implore you to share the load. If it was thou who slew the angel, why not let your strength be known?
Carmillo: (Singing) I always thought, that I would keep blood off my face. But when that thing attacked, I had to act, to cross that line and keep them safe. But if anyone knew, then all of Hell would rise to war and who's to say who'd survive the fray? I might lose the ones that I was killing for! So I! I'll be your keeper! (Hugs his sons) Do whatever it takes! I'll make the mistakes! I'll keep you safe and keep this secret!
(Meanwhile, Vagner climbs the outside of the hotel)
Vagner: (Singing) When I saw your face, you made me feel like a stranger in a brand new place and it felt so good to be understood. But there's so much I wished that I could say. So I...I'll be your armor, do whatever it takes, I'll make the mistakes, I'll spend my life being your partner.
Carmillo: And I don't know what we might face, But I know I can't replace you so I'll do anything to save you!
Vagner: And I will try to make your dreams come true!
Vagner and Carmillo: Whatever we go through. I know I....
Carmillo: I'll be your keeper
Vagner: I'll be your armor!
Carmillo and Vagner: Whatever it takes!
Carmillo: I'll make the mistakes!
Vagner: I'll make the mistakes!
Carmillo and Vagner: Whatever it takes!
(Meanwhile, some of the Egg Girls are dumpster diving)
Egg Girl #3: Ooohh. This smells like fun. Ooh, I love garbage.
(Frankie get out of the elevator and Alice stops her)
Alice: So, what did you hear?
Frankie: First, the old woman w-was all "you're not yourself, you're the one who killed the angel" a-a-and the he was all (Singing) Whatever it takes!
Alice: And then what was that last thing?
Frankie: He killed the angel?
Alice: Interesting. Let's keep this between us, shall we?
Frankie: You got it, boss!
(At the hotel, Vagner finds Charles at the hotel)
Vagner: Hey.
Charles: Hey.
Vagner: I'm sorry I got so crazy today.
Charles: No, no, I'm sorry. I'm put pressure on you. We work as a team. I guess I just thought all this would be easier, but we'll figure it out...Together. I mean, look what your exercise did for them.
(In the sitting room below everyone is laughing)
Angela: And then when that buff girl started beating the shit outta you.
Miss Pentious: Ha ha! Yeah, with the desmembered arm. Yes, that, was, particularly unpleasent.
Niffter: He he. I liked that part.
Hisky: Well hey, at least you can take a beating like a champ. You did okay, new kid.
Miss Pentious: Really? Oh, well, I suppose I did get into a little of the old rough and tumblr today. (Laughs) And, uh...Thank you for pullinh me out of there. (Angela staps her back)
(Everyone laugh and giggle, the girls stop, but Niffter keeps laughing manically)
Vagner: Well, how about that?
(Alice returns)
Vagner: Alice. Failed to get rid of the eggs, I see.
Alice: Yes, well, the little monsters prove to be rather useful.
Vagner: Why don't you give them back to Pentious?
Miss Pentious: Really?
Vagner: Yeah. After today, I guess I can trust you with them. But seriously, no more weapons.
Miss Pentious: Ahhhh! (Hugs the Egg Girls) My eggs! Yeah. Oh, it's so good to have you back. Now go clean my quarters this instant!
Charles: Maybe things will move faster than you think.
(In Pentious' room)
Miss Pentious: Ah! How was your day with Alastor, my minions?
Frankie: It was awesome, boss. I went to this meeting and there was a knife guy, an old lady and a dinosaur.
Miss Pentious: Umm. That's nice.
Frnkie: And the knife guy killed an angel. And I was not suppose to be talking about it.
Miss Pentious: Oh, I'm so sure and maybe you'll meet martians tomorrow. Bit now it's time to sleep. Good night, Eggies. (The egg women sleep over her and they all go to sleep)
(The end credits start playing)

I can't seem to find spells I previously used in the search spell bar. Even one's I've personally uploaded aren't showing up. I can go into my histroy and pull up art that used these now "missing" spells and they work just find. Is anyone else having this issue?

Hinge has positioned itself as a long-term relationship app, so that means your profile needs to convince her you’re true Boyfriend Material!
Sound like a tall order? Don't worry. We use Hinge on a daily basis, and have been since the app launched in 2012. You're about to benefit from our thousands of hours of direct user experience!
You see, we represent our clients on Hinge - optimizing their profiles, selecting their photo lineups, and sending messages on their behalf. We analyze everything, so we know what approaches work, what to avoid, and which strategies attract the best matches.
Thanks to our evidence-based approached, these 7 Hinge profile tips for men will make your profile irresistible! You’ll also get 11 examples of the best Hinge answers.
Let’s start with the main attraction…
Hinge Profile Tip #1: Aim For Perfection With Your Primary Photo
Don’t worry - it’s easier than it sounds! A team of European neuroscientists identified a checklist of what attributes combine to make the most attractive profile picture:
Eye contact is particularly important, as lack of it has a negative effect on her first impression of you. When she can look you straight in the eyes, you seem inherently more trustworthy and genuinely likeable.
That means sunglasses are not ideal for dating photos, and you don’t want to hide your eyes behind your hair or a Snapchat filter either.
Hinge Profile Tip #2: Embrace Quality Control
You know who gets excited about low-quality graphics? No one.
So when choosing your other 5 Hinge photos or videos, make sure they’re all high-quality images. You want your Hinge lineup to look intentional and curated, not like you pulled random images off your Facebook or phone.
Here’s the thing - when looking at images, human brains are wired to prefer simplicity and clarity.
When a picture has a high cognitive workload, it means your brain has to work harder to interpret what’s going on in the frame. The subject matter becomes less attractive the more complex it is.
Simple = attractive.
If your picture is blurry, has harsh highlights and dark shadows, or “artistic” effects that obscure your face, the odds she’s going to “like” or comment on it are drastically reduced - and that means you probably won’t match with her.
While artistic effects that complicate your photos are not good, using a black and white filter can increase the odds you’ll get some “likes” - by 106%. Try applying one to a photo or two in your lineup!
Hinge Profile Tip #3: Put Down The Selfie Stick
Selfies are problematic on Hinge for several reasons:

1. Selfies are a whopping 40% less likely to get “likes.” That number rockets up to 90% if it’s a bathroom selfie. Don’t go there.

2. Selfies are less attractive than non-selfies. A recent study compared two photos - a selfie, and a photo of that same person taken by someone else. The selfie version was perceived as less attractive and more narcissistic. Don’t cultivate that vibe on Hinge!

3. They don’t inspire comments. Which photo do you think will entice more comments and “likes”:

Dalmatians for the win!
Photos where you’re doing something are especially effective on Hinge, as it makes it easy for your match to start a conversation by asking about whatever is going on in the image.
Per their internal data, sports photos are the most popular when it comes to “likes,” and activity photos in general ranked highly.
Coming in dead last were pics where you’re posing with someone who could be an ex. A full 98% of singles said that was a turn off.
Hinge Profile Tip #4: Stay On The Bright Side
Now let’s talk about your profile text. The best Hinge prompts to answer let you highlight on an attractive trait or two in a positive way.
Remember, she’s looking for Boyfriend Material, so why waste space with negativity?
Take, for instance, the “Pet Peeves” prompt. It’s challenging to make your answer sound anything other than whiny, pessimistic, and overly bothered by the minutiae of daily life.
Plus, if it’s a shared pet peeve, chances are she’ll feel a flash of annoyance when she reads it - and guess who she’s going to associate that feeling with? (Spoiler alert: you).
You also want to avoid describing what she may perceive as a negative character trait or flaw:
With over 80 prompts to choose from and only 3 available slots, she’s going to wonder why you took up valuable space with what’s essentially a reason not to “like” you.
To decide which are the best Hinge profile questions for you to answer, take a minute and write down a list of things you bring to the table that you think your ideal woman would be looking for in a guy.
Stable career, physically fit, interesting hobbies, family oriented, able to afford vacations, responsible enough to care for a dog… things of that nature that illustrate why you’d be a particularly good catch.
Then compare that list to the available prompts, and choose the ones that best let you highlight a few of those traits. Simple!
Here are 4 great Hinge profile examples, plus insight into why they work:
If you’re still stuck on what to write in your Hinge profile, try using one of these creative Hinge answers that are general enough to fit anyone:
A blast-from-the-past fashion trend makes for a great conversation starter since most women can relate to it.
While these examples don’t necessarily highlight a desirable personality trait or hobby, they will bring a smile to her face.
Humor is a great strategy in a dating profile, if you can pull it off. Women can’t help but be drawn to funny guys - it’s the way her brain is wired.
Hinge Profile Tip #5: Make One Of The Prompts About Her
Marketing yourself in an appealing, intriguing way is the goal of your Hinge profile.
But including a tidbit about her is an effective strategy.
According to research, 70% of your dating profile should describe you, but 30% of it should describe what type of person you’re looking for. That’s the most attractive combination.
As you’ve already learned, keep your answer positive.
Describing what you don’t want could have the opposite effect, as you may end up sounding picky and judgemental. Or worse, bitter from your last relationship imploding.
Hinge don'ts
Instead, focus on hobbies you’d like to have in common with your perfect match, or attributes that are important to you in a relationship.
Here are 3 great ways to answer the Hinge profile questions:
Describing non-physical attributes implies you're looking for a non-superficial relationship, and mentioning a hobby you'd like to have in common gives her some insight into your personality.
These good prompt answers give her some insight into what dating you might be like, and also imply that keeping in shape is important to you (which is always an attractive quality).
Mentioning a great first date idea in your Hinge answer is a subtle way to make her envision what an hour or two with you might include.
In fact, it’s so effective that according to founder Justin McCleod, answering this prompt got the most dates for users in London:
What works in London will probably work wherever you are as well, making “I know the best spot in town for” one of the best Hinge prompts for guys to answer if it's one of the available options for you.
Hinge Profile Tip #6: Make Every Word Count
The shorter a dating app profile is, the more impact each individual word has. To create the best possible first impression, you want every word in your profile to evoke positive vibes.
Stay away from words that cause a strong negative reaction, like violence, swearing, drugs and weapons. Those can have a ripple effect that will diminish your overall attractiveness.
And since this is Hinge, not Tinder, you’ll definitely want to keep it classy.
don't do this on Hinge
Even if you’re on Hinge just to hook up, don’t advertise your intentions in your profile. And consider switching to another dating app - Hinge really isn’t the app for that.
Here a few more Hinge “Don’ts” to keep in mind:
Repeat yourself. She’s reading a max of 450 characters, which is even less than a Tinder bio. Repetition is really going to stand out. If you talk about how much you love hiking in every Hinge answer, she’s apt to think you’re a one note kind of guy.
Make grammapunctuation/spelling errors. There’s not a lot of written material feeding into that all-important first impression, so little mistakes can have a big effect. Plus, surveyed singles said bad sex was preferable to bad grammar (if they had to choose), so it’s important to get it right.
Give “non” answers. You may think it’s the height of wit to answer Hinge prompts with statements like “I’m looking for… a better answer to this question,” but that’s likely to backfire on you. If she thinks you’re not taking online dating seriously, she probably won’t invest any time in getting to know you.
Reference past relationships. If you’re in your late 20s or 30s, odds are high you’ve got at least one significant relationship in your past. Whether the breakup was good or bad, your Hinge profile is not the place to rehash it.
Hinge Profile Tip #7: Reconsider Your “Dealbreakers”
When you set up your Hinge profile, you have the option to designate match preferences as “dealbreakers.”
That's a great feature for singles seeking long-term relationships, as it eliminates the need to ask those personal questions during the first few dates.
When you specify something as a dealbreaker, you won’t see profiles of people who don’t fit that category, regardless of how many other categories they do fit. (If you don't specify something as a dealbreaker, you may see profiles of singles who fall slightly outside of your ideal preferences.)
Free members have the usual filters like age range, distance and height. If you’re a Hinge+ or HingeX member, you have access to additional filters like children, family plans, education, and politics.
Take a look at any categories you deemed a “Dealbreaker” and make sure they truly are.
For instance, if your match is 5’7” instead of 5’8” or taller, is that truly important in the grand scheme of things? Or if she’s 41 instead of under 40?
If you’re too exclusive with your filtering, you may miss out on a great match you would have really clicked with, despite a small divergence from your “ideal type.”

The day it all happened I was in a bar. It was 11.30am, and it was a Tuesday. I'd left my girlfriend and went for a quick drink, or so I'd told her. I'd been feeling down a lot recently. She was always busy with her friends or work, and never had time for me. I'm not trying to excuse my actions, but I needed something to make myself feel good. I had planned on going home early, but that was before I saw her. She was sitting alone at the end of the bar, sipping her white wine. We started talking and she made me laugh. I can't remember how long we were talking, but it seemed like ages. At the time, I'd forgotten about the rest of the world, I was so caught up in our conversation.
Then it happened.
All of a sudden, the bartender dropped a glass, shattering it across the floor. "Watch it!" he shouted at a customer, who'd accidentally bumped into him. Then, he threw the towel he'd been holding onto the counter, and went over to the customer and punched him in the face. It all happened so quickly, I didn't have time to react. The customer stood up, his nose bleeding. He walked towards the bartender and hit him back, knocking him into the wall. A full on fight ensued, as two other men from the crowd joined in. They were throwing punches, and pushing each other to the ground.
The woman I'd been talking to looked scared, and started backing away from the bar.
"What the hell?" she said, her voice wavering.
I stood up, and held her hand. "Come on, let's get out of here."
I led her out of the bar and back to the street. She had a look of terror on her face. I had to calm her down, she looked like she was going to have a panic attack.
"It's ok, I'm here." I told her. "Are you okay?"
She took a deep breath and nodded.
"What was that all about?" she asked.
I shrugged. "I have no idea. Maybe it's stress or something. There's a lot of that going around right now."
Just then, the sound of sirens rang through the air. People were walking quickly by, looking at their phones, trying to find out what was happening. We followed the crowd and ended up in front of a large electronics store. It was closed.
"Do you have your phone?" she asked me.
I checked my pockets, but it wasn't there. I'd left it at the bar.
"Damn, no. I forgot it."
"Shit." she said, and pulled out her own.
The screen was flashing and beeping, and the words "Emergency Broadcast" were displayed.
"Oh no." she said, her face turning white.
I peered over her shoulder at the screen. It read:
Attention citizens. There has been a breach in the security at the local military base. If you see anyone acting strangely or displaying symptoms of the following, report it to the authorities immediately.
Symptoms:

• Bleeding or bruising from the mouth and nose
  
• Loss of consciousness
  
• Increased heart rate
  
• Increased body temperature
  
• Hallucinations
  
• Involuntary movement
  

"What does that mean?" I asked her.
"I have no idea." she replied, her voice shaking.
Suddenly, a scream came from the end of the street. I turned and saw a man running down the sidewalk. He was covered in blood, and screaming at the top of his lungs. A group of people was following him, chasing after him.
"Stay back!" he yelled. "It's not safe! They're coming!"
He ran around a corner and the crowd disappeared.
"He said they're coming. Who's coming?" asked the woman.
"I have no idea. We need to get to the police or someone to help us. Let's get somewhere secure."
We started walking towards the police station when a large group of people appeared around the corner, running towards us. They were screaming and shouting. They were completely out of their minds. The street was filled with men and women, young and old. Some were in bloody clothes, while others were completely naked.
"Run!" the woman screamed.
I grabbed her arm and we both ran for cover. We rounded the corner and started sprinting down the street, dodging past people and cars. Everything was a blur as we ran for our lives. After what felt like an eternity, we reached the police station. The front door was open and a small group of people were running inside. We followed them inside and found ourselves in a crowded lobby. The officer at the desk was yelling into the phone.
"Yes! There's rioting! Send backup now!"
Another officer came out from behind the desk and shouted over the chaos.
"Everyone needs to calm down! The military is sending a convoy to help us secure the city! Just hold tight!"
But people weren't listening. They continued to yell and scream, fighting against each other to get out of the station. I noticed a few people had bruises and cuts from the crowd.
I felt someone grab my arm. It was the woman I'd been with. She looked at me and shook her head.
"I'm scared." she said, her voice trembling.
Then she fell to the ground, crying. I reached down and held her in my arms.
"It's gonna be alright. I'm here. I won't let anything happen to you."
People were still pushing and shoving their way towards the exit, oblivious to us. I held onto her tightly, not wanting to lose her in the chaos. The sirens outside got louder, until they stopped altogether. I looked through the windows and saw a convoy of military vehicles pull up outside. Soldiers rushed into the station, their guns drawn.
They began shouting orders to the crowd.
"Calm the fuck down! Everyone calm down and leave through the rear entrance! This is not a request, this is an order! Anyone caught rioting or acting violently will be shot on sight! Go through the back, through the alleys, to the designated safe area! No more resistance, this is not a threat, this is a fact, now move, move, move!"
The crowd slowly filed out of the station, and we joined them.
My ears were ringing from the sirens and gunshots, but I did my best to keep moving. There were so many people, and we were forced to keep close together as the crowd funneled down a narrow alleyway. The city was in chaos. Smoke rose from buildings and car alarms blared. Gunshots and screams were everywhere.
We followed the throng of people down the alley until they reached a roadblock.
"This is as far as we can go." a soldier said. "Follow the crowd down this way and find a shelter. Don't wander around on your own, stay in groups if you can. Stay safe."
I looked at the woman and nodded. "C'mon, let's keep moving."
The crowd parted and we pushed through to the front. We soon found ourselves on a road full of burnt out cars and debris. The roadblock was full of soldiers, who directed us towards a football stadium.
The smell of smoke hung in the air as we walked through the streets. I wondered what could've started it all, and why it had ended so quickly.
When we reached the stadium it was full of people, all looking for their loved ones. I scanned the faces, hoping to see my girlfriend. I looked back towards the entrance and saw an old man and woman being helped down from a trolley bus. The lady had a bandage around her head, and her husband had blood on his face. The lady was clutching a broken arm. They hobbled their way slowly to a makeshift aid station. A soldier guided them towards the rest of the wounded.
"Grandma! Grandpa!" a small girl cried out and ran to them. She threw her arms around the woman and hugged her tightly.
A feeling of relief rushed over me, I was so happy they were alive. But at the same time, I couldn't help but think about my own girlfriend. Where was she?
People were sitting on the ground, crying. Others, stood, shell-shocked, looking around. A few people were trying to make small talk, despite everything. They were looking for ways to take their minds off the situation, to cope.
A bus was parked in the middle of the park and there were lines of people waiting in front of it.
"Are you hungry? Do you have any food?" a woman asked me, pushing her child in front of me.
"No, sorry, I don't," I replied, surprised at the desperation in her voice. "I don't have anything."
I looked at the queue, wondering if that was where the line was to get some free food. A woman in a white apron behind a stand marked "First Aid" tried to calm the crowd, raising her voice above the din.
"Everyone, please! Settle down, the military will have more help coming shortly! But for now we're out of supplies and the situation will only worsen if you don't control yourselves!"
Just then, another truck pulled up on the edge of the field. It had a green cross painted on the side of it and the word "Medicine" on the doors. My heart swelled with hope as several officers jumped out, carrying duffel bags of equipment, and headed straight to the medical tent.
"It's the supplies, everyone! It's the supplies they promised us!" someone in the back yelled.
The crowd began pushing and shoving each other again, and the woman and her kid that had spoken to me before was lost in the wave of people running forward, trying to get to the medicine. I tried to find them, to help, but I couldn't see them. There were so many people crowding around the truck, scrambling for the parcels of food and water and blankets that had spilled out.
I looked around at the field and at all the frightened and desperate people. Some were hurt and injured. Others were shell-shocked. Children were crying and their parents didn't know how to comfort them.
I knew there had been an outbreak of some sort, that the military had been evacuating the city. What I didn't understand is why the city had come to such a state of disarray in just one day.
A gunshot rang out and people screamed. It was followed by another, then several more. I ducked and covered my head. People around me started running, but I could see them lying on the ground. More gunshots and screams filled the air. Then, there was an eerie silence.
I stood up and slowly turned around, taking in the carnage. Bodies littered the ground, some missing limbs. I stepped carefully over the lifeless bodies of the fallen and made my way towards the exit of the stadium.
As I neared the gate I saw a group of soldiers guarding it. One was checking a man for weapons while another was wrapping a tourniquet around his leg. The other three were standing by a stack of rifles, preparing to re-load. I looked closer at the man with the bandaged leg and recognized him as the soldier that was on the news not long ago, telling us that the rioters had been dealt with and it was now safe to return to our homes. He had also assured us that the city would get back to normal soon.
"Clear!" the other soldier yelled, checking his weapon before handing it back to its owner. The soldier limped out the gate and was gone.
I tried to run, but my feet felt heavy and sluggish. The soldiers were getting closer, their guns drawn. They were shouting at me, their voices faint in my ears.
I turned to try and flee when a shot rang out and pain exploded in the back of my head.

• End -

I am not the OOP. The OOP is u/ResponsibleBox4681 posting in Parenting
Concluded as per OOP
Content Warning - child sexual abuse
Mood spoiler - terrible parenting
Thanks to u/shesalive_dammit for finding this BORU
1 update - Medium
Original - 6th May 2024
Update - 31st May 2024
​
My daughter is treating my son like he’s dead to her
​
I’m at the end of my rope and desperate for some input. This is a throwaway for the obvious sensitive reasons below.
My husband and I have DD (17) and DS (14). They have never been overly close siblings, but weren’t sworn enemies either. Just two different kids with two different personalities, but as long as everyone was respectful that was okay with me.
When DD was 10 she was the victim of abuse by a family member that saw them convicted and go to jail. She was in intensive therapy for years and we are so proud of the strong, confident and intelligent young woman she is today. She has always, however, been very private about it. Besides our family, her lifelong best friend/her parents knew, and that was it. My son, however, knew about the abuse too.
He flippantly told some friends about it 2 months ago, and before you know it, the whole school knew. DD was devastated, to say the least. She’s been back in counselling since and has been coping as well as possible. This counselling has come at a financially really tough time for us and is obviously worth every penny, but the fact that we can’t afford more counselling factors into the other part of this.
DD blew up at DS when this first happened and he saw the fallout of her coping with this firsthand. But since that night where she found out he told people and word was going around, she hasn’t spoken a word to him. She doesn’t look at him when he enters a room, or react when he speaks directly to her, or about her, or anything else of the sort. For example at dinner, she’ll speak to us and he’ll chime in and she continues the conversation as though he hadn’t said anything.
DS has tried daily to talk to her and apologized, begged, pleaded and cried and it’s always the same - she’ll usually crack a book/look at her phone, put some AirPods in and ignore him completely. She won’t discuss it with me besides to say that he’s dead to her and she has no intention of ever seeing or speaking to him again when she moves out in 10 months, and she hasn’t wavered even a bit in that sentiment since.
I’m at a complete loss. DS is on total lockdown - he’s lost his phone, video games, any sort of privilege or ability to do things with friends - he essentially goes to school, comes home, does his homework and goes to bed and he knows we are devastated and beyond disappointed.
I believe he’s sincerely sorry and contrite - he’s broken down crying and apologizing to us more times than I can count - but I’m unsure of how to proceed. We can’t afford family counselling, and DD’s personal counsellor won’t talk to me about what she says to her about any of this, besides to say not to push her on anything. I know she has every right to be furious.
But at the same time, I can’t help but feel like it’s also not mentally healthy for my son to be treated as though he literally doesn’t exist in his home for the next year. I know it’s a natural consequence, but it’s gut wrenching to see and be living with. Not to mention, as a mom I don’t want my kids to be permanently estranged. It breaks my heart.
Has anyone else experienced anything even in the ballpark of this that could offer any advice?
​
Comments
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amjay8
Best you can do right now is try to access counseling for him, too. It would be wrong & counterproductive to push her to forgive him for a betrayal so deep if she doesn’t feel she can. He’s just a kid, and he can be redeemed, but the consequences of his actions are outside of your control.
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istara
I agree. The daughter is deeply traumatised and the only thing that may ever ameliorate that is time. A lot of time.
So her brother has to learn patience and acceptance. Sometimes the mistakes we make don't get an easy fix or forgiveness. Which is a very harsh lesson to learn at 14 and it doesn't sound like he was malicious, just very stupid and very clueless.
So while her reaction probably feels disproportionate to him, and perhaps to the parents, it is what it is and there's no way to make her "unreact". She's suffered what she's suffered and she feels what she feels.

OOP: I have tried to broach the topic of forgiveness and him being sorry with her. She’s not interested in hearing it, seems irritated and annoyed I’m bringing it up and has never once even slightly wavered in saying something like he’s dead to her and she plans to never see or speak to him again when she moves out. I’m worried if I push her on it, she’ll cut us out too as I get the sense she sees it as me taking his side. She’s minimizing being home, which is minimizing their interaction but also makes me really sad that she doesn’t want to be here in the last few months before she moves out. Her therapist is understandably concerned more with her emotional well-being than our family dynamic, and won’t really discuss much of anything with me.
She is going to college and moving out in the summer. We don’t have super nearby family for my son to stay with, nor do we have the funds to offer to help pay for his upkeep even if we did. I’m at a loss.

Catface17
"Her therapist is understandably concerned more with her emotional well-being than our family dynamic"
WHY AREN'T YOU???
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JacobTroy94
It’s clear to me, the son is the golden child of the family. If it was my kids this was happening too, best believe the son would be punished accordingly and I would support the sister ignoring his ass
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bjorkabjork
it's 10 months. i would not force her to interact with him, if she wants to go no contact with him, she can.
i would get him out of the house and sign him up for some other activity tho. taking stuff away isn't as good as adding on responsibility imo. community service hours look good on college applications for his future and will get them apart more in the day to day. don't focus on his relationship with his sibling, focus on how to help him grow up into an adult who won't make a hurtful mistake like that again.
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bonesonstones
I love this idea. As an initial punishment, grounding may have served its purpose, but it seems like it's time to switch gears and accept that this is what the next 10 months will look like. Your son needs to adapt to that, and getting him out of the house will be helpful.
I'd like to add - OP, just because you're uncomfortable with the situation doesn't mean you get to force your freshly re-traumatized daughter to accept an apology she does not want. Why are you making it her responsibility to ease your or your son's negative feelings? That's absolutely shameful.
​
Update - 8 months later
​
I posted about our issues last year, where my son joked about my daughter's CSA to friends in an attempt to be edgy. She stopped speaking to him and said he was dead to her, despite living in the same house as him.
I want to thank people for the advice, some of it harsh but necessary. Unfortunately, things have not gotten better. My son's grounding came to an end, and he got supervised access to his phone, video games and friends back. My daughter was livid with us about it, and no amount of explanation that continual punishment for a year wasn't an option made that understandable to her. I get that from her point of view, but it began to strain her relationship with me and her dad too. She still ignored my son, and he still cried and was depressed over it. I booked three sessions of expensive family counselling and made her come, but she just kept her earbuds on, with music playing, the entire time.
She turned 18 in January. My son dipped into his savings to get her a necklace. I gave it to her and told her it was from him after she opened it, and she threw it away. Within a few days, she had moved out and into her best friend's parent's house without telling us she was going to. I invited her home for Easter, and she didn't come because her brother (who had nowhere else to go) would be here.
I'm still at a loss. Her graduation is next week and we weren't formally invited by her - we basically got an "I guess you can come" when I asked. My son obviously isn't invited, and he's still struggling mentally with all of this; therapy and medication hasn't helped much, but our options of what we can afford are very limited.
Has anyone been here? I never dreamed of having children estranged from each other and a daughter who pulled away from us over her brother's idiotic mistake.
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Comments
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Mannings4head
I think you need to understand that your daughter is under no obligation to ever forgive her brother. She was sexually abused as a child, which is something most people never fully recover from, and then was violated in another way by her own brother. A very personal part of her story was shared without her consent and that's never going to be okay. If a friend of hers did this, most people would say to cut that friend out of your life. It's unfortunate that it's her brother and has an impact on the entire family but your son made a "mistake" and has to deal with the consequences of his actions.
For the record, I generally am against the whole "cut them out of your life forever" line of thinking that is popular on Reddit but in this case it isn't your call. You don't get to tell her she has to forgive him. You don't get to decide when she should be over it. She is traumatized and has to do whatever she can to heal, including not being around someone who added to her trauma and made her life harder. I get wanting your kids to be close. I am currently on a road trip with my 2 kids to drop the eldest off for a summer internship and love the bond my kids have with each other, but they would never do something your son did. They know personal things about each other that no one else knows and are going to keep it that way. That's what siblings do. Your son messed that up, NOT your daughter so don't put the blame on her.

OOP: I know he messed it up. It’s just hard as a parent to witness the fallout for them both - she’s not only devastated but views him as dead to her, and he is depressed and struggles with self loathing - and not be able to do anything to try to help. I know she doesn’t owe him forgiveness or a relationship, but this stalemate doesn’t seem to be helping anyone either.

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TwylaMay
I’d be willing to be that the “stalemate” is actually helping your daughter. Because it’s not a stalemate…it’s a choice. She’s making the choice to cut a person who hurt her greatly out of her life. Just because YOU don’t like the definitive choice doesn’t make it a stalemate.
I’m sorry your son is suffering but it’s his fault. He’s facing consequences of own actions and your daughter is taking care of herself as best she can manage, and you have no right to interfere with that.
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sfxmua420
No no, the stalemate doesn’t help YOU or your SON. It is most certainly is helping your daughter process what’s happened to her and regain a sense of control that your son ripped from her. You don’t get it. You’re more concerned with how you feel about the breakdown of your children’s relationship and the natural consequences your son has brought on himself.
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Garp5248
My advice would be to stop trying to interfere in their relationship. Don't be a go between for your son to your daughter. Don't push your daughter to forgive your son.
Let your daughter know that your son is still your son. You regret his actions, but still love him. He didn't hurt you but he hurt her and you understand that. If you don't understand that, you need to before having the convo with her. Make time for her to be in your life separate from your son.
For your son, explain to him his actions have consequences. He needs to figure out how to make it right. You can't and won't force sister to forgive him. He needs to earn his forgiveness.
And that's all you can do. You're not peacekeeping. You are creating space for a relationship with your son and daughter that does not require them to interact with each other. Their relationships with you are independent of each other. That's it.
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I am not the OOP. Please do not harass the OOP.
Please remember the No Brigading Rule and to be civil in the comments

I would really appreciate if someone could explain in very simple terms the negatives of trying to pull a 32ft TT with a 2010 Ford Expedition, equivalent to a Chevy Suburban.
Back story. We have a 32ft TT. We pull ours with my husband’s F350. My SIL went and bought a camper almost exactly like ours but several years older. 2019 vs. 2011. Long story short she got a divorce and now only has her Ford Expedition to pull it with. Which she plans on doing for our 4th of July trip. She will be traveling about 5 hours. Her expedition does not have the towing package, she does not have trailer brakes or any upgraded suspension. She has also never driven with a trailer before. My husband says she’s stupid and that her vehicle won’t pull it. He says he won’t go rescue her when something happens because he has warned her not to pull it with that vehicle. My FIL says she will be fine and plans to give her a few driving lessons with pulling a camper before the 4th.
I’m personally torn when she talks to me about it. I’ve only ever pulled our camper with the F350. I grew up on a farm and have been pulling trailers my whole life, but only with trucks. I’ve never pulled a trailer with an SUV. I tried asking my husband and he just gets pissed off saying she’s going to hurt herself or someone else. I want to be able to explain to my SIL in very simple terms why this probably isn’t a good idea but so far, I’m failing at getting it to a level she can understand. I tried explaining that her SUV doesn’t have the tow package and isn’t rated for pulling something that big. All she says is “Well dad says I’ll be fine.” How can I dumb this down so she gets it?

Sorry this will be a long one, but pls read.
20F, been with my boyfriend 22M for 5 years almost. My partner loves me the most out of anyone I know and I’ve never had to question his loyalty at all or how he feels about me. He is very caring, and we get along really well. However, the last year or two I’ve been putting off ending the relationship.
I don’t know what has prompted it but over the last couple years I’ve felt myself pulling away. Every time he leans in to initiate sex or basic intimacy it makes me squirm and I sometimes dread having to see him because I know I’ll either have to turn him down or go along with it. He is physically attractive but he has some personality traits I initially overlooked that make me unattracted to him. He doesn’t have many friends and also does not have very healthy habits. He’s studying to be an engineer, however apart from his studies he lacks motivation in every other part of his life. There are also things I have been asking him for over the last five years that have never changed. He has probably planned a total of two dates in five years, which I had to ask him to do, and he also is not good at taking initiative in planning anything when I go to see him. He does show his love in other ways, but I have specifically asked for him to plan dates and he hasn’t.
I know this sounds very negative but I do love and care for him a lot. We live an hour apart and he would spend hours travelling on public transport just to come visit me. He is very thoughtful and makes an effort with my family. He never makes me feel invalid when I ask for something I need. I don’t question whether he loves me or not, and he hasn’t really done anything wrong for me to breakup with him.
My biggest thing is I have been overseas for the last five months where we have been doing long distance and I don’t miss him. I’ve realised I have more fun with my friends or family than when I’m with him. He messages me everyday saying how much he misses me and loves me but I’m looking forward to going back to my friends more. I sound quite harsh but I do love him and I can’t imagine a life without him. I’m not sure if this is me becoming too comfortable in a long term relationship and if I am throwing away a decent guy for something more exciting, or if I do need to end things.
If I do break up with him, I would feel awful given he has spent the last five months waiting around for me to return, just for me to break up when we are reunited. This would really hurt him and that is the last thing I want to do. What should I do?

Nancy Brooks was the first victim. She was a popular cheerleader, & an energetic one at best. Everyone enjoyed her bubbly personality. So you can imagine the shock and despair that swept over our school and the entire town when she was found dead.
They said she was found in a dumpster at the back of the local pizzeria. The cause of death was nasty. A large gaping hole in her chest. But that wasn't the worst part. The worst part was that her heart was missing. This means that whoever did this had ripped her heart out with their bare hands in some brutal fashion.
The police questioned us, asked if Nancy had any enemies, and asked if there was anyone who wanted to hurt Nancy, but we couldn't think of anyone who would like to harm her. It wasn't like she did anything to warrant hatred from anybody. They continued to investigate, even with the few suspects they had, and the few amount of evidence they had.
Meanwhile, the community was in uproar over who would kill an innocent teenage girl like Nancy, and in such a brutal manner. While a memorial at Nancy's locker was made, and a vigil was held in honor of her. Rumors spread throughout the hallways over who the culprit might have been.
"I still can't believe she's dead," My friend Stanley said as we sat on his front porch. His voice was a little shaky. "It's just, how could something so horrible happen to someone like her?"
"I don't know," I said, staring at the road as cars passed by here and there. Although my face didn't show it, I felt paranoia, slowly growing in my body. It was like a seed that had just been planted into the ground and started to grow.
"They'll probably find the culprit," I told Stanley. "They'll probably find them..". The way I said it made it sound like there was hope, but at the same time, I felt like they would never catch the person responsible for killing Nacy.
Unfortunately, my prediction was proven right, they never caught the culprit. After 2 months, Nancy's case went cold. It wasn't long until the next murder happened though.
This time it was Grant Reese, a smart and slightly chubby guy. Although naive, he meant well, and some students respected him for that. He was found dead in his backyard in the same gruesome manner as Nancy—a large gaping hole in his chest.
School was canceled again, the police investigated again, and they questioned us again. But nothing turned up, again.
Eventually, the media started to dub the killer "The Heart Thief" due to how he "stole" his victims' hearts from right out of their bodies. This however didn't stop the fear and paranoia seeping over the town.
Stanley was more on edge after Grant's murder. He was more paranoid now, and who wouldn't be, there was a deranged killer on the loose, tormenting our town. And the police haven't caught them yet. But still, it was disheartening watching Stanley slowly start to become a shell of what he used to be.
Whenever I saw him, I noticed that the dark circles around his eyes seemed to grow larger, he began even to be afraid of his own shadow. Every time I talked to him, he'd always spout out a fake smile, but his eyes told a different story, they showed terror, terror of being killed by a lunatic. I still tried to make him feel safe, I still wanted to make him feel like everything was okay, even though at the back of my mind, I knew it wasn't. I was just as scared as Stanley, but I couldn't tell him about my invulnerability.
A month after Grant's murder, the Mullins twins were found dead at the local park, their hearts both missing. Even worse, only 2 weeks later, two teenage lovers, Whitney Rowe, & Troy Osborne were found dead in Troy's car, and in the same manner as Nancy, Grant, & the Mullin twins.
If Nancy and Grant's murders caused Stanley to be paranoid, this made that paranoia worse than before. He eventually stopped talking to people, he'd subsequently stop coming outside. My fear was still growing, but Stanley's was more rabid. I wasn't any better. My sleep schedule started to falter, I'd lie awake at night, trying to get rid of the Heart Thief from out of my head, and go to sleep. But I just couldn't. I couldn't get the thought of a psychopath looming over our town, killing innocent teenagers.
Eventually, Stanley stopped texting me. I wasn't too worried, but I was still concerned, but it was just for one day. He just stopped texting for one day. That wasn't much of a big idea. Was it?
Then he didn't text me the next day or the following day.
After the fourth day of not responding, I decided that I would have to check on him in person. That wasn't so bad, go to his house, ask his parents if he's okay, and check up on him. Easy job-
What if he's dead?
I shook the thought out of my head. No, he can't be. He's fine. He's fine.
"He's fine," I mutter as I walk up the steps and touch the door handle. My eyes slowly widen as the door opens. Why is the door unlocked? That doesn't make any sense-
What if the Heart Thief got him?
NO. No. He's fine. He's fine.
I carefully tread through the house, my footsteps being soft due to the shoes I'm wearing.
"Stanley...?" I said, in a hallowed whisper.
I walked forward, my heartbeat started to beat more and more. My heart rate slowly started to shoot out like a bottle rocket. Then I saw something.
Stanley's parents. They were strung up on the floor. Their necks were both snapped, and their eyes hung lifeless. I couldn't focus on the scene for long when I heard a terrible noise from upstairs. The sound of something being ripped.
I went up the stairs, my heart surged as I reached the top, and I went to Stanley's room. My thoughts were frantic as I reached his doorway.
Then my body stopped. My breathing paused as I was taking in the scene before me.
Stanley was on the floor, puking out blood as a hole was punctured through his chest. His crazed, horrified, and tearful eyes turned to mine. But then something impossible happened.
Somehow, Stanley's heart was pulled out from his chest, and it hung in the air like something was holding it. Some invisible force was holding onto Stanley's heart. Then it held it up high and then dropped it. It vanished like it fell into a mouth, and was consumed in one big gulp. I couldn't comprehend what I was witnessing. I couldn't understand how any of this happened. I just stared at what was left of my friend as the life escaped his eyes. He croaked out one final word before dying though.
"Alec....."
I just stood paralyzed, unable to do anything, my mouth hung dry as I tried to get a word out.
Then I felt a presence right next to me. It made me sweat even more than I already was at the sight of my dead best friend. My breathing grew more rabid as I felt like someone loomed over me. But no one was there. Nothing was there. But it felt like someone was. It felt like something was. Something horrible.
Then I heard a "Shhh" noise being whispered into my ear.
Suddenly, I didn't feel that terrifying presence. It left Stanley's room. It was gone, but Stanley's body wasn't.
My stomach felt sick as I exited Stanley's house, dialing 911. I only managed to mutter about finding my friend dead in his home, before I collapsed from shock on the front porch.
I eventually woke up in the hospital. My parents were tearfully thankful that I was okay and safe. Two detectives visited me too. They asked me questions about Stanley, and I answered them wearily. But even then, I couldn't tell them what I saw. I couldn't tell my parents about what happened in Stanley's home.
They did find Stanley and his parents' bodies though. Some people wondered why the Heart Thief went out of his way to kill two adults, some were still angry that the psychopath had claimed another victim. But regardless of that. I still couldn't recover from the events that unfolded in Stanley's house.
I attended his funeral, and I gave a heartfelt speech, bottling up my sadness in an attempt to look stable. But I wasn't.
Some neighbors and classmates look at me with pity on their faces, and some of them look at me funny. I could hear the whispers about me behind my back. Some of them were filled with remorse over how I lost my best friend, some were filled with suspicion over how I could have killed Stanley, or maybe even the other victims. The rumors didn't help either.
I've had to take therapy three times a week now, I feel like it's helping, but at the same time, I feel like it isn't. Nothing will ever help me recover from what I saw that afternoon.
Ever since Stanley's death, I've started to slowly become a shell of what I used to be. I began to become more aware of my surroundings, and I started to become more jumpy. My sleep schedule started to become worse too. I've had many nights where I'd lie awake at night. My mind constantly replays what happened at Stanley's house over and over.
"This is probably how Stanley felt before he died," I say, as my eyes stare at the ceiling.
The paranoia that was once set inside me has evolved into something bigger, something worse.
But that's not just it, I know who the Heart Thief is now, I know how he manages to kill his victims without ever getting caught.
I don't know why he still hasn't come for me yet. I was a direct witness to one of his murders after all. So why hasn't he come after me yet? Why hasn't he killed me? Was this all just part of his plan? To watch me break into a panicked state? To watch me devolve into a cowardous human being?
Because if this is his plan, it's working.

If Jace condones or plans B&C, it would be very bad, worse than when Dt killed his wife - second only to Rhaenys' casual Terrorism
DARK AND EDGY DOESN'T EQUAL MORE INTERESTING.

• A character being evil doesn't mean better written or more interesting. In most cases, just making a character evil is a surefire way to ruin the character.
• Yes, Jace beat his bro once, so did his elder bro - about 40 times. That means tomorrow, if he kills or doesn't bat an eye at the murder of children (for revenge) and nothing else, we should have seen it coming.
• Remember in GoT, Jon, Robb, and Sansa, even Tyrion and Arya, who go ultra-dark, are basically in the same situation Jace is in right now, and they never had any ill will toward Tommen and Myrcella. Most of them even think fondly of them (but for Tyrion that one time).

This is Jace we're talking about, the same guy who was spooked by Daemon and Ceraxes threatening some KG. Two days later, he's with Mysaria plotting the greatest scheme in CK AGOT history. Jace's dynamic with Daemon was one of the more interesting parts of his character in season, and they should lean way more into it to make him and Dragonstone more interesting. Here's how it should be done:
TURMOIL ON DRAGONSTONE, TEAM BLACK INNER CONFLICT
Reddit recently introduced a theory that season two will split up the black into two camps. The radicals [Daemon, Jace, Baela, and Mysaria] and the Conservatives [Rhaenyra, Rhaenys, and Corlys]. I love this idea, as internal conflict, when done right, is better than external. But the team doesn't make sense.
Radicals should be Mysaria, Daemon, Rhaenyra (Them going rogue was meant to be the point of the final scene of S1). Conservatives are Rhaenys, Corlys, and the Kids.
Firstly, kids who aren't Joffrey or Ramsey should have a predisposition for Honorable warfare. As proven earlier with the KG loyalty, this scene is where Jace leans. Also, Baela was raised by Rhaenys and should logically lean to her side.
Daemon and Rhaenyra already murdered a man in cold blood, almost jokingly. They should be the ones cool with child murder, not the kids. If you want to make Jace and Baela interesting, here are some ideas for you:
P.S: Rhaenyra shouldn't be cool with B&C, but she shouldn't be completely shut off to Daemon and Mysaria. Rhaenyra is Dragonstone, Rhaenyra is the realm. The point of two opposing Camps should be to pull Rhaenyra in both directions and give her hard choices.
Now concerning Jace and Baela:
a)Jace (The angel on the queen's shoulder):
It would make sense that, similar to Davos, Jace (alongside Rhaenys) should be a voice of reason for Stannis, I mean Rhaenyra, counteracting DT and Mysaria.
Also, similar to Davos, Jace's conflict should be to convince himself first, then others, that his monarch is just, despite the f-uped things they do, while also being antagonistic to the devils whispering at court (Mysaria and Melisandre).
Davos convinces Sala (Legendary Sailor), the King's Men (Different gods), and the Manderlers (honorable knights) to back Stannis. Jace convinces Corlys (Legendary Sailor), the Northmen (Different gods), and the Manderlers and Knights of the Vale (honorable knights) to back Nyra.
b) Baela (Torn Between two Parents):
Baela has two parents, Daemon and Rhaenys, who happen to be leaders of both factions on Dragonstone. Baela for now leans heavily towards Rhaenys, but she has just been reunited with daddy. Couple that with Luke's murder, the internal conflict the B&C should cause, and the fact that they are at war, and her morality is being slowly chipped away in time for Rooks Rest. After that, she can go either way - Ruthless radicalism to revenge Grandma and protect Lil' Bros and Lil' Sis, or dial it back to honor Grandma.
If she swings towards Ruthlessness, that is good conflict between her and Jace instead of "I'm mad you cheated on me even though we haven't seen each other in 8 years" (Also parallel to Jon being shocked by Val's ruthlessness when it concerned Shireen and Freefolk rights).
BONUS: THEORY OR RATHER PITCH ON JACE'S FUTURE
Jace should die at Tumbleton, not the Gullet. The only effect Jace's death has in the book is it gets Rhaenyra out of the hospital bed. Plus, that death is super anti-climatic, second only to Daeron's. Now imagine this:

• Jace is betrayed by his dragonseeds at Tumbleton, and Cregan is also present at Tumbleton and escapes.
• So we have Jace dying because a frankly stupid decision of his (sharing nukes), in the presence of his bro, and he would be avenged by his two Bros (Addam and Cregan).
• Maybe Cregan flees to the God's Eyes. Maybe Jace refuses Baela from coming with him, and he would have won if Baela was by his side. Also, Daeron will be present, and Daeron is Jace's rival (Maybe he almost beats Daeron, and that is when Hugh betrays him).

You can see a death at Tumbleton is far more satisfying for Jace than shot by an arrow when he flew "too low".
Potential Ramifications of Jace's Death:

• Aegon attacks Dragonstone now that Jace isn't coming back.
• Rhaenyra needs vengeance, and Addam and Nettles are scapegoats instead of "I hate bastard and your smashing my Uncle". Also, Mysaria, the Daemon on her shoulder, has free reign now that both Angels, Rhaenys and Jace, are dead.

This would probably not happen, but it was good to get my ideas out there.

Throughout my 15-year career, I've often been frustrated with acceptance criteria. But at my current position, I've been especially frustrated with the fact that I, an IC, am writing all of the acceptance criteria for the projects I work on.
Here's my current role in project planning:

1. PM comes to me with an idea and asks about feasibility.
   
2. Later, PM comes back with a basic PRD and a design and asks for a gut check estimate (i.e. small/medium/large).
   
3. PM and designer take design to the rest of the product and design team for feedback.
   
4. PM and designer incorporate feedback into design. PM then creates an epic with a Spike ticket, which is assigned to me and pulled into the next sprint.
   
5. I thoroughly review the PRD and designs and make comments right in Confluence or Figma to ask clarifying questions. I may schedule time with PM and designer so we are all on the same page.
   
6. I write the JIRA stories and add acceptance criteria and estimates (the expected outcome of the spike).
   
7. In Sprint Planning, PM determines the team's capacity and asks me to pull into the upcoming sprint a specific number of points from the project (there are usually multiple projects in flight at once, plus some additional bugs or "quick win" stories as well).
   
8. PM prioritizes the sprint, and during the sprint, team members take tickets off the top of the queue. So, while I am the project lead, I may not be actually completing the tickets. Engineers complete stories according to the acceptance criteria I have written.
   
9. When stories are completed, the ones tagged for QA are picked up by the QA engineer, who determines if the work completed matches the acceptance criteria. If not, they add bug tickets to the epic, which I then review and pull into the sprint to fix.
   
10. Once all stories are completed and have gone through QA and all of QA's bug tickets are completed, the PM then takes a look at the feature themselves and turns on the feature flag.
    

I have a number of issues with the way this goes, but the biggest one is this: the acceptance criteria in the PRD are generally very sparse. If the feature is for adding a new page for viewing a report on contact activity, the acceptance criteria might just say "As an administrator, I can view contact activity on the new report page."
It is then my responsibility to come up with specific acceptance criteria by combing through the design, reading comments, looking through various Slack threads, etc. So what other engineers and what QA is basing this project on is coming from me, not from the product owner.
The PM generally does not review the tickets in the epic. They do not look at the acceptance criteria I have written to ensure all of the work is encapsulated there. They barely review the project as it is in flight. It is up to me to self-report on how the project is going.
The result here is that after the project is released, the PM often comes back and says, "Why does this work like this?" and "Why doesn't this do this thing?" and it really frustrates me because all I really had to go off of what the designs, which don't always include everything. It's up to me to remember to include things like empty states, error states, loading states, and other unhappy paths. Additionally, a lot of the time certain parts of a project will just be summed up with "Make it work the same way as this other feature does", but of course there are always nuances with older code. Plus, that means that when I write acceptance criteria, I have to comb through another feature's UX and code and try to document everything it does so other engineers and QA know how to implement and test it.
Is this the way things go for you? Is there a better way? Should I be expecting more from my PM or is this just what I have to deal with?

I’m sorry this is long. I’m an over-explainer.
Basically my partner has had this friend of hers for 10+ years and we’ve been together for 3 years. I’m careful to not speak my mind on people that have been around in her life longer than I have.
The problem with this friend is that she’s always been incredibly stand offish towards me and I’ve gone above and beyond trying to make some kind of connection with her for the sake of my partner. Nothing is ever reciprocated from this friend though. I even got her and a couple of my partners friends together to be there when I proposed to my partner so they could be apart of that. (Context: my partner preferred a private engagement but told me she wouldn’t mind if friends/family ended up being there since we don’t live close to them) Her friend ended up making the trip all about her and turned the other friends (that I actually had considered friends) against me because I wanted some alone time with my partner on this 6 day trip that was for us to get engaged.
The friend pulled my partner aside on the trip and starting telling all these blatant bold faced lies about me to her like telling her she doesn’t like me because I’ve never put an effort in to get to know her and that she didn’t know about the trip until the week of (she knew 4 months in advance) and all types of other stuff. My partner told me all about it (she said she didn’t take any of what she said to heart) and when I told her that all of it was lies and I could prove it, she told me she didn’t want to see because she didn’t want to feel like she had to choose. I chose to respect her wishes and I have bit my tongue about her friend ever since even after she came to talk to us the next morning and gaslit me in front of my partner. I just chose not to really respond to her.
The friend goes on to make my partner feel bad because she was going to miss her birthday because we have a trip planned to go see my family that I only see MAYBE once a year and a family member that is dying. The friend chose not to talk to my partner for a month after that.
Now all of a sudden, my partner decided she was going to go out of her way to go on this trip for her friends birthday and when she told her, suddenly she wants to text and FaceTime my partner all the time again. Then my partner went this weekend to see her friend and her family and spent the first day with her friend going out to a couple places/bars. My partner insists on having this person be her maid of honor and I just want to shake her and yell “she’s a toxic friend and she’s manipulating you!” She doesn’t have any respect for me or my relationship and I don’t want her in our wedding. My partner is not easily manipulated except when it comes to this friend. She’s blinded by their history and I just don’t know what to do. I’m afraid of what this friend may do to cause problems for our relationship/marriage or even or wedding day.
I just don’t know how to approach this anymore. My mom tells me to keep biting my tongue and that eventually the friend will go too far and my partner will see it. She says I’ll only drive her closer to the friend and further from me if I speak my mind. I’m also trying to not take it personal that my partner has no issues with the way her friend treated me, talked about me and told lies and she didn’t care to see the proof.

I have hundreds of hours in FO4, so I'm pretty familiar with the base game mechanics, scrapping everything and building everything etc. I'm a whopping level 27 in 76 though and I have so many questions that google has mostly failed me on and I'm hoping you guys can shed some light.

1. I'm trying like heck to get caps so I'm not worried about paying 10 caps every time I fast travel, but nothing in my vending is really selling. I have all types of ammo I find at 1 cap and any cool stuffies or plans I don't need at like 10. I'm setting up camp on water near the newbie bar (Wastlander?) so I can sell purified, is this too low of a level for people who buy from vending to bother with? I try to keep the vending as close to roads as I can and easy to find, but I just feel like I'm missing some trick. I'm not selling scrap yet because I'm a builder at heart and want to make my camp awesome eventually.
2. I like to use pistols generally, but I still have the basic slow revolver I started with and I haven't yet found something better (I can afford anyway) or good mods to upgrade it at all. Tons of other guns, no pistols. Is there a newbie friendly quest line or area I can focus on to get a better one? Current damage on mine is I want to say like 75ish. I've been mostly just exploring, haven't been in a hurry to do a lot of quests.
3. I've been hopping into the meat events I see and praying that higher people join the hunting ones so I don't get my face ripped off by 6 bears. The cookout one though, I saw someone mention that the super mutant dude is a vendor? I've tried to interact with him before, but I guess a bunch of people were already queued. What should I be looking for on the event vendors? Is there any other event tricks that I should know or care about? Someone said somewhere the plans from it sell really well, but I have no idea how to get any of them.
4. Someone said in a thread that you can get plans for a bar or something neat from a faction guy? Are there factions I should be concentrating on if I want to build up my camp with fun stuff or get good starter gear?
5. I've been cooking up a storm, mostly because stim packs are not cheap and I am squishy. Is there recipes that will sell? Is it worth it to try to keep your food and water meters full, because water seems to drain real fast.
6. It seems like there are about 400 currencies in this game, so I'm guessing I'll figure them all out eventually. Is there one or 2 I should focus on at this low of a level in the forest area?

That's mostly it. I've been enjoying the heck out of this because I always end up using mods in FO4 and this is a real challenge without them. I forgot the pain of having to worry about my weight. I'm having fun just wandering around, killing and looting and stuff, don't get me wrong, I just feel like an idiot overall in game.
Any tips are really appreciated. I'm playing on XBox.