* READ TO LEARN HOW TO PROTECT YOURSELF FROM SCAMMERS! THIS MESSAGE WILL REPEAT EVERY 12 HOURS \*
As the sub grows, so does it's exposure to scammers. As mods, we do our best to protect the sub, but need y'all's help as well. We are a community. We do not like reading modmails when our fellow members get scammed, but do know that most could have been prevented given they follow the tips we've laid out. Below are these tips on how to stay protected:
How to message the mods - https://www.reddit.com/message/compose?to=/fragranceswap
Banned and sketchy users - https://www.reddit.com/fragranceswap/wiki/banned
* Always use PayPal/Venmo G&S when buying from someone with under 15 flair on the sub. A scammer will give a BS reason why they can't accept G&S. Anyone with under 15 flair MUST accept G&S as a form of payment according to the rules of the sub. This rule is non-negotiable. If they will not, please report them to the mods.
* Ask a potential seller to comment on your post. This proves that they are not banned from the sub. That doesn't always mean they are a scammer though. It could just mean that they do not meet the sub requirements to become an approved member. They still need to accept G&S though. Check the banned list and vet the seller through their profile.
* Ask for specific timestamped pictures. A "timestamp" is a picture a seller takes with a handwritten note including their username and date next to the item they are selling. Ask for this with "odd" requests such as a picture of the bottle on its side or with the cap off, etc. If they are not willing to provide that then avoid the transaction and report them to the mods. Scammers are becoming crafty and often try and photoshop the timestamp in with a picture they found on google. Be aware and inspect timestamps closely for evidence of photoshopping. Look for blurred edges of paper, shadows not matching up with others in the picture, etc. If you are in doubt, don't hesitate to contact us with the picture.
* "Sellers" who start the conversation off with "WTS (insert frag you're looking for)" are 99.99% most likely a scammer. Scammers will always give you a great deal, or ask you to name your price. Any "seller" who is willing to accept half payment upfront then the other half after delivery to avoid using G&S is most likely a scammer. If it seems to good to be true or fishy, it most likely is.
Please do your due diligence, folks. If you're ever in doubt, reach out to us. Stay safe!

If you like music, when you go to a gig and are assigned a seat the single most important factor is location relative to the speakers. Obviously I’m talking about the general audience with 2 ears and no special needs. So why does Dice not allow you to see where you’re sitting at the point of purchase? And more importantly, why don’t musicians care? I was looking for tickets to see Cornelius. He (they) performed one of the best gigs I’ve ever been to many years ago, and now my kids are into him and he’s playing. Great! Or so I thought. The Barbican is the venue, sound and positioning will be important. The Barbican has about 12 seats left while Dice appears to have them at many price points. On Dice you cannot see if they’re in the middle or far on the side. That’s ridiculous! Am I mad or do others feel the same here?

I have a friend studying English here who has some trouble understanding the Cork accent. They're trying their best but as you can understand it's difficult. I'm Irish but not from Cork and even I have smoke coming out of my ears sometimes trying to decipher some people (usually older folks)
They can hold a conversation if the person slows down.
So with that in mind, what would be a good job for them to get part time while studying?
They might have trouble in a cafe if a customer has a random question not related to the menu like "JA HAVE ANY TAYHO SANGAGES HA?". But they do want to interact with the public to improve their English.
I think it's probably just washing dishes in a restaurant I'd say, and interacting with fellow colleagues. Or general cleaning roles, but they'd be in an empty office by themselves just hoovering the floor.
Any ides?

I'm switching to Linux, I feel like more people will give me advice if I tossed Arch in the title. Lmao
I looked into Linux Mint and it looks like a bastard child of Apple and Windows. Not entirely against that, but I want to use the OS that fits my use case.
I use my computer for games, writing papers, sometimes movies/tv, and sailing the seven seas, but I don't do torrenting and p2p downloads. I mostly want something that has game compatibility and keeps my stuff secure.
So is Linux Mint my best choice or should I do Arch? Or an entirely different OS?
My programming prof made us learn how to use Bash so I'm not completely out of my element I don't think. Any advice?
Mods lemme know if I should post elsewhere or be referred to a mega thread! I hadn't thought of it till now...

I (18m) moved out of my home state two years ago with my mom. My parents are divorced and my dad is remarried and has kids and a stepkid back in our home state. I don't have a good relationship with him so when my mom got an opportunity to move, I told her to take it and bring me with her. A judge agreed that at 16 I was old enough to say I wanted to go and so we went. My dad was really unhappy. So were the rest of his family.
BG: I was 5 when my parents divorced. Dad cheated. He then moved in with his affair partner and they broke up a few months later. So I had a lot of unsettled shit going on then. A couple of months later my dad meets his second wife and her kid who was 1 at the time. They got engaged and married really, really fast. After he moved her in I told him it was going too fast and I asked him to slow down and wait to get married and stuff. He told me it wasn't my decision, he was the adult, he made the choices, and he would do what he wanted and he didn't care how it made me feel because he wasn't going to stay single for me. I never forgot him saying that. The day he did get married is when he realized he had fucked up. Because I "ran away" back home to mom so I wasn't there for the ceremony and I refused to go to the reception either. He told me the day after the wedding that I should really give this a chance and he would prove that this was the best for everyone. But I never wanted to be with my dad from the day he told me what he did to the day mom and I moved. I wished for him to not have custody over me and I never tried to be a part of his family. The rest of them are innocent and I don't hate them or blame them. I just don't care about knowing them. My dad kept hyping me up to his stepkid and later his other bio kids with his wife. So they thought of me as this really cool older brother and they expected a much closer relationship than I wanted to have with them.
When I left it upset them. I got letters and calls from them. I told dad he needed to get it stopped because I wouldn't stay in touch once I was 18.
A few days before my 18th birthday he called me and told me he wanted me to visit for the summer so his family could see me, that his kids missed me. I told him I would not come, not if he paid for everything, not if he begged.
Last week his wife reached out and asked why I hadn't told them my arrival date yet. I ignored her message but then she started calling my mom and to stop her I called her and she asked why I'd go back on my word to visit this summer and how disappointed her kids would be if I didn't show up after they were told I was coming. I told her dad's a liar and I never agreed to visit for the summer. I made it clear I wasn't going to. She got mad and asked me why not and I said I no longer wish to have any contact with them and I ended the call. I then got a bunch of emails sent by her and then by dad who were pissed about what I said.
AITA?

Hello everyone. I hope everyone is doing well today and enjoying the weekend. I just wanted to drop in and give my two cents about the recent issue that happened in the sub.
When I became the mod of this sub I was just doing things on my own. I didn't have any vision for the sub itself and I was mainly responsible for looking at it and approving disapproving posts. I did what I thought was right but there were there were things I could have done better no denying that. I also had several disagreements with many members here during that time. But ever since I became the top mod here I have time and time again reiterated that the vision of I have for this place is much much bigger wider and full of respect honesty , and trust. I wanted this place to become a safe heaven for those who want to come here and express their feelings.
Surely it did take time and with time I got to know I cannot do this all alone. I interacted with a few fellow members here who are now mods of this community respectively and I am 100% sure they are doing their job well. My trust is too much on them and I know for sure whatever they do has some logic behind it.
With that being said I have three things to address here. One is the fact that if anyone of you members has any disagreement on anything that another mod has done or a mod is not doing right. Tell me about it. I will look into it myself. Although I'm sure there are very less people here who would disagree with mods. I also reiterate here that please respect the mods. The time they are taking out from their precious lives is vital and they don't wanna sound or feel bad for being here because at the end of the day it's a happy place for them as much as for you people
The second thing I want to say is that whatever happened last week and whatever decision the mods took was correct. I stand by it and I don't think there was anything wrong in that. Chapter closed. Simple as that. If any member of sub feels harassed, disrespected, hurt or insulted they have all the right to report to the mods and mods in return have all the right to address that issue however they want. Whether it means warning someone. Or whether it means directly banning someone. I will not stand or tolerate bullshit here and surely I don't want members disrespecting out here on the sub. You never know how strongly the words can pinch someone in the heart. So at the end of the day empathise with people here. Not every human thinks like you. Everyone is different and with that taken into account you have to be respectful with whatever you say here. We don't tolerate bullshit here. Never have and of course never will.
The third thing is that I know I am not that much active here anymore as I have a busy life but what I want to tell is I feel that there is some gap between the members of the sub and me. I don't know why you people feel that contacting the top mod for some issue you're having on the sub is scary. It isn't. I feel this gap that is why I'm addressing it. This sub and it's people mean alot to me. If any of the mods is inactive and not replying you can always talk to me. I ll address your matter. 90% of times people only dm me to talk about some post that wasn't approved. Guys and girls I have time and time again said don't waste your time on this. Whatever is approved on the sub is in accordance to the rules of sub that you all must read before posting anything here. However if there is still some post that you feel should be posted and is not approved by a mod DM me on that. I will then look into it myself if it is eligible enough to be posted or not. The context of this is that even if I'm late in getting back to you on some matter that needs my attention. I still will. I will look into it properly and address it. Yet again I ll emphasise that mods are doing their work perfectly I don't think there is anything wrong that they have did. If I feel there is I ll talk to them and address.
Lastly if anyone has any concerns feel free to write on this post
Regards
TopMod

Is there a mod that makes having followers a little more balanced? I always use Inigo and I always have to give him some shitty little iron sword because otherwise he will run ahead and single handedly clear out enemy hordes (maybe he should be the dragonborn). Apparently this is because increasing difficulty increases all NPC damage and health, including your own companions (absolutely unhinged decision from Bethesda).
I'm planning on using one or two new followers this playthrough to see Inigo's interactions with them, and I'm afraid that having multiple followers will essentially just make me an unstoppable force that walks into a room and has my swarm of minions delete anything in sight using their rusted iron daggers before my sword is even unsheathed. I'd like a mod that could help with this, if possible. Bonus points if it also means followers won't draw aggro (because they're also all massive tanks and could withstand any foe while I wail on the enemy's back)

Hail, dear phantom, I’m glad to see you again. True to my word I went back to the Undead Burg to visit the familiar residents and see if I couldn’t put some of my keys to use. Ultimately, of course, I was after the Bell of Awakening. I believe the Crestfallen Warrior mentioned one being beneath the Undead Burg, so that was what I aimed to uncover.
Instead, I found new threats and an entity that whittled my resilience down to its bare foundation.
My keys brought me to some peculiar locations. I remembered well two locked doors, one in both of the turrets that interrupt the grand wall surrounding the city. In the tower that I passed through to confront the Taurus Demon, is a door that once unlocked brings you further down.
To my surprise, at the bottom of those spiral stone steps, awaited a brute of a warrior. Donned head to toe in armor most robust, wielding a shield that he was able to comfortably hide behind and an even larger club. My initial impression was one of awe, truth be told. He appeared as though he could crush me with his thoughts alone!
As it turned out, it would be his weight and lumber that would work to my advantage. Merely a roll to the side gave me ample opportunity to launch a Soul Arrow his way, something he scarcely had the choice to avoid. So robust was he, however, that I ran out of spell slots before he fell, a very rare feat. Although my Estoc was useless against his impervious armor, some well-placed back stabs put him in the ground for good.
I was fortunate to not suffer a scratch, as I reckon that’s all it would have taken. I pilfered a ring from his corpse, to reveal his name: Havel.
Beyond Havel was a door, one that, to my sheer astonishment, led to the Darkroot Basin. The extent of the Darkroot forest was one I hadn’t anticipated. I thought I had put the verdant murk behind me for a while. And after stepping foot into the green mire and seeing beings composed purely of crystal - I turned the other way. With no spell slots and no bravery, I fled to return another time. Besides, I still had another key I wished to operate.
I decided to unlock the next door and uncover what was beyond before returning to the safety of the Bonfire. I must be growing more audacious. The next door was found just before where the large drake positioned itself, on the second turret.
Before me sprawled another descent, and I found myself in the rotten depths of the Undead Burg before long. Viscous dogs roamed the ruined streets. The path I picked first took me to a door of iron bars that led me back to a familiar spot in the Undead Burg - a location right next to the Bonfire. A very sweet relief.
It was there I readied myself for the dive into the lower Undead Burg. I imagined a sprawling street ripe with rotten ruin. And although that’s what I met, the path was very linear. After I bested an ambush of thieves and roaming dogs, I heard the cries of someone trapped.
I couldn’t believe my luck when I uncovered a fellow sorcerer! Trapped in the depths of that cesspit, of all places. We wore almost the same attire, and he said he would return to Firelink Shrine. Perhaps I was a little too eagre in our greeting, but he would sell me his sorceries all the same when I met him again.
I noticed white light blocking a small arch, and knew something foul stirred within. Before stepping foot through, I wished to uncover the rest of the streets, and my exploration took me to alleys and gutters. After dispatching more thieves, I climbed up another turret that rejoined to the filthy aqueduct that led to Firelink Shrine - just in time to meet my fellow sorcerer once more.
Finally in my wretched journey could I learn more spells. Spells that would serve me extremely well. I purchased the Heavy Soul Arrow and Magic Weapon, to elevate my abilities considerably.
With renewed fervor, I struck down the local ambling Undead with such aggression and power that I shocked myself. None would stand in my way, now, I thought to myself.
I was quickly humbled, dear phantom, when I returned to the lower Undead Burg and traversed through the white light to stand face to face with the abhorrent Capra Demon. Before I had fully stepped out of the white light, its grotesque form was already upon me. If I had moved a split second later, I would have been crushed beneath both its behemoth blades.
Despite my haste, I was not out of danger, for two dogs were quick to rip me to shreds.
Never have I been slain so quickly!
And so I ran again. Up the hill, through the aqueduct, down the spire, through the alley, and up the stairs, only to be greeted by more savage dogs. I was ripped asunder in my careless advance.
Again and again did I make that journey. If I weren’t torn apart by the guarding hounds, then I was swiftly executed by the Capra Demon and its infernal pets. So many times did I make that trip that I was almost driven to madness. Never has wrathful rage stirred so violently in me.
It was those dogs. They were the bane of my attempts to slay the Capra Demon. Too easily they penetrated my cloth garbs; with each bite I couldn’t help but recoil and cry out. Perhaps I was relying on the safety that distance brought me with my sorceries. And so I thought to seek the safety of steel, for once.
As unfamiliar am I with wearing suits of armor, any sort of piece I donned slowed me down dramatically. Nothing more Soul sacrifices to the Bonfire couldn’t remedy, however.
I’ll save you the tale of my time in Darkroot Garden slaying for Souls, although I did notice an unfamiliar sign, written by a fellow phantom. It advised me to strike the tree down in front of it, and to my surprise, the tree soon fell, revealing a long untouched expanse.
In this hidden nook of the solitary garden, resided more of those slumbering stone giants, and a slew of strange amphibian creatures with reptilian features. They fell easy enough, although their long, sharp tongues struck me some times.
At the end of this secluded space was another fortification. I couldn’t believe my luck as I found a discarded Wolf Ring. The moment I slotted it onto my finger I could feel my robustness harden. It was then I had the idea to utilize the ring found on Havel’s body, and I felt my person grow stronger. My punches didn’t hit any harder, but my body could lift things before I sweat to look at.
With these enhancements, I was able to don better armaments and still move as swiftly as I did with my sorcerer garbs.
With the helm of a Bell Gargoyle and the shoddy armor ripped from a hollow, I was ready to face the Capra Demon and its hounds. No bite shall affect me so viscerally, now, thanks to my rings.
I stepped into the white light and immediately rolled past the demon’s lunge. Although the dogs were at my heels in an instant, their clamping maws didn’t cause me to pause. With my Estoc enhanced with magic, I was able to end their miserable existence upon the stairs.
Without his hounds, the Capra Demon wasn’t such a challenge, especially as my Heavy Soul Arrows punctured deep into his ruinous hide. It wasn’t long, then, before it fell, and yet another key came into my clutches.
My victory over the Capra Demon wasn’t nearly as jubilant an occasion as I suspected, although I didn’t kill it for the thrill of the hunt.
With the key in my withered hands, I headed back into the alley and opened the door, to peer into the Depths.
I was wrong to suspect a Bonfire close by, and in exploring the dank depths, I found a quick end at the hands of a swallowing and oozing creature, something I could scarcely see before I found myself back at Firelink Shrine, here to meet you.
I shall tell you more of my adventure into the Depths another time, should you care to listen. I have prattled on long enough, have I not?
Godspeed, good phantom.

The best analogy I have come up with is that my native Operating System is something obscure but I have a Virtual Machine running Neurotypical. It is buggy but usually can do a pretty good job unless the demands on the hardware get to great, either because it is a very complex simulation (eg large social setting where you have to socialise with several strangers at once) or because the underlying OS is having to work hard because of other things (eg you are exhausted, sick, distressed). When the system is overloaded like that it starts to glitch out and can even outright crash and you have to rely on the native OS only to try and get the job done, but it of course can’t interact properly with the NT software.

Law firms are continually seeking ways to enhance efficiency and client experience. We often think of a positive client experience as a well-delivered service, so it’s no surprise that many firms invest in systems that help with client and case management. However, have you considered how phone calls can affect your firm’s efficiency and client satisfaction?
It’s easy to overlook, but who is answering the phone and how they deliver the service plays a significant part in your firm’s ability to retain clients and improve your workflow. One solution is to introduce a legal answering service to your firm, and in this article, we dive into the benefits it can have for your firm.

What is a legal phone answering service?

A phone answering service for lawyers functions as a round-the-clock virtual receptionist. You no longer need to worry about missing calls after hours, when team members are out of the office, or on weekends or holidays. A legal phone answering service ensures that no call goes unanswered, but some providers also go beyond answering calls. Phone answering services can also assist with scheduling appointments, lead qualification, and providing general support to clients. Find out more about what is a legal phone answering service here.

Benefits of legal phone answering service

While there are numerous advantages to having a legal phone answering service for your law firm, we focus on our top 7 reasons – discussing each one in detail with key takeaways describing how it can positively impact your law firm’s operations.
You can be available for clients 24/7/365
A legal phone answering service ensures your firm is accessible around the clock. Clients often call after hours with urgent legal queries, but if the call goes unanswered, this can lead to client frustration and lost business for your firm. By introducing a legal phone answering service, your firm can eliminate this issue by providing help when you’re not around. 24/7 availability gives clients a sense of comfort knowing they can always reach out and helps to reaffirm that your firm is dependable.
Key takeaways

• Enhanced responsiveness – 24/7 answering means your firm can respond to client inquiries outside of standard office hours
• Increased lead capture – grow your firm by capturing potential leads that come in after-hours.
• Reduced stress – alleviate the pressure to be constantly available and maintain a healthier work-life balance.

Improve overall client satisfaction
Prompt responses and effective communication are the foundations of client satisfaction. With more than half of consumers saying they would switch to a competitor after only one bad experience with a company – client satisfaction must be considered from the outset [Zendesk, 2023].
A legal phone answering service ensures that every call is answered professionally. This, in turn, will work to reduce wait times and improve the overall client experience. If your clients are getting a quality level of service each and every time they communicate with you, your firm is also likely to benefit from positive word-of-mouth referrals.
Key takeaways

• Build trust – demonstrate to clients that their concerns are a top priority and build a stronger lawyer-client relationship.
• Reduce miscommunication – ensure client communications are handled accurately and reduce potential misunderstandings.
• Enhance your reputation – great client experiences lead to referrals and increase the number of positive reviews you receive.

Demonstrate professionalism
Virtual receptionists are trained professionals. LEX Reception is powered by real people and each receptionist handles calls with the etiquette and knowledge expected in a legal receptionist role. First impressions matter, and a competent answering service helps to build your reputation from the very first interaction.
Key takeaways

• Maintain your brand image – consistent, professional call handling reinforces your firm’s reputation as reliable and trustworthy.
• Improve client confidence – a professional first point of contact increases clients’ confidence in your firm’s ability to handle their legal matters effectively.

Provide multilingual support
In an increasingly globalized world, law firms often deal with clients who speak various languages. Multilingual support in a phone answering service allows your firm to communicate effectively with a diverse client base and expand your reach. Language barriers can be a significant obstacle when it comes to legal services which can leave many potential clients feeling isolated. Misunderstandings can put people through an emotionally difficult experience during what may already be a stressful time. By having a phone answering service like LEX Reception that offers bilingual support in English and Spanish, your law firm can ensure that no client is turned away due to language constraints.
Key takeaways

• Expand your client base – bilingual support enables your firm to cater to a more diverse clientele and potentially open up new markets.
• Improves client understanding – break down language barriers, and make sure clients fully understand the legal advice and services being offered.

Manage appointments efficiently
Managing appointments can be a time-consuming task for busy lawyers. A legal phone answering service streamlines this process by scheduling, confirming, and reminding clients of their upcoming appointments. For lawyers, missed appointments can lead to inefficiencies and lost revenue. A legal phone answering service takes over the task of managing appointments, reducing the likelihood of no-shows through efficient scheduling and reminders. This not only improves your operations but also maximizes your billable hours.
Key takeaways

• Boost efficiency – simplify your scheduling process and get more time to focus on casework rather than on administrative tasks.
• Reduce no-shows – send automated reminders to decrease the likelihood of missed appointments to optimize your time.

Increase client retention
Effective communication and reliable support contribute significantly to client retention. By ensuring that client inquiries and concerns are addressed promptly, a phone answering service can help strengthen client relationships and encourage long-term loyalty.
A focus on client retention through a quality service is not only important for the client, but for your firm’s growth. In fact, it was reported that a 5% improvement in client retention could increase profitability by 25% [Forrester, 2023]. If you consistently deliver an excellent experience for your clients with the help of a dedicated phone answering service, your retention rates will improve.
Key takeaways

• Strengthen client relationships – nurture client relationships with regular and efficient communications.
• Encourage repeat business – satisfied clients are more likely to return for future legal needs.
• Generate positive feedback – happy clients often provide positive online reviews and testimonials which can attract new clients.

Customizable services
Every law firm has unique needs and client onboarding procedures and, as such, legal phone answering services focus on how best to align with these needs. From personalizing your call scripts to integrating with your existing operational tools, you can make a legal phone answering service like LEX work harder for your firm. This flexibility means that the service can evolve along with your firm, providing consistent support that is in line with your growing requirements.
Key benefits

• Scalability – as your firm grows or faces varying demands, your service can be adjusted to provide consistent and unwavering support.
• Unique client experience – build a client interaction model that aligns with your firm’s approach to client service.

Get more time with LEX Reception

Discover the difference a specialized legal phone answering service can make for your firm. LEX Reception’s phone answering service is designed with busy lawyers in mind, providing professionalism, efficiency, and customized support to enhance your firm’s operations and client relations.
Book a demo and experience firsthand how LEX Reception can transform the way your firm handles client communication and management.

Should I have PVE settings ticked off for things like XP farming (baby killing with mounts), or should I have PVE on for things like no Cryo-sickness? is there any way to get the best of both worlds without mods?
Also, what other differences between the two modes should I keep in mind?
Also, do I corrupt anything if I change back and forth between PVE and PVP frequently on the same world save?

So I am trying to build a very diverse farm and that means production chains with pallets at the end.
The challenge we face with pallet loading is well known. What is the best way without mods to go about this.
Basically you need a good machine to load like a skid steerer or a fork lift. But than you have to unload at the train station/ factory.
When you have multiple production buildings to load and unload, what is your routine?
Do you use a small tractor to load/ unload and haul around or do you take a small forklift with the goods on a deeploader?
With the new selling points I am looking for the right tools /method.

i’m open to the idea that this could be a me problem and something i need to work on. i cannot recall having the best social skills from being a kid to now. but i know i am able to carry out a conversation. in middle school i was able to interact with people quite well to be considered a well liked class clown.
maybe this has to do with a really rough period of time i may have dealt with depression (i say may cause i never got a diagnosis but something was definitely wrong) starting sometime october of 9th. i feel it’s gotten harder to talk to people. during all this time, confidence was low. i stopped caring for trying to be fluent in conversation (i didn’t care if i just stayed silent after i responded to someone or i would avoid walking past people who i knew might want to reach out to me)
it’s gotten better this year when i realized how being in pain made me unintentionally push people away. my conversation skills are improving. however, i’m noticing i tend to talk about me a lot. i really don’t mean it in an egotistical way. i don’t like me enough to put me on a pedestal. it comes out naturally, i think it’s a way to assure a person that i understand the idea behind what they’re talking about. i also think i do it to encourage a person to express their personal views as well. when there’s a back and forth like that cnversations feel fluent and more significant because they trust me with sharing insight into their persona. i can sort of engage with a topic and not make it personal, but it takes a lot more effort and it’s not unusual that i can’t come up with a response. more like small talk. i’ll include a template in the comments for clarification.
thoughts on this? it’d be a pain but i’ll accept if im simply subconsciously self-centered if you guys think so. however, is this tendency normal? how can i have conversations less about “you and I” and more about topics and discussions? don’t want people to begin to avoid me cause they get the sense that i’m some sort of egomaniac.
tldr: i tend to talk about myself in conversations and i make them personal (about “you and i”) because it makes conversations flow easier than just discussing a topic and it worries me that people will get annoyed by the untrue sense that i am egotistical

I’ve never written a question on this app before but this is eating at me. BUCKLE UP THIS IS LONG!
So my husband’s family have been abusive to him, he is the black sheep of his family he is the youngest and has a different father than his older siblings (8,6 years older).
Ever since I started dating him I was antagonized in some way. When I first met his family for Christmas his middle brother invited his ex-girlfriend to hang out, unbeknownst to my then bf which was awkward but she was fine with me. My boyfriend then was really sick and I took the train 2 hours to pick him up from his home (where his family was with their cars) and take him to a hospital in London. He was there for 6 days not one person visited him but me. They made fun of him and minimized his illness.
Then we moved to my home country the US and eloped. They came to visit a few years later his mom and eldest brother were okay. Middle brother again constantly throwing barbs and digs at me completely unprovoked. I get there may be a culture difference they are White English conservatives, I’m African American. Shortly after we married he dated a black girl, who left bc she was also treated poorly. Some examples of digs; I congratulated him on graduating and asked him when he finished he replied “same time you were supposed to” (I dropped out). Then I asked what the he loved most and what was challenging about being a PT and he replied “no offense, working with fat people.” Took them to multiple meals and covered everything which wasn’t cheap, he complained about the food being “reheated” and bitched when he was ID’d.
Things get progressively worse, middle brother has a precious baby. I want to spoil her and become close with the mother of the child (who is not with him due to his creepy behavior). We form a fast friendship and chat all the time about the baby. My brother in-law tortures this girl denies he is the dad but also goes out of his way to bully her (she’s not breast feeding right, she shouldn’t have pacifiers) all from the comfort of his home. He is also constantly complaining about having to pay $50 a week in child support nonstop saying he is going “bankrupt”. My hubby is part of a group chat and my mother-in-law talks ish about my friend and my hubby is telling me. I ask to see and his brother is actively trying to give his soon to be 1 year old daughter eggs and gluten that his ex told him she was allergic to and they are plotting to do this during her birthday and explicitly NOT tell my friend the mom of his baby. The reasoning was “I’m the father, I deserve to be respected, I can make choices to” but he is extremely sneaky. I show my friend/baby’s mom the messages and all hell breaks loose because of course he lies and gets caught. I would have told him off directly but he blocked me because he was mad at how close I was getting to his ex. I am called a “despicable woman” dragged in their chat, made to seem that I’m spying on my husband and accused of being jealous and sabotaging my niece’s birthday party. My husband says nothing in my defense just goes along like he didn’t send me the photos of their chat…
They don’t know I’m pregnant at this time and I chose not to tell any of my in-laws due to how awful they are. I also don’t believe in telling anyone that would wish ill on me and my baby (bad juju), but my bestie the baby mom knows. I give birth his mom has an absolute tantrum says incredibly awful things to my husband, reaches out to my mom to wish her congratulations on her grandchild and says “i guess I will learn to love him.”
Then my friend the mom gets diagnosed with cancer and wants to keep this secret and makes me promise, she kept my secret pregnancy it is the least I could do. She dies a few months later and my brother in law attacks her for not telling him and claims she is a horrible mother. He takes custody of his daughter.
Fast forward the eldest brother meets this hog woman. She is rotund and English, very ignorant and rude. The first interaction I had she thought she knew so much, decides to bash my dead friend’s parenting, call my dead father in law “weird”, tells me my niece eats everything now due to having a “good parent” and called my apt in NYC “embarrassing” bc it had scaffolding on google maps when she looked me up (like a creep). She then antagonizes me in a variety of slick ways including posting the eldest brother with my niece with the caption “uncle B’s favorite!” On my son’s birthday. Most recently I tell his family that we want to actually have a proper wedding and celebrate after 10 years of marriage, i give them 2 years notice. The hog says “ohhh me and the eldest are planning on getting married then.” I ask why she says “nice weather”. She then proceeds to have a fall wedding (orange, red, greens, pumpkins, barley, wheelbarrows etc.” in May. I try to be the bigger person and send a kind welcome and she leaves me on read.
I hate these people, I need to let this go. My husband says that we should just go on continuing our happy life and not “start problems”. But it feels like so much awfulness to have to swallow. I also feel like if/when I do speak up I’m the hysterical angry black woman and this hog is the “innocent”. The whole thing is so so frustrating but I need to let it go even though I want them to hurt emotionally as much as they have hurt us.
Any recommendations, would you want revenge? There is so much more but I have written a novel already. I feel alone like no one has my back or tries to understand my perspective. They are so sneaky and underhanded. I want to protect my family from these sick people. At the same time I want justice, justice for my husband, for my dead bestie, for me son and for me.

In the bustling suburb of Mira Road, Mumbai, where businesses of all scales are vying for attention in an increasingly digital world, one company stands out for its innovative approach and proven results in digital marketing: EaseAdo. Renowned for its comprehensive suite of digital marketing services, EaseAdo has quickly become the go-to agency for businesses looking to enhance their online presence and achieve tangible growth. So this is the best digital marketing company in Mira Road, Mumbai.

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Phone no- 07303044405
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Exploring the Wonders of Tirthan Valley: A Guide to Unforgettable Experiences at Treetop Treehouse Bahu

Nestled in the heart of the pristine Himalayas, Tirthan Valley is a hidden gem that promises a perfect blend of adventure, tranquility, and natural beauty. Staying at the Treetop Treehouse Bahu, you’ll find yourself immersed in a serene environment that offers a unique perspective of this enchanting valley. To make your visit truly memorable, we've compiled a list of the best things to do in Tirthan Valley. Whether you're an avid trekker, a nature enthusiast, or someone looking for a peaceful retreat, Tirthan Valley has something for everyone.

1. Trekking Adventures

One of the most exciting things to do in Tirthan Valley is trekking. The valley boasts numerous trails that cater to all levels of trekkers. From easy walks through lush forests to challenging hikes up the rugged terrain, you’ll find a trek that suits your pace. Popular trails include the Great Himalayan National Park trek, where you can explore diverse flora and fauna, and the Serolsar Lake trek, which offers stunning views of the lake and surrounding landscapes.

1. Fishing and Angling

For those who enjoy fishing, the Tirthan River is a haven. The river is teeming with trout, making it a perfect spot for angling. Spend a peaceful day by the river, trying your luck at catching some fish while soaking in the natural beauty around you. It’s one of the more relaxing things to do in Tirthan Valley, offering a great way to unwind and connect with nature.

1. Visit the Great Himalayan National Park

A UNESCO World Heritage site, the Great Himalayan National Park is a must-visit. Home to a variety of wildlife, including snow leopards, Himalayan tahr, and colorful pheasants, the park offers a unique opportunity to witness nature in its purest form. Guided tours are available, providing insights into the rich biodiversity and conservation efforts in the area.

1. Bird Watching

Tirthan Valley is a paradise for bird watchers. The valley’s diverse habitats attract a wide range of bird species, making it an ideal spot for birding. Early morning walks are particularly rewarding, as you’ll have the chance to spot rare and exotic birds amidst the tranquil surroundings.

1. Exploring Local Villages

Immersing yourself in the local culture is another delightful thing to do in Tirthan Valley. Visit the charming villages of Gushaini, Nagini, and Banjar to experience the traditional Himachali way of life. Interact with the locals, taste authentic cuisine, and explore ancient temples that reflect the region’s rich cultural heritage.

1. River Crossing and Rappelling

For thrill-seekers, river crossing and rappelling are must-try activities. The Tirthan River provides an excellent setting for these adventures. With the guidance of experienced instructors, you can safely enjoy the adrenaline rush and create lasting memories.

1. Enjoy a Bonfire Night

End your day with a cozy bonfire night at Treetop Treehouse Bahu. Gather around the fire with your loved ones, share stories, roast marshmallows, and enjoy the starry night sky. It’s the perfect way to relax and reflect on your day’s adventures.

Conclusion

Tirthan Valley is a treasure trove of natural wonders and exciting activities. Staying at Treetop Treehouse Bahu not only offers a unique lodging experience but also places you at the doorstep of these incredible adventures. From trekking and fishing to cultural explorations and thrilling sports, there are countless things to do in Tirthan Valley that cater to all interests and ages. Plan your trip now and discover the magic of this beautiful valley!

Hi I just came across a novel, chosen by the moon novel by izabella W. Its on pay by chapter websites, I've opened and read a few chapters but I can't seem to find any free version or chapter version anywhere. Please help. If anyone has read it I'm willing to take spoilers. Here's the advert I found below of it on Facebook.
Lycanthrope species is a disgusting race. And I, Delan Riley, am nothing more than a human scum in their eyes never expected those species would turn my world upside down. Since when the lycans managed to penetrate our town, like in the early 1900's we have a hierarchy, upper class = the lycans, middle class = mated humans, and lower class = the normal humans, who were basically considered scum. I endured their torment day after day, vowing to run away from them one day, until that day came and everything changed.
Dylan POV "Humans," I scowled at the principal's words from tannoy. "The Alpha twins will be celebrating their birthday tomorrow, as such, festivities are in order." Oh great, the Alphas twin children. Adrian and Arya are the worst lycans alive. I swear just because they are the alphas kids they literally get away with everything. If their birthday is tomorrow, then the wolves are going to be worse than ever. "All students will be present to greet them, two lines will be made, with humans on the left and the lycanthrope on the right. Any mated human will be at the front of the line for their year, you will all also be in order of your school year. That is all." Chat broke out the minute the tannoy was finished. "We haven't had a school gathering since the alpha king visited three years ago, before his sons coronation." Nick was right, the last time we all gathered like that was for the king and queens visit, when he decided to let the world know that he was to renounce his title to his only child, son Josh. "That sick bestard, he wants to make sure everyone is there so those idiot twins can find their mates." Yes I was mad, my fists connected with the table in front of me once more as I thought about how disgusting the situation was. You see the twins will be turning 17, so it's very possible someone in our school could be their mate, finding a mate is sacred to a wolf, the minute they say that one word your fate is sealed. They will turn your mind, morph you into being a lover of their kind, and then you'll give in.

That won't happen to me, I'm growing old to see the world as it once was, and I'm going to choose who I'll be with. No one will take that dream away from me.

Once dinner was finished, I just wanted to sleep. I'd had a very long tiring day, I quickly sat down on a small stool my mother kept in the storage closet and removed my shirt while my brother Freddy sat at the table to do his simple homework. It wasn't long before my mother came in with a large bowl of warm salt water and some cotton, this was going to sting I just knew it. She was here to help me with the wounds caused by wolves yesterday. She slowly began to unwrap the bandage from around my torso and slowed down drastically when it came to the final layer, I felt it peel off every wound and my fists clenched in pain. "Jesus!" I heard my mom exclaim once the dressing was completely removed. The air on my back was nice though and I sighed as my arm covered my once again exposed brests. "This is more than 15!" I began to hear sniffles coming from her and sighed turning round to look at her face, only to notice tears streaming down it. "Mom I'm fine, it's alright." She shook her head. "It's not alright, I'm your mother I shouldn't let these things happen. I'm so sorry. Your father would have..." here she goes again. Every single time something happened she'd always bring up dad, it really annoyed me because no matter how much we all wish he was here, he just isn't. My father was kiled by THEIR kind, almost 5 years ago when they actually managed to take over. When the lycans managed to penetrate our town my father rose up with some people from the neighborhood, to defend our livelihood, it was futile to say the least. We lost many people and I watched as my dad was ripped apart by two fully shifted wolves, I ended up shoting him to stop his suffering before they dragged me to the courtyard, i was the person to receive the first lashing of the town when I was 12! The wolves have been pretty strict with me since that day. "Stop being stvpid!" Was I harsh? Definitely! Did she need to hear it again, absolutely. "Dad is dead, we don't know what he'd do because he never knew this life. He never knew this world." I know what he'd have done, most likely attacked the guy who held the whip and got himself kiled in the process. "The best thing you can do for me, is stop crying and help me, next time don't insist on helping if you can't handle it." She began to wash my open wounds with the warm salt water causing loud winces to leave me, I knew it was necessary to prevent infection, but my god it hurt like a betch. "Some of these are really deep Dylan!" She sniffed again and my eyes rolled in my head. "I told you, I'm fine, just wrap me back up so I can get to bed." My mom was obviously more impacted by my injuries than I was, I suppose that always the case though. When it's happening to you, you've just got to get through it but when it's happening to someone you love, you just want to take their pain away. She quickly placed a fresh bandage around my waist and chest and wrapped it tightly for compression. The bowl of water that was used was now red in color, I guess from the blood my back was dripping with. "Can you keep your head down please? At least just this week. You can't take any more lashings." I simply nodded before standing up away from the stool, I walked over to Freddie and ruffled his hair in affection. "Good night squirt." He giggled and fixed his hair slightly. "Night Dilly." I smiled walking upstairs to my little bedroom, as soon as I was inside i shut the door and flopped down on to my bed on my stomach and I took a minute to cry to myself at the pain in my back, what my mom did was important but it hurt, not that I'd ever tell her. My hand covered my mouth quickly to muffle any noise I might be making. I couldn't tell anyone, I had to be strong because more and more people were crumpling these days, and my mom would break if she knew how much I was suffering. Sleep followed me shortly after, she was right though about me needing to keep my head down for the time being, I could not take another lashing! After a long night and an even longer morning, we were all finally stood in the hallway at school waiting for the twins to arrive. "Mine!" Everyone that was stood in the hallway tensed up, as we were seniors, me and Nick were stood towards the very back of the human line. All the mated people were situated directly opposite their wolf mates in their years. We stayed silent and still as Arya walked down the hall and stopped directly in front of Nick. His eyes widened in fear, unsure of wether to look up or keep his head lowered. "Look me in the eye, mate." He glanced at me slightly as if asking what he should do. "I said, look me in the eye." He slowly moved his eye line up to look at her face. I took a glance myself to see her eyes pitch black with lust. "I... can't... I mean... erm." Before he was able to mutter anything else, two wolves from opposite, grabbed him out of the line and dragged him behind Arya. "Hey!" My head shot up before I could stop myself. My mouth also forgot its place as I jumped out of line. Everyone's head shot to me as my eyes widened in realization at what I'd done. Adrian, the other twin, walked up to me before punching me right in the stomach, I doubled over instantly. Feeling the sting in my slightly healed back. "I know you... You were publicly flogged only two days ago." God I hate this guy. "I also have it on good authority, that you openly spoke out against our rules and regulations in yesterday's class." My head shot down the line slightly to see Erin, looking a little frightened, her mate, the beta to be was looking at her, nodding his head in reassurance. "You traitor, you grassed on your own kind?" I yelled at her before feeling a fist connect with my cheek. My head whipped to the side from the force, while my class members gasped. I'm so done with this treatment, right then, I wasn't in charge of my actions. My fists curled up and my stance became a lot more defensive. My head snapped up to the alpha to be, and I looked him in the eye. "You don't know the meaning of the word disrespect." I suddenly hurled my fist towards his head, which he easily dodged, but my foot came up and kicked him instead. He stumbled backwards from the force with wide eyes. "You... you Actually hit me!" He didn't even sound annoyed, more shocked. Everyone in the hallway was watching, waiting for the alpha to do something but instead he simply stood up straight, regaining his composure. "I think everyone should get back to class." He began to walk away, following his sister when I called him back. "What about Nick?!" "Simple, He's my sisters mate. He now belongs to her." Argh, he's not an object. "He's not her property." A chuckle left his mouth, before turning his back to me again. "All humans are property." A short while later everyone made it to science class, our teacher Mrs Mathews is mated to the lycans pack doctor, she also now has a four and two year old with him. She was one of the first humans to be cohered into a false relationship. "What were you thinking young lady?" I rolled my head at her before looking at the empty seat next to mine. Nick was with that stvpid wolf girl right now. Being changed, I'm so angry it's ridiculous. "I was thinking, this guy is being a prick. Did you hear him? 'All humans are property.' It's bull shet." I looked up and the whole class looked at me like I had three heads. Talking shet about wolves is one thing, but talking about an alpha is punishable by death, attacking an alpha is an even worse offense. There was then a knock at the door and in walked Erin and her band of mated bestards. "Sorry we're late Mrs." "Erin, how are things between you and bata Monroe?" She blushed, the traitor actually blushed at the mention of his name. "He spoke to me last night about trying for a baby. We need a good strong boy to take over as beta." I scoffed looking at her as she took her seat. "You guys are actually pathetic, why can't it be a girl? Those mutts are basically Neanderthals" I voiced my opinion and saw all the shocked faces around me. Calling the lycans mutts, is the same as them calling us scum. After lesson had ended the entire school was called into the hall for assembly. This is where any human who has been found to have broken the rules were punished, usually 10 lashings were goven out or something similar. "Welcome to the school assembly, congratulations to the alpha twins for finding both your mates. Now on to the business at hand, as the 5 year anniversary of the new world is coming up, we have been informed that the alpha king will be visiting our district next week, this is very exciting news. We want you all to look your absolute best, she wolves and mated females will wear exemplary dresses made by seamstress. Male wolves and mated men will wear tailored suits. Anyone who doesn't comply will be reprimanded." The Alpha King?! No one has met him yet, he took over the throne three years ago when he turned 18. He really didn't make any appearances though, great, this month is going to be a nightmare. "As for the humans, you will be given a new uniform to wear for the visit, these are to be neatly ironed and worn to the highest standard. As for the following humans, based on your attitude this past week, you will be coming to the front and facing punishment. Tony summerset?!" Tony's head shot up as he looked around, he was in the year below but he shared my views when it came to the lycans. He slowly walked up to the front of assembly, almost instantly his top was t0rn in two and he received 10 lashings. A girl named Kara was next and she too received 10 lashings. A few more people went up slowly accepting their fate then suddenly my name was called. "Dylan Riley." Inside I was terrified but I simply shrugged my shoulders, I guess I did kind of expect this. Although I'm not sure if my back can take any more damage. "You attacked an alpha, correct!" His eyes bored into mine as I bowed my head submitting to his authority. "Technically, no." Everyone in the school gym looked on in fear, as my head moved to the front row of the wolf side. Adrian sat, with a werewolf girl in the year below, her name was Jana, I guess he found his mate. Nick and Arya were no where to be seen though. Adrian gave me a shrug as if to say he didn't tell, before smirking at my comment. "He hasn't officially taken the alpha title yet, so he's just..." i looked at the principle and noticed his eyes black and his claws out, he was in what lycans call a half shift, triggered when the subject has become angered. He turned to two security wolves and gave them a nod, Almost immediately i was forced onto my knees, my arm was slammed on a table and held in place by one wolf, while my body was held in place by the other. "Ok, I don't think this is needed, I have alpha blood, a stvpid human girl can't hurt me." My head snapped to Adrian who had stood up in front of the school to stop what was happening. "Nevertheless, humans need to know their place." With that the pressure on my arm increased as our principals hand pulled my sleeve up before a long claw punctured my skin. The searing pain shoting from the fresh wound had my eyes scrunched and my fist clenched, I bit the inside of my cheek hard instantly tasting blood, however no sound left my mouth. He continued to write, using my skin as a canvas and his claws as a marker, it went on forever, my vision blurred slightly at one point as I turned my head away. After minutes of torture, he was done and the pressure on my arm eased, instantly I snatched my arm away, hissing through my teeth at the pain. I was about to scurry off stage, when I was roughly grabbed yet again, my arm being held in the air by the principal while my feet were inches off the floor, blood dripped from the wound and the pattern he had made was on show for everyone to see. Loads of people gasped, even the wolves looked slightly horrified at what had happened. "This is what happens when a human decides to speak out. I can promise, anyone who so much as says one word about our way of life, will have the same punishment." My arm was starting to seriously ache from being held in the air for so long, and the lack of blood flow to my suspended arm was causing me pins and needles, still I refused to make a sound. I held the tears back and I bit my cheek harder causing more blood to fill my mouth. "That's enough Bradley!" Adrian growled, he was still stood up and looking at the scene in front of him. His eyes hard as he stared at the principal a low warning growl erupted from his chest which had the head teacher gulping, he quickly let go of my arm causing me to crash to the floor. A small cry left my mouth as I hit the hard floor. Immediately I scrambled away, my foot just missed the high step leading to the stage and I fell, waiting for the impact of the ground, but it never came. Two strong arms wrapped around me catching my weak body causing me to look up, my eyes widened as I noticed Adrian had caught my falling form. "This isn't part of the human punishment program!" Adrian growled causing me to tense in his grip, I pushed him away from me before fixing my uniform top. The room was deadly silent, taking in the scene in front of them, while I stole a glance at my forearm. Carved into my skin by his devastating claws were two words, words that would most definitely scar my body for life. 'Human scum' "Lessons must be learned, she received lashing merely two days ago, and clearly it had no effect on her." Another growl left Adrian's chest as he stepped on to the stage, I wasn't bothered though, you would think I'd be ashamed but I simply smiled slightly. I fixed my sleeve a little so it wouldn't rub on the fresh wound before speaking. "It doesn't matter," the whole room looked at me shocked by my attitude. "I would rather be labeled human scum, than have any resemblance to your kind. I'm proud of what I am, how many of you can say that?" After my amazing little speech, I walked right down the middle between the humans and lycans and out the door. No more compliance, I'm going to get away with as much as I can without getting into too much bother. There will come a day when the lycans power will fizzle out. When it does I'll be ready, I'll be waiting for the day we take our world back. As for the best part about my plan...

No one can stop me.

"Ouch, not so hard." I seethed as the school nurse cleaned my new wound with antiseptic. "If you had of just kept your mouth shut, this wouldn't have happened." I turned to my right looking out the window at the few clouds that were floating in the blue sky. "Like I said, I'm proud to be human, and now everyone knows what I am." I clenched my fist together as the nurse began wrapping a bandage around my forearm. It had been a good few hours since the incident in the hall, and I had been forced to come to the nurces office after I had tried to clean my wound by splashing it with water from the tap, it also refused to stop bleeding. "You are impossible. Can you please just try and stay out of trouble? For one day, that's all I ask." Our school nurse is a wolf, she's one of them. However she hates the way they treat us mere humans, she thinks we should all just live in peace with equal rights. Like that would ever happen. "All I've done is stay out of trouble, but you are just going to humiliate me anyway, so what's the actual point?" "The pack were discussing a public execution, Dylan. You need to walk on egg shells from now on, not just for you but for your family as well." No ones been publicly executed in over 4 months, I'm flattered they're considering it. They only execute people who they believe are the biggest problems to society. "Well then... I'm flattered." I chuckled, before looking at the patch job. 'Huh, not too shabby.' I quickly stood up from the human nursing station and pulled the sleeve of my shirt down covering the evidence of ever being hurt. "This is serious!" I just gave her a blank look before leaving the room. On the way out I heard her call back to me. "Please just think about it." I gave a clipped nod as I walked away wondering how I'm going to tell my mom about this. Later in the evening... "Dilly why you say that?" Freddie looked up at me with a mouth full of bread. "Don't speak with your mouthful!" My mom scolded him as a bashful blush made its way to his cheeks. "Sowwy mommy." His reply was muffled as he swallowed the last chunk of food. "I said it Freddie, because it's the truth. The wolf race are a pathetic excuse for..." my mom cut me off with an extremely stern look. "Dylan! They have ears everywhere, one more word out of you and it's your room." I scowled, my hatred for the Lycan kind growing stronger as each day passes. "What more can they do to me, lash me? Beat me? Brand me? They've ran out of options." I stated slamming my hands down, then severely regretting it as sharp pain shot though my wound. "What was that?" My head shot to regard my mothers worried expression. Her eyebrows were raised and her eyes were dull and judging as she looked at me. "Nothing, it was nothing." I quickly took my plate in my hand and began to walk to the kitchen. "I'm not really hungry, and I have homework to do!" My mom caught hold of my forearm causing me to drop my plate suddenly, I watched it slowly fall before shattering on the floor. I retracted my arm quickly and turned to Freddie. "Stay there and don't move until it's cleaned up ok sport?" He just nodded with wide eyes, I turned back to my mom and noticed her curious stare on my arm. Her grip shifted to the other side as she turned it around before pulling my sleeve up. The bandage was showing and a bit of blood was seeping though after the wound had been disturbed. "What the hel happened?" My moms eyes widened as she began to fumble with the bandage. Before she could unravel any of it I snatched my arm away. "I had an accident at school. No big." I began to gather the large pieces of the broken plate up ready to put them in the bin. "What did you do Dylan?" She looked at me with pure worry and only then did I realize what the wound must look like to someone who didn't know. "For gods sake! I didn't do it to myself! I got publicly punished at the assembly alright? It's no big deal." Her face dropped instantly and she stepped towards me, causing me to step backwards. "Mom, I'm ok. So back off will you." "What did you do? I've never known them to cut someone's arm as a punishment." Her shock and accusation was evident in her voice and I sighed heavily. "I spoke against the alphas son." I may have hit him too, but I wasn't going to divulge that part to her. "It's not one big cut, mom, it's a brand, 'human scum' carved onto my arm." "They've branded you now too?!" My eyes rolled at her hurt tone as I went to get the dustpan and brush. "You're so much like your father." A sigh left her mouth as she spoke, running a hand through her hair, while I quickly swept up the little pieces of the broken plate. "You've had a new uniform delivered. It's laid out on your bed. Dylan, Please just try and stay respectful in the future, I don't want my daughter to be completely mutilated. Although you're not far off." "Gee, Thanks." I then walked over to my little brother Freddy before blowing a kiss into his neck and hearing him giggle. "So sport, how's school going?" "It's ok." He shrugged before going back to coloring a dinosaur picture in. "Well that's good, stay out of trouble, ok little man?" Heading upstairs and into my room, my thoughts wandered to the permanent graffiti scar very slowly healing on my arm. Disgusting beasts. Think they own the world because they're faster, stronger and can shift. Pah. If you ask me they are not all that.

The second I walked into my room my mouth dropped open. On my bed was some grey pants laid out neatly, which wasn't the surprising part, no, what shocked me was the grey high neck no sleeved button down shirt, every single set of uniform had sleeves except this one. They've done this on purpose those, mutts. They want the world to see my arm and know what a disgusting creature I am. They want the world to know that I, Dylan Riley, am nothing more than 'human scum'.

During the last week, I've been horrible, in class I've been loud in voicing my views, I've insulted at least everyone to some degree, I didn't care about the consequences, and I certainly didn't think about them. I haven't seen Nick at all since he was claimed, and to make matters worse today was the royal visit. Oh yes, werewolves and mated humans alike were spending every waking minute preparing themselves to meet his royal majesty, king of the wolves. Unclaimed Humans however would rather stick pins in their eyes. "Dylan, get down now... you're going to be late." She was right, I was dawdling this morning, I really couldn't be bothered today, I gave myself one last look in the small mirror and sighed when my eyes met my newly uncovered brand. It had bad bruising around the letters, and was still extremely tender to touch, it was definitely healing now though. I made my way down the stairs and came face to face with my mother who was seeing to Freddie, she was helping my brother get his coat on when she turned to me. "You ready sport?" Freddie nodded his little head at me and smiled while I quickly slid my shoes on. "Just Remember, the alpha is bad enough, Dylan, please, please don't do anything to anger the king." My mother stopped us from walking out the door to tell me something she had been telling me continuously for the last couple of days, it was almost as if the entire human population of our district was expecting me to do something stvpid. "Try and have a good day." I rolled my eyes but nodded, even I know not to push the king, he could kil me in the hallway like it was nothing. In fact I plan on staying out of his way for the entirety of the day. "We will see you tonight mom." I stated before me and my brother began our walk to school, his little hand clutched my own tightly as we went. Usually Nick would be with us, as he lives next door, well he used to, now he's residing in the main pack house. I quickly dropped Freddie off at his school and watched him get the wolfsbane neutralizer before walking into him building giving me a small wave before he went in. With my new scar on complete show, and my figure being complimented by the skin tight shirt I was wearing, I sauntered down the street to school, I gave my name and year in and took the wolf's bane neutralizer injection with no problems at all. It was finally getting into school that the problem occurred. Walking through the halls I was met by many looks, some of pity some of disgust. You see every single non mated human in the school was wearing a long sleeved version of the uniform I was given. All the Wolves and mated couples were scattered around in fancy floor length dresses or tailored suits. As I turned the corner I noticed a couple, now this couple happened to catch my eye the most out of all of them because it consisted of Arya and Nick, eating each other's faces off. "What the hel!" Nicks head shot to me as his eyes widened. He too was dressed in a tailored suit, a navy blue tie hung on his neck to match Aryas dress. Why was this happening all the time? It's always my friends that get completely brain washed. I shook my head in disbelief before turning my back on him. I heard his fast footsteps behind me as I rounded the corner. "Dylan?!" He ran right in front of me, stopping me in my tracks, making me drop my bag off my shoulder and almost causing me to bump into him. "Let me just explain..." "Has she marked you?" I mean you could almost see it in his eyes, she had marked him, and knowing the way life goes he's probably even mated with her. "Actually... Don't even answer that." I aggressively picked my bag up off of the floor and stormed off down the hall. "Dylan, just listen to me, Erin was right, it's so hard to resist your soulmate, and Arya is actually ok once you get to know her." I just kept walking, he caught up to me walking beside me but it didn't matter, I completely ignored everything and everyone. 'I'm so not in the mood today' getting into class was good though, I said hello to Mr Foley and took my usual seat. Nick sighed then took his bag off ready to sit next to me, but I snapped before he had the chance. "Traitors and mated idiots sit on that side of the room." I didn't look him in the eye as I pointed to a seat right at the front of the classroom on the opposite side. His eyes widened as he turned his attention back to me. "You can't be serious Dylan." I gave him a blank look before grabbing my book out of my backpack, I placed it on the desk then began to write the date on the top line. "I've sat in this seat for as long as I can remember." I ignored him, his voice sounded sad and shocked. "Dylan? Wait! What is that?!" Before I could react Nick had grabbed hold of my branded arm and turned it to see the letters. "Oh my God! What happened?" I snatched my arm away from him and shrugged as I continued to write in my book before grabbing my water bottle out of my bag. "The principal happened, it was my punishment for speaking out against Adrian and Arya. I wear it with pride." He just held a complete look of disbelief. "You spoke out against them?" I shrugged, what did he think I'd do. "It's no secret that I despise this stvpid new world and the mutts that control it. You were my friend, I wasn't going to let them just take you without saying something, although that is exactly what you seem to have done. Enjoy the view from your new seat!" "Don't be like that, Dylan, I'm your best friend, I'm sorry about your arm, but..." my eyes rolled inside my head at my friends words. "Anything with the word 'but' in, isn't an apology, it's a rationalization." I took a drink of water from my bottle and kept my eyes facing forward, ignoring his every attempt to try and talk to me. "Dylan?.. Dylan?... Do you know what? Erin is right, if you push us all away you won't have any friends left." He huffed before walking over to the empty seat and sitting down, I could feel him glancing up at me every now and again but I didn't respond. "Good morning class, please settle down." He looked at me then at Nick and frowned, we've never sat apart, we were friends before the new world even began. I just shook my head telling him to forget it. "So... as you know the king will be arriving in a short while, but until then lessons will go on as normal." Its funny seeing teachers in the same uniform your wearing, mr Foley and his wife are the coolest. Human teachers and doctors only have slightly more respect than we do. Because of Mr Foley's status him and his wife have better access to food and drink, Mrs Foley is cool, sometimes she even makes sure mr Foley brings some in for me. Ya know, coz I'm their favorite student. It's not in a weird way, it's just they were friends of the family before the new wold took effect. Mr Foley and my dad were buddies from high school, so it goes without sayin really. "All the mated humans will be at the front of each years line again, after that you will all be placed in status, Nick, as your mated to Alpha Arya, you'll be at the front of your line. Dylan as you have been branded..." his voice trailed off as he looked at me. "Yeah yeah, I'll be at the back of the line behind everyone. I get it." I huffed, moving my sight towards the window once more. "I am sorry." I turned to face Mr Foley again, he looked genuinely upset and that look of pity wasn't something I wanted to see. I gave him a clipped nod then turned away again. "Anyway, on to the subject matter, 'Of Mice and Men, page 64, Nick why don't you start us off with the reading."

"Of course sir." Nick began reading the book but I switched off, today is going to be a long day. After almost an hour and a half of reading comprehension, the bell chimed signaling lunch. I shot up and out of the classroom before anyone could say anything. Today, I was avoiding drama like the plague.

I wandered the corridors straight to the lunch hall. All the people I would normally hang out with we're all mated so I grabbed my lunch quickly, and sat down at the end of the human table. Let me lay the lunch hall out for you. On one side of the room you have two long rows of tables, with simple benches that make it look like prison, on the other side of the room you have multiple round tables with fancy chairs. Yup you get it. The humans sit at the prison tables and the wolves and traitors sit on the fancy tables, they get fancy food, fancy drink and most importantly they get pudding. what I would give to have some pudding. "Dylan can we just talk?" Nick quickly took the spot next to me as he set his lunch tray down. I looked at his food which had been placed on a ceramic, circular white plate. God that looked good. I sighed knowing he was going to talk anyway. "Fine, you have two minutes." I used my fork to take a bit of pasta off his plate and shoved it into my mouth. God that was good. "After I left school, I was taken to the pack house with Arya, and I really got to know her. It took a few days for me to finally accept being with her, but ever since life has been ok, and the sax... well that's a whole other story." Eww, I didn't need that mental image in my head. "I'm glad your happy." I stated before deciding I had no appetite. His face held shock before he sighed in relief. "That means a lot Dylan, I mean you know that your opinion matters to me." I cut him off before he could say anything else. "I said I was glad your happy. I didn't say I approved of what you've done. You've basically turned into one of THEM, I can't ever forgive you for that." He looked hurt, but I couldn't care less about his feelings. He placed his hand gently on my arm and went to open his mouth when a growl sounded out. All heads whipped to where it came from, Arya was stood holding a glass of soda and a plate, she was looking right at me and Nick and I would totally be dead if looks could kil. Nick quickly retracted his hand, his whole face fell and you could see sorrow flood his irises. "You sit with me now, get away from that, that... scum!" Wow, Nick was such a lucky guy. NOT. "You heard her. Get away from me, go sit with your new friends. I'm happy for you, and I understand where your coming from, but don't come up to me again and pretend you didn't betray your own kind. Don't pretend you didn't betray me." I shoved a little bit of food into my mouth before standing up and walking out of the cafeteria, leaving my tray on the table. I was walking through the hallway to the classroom, you see I decided to spend lunch with Mr Foley in his room, when I happened to hear voices in the corridor. "Is it wise for her to actually be present when the king arrives? Surely she could be placed in the dungeons, it might actually teach her some respect?" My principal was speaking to the alpha of our district, huh, if I stayed and listened do you think they'd notice, maybe they could smell me?! "Everyone is to be present, if the Riley girl does one thing out of line she will be dealt with severely, child or not. That girl has been a blight to the district since day one, she's dangerous, if she puts one hair out of place I will personally break her into submission." Oh shet, they were talking about me specifically, and they mentioned the dungeon, that's not been used in months. Normally I would have listened in more but something about the entire situation didn't sit right with me, all of a sudden, I was on edge, and simply wasn't interested in the slightest in hearing how my misery was to be enhanced. I backed up slightly before turning around and bumping head first into one of the hottest man I had ever seen. I lost my balance immediately and fell straight on to the floor letting out a small grumble in the process. His eyebrows knitted together quickly and his breath hitched in his throat as he looked upon my fallen state and gasped. "Mate!" He whispered, his eyes fixated on mine. Now, I had seen and heard that many times to know what that means, I gasped before taking a step back. 'No, no, no, no, no. This can not be happening.' He growled slightly before stepping towards me. Oh Shet!

I signed up to be a Lyft driver under a promotion where if I started driving by May 28, and completed 40 drives within one week of starting, I would receive a $400 bonus.
I have screenshots and original emails saying that if I completed my first ride by May 28th, I have one week from when I started to complete 40 Rides and earn the bonus.
This part is on me (and it's possibly not relevant to small claims but...) I've had a busy month, and I provided the necessary info to be approved as a driver a bit over a week in advance of the 28. I was approved around the 23rd.
Full time job had extra work for me until May 25. And then I got sick, with a mad head cold. The type of cold where (although I tested covid negative) I really didn't want to be driving people. My sinuses hurt. I was coughing a lot.
May 28, I'm not feeling the best, but I didn't have any fever, and I went into my normal job. Which lasts until 8:30 pm Hawaii time. I really wanted that bonus so I drive one Lyft ride at about 9pm, Hawaiian time, May 28.
Fast forward to today.
I really want that bonus, I'm finally not coughing all the time so I start driving Friday night. But the bonus isn't showing anywhere on the app.
So I went home, contacted Lyft support, and they keep saying that I didn't start in 30 days, per the bonus agreement. I shared screenshots of the emails that said "by May 28" and a screenshot of my first ride which was around 9pm May 28.
They are escalating my claim to a higher level team and will respond by email. (As to whether I will qualify for the bonus.)
My current plan is to drive a lot this weekend, get those 40 drives in, and hope that Lyft honors their emails which said that if my first drive was by the 28, I had one week for 40 drives.
If they don't honor it.... Can I sue in small claims? I live in Hawaii. Would I even possibly win? I know it's only $400 extra but for me it's a lot!

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