Davidson

This is why I thought Raven was Sarah. You might want to edit it. Having said that, so far it looks as if Owl-Sofia and Raven-Sarah might be more apt, given that, although Sofia had a somewhat extreme relationship with her husband, there’s no evidence yet of her not understanding the meaning of informed consent.

Hey everyone! Welcome to the last chapter in this story. I’ve had a lot of fun writing this and it’s been an exciting whirlwind since I started it. I usually write longer stories and I think as a writer, you can develop more plotlines and characters that add to the interesting complexities, but I do appreciate this sort of bite-sized work every once in a while. Looking ahead, there will be one more story to this eventual trilogy, but like the CON series I continued earlier this year, I will likely not come back to all this for at least a few months. I like doing the polls on here, and while the participation this go around was less than usual, I think I still want to continue that trend going forward. So, when this story next comes up in the polls, it will also be up to you all as well when the next part is written. Speaking of which, due to the shorter turnaround time and the smaller popularity of this story, I’ve put a lot of thought into it, but I’m going to break tradition at this point as I have decided not to announce which story I will be doing next. So, if you haven’t voted and it’s still before May 24th when I will be actively reviewing this site again and likely starting my next story, there’s still time. Please refer to chapter 2 again if you want to see the options available. For those of you that have already voted, however, I thank you deeply. This story was less popular than I was originally hoping for, but I still had a blast writing it, so no worries about me dropping writing all this still like I considered a few times last year. As far as the next story goes though, I should be posting it sometime at the end of May or the begging of June depending on how things go. I won’t post another announcement, so just be sure to be on the lookout for my next story. Regardless of what I choose, it’s likely going to be a long and interesting twisting story. Finally, and back to this tale, I hope everyone enjoys the next and final chapter of this story! Chapter 7: Something Remains Life can often be a series of choices one makes, and coming to any situation, one can usually tell if they made a mistake or not. Even with my years of practice and multiple degrees, often dealing with acceptance, it was still hard for me to admit when I had made a mistake. That being said, when I awoke to a padded cell and couldn’t move around due to the straitjacket I was now thoroughly encased in, I couldn’t deny the fact that I had massively messed up. Things only got worse as I soon began to get my bearings and managed to sit upright after angling myself and using my core muscles to do so without using my hands. While I had made this effort, I disturbingly, yet maybe not shockingly, discovered that I was heavily diapered as well. I thought things couldn’t get any worse, but no sooner had my eyes adjusted to the light and took everything in did the door to the room open with a creak. Seconds later, a tall and gaunt man, more skeletal than flesh it seemed, walked in the room, and stared down at me. “Good evening, Dr. Mengell. Or… I suppose that’s how most would have called you beforehand. I respect what you’ve done for Littles and even to get here and find Dr. Belamy’s trail we tried so hard to conceal, but even I take orders, so I’ll just settle on Trisha instead.” I didn’t like his calm in this situation. It told me he had no fears and had done this all before. If anything, it just made me feel that my situation was worse. “Who are you? Why am I here? Let me out now,” I all tried to assert and question this strange man nearly all at once. The gaunt man just smiled back at me until I stopped saying anything. It was clearly what he wanted me to do. “I won’t answer all your questions, Trisha, but given your circumstances and likely future, I can inform you about a few of them.” He then walked closer to me and even bowed. “My name is Mr. Thanatos. Feel free to use that name, or Mr. T if that makes things easier for you in the future.” His calm persisted and while I thought he wanted me to say something back, after a moment of just silence, I could sense his state of self just wanted to move on instead and was probably just pausing for effect. “Well, now, I do want to commend you on your investigative skills. Clearly, you found your mark, but as a point of clarification, we always knew you were wandering around. There was no secret as to what you were doing. Something to remember for the future, we’re always watching.” As if to emphasize his point, he then pointed above him and there was another security camera… this one pointed directly at me. Clearing my head of the initial shock of my failure here, I quickly realized what he was trying to tell me. “You mean… you all saw everything?” Mr. Thanatos smiled and nodded. “That’s right. As soon as we recognized you when you walked into the hospital, a security camera somewhere never let you leave our view. To be honest, we were kind of curious what you would do… especially when you made your way into Ward 6. We could’ve stopped you at any point in time… and maybe we should have, but our scientists just have to have their little observations sometimes…” He trailed off and smirked as if he was remembering some kind of inside joke. He then looked back at me and sighed. “Still, once you entered, we knew there was no way you were ever leaving here again as you were.” My stomach dropped and I guess I should have assumed as much from Dr. Belamy being trapped here as well, but it didn’t feel any better to know I was in this ward now myself. Also, I felt my prospects of getting out of here had also just shrunk dramatically. I knew I wasn’t covert or anything as much as I probably should have been earlier today, but I had a sense of sneakiness as I performed my investigations. With that feeling now shattered, it made me quickly worried about the chance of my friends successfully rescuing me. Before, it was maybe a long shot to be rescued, but there was still hope in the back of my mind given enough time, smarts, energy, and a bit of luck. Now, however, it felt like being rescued by anyone that I knew was an increasingly more remote prospect… or at least rescuing me without being trapped themselves. “Yes…” he said while his grew wider in clear satisfaction over the look that must have appeared on my face. “Now, you know… feel it. Take it all in. Know the crushing sense of being trapped here.” He breathed in deep, and I could clearly see that he was enjoying himself in my self-torment, but he smirked and yet sighed when he looked back at me. If I didn’t know any better, I would have almost thought that a small part of him felt bad for me.   “Tell you what… because I respect you, I’ll ease your guilt about one item from today. See, we saw you trying to phone after you changed into your whole nurse ‘disguise,’ if that’s what you wanted to call that pitiful outfit you were wearing earlier to try and fool us around here.” I quickly remembered back to the brief amount of time I had tried to send a text out but to no avail. “Just know, this whole area is shielded from any sort of cell reception. Even with the best of devices out on the market, Melon Corp or otherwise, you would have still failed. So, don’t feel guilty by that little bit at least.” His revelation had actually helped me a bit, but even with that nice feeling of one thing that wasn’t in my control, it still left the fact that I was still effectively trapped by these people in this wretched place. Mr. Thanatos then pulled a chair out from behind him and sat down as he started to look over a thick file. “This is you, by the way,” he said, looking back up from my file and gesturing to it as well after a moment. “Your whole life basically. Helped me out in my investigations of you that you were a former employee of Juventas… where we do the background anyways, but then, your celebrity status after last year helped grow the file just as equally. Makes my sort of job so much easier, so thank you for that. It was almost… relaxing this go around.” I wasn’t sure how to respond, but at that moment, I then noticed an about mid-30’s Big standing behind Mr. Thanatos. She shifted back and forth and seemed highly uncomfortable with being in the room, but I couldn’t tell if it was more of me, knowledge of what was about to happen to me, or even if it was just Mr. Thanatos himself. Whatever the case, I wouldn’t have been shocked in the least bit. “You know, speaking of which, every time I’ve read your file in the past year… I’ve always marveled over the fact that anyone thinks of you as a hero.” He turned my file around and I could quickly recognize my old ID photo from when I worked at Juventas and the numerous files listing all the projects I was involved with typed out behind it. I quickly hung my head in shame over the reminder of that part of my life. “I’m not proud of it, okay?” I admitted, still seeing that Mr. Thanatos had all the power in the room and was maybe looking for an answer to stoke his sick ego. I was trying to use my insight into others to maybe help me out of here, but Mr. Thanatos just laughed instead. “I would suspect so!” He then scoffed and looked up from the file. “I wonder just how many Littles would come to you and how many Bigs would have praised you over the past year if they knew you worked on all of Juventas’ hypnosis programs. Top seller of the company you know… I mean, how many shows did your programs touch again?” I sighed and shrugged as best I could within the straitjacket. “I lost count after the tenth show that my hypnotics were used on,” I shamefully noted. “After that… I didn’t want to think about it anymore. All were totally new programs or improved versions of old programs, and I was proud of that for a time. The Pennycade Jr. channel was practically built on what I did for you all. Now though… it’s my biggest regret in life…” Mr. Thanatos’ grin only grew wider. “So, trying to make up for that fact, you seemed to almost overcompensate and then go in the opposite direction in a seeming attempt to make yourself a good person again, hmmm? Sleep better at night after, Doc?” he taunted at me, grinning wickedly as he did so. I didn’t respond. I had my regrets, but I didn’t want to give him that satisfaction. Mr. Thanatos then glared back at me when I still didn’t respond to his taunts after a moment. Seeing as he wasn’t responding to any of my previous lines of communication or flattery, I thought that I might as well keep my dignity and honor intact as much as I realistically could. If he wasn’t going to take the proverbial carrot, I would at least make sure he got the stick as much as possible from me instead. “Fine,” he grumbled back at me after another minute of silence and practically a stare-off between us. “If you want to be that way, I’ll leave you with this thought from your file. I want you to think about it during all the long nights here that are yet to come.” He paused and took a deep breath in. “You aren’t a good person, Trisha. Thousands, probably more even, Littles have been affected by your hypnosis the world over by now. You didn’t start it, but you made sure that hypnosis would stay around for at least the next few decades in our society… even if these stupid new Little laws the government is toying around with do come to pass. Because of you… Littles will still be regressed in this company as much or even worse all because of you. Think on that, Doc.” He then left me with a little sneer and honestly, I had admitted all what he had just said to me long ago. I told myself it was just a job in the beginning, like most of my coworkers did as well, but as I started to grow into my role and the hypnotic programs that I had shipped out became more impacting and hard-hitting, I started to question everything. It didn’t take me long to realize that I was completely in the wrong and that sometimes, a job isn’t just a job. As a psychologist and a therapist, I had a duty to those I had originally sworn to protect. Sure, maybe some were better off as regressed Littles, but looking back, a Little ending up in a good environment was still sadly a matter of long odds. Most of the time, instead of helping, most Bigs would just use my hypnosis prowess to hurt the Littles under their care. It made me sick. Still, even with all that buzzing about in my mind, I knew I had to be a little selfish at the moment and think about myself. First, it would keep me focused on my eventual escape, and second, I knew it would deny Mr. Thanatos the satisfaction he seemed that he was so desperately looking for. So, I took a breath, calmed my mind, and looked at him right in the eyes. “Yes, all that is true, but just tell me… what are you going to do to me, Mr. Thanatos?” By the way that his nostrils flared, I could see that I was clearly getting to him by not having a larger reaction to him, but he was playing this game of sorts alongside me as well. He likely knew that he couldn’t show emotion, and therefore weakness in this case, to me, so he just plainly answered my question. “Well, we can’t exactly have someone of your status just walk out of here. Surely, you know that.” I simply nodded and could see his nostrils flare out more over my lack of emotions over what he was trying to imply. “You know just a little too much now for anyone’s comfort, so expect some kind of treatment coming soon. Your first round will be today, but I know of some eager scientists who want to test something new back at our labs and under our ‘special projects’ division. Seeing your file,” he said, his eyes practically glinting in joy by now, “I think you might just be the perfect candidate. Michelle…” The timid Big behind Mr. Thanatos then stepped up and shakily handed him a long and thick needle filled with some type of odd blue substance. My thoughts raced, but I was starting peg Mr. Thanatos as cold-hearted, but perhaps a man of tradition and fair play, by his owns standards at least, as well. Relying on this and the idea that anything I learned now wouldn’t matter or be spread further in all likelihood if his insinuations were anything to go by, so, I took my shot. “Wait…” Mr. Thanatos stopped just as he fully stood back up from his chair. “Can I at least get a last request?” Mr. Thanatos glared at me for a moment, but simply nodded his head. “Thank you…” I had just one request left, and I felt like I would be pushing my luck with any farewell messages to anyone I cared about, so I just stuck to information. I had learned a lot, but Dr. Belamy was still a sticking point in my mind. “Why was Dr. Belamy taken?” Mr. Thanatos sighed, and I could see the conflict welling up inside of him, but he ultimately nodded his head and relented. “Very well… see, he discovered a discrepancy in Carmen’s bloodwork initially. It didn’t match any of the other Juventas patients and was in fact closer to the samples that he took as well from other regression victims afterward. He correctly deduced that there was a pattern, even after the Juventas incident… even after the flush of chemicals that Victor Hamsby, aka your Vincent, tried to dispose of before he was caught as some might have suspected. Juventas couldn’t risk that type of information getting out.” My mind reeled from all this new piece of information. Mr. Thanatos had answered my seemingly now perfect question wonderfully. It turns out that as I and many other pro-Littles had suspected, Juventas, the only entity that could have been responsible for the mass of regressions we had seen lately, was in fact responsible for all of them. Knowing Vincent’s crimes and his demeanor at the time of capture, I had secretly harbored a fear that he was the reason I had seen so many Little regressions in the past year alone. After all, he had spiked the water himself before he was captured. Now, though, I knew that he was responsible for some of them, but likely not the majority that I had seen. It was both a relief for Vincent and yet a terrible realization about Juventas.   Mr. Thanatos then stepped closer to me, and as weird as it seemed, he smiled warmly down at me, the shot still in his hand. “Now, with that done, on a personal note before your shot, Dr. Mengell… I just want to say on behalf of the company, we, or I guess, rather I, want to thank you for taking in Vincent. He’s special in more ways than you can imagine, and his ensured safety is most appreciated.” He then sighed and stepped closer to me. “I’m afraid though, your involvement with him is now at an end. You set up a perfectly splendid support system in your absence, and your own meddling recently just isn’t worth the cost we are willing to pay for in the future. I am truly sorry, and you do have a wonderful mind and heart, but sometimes, orders are orders.” I could have struggled, screamed, bit, punched, kicked, or anything else I had ever seen in the movies to try and prevent the oncoming shot toward my arm. Instead, knowing my fate was sealed, I wanted to spout one last piece of defiance, despite my fading hope about it. “You can’t hide me forever… someone will come looking…” Once more, Mr. Thanatos paused, but this time, once again grinned wickedly down at me. “I wouldn’t be so sure, Trisha. Your Middle assistant is no threat to our plans, Vincent is regressed, Officer Kenny is just one beat cop in an already corrupted department, and your patients are just Littles. Their Bigs could have some power, but they’ll be too scared in your absence over losing their Littles that their silence will be assured as well. We have a plan B just in case… but let go of your hope, Trisha. It won’t do you any good in here.” I wanted to counter what he said, but being so close and fast, Mr. Thanatos injected me before I could say another word. Almost instantly, I felt a cooling sensation ripple through my arm. The world quickly became fuzzy, and I was suddenly so tired… *              *              * “Wow… what a conclusion. Mr. Thanatos definitely has a flare for the dramatic, huh?” Ms. Finnegan exhaled as if she had been holding her breath for some time by then as the video screen blacked out and the lights slowly came back on. “Yes, yes indeed,” Mr. Drakos agreed. “I am pleased with the results, though. What say you all?” The board murmured amongst themselves but all nodded… except for Mr. Bouras who then raised his hand. Like a sheep amongst wolves, everyone immediately glared with seething expressions at the VP of the company. He stuttered for a moment, but finally managed to make out, “N… nothing critical I assure you…” The board mostly then eased up and a little sigh of relief could faintly be heard from him just under the louder noise of the board reshuffling back into their seats. “Yes, yes. All good, absolutely… but what of our exposure? Surely someone like Dr. Mengell wouldn’t just disappear, right?” The board went silent and most nervously stared back at Mr. Drakos for a response. “Are you asking for our ‘special projects’ division to comment on policy, Mr. Bouras?” Mr. Drakos glared back at his underling in the company. “Wait… are you wearing a wire in here, Mr. Bouras?” The tension intensified quickly over the insinuation, but the mid-40’s VP Big shook his head to the point where no one would have likely been surprised if it suddenly flew off his shoulders. “Absolutely not! I’m loyal to Juventas completely! 100%! I just…” his eyes darted around the nervous looking board members. “I just want to ensure this doesn’t bite us when others might begin to ask after her.” The board began murmuring further and Mr. Drakos only glared back at his VP. “Hmmm… I think he might have a point, sir…” Mr. Allen finally piped up, though most knew he was clearly thinking of to protect his research studies division projects rather than out of loyalty to Mr. Bouras. Mr. Drakos tapped his thick fingers together and grumbled for a second. “If Mr. Thanatos was here instead of doing background on a new candidate for our drug department in Loculofus down in Virgan, I’m sure he would say ‘no comment,’ but to satisfy this board today, I can assure you that a plan is in place.” “Fool proof?” Ms. Finnegan questioned quickly but hesitantly. Mr. Drakos’ eyes narrowed. “That is what we pay Mr. Thanatos for, or are you forgetting about his involvement in the ‘special projects’ division? This isn’t our first cover up, you know…” The board still seemed unsure about the whole matter. Mr. Drakos glared at all of them, but even he could see that it was clear that he needed to reassert himself, his position, and the reassurance that everything was okay in the company. “I cannot share the details with all of you… just in case any of us are questioned for whatever reason, but Mr. Thanatos was paid a hefty sum after his dealings with the matter I assure you. After all, my father always told me that it was never a wise idea to upset the man who knows where all the bodies are buried…” Mr. Drakos then flipped the video screen on again. “If that’s not enough for you all though, this footage was pulled and compiled two days ago and investigations into her disappearance are already underway. Considering the LPS or the ABI isn’t busting in here right now and placing us all in handcuffs, I think that should be a good indication of Mr. Thanatos’ success in this matter.” The board was visibly quickly relieved over the news. No missing persons bulletins had gone up yet, and while every member would likely check their local preferred news stations tonight just to be sure, Mr. Drako’s further reassurances had evidently done their work well. “I’m curious though…” Ms. Finnegan then piped up. “Is Dr. Mengell going to be treated as a special case and put into permanent isolation or…?” Mr. Drakos chuckled. “Oh, Ms. Finnegan… how transparent you are sometimes.” Ms. Finnegan blushed and moved her seat back a bit from around the table. “I promise you, as Mr. Thanatos noted, Trisha was given a dose of one of our new drugs, but she is also primed and ready for you now if you want her…” Ms. Finnegan’s reluctant eyes quickly evolved into those of lust and desire to test out her latest product on a subject that had no choice in the matter. All she ever talked about with it was that it was considered a project under D.C. out west. Considering the initials, everyone knew not to question it further. “Now, then,” Mr. Drakos continued as he clicked the screen. “As you can see here, we have a new record for the good Doctor…” *              *              * Patient Name: Dr. Trisha Mengell Biological Age: 38 Years old Estimated Mental Age: Difficult to ascertain (future observations will be required once drugs have had time to settle) - Likely subject to change regardless with Patient’s involvement in future projects    Former Occupation: Psychologist and therapist specializing in Little psychology and acceptance of regressed abilities and mentalities (Note: former employee of Juventas in the implementation of our hypnosis program -resigned after incident last year though) Current Occupation: Patient at Reliance Hope Hospital, Ward 6 Regression Initiated: 2 days ago Notes: Through her own patients as a therapist, Patient discovered the location and whereabouts of Dr. Ethan Belamy, a current patient here as well. Due to Patient’s ‘celebrity’ status in the community, further efforts may be required to conceal her identity. Previous whereabouts and records have been altered to show her coming and leaving. Her car has been transported elsewhere to create a story of her running off the road in a common spot where hikers go missing or are eaten by indigenous wildlife frequently. Other scenarios may include pro-Big groups as patsies if necessary to countermand any investigation. Further observation will be required to ensure Patient’s cooperation with current company positions of compliance with issue regulations after incident last year. Family, staff, Patient’s Little, and those tied to them, will be closely monitored for possible attempts at rescue. Further steps may be implemented as desired or needed. *              *              * “As you can see,” Mr. Drakos continued, “Mr. Thanatos has provided a cover story for Dr. Mengell that places her outside of this hospital as her last known location. In fact, we may create another such story for Dr. Belamy if this proves successful.” The board murmured again, but everyone seemed satisfied now. “And, for the record, she’ll get her own altered file for Reliance Hope Hospital’s records, right?” Mr. Bouras questioned after a moment of scanning the file again. Dr. Drakos nodded. “Of course. This file will go into our own private records and those of Ward 6. We have recommended higher security protocols be put in place in the meantime, but the hospital records will list her as a ‘Jane Doe’ of Ward 5, like Dr. Belamy was. We hope that concealing her first name will be a further deterrent in her rescue or discovery.” “Wonderful, just wonderful,” Mr. Allen finally complimented. “Yes, I agree. Just a splendid job, Mr. Drakos,” Ms. Finnegan continued. “I can’t wait to get started.” Everyone laughed at that and finally, a wide smile appeared on Mr. Drakos’ face. For anyone who knew him or had seen him recently, it was the first time in the weeks since Dr. Belamy was first taken that he did so. “Thank you, thank you. Be sure to compliment Mr. Thanatos when he returns as well, but for now, there’s a little more footage of our new favorite patient. Would you all like to see the end?” Not a single member of the board objected, and soon, the lights dimmed once again, and Mr. Drakos turned the video recording back on. *              *              * “Goodbye, Doctor… have fun in your new life,” Mr. Thanatos said as he eyed my sprawled out and unmoving form still on the floor. “I best get home before this new storm hits the area… not that you care, right?” I had convulsed somewhat after the medicine really started pumping through my system, and to be honest, I had never been more scared in my life. My veins felt like they were going to explode. My head pounded with the sound of a thousand drums. My limbs shook, but then all at once, I went still. I wanted so badly to yell or curse out the creepy gaunt man now leaving my padded cell, but no sound would come out, no matter how hard I tried. I couldn’t even lift a pinky and I even started to feel a wet sensation flow around my mouth. Before he exited my padded cell fully, Mr. Thanatos turned to me one last time. “You know… I think we could have been friends in another life. You had so much potential in your old position at Juventas. Definitely headed for a board seat, but I guess you chose your hand, and I chose mine. Pity…” He sighed and ushered the still trembling Michelle out of the room. Before she disappeared out in the hallway, I only saw regret and fear on her face. It was small, but it was a tiny consolation to me of sorts. “Timid little thing, but one last thought before you completely drool all over yourself and I go, Doc.” He grinned as he grasped the edge of the door, clearly about to close it. “You might believe in happy endings, or not, but I assure you… this isn’t some fairytale. Your time here in Ward 6… you may hope to be rescued every day but trust me at least in this… its not coming. So, enjoy what time you have left here. Your talents were already wasted… don’t waste the time you have left… it’s not much.” And with that, the door slammed shut and I was left alone with my thoughts. The cool cell was eerily quiet, and I couldn’t hear much beyond my own breathing and the occasional spastic and uncontrolled twitch from my lower half as it rubbed against the floor padding. I wasn’t dead, but that was about the only positive I could think of at first. Everything felt like it was falling apart now. I had worked so hard and helped so many, but all that seemed in vain now. Vincent, Carol, Tammy, my patients and their caregivers… all seemed so distant and like unfinished business. I had made arrangements to deal with them, but my soul wretched when I thought that the last thing that I had said to each of them might have actually just been the last thing I would ever say to them. It was a terrible thought and in my own still-rational mind at least, I tried to picture where it had all gone wrong. I could have blamed so many in my life, including my own actions. Still, now, all of that felt pointless with my body lying on the floor in nothing more than seemingly a straitjacket and a diaper. It was humiliating and will-breaking, but considering Dr. Belamy’s status, I felt everything was about to get a lot worse for me. This was only punctuated by the fact that I suddenly felt a growing warm sensation in my diaper. At first, I was confused, but all at once, my thoughts shifted to what that had actually meant… I had just peed my diaper like a baby. It was terrible, but that was the thing though… I had thought about it. It was so minor and a task so mundane that I hadn’t yet considered it at all as something to question. For as long as I could remember, I could think. Maybe to a lesser extent when I was younger, but my mind was still there. From the look on Dr. Belamy’s face though, there was no recognition whatsoever. He was gone… but me… I was still here. I tried to piece together what that meant exactly, but exhaustion quickly enveloped my whole body. I was petrified at first that maybe my mental degradation was just taking longer than I had originally anticipated, but I remained as sharp as ever. Despite what Mr. Thanatos had told me, hope remained. Fleeting faster than ever, at least with being rescued tomorrow, but there was still a hope of being found one day. My friends and family were no gallant warriors, but they had heart and determination. If I had found Dr. Belamy, then just maybe, I would be found as well. I thought of all the faces I would see again and the celebrations that would happen after. I had evidence now more than at any other point on Juventas and I was determined that the world should know about it. The process would be long and difficult if my luck was any indication, but I had the tools now to use against them… and bring them down. My own dilemma now though was to last as long as I could in here in Ward 6. Mr. Thanatos had insinuated some terrible things about my future and while my nerves jittered over such a fate, I knew I had to stay strong. I resolved it within myself that no matter what they did, I would still be here. Diapers, torture, pain, humiliation… all didn’t matter to me right then. It could have just been chalked up to words alone and nothing else, but I knew for the sake of myself and so many others, my will would have to prevail over any obstacle I would encounter. My eyes began to drift close and though I was in a terrible spot, more than I had ever been in my life, I knew I had to cling onto the hope that one day, things would change. They always did, and as I settled further into the cool padding around me, wet diaper and all, I kept telling myself that single fact over and over again. Even as I drifted off into a dark oblivion of slumber, I held onto that notion. I didn’t have much, but I at least had that, and like I told most of my patients, even if it was small, something is better than nothing.      

“I can’t do that!” Katherine responded. “Can’t I just get rid of it! Something, anything b-but that!” Katherine begged, hoping to strike a bargain with the Devil. Or rather, she wanted to weasel her way out of this again. 

Ever the fool, Dahlia fell for her girlfriend’s little ruse. Yup, she fell hook, line, and sinker! Almost wanting to cry herself, Dahlia hugged Francine tightly. “No, never!” She said. “You… you are my light… my everything.. I can’t, no, I never could be ashamed of you!” Dahlia said, looking Francine square in the eyes this time.