T h e . W o r l d . S t i l l . T u r n s (HrtofDrkns)

[EmmaliaChan]

Ava Bailey-Stevens
If you asked the little girl, she'd say this was an extremely harsh punishment for her crime. All she'd done was clone herself to make a child, it hadn't been harmful, nor did she deserve to be hurt every day for it. Apparently the courts didn't share her opinion, obviously, since she was now young with bolded silver Ps on the backs of her hands rounded hands.

While them hitting her might not be out of malice, she would have preferred it be because they hated her rather than them getting off on it, but of course the system decided it was a good idea to place her with 'spankos'. And how exactly would she re-offend, anyway? It wasn't as if she'd need to clone another child. Granted, Ava doubted they would give her the child back once it was grown - she had a feeling it had been destroyed, as well, leaving her no chance to meet her daughter.

Yeah, make it easier on them was more like it. Perhaps their conscience would bother them if she didn't pretend to love them and thought of them as the demons they were. It was good to know that they thought abusing fellow humans made the world a better place, and put their mindset into perspective for her. The little girl tilted her head inquisitively, staring up at them with her soft amber eyes. "I never planned on being unkind to you, though. Have I been, thus far?" She asked honestly, not understanding why they were acting as if she'd been terrible to them. Ava had made a point of being well-behaved, as it would only hurt her more if she didn't act to their specifications. Her fingers twiddled under the table, as she'd finished her food a while before and was unsure what to do with them.

At the other family's conversation, she hoped her caretakers wouldn't suggest she join the boy; not only didn't she find such physical activity enjoyable, but fraternizing with her peers was a pastime she would rather never have to take part in.




Leo Summers and Veronica Shepard
Grinning at the boy's enthusiasm, Veronica playfully flexed her unimpressive muscles, her arm forming a right angle as she did so. "I'll have to help you practice, too~ Can't let all this strength go to waste, huh?" Laughing softly, she was glad they had a large yard thanks to the space they shared with the Stevens family. The boy would have plenty of room to run around and exercise.

Looking over at the play area, she scrunched up her face a little, blue eyes staring apprehensively at the large structure of tunnels and slides and nets and ball pits. "I don't know..." She began, still in thought. "There are always so many germs in those things, and they can't keep them one-hundred percent clean all the time, and you're fresh out of rejuvenation and still building your immune system back up, and..." With a shake of her head, she crossed her arms. She was unsure about the whole thing, always having disliked the communal 'Play Palace' type things. "Besides, what if you get hurt?"
Leo decided to interject then, patting Veronica on the shoulder to calm her neurotic tendencies. While the blonde man knew she had good intentions, she could be a bit overbearingly protective. "Let the boy play, he'll be fine." His attention turned to Max, whose hair he gently ruffled. "Just be careful, okay? No need to give your mother a heart attack by getting yourself scraped."

[Hrtofdrkns]

"No, you've been polite so far." Mike agreed. "But I get the feeling there's a great deal more going on in your head, and you're only doing so because you don't want to get spanked."

"We've been penny parents many times Ava, we have a sense for these things." Sarah added in. "Though we're happy you're not fighting us, we're fairly certain you don't quite like us. And we'd much rather you release those angry feelings rather then have them fester inside of you."

Mike nodded. "Tell you what. Once we get home I want you to tell us what you really feel about us. I promise you will not be punished for anything you say, even if it is hurtful. If you hate us and wish us dead, that's fine."

He then set Ava on her feet and pointed her in the direction of the play area. "Now go see what Max is up too, the adults need to have a private talk." He said. "You don't have to play with him if you don't want too."

Once she was gone Mike turned back to Leo and Veronica. "She hates us, but that's normal. Most of our penitatas hate us at first, when they're not terrified of us. What's strange is how well she can control herself. Our other pennies would have been spanked and put into the corner by now, well on their way to accepting our authority." He shook his head again. "So, what do you two think of Max so far?"

****

Max had climbed to the top of the play area, looking down as Ava approached. "Uh-oh, the big bad criminal has you in his sights." He said while sliding down, landing right in front of her. Maybe it was a trick of the light, but for a moment his eyes appeared old. Like a man who had been through something that would never leave his thoughts. Something he could only really share with someone who had gone through the same.

"Don't worry, I have no intention of playing with you right now." He said before turning to the balance beams. "I got the hint. You don't want some unclean penitatas hanging around, soiling your obvious perfection by his mere presence. So fine, I hope you're just as miserable as you want to be from now on. Enjoy the rest of your sentence."

And with that, Max turned his head and walked away from her.

[EmmaliaChan]

Ava Bailey-Stevens
Once again they were trying to lead her into a trap. Suuure, like they wouldn't punish her if she voiced her opinion. Even if they didn't directly state the reasoning, Ava was certain they would add extra hits or increase her daily 'maintenance' spankings if she was honest. While she didn't like to lie, in such a case where the truth was unnecessary to share and would only bring her physical harm, it seemed best to keep a moderate distance between herself and honesty within earshot of the pair of jailers. While this would require a good amount of self-control, Ava knew she could handle it.

Soon enough, much to her dismay, she was given the horrendous suggestion (well, an order disguised as a suggestion) of heading off to the play area. With a pout directed at no one that, unbeknownst to the little brunette, made her look adorable, Ava toddled off to the play area, still finishing accustomating to her newly smaller body. It was astonishingly easy for her to ignore the looks of disgust thrown her way by the patrons of the restaurant, and not only because she was well aware they could hit her if they wanted to even if they had no reason. Ava found that she didn't care what they thought -- after all, they didn't know her circumstances, or that she didn't deserve to be a Penitatas. What she did believe was that the general public would probably share her opinion on the matter if they knew her crime, even if said generalization was untrue.

Curiously the wonderance of what 'sooper seekret' matters the adults wanted to discuss flitted through her childlike mind. Those bouts of curiosity weren't easy to control, as her thoughts had always been a bit hectic and disorganized, though nonetheless they were logical in structural patterning. Her best guess was that they were plotting made-up reasons to punish her and Max; it seemed like something the quad of larvae would do.

As her dissolute pseudo-child neighbor slid down following his childish remark, she held up her arms as if shielding her face from an imminent blow. Him having started it, she couldn't help herself and decided to play along. Letting out a dramatic fake yelp just loudly enough for him to hear, as if she were afraid he would kill her, too, she snickered to herself. For Ava, there was no trick of the light. All she saw was the face of an enemy, with her own scornful smirk reflected in his big eyes.

At his comments, she scoffed. "Well, good. Thank you. I'm glad we understand each other." His hatred was far preferable to his approval; the last thing the Penny girl wanted was for him to think they were 'friends' or any related synonym. They most certainly were not, and never would be. The ex-geneticist would be sure of that. Rubbing elbows with convicts was beneath her, especially when they lacked basic-level intelligence. She doubted the boy's IQ was very high; his reasoning skills were skewed.

Knowing she ought to make herself look busy in order to please her caretakers, she made her way over to the climbing wall, choosing the section that best suited her height. It was difficult, but the ball pit beneath her would safely break her fall if she lost her grip, and she fearlessly - but slowly - made her way to the top. Ava fast got used to her younger body as her equilibrium oriented itself, and soon enough she was making her way back down with relative ease.





Leo Summers and Veronica Shepard
Max darted off without a word to either of them, making Veronica pout a bit; it seemed the boy was more than eager to ignore her worries and listen to his father's approving words. It wasn't something the new mother felt it was worth putting up a fuss over, but she felt he could have at least quelled her worries by promising to be careful.

Soon the troublesome twosome had headed off to the ball pit, leaving them and the other Penny parents alone; Veronica's watchful blue eyes never seemed to leave Max, but Leo seemed to have become slightly more at ease. "Mmm... I don't think she questions your authority, even if she dislikes the position she's in. Excellent poker face, though." Veronica responded, her gaze darting over to the two for just a moment before returning to Max. Another reassuring pat on the shoulder from her blonde companion made her rigid figure visibly untense, and she let out the breath she was unaware she was holding.

Now calmer, the woman's contagiously cheerful smile returned and the conversation was no longer lost on her. "Max is much different than I'd expected. He's such a sweet boy!" She began, her soft features continuing to beam with pride. Indeed, it had been a lucky break to get a Penitatas who already knew how to handle himself well; just the same, the pretty psychologist couldn't prevent the flip-side of her emotions from coming to the surface, and soon enough she had a worried frown. "I do worry, though. Between the report on him and what I've observed in his behaviors and actions during the short time we've had him, he seems to think very little of himself." Idly wringing her hands together, she sighed softly. "He looks so sad behind that smile. I just fear it might run deeper, you know, like depression or some sort of--"

Another interruption from her bespectacled fiancee. "You're rambling again, Veronica. Try to refrain from boring them to death, please. We've gone over your paranoia about these things - the boy's fine, just coping." His tone was flat, not irritated or angry, simply bored. He loved the woman, her tendency to fuss and all. In fact, after having known her for so long, he'd begun to find her motherly tendencies endearing. Speaking in his typical bookish manner, Leo continued with his own views on the boy. "However, I'm pleasantly surprised by the boy, as well. He's well-behaved, healthy, and eager to be active. Not much more I could ask for in this scenario."

[Hrtofdrkns]

Mike nodded. "He seems to be doing very well all things considering. I just hope that Ava doesn't break his spirit with her attitude."

Sarah finished her meal and set it in the trash. "If there's one thing we've learned in our years as penny parents it's how to read a child. Max seems like such a friendly boy, the thought that someone doesn't like him must be hard to take. And like all penitatas even with his adult memories he's still physically a child. His body will influence his mood and thought-process. My birth mother said once that it's tough to be so small and have such big emotions. So if I were you I'd expect tantrums if she gets too much under his skin."

"But we'll try to teach Ava." Mike continued. "She'll learn that even if she doesn't like someone it doesn't mean she can just behave however she wishes towards them. And it shouldn't matter if the other person can punish her or not."

He suddenly stood up, looking towards the play area. "I think we'd better get in there before things get out of hand."

****

Max cast a backwards glare at Ava as she walked away. He was already imagining getting to watch her spankings over the years. While certainly it was always nice to see someone other then him getting it, with Ava he was actually looking forward to seeing her get hers. In his mind he could already picture her over an adult's lap, panties at her ankles, and a big paddle spanking her bare bottom. That'd show her she wasn't so different from every other penitatas.

And then there were the special punishment days. Max had heard it said, and completely believed, that you were never the same after your first real SPD. It had certainly left a big impression on him. Okay so maybe Halloween wasn't completely miserable, at least he still got candy. But the others, like Easter or his birthday. Or Christmas...

Max grimaced angrily. He hated Christmas and everything to do with it. But knowing that Ava would be suffering just as badly as he would almost made him look forwards to the hated day.

Unless...

He looked over at the Steven's for a brief moment. Of course, how could he have forgotten? The Steven's were the "new age" type of penny parents he'd been hearing about. The kind who'd let Ava walk all over them. In fact it'd be a miracle if she got more then a few hand spanks on her clothed bottom every now and then. And SPD's, assuming they'd do them at all, would probably be ridiculously easy compared to what he went through.

The boy threw one of the small plastic balls from the pit against the wall in disgust. He felt like crying. It just wasn't fair! Why should she get the lucky break and not him? She wouldn't even appreciate how good she had it!

He could just see it now. Christmas morning, while he is strapped and caned and switched and paddled, Ava gets real presents. And while he has to try and eat dinner without screaming from the pain of sitting on a penny stool with a bruised and blistered bottom, she gets a cushion for her completely untouched behind. And then she gets put to bed and and tucked in, while he has to to be put in his bed's restraints to suffer through the night. And she'd still have that hateful sneer spread across her face.

Max punched the wall, eyes filling with tears. He'd even tried to be her friend! But every time he'd offered her a hand she'd angrily bitten it! Well never again. From now on he hoped she'd choke on her own venom.

"I hope you fall and break your goddamn neck!" He said out loud, not caring who heard him.

[EmmaliaChan]

Ava Bailey-Stevens
She'd been minding her own business on the climbing gym when suddenly one of the balls from the pit below flew past, nearly hitting her as it bounced off the wall and landed back in the pit with a hollow plonk sound. Just as it hit, her archnemesis shouted something at her, taking no cautions not to be heard by others. She heard a few gasps of shock resonate from the two other children playing around them (though, the pair was keeping their distance from the Penny-protagonist duo).

"Yeah... Me, too, Max." Ava said to herself, frowning at the thought but recalling her initial reaction to the boy's admission of his crime. It really did seem like she'd be better off dead than stuck with vicious parents as she was, ones who intentionally tried to lure her into traps with false senses of security in order to hurt her more.

Before long she'd made it to the bottom, the sound of Veronica scolding the boy mere background noise to her as she descended. Stepping onto the edge of the ball pit, she noted that Max's male caretaker was beckoning for her to come closer. Not wanting to anger the stern-looking blonde man, she made haste with her approach, soon standing by his side and looking up at him. "I did. I thanked him for being understanding." At his look of confusion, she elaborated. The event having just happened minutes before, she easily recalled the conversation word-for-word.

"It was a response to him. He said, 'Uh-oh, the big bad criminal has you in his sights', and then 'Don't worry, I have no intention of playing with you right now. I got the hint. You don't want some unclean penitatas hanging around, soiling your obvious perfection by his mere presence. So fine, I hope you're just as miserable as you want to be from now on. Enjoy the rest of your sentence', and walked off." It wasn't that she was trying to get the boy in trouble; Hell, even as her nemesis, she felt bad for what he would have to go through with his godawful parents. She saw no reason for him to be harmed further, murderer or no - besides, it wasn't as if him being spanked would make things any better. His victim would still be dead.




Leo Summers and Veronica Shepard
The brunette nodded along with them, not wanting to be rude by reminding them that their tips were all basic, common knowledge. "I certainly hope you can," Veronica began, her face showing her concern. "Max seems to have enough psychological trauma without her adding to it." Giving her arms a bit of a stretch as she leaned back against her seat, finally relaxing a bit, she added, "Besides, it's very obvious even to me that she's not a typical Penny case. I don't doubt your abilities as parents in the slightest, but somehow I don't think she's really comparable to most Pennies."

Leo shrugged. "He cast the first stone, though. They might've gotten along if he'd made a better first impression." At least, that was what the man felt was logical. Max had insulted Ava first, treating her like she was stupid right out of the gate, and continued to do so as time went on. Adding a bit of rhetoric, he continued, "Maybe had he not been so pushy, too - what's the definition of insanity, again? Something about doing the same thing over and over, if I recall correctly." Another shrug, as he too finished his food and tossed away the waste left behind, not forgetting to dab at the corners of his lips with a napkin to be sure he was clean and presentable post-mealtime. While he remembered the idiom quite well, it was referred to vaguely for effect; it was just the way the man spoke.

His fiance frowned and shook her head, exasperated by their constant disagreeance on matters. Couldn't he see that the little boy was trying his hardest to help Ava? With his extra experience, no doubt he knew what Penitatas needed better than she did just yet. Yes, Max had insulted her, but though he had apologized, Ava blew him off like she didn't care much. Clearly the female of the pair had some issues she needed to sort out, so it was understandable that she was lashing out, but hurting the boy didn't seem to be the best way to go about releasing that pent up frustration.

Veronica hadn't waited for their warning before she was on her feet and hurrying to the play area as she saw and heard the tantrum Max was throwing. "Max! What's gotten into you!?" She scolded, grabbing his arm and tugging him to face her. Crouching so she could look him directly in the eyes, she gave his shoulders a gentle shake. "You need to stop this animosity towards Ava! If she upsets you, you be the bigger man and walk away, okay?" Looking up as Leo approached, her disappointment showing very clearly in her cerulean eyes, she sighed and shook her head at the man prior to turning her gaze back to the crying little boy. "I don't care who does what, I never, ever want to hear such hateful things from you again."

Leo looked over at the little girl, who was just reaching the bottom of the climbing wall, then back at Max and his fiance. "What exactly happened?" He beckoned the female Penny over with a quick gesture of his hand, and she promptly complied. "Did you say something, Ava?" The brunette girl nodded, giving him a brief response. Leo raised an eyebrow; certainly a mere response of gratitude couldn't have caused his son's outburst?






[[OoC; Is Max short for Maxwell or Maximillian?]]

[Hrtofdrkns]

Max looked at the ground as his Mommy scolded him, still crying. Around them several people, both children and adults, were gathering. Whenever a penitatas was in trouble people tended to circle like sharks detecting blood in the water.

"It's not fair..." He repeated, but with much less energy. "She's gonna have an easy life under easy parents and she can't even appreciate it. She's a nasty person and everyone's gonna treat her nice anyway. And she isn't even sorry for her crimes, just look at her. But me? I'll get spanked to blisters all the time no matter what I do or how sorry I am. It's not fair."

Even if it was all in his head and he had jumped to the conclusion, to Max this perceived unfairness was important. Penitatas were encouraged to think about how their actions had been unfair to others, so it was only natural that they would apply the same lessons and standards to the rest of the world.

He shook his head as the crowd around them grew. "But I guess...I guess I deserve it. No, I definitely deserve it."

This was a problem mentioned in Max's file. His guilt over his crime would sometimes bubble to the surface when he was stressed, even if the incident was completely unrelated. It would sometimes fester and eat at him for days, influencing his behavior and making him irritable. Usually the he needed to have the guilty feelings lanced by a hard spanking, so he could feel better. His first cycle parents and teachers had worked with him on this, and it wasn't nearly as bad as it used to be, but it was still a concern.

Sighing sadly, the little boy began to pull his shorts down for what he assumed would be a public spanking, then began to repeat what he had been trained to start the shameful ritual.

"Mommy, I'm a bad boy who hurts people. Please give me a spanking on my bare bottom so I'll remember to be good next time."

****

Mike knelt in front of Ava. "Sweetie, I need you to look at me now." He gently reached out and held her chin. "I want you to try harder to get along with Max. We're going to be living next door to him and his family, and we can't have you both feuding the whole time. I don't care if you think he's beneath you. You are going to be nice to him from now on. And before you say anything yes, Max was in the wrong just now to say that to you. But his parents are going to take care of that. His behavior is their responsibility, just as yours is ours."

Out of Character Comments:

It's not short for anything. It's just Max.

[EmmaliaChan]

Ava Bailey-Stevens
"I was trying to get along with him." Ava responded blankly, confused as to why she was being scolded when all she had done was go about her business. She certainly hoped she wasn't going to get punished when the only thing she'd done wrong was having Mike and Sarah for her caretakers. If it weren't for them, she wouldn't have even approached the filthy Penny mongrel. Even then, that wasn't her fault - the system had" picked them out for her. Oh, joy. "How could I have gone about that better? I thanked him for understanding and walked away." Her tone was even and genuinely confused as her amber gaze stared up at her caretaker. "You're saying that like I did something, but I didn't. He suddenly just exploded."

There were so many things going through her head! Ava felt there were plenty of preferable options to shout to the world, and at this point, it was becoming progressively harder for her to hold in her childish urge to throw a fit.
How about how she couldn't give any fewer fucks about the murderous Penitatas boy?
Nope, it would get her in trouble - her freedom of speech was gone now, after all. At least in the old style prisons she would have been able to cuss to vent some of her frustration.
How about how she would have rathered taken the death penalty than be subjected to this humiliation?
Nope, that'd get her in trouble, too. Now that a crowd was gathered, they were undoubtedly like show ponies who wanted to demonstrate their authority over her, and she couldn't risk being honest.
How about how none of this would make her or Max's crimes any better?
Nope. The system truly believed it was doing a good thing, and Ava was well aware that these sorry excuses for humans did, too.

At least through her second and third childhoods she'd had her own, fair parents to take care of her. They would never try to force her to play with her neighbors, instead understanding that she was capable of finding her own friends. If her neighbor was a rotten brat like Max was, they'd actually prefer she stayed away, for the sake of said child not being a bad influence on her. However, she supposed, the profligates calling themselves her parents didn't have the sense to think of this.

The crowd gathering made her feel extremely uncomfortable, further so as the other Penny trapped in the middle began readily undressing himself; had the boy not been such a tyrant, she most certainly would've felt bad for him, as it was a testament to the sub-human animal his sentence had turned him into. Seeing him acting this way made something spark in the depths of her mind, but she was unsure of what it was just yet. No doubt she would understand in due time, but for now, it was a mystery to the little brunette. All she knew was that any other location would be preferable to her current one. The watchful, hungry eyes circling around them made her nauseous. "Can... we leave now, please?" Ava requested softly, sticking her hands in the pockets of her shorts.






Leo Summers and Veronica Shepard
Leo was readily trying to shoo the crowd away, but wasn't having much luck. They all seemed far too eager to see Max 'get it', and very few reacted to his waving hands as he attempted to cue their exit. Whispers spread among them, words of hatred towards Pennies and words of anticipation towards what they believed the situation would progress into. He knew his fiancee better than anyone, though; she didn't need to say a word for him to know how Veronica would handle the young boy.

Veronica quickly grabbed his wrists and stopped him from undressing, readjusting his clothes immediately following. "No, Max." She said softly, her delicate hands reaching up to caress his face and thumb away his tears. Blue eyes filled with pity looked the boy over, and she sighed as her tension started to go away. It was obvious in his little face how much conflict was going on in his head, and she knew he was more than eager to make up for his crimes. But the fact that his guilt was so powerful even after going through his first cycle told her that it was likely best to go about things a bit differently with him to help Max through the battle with his conscience. "Sometimes a spanking isn't what you need. Maybe it makes you feel better on a primal level, but it shouldn't absolve you of your guilt in a situation where no one was harmed." Gently stroking his hair, she pulled him in closer and gave him a tiny peck on the forehead, smiling at him once she returned to her original position. Putting up her index finger in an explanatory, matter-of-fact gesture, she explained, "Me spanking you wouldn't be an equivalent exchange at all. You didn't physically hurt Ava, you instead said emotionally harmful things. It would be a physical repercussion for an emotional action, so see, it doesn't add up. Instead..."

She stood and gently took the boy by his shoulders, turning him to face Ava, who had her arms crossed and was clearly uncomfortable with the situation unfolding around her. "Instead I want you to apologize. I want you to tell her that you were wrong to say she was 'nasty' when you know from your own experience that she's a scared Penny who's only been in her first-cycle for a little over an hour." Nudging him forward, she added, "I want you to apologize, and then ask how you can make it up to her. Telling me you're sorry for shouting mean things doesn't change anything."





[[OoC; What? Really? The only time I've ever seen the name Max-not-short-for-anything is for a dog.]]

[Hrtofdrkns]

"Ava, if Max was being nasty to you you should have come and gotten one of the adults." Mike explained. He wasn't trying to be unreasonable, just trying to set some ground rules. "And beyond that this is partially your fault. You weren't very nice to Max when you first met. In fact you were downright hostile. Maybe if you had been kind to him this whole incident could have been avoided."

He took her by the shoulders. "This attitude of yours stops right now young lady. I've raised enough penitatas to know how this is going to go, and what you are feeling." He spoke matter-of-factly, without anger. "You've probably been imagining all sorts of childish revenge fantasies against your Mommy and I. So far we have been patient with you. We understand that you are scared and upset. But that doesn't give you the right to treat others badly, or think less of them, penitatas or not. Now you need to make a decision. Will you be nice and try to get along with Max, and have an easy cycle? Or are you going to let your pride get the best of you and have a bad cycle?"

Sarah meanwhile was talking to Leo now that the crowd had left once it became clear no one was getting spanked.

"I'm sorry for Ava's behavior." she said. "We're going to try hard to work on her social skills. At the very least we cannot send her to school with that attitude that she is inherently superior to everyone. It will do nothing but make her, and everyone around her, miserable."

****

Max visibly cringed when his Mommy grabbed his little wrists, expecting her to turn him around, pull down his underwear, and spank him standing up. It would have provided quite the show for the crowd.

But when she instead pulled his shorts up, then explained what was going to happen, he looked confused. Most penny parents loved to give spankings after all, and it was hard for him to imagine why she wasn't taking the opportunity.

"But I was naughty Mommy." He said as she wiped his tears. He couldn't understand why it mattered if he had hurt Ava emotionally or physically, both were hurts and both deserved punishment. Not to mention, as Ava had already reminded him several times, he was an evil murderer who no one could ever love and who only deserved to feel pain.

When ordered to apologize to Ava Max turned and immediately did so, like a well-trained penitatas should. Never mind that he really thought Ava was a conceited, aggressive, mean-spirited snob who would most likely torment him mercilessly over the years, he knew what was expected. Besides, he trusted his mommy and daddy. If they caught Ava being mean to him again he was sure they'd take care of it.

"Ava, I'm sorry I said you were mean, and I'm sorry I swore at you and wished for you to break your neck. I'm going to try much harder to be a better person so you can like me someday. I hope there is a way I can make this up to you."

He looked up at Veronica to see if he'd done okay.

[EmmaliaChan]

Ava Bailey-Stevens
"You guys were talking. It's instinct for me not to interrupt adults' conversation. Besides, he didn't actually throw the fit until I was already up on the wall, and you got here before I was down." She tried to explain, but was learning very quickly that she had typical Penny parents who would try to blame her for anything they could for the sake of getting to beat her later. Not to mention that she was no snitch, and wasn't the type to complain to an adult simply because someone looked at her funny. Just the same, she couldn't help but add, "Revenge fantasies? Fantasizing means imagining the unattainable, which is for fools. I'm not foolish." As her frustration with the completely undeserved scolding continued to build, however, she could feel tears threatening to begin to well up on her eyelids. And that only frustrated her more. And then, all of that welling frustration that was becoming difficult to control... Frustrated her more. But she managed to keep her voice from showing so. "I'm not stupid enough to think I could do anything against you."

Even if she was, assault was a crime, and so was murder. All she'd get was more cycles, and one of those dreaded judicials, to boot. The good news would be that if she killed them she'd be put back into the roulette for caretakers, but she had far better chances of getting another set of terrible ones than she did of getting good, fair ones. Then she'd be right back where she started, except younger and even more miserable - so naturally, such fantasies weren't even close to being on her mind. Her top priority was to make the cycle as easy as possible, hence being on her best behavior at all times.

But of course, yet again it was Max who was making her miserable. Why couldn't they see why she hated the boy? It wasn't solely because he was a murderer; it was because every time they interacted, he did his best to somehow get her in trouble, and thus far he had. Ava couldn't help but compare it to dialectics; he was the antithesis to her thesis, one she would never be able synthesize with, one that she would always hate. Now him... Him it was almost worth having revenge fantasies for. Almost. Because, even when it was him throwing the fit, and she was minding her own business, Max had somehow managed to get her scolded for it.

'How is that fair?' She thought. 'How is that justice?'

When he apologized, though, she nodded. It was a nice reminder that even if she was currently totally alone in the world, there were others going through similar unfair situations, and no doubt a lot of people were going through ones that were far more unfair and far worse than hers was currently. "It's fine. And anyway, under her logic," She gestured to Veronica. "There's actually no need to apologize. Sticks and stones, etcetera etcetera." All he'd done was say words. Whoever had invented the phrase 'sticks and stones may break my bones, but words can never hurt me' was a jerk, and Ava thought he should be slapped and told of his faults in great detail, then asked if he still felt that way. Words sometimes were painful and could have a horrible impact on whoever they were directed at. But while they could hurt, if the person who said them mattered less than nothing to the recipient, why would they bother them?

She realized she'd forgotten to acknowledge his offer to make it up to her. It was an awful concept to be forced to think about; there were lots of things she'd like, and no one could provide them to her. Not anymore. Freedom, safety, love, happiness, comfort... The family she'd been so close to getting... All of that was gone now, and Ava felt that most of it she might never get back. Her gaze shifted away, then she shook her head before returning her gaze to his. "There's nothing you can do for me, though. Thanks, even if you're only saying it because you were told."



Leo Summers and Veronica Shepard
Leo shrugged at the Penny mother as she spoke to him, watching the crowd slowly disperse out of his peripheral vision. Adjusting his glasses, he responded, "Nothing to apologize for. She doesn't really seem to have done anything, unless you think she's lying about only thanking him?" His head tilted slightly in an inquisitive gesture, though quickly shifted back as he responded to her second statement.

"Do you really think that would be ideal? To keep her out of school, I mean." He looked over at his fiancee and their son, and then at the older Penny girl. There was obviously a lot of tension, and clearly Ava wasn't going to be adjusting quickly. The discomfort the young criminal felt was evident in her stance, her posture, and her facial expressions, and they weren't getting any better yet. "Veronica would know about such things better than I would, but it seems to me that it would be best to get her exposure to as many Pennies as possible." It felt odd to him to be commenting on the subject; usually it was Veronica handling the psychology side of things. "Show her they're not so different from her, that she's not the only person whose life was uprooted because they did something wrong."

Meanwhile, the blue eyed woman was overseeing her prescribed apology, and though the meek little reply from Ava gave her a pang of sadness, her grin went wide and she scooped up her little boy into her arms as he looked up at her, giving him a big kiss on the cheek and snuggling him close. She knew that sometimes an apology could be incredibly humbling, especially so when it wasn't fully meant. Sometimes that feeling of putting aside pride and apologizing could be emotionally stressful, and that was the equivalent exchange she was looking for. "I'm so proud of you, Max~ You're so good at following directions, and you've done so well at being the bigger man about all this."

With a sad pout, she pulled away from the boy enough to look at him as she spoke to him again. "Though... I have to say, it kind of made me sad to hear you talk like that about your sentence." Resting her forehead against his tiny one, she elaborated a bit. "You think you'll be 'spanked to blisters'? Do you... Do you really think I'm that mean, Max? Is that how I've come off so far?" As someone who was both neurotic and generally a happy and cheerful person, to be thought of as so cruel really hurt. She was doing her best to keep the boy happy and to try to resolve his problems without resorting to violence against him. Him thinking she was so scary deeply upset her. But her sad expression changed a little a moment later as one corner of her lip curled upwards slightly into a half-smile, and she giggled softly. "I mean... I guess I can see how Leo would be misunderstood that way. He looks so grumpy all the time but I promise you he's really just a biiiiig stuffed teddy bear~"

[Hrtofdrkns]

Mike sighed, realizing he may have been a little to harsh with her. He slowly reached out, so as not to scare her, and gently pulled her into a hug.

"Ava, I am sorry for all of this. I'm sorry this all had to happen. I'm sorry that you were made a penitatas. I know it's very hard, believe me I know. Your Mommy and I are going to try and be as fair as we can with you, but sometimes we are going to make mistakes. We're only human after all, no different then anyone else. Just now I made a mistake. I thought you were having revenge fantasies when you weren't, and I'm sorry for that."

He really wanted her not to see him as a monster, at the very least it would make her rehabilitation very difficult if she was doubting his every word and always second-guessing his intent.

When Max had apologized he nodded. "Thank you Max. I'm glad to see that you take responsibility for your actions like a good boy. And Ava, I'm sure Max isn't doing it because he was forced to. He's doing it because he wants to do the right thing, to make amends for his behavior."

Mike patted Ava on the back and let her go, then took her hand to head out to the parking lot. "First days are never easy Ava. But all things considered yours is going very well. You are obviously a very bright girl, very well behaved. I'm sure you'll do well in school."

****

Sarah was a bit surprised at his response. "I meant we are going to have to teach her about her attitude before school starts. It'd be illegal to keep her out of school attitude or not." She looked over and saw that her husband and daughter were waiting for her. "Let's all talk later, after the kids have had a chance to calm down."

Max grinned as his Mommy hugged and kissed him. He had already forgotten he was supposed to be mad at Ava. It was the kind of person he was, he never held grudges.

"Thank you Mommy." He chirped when she said she was proud of him. The little boy beamed, but then frowned slightly when she changed the topic to what he'd said about being spanked to blisters.

"It's not you being mean, it's just the way the system is. It's expected on special days, and allowed whenever you want once I turn eight." He said. "But even before then it happens to most penitatas. Sure it's illegal, like drawing blood, but really who's going to check? A lot of the time it's just the adult getting carried away instead of wanting to blister. Besides, a little nano-lotion and any evidence is gone, and who'd believe a penitatas' claim that they were spanked beyond what the law allows?" He reached back and rubbed his bottom as if even the memory hurt.

"But it's okay, I understand that when you or Daddy or my teachers or any other adults spank me it's not personal. You aren't doing it because you hate me, you're doing it because I deserve it and because you don't want me to regress back to the person I used to be."

And to Max spankings, even blisterings, weren't personal. They definitely weren't fun, and he'd usually prefer to avoid them. But when the time came to have his bottom spanked he was able to submit to the adult giving the spanking, placing his full trust in the idea that they knew best and had his welfare in mind. And most of the time they did. There were only a few times he could point to where he thought the spanking had been overly harsh or undeserved, and of those nearly all had been misunderstandings on the part of him or the adult, or an adult simply getting carried away. And they had always apologized to him afterwards if they later found they had acted rashly or been too harsh.

All except...her.

Max gave an angry frown for a moment before shaking his head to clear it. "So don't worry about what I said to Ava. Sometimes I forget that I'm a penny for a very good reason, and that I'm getting exactly what I deserve."