“Greetings, Kara. Welcome. Thank-you for coming.”

I stiffen. The scary lady is talking to me now. And acting like I had a choice in whether or not I showed up. That’s just rude.

But I shouldn’t be rude. Not to her. Yeah, I have a feeling that would be a bad idea. Well, we’ll see how long I can keep to that. Hopefully it’s not a long meeting hahaha… hah…

“Yes, ma’am?”

“Please, take a seat.” She gestures to the chair and table directly in front of her with long willowy arms.

She’s fair skinned with white hair despite being young, and grey eyes. She reminds me of snow, but not in the strange way a la Ringleson. No, this snow is different. Softer, but deeper.

For a moment I want to refuse to sit down just because she asked me to, but my ankles are burning, so I sit and try not to look too relieved.

“I will begin by saying this is a safe space. For everyone. No one’s abilities work in this room, nor do any enchantments.” Her arms are long and lithe as she spreads them before sitting calmly again.

I’m not even going to ask why. I just nod. Ow, that movement still hurts.

“I’m sure you’re wondering how that’s possible.”

I mean, yeah, but I’m not wondering enough to ask, dingus. Great. She’s one of those people who like to show off and tell you things you did not ask about. I thought I was here to get answers to my questions. Bah. These freaks just wanna show off.

She probably ordered all these candles. This room is a fire hazard.

“This room is inside a mini-bubble. And many enchantments were cast upon the Bubble, from outside, to ensure the perfect safety of all inside. So you do not need to be afraid.”

I roll my eyes then freeze. I should probably do that inwardly going forward. I hear Detective Idiot cough. Whoops.

But seriously, who are they kidding? She’s trying to tell me how safe I am because no one’s shifty powers work in here. Uh, so the fuck what? Does she think murders don’t happen in Normie Society? How sheltered is this circus master? I’m literally alone in here. If the people in here wanted to kill me, and I still don’t believe they don’t, they could do it with their bare hands.

They’re still infantilizing me. These arrogant fucks.

“I have heard a lot about you.”

She has a smile on her face that looks genuine. Come to think of it, I’m not sure of the last time I’ve seen one. It’s hard to believe that anyone or anything has been real. I don’t think I have seen a real smile for more than two years, except for Chayla’s. Rodney’s smiles in Limbo also seemed real, which is weird considering the circumstances then. But anyway, I won’t let her disarm me so easily.

Of course she’s heard a lot about me, everyone I know in this room was her spy.

A little fake kindness a little too late, is all this is.

“Well, you do have a robust intelligence network. And you seem to have spent a lot of those resources on me particularly. So I’m not surprised. You probably know everything from my favourite cereal to what colour socks I prefer to wear on Thursdays.” Ah, a bit of anger seeped out. Oopsie. “You do know a lot about me, but I can’t say the same, miss…?”

Her smile doesn’t falter.

“Yes, I suppose introductions are in order. Then let’s start on the left.” She stands again and her left arm extends to the left side of the room.

“Or perhaps just you. You’re the only important person here, I think.”

There’s a mumbling in the ranks. I don’t care, I continue.

“Besides, a lot of us have met already.”

I give a fake, friendly wave to Mrs. Lockwood and Martha’s family, and a rather provocative, even by my standards, nod towards a few lucky others.

“While I accept this may be difficult for you, I feel it’s important that you get to know us. In the future, if you ever need assistance, there are many here who can help you in various situations.”

A laugh escapes my lips. And now there’s angry mumbling all around me.

“I am very sorry ma’am, but with all due respect, if I am ever in need of assistance in the future, there is no one in this room who will receive a call from me. Not one single person.”

Those mumblings get louder the ruder I get, but it’s for their own benefit as well as mine that we start off on the same page. Unlike them, I’m capable of honesty. When I feel like it.

“I would have to be brain dead to trust any of you. Let’s make that clear from the start. You’re not dealing with a brain-dead vegetable, alright?”

Her eyebrows crease briefly. It’s then I notice that I can see emotions in her eyes. It’s startling, after seeing so many bitter, cold, and lifeless Shifter eyes.

So they’re not all broken. That’s comforting, I guess.

“Alright, then. Perhaps now is not the best time for that. You will get to know us all eventually.”

The woman gives me a deep nod, almost a bowing of the head, and reseats herself.

“This is not an official meeting, and the entire Council is not here, just our local House of Lords Representatives and their heirs. For that reason, I hope we can all be a little more relaxed today. Let’s just treat this as our first meeting.” She smiles, then continues. “I am Queen Morana Owens.” She rests a hand on the detective’s shoulder. She’s a fully grown adult but on him her hand looks like a child’s. “This is Lord Michael Owens, my half-brother.”

He looks embarrassed. Oh ho, so he’s a Prince Lord Detective.

“To outsiders, I am also known as the Mayor of Ashvale.”

Mayor. Oh, right, of Ashvale. Oh. I remember now! She’s often on T.V. But somehow, I can never remember what she, our own mayor, looks like, despite the fact that… she’s often on T.V.

How does she do that? How does she make you forget? Or is she only making me forget, specifically? How devious. My memory is fantastic. It’s one of the many amazing things about me. Aside from the parts evil people edited about mine and mom’s true nature as Shifters, it seems there are a few more holes I wasn’t aware of. How concerning.

I need to find a way to fix mine and my mom’s memories.

“I’m sure you have many questions. And we will get to all of them in due time.”

Ugh. How long am I going to be stuck here? Isn’t this just supposed to be a meeting? Well, I’ve met you, so can I go now?

No! Stop, Tired Kara Brain. We have questions. We need answers. Keep it together.

“I think, to begin with, some apologies are in order.”

No shit.

“Please stand.”

Ah, shit.

A chorus of chairs skidding and feet shuffling echoes through the room. The acoustics in here are amazing. I reluctantly get back on my feet, trying but most likely failing, to completely hide the pain on my face.

“First, from myself, and on behalf of the entire Mutant Society of Canada, I would like to formally apologize for our mishandling of your situation.”

Mishandling. Is that what they’re going to call it? I fucking died, bitch.

This time Spencer coughs. Guess he’s still reading my ‘face.’

They really thought locking me in a hospital, limiting my contact with family and friends, scaring me to death, and not answering any questions, was best for me? Bull. Shit.

“Ma’am Mayor,” I’m not really comfortable addressing someone as ‘Queen’ yet, “Have you ever taken any classes in Psychology?”

She appears confused about my change of the subject but responds all the same. “Indeed, I have, and I’ve attended quite a few seminars on various subjects regarding-”

“That’s wonderful. Then you’re already well aware that what you just offered me was an incorrect and insincere apology.”

She doesn’t seem angry at my interruption, but her smile stiffens and slowly fades as I keep talking. To be fair, I am using my ‘I’m-Talking-To-A-Toddler’ voice. But I simply don’t want them to misunderstand. After all, what I’m explaining is something they’ve found difficult to understand so far.

“You’ve invited me here in what appears to be an attempt to mend bridges, so to speak, but instead you’re willingly adding on to your already very long list of sins. It’s very confusing for me, a mere child. I would greatly appreciate it if you would just be honest and straightforward with your true intentions.”

“It is our intention to apologize to you-”

“I respectfully disagree. According to psychology, a real, genuine apology involves three very important things. None of which were present in that… whatever that HR nightmare was.”

I raise one hand and make a fist, lifting only one finger. “First, the offender must express their remorse for their mistake. This requires that the offender admit to the mistake and take responsibility for all the consequences brought on by their mistake.”

The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.

I raise one more finger. “Secondly, a sort of amends must be made, one that is accepted by the wronged party.”

I raise another finger, making three. “And thirdly, there must be a promise made that the mistake will never be repeated. And, most importantly, that promise must be kept.”

I tilt my head at her probingly. “You not only didn’t admit to what specific mistake it was you were even apologizing for, you even tried to rug sweep it, thus diminishing that mistake as a ‘mishandling’ of sorts. You also, from the moment I was murdered, took no responsibility towards the consequences of your actions. In fact, you were even prepared to murder me a second time if the Kara that woke up on the hospital bed wasn’t to your liking. And don’t try to deny that because we both know it’s true. So, rule number one, broken.” I lower one of my fingers, leaving two.

“And don’t try to escape guilt for my murder, either. I’ve had a lot of time to mull over the moment of my death, and it’s obvious that it was all an evil plot. One that I have no doubt whatsoever originated from this gaudy palace. Those two morons were involved in some sort of Shifter test thing, and that test should not have involved civilians, yet somehow, after thousands of years of you folks getting it right, it all went wrong. I don’t buy that at all. You evil people killed me, and now that you’ve decided not to murder me again, you’re trying to cover everything up- tie it together with a pretty little bow and kick it under a table, never to be seen. You evil monsters murdered a literal child. I am fifteen years old.”

There’s a glass of water on the table that I didn’t notice earlier, so I grab it and take quick sip. Ew, tap water. Dead girls do get the best treatment. Wow.

The Queen had sat down again at some point, and she looks like she’s thinking very deeply about how to keep covering for herself. Evil freak.

Too bad, I’m not finished.

“Second rule is also broken right from the start because instead of making amends with me you’re just insulting me even further with this… farce. I’m a child, not an infant.” I lower another finger, leaving just one raised.

“As for the third rule, I don’t believe for a second that none of you will attempt to murder me again. So a promise like that would not only be pointless and a lie, but it would also never be kept even if you made it. Third rule, broken.” I lower my last finger as well as my hand. My wrist was starting to hurt.

“Tell me, ma’am, after all this, do you still have the gall to apologize to me? Or are you all done lying?”

The tiny Queen has her eyes closed now, Michael, her supposed half-brother, is pinching his nose bridge, slumped in his hair, and Spencer’s eyes are narrowed, but damn is this room ever quiet. Everyone looks nervous and, dare I say, contrite. I don’t need to be able to see Auras right now to see that.

“‘The Council will convene after your recovery to answer any and all questions.’” I lower my voice, but skip the bad accent, and repeat what Detective Idiot had been telling me on a loop for the past few days. “That’s the only reason I’m here. To get the answers you owe me. Your apologies mean nothing and they’re not what I asked for. If I wanted to listen to a bunch of meaningless gibberish, I’d go have a long conversation with my cat.”

The Queen Mayor stands up again and opens her eyes. They’re filled with sadness. Aw, poor ice fairy, life must be so hard for you.

Another cough from Spencer. Either I’m a lot more expressive than I thought, or that fucker really lied to me and he’s still invading my mind. According to what Miss Queen here said though he couldn’t do that as he can’t use his powers. She could have been lying about that though, not like I believe anything any of them will say without proof.

I do have proof, sort of, that what she said is true, and that’s because I can’t Sense Auras, feel any of my own power inside of me, and even my Seed of Anger is silent. And that strange gnawing hunger is also gone. I almost wish I could just stay in here.

Still. It’s fishy. But it’s not like I ever expected any of these monsters to keep their word.

Not. Surprising. At all.

But what happens next, is.

Queen Morana bows to me. Like full on holding the ends of her dress, low hanging head, and low curtsy, bowing. I half expect her crown to fall off, but she must have it set with pins or something.

Uh… should she be doing that to a commoner?

There’s a sharp intake of breath from a large amount of the crowd. So it’s not just me who thinks this is weird. Well, that’s comforting.

While holding this… pose, the lady starts speaking. This time I know I should not interrupt her.

“They may be meaningless to you, and with good reason, but apologies are important. You do not have to accept them, not right now, but we, as the offenders, must give them if we are to ever move forward. I ask that you allow us to do so, with the hope in my heart that someday they will be accepted.”

I can’t detect any deceit in her words, as crazy as they are. Uh, she wants to give me a fake apology to save face so we can continue the meeting, right? I guess that makes sense. Nothing else would make sense from an evil mastermind like her. She’s the leader of the circus freaks, in case you forgot. I sure won’t forget.

“We hope that you will eventually understand the difficulty you presented. We had many options, and none of them would have turned out much better. I made choices that I thought would be best for you, and for all involved. All those choices were wrong, and they had terrible repercussions. I regret that my actions, and lack of action, led us here. As the ruler of the Mutant Society of Canada, these mistakes fall on me, and I apologize. I am sorry.”

Man, she’s really putting me on the spot here. I’m only missing an actual spotlight. If I decline now, I’ll look like a massive douche canoe, but I mean, she’s basically admitted that she knows and accepts I won’t be really accepting it. Hm… what to do.

“For the sake of moving things along, I’ll accept your… slightly better but still very flawed apology.”

I’m mostly just accepting it because I want to sit down again as soon as possible. My wrists are burning now, too, but at least they’re not having to hold me up. My poor feet.

She smiles broadly and claps her hands. “Wonderful, then lets keep things moving. David Spencer and Ezekiel Flanagan, it is your turn.” She snaps her fingers.

The two morons practically hop out of their seats.

Oh, great. Am I really expected to forgive my murderers? This really is a circus.

They both bow from the waist and say it at the same time, “I apologize!”

Worst. Apology. Ever. At least Morana’s came with an explanation. Sort of. After some educating by me. You’d think a couple of noble brats would be better at the whole etiquette thing. Even I can tell that was shite.

“Are you kidding me right now?” An exasperated laugh escapes me. “Is this a joke to you guys?”

Mumbling. Chairs being bumped. I’m staring at the ground trying to hide my anger. Michael said to stay calm, but this is too much.

“These boys have been thoroughly punished for their crimes, they understand what they did to you was wrong, and they are sorry for what was done to you.” The mayor is speaking for them.

“Which crime are you even talking about?”

“I don’t understand. Please explain.”

“Killing me or saving me. Which crime are they apologizing for, and for which one were they punished? Were they even the same?” There’s a tension building in the air as I’m speaking. “Besides, it’s obvious they were just used as pawns by the real mastermind behind my murder. Not that they don’t bear some blame. But both those guys are ignoring rules one and two of apologies. We just went over this.”

Is this how all my teachers feel when I don’t pay attention? Man, it almost makes me want to work harder. Almost.

Calm. Nothing. They have no answer. No excuse. I thought as much.

Then shouting. Angry voices. I can’t catch a single word. But they’re mad, everyone is spittin’ mad. No one more than me. I sit down without invitation, close my eyes, and let the chaos reign.

I did mention quite a while ago, in the Before Times before my death, how all of humanity is united in its base nature: chaos. Remember that? My little journey of philosophy while trapped by dullards in that cramped high school hallway? We are all chaos because we’re children of the Universe. See how I’m always right about things?

This. This is humanity.

“Quiet, all of ye!”

I clutch my ears. A giant’s booming voice has scared the room back into silence.

I look back up at the scene. And oh, what a glorious scene it is.

There are groups of people together now, all frozen mid-argument. The Blackfoot man and his maybe-brother are together with Jordan and his grandmother, arguing with the groups they were sat with, with René and his dad among those against them, along with the two groups on that side I don’t recognize. Mr. Long and his daughter had to move halfway across the room to get into their argument with Lord Spencer. David is sitting in his seat with his face in his hands, shaking. Dr. Grady and her sidekick are still behind their desk, but standing up, and both look more annoyed than angry. Can’t say who they had been arguing with.

The other side is a complete mess, with almost everyone grabbing people’s shirt collars or about to throw a punch, with Clifford and his dad in the middle of it. Rodney’s dad is in an intense staring match with the person who was seated next to him. The one with bad vibes. The Bad Viber’s daughter is looking from one to the other nervously.

The only people still seated and seemingly not involved in this debacle are the wanderer and his not-ordinary buddy. The normal seeming man is pushing his glasses up on his nose, and the wanderer somehow found a bag of chips? Oh, it must have been in his weird black backpack sitting there. Still. The bastard had chips in his backpack the whole time and still wanted my nuggets. Sheesh.

Anyways it’s a complete shit fest. Frozen in time like a diorama of human nature. Like a spell of fear was cast the second the giant got pissed off.

I don’t even know what I said wrong. What they heck? I’m surrounded by toddlers.

It was a fair question. Is that what’s gonna happen every time I ask a question? Because I should have brought popcorn if that’s the case. Ah, I wander if Mr. Backpack has some in his bag…

“Thank-You, Michael.”

Queen Morana is rubbing her forehead. I almost feel bad for her, having to deal with all these nitwits. Before I remember she is one of these nitwits. Hell, she’s Queen of the Nitwits.

She takes a breath and looks at me. Her face is calm, but I feel afraid suddenly and I’m forced to avert my gaze. It unfortunately falls on Jordan, who for some reason is looking at me now. I can’t hide my disgust. He looks away first.

“Oh, Kara.” Morana sighs. “I’m afraid there is a lot you don’t know.”

“Really? I had no idea.” I lean back in my chair. “And here I thought I knew everything. You know, since you’ve all been so forthcoming.”

“Behave yourself.” Michael is glaring at me.

I open my mouth to protest but a harsh shake of his head makes me think better of it, so I just end up clicking my tongue. The situation is already precarious, and I have no idea of my real standing here. I mean, other than it’s low.

Still, my anger and pride are hard to swallow. I cross my arms and stare at the pretty table, like it’s the prettiest table in the world, while everyone returns to their designated places.

“I don’t think I asked an unfair question. If I’m not here to get answers to my concerns, then why don’t we just drop the pretence entirely, and you can tell me why I’m really here.”

There are a few whispers followed by a snake-sounding shh from the detective.

“You are here not only to receive answers, but also to give them as needed.” The mayor is speaking slowly, choosing her words carefully. “Mutant Society survives and thrives by following our rules, protocols, and laws. When these are broken, accidents easily happen. And sometimes accidents can become a danger not just to our society, but to the entire world. It is our duty to keep these to a minimum, if we are the enjoy the benefits that come with these dangers. We have a responsibility.”

She pauses and sits back down before continuing. “While saving your life was, according to our ways, wrong, so was the circumstances of your death. The Council acknowledged this, along with their inexperience, and so these boys were pardoned for their attempt to save you. David and Ezekiel were punished for their involvement in your death, only. Their apology is true, they never meant to hurt you in any way. And if all our laws had been followed, you would never have been in a position to be harmed in the first place. We are still investigating the day in question, and what went wrong. I’m afraid I can’t comment further on an ongoing investigation. But we will get to the bottom of it, that I can promise you.”

She looks at me, her eyes look earnest. “Does this satisfy you?” When I don’t answer right away, she goes further. “Will you accept their apology?”

I’m thinking too much to answer her. They expect answers from me, too? About what? I don’t know anything. That’s literally my biggest problem. I wonder if this is about the cougar. No, well maybe, but it can’t be just that. Why would they have me work with Mr. Long for so many months? And that fake homeless guy, he’s been at the bus stop since I came to town. He’s been watching me for almost three years. Why the surveillance? This bullshit has been going on for a lot longer than week.

But what choice do I have in this moment?

Whatever, I’ll mean it as much as the last ‘acceptance.’

“I suppose it would be cruel not to forgive people who had no idea what they were doing.” There are a lot of relieved sighs. “It’s not their fault they’re stupid.” While I expect some backlash for that comment, I get none. I guess no one can deny their foolishness. “But while I am generously forgiving the unworthy, don’t make the mistake that I’m forgetting, too.”

“Splendid.” The mayor smiles and claps again. She’s an odd duck, that one.

And just when I thought this annoying apology bull crap was over and done with, Detective Idiot, the bane of my existence, has to open his big, stupid, mouth.

“In the spirit of forgiveness, I think you, Kara, owe an apology as well.” Everyone turns to Michael. And so do I. What the hell is this bastard playing at?

“Me?”

“To Young Master Flanagan.”

To who now? Wait, to Clifford? Is he kidding? My murderer?

Like what, ‘Sorry for getting in the way of your claws, my bad.’

I don’t know whether to laugh or scream.

Either choice- when I’m through he really is going to need more bandages.

I'll make sure of that.