Getting To Work

"So... I died... but I didn't?"

Dr Quinzel pushed up her glasses. "Yes, that's correct Miss Yoshida. A RealDreams extraction team came and found you pulling you out of your reality to prime. They canceled the effects of your attempted suicide and RealDreams has cured you of your addiction to-"

They young woman slammed her hands down on the table, her face down hiding her tears. "My... my baby... tell me!" She paused a long moment. "Please?"

Dr Quinzel nodded. "They managed to rescue your unborn infant child. It was dying just as you had surmised from the trauma of your **** leading to your last **** act. Thankfully it wasn't beyond this worlds advanced medical abilities to save though it was a very near thing. The child has been saved and is currently in a top notch medical facility receiving the very best care there is possible."

Saki Yoshida looked up at the blonde haired doctor across from her. She searched her face and seeing no sign of deceit or deception she sighed. "Thank god... thank you god... it's a miracle... I'm so sorry... please take care of her... I'm so sorry... I'm sorry, my baby.... I'm so sorry..."

Harleen noted her responses then looked at the tragic young woman infront of her. "Miss Yoshida, would you like to see your baby?"

Saki froze. She almost repeated her question but Saki finally shook her head and said quietly, "... no... no... I don't have the right... I tried... I tried so hard... but I was an awful mother... a wretch... I couldn't protect...?"

Dr Quinzel noted her response before answering. "A baby girl... you had a baby girl, Miss Yoshida."

Saki trembled and nodded. "My baby girl... mommy's so sorry... I'm so sorry, my baby... you deserve better... you deserve so much better..."

Harleen noted this response as well. Saki's case was a tough one. She was a bad end victim Character. Never intended for a happy ending her story closed on her suicide. A last **** act of a brutal story. She looked at the picture of the young woman she was, her brown hair in twin braids and glasses. She'd looked like a serious student. She looked for that person in the face of the bleached blond, tattooed young woman with the missing teeth. The months of ****, addiction prostitution and homelessness and her final, savage beating from her former classmates and robbing her of the money she had saved to start over for her and her baby had virtually transformed her to be almost unrecognizable. She was pitiable... but pity wasn't her job. This was a second chance for Saki and she seemed to be cognizant of the fact... but would she rise to the occasion... or was she truly broken? "Miss Yoshida do you understand your current situation?"

Saki nodded looking downwards.

Harleen sighed. "Miss Yoshida, can you please look at me and tell me what you understand?"

There was a long pause but Saki finally looked up. Harleen noted that while her voice was weak her eyes were very clear. "I was brought to another world but a mysterious benefactor who saved my babies life. I... I am owned property now. I belong to whoever my new owner is. That's fair recompense for my babies life. For saving her from the mess I made of my life. I'll gladly be a **** the rest of my life to pay that debt. Just please... anything to give my baby the life she deserves. I'll do anything!"

Dr Quinzel noted her response and actually smiled slightly. "That's essentially correct Saki. You're cognizant of your situation and your own shortcomings that brought you to where you were naked pregnant trying to end your and your babies suffering. In a way it's understandable. Almost humane. But my job isn't to make you feel good about your messed up choices even when you didn't have many. My job is to evaluate your worthiness for a second chance and your mental state." She looked at her very seriously. "You tried to kill yourself Saki. I've read your report and extremly bad decisions aside you stayed relatively sane right until that moment. Can you tell me about that particular **** moment please?"

Saki nodded. "My baby... they'd hurt my baby. Th-the beating... even if I crawled out of that bathroom... they took the money I needed for a doctor... for my baby. My baby was dying... and I had failed her... I tried but... I couldn't protect her... my baby was the last bit of hope I had left. My baby saved me from losing it... and I failed her. I... I was weak... and... honestly?"

Harleen nodded. "Please do speak honestly, Saki. It's the only way to get an accurate assessment."

Saki nodded. "Honestly... I'm not... I'm not worthy of a second chance. I don't deserve one... not at all. I realize that's... perhaps ruining my chances... but it's the absolute truth. I deserve nothing. But my baby does and I'll do anything... everything... for that!"

Harleen nodded. "Yes... I can see how you'd think that. Thank you, Saki. I think we're getting somewhere now. You have a lot of love to give, Saki. You chose very poorly until later about how to spend your love." She slid the picture of prechange Saki forward. "What would you tell old Saki if you could?"

Saki looked at her former self. "... everything... I... I don't know that she'd believe me... about her classmates... Hayato... dad... m-mom... the ****... the sex... the changes... but I'd tell her everything."

Harleen nodded writing down her answers. "Tell me about some of those things you'd tell her..."

"Good work in there... geez Louise..."

Harleen sighed and nodded gratefully taking the cup Dave handed her. "Yeah... that was messed up... fuck I know some super villains that ain't got back stories nearly as bad as that... she's fucked up... but remarkably sane more's the pity. Even her suicide attempt was an act of rational mercy. A fucked up thing to do sure... but understandable and even reasonable."

Dave nodded. "Yeah. Do you think we should tell her about her kid?"

Harleen shook her head. "I don't. You did great with that by the way. She'll grow up safe and happy there. She's happy knowing that she was saved... and she sees herself as unfit influence. I think she thinks her child is safer from her "bad" influences by not having her around. She's sacrificing everything for... love..."

Dave took her clipboard setting it aside and hugged her. "It's okay, babe. It's okay." He nodded. "For a "victim" character she's got a pretty incredible heart, doesn't she?"

Harley nodded. "That poor kid's so fucked up and yet so rational! She's..." she shook her head and cleared her throat adjusting her glasses and stepping back. "She's nearly a perfect candidate."

Dave nodded. "She's sex positive. Extremely so. And change positive and while she made messed up decisions she's a caring person... she's "cured" of her addiction and if we can earn her affection, which shouldn't be hard considering the absolute assholes who abused her good nature and got it, we can keep her on the straight and narrow and we won't let anyone **** her like that."

Harley nodded. "I recommend a reset to her previous state, make the changes and either let her see the tapes that she made these decisions for herself or we alter her mind and create a new "story" for her to live her life. In effect "Saki" would "die" and be "reborn" as someone new. Someone who we can shower with affection and attention."

Dave nodded. "Understood. And the others?"

They turned to another room view. "The Midna's are easy. Were essentially not changing their character at all. They'll still be "themselves" but they might be a bit "more" afterwards. It may lead to a doubling down or a halving of certain personality traits but, like Saki, I don't anticipate too many problems."

Dave nodded but could hear the unspoken "but", "and the others?" When Harley paused he said, "give it to me straight Harls. If it's a bad idea I wanna know."

Harley moved to the next monitor and the dark skinned and haired woman inside who swung between "child like" and "catatonic" states. "For Casca, definitely a reset to an earlier time. Even if we got her memory AND sanity back... the trauma of her **** infront of the man she loved and the sacrifice of what was essentially her entire "family" in a demonic "assension" ritual by her trusted commander would still be there. That trauma, sacrifice and betrayal would taint her relationships with us and anyone going forward. I..." she smiled and put a hand on his shoulder. "I understand you want to give her a "good" or a "happy ending" but you can't do it that way. You need to give her a different and new story if you want her to be happy... and I recommend you make her radically different."

Dave pursed his lips and nodded. "Ok. I was afraid of that but I was expecting it too. Done. I don't want to hurt her either. Reset and a drastic rewrite it is. How different? I kinda didn't want her personality to change too much. She was such an awesome warrior before... you know..."

Harley nodded. "Make her still a warrior but different. Change her race and type. You and Tink were talking about orcs. Instead of the kickass but fragile speedster swordswoman trope what if you made her like Gutz instead?"

Dave blinked and pictured that. "A unstoppable **** of will with muscles of iron to back it up? Casca the Amazon? Casca the Hundred Manslayer? Hmmmm... it honestly has potential... I'll think about it." He turned to the final one which was also a split display. "And finally?"

Harleen sighed. "I know Tink's excited about this one and you're too but... well... you're not just grabbing her "dark persona" and adjusting it to be lessened or diminished or taking Sci-Twi here and drawing a bit of her darker persona out and keeping a limiter on it. Your talking about fusing the two together."

Dave nodded. "In theory a complete fusion would make her 75% Sci-Twilight Sparkle and only 25% Midnight Sparkle since Midnight is essentially 50% Twilight. Twilight would be even more the dominant personality helping to reign in Midnight Sparkle, so to speak. What's wrong with that?"

Harleen chuckled shaking her head. "Youre not thinking about the psychology involved. Twilight Sparkle/Sci-Twi's biggest fear is becoming Midnight Sparkle. Even if you make a 3 to 1 mix like that that's just math. You're essentially making her worst fear come true. Even if it's personality is diminished that won't change her fear of it."

Dave nodded. "Crap... good point. Rationality doesn't have anything to do with an irrational response. I didn't think about that. What do you recommend Doc?"

Harleen shrugged. "Honestly I could only think of one thing... go talk to her."

Dave nodded then stopped and blinked pointing at himself. "Who? Me?"

She nodded. "Yes you! You're technically a doctor too!"

Dave frowned. "I'm not that kind of "Doctor" Harls! I don't exactly practice "medicine" in here Let alone psychology..."

Dr Harleen Quinzel nodded and pushed him towards the door with his tablet. "Doesn't matter and that's bullshit because that's exactly what you do here. You try to give patients and clients the care and attention they deserve. Some sketchy back alley chop shop can do what we do with access to the right equipment... but they won't care like we do... as your father says, that's good medicine. She's one of your patients like any other you've ever had in here. Go talk to her! Infact they're your canvases this time. Go try to talk to all of them!"

Dave sighed and nodded. "When she's right, she's right."

Melfina was sweeping in the courtyard area when Tink flew over. "I got Hilda's and Dorothy's rooms ready. The workers are here and I just had Pepper buzz them in. Help me greet them?"

Melfina nodded. "Oh sure thing Tink! Do you really need someone like me for that?"

Tink shrugged. "Probably not but everyonce in a while I'll run into a jerk who won't take me seriously as a fairy or a proxy character. It's a super pain. But these guys should be professionals. Especially-"

The first nondescript van pulled up but the half dozen men and women in their black suits and sunglasses or wearing fatigues that got out were anything but nondescript. They formed ranks and saluted.

Tink saluted them back as did Melfina after a moment. "At ease," Tink said and then shook the womans hand with the name tag of "Miller". "Catherine. Good to see you. How's your dad?"

The young woman smiled. "Doing good. Thanks, Tink. I'll be heading the team giving you all protection until you get your own security up and running... How's Dave?"

Tink shrugged. "Pissy that we need to hire 3S security but that's his daddy issues and nothing to do with you guys." She smiled. "Which is why his old man sent you. He won't be mad at you. He's as slick as ever."

Catherine Miller grinned. "That's The Boss! So you guys bought a castle." She tilts her sunglasses down and whistles lowly. "Okay. I guess we can fortify it awhile. I'll stay on site for the duration and we'll rotate out my men as needed as stipulated in your contract. Got a place I can setup as my command station?"

Tink nodded and gestured to Melfina. "This is Melfina. She can show you the room we set aside for you, later."

Melfina smiled and bowed. "Hello, Captain Miller. It's a pleasure to met you."

She smiled back. "Like wise, Melfina. Give me a few minutes to start setting up my team in position and making patrols?"

Melfina nodded. "Of course!"

Captain Miller immediately started directing her people. It was a cake assignment honestly... but they were 3S and the clients were "family". They'd treat it like it was deadly serious.

The next two service vans were from RealDreams. A few of them were obviously disappointed with how big a job it would be for a Saturday but the ones in charge gave them a look that shut them up. This wasn't some run of the mill client. It was a big upgrade job for not only a important VIP client but a major shareholders family member... their bosses had reminded them too about who it was that wrote their service manuals. This was the kind of job that done well would look good on their proformance reviews and evaluations and likely come with a big tip!

Tink started showing them the system. It was a top of the line system... decades ago! "Hoo boy!" Said one of the service techs. "I mean the nice thing about this system is it'll likely keep going for ages! But it's pretty far from current standards. No wonder yall want a full upgrade! No worries ma'am. We got this!" He whistled to his team. "Alright guys we're starting in here!"

Tink grinned. "Thanks guys! You hear that, Pepper?"

(("I did, Tink. I'm excited! This will allow us to upgrade the appliances to current standard as well."))

Tink nodded. "I wonder how things are going at the studio?"

[David Stark Pepper Tinker Bell Harley Quinn and Melfina VSD02C

Will Return In

TBD

Coming Soon]