"If a thief is found breaking in and is struck so that he dies, there shall be no bloodguilt for him, but if the sun has risen on him, there shall be bloodguilt for him.

He shall surely pay.

If he has nothing, then he shall be sold for his theft." -Exodus 22:2-3

__________________

[Sanpaku Training Area]

Laban DaeMon: "Ohhh Sakiii, are you a little sassy right now?

Don’t worry, I have a couple more surprises for everyone else and then I’ll present to you, the grand finale!"

She smooches Saku on his tattooed temple and his eye twitches in irritation as she walks away, side eye smirking at an also pissed off Itsuka.

The DaeMon takes out her golden blunt case as she walks over to the new military tanker Zoram is standing next to.

The beautiful 800+ year old Völva is looking up as the excited Scylia slides down into the multi armored vehicle from the top.

Laban is stands behind her "ex-wife" and Zoram turns around, getting startled, and straightens up while sweating.

Zoram: "M-Madame Laban!"

Laban sparks up the final green filled cigarello from her golden case and puffs out the initial smoke while putting the lighter in her back pocket.

Laban DaeMon: "Relax Zoram, it’s no longer necessary for you to have any fear of me.

As of last night, we are both equals within this little apocalyptic gang they’ve got running here."

Zoram relaxes her back and takes a relieving exhale knowing her fate is no longer at the mercy of THE Don Laban DaeMon.

Zoram: "I apologize, Madame Laban.

Out of everyone in this entire world, you are the one person I’ve known for the longest.

It has been almost 800 years of accompanying you, and I do apologize again in advance, but it truly is going to be a new adjustment for me."

Laban draws another pull from her blunt and watches the smoke she releases, disappear into the rooms atmosphere.

Laban DaeMon: "To keep it a buck with you, it was probably for the best that I was humbled by someone other than one of my sisters."

She looks back over at Saku squatting to tussle his dog’s head.

Laban DaeMon: "I also believe to have an understanding of what love is now, Zor.

Even if it’s up for debate on whether these feelings are actually true love or if they are the work of Seiõr and a curse my sisters and I must bare with.

Either way, I’ll continue to follow these feelings for his acceptance until I succeed and make him personally mine."

Zoram: "I’m happy to hear that."

The caramel skinned Völva looks around at all the opened and unopened containers within the padded training facility.

Zoram: "Also, I’m proud of you, Madame Laban.

With all honesty, I would have never in a million years thought you could pull off something so...soo..."

Laban DaeMon: *inhales* "Unselfish?" *exhales*

Zoram: "Ingenious."

Laban is surprised by the more complimentary term for her actions.

The DaeMon blushes slightly from her ex-wife’s opinion and scratches the back of her head, letting out a slight chuckle.

Zoram: "But ALL of this?"

The bashfulness of the black haired smoking woman vanishes and turns to confusion.

Laban DaeMon: "Heh?"

Zoram: "With all of this stuff transfered over to here...

If it hadn’t been destroyed yesterday...

H-How did you expect Roronora City to continue thriving with all these resources here?"

Laban ashes her half finished blunt into an emptied crate and takes another hit.

Laban DaeMon: "Well Zoram...

*takes drag*

...I know you were originally against the Master/Pet slave system I had installed once I had became a post-apocalyptic Don for a big industrial city.

*exhales*

I remembered what you had advised me to do when we started to clear out the city of aliens, ’the more working citizens there are overall, means the less taxing it is on everyone who does contribute, willfully or not’."

Zoram blushes from being told some of her words actually did get retained by the DaeMon.

Laban DaeMon: "The day after Skalmönd whooped my ass, I ended up abolishing that slave system.

But not without Princess Rebekah’s help, and I guess the cooperation of that fake bitch I had tried to replace you with. Immediately, the city had thousands more handicapable citizens to not only work but to create this surplus of supplies for Sanpaku, without risking the city’s supply and demand.

*takes hit*

Not only that..."

Laban pinches and snuffs out the cherry to her ¼ remaining rerolled cigarello.

Laban DaeMon: *exhales*

"... it’s as you had said, there were so many more workers to tax, which led to 50% less taxation of all it’s citizens and the tax revenue still managed to compensate for the city’s needs."

Zoram: "I knew you could do good if you had just set your mind to it, Madame Laban.

If you truly were born differently than your DæMon sisters, you can live differently too."

Laban ponders on the sentence for a second but only for a moment before, from behind a stack of crates, an excited Princess Rebekah appears and calls out to her pair of motherly caregivers.

Princess Rebekah: "I found it!

I found the box with Mama Zoram’s surprise!

Hurry up, Mama!

Come quickly!"

The adorable princess disappears back behind the crates and both her moms smile.

Laban walks over, picking up the crowbar on her way and Zoram follows, just like old times.

The two of them catch up to their joint custody daughter and reach one single undecked crate with a big thick Z written and overlapped multiple times, written in black marker.

Laban DaeMon: "Yep, that’s the one with all your clothes and stuff, Zoram."

Zoram: "...’My clothes’?"

Laban DaeMon: "Okay, both of you need to stand back!"

Leaning against the wall, right next to the room’s only doorway, Saku, Itsuka, and Xaaydagaay (in confusion) watch as she holds the unlit blunt in the corner of her mouth and uses both hands to hold the crowbar, trying desperately to get the crate open.

Itsuka smiles, seeing an opportunity to flyt her rivaling love general.

Itsuka: "Wow, don’t hurt yourself!

And here I thought you had ridiculous Valkyrie strength!"

The opposing love general stops in anger and flyts back at her competition.

Laban DaeMon: "Strong enough to put you in the hospital, Amazonian!"

She returns back to her task and after a little resistance, Laban eventually pulls back even harder.

*crack*

*ting!*

The DaeMon falls on her ass as the nails come loose from cracking the wood.

Her worried daughter scampers over.

Princess Rebekah: "Mama are you okay?!"

The thoughtful daughter helps her mother up as an angry Laban rubs her tail bone in pain while getting up.

Laban DaeMon: "Fuck that shit hurt!

God dammit, even if it’s on padded flooring, falling on your tail bone sucks."

The Mama and daughter both make their way to the surprise crate and rummage through trying to find what they are keeping secret.

Laban DaeMon: "I left them on top when I packed her stuff, didn’t I?"

Princess Rebekah: "When I packed them’, Mama..."

Laban DaeMon: "Yea. Yea. Yea."

Zoram is trying to comedically get a peek of her surprise present, but she is unable to get a clear view from what the two are digging for.

Laban DaeMon: "Hmmm...maybe the crate shifted within Saki’s transferring of the stuff while using Isfet’s powers?"

Princess Rebekah: "Found em!"

Her excitement grabs the attention of everyone still left in the room.

Adorable Princess Rebekah has her hands behind her back as she approaches Zoram.

As if already knowing what the little girl has behind her back, Zoram’s hands cover her nose and mouth as tears and snowflakes fall out of her sockets.

Zoram: "You guys didn’t really save them, did you?"

Princess Rebekah gives a smiling nod and holds out her hands, showcasing the exact evening gloves she was referring to in the cafeteria, folded neatly in the Princess’ open palms.

They are as described, clean, long, white, silk gloves, covering passed the elbow of the wearer.

Satine floral designs are stitched into the cuffs and around the opening to the elegant gloves.

Zoram’s wet hands reach out but she pulls the unsuspecting Princess in for a hug.

Zoram: "Thank you, sweetheart.

Thank you so much.

These were the only memory of my adopted Völva mother, Embla that I had left.

I was so worried I wasn’t going to be able to pass them down to you someday."

Itsuka smiles at the scene and looks over at Saku, sitting against the wall now, trying to regain some lost sleep.

He can feel her eyes looking at him without even opening them.

Saku: "What?"

Itsuka: "Do you want to talk about something?"

Saku: "No."

Itsuka takes a sigh and looks at Xaaydagaay.

She playfully ruffles the hair of the half orca girl standing next to her and Xaaydagaay smiles playful.

Xaaydagaay: "*click* *click* *woof!*"

To the tall fit woman’s surprise, the orca whale given a human female body, licks Itsuka’s tattooed temple in a playful response.