[center][color=red]Trigger Warning: Attempted Sexual Assault[/color][/center]

[color=darkgray]

The doorbell rang for the second time. The young man at it looked as presentable as a teenage boy could. He wore a dark gray button-down shirt tucked into matching slacks and black loafers. He looked like he was dressed for prom, but prom was months away. He held a bouquet of pink roses. He shifted from one foot to the next, either nervous or in need to use the bathroom. Soon the door opened and Senator Garcia and his wife stood there. While the Senator eyed the young man from head to toe, his wife, at least, had kinder eyes. Though something was hidden behind them.

[color=white]"You must be Jonathan. Please, come in."[/color] The senator moved out of the way while his wife took three steps back, almost like she decided never to be near him if she could not help it. Jonathan moved inside tentatively. 

[color=white]"Calliope should be down in a minute. Can I get you anything?"[/color] the Senator's wife asked. Jonathan shook his head. [color=white]"No ma'am. Thank you, ma'am."[/color] The senator looked almost proud. He tapped his foot as a sign of growing impatience. Soon, though, they heard some movement upstairs. Calliope moved around the corner. She was dressed in a pink dress the same shade as the roses. After all, this whole thing was planned to the finest detail. She moved down the stairs with some hesitancy that could be masked to indicate direction and desire, as if to say 'look at me'. Once she was down Jonathan strode forward and handed her the roses. [color=white]"You look beautiful, Calliope."[/color] Calliope smiled softly and accepted the flowers. She smelled them and allowed the scent to linger, remembering this moment. [color=white]"Why don't I take those and put them in a vase so you both can be on your way?[/color] her mother asked, taking the flowers before Calli could accept or refuse. [color=white]"Now you both have a good time. Don't stay out too late. I expect her back at 10 sharp."[/color] The senator directed this to Jonathan. No indication to Calliope about what she should do, though that lecture was given when this 'date' was planned weeks ago.

Jonathan grabbed her hand and Calli fought off the urge to flinch. Go with the flow. [color=white]"I'll have her back by then, sir. You have my word."[/color] The senator smiled and followed them outside before they went to Jonathan's car. She got into the passenger seat and glanced over to her parents. Her father's gaze never left hers but her mother held a hand to her heart. A proud moment? Or the beginning of a prayer? Calli could not be sure.

[hr]

The evening wasn't terrible. They went to a Mexican restaurant and enjoyed their meal. Calli ignored the subtle comments Jonathan made regarding the staff, the jokes about how they must have recently crossed the border or how the waitress reminded him of his family's maid. After all, she had to swallow it down if she wanted to get out of this quickly. Be the perfect date. Smile, laugh at his jokes, compliment him. Do not act intelligent so that he may not question his own and feel bad. She shows interest in his hobbies but do not brag about her own. She had been on a few dates before with boys set up by her father in the hopes of landing something in the future. She had always done her due diligence but the relationship never lasted beyond a second or third date, usually at the boy's insistence. She expected her father to be mad or upset, but he wasn't. Instead, he told her he 'got what he wanted' and left it at that.

Once dinner was done and paid for (with no tip though Calli slid a $20 bill to make up for it) she followed him outside. Jonathan suggested a walk in the nearby park before going to get ice cream. Calli nodded her approval and began to walk but was slowed down when he reached for and grabbed her hand. She looked at him and smiled warmly despite the ice she felt in her veins. Soon they walked hand-in-hand. Few people were milling about. [color=white]"Beautiful night."[/color] Jonathan commented matter-of-factly. Calliope looked around. [color=F796A9]"Yes, it is. I love this ti-"[/color] Calli's thought was interrupted as Jonathan leaned over and began to kiss her. Calli's eyes widened in shock as she felt his tongue enter her mouth. She quickly pushed him back. He gave her an incredulous look before leaning over again. She raised her hand and slapped him audibly. He lifted his hand to his growing redder cheek. Time stood still.

Calli should have run. She should have ran back to the restaurant and told them to call the police, even though she knew little would be done. She should have done something other than stand there, waiting.

Jonathan lowered his hand. [color=white]"I thought we were getting along."[/color] His tone suggested calmness, which did not match his body language. Calliope wanted to assure him that they did, but she didn't feel comfortable with intimacy on a first date. Instead, before words could be stated, she felt herself thrown back on the grass as Jonathan landed on top of her, pinning her down. His grip on her wrists fastened her in place and he was too strong to be budged. [color=white]"Do you not get it, bitch? Do you not know who my family is? I get what I want!"[/color] Calli opened her mouth to scream but he quickly backhanded her across the face. [color=white]"If you say one word I will kill you."[/color] Calli looked around, hoping someone nearby saw this, but even if they did, what could they do? Jonathan's family had power and prestige. Power her own family wanted.

[color=white]"Now, you are going to be good and accept this."[/color] Calli struggled, moved. She closed her eyes and pictured her anywhere else. She wanted to scream and yell. She wanted to hurt him. Stop him by any means necessary. She wanted nothing more than to see him hurt.

A scream in the darkness. She felt something warm spread across her face as she opened her eyes. Jonathan had gotten off of her and fell backwards as he gripped his arm. He looked at it and then at her with a mix of fear and anger. Fear won out, it seemed. [color=white]"You're a freak! You're one of those freaks!"[/color] He stood up as more blood soaked through his shirt. Calli sat up and noticed the growing ice field around her. Shrapnel pieces of icy glass poked out of the ground, all firing straight lines around her. Jonathan must have gotten poked and stabbed. The ice slowly evaporated around her as she stood up. Jonathan was backing away. [color=white]"Wait until my father hears about this!"[/color] he nearly screamed before running off into the night, leaving her there. Alone.

[hr]

Calliope walked home. She was well past 10 o'clock. But she moved up her driveway to the front door. She took out her key and unlocked it, stepping foot into the cool front room. She shut the door and locked it. No reason to hide her entrance. She knew her father would be ready.

Sure enough, he sat in his chair in the adjoining living room. He had his phone in his hand and a cigar in the other. She moved toward him and he held a hand up to stop her. [color=white]"I received a call from Mr. Ellis. Jonathan's father. He informed me his son came home bloodied and injured. So badly was he hurt he had to be rushed to the hospital. Mr. Ellis tells me Jonathan said you injured him for no reason. Attacked him in the open."[/color] He looked up at her.

She twisted one hand in the other, feeling the pressure rise. What answer would be satisfactory? Before she could speak, he followed up his response. [color=white]"I expect he tried to do something to you and you acted in self-defense. I explained as such to Mr. Ellis. I also informed him that should he with to pursue anything legally that he would be ground to dirt with all I have on him and that it would be better for all parties involved to forget this evening happened."[/color]

Calli stood there, stunned. Her father had...defended her? 

Calli's father stood now, setting his cigar down and putting his phone away. He took a few steps forward. Calli looked up into his eyes and before she could speak, felt the sting across her own cheek as he raised his hand and slapped her, nearly sending her to the ground.

[color=white]"I told you to hide it! I told you to never show it to anyone! Do you know what I have to do to shield this from getting out? No, of course you don't. A simple date nearly killed a boy because of what a freak you are!"[/color]

Calli felt tears sting her eyes as she fought hard against them. She stood up straight again, but dared not face him.

[color=white]"Next time? Let him."[/color] he said, finally, before turning and heading upstairs to his bedroom to get a night's sleep, leaving his daughter battered, broken, and confused.

[CENTER][COLOR=F796A9][sup]________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________[/sup][/COLOR][/CENTER][center][img]https://i.imgur.com/hiNfTeT.jpeg[/img]
[/center][indent][sub][COLOR=F796A9][B]Location:[/B][/COLOR] [I]Southern Plateau, Dundas Island[/I] - [I]Pacific Royal Campus[/I][/sub][sup][right][COLOR=F796A9][b]Welcome Home #3.026:[/b][/COLOR] [I]The Sum Of All Things[/I][/right][/sup][/indent][COLOR=F796A9][SUP][sub]____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________[/sub][/SUP][/COLOR][indent][sub][color=F796A9][B]Interaction(s):[/B][/COLOR][I] N/A [/I][/sub][SUP][RIGHT][COLOR=F796A9][b]Previously:[/b][/COLOR] [COLOR=GRAY][I]Deep Breathing[/I][/color][/right][/SUP][/indent]

[color=white]"As lawyers, one of your jobs is to interpret the law. Laws are ever-changing. Rulings get overturned when new laws are brought forth. However, your role is to use those skills to have the law work for you. Classic cases such as Roe v. Wade in the United States can set things up that last eons, but a pitfall many lawyers make is assuming the case you try will be as groundbreaking. And no, it will not be like Elle Woods single-handedly overturning a trial because you know about hair care."[/color]

The classroom chuckled as the professor went on. Calliope sat in the back row, paying some attention but finding herself getting distracted. Recent conversations were clearing things up, but she was still worried. Guilt-ridden. And expecting the other shoe to drop at any moment wasn't helping her with sleep.

And that voice in her head. It seemed to get louder.

Her mind was racing to the others. Lorc was in the hospital and it was unknown how he was fairing. Gil was still in the hospital even though it seemed like he would be getting out soon. Their conversation was...dry. She didn't expect him to bounce back easily after everything but the way he interacted with her...there was no heart. Haven was dealing with her own struggles, thankfully having Rory around was helping, but even then Rory was now placed in a situation that was sure to add stress. Harper was going through something also. Aurora was with Lorc. Katja was....who knows where. And Amma. Girl was absent and Calli didn't like it. Amma was never warm or welcoming, but the fact someone had started the whole Trial thing made her question it. Still, she didn't think Amma was involved. She remembered seeing her once they got out. Calli didn't get the sense Amma was hiding that, though it was clear she was hiding something.

[color=white]"Let's put an example. Can I get a volunteer?"[/color]

Calli snapped back to attention, wondering what was being done now. The professor glanced around the room. After a spell, she sighed. [color=white]"All right, I'll choose. Let's see..."[/color] She scanned the class as her eyes rested on Calli. [color=white]"Yes, Miss de León. Let's say you have a client who is charged with the sexual assault of a woman. What are some of the roadblocks you would face in providing a defense for the client?"[/color]

Calli looked around briefly, wondering how the topic got to this point. But she didn't want to make it apparent she was not paying attention. [color=F796A9]"Well, one would be in wondering if he committed the act or not."[/color]

The professor raised her hand to stop Calli. [color=F796A9]"You assume the client is male?"[/color]

[color=F796A9]"I suppose I did, but most sexual assaults perpetuated against women are from cisgender men."[/color]

[color=white]"True, but would your defense be different if the client, the one accused, was a woman who assaulted another woman?"[/color]

[color=F796A9]"No, the act itself is heinous if it was committed, but I would do my due diligence and provide the best defense possible."[/color]

[color=white]"So what other roadblocks could there be?"[/color]

[color=F796A9]"There's...history."[/color]

[color=white]"History?"[/color]

Did the professor know? Is that why she chose her? [color=F796A9]"I was the victim of sexual assault in my past. So there's a potential block there if I felt in any way my client was guilty."[/color]

The professor nodded, though Calli couldn't gauge if they knew or not. [color=white]"Do you feel you would be able to defend the client or would you need to pass it off to someone else?"[/color]

[color=F796A9]"That would largely depend on the circumstances."[/color]

[color=white]"In what way?"[/color]

[color=F796A9]"Given that sexual assault can be connected to anxiety and trauma it is not out of the realm of possibility that some things might trigger a lawyer, whether it was myself or not. I would hope I am able to identify within myself how much I am able to handle, but I would use my best judgement and pass it off if I felt I could not do my job to my full potential."[/color]

[color=white]"We often do not get that luxury though, Miss de León. Often you will have clients coming to you, whether through criminal or civil law, who you may find some connection to or may hate or judge. How does one get over that?"[/color]

Calli felt her breath hitch a bit, remembering events of her past. The professor continued. [color=white]"I mean, what if a client came in who was charged with abusing his daughter? Could you handle that?"[/color]

The class turned to look at her as she felt every eye scan her. Judgement. She took a deep, labored breath. [color=F796A9]"I...believe I can handle it."[/color]

[color=white]"Are you sure?"[/color]

The slam of the desk reverberated around the room, causing some in the room to jump. Calli's hand hurt after she slammed her fist against the desk in front of her. She took a few more deep breaths. [color=F796A9]"I would hate every minute of it. I would take several showers to wipe the grime I felt working with him. I would ensure I take proper care of myself when home and engage in self-care. I would speak to a therapist if need be. But I would do my damn job."[/color] She looked up, glaring daggers at the professor, sure that they knew exactly what they were doing. [color=F796A9]"Does that answer your question, professor?"[/color]

The professor adjusted their tie. [color=white]"This is why you check yourself when taking on cases. There will be ones with detrimental impacts on you. Thank you, Miss de León."[/color]

Calli sat back down, nursing her hand. She took a few more deep breaths. She would need to make an appointment soon.

And she damn well needed to talk to Banjo.


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