Waking up in a whole new dream {Malia}

[*]

"He was such a good boy. Never caused any trouble. Never did anything wrong. Why would they shoot him? Why was he targeted? Those people are awful and liars." Olivia listened from the steps. The man and woman in the living room bickered back and forth about the news that they had gotten just one day ago. She, herself, couldn't believe it. It was impossible. Her brother, Jins, couldn't be dead. No. He was probably out torturing some person again. Probably just out making mischeif among the district in the shadows and being a complete ass about it. Whose to say he really was dead? They've not seen his body. They've not left this house since they got the news from the man in a white padded suit ready for battle. She shook her head and listened further as the sound of a 'slap' came out and her mother gasped. There were no more words after that. Just the sound of her father going to the refridgerator, opening it and popping something open that clattered on the floor. "Another one dad? That's your fifth one... stop before you become a tyrant." She whispers and just as she starts to get up to go back to her room, she stops when he rounds the corner and sees the swaying man looking at her. "What the hell you loo...oooking at?" He slurs, and takes another drink as her mother appears behind him, but doesn't do much more than glance at her and turn her cheek away and walk through the next room. "Are you as pathetic as your brother? Youuu going to be the next to get killed? Make some mistake like him? Your mother babied him too much. You'll never be babied. Get down here." Immediately, she knew where this was going. If he got his hands on her, there was no telling what was going to happen. She moved fast, standing up and brushing away the loose strands out of her eyes that were non-existant of any tears for her fallen sibling. Instead, she merely shakes her head. "Can't. Gotta go in for peacekeeper training. Sorry." Her words are hitched, almost with a sense of fear. The hairs on the back of her neck standing up as she shuddered. "Max is expecting me today. I'd rather... keep my mind busy." "OLIVIA REVENUE. Get your f'in ass down here now. You and your brother... such disobediant little pests." He takes another long swig of the liquid and jerks his stubby finger in her direction and starts up the stairs to her. Without even waiting, the small girl darts up the stairs and hits the first room, slamming the door in his face. Just as her fingers move to touch the door lock, it's pushed open and her form gets stuck between the door and the wall. "I won't make the same mistake I made with your brother." "Dad... leave me alone. I swear if you don..." "You'll what? Hit me with that stick of yours? The one you always carried around? Where it is? Maybe if you get a proper beating you'll learn to behave, young lady. You won't be galavanting around like your brother did and get killed by the peacekeepers you so dearly love." "Max isn't like that..." "WAKE UP... THEY ARE ALL LIKE THAT." He pushes against the door again and his sights get set upon the new staff in her room. The more sturdy looking one that he's never seen before. Immediately, he shakes his head. "Where'd you steal that from? Who'd you take this from?" "Max gave it to me." Her voice wheezes out as her hands move to keep the door from pressing any more on her. "Dad... stop! MOM!" Her voice cries out, but no sound comes from the livingroom where she saw her mother disappear into. "You're lying. Just like your brother... YOUR DEAD, FUCKING BROTHER...Do you want to end up like him? Huh? Do you?" The pressure is released on the door enough that the force she was pushing against the door with send the door slamming shut and her body stumbling and toppling over. A moment later, she looks to the side as she notices her father reaching for that staff and before she could even react, her mind is reacting with a burning pain against the side of her face. Revenue Mom - 19e6e5 Revenue Dad - c03e38 Olivia - d3c82c

[Artemis]

Max was so not in the mood for this shit.

On the one hand, he was now sporting a shiny new set of Captain's bars on his collar, a higher salary and the weight to throw around that such a promotion came with (many of the Peacekeepers involved in the escaped convict case had been promoted to keep their silence); on the other, sitting on top of his desk this morning had been an official notice that a certain family member of his had been hospitalized and was asking for his presence. On top of that, Olivia Revenue had failed to show up yesterday; Max had rolled his eyes, begrudgingly giving her the benefit of the doubt. She was still in school, it was possible she'd been held after class for whatever reason.

But two days in a row?

I don't fucking think so.

He hadn't bothered greeting or saluting back any of the enlisted quickly getting out of his way as he headed out the front door of the precinct towards the Revenue household, thoroughly annoyed to have his time wasted like this when he could be doing anything more productive than holding his recruit accountable for playing hooky with her recruit duties. Just because she wasn't a Peacekeeper yet (and she never would be, if this was going to be a trend) didn't mean punctuality didn't apply to her.

Kaiser was trotting beside him, not a care in the world and just happy to be outside going for a walk; civilians he passed on the street were equally quick to move out of their way, many of them looking apprehensively at the huge, unleashed police dog at his side. If anyone thought Kaiser was just going to fly off the handle and attack someone out of the blue, they were dumber than some of the mutts Max worked with. (Which, considering some newbie halfwit had thought it was a good idea to reuse the same set of parent mutts over and over again and had inbred a batch of them to the point of near-retardation, was a much greater insult than some people might realize... Opting not to go into what a moron said newbie was to start with, but he digressed.)

The Revenue household was suspiciously silent, and was about to be very abruptly shaken to its foundation by a little Peacekeeper wrath. Max pounded his fist on the front door, folding his arms impatiently waiting for it to open.

"Get the door, Georgia." A man's voice bellowed, audibly slurred even through the door.

A woman opened it, putting on a flimsy smile that did nothing to disguise the dark lines under her bloodshot eyes.

"Hello? May I help you sir?" Her voice was meek and barely a whisper.

Max looked at her with scrutinizing eyes; he was no detective, but he was more than willing to guess this little mouse of a woman served as the doormat to the annoying, boisterous man's voice from elsewhere in the house.

"Who is it, Georgia?" The man bellowed again, and it was apparent to Max that in spite of the early hour of the afternoon, he was completely wasted.

"Captain Stahl," Max answered loudly for her, looking pointedly around the door frame so his voice carried down the hallway, "Where is Olivia Revenue."

His words formed a question, but his tone indicated that the information he wanted wasn't a request.

45583a - Maximilian Stahl
c03e38 - Nicholas Revenue
19e6e5 - Georgia Revenue
ddf347 - Olivia Revenue

[*]

Groggily, the pair of eyes look out into the nothingness of the room. It was completely empty. Not a stitch of furniture or wall hanging. It's simply an empty room, except for the girl laying on the ground, huddled in the corner with a hand on her face. The welt had gone away hours ago, but it still held the sting as well as the bruising that wanted to fight for the brightest purple color ever. The tiny girl had no clue as to the shade, but only the pain as she dropped her hand beside her face and closed her eyes yet again. How long had she been in there? A couple hours? A day? More? She barely remembered being dragged down the stairs and locked in this room. She barely remembered the argument she had with her father right before he walloped her in the head with the sturdy staff her mentor had given her. It was just apparent that she didn't want to move much. "If I ever get out of here..." She whispers and rolls onto her back, her mind playing tricks on her and making her vision swim with the effort to stare into the darkness that was in front of her. She could only make out the shadows of her hand from the light peering in from under the door frame. She knew it had to be daytime cause when she awoke it was completely dark and quiet. Now, the sounds of footsteps and her father's voice was making her antsy down there. "Max. I'm sorry I'm missing our lesson." Her fist goes to smash against the wall of the room in distaste and anger as the voice of her father comes out very distinctly telling her to quit making noise. She does it again and again, just to get him riled up to get him to come down, but each time, he only comes to the door and bangs on it, refusing to open up. She can tell, by the sound of his voice that he had already dove into yet another helping of sorrow and drowning out his mind with liquor. "Asshole!" She screams as he ascends the stairs. Hope arrives, not long after that in the form of a knock. Instantly, it peeks her interest and she sits up. "Who is it...?" The meek voice whispers out as she strains to listen for any form of familiarity. As if it was a miracle, she smiles hearing Max's voice. "She's sleeping. You'll have to come back later." She shakes her head. She wasn't sleeping. Not entirely false, but being knocked out was more like it. "She's sick. Unless you want to get sick, you'd turn around and walk your happy ass back to where you came from, sir. She don't need no peacekeeper nursemaid." "MAX! MAX!" She screams out, not knowing what's going on upstairs. All, she can hear is her father's voice telling the man lies. Somehow he had found her home and she wasn't about to give up on the only chance she had to get out of this place. "MAX... I'm down here." "Don't you come in ... I said GET OUT! You are not welcomed in this house. You have no jurisdiction to com... GET THE FUCK OUT OF MY HOUSE..." Olivia stood, making her way over to the door, and hitting her fist against it as hard as she could without letting up. Revenue Mom - 19e6e5 Revenue Dad - c03e38 Olivia - d3c82c

[Artemis]

The owner of the slurred voice comes stumbling down the hall at the intrusion, apparently forgetting that a rank preceding a name generally meant Peacekeeper and that no further introduction was needed.

Max hadn't handled anything on the escaped convict case any further than organizing the search party for Cadet Pryce and taking statements, but it wasn't so soon that it wasn't starting to occur to him the... resemblance between the mugshot on the Wanted dossier, and the mug of the man coming towards him with purpose. He pauses, looking Max up and down, almost as if he was sizing him up for a fight.

As if Mr. Revenue could take him, sober or not.

"She's sleeping. You'll have to come back later." He shot back, and Max was completely unconvinced.

"Wake her up then. She knows she's supposed to be at the precinct." Max growled back.

"She's sick." Mr. Revenue continued, convincing Max less and less as he continued to open his mouth (why was he still talking), "Unless you want to get sick, you'd turn around and walk your happy ass back to where you came from, sir. She don't need no Peacekeeper nursemaid."

He was about ready to put on his command voice and tear Mr. Revenue a new one --nobody spoke to him that way, especially not some swaggering drunkard that thought himself a big man-- until Kaiser, ears perked all the way forward and his tail tellingly still, whimpered in his throat and darted past the Revenues down the hall.

Max moved to follow the dog, only to have Mr. Revenue attempt to close the door in his face.

"Don't you come in ... I said GET OUT! You are not welcomed in this house. You have no jurisdiction to com--

At that, Max reared back, smashing his foot into the door as if he were breaching it, throwing Mr. Revenue down satisfyingly hard onto his ass on the ground. Mrs. Revenue didn't look quite so compelled to put up a resistance as Max strode past her, eyes blazing under the visor of his helmet and following the sound of Kaiser's yipping.

The entire country is my jurisdiction.

He found him at the bottom of the stairs leading to the cellar, scratching at the door and whining; the pounding on the other side, and the shouting now audible from this distance, told him plenty.

"MAX! MAX!"

Olivia's voice was muffled, but there was no mistaking that it was her; Max tried the door, finding it locked. He wasn't nearly patient enough to go searching for a key, or roughing the parents up for them to hand it over. He slapped the door to silence Olivia's shouting long enough to speak.

"Get away from the door, I'm coming in."

The hallway was too narrow for a proper breach kick, but it was enough for him to brace himself against the opposite wall and smash his foot into the door, throwing it open with enough force to slam into the wall behind it.

45583a - Maximilian Stahl
c03e38 - Nicholas Revenue
19e6e5 - Georgia Revenue
ddf347 - Olivia Revenue

[*]

With each hit against the door, it almost seemed as if the weariness of the girl was taking it's toll. Her knees shook slightly but that didn't effect her need to stay upright and fight for her mentor to hear her. If anything, she'd get out sooner or later, if her father somehow made Max leave, but he was a peacekeeper. He can do whatever he needs to do but only if he could hear her. Then, something makes her realize she's been heard in the form of a scratching noise and something sounding like a dog, whinning. "Kaiser!" Never letting up, despite how much she was making her mouth move, jarring the sore, bruised side of her face, she continued to beat on the door. Her father's voice arose yet again. "Get your ass out of my house. You are not allowed down there. GET AWAY FROM HER..." The only reason she stopped beating on the door was because of the voice on the other end telling her to move away. Instantly, she did as she was told, leaning heavily on the wall, turning her face away. She crouched down and covered her head as the door splintered and slammed open against the wall. For a moment, she stayed where she was, truely wondering if it might all be a hoax in the first place and her father was just playing a good joke on her. Only when she felt the snuffling near her ear did she look up and see the light flooding in from the outside. "Max.. " Her fingers rested on the dogs head as he pushed against the wall to stand and looked at the blacked out figure of her new mentor standing in the doorway. "Impossible.. how did you..." "How dare you break in my house and tear the doors down. I HAVE EVERY RIGHT TO REPORT YOU..." Nicholas bellowed, his hand pushing through Max and shoving him aside to get in front of him. "She's being punished. You get out, NOW! I'm her father. I'll treat her anyway I need to for the crimes she does." "Max.. I did nothi.." Her voice squeaks out as a hand jerks in her direction. Revenue Mom - 19e6e5 Revenue Dad - c03e38 Olivia - d3c82c

[Artemis]

Max was far past the point of listening to Mr. Revenue when he breached the door, nearly taking it off its hinges with the force. Kaiser darted into the room, immediately finding Olivia curled up against the wall and snuffling her face with a concerned-sounding whine.

"Max..."

Truth be told, Max didn't consider himself to be terribly close to Olivia, or even on the greatest of terms; she was a smartass, and infuriatingly informal often 'forgetting' not to call her recruiter by his first name. But he could give credit where credit was due; she wasn't a sniveling, apologizing little coward like some of the recruits at the depot were, she could take as much banter as she gave. Not half bad with a bo staff either, considering her age and the fact that her main opponent had a headstart of nearly a decade of training ahead of her.

"How dare you break in my house and tear the doors down. I HAVE EVERY RIGHT TO REPORT YOU..."

It didn't stop his blood from boiling seeing the bruises on her face, or his vision from going red as Mr. Revenue tried once more to get in his way.

"She's being punished. You get out, NOW! I'm her father. I'll treat her anyway I need to for the crimes she does."

He could only barely make out the squeak of Olivia's voice, saying his name pleadingly and meaning so much more than her words meant.

Get me out of here.

Normally, Max didn't really stomach the idea of taking down or arresting a parent in front of their child; though he wasn't a fan of people, children by and large were innocent, and didn't deserve the fates their parents brought upon them. Just as he would never do anything to harm an animal, so too did he try not to do anything to a child they didn't deserve.

Right now, though, Max had neither the wherewithal or the composure to drag Mr. Revenue someplace where they could more privately 'have words'; he'd crossed the floor to the older man in just a few strides, sweeping his legs out from under him and aiding his fall to the ground with a hand fisted in his shirt. The old man hit the ground hard, the fight knocked temporarily out of him with his breath.

"You think you're the big dog around here?" He snarled, not loosening his grip on Revenue's shirt and green eyes ablaze with fury, "Think that because we're in your castle, you're still the king? I am the law, if I want you thrown into the Detention Center to never see the light of day again for laying a hand on me or your daughter, I can make it so and no one will ask questions. So how brave are you really feeling?"

Such was the unpredictable behavior of drunks, that their moods were equally hard to expect. Revenue's eyes searched his face under the amber visor of his helmet for a moment, finding no quarter in his features and slowly, the anger drained away until tears fell from the corners of his eyes.

"You killed him... you killed him..." He slurred between sobs and hiccups. "Get out of my house, you bastards killed my son...

Max released his grip on the man, the fight leaving him at the sight of a grown man weeping like a child on the floor. He hadn't forgotten for a moment, though, that in the grief he'd apparently been drowning in alcohol, he'd taken it out on the child he still had.

"You're pathetic."

He stepped over Revenue, crossing the room to Olivia and not waiting around for a greeting or a smart remark; her face was bruised purple and red, and the only thing stopping him from going back to give her father a well-deserved beatdown was the sway in her posture as she stood.

Max scooped her up in his arms, stepping over Revenue once again and making his way resolutely up the stairs towards the front door.

45583a - Maximilian Stahl
c03e38 - Nicholas Revenue
19e6e5 - Georgia Revenue
ddf347 - Olivia Revenue

[*]

Her body swayed slightly as she watched the two men in the room. One moment, she look at the blackout figure of Max and then her father as he shoves his way in again. She almost flinches when he jabs that pointy finger in her direction almost as if she's the one who did wrong and deserved every out of pain from the beating he put on her. She can even smell the liquior on his breath as he tries to get the man out of his house. Kaiser, hackles raised and waiting to attack, stayed by her side as her fingers gently massaged his ear and flinched when her father suddenly toppled backward, hitting the ground hard, and threats came from the man she'd gotten attached to. "Max..." She whispers out again and suddenly, her father becomes nothing but a blubbering fool, slurring his words toward Max. "You killed him... you killed him... Get out of my house, you bastards killed my son..." Truth be told, she couldn't care that much for this situation. Her brother had done harm to her as well and her mother only saw the good, if that's even possible, in Jins. That would only explain why her mother never came down to help her when she was shoved into this cellar. "You're pathetic." Max huffs and steps over her father, whose still laying on the ground turning into a puddle of uselessness. One hand stays on the walls as she feels her knees buckling from under her. There is no smile or greeting coming for the man. Instead, she simply stares at him, afraid to really say anything. Her curious mind wonders if he's mad at her for missing their lessons. In a moments notice, he gently scoops her up into his arms and she feels herself release all of the tension in her body. One hand goes up to reach around his neck, almost pleadingly like she was trying to keep him from dropping her. "Thank you..." Is all that comes out. She gently places her head against his chest and takes in a few deep breaths and grimaces when he cheek rubs against his shirt. "Ow." Is all she says as she pulls he head and strains to keep it from touching his shirt again as they walk. Daylight hits her eyes and she flinches, covering her face with her hand until she gets used to the light. She blinks several times before looking up to the man carrying her. "I swear, I didn't do anything, Max. And I didn't want to miss our sparring lessons. I didn't have any choice." Revenue Mom - 19e6e5 Revenue Dad - c03e38 Olivia - d3c82c Maximilian Stahl - 45583a

[Artemis]

Max's pace didn't slow as he left the cellar, carrying Olivia up the stairs and towards the front door; Mrs. Revenue just stood in the hall, looking between him and her husband laying on the floor blubbering about his son.

He didn't dare look back; if he did, he was going to go back into that cellar and give a blubbering Mr. Revenue some ugly bruises to match the ones that he'd obviously put on his daughter, and a metaphorical boot up the ass as to what kind of man his son really was.

Now really wasn't the time for that.

Olivia's arms curled around his neck and thank god she didn't get all creepy and snuggly like that Peyton girl who apparently had a thing for sweaty older guys, as if afraid of being dropped; as if he could, she was so much smaller than Max was (he almost wondered if she was smaller than Kaiser) it wasn't much of a strain to pick her up. The dog in question trotted dutifully next to him, looking up every other second at Olivia is if the split second he looked away she might be better.

"Ow."

She winced at laying her head on his chest, fighting to stay upright in his hold and flinching at the bright sunlight. The visor of Max's helmet transitioned from the amber used in the low light of the house to the dark tint that obscured his face as the sun hit it; the badge on his chest gleamed as brightly as the new silver bars on his collar.

"I swear, I didn't do anything, Max. And I didn't want to miss our sparring lessons. I didn't have any choice."

Why she felt the need to justify her absence in the face of such obvious evidence, Max didn't know (nor did he know why she still called him by his first name, but by this point he already had about a thousand insulting nicknames for her in turn).

"I know." Max replied simply, mind already racing as to what he was going to do next.

Obviously she couldn't stay here; Max would have to return with backup so Olivia could collect her things, while he would probably have to run the administrative gauntlet to set her up with a foster family. The community home would be out of the question; it wouldn't break her in half like some kids, Olivia was made of a sterner stuff, but it would probably ruin her if it was anything like the one in District 8.

"First things first, someone has to look at that." He said, referring to the bruises on her face, "We'll be back another time... with reinforcements."

19e6e5 - Georgia Revenue
45583a - Maximilian Stahl
c03e38 - Nicholas Revenue
ddf347 - Olivia Revenue

[*]

To justify her actions and reasons as to why she missed the lesson were needed to be explained to her mentor. She understood how important their training was becoming. How she thoroughly enjoyed every moment that she was with him just because he didn't treat her as a kid. He treated her as an adult and expected her to behave as one. Despite the banter between them, it actually seems to be part of who they truely were and it was normal for them. How they were meant to be friends and live the day to day life in order for it to make any sense at all. For Olivia, he was the glue that held her life together. She was just glad that he decided to stick around long enough to help her out of this fiasco. However, the only responce she gets from Max for her absence is simply nothing more than just, "I know". She keeps her head far enough away from the rough, thick fabric of his shirt so that it don't touch the incredibly sensitive area. As sunlight hits her face, she makes herself adjust to it after not seeing it for quite a few hours while she had been stashed away in the cellar. What compelled her father to do that was beyond her own ability to create a thought process for that. "First things first, someone has to look at that." He simply states and the curiosity within her peaks to find out just how badly she looked for him to say that. "We'll be back another time... with reinforcements." "That bad?" She questions him. A simple groan comes next as she settles for the worst possible outcome from what he'd say. Halfway to the precinct, she felt her mind retreating into the recesses of sleep, but fought against the want. She didn't want to sleep nor did she want to alarm her trainer of anything that could be wrong. She felt fine except for the marks on her face still stinging as if they were freshly done. She didn't feel dizzy anymore and the light had finally adjusted to her eyes so that when she looked up to her savior, he wasn't at all blurry. "You're quiet, Chief. What's wrong?" The precinct came into view and soon enough, the breeze of the cool room hit her again as if she were back in the cellar; a shiver taking her body hostage for a moment. "Hey. Look what the captain dragged in." One male voice calls out as he shuffles to sit something down and a one step closer to the man. "Isn't that your new little recruit? What happened to her? Need to take her to medical?" Some woman asks from across the room. Olivia looks out for a moment before turning her face back into the shirt despite the pain. Anything to get rid of the comments she was bout to receive. She wasn't about to start answering them herself, so in order to do so, she closed her eyes and winced against the pain his shirt was causing. Olivia - d3c82c Maximilian Stahl - 45583a 19e629 - 2nd Lt. Devereaux(W) ff8500 - SSGT Caius‏

[Artemis]

Max's mind was going a million miles a minute, and the majority of the thoughts racing through his head involved the various beatdowns he could give Mr. Revenue for apparently taking the loss of his son out on his daughter.

Unfortunately, he was no stranger to being stabbed in the back by someone who was supposed to care about you; Max wasn't about to start drawing parallels, or he very well would put Olivia down and turn back to give her father a piece of his mind (and a lot of his fists).

He wasn't sure how long Olivia had been down in the cellar for, but the fact that she seemed to be trying so very hard to keep from laying her head on his chest could only mean the damage on her face was worse than it appeared, or she had been down there for a while. Either way, he was seriously weighing his hatred of red tape against the potential satisfaction of ramming his boot up someone's ass; Mrs. Revenue seemed more or less helpless, with her husband as the instigator.

So far as he knew, for now.

"You're quiet, Chief. What's wrong?"

Dumbest rhetorical question ever.

At some point, Olivia had taken to referring to him as 'Chief' (rather than 'sir', like she was supposed to address an officer), but Max had long since passed the point of caring. He, in turn, had about a thousand insulting nicknames for her when she got too informal (like when she called him by first name); most often he called her Runt, for the sole reason that it pissed her off as much as it angered him to be called Max.

The precinct was mercifully sparsely populated, with only a handful of staff milling around; it was a slow day, though it was about to pick up.

"Hey. Look what the captain dragged in."

Max rolled his eyes just before the visor went amber again and revealed his features; Staff Sergeant Caius was a decent enough guy and good at his job from years of practice, but he wasn't nearly as funny as he thought he was.

"Isn't that your new little recruit? What happened to her? Need to take her to medical?" The 2nd Lieutenant chimed in, walking towards him with concern on her features.

By comparison, 2nd Lt. Devereaux was fresh out of her training command, and though she had rank over Caius was utterly lacking the saltiness that had earned him respect. The only indication this kitten of a woman was even a Peacekeeper was the truly terrifying about-face her personality pulled when she put on her 'command voice'.

"Old Man Revenue had her locked in the cellar," Max growled, not slowing his face as he moved down the hall towards medical, "Once one of the medics has patched her up, I want 2 Peacekeepers ready to go to retrieve her belongings; Caius, I need you to find somewhere for her to stay, other than the community home."

He didn't wait around for the 'yessir' that indicated his orders were going to be executed; Caius and Devereaux were both competent and knew of Max's reputation for having zero tolerance for ineptitude. The only thing that would stop them from delivering the results he wanted was hell and high water.

45583a - Maximilian Stahl
19e629 - 2nd Lt. Devereaux
ff8500 - SSGT Caius‏
ddf347 - Olivia Revenue

_{Salty- slang for someone in the military who's had lots of experience/time in service}

[*]

She laid her face against Max's shirt despite the pain. No amount of pain could compare to the embarrassment that was flooding her cheeks at the moment as the questions started rolling in. She seemed to just want to disappear from the room and away from the accusing eyes. Surely, they thought she'd done something wrong for at least a moment. She was being carried in by someone who seemed as much of a hardass as ever and to care for someone like this? She must be this criminal in his arms. Just the feeling of the two people in the room seemed to prickle her skin. What was more unsettling was what Max told them next. Her predicament wasn't as sober as he made it seem. She'd been down there for going on two days where it was musty. It wasn't terribly cold, but she was just glad to have gotten out of there before the second night. What was worse was her apetite that kept growing. At the moment, food wasn't on her mind at all, even though her body was craving it. "Old Man Revenue had her locked in the cellar. Once one of the medics has patched her up, I want 2 peacekeepers ready to go retrieve her belongings; Caius, I need you to find somewhere for her to stay, other than the community home." At first, she wanted to shake her head. A new home? A foster home? How was she going to live there? Her home was with the two people that were grieving for their son; her brother. That's where she's lived for fifteen years. How can she possibly start living somewhere else all of a sudden. "Chief. Please... I don't want to live with someone else. No one would want me." Her voice chimed out in such a low, hurtful tone. For a moment, she looked up to Max and then dropped her eyes. "Guess the punishments not overwith yet." She grins, half-heartedly. Again, her head rolls over into Max's shirt and she becomes silent again as they enter the medical unit and a man coming over to greet them. "Sir. What's going on here?" A hand is placed gently on Olivia's arm as he takes in the sight of the young girl as she turns over and his eyes fall upon her bruised face. "Miss? I'm Private First Class Mullo. Do you mind if I ask you a few questions?" He looks to Stahl and furrows his brows before continuing. "Can you tell me what happened?" For a moment, Olivia stared at him, then retreated back into her mind. "I'd rather not." He turns to Stahl. Olivia - d3c82c Maximilian Stahl - 45583a 19e629 - 2nd Lt. Devereaux(W) ff8500 - SSGT Caius‏ fcc96b - PFC Mullo (npc-doc)

[Artemis]

Max didn't usually deal much in medical beyond mandatory annual check-ups; the place reeked of antiseptic (and disallowed Kaiser from following him), and the staff was usually a stark contrast to the veterinary staff he was used to being around. Some of them genuinely cared for their jobs; outside the Peacekeeper Corps, most people's only shot at medicine was to become a healer or apothecary. Others, however, were shoved into the profession simply because that's what the papers showed they had aptitude, but not necessarily passion for.

Most of them, regardless of bedside manner (or lack thereof) were junior enlisted that fancied themselves full-fledged nurses or doctors, with no more authority than to prescribe generic painkillers and icepacks.

Bedside manner, if it existed at all, tended to be a little... weird.

"Sir. What's going on here?"

This one, at least, seemed to be one of those metaphorical diamonds in the rough, sounding immediately concerned as he came up to Olivia and touched her arm, frowning seeing the bruises on her face. Max's (human) first aid training was incredibly rusty, and for all he knew Mr. Revenue may have broken bones in Olivia's face; he could only guess at the pain she had to endure hiding in his shirt from Devereaux and Caius.

"Miss? I'm Private First Class Mullo. Do you mind if I ask you a few questions?"

The PFC ushered them into one of the patient rooms, where Max put Olivia down on the padded table and watched as Mullo fluttered around the room rattling medical implements around in the drawers before pulling out a clipboard with some papers on it and a pen light.

"Can you tell me what happened?"

Olivia looked at Max, as if expecting him to know the answer and speak on her behalf, before looking away again.

"I'd rather not."

Mullo looked at Max, a little confused to have a patient that wasn't going to be forthcoming about the injuries on her face. Max sighed, trying not to be annoyed by his recruit-to-be's sudden and rather uncharacteristic shyness.

"Now isn't the time to be clamming up," He said finally, his tone even but indicating that he wasn't about to take 'no' for an answer, "I'll leave, or fetch a female medic if you don't want to talk about it in front of me, but we're not leaving until the doctor on duty has given you the all-clear."

It was more than just a statement; to Mullo, it was an order not to allow the patient to leave without a written clean bill of health (or, more likely, a report of injuries that Max could use to bring the hammer of the law down on Revenue).

In any case, since Olivia obviously wasn't safe at home, Max was going to have his work cut out for him finding someplace else for her to live. The community home was out of the question; even with Max as Olivia's sponsor, his rank probably would afford her protection so much as draw the ire of the other kids. Foster homes were notoriously hit-and-miss; he and Caius would be digging for a bit to find one suitable.

Which, of course, also begged the question where she'd stay in the meantime. Devereaux might be an option, or one of the handful of female officers he knew worked around his office. Max had no roommate to speak of in his barracks, but he liked his space and privacy... And he sincerely doubted a female recruit-to-be shacking up with her male recruiter (regardless of their age difference or said recruiter's infamously misanthropic disposition) would be well looked-upon.

45583a - Maximilian Stahl
19e629 - 2nd Lt. Devereaux
ff8500 - SSGT Caius‏
ddf347 - Olivia Revenue
fcc96b - PFC Mullo

[*]

Her eyes keep closed the entire time as they make their way into the medical office. The man, whose hand gently laid on Olivia's arm, seemed overly concerned for the girl's health and even more so when she turned her face away from Max's chest and irritating shirt to give the man a small dose of the pain she was in. The bruising on her face showing just how much embarrassment she was enduring to be looked at by a doctor or student, alike. Her atttitude came off just enough that her sudden shyness was also a factor in the way the PFC turned to Max for answers. What followed wasn't what Olivia wanted at all, though. "Now isn't the time to be clamming up. I"ll leave, or fetch a female medic if you dont' want to talk about it in front of me, but we're not leaving until the doctor on duty has given you the all-clear." Max's voice was stern; caring in a way, but concern seemed to click within her as well. "Don't leave." She began, begging almost to Max not to leave her with this strange person. There might have been more than just that reason that she was begging him not to go, but the main factor was that she was uneasy around the smell of the room. Fear seemed to raise the hair on her neck just a smidge to be put on the table where she felt completely open and on stage in front of everyone, despite it just being two people. Her whole life was about to come rolling out for all to know. It was something that she desperately didn't want to happen. Her eyes closed gently for a moment and her body swayed in the upright position that she was placed in. For a moment, she seemed to be asleep before her eyes opened again, and ever so gently, she laid herself down on the medical table, propping her head on her arm. Her eyes scanning from Max to the medic before she finally began to speak through her cracking voice. "He hit me with my own staff... several times. Didn't hurt that much, though. I'm pretty sturdy." She shrugged slightly, grimacing as she did, forgetting about the pain that came with it when she did. "Got shoved into a wall... my left shoulder feels like it's busted or something. I'm not sure. I just remember not being able to feel it for about an hour, just a lot of numbness." "Mhm." The medics voice came out and looked to Max for a moment. "I would like to put her into a dressing gown so I can check her shoulder. Do a full assessment on any more wounds or bruises that might have come up?" He turned back to Olivia and gave her a gentle nod and placed his hand on her arm only to have her hiss out slightly and pull her hand away from him. His sight befell upon the hand and finger shaped bruise that outlined her arm. An apology comes out for the girl as he gently takes her opposite arm and gently presses his fingers against her wrist. With a shake of his head he turned to Max. "She might need to stay here overnight if she has no where else to go, Sir. Just so we can keep an eye on her. Make sure that she starts to heal, unless she has a safe place to stay and with someone that can watch over her?" "Quit talking as if I'm not in the room." A sudden aggravated voice pulls out. Can I have some water... please? I'm so thirsty." She asked, voicing a need and the medic responded and gave in to her request. "Of course." He mentioned and started to look at her with more of a keen eye. "Miss, did they give you any provisions? Food... or water?" Olivia looked to the medic and then let her eyes fall downward as she gently shook her head 'no'. Another question was posed by the man asking how long she'd been down there and once again, the young girl's shyness came out for several moments before she voiced the answer. "Almost.. two days? I think..." "You're a very brave, strong girl. Tell you what, I'll be right back, Okay? I'm going to bring you something to drink and a blanket. You seem like you're cold to me. Sir, might I have a word with you outside, please?" Mullo asked Captain Stahl as he kind of gave a nod to the direction of the doors that led outside the room. Once outside, the PFC turned to Max and greeted him with folded arms and a stunned face. "She's been abused, right? The girl is seriously dehydrated or on the verge of it already. Her skin is cool to the touch. Palpatations. The bruises on her body seem worst then she's letting on, but we're going to take xrays and I'll have a female medic check her over as well. Make sure we're not missing anything. She needs IV fluids as soon as possible before she gets any worse. Normally, the human body can go two to four days without water, but the conditions have to be taken into effect. Someone as small as her... I'm surprised she's doing this well. Do you consent for the IV fluids?" He quickly takes a swift step back and glancing in the room at the girl laying on the table, whose eyes had found nothing but a blank stare in the empty room. Olivia - d3c82c Maximilian Stahl - 45583a 19e629 - 2nd Lt. Devereaux(W) ff8500 - SSGT Caius‏ fcc96b - PFC Mullo (npc-doc)

[Artemis]

The reaction to Max's offer to leave was almost instantaneous, and a little startling considering how quiet and lethargic Oliva had been up to this point, begging him not to go.

His hands came up defensively.

"Fine, I'll stay," He replied, "But only as long as you cooperate with the doctors."

Max knew full well how stubborn his recruit could be, and for the moment he was in no kind of a mood to be wasting time bantering when he could be preparing an arrest warrant for Mr. Revenue.

Olivia went quiet, laying down on the table and curling up with her head pillowed on her arm very much like a kid, and for a moment Max felt his pulse quicken fearing the damage was greater than the bruises on her face indicated.

"He hit me with my own staff... several times. Didn't hurt that much, though. I'm pretty sturdy. Got shoved into a wall... my left shoulder feels like it's busted or something. I'm not sure. I just remember not being able to feel it for about an hour, just a lot of numbness."

So he hadn't touched her; Max breathed an internal sigh of relief, though his anger didn't dissipate in the least knowing a grown man had beaten his tiny teenage daughter with a wooden staff (the one Max had given her, no less). Mullo looked appropriately dismayed at the description of Olivia's ordeal, though it was apparent that he had no idea who this 'he' was.

"She might need to stay here overnight if she has no where else to go, Sir. Just so we can keep an eye on her. Make sure that she starts to heal, unless she has a safe place to stay and with someone that can watch over her?"

"I'm still working on that." Max replied with a roll of his eyes, reminded that he hadn't even begun on the project of finding Olivia a new home.

"Quit talking as if I'm not in the room."

At least her attitude hadn't completely faltered; maybe the damage wasn't as bad as they thought.

"... Can I have some water... please? I'm so thirsty."

Max didn't speak, watching quietly as the medic fetched his recruit some water and fussed over her, turning the bedside manner up to 11. No wonder she was so unresponsive then; apparently, Mr. Revenue had planned on starving or dehydrating her until... Max didn't know what, but he had no desire to think about it.

"Sir, might I have a word with you outside, please?"

Commanding Kaiser to stay in the room with Olivia, Max stepped outside; patient confidentially trumped rank, but sheseemed incredibly anxious at the prospect of being left alone. He didn't have time to ask what Mullo's assessment was before the medic was launching into a laundry list of things to do.

"She's been abused, right? The girl is seriously dehydrated or on the verge of it already. Her skin is cool to the touch. Palpitations. The bruises on her body seem worse than she's letting on, but we're going to take xrays and I'll have a female medic check her over as well. Make sure we're not missing anything. She needs IV fluids as soon as possible before she gets any worse. Normally, the human body can go two to four days without water, but the conditions have to be taken into effect. Someone as small as her... I'm surprised she's doing this well. Do you consent for the IV fluids?"

"Just do whatever you have to do." He growled, mentally cataloguing the damage to write into a report when he returned to ram his boot up Revenue's ass.

"Yessir."

Mullo turned to go find a female medic, leaving Max to keep an eye on Olivia. Kaiser's ears perked up as his master re-entered her room, having stationed himself in front of her sickbed. It wasn't until now that his hands were free and his mind wasn't running a thousand miles a minute that he could take off his helmet, smoothing his hair back into place with a sigh.

What a mess this whole situation was. It was taking a herculean amount of effort not to pepper Olivia with questions about what had happened in the two days she'd spent basically as a prisoner.

The female medic was bustling through the door before he had a chance to say anything, Mullo in tow. She was probably in her early thirties, salt-and-pepper hair pulled nearly back into a bun and wearing First Sergeant insignia on the sleeves of her scrubs.

"Males, out." Her voice pleasant, but her tone indicating she wasn't going to take 'no' for an answer.

Max stood with a sigh, leaving Kaiser at his post.

"I'll be outside. The dog stays if she wants him."

45583a - Maximilian Stahl
19e629 - 2nd Lt. Devereaux
00b49f - First Sgt. Hestia
ff8500 - SSGT Caius‏
d3c82c - Olivia Revenue
fcc96b - PFC Mullo

[*]

Olivia's honey colored eyes watched the PFC retrieve a glass of water just as he had promised he would do, as well as grabbing a blanket from one of the cabinets. Warmth seems to overtake her suddenly when the blanket was placed over her weakened state. It seemed calming enough to put her into a state of complete silence as the two men walked out and the dog was allowed to stay. With them out of the room, her ears tried to catch any sort of sound or words that would make sense about what was going to happen to her. Would they throw her out as soon as she was well enough or keep her until they found a place? Maybe they would even send her back home with a thorough investigation to come? "Kaiser..." Her voice crumbled as she silently held a hand out for Kaiser's nose to touch and with that gentle touch, she retracted her arm and watched silently as he stayed guard for her. Only when she began to stare at Kaiser long enough to make her eyes go fuzzy, the peacekeeper that she'd entrusted with her life, walked back in and releived himself of the helmet. For the first time today, she looked at him as he smoothed his hair back and seemed rather upset and judging by the silence, thought it was directed to her. "Chief." She muttered and looked to him with a look of embarrassment. Though, she was promptly interrupted by the entrance of two people, Mullo and then another older woman who seemed to have an air of confidence wafting about. "Males, out." She demanded in a respectable voice. For a moment, Olivia's eyes moved quickly to Max as if she was about ready to ask him to stay again before his voice filled her ears and offered Kaiser to sit with her. "I'll be outside. The dog stays if she wants him." "Kaiser stays..." She whispers out and once again, puts her hand out for Kaiser's nose to touch before he seemed to take guard again at her bedside. With the two men out of the door, the woman medic set to work by going to a cabinet and pulling out a dressing gown for her to change into. "I'm First Sgt. Hestia. Seems as though you've been quite a troublemaker for Captain Stahl." Her voice comes across stern, yet by the grin that's starting to appear on her face, Olivia's watch on her suddenly shifts and comfort takes over for some reason. "Don't worry. He won't faint out there. Let's take care of you first. Do you need some help getting into the gown or do you want me to turn around?" The woman offers Olivia something most people wouldn't; respect. The first sargeant lays the gown on the table and waits for the answer from Olivia. "Please?" She asks, as she moves up to sit on the table. Very gently, Olivia peels her way out of the shirt with some assistance when her shoulder won't cooperate and allow her arm to lift up enough to make it over her head. "Easy now." The woman coaxes and eases the shirt off the girl as her eyes befall upon several bruises that are noticable on her back, along with the deep color of the bruising on her shoulder. "Miss Olivia. How did you get the injury to your shoulder?" "I fell down the stairs?" Olivia makes a sly comment, although it seems to make the woman raise her eyebrow and question her responce. "Seriously. I'm not lying. I got throw down into the cellar. Hit the wall..." With a nod, the woman helped to assist Olivia with the rest of the removal of the shirt and the bottoms as well. "I'm just going to do a few things. We'll go ahead and do a few xrays and see what's ailing your shoulder and we'll take one of your face as well. Just want to make sure that there's nothing broken. First, I want to start an IV. Even if you're drinking, your body is severly lacking and you're dehydrated. It's the fastest way for you to feel better. I'm sure you feel weak and tired, right?" She looks to Olivia when she nods and gives her a nod as well. "That's because your body needs to be replinished what its lost. You'll feel much better when you've rested and gotten fluids." "Will you let Ma... I mean, Stahl back in?" Hestia gets up from her chair and walks to the door and makes a motion for Max to join in again. "Just fixing to do x-rays. Iv fluids are going to be started in just a minute, Sir." She adds, pulling out the materials needed to get the needle ready and getting the bag to sit beside the bed. "Hey Chief... can I come home with you tonight? I don't want to stay here." Olivia asks, as the woman takes her arm and angles it the way she needs as she gives a warning before the needle goes in and Olivia's eyes squint hard and her breath ceases with a light whimper. Olivia - d3c82c Maximilian Stahl - 45583a 19e629 - 2nd Lt. Devereaux(W) ff8500 - SSGT Caius‏ fcc96b - PFC Mullo (npc-doc) 00b49f - First Sgt. Hestia