Dear Diary,

"The strong do not need Vengeance, Because they can get Justice, Vengeance is all the weak get." - Tabitha Diaz, Doctrine of Tabitha, Book of Vengeance

In the sixth Verse of the Book of Vengeance, Tabitha explains another facet of Vengeance, focusing on who needs it and who does not. Much like those who have not fallen do not need Redemption, and those who do not kill need not Justify the Homicide they do not do, those who get Justice do not need Vengeance. As our Goddess points out, those with the power can seek and expect to get Justice, and thus ought to do so as she has said in earlier verses. For those without the power to get Justice for themselves, without Champions or Heroes or Clergy they can reliably turn to who will seek it for them, Vengance is the final resort to balance the scales. - Priestess Most High Above All Others, Archmage Imperator Saffron Aetos-Diaz, Commentary on the Doctrine of Tabitha

Yeah, I kinda remember this one. I haven't thought about this a lot, but everybody I care deeply about is kinda part of 'the strong' now. Or one remove from it, and likely to join that group eventually. Seriously, my nightly bed partners include two heads of state, two Archmages, and one Demigoddess. Which isn't too shabby what with there only being four of them.

Okay, sidebar, I have four partners who are all cool with one another, and that just boggles my fuckin' mind. It's not some kind of weird starfish pattern, either, because Saffron and Marie are absolutely as in love with one another as I am with both of them. If our relationships with Siobhan are maybe a little bit Dom and Sub, that's not really saying that they don't have one with her. Okay, some part of me is little worried that she'll wind up getting overworked, which she did, but not once did she get upset about three of us all using her as a chew toy.

Wait, no, I'm wrong, but the one time I can remember was when we all decided it was time to feed the Siobhan, and didn't coordinate, so we overstuffed her. Other than that, though, we're all interconnected, and if the different connections are different, we're each different people, so we're all going to connect differently. Which sounds tautological, but I don't think it is. It doesn't feel that way, and lets face it, most of what I'm doing here is tryna sort out how I feel and why, so I can maybe start being a better person. Well, I've started, but I want to continue getting better.

Tallulah... okay, she joined our little family because we kinda stole her daughter, although she agreed to it, so I'm not sure it counts as stealing. She's since decided that she wants Divine mojo in her next crotch goblin, which means she and I practice the act now and then. I'm pretty sure she and Saffron have done the same, and nobody living in the same house as Marie is likely to wind up un-Maried for long. Not sure if Tallulah and Siobhan are more than housemates, but then I'm not tryna make sure that everybody connects to everybody else that way, just that everybody's happy with whatever connections they've got to everybody else in our little family.

Shit, I think people might wind up a lot happier if they focused on 'is my partner happy with our partnership' than 'are my partner's erogenous zones my exclusive stomping grounds'.

So to return from the sidebar, my partners are fully capable of seeking Justice for themselves, and if Siobhan is a little shy, the other four of us are varying flavors of 'not shy', and we'll make sure that Justice happens for her if she can't. The same goes for our kids, although Isnomi probably has way more ability along those lines than I'd like to think about. Shit, she's got not one but two outright Deities in her High Clergy roster. Ria's taking spear lessons from Lenny Lancaster, who took on a four vee one against New Amsterdam Heroes like it weren't no thing, and Maze literally tried to drown me as an introduction. Yeah, she needed me to get Vengeance against me, but that'd be true of just about anybody.

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But all that boils down to 'I'm rich and powerful now'. Which just is so weird. I know, when I decided to really stick with the Academy Hero program, my whole reason was 'get rich or die trying', but let's face it, I'm me. I absolutely expected that the result would be 'die trying'. Fuck, I think that might be why I don't really feel 'rich and powerful'. Despite all the wacky bullshit I've pulled, despite wiping four Dragons and three Gods, not to mention maiming The Morrigan and Diana, as well as suborning Diana and Canta, despite all that I still feel like there's a Sword of Damocles hanging over my head. No particular reason, although every time I spot a new danger or something unexpected, I wind up thinking 'this is it, this is the thing that's gonna finally end my streak'.

So the new girls are really starting to show more personality than just nom poop sleep bots. Okay, Isadora is still mostly that, but she's more 'dedicated milk gourmand' than 'hunger elemental' now. Hailee is a little clingy, but she's a quiet, calm kind of clingy, so I'm down for it. Also, she's cute and quiet about it. Anise is the daring one. First out and all that. Borysthenis has been living up to her name for the past day, yowling whenever she wants a tit, needs a change, or anything else isn't right in her tiny baby world. Erato... isn't exactly a follower. More she watches the others, figures out which of them is getting what she wants, then does whatever they're doing. Calliope grumbles a lot. Okay, 'grumbles' probably isn't the right word, because it doesn't sound like she's upset. Just like she's discovered that her mouth can make noises, and it fascinates her. Garde follows Anise around like a sidekick, although Anise doesn't seem to mind, so I'm good with that. Felicia seems like she naps a lot. Might just be growing or something, although that's true of all of them. Like fuckin' weeds.

Adorable, fuzzy, loveable weeds.

Can't wait until they're on solid foods. Not so much 'I want to stop breastfeeding', more 'I'd like to not be doing it thirty six hours a day'. Also, I kinda want to see what kind of foods they like. I'm guessing meat, because they're all getting pointy little teeth, but not nearly as 'oops, all fangs' as Marie.

Brought home more favorites for the girls last night, just to make sure they knew, deep in their bones, that me spending all that time with the kittens wasn't gonna make me forget about them. Sushi, eggy grilled cheese, salads, fried fish, more paninis, pretty much everything except pizza. That's tomorrow. Probably most of the weekend, too.

Took the kittens up to the Bath again. I'm not sure from healthy, but it's definitely keeping their general butt regions cleaner than they otherwise would be. Fuzzy butts are unpleasantly capable of getting poo stuck in the fuzz, which is a special kind of suck.

Dreamt of my ladies completely back to what passes for normal in Mimic Dreams. Which are literally happening in M-Space just past the West Tower, which freaks me out a little when I think about it while I'm awake. Fortunately, that whole unmedicated ADHD thing means I'm really good at not thinking about things that aren't right in front of my face.

Woke up and delivered folks to work for the day, accompanying all of them, plus a few of me staying with the kids. It's weird, I think they can tell whether I'm paying attention or not, but it seems like they're okay with me being there but not, if you see what I mean. The kittens might not realize, I'm not sure, but the others all do.

I did remember about the whole Boltophsberg briefing; after lunch I asked Saffron about it. She opened her mouth, closed, it, then shook her head. "I could brief you now, if you like, but I'd prefer waiting until this evening."

"Sure. Why?"

"I'm involved in a finicky bit of Shaping at the moment, and need to focus on it." Also, not only are there anti-scrying protections on the Homestead, Tallulah can assist with ensuring our privacy.

That left me a little bit not copacetic, wondering about the current location of that fuckin' sword hanging over me, but I just nuzzled her neck and nodded.

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