Global Connectvity and Cyberwarfare Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Global Connectvity and Cyberwarfare - Assignment Example Increasing interconnectivity through World Wide Web and easy availability of cyber warfare tools makes it difficult to differentiate between domestic or foreign source of cyber warfare. Our adversary has the ability to change multimedia files or change public thinking by digitally manipulating the information (O’ Hara 4). The cyber warfare is never relaxed and the war remains on for 24 hours in a day. Traditional way of intelligence gathering is outdated for this sort of warfare. The same way analysis can not be carried basing on the information. Current intelligence organizations can not gain such information in cyber warfare (O’ Hara 4). This warfare does not have any boundaries. No warning for intentions and attack can be obtained before a cyber crime actually happens. Coalition can be established easily with other countries because the technical experts of other nations may not be able to handle warfare and secure own system as well (O’ Hara 5). The cyber warfare is not useful until it physically damages the target. Cyber warfare operations are not stealth operations. Countries with more advanced technologies can detect and trace the destination of cyber crime. Cyber terrorism is more pronounced because the attacker attacks and vanishes after getting the desired information. Such attack can be traced and sometimes it can not be traced (Billo & Chang 17). Billo, Charles & Chang, Welton. Cyber Warfare an Analysis of the Means and Motivations of Selected Nation States. Institute for Security Technology Studies at Dartmouth College, 2004. Accessed 30 April 2012.

Spirituality And Mental Illness Psychology Essay

Spirituality And Mental Illness Psychology Essay Spirituality is a part of human experience. It often stands as one integral aspect of ones cultural or religious orientation. Likewise, spirituality may also represent ones individual choice, belief, and behavior. Both in terms of traditional and conventional healthcare, there are three aspects of human well-being that should be taken care of: physical, mental, and spiritual health. Physical is for the body, mental is for the mind, and psychic health is for the spirit (Jeitschko et al., 2005). However, in the present idea of healthcare, the thrust of healthcare efforts is given to physical health. However, the other two components also play integral roles in the achievement of humans overall (external and internal) well-being. Oftentimes, these two are overlooked. Although courses of religion and spirituality are common in most medical schools and pastoral care is provided in some hospitals, health policies and insurance in mental healthcare is severely restricted in ways that physical healthcare is not and moreover, to emphasize, very little healthcare is provided for the spiritual healthcare (Jeitschko et al., 2005). Yet, Jeitschko et al (2005) claimed that spiritual claim has repeatedly observed to be an important factor and correlated for the health of both body and minds health. In this paper, we look into the importance of spiritual health as a prerequisite towards mental health improvement and maintenance- to prevent and to treat mental illnesses. First, we describe a brief overview of the situation concerning mental disorders and illnesses as a global phenomenon. Third, we define and contextualize spirituality as a prerequisite to overall spiritual health. Lastly, we discuss how spirituality has been used to 1) prevent a vast array of mental illnesses and 2) treat various cases of mental disability and other psychiatric ability. Mental Illness: A Situation Overview While each is a separate aspect, spirituality and mental well-being are viewed as closely-related, if not dependent to each other. This may be because both are internal mechanisms that may not be measured by medical apparatuses, may not diagnosed via single medical procedure, and cannot be treated by measurable doses of medicine. Rather, these are brought about by internal mechanisms that exist along a continuum of attitudes and behavior. Mental health and mental illness exist along a continuum of attitude and behavior. This covers a wide array of mental diagnostic categories, from mild conditions like depression to more serious cases such as schizophrenic disorders (OBrien, 2003). The main components of looking into mental disorder are: internal psychological dysfunctions, unexpected response to a social phenomenon, and differentiation from deviant behavior. Nonetheless, the universal component of mental illness is the dysfunction of some internal psychological mechanism. Examples of these dysfunctions occur in systems of cognition, thinking, perception, motivation, emotion, language, and memory (Horwitz, 2002). Millions of people all over the world suffer from mental illnesses and adverse mental health. As of 2002, 154 million suffer from depression, 50 million from epilepsy, 25 million from schizophrenia, and 24 million people suffer from Alzheimer and other dementias. It was also observed that 25% visiting healthcare services suffer from mental, neurological and behavioral disorders but most of these cases are not diagnosed and treated. Moreover, people with these disorders are oftentimes subjected to social isolation, decreased quality of life, and increased mortality (WHO, 2010). Barriers of effective mental treatment can be traced into two factors: 1) lack of recognition of the seriousness of mental illnesses among patients, and 2) lack of understanding about the benefits of having cost-effective mental illness treatment. This alleviated by the fact that in most middle and low income countries devote less than 1% of their budget to mental health (WHO, 2010). Defining Spirituality Before going farther in this paper, it is necessary to first define spirituality and to bring forth its importance. Spirituality is defined first by differentiating the concept with that of religion. Religion is strictly linked to formal religious institutions. On the other hand, spirituality does not depend on formal institutions but comes from initiatives of an individual. The similarities of spirituality and religion both focus on belief, sacred, divine entities, and the resulting behaviors and practices and spiritual consciousness. However, this arbitrary definition does not provide comprehensive delineation of the two concepts (George, 2000). National Institute of Healthcare Research (NIHR) defined spirituality as the feelings, thoughts, experiences, and behaviors that arise from search for the sacred. In this definition, search encompasses identifying, transforming, and maintaining. Terms such as knowing, understanding, and embodying can be used as synonyms to search based on this context. Sacred refers to divine being, higher power, and ultimate truth as perceived by the individual collective reinforcement and identity. Hence, from this definition of spirituality, the distinctive characteristic of religion is collective reinforcement and identity (George, 2010). Another comprehensive definition of spirituality came from Murray and Zenter (1989): à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦spirituality dimension, a quality that goes beyond religious affiliation that strives for inspiration, reverence, awe, meaning and purpose, even in those who do not believe in God comes essentially into focus in times of emotional stress, physical and mental illness, loss, bereavement and death. From these definitions, spirituality can be summarized in three elements: comes from within an individual and not collective affiliations; goal-oriented: search, inspiration, well-being, and embodiment of belief; come in times of emotional stress and mental distress. Spiritual Healthcare The idea that spirituality is an initiative of an individual comes with the expectation that there is a wide array of spiritual healthcare procedures depending on how individuals perceive its importance and the procedures encompassing it. Hence, to take care of spiritual health, the individual should be able to have the following skills: being able to create peaceful state of mind, ability to stay alert, attentive, and mentally focused in present circumstances, develop above average empathy and to grieve appropriately and then let go afterwards. Moreover, spiritual values include kindness, compassion, generosity, tolerance, creativity, wisdom, honesty, humility, and patience (Culliford, 2002). Some of the elements of spiritual care include: environment of purposeful activity; feelings of safety and security, dignity, belonging and acceptance; having opportunities and encouragement to express feelings and thoughts; and to receive permission, encouragement to develop relationship with God or Absolute and to receive place and privacy for prayers worship, and spiritual education; and to derive meaning from illness experiences (Culliford, 2006). Spirituality for Prevention and Cure of Mental Illness Throughout history, mental illness was closely related to religious faith, demonic possessions and magical enchantments. In a very long time in history, mental illness was misunderstood and misinterpreted and people suspected to have mental disorders were subjected to cruel procedures. In prehistory mental illness perceived to come from supernatural and magical spirits that disrupt minds. Shamans tried to cure mental illness through performing rituals, casting spells, and using mind-altering drugs. Trepanning, or drilling a hole on patients skull to release or exorcise bad spirits. However, fossils show that new bones grew to cover the holes and high survival rates were observed (Thomson, 2007). Ancient Egyptians were the first to implement a form of mental healthcare and the first to cure a patient identified to have mental illness. Temples and temple complexes served as mental hospitals. Mental treatment procedures include: psychiatric texts, rites, rituals and prayers. Egyptians were also able to decipher that mental illness that time was caused by loss of money and status; hence, they suggested that talk therapy will be an effective treatment procedure (Thomson, 2007). However, due to advances in technology, rapid evolution of the society and paradigm shifts in terms of mental illnesses, spirituality becomes a forgotten dimension of mental healthcare (Culliford, 2002). Spirituality, as prevention and treatment for mental illness, was included in the identified misunderstanding of ancient people towards mental disorders. Spirituality was forgotten as an important tool for physical and mental health and spiritual health was also overlooked as a part of overall human well-being. This neglect is attributed to secularization and science-based discipline of psychiatry (Culliford, 2007). Now, importance of spirituality is gradually being rediscovered because of two reasons. First, mental illness patients report spirituality; spiritual beliefs and practices are their major sources of personal strength. Second, there is increased attention in academic and scientific research and psychiatric treatment and practices (George, 2000). In the field of psychiatry, a trending practice is to achieve first, spiritual history of the patients before addressing their mental needs. Spiritual history includes details of the patients religious antecedents, practices, beliefs or the lack or absence of these. Reasons for taking spiritual history include (Culiford, 2007): The field recognizes that nature of spirituality as a source of validity, motivation, and sense of belonging and acceptance which are beneficial for the patients. There is a also a long historical relationship between spiritual healthcare and medicine. Spirituality is oftentimes part of patients needs and wishes. The influence of spirituality and religion to the attitudes and decisions of the staff. Moreover, spirituality is now recognized as an integrating force for various dimensions of human life including physical, biological, psychological, and psychosocial. Although it is acknowledged that spirituality may also have negative effects on mental well-being, there is a growing confidence for mental, and even physical health of spiritual belief and practices. In a wide review of researches on spirituality and mental health, 20% showed negative effects while 80% observed positive results (Culliford, 2007). Some of the negative accounts on spirituality as a beneficial tool for curing mental illness include the studies cited by Fallot (2003). In terms of diagnosis and psychiatric rehabilitation programs, DSM-IV diagnosis involves assessment of spiritual experiences. In a symptom-oriented nosological system, the focus is directed to spiritual or religious behavior of the patient. In DSM-IV, two scenarios may occur: First, spiritual concerns may be problematic and may also be attributable to the actual mental disorder. In cases of severe mental disorder, psychiatric disorder is considered primary while spiritual expression is secondary. There are cases when spiritual experiences disappear, the primary or psychiatric disorder is treated adequately. Second, spiritual issue is problematic but may not be attributed to the mental disease. Patients with severe mental illness are still capable of spiritual activities such as struggles for searching meaning in life, conflicting and confusing relationships with the sacred, and challenges to long-hel beliefs. These further leads to prolonged psychiatric difficulties, problems in understanding religious experiences, loss of hope and demoralization However, Fallot (2003) argued that there is positive spiritual coping that will be beneficial for mental illness patients. Still on a lager scale, patients tend to turn unto religion not just as a significant resource but also as a coping mechanism that is helpful. Spirituality and religion can serve as possible mechanisms with positive impacts of mental health and rarely are the cases in which both pose negative impacts on mental health (Fallot, 2003). Specifically, spiritual well-being is associated to reduce likelihood of anxiety disorders, depression, and substance abuse that lead to addiction and other mental disorders. Likewise, there is also positive association between spirituality undertaking and recovery from mental disorders such as depression and substance abuse (George, 2002). Mental Healthcare Practices Involving Spirituality This section discusses some mental healthcare treatment practices that are used to emphasize the role of spirituality to mental health (Fallot, 2003). Spiritual Assessment. This refers to understanding of content and the functions of a patients spiritual beliefs and practice. This approach is useful on a diverse religious experiences and cultures. The definition of spirituality can both be broad and inclusive. This approach goes beyond symptom-oriented orientation but rather explore potential significance of spirituality to the patient and his recovery. Spiritually informed groups. The group provides therapeutic context of examination of consumers religious beliefs and traditions. The role of this group is to provide a positive connection between spirituality and the present conditions of the patients. In spite of religious diversity, patients may find it helpful to share and listen to others search for meaning and purpose of life. It will not exacerbate symptoms of mental health but will rather support and clarify ones purpose in life which shall give sense of worth, value, and trust to themselves. Individual psychotherapy. Psychotherapeutic approaches coming from a wide variety of religious beliefs such as Christianity, Judaism, Islam and others attuned the present approaches for individual psychotherapy. Aside from overview of religious interventions, this approach can also be used to specify roles of meditation and mindfulness, prayer, and other spiritually and cognitive-behavioral techniques. This approach is also integrated in counseling relationship. Relationships with faith communities. One important factor for treating mental illness is to restore social supports and relationships. Religious or faith communities can offer empowerment, sense of acceptance and belonging to the patients. However, it should be taken into consideration that the patient shall not feel any sense of rejection from the community. How Does Spirituality Prevent and Treat Mental Illness Empirical analysis regarding the effects spirituality to mental health is continuously studied. Researchers and mental health practitioners continue to seek means by which spirituality will prevent and facilitate treatment, if not completely treat mental illnesses. Nonetheless, for the present studies, the following two mechanisms were attributed as the factors by which spirituality is helpful to mental health: First is the ability to establish social support. Spiritual participation may be one major avenue for developing social bonds and other social support. People with high religious participation have larger social networks, higher interaction with social network, receive more assistance from others, and have higher levels of satisfaction of the social support they receive. This is important as rejection is one of the major causes of disturbed mental health and acceptance is one of the best recovery apparatus. Second is the coherence spirituality offers. Through coherence within the group, patients tend to understand their role in life, their purpose, and to develop courage to face sufferings. Moreover, coherence with others is also an effective buffer to stress on mental health. As a conclusion, it can be acknowledged that in spite of the gaps between the benefits of spirituality and mental health, it can still be safely implemented as a tool to prevent and facilitate cure of mental illnesses through the approaches and because of the mechanisms mentioned in the later part of the paper.

Racial Discrimination :: essays research papers

Racial Discrimination "KAFFIR". When you see or hear this word, what runs through your mind? Do you picture a man with skin the color of the midnight sky, do you see him bending his muscular body down to the dry earth to pick cotton from thorn-ridden plants? Can you feel the heat of the sun beating down on his charred back? Perhaps you can even taste the beads of sweat swelling from his forehead and arms. Or maybe you are more inclined to visualize a dark-skinned woman with creases in her forehead made by many years of hard work and endless worrying. You watch her as she puts the breakfast dishes on the table and addresses her owners with a "yes sah" or "yes ma'am". There is nobody to cater to her needs. She spends each day taking care of everyone but herself. Pain. Sorrow. Anguish. Agony. Is this what comes to your mind when you hear the word "KAFFIR"? Well, it shouldn't because the word "kaffir" has nothing to do with the color of your skin. The word "kaffir" is just that; a word. It is a term that sprouted out of ignorance and continues to be used to this day exclusively by ignorant people. A kaffir isn't a slang term for an African; it is a word that describes the person that uses it. This type of person is one who feeds his ego by dehumanizing those around him when he feels they are not equal to him. He may regard those of different races or nationalities as "bad" or "dirty" because they do not have the same skin color as he does or they may cherish beliefs that are contrary to the ones by which he lives his life. These qualities describe the man who tells his son that it is okay to make fun of people who are different because differences are bad. A child who is repeatedly told such things will believe them because "mom and dad never lie". This idea, inculcated in them as children, is like a grain of sand caught in the clutches of an oyster. It eats away at their minds until it becomes part of them. Instead of forming into a pearl, it creates a whole new individual that is as ignorant as the parents who raised him. And so this vicious cycle of ignorance continues. Children need to be taught from infancy that people of other races and nationalities are human too. They think like the rest of us. They have feelings, hopes, and aspirations. They are intelligent.

Literary Review: Philippine Fashion Essay

Introduction: For this research paper, I decided to dig deeper into my Filipino heritage. The history of the Philippines has been an up and down roller coaster. From being colonized by the Spanish for 300 years in 1565, to being captured by the British in 1762, to being in Japanese hands, to being under the power of the United States, the Philippines eventually established their independence on July 4, 1946. Considering the Philippines is somewhat â€Å"new†, their government system hasn’t had nearly enough time to advance and develop like other countries in the world. One third of the Filipino population lives below the poverty line. This lack of independence has had a huge effect on the Filipino economy. Their economy is based solely on their agriculture. The Philippines has a very tropical climate with a long rainy season, and an incredibly mountainous landscape. Important crops include rice, corn, coconut, sugarcane, abaca, and tobacco. The Philippines also have an endless list of tropical and tasty fruits. Although the Philippine islands have been through a more than complicated time, the people inhabiting the land have stayed strong and taken advantage of their land’s newly gained independence . After gathering this general information, that was when I developed my thesis: How has the unstable history of the Philippines affected their overall fashion and textile industry? I chose this topic because not only does it give me a chance to expand my knowledge in textiles and fashion, but it also allows me to further educate myself in my own personal ethnic background. Methodology: When I first began my research process, it wasn’t very difficult to get started considering the abundance of resources FIDM provides us with. My first step to developing a stable basis of sources was to sit at the  computer in the FIDM library and gather as much material as possible using the help they give us such as EBSCO, the Berg Fashion Library, Culture Grams, and of course books from the shelves themselves. The first source I found that initially helped me develop my thesis was an article I found using the Berg Fashion Library entitled â€Å"‘Ukay-Ukay’ Chic: Tales of Second Hand Clothing Fashion and Trade in the Philippine Cordillera†. This was the source that helped me make the decision to center my paper around Filipino fashion. Not only was this source credible due to the process I used to find it, but it was also extremely beneficial. Once I knew exactly what I would be writing about, I knew that I needed to dig deeper into the history of the Philippines. I initially started by using Culture Grams, which helped me gather some information, but I needed more. That was when I came across the article â€Å"Nation Building and the Crafting of a Usable Past in the Philippines† using the EBSCOhost database. This source really came in handy because it gave me an incredibly detailed and dramatic breakdown of everything the Philippines went through, and how being tossed around by other countries for hundreds of years has had an effect on the land today. Next, I wanted to learn more about the people of the Philippine’s, and their lifestyle and values. I had no luck finding this using the library sources, so that was when I switched to google. I found a website called contriesquest.com. After browsing the information the site gave me, and relating a lot of it to information I had seen before, I decided that it was a credible source to use. The section I used was called â€Å"Population, Way of Life†. This brief article really helped me understand how a regular Filipino person lives. It covered everything from the food they eat the the sports they play. The next source I found was more specifically about the history of filipino fashion. I found the article using the Berg Fashion Library. The was when I came across the amazing article â€Å"Snapshot: Revival of Pià ±a Cloth and Dress: Southern Luzon and Central Philippines†. This was one of my favorite articles because I learned about an amazing way that the people of the Philippines used their natural resources to create a beautiful fashion trend. For my last source, I decided to use the most credible source of all,  a book. The book I chose is entitled the Encyclopedia of Clothing and Fashion. I flipped to the section entitled Asia, Southeastern Islands and the Pacific: History of Dress. I used this source to get a breakdown of the development of filipino fashion throughout the years. 1. Milgram, B Lynne, â€Å"‘Ukay-Ukay’ Chic: Tales of Second Hand Clothing Fashion and Trade in the Philippine Cordillera.† Summary: This article focuses on the new and upcoming bargain shopping trend in the Philippines called â€Å"Ukay-Ukay†, which when translated means secondhand clothing. The Philippine’s have been receiving exports of used goods and clothing from America, and Europe since the 1990’s. Milgram, the author of this article, talks about how the people of the Philippine’s have brilliantly taken these exported used goods and repurposed them to their own advantage. The article also discusses how this new shopping trend has benefitted the sales women of the Philippines, and has helped modernize their way of consumerism and trade. The article then expands on Ifugao, an area in the Grand Cordillera mountains, the area in which the people of the Philippines decided to set up their â€Å"Ukay-Ukay† system. The author tells us that this setting was chosen due to its economic activity. Considering that agriculture is the main component of the filipino economy, Ifugao is unable to produce many crops due to its climate and landscape. Instead, the people inhabiting this area focus on producing other sorts of goods such as crafts for the tourist market, operating dry goods stores, and now engaging in the sale of second hand clothing. The next section of this article focuses on the process in which the exported clothing is distributed from the hands of clothing brokers, regional suppliers, to the citizens of the Philippines. The last part of the article talks about the people who make a living off of the sales of second hand clothing, and how the market is slowly beginning to get more and more competitive. Critical Evaluation: This article is an incredible source of information for my essay. The author of the article convinced me that she was very educated in the topic by using personal examples, facts and statistics, pictures,  quotations, and citations throughout the article of other sources she collected material from as well. Another thing that really made this article easy to break down was that the author put a notes list at the bottom of the document. This contained a list of words and terms that were mentioned throughout the article that a person that wasn’t well aware with filipino slang could find the english translations. The sole purpose of this article was to break  down and educate the reader on an amazing and rapidly growing fashion trend in the Philippines and the world behind it. 2. Hazard, Elizabeth. â€Å"Nation Building and the Crafting of a Usable Past in the Philippines†. Summary: This article provides me with a detailed breakdown of the history timeline of the Philippines. This paper examines the uses of history in the Philippines over the past century as it was enlisted to serve varying social and political agendas. In the first part of this article, the author discusses the long awaited time when the Philippine’s finally gained their independence. Hazard elaborates on the celebratory ceremonies that took place, and the development of the Centennial Commission. The centennial commission is a group of elected filipino people with one mission-to revive the love of the country, and true appreciation for the filipino identity. The article then continues on to discuss the background of its current weak economic state. The author makes sure that we know that the Philippines took a very hard beating throughout the years. The author then goes on to breakdown the confusing history of the Philippines before they gained their independence. She covers the 300 years they were under the rule of Spain, the Japanese occupation in 1943, and when the Americans granted autonomy in 1946. The second purpose of this article was to focus on how the history of the Philippine’s is being displayed today. The author focuses on the textbooks that students in the Philippine’s are given, and states that the authors of these textbooks are excluding important details. This article is a good source of information that discusses the brutalities that the  Philippines went through, and their eventually gained independence. Critical Evaluation: I believe that this is a very reliable and educational source to use for informational purposes for this essay. Although I am focusing my essay on fashion, the history behind the Philippines is equally as important. Considering how intense their history is, and the state that their never ending battle left them in, it is safe to say that this has had a direct effect on their fashion industry. This was a very credible source. Not only did I find it using one of the search engines that the school provides us with, but it was actually a conference paper written for the University of Maine. The author wrote this essay to persuade the listeners and readers to have hope that the Philippine’s can be restored and modernized. The author provides us with lots of statistics and factual information. She also gives us direct quotes from people that she talked to personally, and for those reasons, I decided that this article would help improve my essay. 3. â€Å"Population, Way of Life†. Summary: This website was full of small paragraphs about every single aspect of the Philippines. I decided that I wanted to gather more information on the daily life of a Filipino person, so I chose this section to use for my paper. This section gives us a straightforward description of their society. The author starts off by mentioning Filipino’s emphasis on on family and building a strong community. Filipino’s are very big on traditions. They use the traditional concept of â€Å"utang na loob†, the concept in which voluntary acts of kindness towards others creates an obligation in which the receiver must reciprocate. The article goes on to discuss how the concept of â€Å"utang na loob† is what shapes almost all Filipino relationships. The article then continues to talk about important Filipino values such as respect for the elderly, loyalty, and trust. Paragraph two talks about the average Filipino living conditions. In tradition Philippine villages, houses are mainly constructed of bamboo or wood. Excluding rural areas, most houses are equipped with standard electricity and plumbing. In the more modern parts of  the Philippines, it is mentioned that there is a very obvious Western influence. The standard Philippine diet consists of fish, rice, veggies, fruits, and ground corn. They also have a drink called tuba, which is a fermented coconut wine. The next part of the article talks about how most people in the Philippines work as farmers and fishers. Middle class citizens in more urban cities usually work as teachers and small business owners. The last part of the article focuses on certain sports that Filipino people participate in such as arnis (similar to fencing) and (much like volleyball). Critical Evaluation: I was unsure about the credibility of this source at first, because I couldn’t find an author or any sort of publishing information to begin with. Then, after I clicked on the â€Å"Privacy† link in the bottom corner of the page, I learned that the website was published by Microsoft as a sort of search database for information on different parts of the world. Knowing that it was developed by such an elite corporation made it much more credible. This website provided me with well-defined information on the Philippine’s and made it very easy to understand. When I went to the homepage of the website, I learned that you could click on any region you want and it would give you a list of sections on that area that you could click on. For these reasons I felt like it was an appropriate source. I was also able to relate a lot of the information I found on this website to prior research I did with other sources. 4. Milgram, Lynn. â€Å" Snapshot: Revival of Pià ±a Cloth and Dress: Southern Luzon and Central Philippines† Summary: This article focuses on pià ±a, filipino cloth woven from the fibers of the leaves from a pineapple. It is believed that the pineapple, a very popular fruit found in the Philippines today, was brought over by Spanish settlers in the 16th century. Pià ±a cloth first started producing when the spanish realized that philippine artisans were already skilled at utilizing other local resources, such as the banana, and making into cloth. This was when pià ±a weaving began to spread. The main items of dress tailored from  pià ±a cloth include the baro (woman’s blouse), worn with a detachable paà ±uelo (shawl collar), the saya (skirt), the barong Tagalog (man’s shirt), and handkerchiefs. The next paragraph of this article discusses when pià ±a production reached its peak in the early 19th century when people started realizing that it had a similar appearance to luxury lace. People then began to realize that there were cheaper garments out there that looked similar to pià ±a, which was very expensive due to its complex weaving process. Pinà £ began to fade away and become a smaller business again. The next paragraph discusses the labor inducing process of extracting the pineapple fibers and weaving the pià ±a cloth. The next paragraph talks about the development of â€Å"pià ±a-seda†, the use of silk yarns in the weft instead of pià ±a in order to meet growing demand. Filipino’s also incorporated pià ±a cloth in religious garments. Critical Evaluation: I found this source using the Berg Fashion Library, so its credibility is easy to prove. Not only did the author use accurate historical information, but she also mentioned popular Philippine designers. This source educates the reader on such an interesting and beautiful  invention developed by the Philippines, and really shows you how resourceful they really are. This author also proved her credibility by citing her sources at the bottom of the page, and including pictures to give you a visual of what a pià ±a garment really looked like. I also noticed that the author Lynne B. Milgram is the author of numerous articles found using the Berg Fashion Library. The author makes this article fun, and educational at the same time by relating the art of pià ±a to the early ages of the Philippines. The article was published in the year 2010, but considering it is about a topic that was developed in the 16th century, I don’t believe that needs to be taken into much consideration. 5. Arthur, Linda. â€Å" Asia, Southeastern Islands and the Pacific: History of Dress† Summary: This article focuses on the evolution of fashion garments throughout the years. It starts by mentioning the earliest fashion staple, the bark cloth. The bark cloth was made from the bark of a mulberry tree,  and originated before Spanish settlement. As years continued, Philippine dress transformed due to multicultural influences from the portuguese, the dutch, the spanish and more. When the spanish settlers came, they were shocked by the philippine people’s lack of clothing, and helped them develop the modesty they have in their dress today. The article then continues to mention the names of certain garments worn by regular philippine people such as the baro’t saya, an ensemble of a loose, long-sleeved blouse over a wide skirt that fell to the floor. This article mainly focuses on the impact that westernization had on their clothing. The author mentions that the Spanish also taught filipina women embroidery, cutwork, and threadwork. The use of pià ±a cloth, hand loomed using the fibers of pineapple leaves and jusi cloth, machine made using the fibers of pineapple leaves, were also mentioned as the favorite choice of fabric throughout the 20th century. Critical Evaluation: I found this information in a book called The Encyclopedia of Clothing and Fashion. Considering all of my other sources were found using credible databases provided by the school, a book found on the library shelves has to be 100% credible, especially since it came from an encyclopedia. The encyclopedia covers almost everything in the fashion world from ancient egypt, to famous runway moments, to the technology behind design, to the worlds most  admirable designers today. Not only does the author of this section, Linda Arthur, provide us with the evolution of traditional dress in the Philippines, but she also mentions the other westernized areas such as the rest of asia, the southeastern islands, and the asian pacific islands. She covers as early as the beginning of the 16th century before the Spanish colonized the Philippines, all the way up to the 20th century and present day traditional dress. This source was a definite contributor to my research because the author provided me with fascinating facts and terms that have helped me further my understanding and knowledge of Filipino fashion. Although this encyclopedia was published in 2005, the time period the text covered was large enough to extract information from. Conclusion: Before I began breaking down the information I needed to gather to form my thesis, all I knew was that I wanted to relate this essay to my Filipina heritage in some way. Once I began my literature review research, I began to develop the desire to focus my paper more specifically on the Filipino fashion. When I had the main structure of what I wanted to write my essay on, I thought that I would just travel through the years and discuss the fashion evolution. As my research continued, and the FIDM databases provided me with more and more information, I realized that that the Philippines have been through so much throughout centuries, and have advanced and developed so much, that I had to focus on more than just the fashion itself. Before the Philippines gained their independence, they were under the rule of multiple different countries. From each and every one of those countries that the people had to abide to, the Philippines adopted small aspects of their cultures, and ways of life. How has the unstable history of the Philippines affected their overall fashion and textile industry? After writing this Literature review, and expanding my knowledge on the aspects behind this topic , I feel as if I am prepared to answer that question. Works Cited Arthur, Linda B. â€Å"Asia, Southeastern Islands and the Pacific: History of Dress.† Encyclopedia of Clothing and Fashion. Ed. Valerie Steele. Vol. 1. Detroit: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 2005. 93-97. Print Hazard, Elizabeth. â€Å"Nation Building And The Crafting Of A Usable Past In The Philippines.† International Studies Association. EBSCO, 2004. Web. 3 Aug. 2014. Milgram, B Lynne â€Å"Snapshot: Revival of Pià ±a Cloth and Dress: Southern Luzon and Central Philippines.† The Berg Fashion Library. The Berg Fashion Library, Sept 2010. Web. 3 Aug. 2014. Milgram, B Lynne, â€Å"‘Ukay-Ukay’ Chic: Tales of Second Hand Clothing Fashion and Trade in the Philippine Cordillera.† The Berg Fashion Library. The Berg Fashion Library, 2004. Web. 4 Aug. 2014. â€Å"Population, Way of Life.† Countries Quest. Microsoft Corporation, 2004. Web. 4 Aug. 2014

Last Sacrifice Chapter Twenty

â€Å"YOU SHOULD SLEEP.' Sydney's soft voice nearly made me leap out of my skin, proving that even while in Lissa's mind, I could still stay alert. I tuned back to Sonya's dark living room. Aside from Sydney, everything was quiet and at peace. â€Å"You look like the walking dead,' she continued. â€Å"And I don't say that lightly.' â€Å"I've got to stay on watch,' I said. â€Å"I'll watch. You sleep.' â€Å"You're not trained like me,' I pointed out. â€Å"You might miss something.' â€Å"Even I wouldn't miss Strigoi beating down the door,' she replied. â€Å"Look, I know you guys are tough. You don't have to convince me. But I have a feeling things are going to get harder, and I don't want you passing out at some crucial moment. If you sleep now, you can relieve Dimitri later.' Only the mention of Dimitri made me give in. We would need to relieve each other eventually. So, reluctantly, I crawled into Sydney's bed on the floor, giving her all sorts of instructions that I think she rolled her eyes at. I fell asleep almost instantly and then woke up just as quickly when I heard the sound of a door closing. I immediately sat upright, expecting to see Strigoi busting down the door. Instead, I found sunlight creeping in through the windows and Sydney watching me with amusement. In the living room, Robert was sitting up on the couch, rubbing his eyes. Victor was gone. I turned to Sydney in alarm. â€Å"He's in the bathroom,' she said, anticipating my question. That was the sound I'd heard. I exhaled in relief and stood up, surprised at how even a few hours of sleep had energized me. If I only had food, I'd be ready for anything. Sonya didn't have any, of course, but I settled for a glass of water in the kitchen. As I stood there drinking, I noticed that the Dashkov brothers had made themselves at home: coats hanging on hooks, car keys on the counter. I quietly grabbed hold of the keys and called for Sydney. She came in, and I slipped her the keys, trying not to let them rattle. â€Å"Do you still know about cars?' I murmured. In one exquisite look, she told me that was a ridiculous and insulting question. â€Å"Okay. Can you go do a grocery run? We're going to need food. And maybe on your way out, you can, um, make sure their car has engine trouble or something? Anything that keeps it here. But not something obvious, like slashed tires.' She put the keys in her pocket. â€Å"Easy. Got any food requests?' I thought about it. â€Å"Something with sugar. And coffee for Dimitri.' â€Å"Coffee's a given,' she said. Victor stepped into the kitchen, his typically unconcerned expression making me think he hadn't heard me instructing Sydney to sabotage his car. â€Å"Sydney's getting groceries,' I said, hoping to distract him before he might notice the missing keys. â€Å"Need anything?' â€Å"A feeder would be nice, but barring that, Robert has an especial liking for Cheerios. The apple cinnamon kind.' He smiled at Sydney. â€Å"I never thought I'd see the day an Alchemist would be an errand girl. It's charming.' Sydney opened her mouth, no doubt to make some biting comment, and I quickly shook my head. â€Å"Just go,' I said. She went, and Victor soon returned to Robert's side. Convinced the brothers wouldn't be going anywhere in full daylight without a car, I decided it was time to check on Dimitri. To my surprise, Sonya was awake. She sat cross-legged on the bed with him, and the two spoke in hushed tones. Her hair was disheveled from both sleep and fighting, but otherwise, she showed no cuts or bruises from the battle. Dimitri had been the same after his transformation, escaping terrible burns. The power of a Strigoi restoration healed all injuries. Between my skinned legs and pseudo-concussion, I kind of wished someone had transformed me from a Strigoi. Sonya turned from Dimitri as I entered. A sequence of emotions passed across her face. Fear. Astonishment. Recognition. â€Å"Rose?' There was hesitancy in the word, like she wondered if I was a hallucination. I forced a smile. â€Å"It's good to see you again.' I chose not to add, â€Å"Now that you're not trying to suck the life out of me.' She averted her eyes down to her hands, studying her fingers like they were magical and wonderful. Of course, after being a monster, maybe having her â€Å"old hands' back really was wondrous. The day after his change, Dimitri hadn't seemed quite so fragile, but he'd certainly been in shock. That was also when he'd grown depressed. Was she? Or did she want to turn again, as Victor had suggested? I didn't know what to say. It was all so strange and awkward. â€Å"Sydney went for groceries,' I told Dimitri lamely. â€Å"She also stayed up so that I could sleep last night.' â€Å"I know,' he said with a small smile. â€Å"I got up once to check on you.' I felt myself flushing, somehow embarrassed that I'd been caught in weakness. â€Å"You can rest too,' I told him. â€Å"Get some breakfast, and then I'll keep an eye on everything. I have it on good authority that Victor's going to have car trouble. Also that Robert really likes Cheerios, so if you want some, you're out of luck. He doesn't seem like the sharing type.' Dimitri's smile grew. Sonya suddenly lifted her head. â€Å"There's another spirit user here,' she said, voice frantic. â€Å"I can feel it. I remember him.' She looked between Dimitri and me. â€Å"It's not safe. We're not safe. You shouldn't have us around.' â€Å"Everything's fine,' said Dimitri, voice so, so gentle. That tone was rare for him, but I'd heard it before. He'd used it on me in some of my most desperate moments. â€Å"Don't worry.' Sonya shook her head. â€Å"No. You don't understand. We †¦ we're capable of terrible things. To ourselves, to others. It's why I changed, to stop the madness. And it did, except †¦ it was worse. In its way. The things I did †¦' There it was, the same remorse Dimitri had felt. Half-afraid he'd start telling her there was no redemption for her either, I said, â€Å"It wasn't you. You were controlled by something else.' She buried her face in her hands. â€Å"But I chose it. Me. I made it happen.' â€Å"That was spirit,' I said. â€Å"It's hard to fight. Like you said, it can make you do terrible things. You weren't thinking clearly. Lissa battles with the same thing all the time.' â€Å"Vasilisa?' Sonya lifted her eyes and stared off into space. I think she was digging through memories. In fact, despite her ramblings now, I didn't believe she was quite as unstable as she'd been just before becoming Strigoi. We'd heard healings could lessen spirit's madness, and I think Robert's transformation had lightened some of the darkness within her for now. â€Å"Yes, of course. Vasilisa has it too.' She turned to me in a panic. â€Å"Did you help her? Did you get her out of there?' â€Å"I did,' I said, trying to emulate Dimitri's gentleness. Lissa and I fled St. Vladimir's for a while, partly because of warnings from Sonya. â€Å"We left and then came back and, uh, were able to stop what was hunting her.' I didn't think it was a good idea for Sonya to know that the thing–or rather, person–hunting Lissa was now sitting out in the living room. I took a step forward. â€Å"And you can help Lissa too. We need to know if–‘ â€Å"No,' said Dimitri. No gentleness now in the warning look he gave me. â€Å"Not yet.' â€Å"But–‘ â€Å"Not yet.' I shot him a glare in return but said no more. I was all for giving Sonya her recuperation time, but we didn't have forever. The clock was ticking, and we had to find out what Sonya knew. I felt like Dimitri would have been able to give us this information immediately after he'd been changed back. Of course, he hadn't been unstable beforehand, so he'd kind of had an edge. Still. We couldn't play house in Kentucky forever. â€Å"Can I see my flowers?' asked Sonya. â€Å"Can I go outside and see my flowers?' Dimitri and I exchanged glances. â€Å"Of course,' he said. We all moved toward the door, and that's when I had to ask. â€Å"Why did you grow flowers when you were †¦ like you were?' She paused. â€Å"I've always grown flowers.' â€Å"I know. I remember. They were gorgeous. The ones here are gorgeous too. Is that why †¦ I mean, did you just want a pretty garden, even as a Strigoi?' The question was unexpected and seemed to throw her off. I was about to give up on an answer when she finally said, â€Å"No. I never thought about pretty. They were †¦ I don't know. Something to do. I'd always grown flowers. I had to see if I still could. It was like †¦ a test of my skills, I guess.' I met Dimitri's eyes again. So. Beauty hadn't been part of her world. It was just like I'd told him. Strigoi were notoriously arrogant, and it seemed the flowers had simply been a show of prowess. Growing them had also been a familiar habit for her, and I recalled how Dimitri had read Western novels while Strigoi. Being Strigoi might cost someone their sense of goodness and morality, but old behaviors and hobbies remained. We took her out to the living room, interrupting a conversation between Victor and Robert. Sonya and Robert both froze, sizing each other up. Victor gave us one of his knowing smiles. â€Å"Up and around. Have we found out what we need yet?' Dimitri shot him a look similar to what I'd received when asking about interrogation. â€Å"Not yet.' Sonya dragged her gaze from Robert and moved quickly toward the patio door, pausing when she saw our shoddy patch job. â€Å"You broke my door,' she said. â€Å"Collateral damage,' I said. In my periphery, I think Dimitri rolled his eyes. Needing no guidance from us, Sonya opened the door and stepped outside. With a gasp, she came to a halt and stared upward. The sky was a perfect, cloudless blue, and the sun had crossed the horizon now, illuminating everything in gold. I went outside too, feeling the warmth of that light on my skin. Some of the night's coldness lingered, but we were in store for a hot day. Everyone else came out too, but Sonya was oblivious. She lifted her hands upward, as though maybe she could grab hold of the sun and wrap it in her arms. â€Å"It's so beautiful.' She finally looked away and met my eyes. â€Å"Isn't it? Have you ever seen anything so beautiful?' â€Å"Beautiful,' I reiterated. For some reason, I felt both happy and sad. She walked around her yard, examining every plant and flower. She touched the petals and inhaled their fragrance. â€Å"So different †¦' she kept saying to herself. â€Å"So different in the sun †¦' Several especially caught her attention. â€Å"These don't open at night! Do you see it? Do you see the colors? Can you smell that?' The questions didn't seem to be for anyone in particular. We watched, all of us kind of hypnotized. At last, she settled into the patio chair, happily gazing around, lost in sensory overload–in that beauty that had been denied to her as a Strigoi. When it became obvious she wasn't leaving for a while, I turned to Dimitri and repeated Sydney's advice about him taking a turn at sleeping while we waited for Sonya to recover. To my surprise, he actually agreed. â€Å"That's smart. Once Sonya's able to talk, we'll need to move.' He smiled. â€Å"Sydney's turning into a battle mastermind.' â€Å"Hey, she's not in charge here,' I teased. â€Å"She's just a soldier.' â€Å"Right.' He lightly brushed his fingers against my cheek. â€Å"Sorry, Captain.' â€Å"General,' I corrected, catching my breath at that brief touch. He gave Sonya a kind goodbye before disappearing into the house. She nodded, but I don't know if she really heard. Victor and Robert brought out two wooden kitchen chairs and set them in the shade. I chose a spot on the ground. Nobody spoke. It wasn't the weirdest thing I'd ever experienced, but it was certainly strange. Sydney returned later with the groceries, and I briefly abandoned the group to check in with her. Victor's keys were lying back on the counter, which I took as a good sign. Sydney unloaded an assortment of food and handed me a box of a dozen donuts. â€Å"Hope that's enough for you,' she remarked. I made a face at her presumption but took the donuts anyway. â€Å"Come on outside when you're done,' I told her. â€Å"It's like the barbecue of the damned. Except †¦ there's no grill.' She looked puzzled, but when she joined us later, she seemed to get what I'd been saying. Robert brought out a bowl of Cheerios, but neither Sydney nor Victor ate. I gave Sonya a donut, the first thing that took her attention from her yard. She held it in her hands, turning it over and over. â€Å"I don't know if I can. I don't know if I can eat it.' â€Å"Of course you can.' I recalled how Dimitri had regarded food uncertainly too. â€Å"It's chocolate-glazed. Good stuff.' She took a tentative, rabbit-sized bite. She chewed it a billion times and finally swallowed. She closed her eyes briefly and sighed. â€Å"Such sweetness.' Slowly, she continued taking more tiny bites. It took forever for her to get halfway through the donut, and at that point, she finally stopped. I'd polished off three donuts by then, and my impatience to accomplish something was growing. Part of it was still the irritability from spirit, and part of it was just my continual restlessness to help Lissa. â€Å"Sonya,' I said pleasantly, fully aware of how pissed off Dimitri was going to be at me defying his instructions. â€Å"We wanted to talk to you about something.' â€Å"Mm-hmm,' she said, gazing at bees hovering around some honeysuckle. â€Å"Is there a relative of yours †¦ someone who, uh, had a baby a while ago †¦ ?' â€Å"Sure,' she said. One of the bees flew from the honeysuckle to a rose, and she never looked away. â€Å"Lots.' â€Å"Articulate, Rosemarie,' remarked Victor. â€Å"Very articulate.' I bit my lip, knowing an outburst would upset Sonya. And probably Robert too. â€Å"This would be a secret baby,' I told her. â€Å"And you were the beneficiary on a bank account that took care of the baby †¦ an account paid for by Eric Dragomir.' Sonya's head whipped toward me, and there was no dreamy absentmindedness in her blue eyes now. A few seconds passed before she spoke. Her voice was cold and hard–not a Strigoi voice, but definitely a back off voice. â€Å"No. I don't know anything about that.' â€Å"She's lying,' said Robert. â€Å"I didn't need any powers to figure that out,' scoffed Sydney. I ignored both of them. â€Å"Sonya, we know you know, and it's really important we find this baby †¦ er, child. Person.' We'd made guesses on the age but weren't 100 percent sure. â€Å"You said you were worried about Lissa earlier. This will help her. She needs to know. She needs to know she has another family member.' Sonya turned her attention back to the bees, but I knew she was no longer watching them. â€Å"I don't know anything.' There was a trembling in her voice, and something told me that maybe I shouldn't push this after all. I couldn't tell if she was afraid or on the verge of rage. â€Å"Then why were you on the account?' This came from Victor. â€Å"I don't know anything,' she repeated. Her voice could have made icicles form on the ornamental trees. â€Å"Nothing.' â€Å"Stop lying,' snapped Victor. â€Å"You know something, and you're going to tell us.' â€Å"Hey!' I exclaimed. â€Å"Be quiet. You don't have interrogation rights here.' â€Å"You didn't seem to be doing a very good job.' â€Å"Just shut up, okay?' I looked back at Sonya, replacing my glare with a smile. â€Å"Please,' I begged. â€Å"Lissa's in trouble. This will help her. I thought you said before that you wanted to help her?' â€Å"I promised †¦' said Sonya. Her voice was so low, I could barely hear it. â€Å"Promised what?' I asked. Patience, patience. I had to remain calm. I couldn't risk a breakdown. She squeezed her eyes shut and raked her hands through her hair violently, almost like a child about to have a tantrum. â€Å"Promised not to tell. Promised not to tell anyone †¦' I had the urge to run over and shake her. Patience, patience, I repeated to myself. Don't upset her. â€Å"We wouldn't ask you to break your promise if it wasn't important. Maybe †¦ maybe you can get in touch with this person †¦' Who had she promised? Eric's mistress? â€Å"And see if it's okay to tell us?' â€Å"Oh for God's sake,' said Victor irritably. â€Å"This is ridiculous and getting us nowhere.' He glanced at his brother. â€Å"Robert?' Robert hadn't done much so far today, but at Victor's command, Robert leaned forward. â€Å"Sonya?' Still obviously distraught, she turned to look at him †¦ and her face went still. â€Å"Tell us what we need to know,' said Robert. His voice wasn't kind so much as smooth and lulling, with a faintly sinister touch. â€Å"Tell us who and where this child is. Tell us who the mother is.' This time, I did jump to my feet. Robert was using compulsion on her to get the answers. Sonya's eyes stayed locked on him, but her body began to shake. Her lips parted, though no sound came out. A tangle of thoughts swirled in my mind. Compulsion would get us what we needed to know, but something told me, it wasn't right– Sonya stopped me from any more pondering. She shot up almost as quickly as I had. She was still staring at Robert, but no longer in that transfixed, hypnotized way. She'd broken the compulsion, and now †¦ now she was pissed. The features that had been scared and fragile earlier were filled with fury. I had no magical senses, but after being with Lissa, I knew raging spirit when I saw it. Sonya was a bomb, about to explode. â€Å"How dare you †¦' she hissed. â€Å"How dare you try to compel me?' Plants and vines near Robert suddenly sprang to life, growing to impossible heights. They reached out, tangled themselves around his chair's legs, and pulled. The chair toppled over, Robert along with it. Victor moved to help his brother, but Robert was already taking matters into his own hands. Recovering remarkably fast, he narrowed his eyes at Sonya, and she went flying backward, slamming against the wooden fence. Air users could do that trick sometimes, but this wasn't air blowing her back. This was spirit's telekinetic abilities. He apparently possessed them outside of dreams too. Lovely. I'd seen spirit users battle it out before, when Avery Lazar and Lissa had gone one on one. That hadn't been pretty, particularly since more than this exterior psychic phenomena had occurred. Avery had actually dug into Lissa's mind–and mine. I didn't know Robert or Sonya's full skill set, but this couldn't end well. â€Å"Dimitri!' I yelled, springing toward Sonya. I didn't exactly know what I was going to do, but tackling her seemed like a sound plan. From what I'd observed, a lot of spirit involved eye contact with the target. And sure enough, when I managed to wrestle her to the ground, she struggled half- heartedly but mostly fought to keep her gaze on Robert. He screamed in sudden alarm, looking down at his own body in terror. Sonya was planting visions into his head. His expression hardened. He had to know it was an illusion, and a few moments later, he looked up, having broken her spell like she'd broken his earlier compulsion. Dimitri came tearing out the door at that point, just as Robert used his mind to fling one of the chairs toward Sonya. Of course, I was on top of her, so the chair hit me in the back. Dimitri picked up pretty quickly what was going on and ran toward Robert, attempting the same tactic as me. Victor, possibly thinking his brother was in physical danger, tried to pry Dimitri away, which was futile. More vines began to reach toward Robert, and I realized constraining Sonya wasn't all that useful. â€Å"Get him inside!' I yelled to Dimitri. â€Å"Get him away from her!' Dimitri had already guessed that and began dragging Robert toward the door. Even with Victor interfering, Dimitri's strength was enough to get Robert out of there and back into the house. As soon as her target was gone, all the energy seemed to fade out of Sonya. She made no more efforts to fight me and collapsed to the ground. I was relieved, having feared she'd turn on me once Robert was gone. Tentatively, still on guard, I helped Sonya sit up. She leaned against me, weak as a rag doll, and cried into my shoulder. Another breakdown. After that, it was a matter of damage control. In order to keep the spirit users apart, Dimitri had taken Robert to the bedroom and left Victor with him. Robert seemed as worn out as Sonya, and Dimitri deemed the brothers safe enough to leave alone. Sonya collapsed on the couch, and after both Dimitri and I had tried to calm her down, we stepped away while Sydney held the Moroi woman's hand. I briefly recapped what had happened. Dimitri's face grew more and more incredulous as I did. â€Å"I told you it wasn't time!' he exclaimed. â€Å"What were you thinking? She's too weak!' â€Å"You call that weak? And hey, I was doing fine! It wasn't until Victor and Robert got involved that things went to hell.' Dimitri took a step toward me, anger radiating off him. â€Å"They should never have gotten involved. This is you, acting irrational again, jumping in foolishly with no thought of the consequences.' Outrage shot through me in return. â€Å"Hey, I was trying to make progress here. If being rational is sitting around and doing therapy, then I'm happy to jump over the edge. I'm not afraid to get in the game.' â€Å"You have no idea what you're saying,' he growled. We were standing closer now, hardly any space left between us as we engaged in our battle of wills. â€Å"This may have set us back.' â€Å"This set us forward. We found out she knows about Eric Dragomir. The problem is she promised not to tell anyone about this baby.' â€Å"Yes, I promised,' piped up Sonya. Dimitri and I turned as one, realizing our argument was fully visible and audible to Sonya and Sydney. â€Å"I promised.' Her voice was very small and weak, pleading with us. Sydney squeezed her hand. â€Å"We know. It's okay. It's okay to keep promises. I understand.' Sonya looked at her gratefully. â€Å"Thank you. Thank you.' â€Å"But,' said Sydney carefully, â€Å"I heard that you care about Lissa Dragomir.' â€Å"I can't,' interrupted Sonya, turning fearful again. â€Å"I know, I know. But what if there was a way to help her without breaking your promise?' Sonya stared at Sydney. Dimitri glanced at me questioningly. I shrugged and then stared at Sydney too. If someone had asked who could stage the best intervention with a crazy woman who'd formerly been an undead monster, Sydney Sage would have been my last guess. Sonya frowned, all attention on Sydney. â€Å"W-what do you mean?' â€Å"Well †¦ what did you promise exactly? Not to tell anyone that Eric Dragomir had a mistress and baby?' Sonya nodded. â€Å"And not to tell who they were?' Sonya nodded again. Sydney gave Sonya the warmest, friendliest smile I'd ever seen on the Alchemist. â€Å"Did you promise not to tell anyone where they are?' Sonya nodded, and Sydney's smile faltered a little. Then, her eyes lit up. â€Å"Did you promise not to lead anyone to where they are?' Sonya hesitated, no doubt turning every word over in her mind. Slowly, she shook her head. â€Å"No.' â€Å"So †¦ you could lead us to them. But not tell us where they actually are. You wouldn't be breaking the promise that way.' It was the most convoluted, ridiculous piece of logic I'd heard in a while. It was something I would have come up with. â€Å"Maybe †¦' said Sonya, still uncertain. â€Å"You wouldn't break the promise,' Sydney repeated. â€Å"And it would really, really help Lissa.' I stepped forward. â€Å"It would help Mikhail too.' Sonya's mouth dropped open at the mention of her former lover. â€Å"Mikhail? You know him?' â€Å"He's my friend. He's Lissa's friend too.' I almost said that if we found the missing Dragomir, we could then take Sonya to Mikhail. Recalling Dimitri's feelings of unworthiness, I decided to avoid that tactic just now. I didn't know how Sonya would react to a reunion with her beloved. â€Å"And he wants to help Lissa. But he can't. None of us can. We don't have enough information.' â€Å"Mikhail †¦' Sonya looked down at her hands again, small tears running down her cheeks. â€Å"You won't break your promise.' Sydney was so compelling she could have been a spirit user. â€Å"Just lead us. It's what Mikhail and Lissa would want. It's the right thing to do.' I don't know which argument convinced Sonya the most. It could have been the part about Mikhail. Or it could have been the idea of doing â€Å"the right thing.' Maybe, like Dimitri, Sonya wanted redemption for her Strigoi crimes and saw this as a chance. Looking up, she swallowed and met my eyes. â€Å"I'll lead you there,' she whispered. â€Å"We're going on another road trip,' Sydney declared. â€Å"Get ready.' Dimitri and I were still standing right next to each other, the anger between us beginning to diffuse. Sydney looked proud and continued trying her best to soothe Sonya. Dimitri looked down at me with a small smile that shifted slightly when he seemed to become aware of just how close we were. I couldn't say for sure, though. His face gave little away. As for me, I was very aware of our proximity and felt intoxicated by his body and scent. Damn. Why did fighting with him always increase my attraction to him? His smile returned as he tilted his head toward Sydney. â€Å"You were wrong. She really is the new general in town.' I smiled back, hoping he wasn't aware of my body's reaction to us standing so close. â€Å"Maybe. But, it's okay. You can still be colonel.' He arched an eyebrow. â€Å"Oh? Did you demote yourself? Colonel's right below general. What's that make you?' I reached into my pocket and triumphantly flashed the CR-V keys I'd swiped when we'd come back inside. â€Å"The driver,' I said.