CSV-DSM Part 2

 

Thursday, November 18th, Mid-morning:

"Admit it, lil' bro," Tracy prodded as he took over the Kyle-cuddles from Evan - for the third time, "You didn't screw up; you did good and made everybody happier!"

"Okay," Kyle giggled, actually enjoying the game of pass-the-kid that Evan, Tracy, Karl, and Cory were playing with him as the target. "You didn't screw up; you did good and made everybody happy!"

"Smart-alec!" Tracy laughed. "You know what I meant, little rat!"

Kyle just smiled and pulled himself tighter into the cuddle with Tracy. Tracy calling him a rat said more than any other words could; in Tracy's eyes, Kyle had done absolutely nothing wrong, and Tracy was proud of how he had handled it.

While Tracy was busy taking his turn with Kyle, Cory, Karl, and Colin were having a discussion with Evan and Cleiton. "Peter says that the dimensional port connecting the two houses will be ready after lunch," Cory advised them. "He's putting the townhouse end in the dining rooms over there, and this end will come out in the hallway. Him and Javyk are setting it up to be always on, since it is being used to just make it one big house. Cleiton; Petey duplicated your current rooms over here, and added more for your extra son and any additional kids you add. The door to your wing is right by the portal, so you'll still be just as close to Colin and Ardell. Glen and his kids are right across the hall from you, and Hac with his kids are moving in on the new third floor, which has a direct portal to the hallway just on the other side of your rooms. Your little brothers are going to use the rooms that your kids were using, and your old master suite is being set up for when Bento is on-site."

"So, you're saying that my sons will have the same or better than they already have now?" Cleiton clarified.

"Yep;" Cory grinned, "In fact, Peter's already moved their stuff. It's exactly in the same places it was before, right down to the undies that Afonso left laying in his bathroom!"

Before anyone could start to comment, Afonso's voice spoke up from the other side of the room. "Uncle Kerry? Could you please show me where my new bedroom is? I forgot to do something."

"You're GOOD!" Cory giggled as he watched Afonso jog out of the room, obviously following instructions from Kerry.

"He's probably hoping that this doesn't count as us finding it," Cleiton smiled. "He's almost as addicted to cookies as Kyle is. They all know that we expect them to pick up things like that immediately."

"He's checking his brother's rooms too," Kerry giggled. "Mom says to tell you that you're doing great as parents; it says a lot when your boys try their best not to disappoint you."

"Thank you, Kerry." Cleiton smiled. "Please pass my thanks on to your Mom as well."  Cleiton spotted Afonso returning to the room, and motioned for him to join them. Once Afonso was standing in front of him, Cleiton asked calmly, "Was there a reason that you forgot to pick up after yourself?"

Afonso nodded. "I'm sorry, Father; I was trying to hurry to be there when my new cousins came to breakfast, that way I could explain anything that they didn't understand."

"Is that why you checked your brother's rooms as well, even though it is not your place to keep them clean?"

"Yes, Father."

"As you had a valid reason to be in a hurry, as I'm sure your brothers did, I will allow this transgression at this time; please do not assume the same grace in the future. I am proud of you for thinking of your cousin's reactions and ensuring that they had the help that your Uncle Glen provided you and your brothers. Consider this matter settled."

"Thank you, Father," Afonso replied before giving Cleiton a quick hug, then turning and heading back to re-join the rest of the boys.

Noticing Cory's questioning look, Cleiton explained "Within families like ours in Brazil, there is a specific way that it is handled when a child breaks a rule. The formality helps both sides keep a level head, and no punishment is made until after the child's side is heard. Three of our four boys have been raised with this way since birth; it would be confusing if I didn't maintain what they know as the normal procedure."

"That makes sense," Cory admitted. "Don't be surprised if some of their friends they make ask about it, or the parents of those friends ask to discuss it deeper. Some kids who are trying to regain some structure in their lives just might ask their parents to try using your method."

"Now that I know to expect it," Cleiton replied, "I will gladly explain it to any who ask. Honestly, I was expecting you to tell me to follow some specified procedure that you had selected."

"The first rule of being a Patriarch," Cory explained, "is that you are not a dictator. Your job is the same as mine, just on a smaller level; guide those under your charge to make the best decisions that they can, and be there for them when they fail. Save the absolute declarations for the really big stuff; if you rarely make one, your charges will pay a lot more attention to the times that you do exert absolute authority."

"One thing that you already do, one that Grandma Morrison is known for regularly testing everyone in the Clan on, is to listen to both sides when something happens that you do not normally approve of. Most non-Clan parents would not have given Afonso the chance to tell his side, nor would they accept helping his new cousins as a valid reason. You did exactly what I would expect someone in your position to do, and understood the priority in Alfonso's mind, even if it would not be a priority to you personally. Afonso left your conversation knowing that you would be fair, but also understanding that it doesn't give him permission to repeat it in the future. I do the same thing; I've been questioned a few times why I didn't discipline Timmy for something. My reply is always the same; I was aware of a matter that he was responding to, and knew that he would straighten things out once it was resolved. I've only had to remind him once about following through once he's done; he listened and makes sure that he's doing what I expect in those situations."

"Would it be wrong to warn my boys now before there is a repeat?" Cleiton asked.

Before answering, Cory asked, "Evan, you been listening?"

"Yep!" Evan replied.

"Good, I hate repeating myself!" Cory grinned. "My answer to Cleiton's question applies to you too, so join our little pow-wow."

Evan turned and moved the few steps to join them, Hac, Ardell, and Colin joining him. Noticing the added audience, Cory stated "You three can get the Cliff Notes from Kerry if you were not paying attention! Cleiton and Evan; due to what happened yesterday, I think you need to work together on family rules and procedures. For the rest of your family to look at you equally as heads of your bloodline, they are going to need to be confident that if one of you says something, the other will agree to it."

Seeing that he was understood, Cory continued. "I just witnessed Cleiton handling a case where one of his boys broke a rule; the structured way that it was handled made sense once I understood the background. I filled him in on how I handle it when outside events cause one of my kids to break a rule due to the urgency of responding to the event. He asked if proactively explaining the expectations for such situations would be a good idea, and while the answer is yes, it needs to be across the whole bloodline, not just his part. Colin, Ardell, and Hac; while I'm not going to say that you have to go with what these two decide as the final response to rules being broken in certain situations, I would recommend it to avoid confusion between the families. Evan, listen to how Cleiton handles rules being broke; I think with the genetic roots of the sons that have been added from the Second Cycle, that method might actually be best, especially as they are just starting out in their new families."

"I heard enough," Evan stated. "You get to explain it, Cleiton, but I'm onboard. Let's hold the meeting tonight after dinner."

"Evan?" Haden's voice asked over his commbadge, "Kerry's been keeping us in the conversation on our subvocals. I think I could handle that a lot better than the normal way. Both of us are in as well, Cleiton can speak for us."

"Thanks, bro," Evan replied.

"Include the three of us as well," Ardell stated, his tone daring Colin or Hac to argue.

Cory smiled at the responses. "I think that y'all working together is going to make your bloodline one that a lot of others are going to try to copy. Each of you has your own strengths; compare notes and listen, things will work out a lot better. Ardell, Hac, and Barrett have the most experience doing that, so if you're not sure, follow their lead. I know that I'm learning a lot from them myself."

"Me too," Tracy quipped as he joined them, having passed Kyle to Karl for his turn. "As Cory's brother, I'm ordering that the three of you beat that lesson into Julio's thick head!"

"We might need Pablito's help with that one!" Colin sniggered.

"I'll tell my little brother to expect your call," Tracy grinned. "Grandma just informed Julio that he was failing to properly perform his duties. Due to the status of the newest family in the Compound, she reminded him that is was his personal responsibility to escort them to Jordan Creek Towne Centre to ensure they have the necessities to begin their new life. He is preparing his new brother and new sons now, and will join us with his husbands shortly. Cor, Grandma says you're not getting out of it either; Benny's already putting the standard security in place."

Seeing looks of relief on Colin and Hac's faces, Tracy added "She specifically said that she expected a furball, his furball trainee brother, and the oldest Patriarch in the Clan to be present with their families as well. She is going to be taking attendance."

Ardell grinned. "I think Grandma's having premonitions again; it looks like we need to be there for something. Klaus is helping Benny with security, so we'll be over-protected as usual. Cleiton, I've done some research on Grandma, besides what our Founder kids found about her. When she does something like this, it means something important is going to happen; not necessarily a rescue, it could be something internal to the group going, but it needs to happen in a certain place. She can't tell you why, even if she knows, because it will change how you respond. To cover for that, she does it this way; it's annoying if you don't understand the details, but it works."

"Looking at it that way," Cleiton acknowledged, "I can actually handle it. Make sure Haden and Barrett heard you; her doing things like this affects them more than the rest of us."

"Thanks, Cleiton, we heard all of it." Barrett stated as him and Haden walked up. "The rest of the kids are getting ready with Glen, Kaique, Jimmy, Karl, Kyle, and Tyler giving them a hand."

"Haden, how do you feel about Grandma?" Evan asked with concern.

"I'm going to talk to her about warning me," Haden replied. "I understand, but if she can help make it not as big of a surprise I'll deal with it better."

"That's a really good idea," Evan said with a nod. "Include Barrett in that warning; he hides it better than you, but I can still tell that it affects him just as bad as it affects you when you're surprised."

"How...?" Barrett started to ask.

"Big Brother Superpowers!" Evan grinned. "If Grandma argues with the two of you about it, let me know so that Cleiton and I can remind her who sets the rules here."

"I've got the popcorn machines on standby, and Jory's figuring the odds," Tracy grinned. "Evan and Cleiton are favored, he's just got to decide on a spread!"

"Cory, control your brother!" Evan and Cleiton exclaimed in unison.

"Why?" Cory giggled, "It was his turn!"

 

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Colin had called ahead, so Gail was fully prepared for the mass invasion of her tee-shirt booth this time. In the time since the last invasion, two things had changed: she now had a warehouse stocked with shirts that were just a call to Kerry away from transferring to her booth, and the signage on the booth now proudly announced "Official Custom Shirt Provider to Family Clan Short - Des Moines".

Cory grinned as soon as he saw the sign, and quickly made a few calls on his subvocal. When he saw that Gail was getting a break as the mob started to decide on their choices for round two, he got her attention.

"How can I help you?" Gail asked as she moved to where Cory was standing.

"These guys didn't introduce me because they're scared I might dunk them in a pool," Cory grinned. "I'm Patriarch Cory Short. I noticed a small error on your signs, and I had it fixed for you. You're the official provider of custom tee shirts universe wide for Family Clan Short; Kerry will fill you in tonight on how he thinks it will work best to process off-site orders. All Family Clan Short Divisions and Outposts are preparing their local systems to accept orders for you starting tomorrow. Congratulations, you're now the largest custom tee shirt provider in the known universe!"

"You're serious, aren't you?" Gail asked in shock.

"Yep; if you check your bank account, at least three locations have pre-ordered stock that they want on-site for new rescues," Cory stated. "Such orders are pre-paid at time of the order; your credits in the bank reflect the immediate compensation for the orders. Kerry is already assisting you with ensuring there is sufficient stock to deliver the orders tomorrow; for the safety of your customers, any off-site orders that you receive will be delivered via appropriate Clan methods on your behalf."

"Ummm; I just received a secure message from my bank," Gail stated as she acknowledged a message on her phone. "They state that my account has exceeded the insured maximum balance by a significant amount, and are recommending that I consult with a financial advisor if the balance will remain at that level."

"When you talk with Kerry, tell him about that," Cory advised. "We have teams that invest for our own accounts, and they have a very good success rate in increasing our funds. Your status includes assistance such as this; they can manage your funds as a totally separate account, and you will be protected from losses by Family Clan Short. Just so you know, that was logged as I said it, and is now recorded on Vulcan. It would take a vote of the Vulcan Council to reverse it; and as I have a seat on that Council, I can confidently say that reversal is extremely unlikely."

Deciding that he'd shocked Gail enough, Cory told her "I don't do all of this for just anyone; most of the vendors that support the Clan are normal relationships. I heard about what you did for the last group that visited you; after seeing how you interact with the boys that we brought today, you have been added to the very short list of small businesses that I am going to personally ensure have everything they need to be successful. If you see someone that wants a shirt, but their parents comment that they can't afford it, we'll cover you giving it to them. If you want to make all kid's shirts free, go for it. If you see a kid that you're worried about, you'll have a way to let Kerry know instantly without anyone knowing, and we'll take it from there. If you're renting, let Julio over there know, and he'll arrange for you to have a house in the Compound if you want it; one with plenty of rooms for any orphans or rescues that you might decide need to have a family."

Gail started to respond, but then turned her head slightly, watching a young boy walking with his father. Cory felt the sudden concern from her, and turned his head to see what had her attention. "Benny!" Cory stated into his subvocal, knowing that the little VSO operative would grab the rest from his surface thoughts.

Seconds later, Benny replied with two words. "Confirmed, Activating."

The first sign of action was Haden and Barrett's twin sons twisting around and focusing on the pair. Seconds later, the man appeared to trip over something, landing flat on his face. The unusual part was that while he was obviously trying to get up, he acted like something was holding him down.

Evan and Jimmy's boys rushed out to the little boy, who looked to be seven, quickly pulling him into a double-hug as they started whispering something in his ear. Benny, now in full VSO uniform, moved in on the man stuck on the ground, his face completely blank.

Fully aware that there was a crowd forming to see what was happening, Benny kept it professional. "Tony Chase; as an official representative of Federation Legal Services, you are subject to the jurisdiction of organizations designated by the Federation Council to ensure that all laws are followed by those who enforce them. I am Vulcan Special Operations, and have responded to an inquiry from Patriarch Cory Short of the House of Surak of the Planet Vulcan. Upon investigation, it has been determined that you have continuously sodomized your offspring, who is currently being assisted by members of House Sheiraen of Family Clan Short of the House of Surak of the Planet Vulcan. You can stop trying to speak, as I have instructed my assistants to ensure that there is minimal disruption of the experiences of Mall visitors."

"Kerry, open channel to VSO Headquarters." Benny ordered after tapping his commbadge.

"Channel open, Commander," Kerry replied after a few seconds.

"Headquarters, open sentencing log, authority Commander James Benjamin Hernandez, VSO."

"Proceed."

"The offender is Tony Chase of Earth; Federation Legal Services. The victim is his son, Kelly Michael Chase, also of Earth. Investigation initiated by request of Patriarch Cory Short of Family Clan Short of the House of Surak of the Planet Vulcan. Councillor Cory has assigned jurisdiction to the VSO as required by Federation Council statutes."

"Verified; state charges and determination."

"Charges are serial sodomy of a youth from shortly after birth to the present time. The youth is seven Earth years, six months, and fourteen days old. Deep scans of both the suspect and victim confirm the charges are valid. At this time, I am releasing the victim to Family Clan Short; parental rights are terminated immediately for Tony Chase."

"Your Logic is sound, proceed with sentence."

"In accordance with Federation Directives for crimes committed by any member of the legal branch, the maximum sentence must be applied with no other recourse. I sentence Tony Chase to death; said sentence to be carried out in a private location by trained members of the Des Moines Division of Family Clan Short of the House of Surak of the Planet Vulcan."

"The sentence declared is in accordance with the requirement of the referenced Federation Directive. Councillor Cory shall confirm execution of the sentence."

"He has received your requirements," Benny stated. "Pause log pending Councillor Cory making his final report."

"Confirmed, awaiting closure."

As soon as Benny heard the connection close, he tapped his badge and ordered "Kerry; deliver the prisoner and Patriarch Cory to the on-duty Strike Team for immediate delivery of sentence."

"Acknowledged, Commander," Kerry replied as both Tony and Cory vanished.

Allowing a smile as he saw that Gail was now helping the twins with convincing Kelly that his horror was really over, Benny decided to deal with the crowd. "Could I have everyone's attention, please?"

Surprisingly, the crowd quickly went silent, most having a feeling that this particular boy was not to be crossed. Benny quickly looked around, making sure that nobody appeared to be getting ready to start trouble, then began. "As you can guess by the laws I was referencing, this wasn't a normal problem; in fact, if I had not already been here, I would have been called in. The Federation takes the actions of their legal arm seriously; not only their official actions, but everything that they do. You just saw how the Federation ensures that their legal people live up to Federation standards; unfortunately, the offender chose one of the few violations that carried a maximum sentence of death."

"As i said during my report, I was not allowed to select a sentence; I had to apply the maximum. If I had been able to handle this using Family Clan Short policy, he would be waiting to go to a prison planet. There is one part that you didn't see. Even though I am fully trained to handle the entire process myself; I had multiple Vulcan-Registered telepaths verify my findings. Patriarch Cory verified the scans against each other, and then released the suspect to me for trial with strict instructions as to the charges. He is the ONLY one present who had the authority to do that, and that is because he holds a seat on the Vulcan Council."

"While I know that this is not what you are used to in your normal legal system, this process, whether it's the Clan version or the Vulcan version, is designed so there is no question of guilt or innocence. Except for cases like this, where no choice is given, the punishment is adjusted to fit the crime. In fact, there have been a few cases where Earth courts convicted someone, and the Clan came across it in unrelated investigations. The Clan found that the persons were actually innocent, and not only reversed the conviction, but had the records cleared and assisted the adult with getting their lives back. That should happen less as more courts and prosecutors enlist our help in ensuring that they have the right offender."

"You have my sincere apologies for the interruption of your visit to the mall today. If anyone has any questions, please pull me aside and ask; if I'm not allowed to give you an honest answer for security reasons, I will tell you that. Thanks for listening, and I really hope that it helped you understand what you saw."

To Benny's surprise, he was answered by appreciative applause from the crowd. four people had questions after the crowd dispersed, all of which were easily answered.

By this time, Cory was back, and was officially introducing Kelly to Gail, explaining that she was the first one to spot something.

"Do you know how to be a Mommy? I've never had a Mommy before," Kelly asked Gail just as Benny joined them.

"I heard Cory offer you a house," Benny giggled. "You want the ten bedroom, or the twelve bedroom?"

"What!" Gail asked in shock.

"Now that you proved that you have the authority," Benny grinned, "I'm sure that you're going to spot some brothers, sisters, or both for Kelly. He's already cleared; none of his relation are comfortable with taking in another kid. It looks like he chose you; all you have to do is say the magic word. Once you decide which house, all of your things will be waiting for you as soon as you get home. We'll take care of Kelly's medical needs while you're finishing your day here, and he can hang out at our place during the day when you're working; there's only a few dozen kids there, so one more won't be a big deal. There's almost a dozen parents there too; so he's not going to be ignored. Grab the twelve, it's right across the street!"

"Gail, Benny's one of the Director's husbands," Cory explained, "it takes two of them to keep him in line! Seriously, he has the authority to do every single thing that he just said; and as part of the Command team, he won't suggest anything that isn't a positive thing for Kelly. In one way or another, everything that he does he at least partially answers to me. One thing; by how you spotted Kelly, I'm going to guess that there is something in your past that these guys are fully qualified to help you with resolving. I'm an Empath; what I felt from you, without trying, when you saw Kelly is something I've learned to identify quickly; you could tell he was being abused by the way he moved, that creates a specific emotional combination in anyone who has been around it."

Gail looked Cory in the eyes for a few seconds, then dropped to one knee to be at Kelly's level. "What do you think, Kelly? Do you want to fill up ten bedrooms with brothers and sisters, or twelve bedrooms?"

"Can we just fill twelve with brothers, Mommy?" Kelly asked hopefully. "Girl kids are icky!"

"We'll see what happens, how does that sound?" Gail replied as she ignored the muffled giggles surrounding her.

"Kerry, tell Peter she chose the twelve!" Benny snickered. "Gail Anderson, Kelly wishes to be your son. Do you accept his request?"

"Yes," Gail replied as she pulled Kelly into his first Mommy hug. "Forever."

"Log it, Kerry; we'll sort out the names once they get home tonight," Benny stated. "Gail, our team was not impressed with what they found as Kelly's belongings. Would it be okay if he comes with us to get his Clan starter kit? After we're done, I'll have him checked for any medical needs, and then we'll meet you at your new home. Peter's already moved all of your stuff for you."

"That would make things easier," Gail replied. "I can't let my son be seen in the shirt he's wearing though; let me get him a better one."

Benny grinned a few seconds later, as he silently gave Kerry the okay to modify the shirt that Gail asked him to print. A minute later, Gail came back, rolling her eyes as she saw Benny's grin. "I think this looks a lot better than that old polo shirt," Gail smiled as she unfolded the green tee-shirt. Kelly's eyes filled with happy tears as he read the shirt slowly.

'My Mommy loves me so much that she adopted me'

"Mommy, what's that green thing?" Kelly asked.

Gail smiled. "That green thing tells everyone that you are part of Family Clan Short, just like all of these other guys watching you. It means that if anyone tries to do what your Father did, they'll all protect you from the bad guy."

Kelly looked at Benny; trusting the boy who sent his nightmare away. At Benny's nod, Kelly twisted and slammed into him with the tightest hug that he could do. "Thank you!" Kelly repeated over and over as Benny held him.

 

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To Be Continued ...

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