Summary: 

“Okay, what is it?” Chase asked.

Nicolette straightened up, taking a deep breath. She’d been rehearsing the statement in her head for weeks now.

“When you Awakened me, you took responsibility for several things. First, that you’d help me control the voices in my head. Second, you’d get me a place to stay that wasn’t my parents’ house. Third, you’d teach me how to fend for myself in this world you were bringing me into. You’ve done the first, and I’m grateful for that. The other two have issues that need to be worked out.”

“I got you invited to the Blue Heron, didn’t I? And I sponsored you into the Belanger Circle,” he said.

“Yes. You did,” she said. “Alexander told me that he was willing to waive costs for the first spring session I spent here, but he can’t let me stay for free forever. He needs someone to cover the cost. Until then, I have to do chores for him to make up the gap.”

“And? Why should I care?”

--

Five times Nicolette sought help escaping Alexander, and one time she rejected it.

Title: A leash in the guise of kindness: the glove situation in E.5
Major Warnings: Ableism
Summary: By the end of Pale, Kira-Lynn is a disabled teenager kept in an isolated cell in Kennet Found. Though the narrative presents this as a sad but necessary method to keep others safe from her, the conditions of Kira-Lynn’s imprisonment in Kennet Found are significantly harsher than should be required to meet that goal. This is most apparent in the method that Kennet Found chooses to accommodate Kira-Lynn’s lack of hands, which unnecessarily reduces her autonomy.