It was New Year's Eve now, and Bela, Elena, Donna, and Angie we're currently at the market looking for supplies. Joseph's idea of everyone starting their own business to better interact with the villages had really inspired them to do just that, and that made Bela and Elena decide to join Donna's doll making business, but they suggested making it into a tailor business as well, and the lord loved it.

They were currently looking for stuff to help them get started with their new business idea, but Elena knew that many of the villagers still resented her girlfriend and the lords, so she asked Heisenberg if he could join them, to which he wholeheartedly accepted, and he was currently on his way to meet them.

"What do you think, Aunt Donna? Would these fabrics work?" Bela asked as she held up some felt and lawn cloth.

Donna took them in her hands and studied them. She was now only wearing half of her veil in public to show the unmutated side of her face. She still wasn't comfortable about showing her entire face yet, but she was proud of herself for the progress she was making, and so was her family.

"They're certainly good choices, but we will need several more types before we can start. If we want this to work, we have to be very diverse." The lord said.

"Well then, let's go all out and get what we can. We won't know what works until we try." Angie said.

"Very true. It's like Mandy said. Trial and error." Elena said.

As they continued to look for more fabrics to use, Bela couldn't find one in particular she was looking for, so she looked up at the woman running the stand, who currently had her back to her working on what looked like a shirt.

"Excuse me, do you happen to have some corduroy by any chance?" She asked.

But the woman didn't answer. She just continued to do her work. Thinking she didn't hear her, Bela spoke louder.

"Excuse me, ma'am?"

Again, the woman didn't answer. It was clear now that she was ignoring the blonde. Seeing this, Elena stepped up.

"Helen, I know you can hear me. You have a customer that has a question."

The woman finally stopped and spun around, giving the group a scowl.

"That's not a customer. That's a hideous monster that shouldn't be in this village, and I don't serve things like it. Why are you even with it anyway?"

Elena was shocked, and she started to feel her anger rise. Angie heard what Helen had said and climbed onto the counter.

"Hey, that's not very nice! Do you treat all your customers that way?" The doll shouted.

Helen just scoffed in disgust.

"Get that thing off my counter! What is wrong with you Elena, hanging out with these horrid creatures?"

Elena was mad, but started to feel her eyes well up as well. The woman just continued her rant.

"I know you and your father are staying at that accursed castle now. How could you even think to live there after what those lycans did to your mother, and now you're becoming friends with those freaks too?! You should be ashamed of yourself!"

"HEY!" A voice shouted.

They turned to see Heisenberg walking up to them. He had just arrived and had heard the whole thing. Needless to say, he looked pissed. Helen shrunk a bit as he approached.

"What the fuck is your problem, Helen? These people come in minding their own business to do a little shopping and you start treating them like shit?" Heisenberg asked firmly. He was using his status as a lord to full effect, and it was working on the woman. Even now, with the new way things were going, nobody wanted to get on Heisenberg's bad side.

The woman remained silent.

"Oh, so now you're being quiet? You were running your mouth off just a second ago." Heisenberg said.

The woman finally looked up.

"What do you want me to say? Things start changing around here and you just expect us to forget what happened? Maybe you can, but I will never forget what you and those other foul creatures did! My daughter died because of them, and I sure won't forgive you for it either!"

"We're not trying to forget what happened. We're trying to make peace with it and move forward. We're not proud of what we've done." Bela spoke up weakly.

"Oh, and that's it? You just say your sorry and that immediately makes up for all the death you caused!? No, you and your family don't deserve forgiveness! You deserve to rot in hell for what you did!"

"SHUT YOUR FUCKING HOLE!" Heisenberg yelled.

He took a step forward and got into Helen's face, causing her to shrink again. He was fuming now and continued in a lower, but no less serious tone.

"Listen here you piece of shit. Just so you know, Bela and her family didn't choose to be what they became, and it was hard for all of them to cope with how their bodies and minds had been affected, and they are fully aware of the things they've done, and they are ashamed by it. Despite that though, they didn't let that stop them from trying to change and be better people for their sakes and everyone else's, which makes them much stronger people than you are.

"Now I am sorry about the loss of your daughter. I truly am, and I would never judge anyone for having that kind of pain. That said, we don't need you to come in and rub salt in the wound by ridiculing us and calling us monsters and shit. We're trying to make changes around here for the better, and we're doing our best damnit.

"I'm not threatening your life when I say this so don't get the wrong idea, but if you continue to harass my family like this, we're gonna have a problem. Got it?"

He didn't yell, but the look and tone he used was terrifying. Even Bela shuttered a bit. After a moment of silence, Helen finally spoke.

"Fine." She growled.

"Good. Now start treating these people with good customer service like you're supposed to." Heisenberg ordered.

The group selected their items, but didn't pay as Heisenberg said Helen didn't deserve it after the attitude she gave, something that they agreed with.

….

The group was in a somber mood when they returned to the castle. They told everyone what had happened and Alcina went through the roof upon hearing it. Joseph and Cassandra even had to hold her back from running out of the castle and confronting Helen, but it was clear that they were super pissed about it as well. Mandy excused herself to her room and was currently screaming at the top of her lungs while Daniela was trying (and failing) to calm her down. Joseph rarely saw his sister truly lose her temper, but when she did, she was scary.

Cassandra in particular was hit hard upon hearing about what happened as she had a similar encounter with Hellen when she was getting food from the market with Joseph, and what she said to the couple about them and their relationship was even worse than what Anton said, even saying that Joseph was an idiot for dating Cassandra and that doing so made him a monster too.

Joseph was somehow able to hold back his anger, but firmly warned Hellen to never speak of his girlfriend like that again, but unlike with Heisenberg, Hellen wasn't intimidated by Joseph. While the brunette thanked her boyfriend for standing up for her, it was clear the encounter really affected her, and now to hear that the same woman had said even worse things about her and her family, it was starting to break her up inside.

The Countess eventually stopped resisting after a while and sat down on a chair while uncorking a bottle of Sanguis Virginis and pouring herself a glass. She needed a drink to calm her nerves.

"I can't believe that woman said all those horrible things, but I can't help but feel we deserve it after what we've done!" She yelled with tears in her eyes.

Joseph took a few deep breaths before speaking.

"Maybe to an extent, but not like that. That woman spoke of you like you're all evil demons or something, and we know that's not true."

He sighed before continuing.

"It's clear now that the new changes are making people braver in more ways than one. Some are facing their fears to help you start over, while others have found an excuse to lash out at you. I knew this would happen, but I was hoping it wouldn't."

Elena then spoke up.

"I don't understand. These people are seeing things change throughout the village, including the lords being warm and kind to everyone now. Why can't they make peace with the past and move forward like me and my father have?" She asked.

Joseph sighed again.

"Unfortunately, some people end up never letting go of their grudges and hatred. Not because they can't do it, but because they don't want to. They pride themselves into thinking they are better than the people they hold their grudges against, and they will try to prove it by any means necessary. It doesn't matter what anyone says or does. In their minds, they are always right, and the people they hate, and everyone who supports them, are not just wrong, they're enemies.

"Now I'm not saying their pain isn't justified, because it most certainly is. What I'm saying is that they let their hatred turn them into something that's just as bad if not worse than what they direct it at."

Bela started getting a terrified look on her face.

"What if it goes beyond just yelling at us and saying terrible things? What if people actually start trying to hurt us?"

Joseph walked over and put his hand on the blonde's shoulder, giving her a reassuring look.

"I won't let that happen Bela. If there are people who are crazy enough to try that, they will regret it."

Cassandra then walked over and put her hand on her sister's other shoulder. She was trying her best to keep her anguish under control.

"Same here. Anyone who tries to hurt us will get my sword through their skull. Nobody fucks with my family. Nobody."

"You got that right." Heisenberg said. "We worked hard to get to this point, and I'll be damned to see someone try and tear it down."

"Absolutely. No one is going to take our happiness away from us." Joseph said in agreement.

At that moment, Daniela returned to the room wheeling Mandy, who was still boiling over but was calm enough now to be with everyone else. Alcina then got up and poured another glass for Mandy before handing it to her, which she accepted with a silent nod.

"I'm sorry you had to hear me scream like that." The raven haired girl said after taking a sip.

"You have nothing to apologize for. I'm just as emotional about this as you are." Alcina said.

Cassandra then cried out, not being able to hold it in anymore.

"I don't get it. We try our best to make ourselves better. We try our best to make the village a better place for everyone. Why can't people see that? Why can't we just be happy? Why do these people feel the need to just drag us back into our pain?! It hurts enough already! I JUST WANT THE PAIN TO GO AWAY!"

She dropped to her knees and started sobbing. She just couldn't take it anymore.

Joseph ran over and hugged his girlfriend tight, shedding some tears as well. He knew what she was feeling as his own parents were refusing to forgive him and continuing to hold his past mistakes against him. They didn't care how much he had changed. All they ever saw was his failures. Cassandra was right. It hurt. It hurt badly.

As the couple held each other and wept, Joseph felt arms wrap around his body and turned to see Mandy hugging him, with Daniela hugging Cassandra. The rest of the group joined in the hug as well to support not just them, but each other as well. For it was the love that Joseph had taught them that eased their pain and made them stronger together.

After a moment of silence, the group parted and Mandy turned to her brother with tears in her eyes.

"I can't take this anymore. Having you all being treated this way is just not fair. Especially you, Joseph. You're the reason things turned around for these people, and you deserve so much better."

She took a deep breath before continuing.

"I've been trying to prevent this, but I now know that this was inevitable. I'm going to call mom and dad to confront them. If they're going to refuse to have you in their lives Joseph, they won't have me either."

Her brother's eyes widened in shock and was about to say something when she put her hand up.

"Don't you even! I've always been afraid to disappoint them, but I won't tolerate them treating my little brother like this anymore! What kind of big sister would I be if I didn't stand up for you?" She choked.

Joseph gave a small smile and knelt down to face her at eye level.

"Mandy…I don't even know what to say. You would do that for me?"

"I'd do anything for you. You know that."

"In that case, you're not doing it alone. As your brother, it's my job to stand up for you too."

Alcina then walked up to the two siblings with a worried look.

"Joseph, are you sure you want to do this? Once you do, it may be a point of no return."

Joseph turned to The Countess.

"I am, Alcina. I've taught all of you how to confront your past and how to make peace with it, but there is one thing that we haven't done yet, and it's the last and most difficult step of all. Facing the people who refuse to forgive you. I need to do this not just for myself, but to show you all you can do it too."

He then turned back to his sister.

"My only question is, are you sure you want to do this Mandy, because Alcina is right. Once we do this, there may be no going back. Are you willing to make that choice?"

The raven haired girl smiled and nodded without hesitation.

"I already told you little bro. I am never leaving you again, and I keep the promises I make."

Joseph gave a big, warm smile before the two siblings hugged for a brief moment before parting and facing Alcina again.

"There is one thing though. We don't want anyone else in the room with us when we do this. This is just something we have to do with just us two." Joseph said.

"What?!" The countess gasped.

"He's right, Alcina. This is between us and our parents. It's okay. You know by now how strong Joseph is, and I'll be there with him so we'll be fine." Mandy said

Alcina paused before reluctantly nodding. Cassandra and Daniela then walked up to their mother and gave them a pleasing look. Without words, The Countess understood what they were asking and turned back to the two siblings.

"I understand. If it's alright with you though, me, Cassandra and Daniela would like to be outside the room on standby in case you need us."

"Yes, that would be okay. Thank you, Alcina." Joseph said with a smile.

The countess smiled back.

"I mean it too. If you need anything whatsoever, don't hesitate to give us a shout."

"Will do."

The two siblings then faced each other and nodded

"I'm ready when you are little bro."

"I am, sis. Let's do this."