Cost Club Week Essay Example for Free

Cost Club Week Essay The issues against discharging an employee with any reason can be very harmful to any business. This opens the door for a lawsuit to any organization because, an ex-employee could file a lawsuit against the employer for alleging that they had been discharged wrongfully. The civil right law act in 1964 provides protection to the employees against wrongfully discharge. This describe that companies cannot terminate their employees basis of race, gender, skin, religion, color etc, (Employment law for business, 2007)†.) For example, if their at-will relationship exists between the employee and employer this does not mean that employer may terminate the employee, in a discriminatory manner. This mean the organization has to follow the legal principles before discharging their employee. There are so many laws that protect the individuals even though we are an, at- will state. The Federal anti-discrimination law prevents employees from wrongful discharge by the employer (Lawson, 1998)†. This scenario does not say that the employees were not let go due to the basis of any reason. This lawsuit against the organization for wrongful discharge could be very risky for the Cost Club since there were no reasons for terminating their employees. Reduction in Employee Costs There are many ways to reduce company cost. One thing a company can do is to outsource their HR. This will help reduce the cost of the employee benefits  program by bring in an outside company like GNA Partners. The GNA Partners have many ways to save the company money but, may bring cost to the workers. The GNA Partners provide negotiation insurance rates, which the plan cost are determined by what age group the employees fall into. Next the company can choose higher deductible plans, which this reduces, the cost of benefits plan. †¢ The business can offer robust benefits package by making their employees contribute. †¢ Using different types of workers like temporary workers, contract employee, part-time employees, employees and, non-employees work hours. These job types can be helpful to accomplish the seasonal demand of the organizations plus can cause the increase within the organizational performance. The organization knows all different categories of workers who can hire to save money for definite and indefinite period. Organization understands that temporary workers directly reports to the employer and receive their reimbursement from the company. When a company hires a contract employee, temporary and, part-time employee they know that they do not have to pay this employee benefits or high rates. Like vacation, sick, and part-time workers are usually define a workers, who have shorter working hours other fulltime workers. The rules, policies and, procedures for the part-time employee are not the same as the regular employees but quite different from the temporary workers† (Part Time and Temporary Employees, 2009). According to â€Å"Bennett-Alexander, Hartman, â€Å"by hiring independent contractors, the cost of overtime is eliminated (the federal wage and hour laws do not apply to independent contractors) and the employer is able to avoid any work-related expenses, su ch as tools, training, or traveling. The employer is also guaranteed satisfactory performance of the job for which the contractor was hired because it is the contractor’s contractual obligation to adequately perform the contract with the employer, while the employee is generally able to quit without incurring liability (Employment law for business, 2007)†. For example, the company manage is an employees work who sets an employee’s schedule, along with deciding the method the employee uses to perform their work. An independent contractor is a person who provides particular services to an organization. Whether it be a short or long-term assignment. This is very effective low cost and saving the companying money because; temporary, contract or part-time employment arrangements provides several benefits to any business. Injury and Damages According to Tort Law, the Cost Club will be liable for the misconduct of employees with the customers. Tort laws are laws that offer remedies to individuals harmed by the unreasonable actions of others. Tort claims usually involve state law and are based on the legal premise that individuals are liable for the consequences of their conduct if it results in injury to others (McCarthy Cambron-McCabe, 1992). Tort laws involve civil suits, which are actions brought to protect an individual’s private rights. The second situation, the employee is liable for physical harm to the customers’ property. Therefore, the company who hires the employee will be held liable for their employees negligent. The last situation, the business will not be liable for the acts of a real estate agent, because, the real estate agent is not controlled by the business. Therefore, the Cost Club should let their customers know they, are not responsible or that the real estate agent is an independent and organization contractors and that they have no control on his or her activities so, Cost Club will not be liable for the tort of him or her (Tort Liability Basics: Strict, Vicarious, and Joint Liability, 1999). Resolving Disagreement Processes Resolving disagreement between company and its employees, the can †¢ Set up a subject box  Ã¢â‚¬ ¢ Have a meeting once a week with the manager, and employees to discuss the problem that may arise between co-workers and managers. †¢ Includes third party as the mediator between employees and company. †¢ Grievance procedure, corporate due process, mediation etc., †¢ Clear as the formal complaint by the employees that they are behaved wrongly by the management decisions (Open door policy) These steps can be very effective to resolve between most companies’ problem. Which, if not settled could cause a big problem like violation of law, and just a perception of unfair treatment by the employees and managers. This method has to be effective in order to achieve long-term success and to facilitate and to accommodate between the employees and the company. Employment Law Concepts for Selection Employment law concepts for selection would include several legal implications. According to Bennett-Alexander, Hartman, â€Å"the Civil Rights  Act 1964 prohibits the employers from discrimination among the potential employees on the basis of race, gender, color, region etc. in its recruitment and selection process. The next step is once the employee is hired, the company should make sure they follow steps are, training, appraising, compensating, and implementing employment decisions that determine such things as promotions, transfers, and layoffs† The selection procedure should also be job related and concern with the business necessity. The company should always follow the State HR Laws, and all the employees should be treated fairly and equally (Employment Tests and Selection Procedures, 2008). The Age Discrimination in Employment Act should also be considered in the selection procedure by the management. Reference: Beatty, J.F. Samuelson, S.S. (2009). Introduction to Business Law (3rd ed.). Cengage Learning. Bennett-Alexander, D. D. Hartman, P. L. (2007). Employment law for business (5th ed.). New York: McGraw–Hill. Retrieved October 29, 2012 from University of Phoenix, rEsource. Part Time and Temporary Employees. (2009). Retrieved October 29, 2012 from http://employment.findlaw.com/employment/employment-employee-overview/employment-

The Appreciation Of Film Art Film Studies Essay

The Appreciation Of Film Art Film Studies Essay The analysis of film enables viewers to truly appreciate the work as a form of art. It explains all of the working parts, thusly encouraging a more complete understanding of the whole. This in turn deepens the characters, conflicts, and theme of film making it more real or significant to the viewer. While initially developing and implementing skills of analytical viewing are difficult. With practice one will be able to analyze an entire move and describe how viewers find meaning in a film. Also, one can develop their own personal criteria for analyzing film. After reaching these goals the viewer will not only be able to enjoy the film emotionally but also intellectually. Effectively analyzing a film is complex in that film is not static. In literature and screenplays one is able to read and re-read the information because it remains motionless on the page. In film, however the viewer must be able to process the non-verbal, and other visual ques. During critical analysis of a film the critic must be able to view all of the elements separately but also understand their relationship to the whole. The viewer must ask several questions prior to the analysis of the film. Does the film have a unified plot? Is the story and characters credible? Is the film interesting? Does the director create a simplistic yet complex film? Does the film handle emotion with restraint (Boggs, 1996, pg. 6)? A film with a unified plot enables the viewers to follow a stream of consciousness when viewing the movie. Â  It has a beginning, middle, and an end. In literary terms, a unified plot includes an exposition, a rising action, a climax, and a denouement. The characters, theme, and plot are developed as the film progresses. A logical sequence of events maintains a constant theme and the conflict are resolved by elements or characters that have been introduced in the film. The events bear a resemblance to cause and effect; this forces the actions to move the story along (Boggs, 2008, pg. 41). During analysis one must decide if the film is credible. To accomplish this, the plot and the characters will fall into one of three categories. What is understood to be true, what could be true, or what is convincingly created as a reality. Harsh realities often fall into what is understood to be true. The audience knows that the protagonist will not always win and couples do not always stay together. On the other hand, human emotions dictate a desire to experience happy endings. In these films, Romeo would have received his letter from Juliet. Lastly, a production team will create a world of science fiction or fantasy. The objective viewer must decide whether this is done skillfully. The audiences response to the film is directly correlated to the credibility of the fantasy characters and the world of which they live. While all of these aspects can be found in a majority of film, the critical viewer will understand that one follows closest to the theme (Boggs, 2008, pg. 42). The most evident aspect to a reviewer and the audience is the movies ability to captivate. How do the filmmakers make the movie interesting? While to the audience this can be dependent on personal preference, the reviewer must remain objective to make this conclusion. Directors and writers will create suspense throughout the movie to create the desire to keep watching. They will usually provide the audience with clues hinting to possible outcomes. Another aspect of how interesting the movie is the action. Whether it be external, or physical action or it is internal or psychological action. As easily as the reviewer can see a duel or crash landing, they will be able to see external action. Now, when the action takes place in the mind or emotionally for the characters it is internal. They both however create movement that is essential to maintain the audiences interest in the film (Boggs, 2008, pg. 46). The complexity of the film should be taken into consideration during analysis. While it is possible to over-simplify the theme, characters, or the plot of a film it is also possible to make it too complex. Movies are essential created for consumption and as with all things consumed, consumers have different opinions on what pleases them. So, it is possible for many people who enjoy the complexity of a serious, thought-provoking film. On the other hand, it is just as simple to find those who would rather be entertained and do not desire to be challenged during a film. Either way as a critical reviewer, one should be able to recognize how well the film-maker combines these to ideas. How well they are able to present complex ideas in a simple manner without taking away from the meaning, and vice-versa (Boggs, 2008, pg. 48). A final aspect in critical review of film to consider is its ability to present emotional material with restraint. Normally the director will intend for the film to be reciprocated with a certain emotional response from the audience. However, if the audience feels as though it is being forced or coaxed to feeling a certain way it may have the opposite effect. As the objective viewer, one will notice that emotional content can be presented in plot structure, characters dialogue, musical score, and even visual cues. When analyzing the film, it is important to look at all of these aspects to understand the effect that they have on the whole. To understand how the emotional content is presented to add value to the film (Boggs, 2008, pg. 51). People from across every economic, social, gender, cultural, and all other stratifications that can be thought of watch movies. Knowing that people are innately different from one another leads one to the conclusion, that there exist hundreds of different ways that individuals use to find meaning in film. Meaning in cinema can be found and interpreted exclusively at face value. This method of course does not fully value the vision of the filmmakers and does not allow for the viewer to receive the complete experience that critical receptiveness would attain. When a critical viewer attempts to find meaning in a film there are several different areas in which they can search. The meaning of film can be found in its allegories, symbolism, metaphors, and ironies (Boggs, 2008, pg. 55). In cinema and literature, allegories create an additional meaning for what is being portrayed on the screen. The characters normally cannot adopt distinctive personalities because their primary role is to accurately portray something already in existence. In the film, Animal Farm, the audience understands the different roles that each animal plays and their association to the actual events that occurred in the early 1900s (Boggs, 2008, pg. 70). Films often use symbolism to help the audience discover meaning beyond what is being shown. Filmmakers will introduce a symbol that will arouse certain emotions, feelings, thoughts, and connotations within the viewer. This skillful application of symbols can be done with the use of natural or universally accepted signs or through by the director placing emphasis on the symbols throughout the film. Because different natural or universally accepted symbols have different meanings to different people there is some ambiguity in their meanings. For example, a common association of bats in Western society is to demons or spirits, association of the night. While in the East bats are a symbol of good fortune. When filmmakers want to apply meaning to symbols that occur in the film they utilize methods, such as, repetition, value added by characters, and context. When the director places emphasis on an object that otherwise would seem insignificant by showing it to the audience. When the chara cters place emphasis on objects or identify themselves through something, the audience understands that by considering the objects meaning and its associations they will be able to better understand the character. In context, the director will use a symbol to suggest a meaning to the audience through combining scenes, juxtaposition, or relating the object to other images in the scene. In Batman, when Bruce Waynes mother was shot the audience is shown her pearl necklace being broken and falling to the ground an example of juxtaposition (Boggs, 2008, pg. 71). Often in cinema different metaphors are used to represent actions. Normally metaphors are figures of speech that denote an object or idea to suggest likeness or analogies between them. There exist two methods in creating metaphors in film, extrinsic and intrinsic metaphors. Extrinsic metaphors a normally very similar to symbolism in film in that they are achieved by juxtaposition or showing scenes simultaneously. In a romance the director could show a man and woman making love and then show a bee pollinating a flower to show the miracle of life. The intrinsic metaphors occur more naturally, the metaphor can now replace action. The director can simply show the two people entering a room and then show the bees and the audience will understand what is happening. Of course, the metaphor for the actions depicted is the birds and the bees and many people grow up knowing and understanding its connotation (Boggs, 2008, pg. 80). Quite the opposite of metaphors and similes is irony. Irony creates association through differences; through the differences the audiences can draw similarities. There are many different types of irony: dramatic, situational, characters, setting, tone, and cosmic. Audiences draw meaning through irony by understanding the contradictions that exist in the film. In an example of irony of character in Sling Blade, the audience sees that the formally institutionalized for murder, Karl Childers, as a positive role model and even a father figure for Frank Wheatley. This portrays to the audience a caring, loving side of Karl but also shows the hopelessness of Franks situation (Boggs, 2008, pg. 88). Although viewers can find meaning through these devices, the most common methods are through analyzing the plot and characters of a film. The audience is able to automatically identify with these aspects and parallel personal experiences to find a meaning in a film. The conflict which is central to the plot a film is what moves the movie along. Conflict centers on man versus self, nature, society, or man. The characters portrayed in a film can be identified by the conflicts that they will face and the audience will be able to deepen their understanding of characters through the conflicts that they face. Firstly, the audience will see what actions lead to the conflict. Secondly, the audience will see how the character copes with the situation, whether he will rise to meet the challenge, remain static, or fail to act. Finally, the audience will be shown how the character reaches a resolution adding depth to the character. The type of conflict and the personality character who is facing it often develops the theme of a film. Once the nature of the characters is establishes the viewers can find meaning in them. Is the protagonist a strong minded, witty character who always is quick to act, like James Bond? The directors intention in films like these is to glorify traits of heroism and fearlessness. Similarly, Jason Bourne portrays many of the same traits but with distinct differences. Bourne is a neurotic and is on the run seeking vengeance from the government who betrayed him while lacking the suave style normally associated with Bond. While Bond classically a misogynist, Bourne is in love only with one woman. Audiences find interpret these characters differently and value them in different ways whether they like the values that the characters portray or not (Boggs, 2008, pg. 133). Criteria for effectively analyzing a film will vary from person to person. The most important objective is to establish a pattern, a system, or to evaluate films in way to ensure one covers every aspect. Personally I have developed a system that allows me to enjoy a film on an emotional level and then take a critical look at the different elements work together to create the whole. I do this by: locating a film, ensuring I have a clear open mind, watching the film first to determine interest and initial impressions. Then I will watch the film again to carefully analyze literary elements, such as, setting, plot, characters, and symbols. After the film is completed it is important to reflect on several questions. What is the theme of the movie? I consider if the movie effectively communicates a theme to viewers. How did the storyline move? Does the plot flow easily but remains complex drawing the audience in. Does the dialogue work? Will viewers of the film find the dialogue credible and natural? Do the set, lighting, score, and special effects add to the movie? If not properly utilized these effects can overwhelm the senses and detract from the film. How does the film represent its topic? How well is the film edited? If there are unnecessary scenes that do not add to the movie they should be cut out. Also, do scenes effectively transition or has too much been re moved making the film hard to follow. How effectively does the director use symbolism or metaphors? Does the director add depth to the characters or objects through association (Boggs, 2008, pg. 8)? After deliberate review of all of these questions I am able to fully appreciate the value of the effort put into, or lack thereof, filmmakers have put into their work. While at the same time it allows me to enjoy the film on a platonic level prior to analysis. Film is unique because it is an art form but it also an industry. Audiences are willing to sacrifice money and time to take part in the magic of the silver screen. Their love for this art form has created the need to better understand the films, to create a deeper meaning than what is first visible. With practice audiences can analyze an entire move and describe how they find meaning in a film. Also, they can develop their own personal criteria for analyzing film. Techniques employed by filmmakers at first may be difficult to comprehend, but once understood they will add significant value to the film.

Point of View in Amy Tan’s Short Story, Two Kinds Essay -- Two Kinds, A

Point of View in Amy Tan’s Short Story, Two Kinds In her short story "Two Kinds," Amy Tan utilizes the daughter's point of view to share a mother's attempts to control her daughter's hopes and dreams, providing a further understanding of how their relationship sours. The daughter has grown into a young woman and is telling the story of her coming of age in a family that had emigrated from China. In particular, she tells that her mother's attempted parental guidance was dominated by foolish hopes and dreams. This double perspective allows both the naivety of a young girl trying to identify herself and the hindsight and judgment of a mature woman. "Two Kinds" is a powerful example of differing personalities causing struggles between parent and child. In every parent-child relationship, there are occurrences in which the parent places expectations on the child. Some children fall victim to a parent trying too hard or placing expectations too high, or, in the case of "Two Kinds," a parent trying to live her life through that of her child. However, the mother is also a victim in that she succumbs to her own foolish dream that "you could be anything you wanted to be in America." Knowing that her own time has passed, she wants her daughter to succeed by any means necessary, but she never stops to think of what her daughter might want. She strictly adheres to her plan, and her overbearing parenting only leaves the daughter with feelings of disapproval and questions of self-worth. The mother does not realize the controversy that she creates, and she cannot understand that her actions could be wrong. She also does not realize tha t she is hurting not only her daughter, but also the relationship that should bind the two of them ... ...by the wrong person. Only after the death of her mother can she let her guilt override her pride. Only after the death of her mother, when she can act on her own accord and not please her mother, does she truly play the piano. Their conflict has gone unsolved, and the mother has died believing that she was a failure as a parent. Throughout the daughter's childhood, both are trapped in their own selfish illusions. Their personalities clash, and neither is willing to compromise. It is unfortunate that neither can realize the extent to which they have damaged themselves individually and jointly. They are fundamentally the same, but, blinded by tenacity, neither realizes that "they are two halves of the same song." Works Cited Tan, Amy. "Two Kinds". Literature, Reading Reacting,Writing. 5th ed. Ed. Laurie G. Kirszner and Stephen R. Mandell. Boston: Heinle, 2004.

Comparing and Contrasting the Novel and Movie Version of The Scarlet Le

The Novel vs. Film of The Scarlet Letter Films of this era are criticized for substituting violence and special effects for "substance". Many believe that creating a movie script is a juvenile form of writing, a shrub to the oak of a novel. Upon reading both the novel The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne and viewing the film produced by Roland Joffe, one notices the tremendous effort put into both. This essay will explore the many differences and similarities between the book and movie. The film is "freely adapted" from the novel. The word "free" describing the adaptation is well used- there are major differences in terms of time frame, characters, visual imagery and symbolism, plot, narration, and tone. Nearly an hour of information the reader received only as background was on tape. The film began when Hester arrived in the New World, not at the dreary prison door she passed through on her way to the scaffold in the novel. Many characters were added to the film, several of whom were central to the plot. Mituba, Hester's mute slave girl, Brewster, the lewd, undisciplined rule-breaker, Goody Gotwick, the mouthpiece of the community's "pious women," and Minister Cheever, the powerful church leader who attempted to serve as arbiter of the community's morals did not exist in the novel. Mistress Hibbins' relationship to Governor Bellingham was of a citizen to ruler nature. In the book, their relationship prevented her persecution, whereas in the movie, no family ties pr otected mistress Hibbins from the cruel witch trials characteristic of the 1600's. Her character progressed from minor in the book to a supporting role in the movie. She served as the only character besides Hester who behaved according to... ...and Dimmesdale move to the Carolinas to begin a new life, while in Hawthorne's novel, Pearl lives a full life, her mother working for the community and her father dying on the scaffold. There is no set answer as to which ending is "better," one may be more fulfilling, another may be more informative, another could touch a child, the other, a parent. One may favor the film over the novel or vice versa, but that person could not overlook the great care that went into the making of both. Using the novel as a base from which to work, the filmmaker created his own masterpiece, changing and adding elements as he felt necessary. Whether for increased popularity or his own personal satisfaction, the filmmaker's version also kept some themes and characters. The film and novel have their similarities and differences, but both effectively communicate their meaning to the public.

Anne Robert Jaques Turgot and His Relevance to the French Revolution :: essays research papers fc

Introduction Anne Robert Jaques Turgot, baron l' Aulne, was born in Paris on May 10, 1727 to a noble French family of Normandy. Following in the footsteps of his ancestors, who had furnished the state with numerous public officials, Turgot would achieve public renown as Intendent of Limoges and later as Controller General of all France. Although Turgot ended his public career in unfortunate circumstances, being dismissed by Louis XVI for ineffectiveness, his political theories became a major influence in the remaining years of the Old Regime. The depth of Turgot’s economic thought was not recognized at the time because it largely went against what the ruling aristocracy wanted to hear. His clairvoyance is much more fully noted in light of the last two centuries. Furthermore, Turgot was one of the King’s last controller-generals before the French Revolution ended the monarchy. When his political and economic ideals are considered against this backdrop their importance as well as thei r contradictory nature become apparent. Turgot's main contribution to economic theory is his Reflections on the Formation and Distribution of Riches. Apart from this short but highly systematic account of the nature of economic development, Turgot's other relevant writings are sparse and far from cohesive. Since this paper will consider his economics with regard to his political thought, only Turgot’s theories on the nature of government influence, free trade, and taxes will be examined. Furthermore, an explanation of Turgot’s theory on administration will be provided. In gaining an understanding of Turgot’s political and economic thought a powerful example of the problems that manifested themselves in the revolution is provided. Turgot was the model of an enlightened, reform-minded administrator and this may be glimpsed in the liberality of his economic ideas. However, while he certainly advised reforms in administration, they were simply intended so that the King could more effectively centralize pol itical power. Laissez-Faire and Free Trade: As a young man Turgot was very close to Claude Marie Vincent, the Marquis de Gournay. Vincent was not only a friend but also Turgot's mentor in economics and administration. It is in tribute to Vincent that after his death Turgot developed his ideas on laissez-faire government in a paper called, the "Elegy to Gournay" (1759). Within this paper Turgot condemns the foolishness of mercantilist regulation of industry while expounding the benefits of free domestic and foreign trade following from the presence of free exchange. In a detailed analysis of the market process, Turgot writes that self-interest is the prime mover in the market process and that in a free market the individual interest must always coincide with the general interest.

Reproductive Health in Nursing Essay

Reproductive Health Bill was introduced by Congresswoman Bellaflor J. Angara -Castillo is also known as  ³Reproductive Health Care Act of 2002 ´,assembled at Senateand House of Representatives of the Philippines, and now known as House Bill 5043 of 2008. It ¶s been years since the bill was approved in the senate, due to some churchconflicts, biomedical ethical issues and some scientific research conflicts. Today thereare still lots of Filipino citizen who are now fully aware about this bill and why this billwas imposed.Before I write this reaction paper I had to read the Bill twice and read somearticles, reaction and comments in the internet I had read books and research which isrelated to reproductive health, sex education and Bioethics, for me to fully understandwhat was the RH bill all about and the reason of the creation of this bill.Poverty, the main problems that the Philippine is facing today and they say thatthe primary factors that lead to poverty is due to overpopulation, the Philippines has apopulation of 64,318,120 in 1990. Today the population is ballooning and estimated toover 94 million according to latest census and the top 12 th  country having the mostpopulation. The population is growing by about 2 percent a year, giving the Philippinesone of the world ¶s highest population-growth rates.This is one of the reasons of the creation of the Reproductive Health bill to give asolution to poverty by eradicating the overpopulation problem, by implementing familyplanning, sex education and prevent the sexually transmitted disease.

Zoe’s Tale PART II Chapter Sixteen

â€Å"We're looking for Joe Loong,† Jane said, to the assembled search team, at the edge of the forest by Joe's house. Dad, who was standing with her and Savitri, was letting her run the show. â€Å"He's been missing for the last two days. Therese Arlien, his companion, tells me that he was excited about the return of the fanties to the area and told her he was thinking of trying to get close to one of the herds. We're working under the assumption that's what he did, and then either got lost, or perhaps got injured by one of the animals.† Jane motioned at the line of trees. â€Å"We're going to search the area in teams of four, spreading out in a line from here. Everyone in a group stays in voice contact with the group members on either side; every one at the left or right of a group also stays in voice contact with your opposite number from the next group over. Call to each other every couple of minutes. We'll do this slow and careful; I don't want any of us adding to the number of the lost, understand? If you lose voice contact with the other members of your group, stop and stay where you are, and let your group members reestablish contact. If the person next to you doesn't respond when you call, stop and alert those you are in contact with. Again, let's not lose anyone else, especially when we're trying to find Joe. Now, you all know who we are looking for?† There were general nods; most of the hundred and fifty or so folks who'd showed up to look for Loong were friends of his. I personally had only the vaguest of ideas of what he looked like, but I was going on the idea that if someone came running toward us, waving his hands and saying, â€Å"Thank God you found me,† it was likely to be him. And joining the search party was getting me a day out of school. You can't argue with that. â€Å"All right, then,† Mom said. â€Å"Let's organize into teams.† People started grouping together in fours; I turned to Gretchen and figured she and I would be a team with Hickory and Dickory. â€Å"Zoe,† Mom said. â€Å"You're with me. Bring Hickory and Dickory.† â€Å"Can Gretchen come with us?† I asked. â€Å"No,† Jane said. â€Å"Too large. Sorry, Gretchen.† â€Å"It's all right,† Gretchen said to Mom, and then turned back to me. â€Å"Try to survive without me,† she said. â€Å"Stop,† I said. â€Å"It's not like we're dating.† She grinned and wandered off to join another group. After several minutes three dozen groups of four were spread out over more than half a klick of tree line. Jane gave the signal and we started in. Then came the boring: three hours of stomping through the woods, slowly, searching for signs that Joe Loong had wandered in this direction, calling out to each other every few minutes. I found nothing, Mom to my left found nothing, Hickory to my right found nothing, and Dickory to its right found nothing either. Not to be hopelessly shallow about it, but I thought it would be at least a little more interesting than it was. â€Å"Are we going to take a break anytime soon?† I asked Jane, walking up to her when she wandered into visual range. â€Å"You're tired?† she said. â€Å"I would think that after all the training you do, a walk in the woods would be an easy thing.† I paused at this comment; I didn't make any secret of my training with Hickory and Dickory – it would be hard to hide, given how much time I gave to it – but it's not something that the two of us talked about much. â€Å"It's not a stamina issue,† I said. â€Å"It's a boredom issue. I've been scanning the forest floor for three hours. I'm getting a little punchy.† Jane nodded. â€Å"We'll take a rest soon. If we don't find something in this area in the next hour, I'll regather people on the other side of Joe's homestead and try over there,† she said. â€Å"You don't mind me doing what I do with Hickory and Dickory, do you?† I asked. â€Å"It's not like I talk about it to you much. Either with you or Dad.† â€Å"It worried us the first couple of weeks, when you came in covered with bruises and then went to sleep without actually saying hello to us,† Jane said. She kept walking and scanning as she talked. â€Å"And I was sorry it broke up your friendship with Enzo. But you're old enough now to make your own choices about what you want to do with your time, and we both decided that we weren't going to breathe down your neck about it.† I was about to say, Well, it wasn't entirely my own choice to do this, but Jane kept talking. â€Å"Beside that, we think it's smart,† she said. â€Å"I don't know when we'll be found, but I think we will be. I can take care of myself; John can take care of himself. We were soldiers. We're happy to see that you're learning to take care of yourself, too. When it comes down to it, it might be the thing that makes a difference.† I stopped walking. â€Å"Well, that was a depressing thing to say,† I said. Jane stopped and came back to me. â€Å"I didn't mean it that way,† she said. â€Å"You just said I might be alone at the end of all this,† I said. â€Å"That each of us will have to take care of ourselves. That's not exactly a happy thought, you know.† â€Å"I didn't mean it that way,† Jane said. She reached over and touched the jade elephant pendant she had given me years ago. â€Å"John and I will never leave you, Zoe. Never abandon you. You need to know that. It's a promise we made to you. What I am saying is that we will need each other. Knowing how to take care of ourselves means we are better able to help each other. It means that you will be able to help us. Think about that, Zoe. Everything might come down to what you are able to do. For us. And for the colony. That's what I'm saying.† â€Å"I doubt it's going to come to that,† I said. â€Å"Well, I doubt it too,† Jane said. â€Å"Or at least I hope it doesn't come to that.† â€Å"Thanks,† I said, wryly. â€Å"You know what I mean,† Mom said. â€Å"I do,† I said. â€Å"I think it's funny how bluntly you put it.† To the left of us there was a faint scream. Jane swiveled in its direction and then turned back to face me; her expression left very little doubt that whatever mom-daughter bonding moment we'd been having was at a very abrupt end. â€Å"Stay here,† she said. â€Å"Send word down the line to halt. Hickory, come with me.† The two of them sped off in the direction of the scream quietly at what seemed like an almost impossible high speed; I was suddenly reminded that, yes, in fact, my mom was a veteran warrior. There's a thought for you. It was just now I finally had the tools to really appreciate it. Several minutes later Hickory returned to us, clicked something to Dickory in their native tongue as he passed, and looked at me. â€Å"Lieutenant Sagan says that you are to return to the colony with Dickory,† Hickory said. â€Å"Why?† I asked. â€Å"Have they found Joe?† â€Å"They have,† Hickory said. â€Å"Is he all right?† I asked. â€Å"He is dead,† Hickory said. â€Å"And Lieutenant Sagan believes there is reason to worry that the search parties may be in danger if they stay out here much longer.† â€Å"Why?† I asked. â€Å"Because of the fanties? Was he trampled or something?† Hickory looked at me levelly. â€Å"Zoe, you do not need me to remind you of your last trip into the forest and what followed you then.† I went very cold. â€Å"No,† I said. â€Å"Whatever they are, they appear to follow the fantie herds as they migrate,† Hickory said. â€Å"They have followed those herds back here. And it appears that they found Joseph Loong in the woods.† â€Å"Oh my God,† I said. â€Å"I have to tell Jane.† â€Å"I assure you, she has figured it out,† Hickory said. â€Å"And I am to find Major Perry now, so he will know presently. This is being taken care of. The lieutenant asks for you to return to Croatoan. As do I. Dickory will accompany you. Go now. And I advise silence until your parents speak of this publicly.† Hickory strode off into the distance. I watched it go, and then headed home, fast, Dickory matching my strides, both of us moving quietly, as we had practiced so many times. The fact that Joe Loong was dead spread fast in the colony. Rumors of how he died spread even faster. Gretchen and I sat in front of Croatoan's community center and watched a revolving cast of rumormongers offer up their takes. Jun Lee and Evan Black were the first to talk; they had been part of the group that had found Loong's body. They were enjoying their moment in the spotlight as they told everyone who would listen about how they found Loong, and how he had been attacked, and how whatever had attacked him had eaten part of him. Some people speculated that a pack of yotes, the local carnivores, had cornered Joe Loong and brought him down, but Jun and Evan laughed at that. We'd all seen the yotes; they were the size of small dogs and ran from the colonists whenever they saw them (and for good reason, since the colonists had taken to shooting at them for bothering the livestock). No yote, or even a pack of yotes, they said, could have done to Joe what they'd seen had been done to him. Shortly after these gory tidbits had gotten around, the entire colony council met in Croatoan's medical bay, where Loong's body had been taken. The fact that the government was being pulled into it made people suspect it might actually have been murder (the fact that the â€Å"government† in this case was just twelve people who spent most of their time hoeing rows like everyone else didn't matter). Loong had been seeing a woman who'd recently dumped her husband, so now the husband was a prime suspect; maybe he'd followed Loong into the woods, killed him, and then yotes had at him. This theory made Jun and Evan unhappy – their version with a mysterious predator was much more sexy – but everyone else seemed to like it better. The inconvenient fact that the presumed murderer in this case had already been in Jane's custody on a different charge and couldn't possibly have done the deed seemed to escape most people's notice. Gretchen and I knew the murder rumor had nothing to it, and that Jun and Evan's theory was closer to reality than not, but we kept our mouths shut. Adding what we knew wouldn't make anyone feel less paranoid at the moment. â€Å"I know what it is,† Magdy said, to a bunch of male friends. I nudged Gretchen with an elbow and motioned with my head at Magdy. She rolled her eyes and very loudly called him over before he could say anything else. â€Å"Yes?† he said. â€Å"Are you stupid?† Gretchen asked. â€Å"See, this is what I miss about you, Gretchen,† Magdy said. â€Å"Your charm.† â€Å"Just like what I miss about you is your brains,† Gretchen said. â€Å"What were you about to say to your little group of friends, I wonder?† â€Å"I was going to tell them about what happened when we followed the fanties,† Magdy said. â€Å"Because you think it would be smart at the moment to give people another reason to panic,† Gretchen said. â€Å"No one's panicking,† Magdy said. â€Å"Not yet,† I said. â€Å"But if you start telling that story, you're not going to help things, Magdy.† â€Å"I think people should know what we're up against,† Magdy said. â€Å"We don't know what we're up against,† I said. â€Å"We never actually saw anything. You're just going to be adding to the rumors. Let my parents and Gretchen's dad and the rest of the council do their jobs right now and figure out what's actually going on and what to tell people without you making their job harder.† â€Å"I'll take that under advisement, Zoe,† Magdy said, and turned to go back to his pals. â€Å"Fine,† Gretchen said. â€Å"Take this under advisement, too: You tell your pals there about what followed us out there in the woods, and I'll tell them the part where you ended up eating dirt because Hickory dropped you to the ground after you panicked and took a shot at him.† â€Å"A really lousy shot,† I said. â€Å"One where you almost blew off your own toe.† â€Å"Good point,† Gretchen said. â€Å"We'll have fun telling that part.† Magdy narrowed his eyes at both of us and stomped off toward his pals without another word. â€Å"Think it'll work?† I asked. â€Å"Of course it'll work,† Gretchen said. â€Å"Magdy's ego is the size of a planet. The amount of time and effort he puts into doing things to make himself look good is astounding. He's not going to let us mess with that.† As if on cue, Magdy glanced over at Gretchen. She waved and smiled. Magdy surreptitiously flipped her off and started talking to his friends. â€Å"See,† Gretchen said. â€Å"He's not that hard to understand.† â€Å"You liked him once,† I reminded her. â€Å"I still like him,† Gretchen said. â€Å"He's very cute, you know. And funny. He just needs to pull his head out of a certain part of his anatomy. Maybe in another year he'll be tolerable.† â€Å"Or two,† I said. â€Å"I'm optimistic,† Gretchen said. â€Å"Anyway, that's one rumor squashed for now.† â€Å"It's not really a rumor,† I said. â€Å"We really were followed that night. Hickory said so.† â€Å"I know,† Gretchen said. â€Å"And it's going to come out sooner or later. I'd just rather not have it involve us. My dad still doesn't know I did all that sneaking out, and he's the sort of guy that believes in retroactive punishment.† â€Å"So you're not really worried about avoiding panic,† I said. â€Å"You're just covering your own tail.† â€Å"Guilty,† Gretchen said. â€Å"But avoiding panic is how I'm rationalizing it.† But as it happens, we didn't avoid panic for long. Paulo Gutierrez was a member of the colonial council, and it was there he found out that Joe Loong had not only been killed, but that he'd been murdered – and not by a human being. There really was something else out there. Something smart enough to make spears and knives. Something smart enough to turn poor Joe Loong into food. The council members had been ordered by my parents not to talk about this fact yet, in order to avoid a panic. Paulo Gutierrez ignored them. Or, actually, defied them. â€Å"They told me it was covered by something called the State Secrets Act, and that I couldn't tell you about it,† Gutierrez told a group that surrounded him and a few other men, all carrying rifles. â€Å"I say to hell with that. There's something that's out there right now, killing us. They have weapons. They say they follow the fantie herds, but I think they could have just been in the woods all this time, sizing us up, so they would know how to hunt us. They hunted Joe Loong. Hunted him and killed him. Me and the boys here are planning to return the favor.† And then Gutierrez and his hunting party tromped off in the direction of the woods. Gutierrez's declaration and news of his hunting party raced through the colony. I heard about it as kids came running up to the community center with all the latest; by that time Gutierrez and his crew had already been in the woods for a while. I went to tell my parents, but John and Jane were already off to bring back the hunting party. The two of them were former military; I didn't think they would have any trouble bringing them back. But I was wrong. John and Jane found the hunting party, but before they could drag them back, the creatures in the woods ambushed them all. Gutierrez and all his men were killed in the attack. Jane was stabbed in the gut. John chased after the fleeing creatures and caught up with them at the tree line, where they attacked another colonist at his homestead. That colonist was Hiram Yoder, one of the Mennonites who helped save the colony by training the rest of us how to plant and farm without the help of computerized machinery. He was a pacifist and didn't try to fight the creatures. They killed him anyway. In the space of a couple of hours, six colonists were dead, and we learned that we weren't alone on Roanoke – and what was here with us was getting used to hunting us. But I was more worried about my mom. â€Å"You can't see her yet,† Dad said to me. â€Å"Dr. Tsao is working on her right now.† â€Å"Is she going to be okay?† I asked. â€Å"She'll be okay,† Dad said. â€Å"She said it was not as bad as it looked.† â€Å"How bad did it look?† I asked him. â€Å"It looked bad,† Dad said, and then realized that honesty wasn't really what I was looking for at the moment. â€Å"But, look, she ran after those things after she'd been wounded. If she had been really injured, she wouldn't have been able to do that, right? Your mom knows her own body. I think she'll be fine. And anyway, she's being worked on right now. I wouldn't be at all surprised if she's walking around like nothing happened by this time tomorrow.† â€Å"You don't have to lie to me,† I said, although per the previous comment he was actually telling me what I wanted to hear. â€Å"I'm not lying,† Dad said. â€Å"Dr. Tsao is excellent at what she does. And your mom is a very fast healer these days.† â€Å"Are you okay?† I asked. â€Å"I've had better days,† he said, and something flat and tired in his voice made me decide not to press the matter any further. I gave him a hug and told him I was going to visit Gretchen and would be over there for a while, in order to stay out of his hair. Night was falling as I stepped out of our bungalow. I looked out toward Croatoan's gate and saw colonists streaming in from their homesteads; no one, it seemed, wanted to spend the night outside the walls of the colony village. I didn't blame them one bit. I turned to head to Gretchen's and was mildly surprised to see her striding up under full steam. â€Å"We have a problem,† she said to me. â€Å"What is it?† I said. â€Å"Our idiot friend Magdy has taken a group of his friends into the forest,† Gretchen said. â€Å"Oh, God,† I said. â€Å"Tell me Enzo isn't with him.† â€Å"Of course Enzo's with him,† Gretchen said. â€Å"Enzo's always with him. Trying to talk sense to him even as he's following him right off a cliff.†