RPlog:Masquerade Ball: A Night on Yavin/Part 2

Music is playing... costumed guests are eating and drinking, or out on the dance floor. Several eyes are on a woman dressed in a catsuit and a man in a large totem outfit, currently dancing. Another cat and a bird sit side by side on a couch, among those watching this spectacle. (place set)

Ka'una gets nudged, blinking, and then gets the hint, cheering also. "Dance, girl, dance!" she shouts and woooos, before she giggles, and looks at birdie. "mmmh. Yes, yes perhaps I should." she says and grins. "If you reserve me a seat near the stage." She grins and lets out a slow "meoww..", before she reaches for her glass and downs the rest of her drink. Then she eyes the glass, shakes it a little and sets it down, too lazy to get a refill right now. Cats are lazy, it's a fact. She instead licks one of her arms again, purring, eyes on the tiki god and the other cat with a lgiht grin on her face.

The totem guy dances fluidly, though certainly not the kind who is going to show up on Galactic Idol or something. His voice booms out of the amplifier, reverbing somewhat for effect perhaps. "Its about enjoying the music and the company. Forget about everyone else." Unlike the typical male specimen, this one actually does move his feet and to some semblance of the music even. As if the amplifiers suddenly turn down, his voice is softer, more for the woman he is dancing with, though still some reverb. "You have an elegant grace to your dance, enjoy that, live in the music." While he speaks, the red lights in the 6 sets of eyes on the totem head are still keyed to his voice and the blink to the words he says softly.

Inanna continues to keep up with the dancing... not brilliant, but she's not making too much of a mess of it either. A wry smile crosses her lips as she answers her partner, "I'm trying... they're just making it a little difficult." She shoots a look back toward the bird and cat on the couch, then turns back to focus on the dancing and trying to block out the cheering. She manages to relax into the motion a bit, though her dancing skill is limited. "Well, thanks," she says to the offered compliments. "You're pretty good yourself, especially considering how topheavy that must be," she looks over the costume again, wondering perhaps not for the first time who is really inside. "We haven't met anywhere before, have we?" she inquires.

"See, I knew that at least -some- of Mom's genes must have trickled through to her, so she isn't showing off the Jordain girls.", Birdie grins at Ka'una in a half-whisper while she watches her sister. "I wonder if I should go back on stage and sing a nice slow song... for them to dance closer..." She smirks a bit, knowing full well how that would go down with Inanna.

Ka'una mmmhs..and smirks evilly. Like evil kittys do. "Oh yes girl, yesss! Do it!" she says, and lets out a purr, her eyes narrowing as she keeps on watching the pair. "You know you want to. I shall make sure everybody is watching." With that, she jumps off the chair, and moves between the people on all fours, wiggling..getting enough attention like that before she lifts each time, whispering to each, staying away from the dancing pair.

Still in the softer voice, but with all the reverb, Ramyxth responds, "Its not as heavy as it looks, its a light paper material over a thin wire frame. If I fell over it would probably rip apart." The eyes blink for all to see just the same. "As to whether we met, I am a guest aboard, so technically we have seen one another, the question would be, do you remember which guest is renting which suite?" Certainly the higher level staff are aware of the guests in the suites he would presume, so he says no more. Catching the hint in her words, he no longer talks about her or dancing and rather gets into the conversation and lets everything else flow from there.

Inanna is blissfully unaware of the plot being hatched against her. She would certainly have something to say about it, if she knew. Her attention is still on the conversation with the totem, and keeping up with the dancing. "Well, I don't know which suite you're in. And before you get any ideas, that's not a cue to offer to show me," she grins playfully, but also has a serious look in her eyes. "As you said earlier, we can enjoy some dancing... that's what we're here for now. My partner wouldn't much like me taking up with a guest."

*thunk, thunk, thunk* A pirate pretending to be the Chief of Security. Hilarious, I know, but that's Juran's job for the evening. He is wearing armour, which is the most obvious factoid about the lanky pirate, as his body isn't muscular enough to fill out the armour or make him look impressive, except that he's holding onto a Shotgun that is left to dangle somewhat in his grip. As for a costume.. Well. It was slap and dash, but it worked. The Pirate specifically wore the Piranha Beetle, or, well, kind of took something that looked like it and shoved it onto his body. A cut out face-mask of the Piranha Beetle, horns, eyes and all, has been put onto the face-plate of the Pirate and then tugged on tight with string. The wings, a little bit more impressive than a cut-out, are made out of some clear form of something resembling plastic, which shimmers in the light, and has been crudely painted in a mockery of the colour scheme of a Piranha Beetle. It is then, the Pirate states the words of honesty. "I look bloody stupid."

The birdie looks around and slowly lifts herself out of her chair. "Alright, I think I'm gonna go back on stage and sing a nice slow ballad that will enable people to dance snug and tight.", she grins and begins to walk across the lounge. Only to be stopped short by an oversized Piranha Beetle that reeks of booze. "Why, welcome to our party!", she beams at him, "Come in, have a drink. I was just going back on stage to sing a couple of songs..."

More people get brushed against by the striped lekkued wildcat, and more eyes turn towards the pair on the dancefloor after exchanged whispers..before Ka'una moves back towards the chair, grinning, satisfied with a job well done. With how fluidly she moves on all fours, she must have practiced it for hours before this. Her course changes tho as she spots birdie next to the pirate, and lets out a purr like sound, brushing against the pirate's legs, not saying a word.

A soft chuckle reverbs from the totem head, as if coming from two mouthes, good thing he's not amplifying that. His head shakes a little as Ramyxth responds, "I am sure all staff know what the suits look like and as I mentioned to the other cat, it would seem an odd mix to think about if I took off my mask. I'm here to dance and enjoy this masquerade concept. If I were ever to go back to my homeworld, I might have to bring the idea with me."

After all the *thunking* and the grumbling of the Piranha-Beetle masked individual to mark his arrival, Lepidoptera's own is noticeably quiet which is to say she slips into the room striving to be unnoticed in the process. Granted, maneuvering around carefully so as to not ruin her wings does take some care and a great deal of practice in advance, but try she does.

Orange and White, while good colors to help you get picked up in the void of space, does little to help one hide in most environments, though the colorful costumes of the ball goers would offer just that. The figure dressed as a rebel pilot from the Battle of Yavin checks his helmet to ensure that the smoked lenses of the mask do enough to ensure that his identity remains hidden. Black gloved fingers flex before his arms slip behind him, giving the man a casual posture as he works his way into the crowds. Business was always afoot, and this trip and this 'outfit' were no different, he was used to wearing masks, what would be one more.

"Well then, we can keep enjoying ourselves right here," the spotted cat answers the totem, as they keep dancing. The band switches rhythms again... not so much playing distinct songs as an ongoing sequence of tribal beats accompanied by other instruments which, as now, changes a bit every once in a while. Inanna hesitates, but quickly works to adjust herself to the new rhythm. "Home is an evasive thing anyway... to me, home is where friends and family are."

The Birdie has pushed her way onwards through the ever-increasing crowds and back to the stage to treat her audience to a new round of songs. "Wow, the joint's hopping now!", she calls out, once she's grasped the microphone and the band has fallen silent for a moment. "Well, I guess then it's time for me to officially welcome you all to the First Angry Rancor Masquerade! Thank you all for coming, we hope you are gonna have a great time! And now I'm gonna sing an official welcome song for all of you!" She gestures to the band that begins to play the right tune and rhythmn and sings her song.

Welcome to our island, Glad you came to call, Now you've made yourself at home, You're welcome to us all We are simple people, why are we this way, This is what we always say. It's the way that we bong on the bongo It's the way that be bang on the big base drum, It's the way we sing in the song book, Plays the tropic island hum Hum, hum... Playin' in the sunshine, lots of sea and sand Its jolly nice in paradise Lordie ain't life grand Everyone was happy joining in the fun, Doing like we've always done It's the way that we shake on the shakers, It's the way that we bang on the big base drum, It's the way that we bake in the cake off, Plays the tropic island hum Good, good, good... Feeling good Tonights a special night Feeling good, Alright, alright, alright, alright Anything can happen in the meantime

Ka'una snickers, and nudges Juran. "Eyes on those two." she says, and points at Inanna and Ramyxth. There, mission accomplished, everybody's l..no, not everybody's looking at them yet. She notices the new arrivals and turns, purring, brushing against Juran's legs as she moves away, towards them. Kitty twi'lek on all fours. They are sure to notice her soon, and the first thing she notices..is Lepidopera, a slight grin on her face as she moves towards the woman.

A genuine laugh emits from the head, this one a little more depthy than the prior, showing a full range of vocal chords that imply multiple origins. Yet again, its not amplified as his voice had been earlier. "If that were the case than I would be as close to home as I'm ever likely to get. Certainly the Grotti is as far from home as I'm likely to be as well." He shifts more readily to the music, again not the best of dancers, but he can move his feet. "I well imagine the crew of a ship become accustomed to one another much like any family." As the bird lady sings, he looks up briefly, but brings his focus back to his dance partner. "Are you enthralled in the dance, or would you like to break for drinks?" Perhaps he would like a drink himself? All the same, he continues to dance, with his attention on the spotted cat woman.

"Whatn' t'bloody 'ell.." Juran can only mumble as he is brushed and nudged, blinking behind his face-plate as he stares down at the lekku wildcat.. Thing. He lets out a roar of laughter, crossing his arms over his chest as he shakes his head from side to side, the cut-out face mask shifting around as he then raises a hand to push it back into place. He pauses, shifting his shoulders around for a few moments before he then follows Ka'una's gaze. unlike the subtle Ka'una. He just loudly declares. "OI! You! HELLO THERE!"

That oddly-clad man, straight out of centuries and millenia long gone it would seem, stands at last. He had been at the seat he took when he enterred for some time now, observing in equal parts the scenery and those who occupy it, though of late it is the latter which have amused him the most. Thirst no longer easily put aside, he rises to his feet, taking a few seconds to collect himself and make sure his outfit is not ruined, and walks towards the bar. The Count, the only name given when he presented himself, is careful to not step on anyone's toe lest he attract undesired attention. And it is in that manner, almost flowing from step to step, and miraculously not bumping into anyone, that he arrives at the bar. "Iced Tea, Chandrillan brew with just a touch of citrus.", he tells a passing waitress before settling in to wait, his attention returning to those around him.

Inanna smiles back at her dance partner, her eyes parhaps showing a quick mental calculation as she associates the mentioned suite with the guest, but she doesn't spoil the illusion by saying anything about that. "Yes, it's a good crew, overall. And of course I have my actual sister on board," she glances over at the woman singing on stage now, smiling again. At the query about stopping, she ponders for a moment and then replies, "I could use a break, yeah..." and with that she stops her dancing, adding, "I should check on things anyway, make sure everyone's happy. Thanks for the dance, though."

Once the Birdie has finished singing her welcome song to the party guests, she leaves the stage again so that the band can resume playing their drums. She heads straight for the bar to order a fresh Pink Floofy Cocktail, thirsty after her second appearance on stage tonight. Her eyes alight on the Count and his curious outfit and she makes sure she stand beside him at the bar. "Hi there.", she greets, "You looked like you nicked something from a holovid's dressing room. Sexy, I gotta admit." She looks at the other newcomers who arrived just before she had climbed up the stage and smiles at them, should they care to look into her direction. As Birdie finishes her song, Shael enters wearing a light blue dress, and with her hair lightened from dirty blond to a brighter color. Her hair is pulled back into a tight and neat pony tail, rather than her usual loose and messy hair 'style.' The dress features a subtle floral design woven in matte and shiny threads throughout the dress, which hangs low to cover the pilot's feet. The sleeves are little more than two inch wide straps, and the back is cut low. Doing her best to not look uneasy in the get-up, Shael attempts to smile. This was a stupid idea for a 'costume,' she tells herself silently.

Pilots and drinks go well together, the figure clad in the garb of an X-Wing pilot makes his way towards the bar as well. Once he has the bartenders attention he speaks in a soft voice, "Corellian Whiskey, neat." He turns around at the bar, dark eyes flicking behind the lenses of the flight helmet to watch some of the more brightly colored guests mingle and dance.

Moving a step or two to the side in order to have a clear view of the stage, Lepidoptera smiles faintly at the song and the vigor with which the band plays the music to accompany the lyricist. Her attention is snagged by the approach of a cat-costumed Twi'lek with a set of whiskers glued to her face and fur added along with stripes. A whimsical notion of cat-like stalking winged-creature brings a quiet laugh from her in advance, startled a bit as the masked-man shouts a greeting in her direction. The shout, that tone of voice, aye she recognizes that voice anywhere. Another chuckle escapes her and Lepidoptera nods in greeting, though keeping her gaze on the tall Twi'lek-Kitty approaching.

Amplifiers back in effect, the voice of the totem head booms once more (again, after 15' it fades out and blends with the amosphter), "Ramyxth thanks you for the dance." All the pairs of eyes blink red as he speaks. That said, he turns for the bar and noticing a host of more arrivals, he reaches a long hand up into his head and fidgets with something. Afterwhich, he strides for the bar, slowly, waffs of fog-smoke trail out of the large nostrils of the tiki head costume. Again in full regalia, for the masquerade, he heads for the bar. He calls for his own drink, "Flaming Flengel again, make it a double." The sweat beads continue to trickle out form his large head mask, running with the red paint makeup he is wearing. He takes a moment to relax while he awaits his drink.

Ka'una grins wider as she moves up to Lepidoptera, and purrs, brushing against her legs, cirling her. She actually doesn't have her knees on the floor while she moves on all fours, the shaking of her rear making the tail that's attached to it wave. "Hey there, welcome!" she says with a grin, finally having stopped in front of the woman, crouching on all fours now, looking up. "Welcome to the Angry Rancor! Help yourself to drinks, dance and enjoy yourself. And don't worry..this kitty doesn't bite." Ba-dum-ching.

With his long glass in hand, the masked man begins to wander the lounge, heading here and there and there again, with no purpose in mind other than to see if there is anyone he recognizes. That task is accomplished sooner than he thought, a smile adding warmth to that otherwise expresionless face of his when he lays eyes on one of the entrants. A slow walk over, and he appears before Shael, "I was despairing of finding you in proper clothing instead of those atrocities you wear regularly. Really, overalls are not dignified.", and a life as a Core-worlder simply renders that phrase frightening in its accuracy of the stereotypical high Core-worlder.

A rumbling belch escapes from the Pirate behind the helmet. Obviously he's been boozing a little bit, mumbling as he waves to Lepidoptera as he then turns, and stares at the bar. He marches, or kind of marches, considering he has to be careful not to run right into someone while wearing all this armour on himself, muttering and hopping one to avoid kicking someone in the ankle. "Bloody.. eck.."

Inanna smiles to Ramyxth again, nodding as he moves off the dance floor. She works her way off in the other direction, checking over the food tables now to ensure that everything is in order there, and nothing is running out. Satisfied with the inspection, she circles the room, looking over the guests as she goes and making her way back around to the bar where she again checks that everything is in order. The server droids have been on top of things, but even so she takes up a position behind the bar for a minute, joining the droid that's been serving out drinks.

Lepidoptera smiles, though it's only the smile and the sparkle in her eyes behind the mask that can be seen, nodding towards Twi'lek-Kitty and saying, "Thank you," in a quiet voice that carries the faintest Caridan accent as always. "Lovely party you have here," she adds, staring down into the cat-slit eyes and allowing another quiet laugh to escape her. "That's quite the costume, by the way," she compliments.

The Rebel Pilot looks back around at the bar, where was that blasted droid and his drink. His lips turn downwards in a slight frown as he looks around, "Anyone see where the serving droid went off too. I hope it doesn't have to go all the way to the Double Worlds to get my drink." His expression slips back to a neutral grin as his helmeted head looks up and down the bar, gloved fingers locking together as he waits.

Ka'una chuckles. "Thank you!" she says. Part of gears are turning, the twi'lek wondering about that voice. She can't quite place it, with the mask on and all. But it's..familiar. She grins and sneaks a lek down her back, moving her tail with it, a trick developed on the fly here. "I wasn't sure it could be regarded a costume at first, considering the little fabric. But.." She grins. "-somebody- had to represent the animal kingdom here. There's even another kitty!" She looks the woman over and purrs. "I love the wings. But please, don't let this kitty stop you." she says. "You just arrived after all."

With his long glass in hand, the masked man intends to leave the bar and wander around before he hears the voice addressing him. His reply is long-delayed, surprise nearly freezing him because of the sight that greets him. "Everything is insufferably bright and pink here, it is only natural that someone would wish to do the opposite." The Count catches(try saying that three times) sight of a familiar person, and suddenly his arm extends towards the 'Bird'. "If you would please follow me, Madam.", of course, there is not that much choice given when somehow his hands finds itself around...well, whatever passes for a hand in that outfit, and he begins to walk away, leading the Bird with him. How rude. When he stops, it is beside a plainly-clad, in these parts anyway, young woman(Shael). "I was despairing of finding you in proper clothing instead of those atrocities you wear regularly. Really, overalls are not dignified.", and a life as a Core-worlder simply renders that phrase frightening in its accuracy of the stereotypical high Core-worlder.

The birdie caught sight of the Rebel Pilot coming to the bar and eyes him curiously up and down. "What's that? A disguise as Luke Skywalker in his youth?", she asks with a grin, before she is distracted by the Count and finds herself being dragged off by him. And then standing in front of -gasp!- can it be? Shael in a dress? "Hey wow!", she beams, "You actually look like a proper girl for a change! Nice dress! And you did something to your hair! Almost as blonde as me now!", she beams.

"I'd rather be in coveralls," Shael states simply, making a face that seems as if she had just bit into a particularly rotton piece of fruit. She was simply not comfortable in dresses, and with every moment she repeats to herself the decision that this was a rather poor decision on her part. "So I, um, hope you're enjoying yourself?" she asks, looking from 'the count' to the woman standing next to him. She changes her disgusted expression to an eyeroll, grinning across as well. "Being 'as blonde as you' was pretty much the point, Sel."

Inanna looks over at the Rebel Pilot, responding immediately to his complaint. "I'm sorry about that sir," and aside to the tender droid she asks, "what was his drink?" Upon being informed, she addresses the man once more, saying "of course we have that," as she pours out his whiskey as ordered. Seems the bar is getting busier, so she stays at the post, helping the droid keep up with things for now.

Not being to far away, the tiki head guy overhears the banter between the count fellow and the two woman. Receiving his flaming drink, in a husky hard shelled body, he moves in that direction, his nostrils still steaming. "Yes, very lovely costume in deed, are you hear to banter, or did you come to dance." His voice is directed at Shael, not paying much mind to count or birdie. There is a long glass straw going through the flames, he sticks it up a nostril of his outfit to get himself a drink.

Lepidoptera's memory as well is rapidly turning, the tumblers falling into place until she does indeed recognize Ka'una, and her shoulder aches briefly in memory at having been bitten by this particular Twi'lek once upon a time in combat. "Don't go biting any of the guests," she says softly, an amused tone in her voice, eyes sparkling even more with amusement. "And thank you," she says, carefully adjusting the wings on her back with one hand, "quite the crowd you have here," and she tracks the path of the noisy-pirate that she recognizes - despite his costume, another vaguely familiar voice snags her attention and she scans the people in the immediate area, tying to nail down the source. "Ladies.", he says in that tone used much of the time when a few of the crewmen under him get too rowdy or someone needs a dressing down. And on any capital, especially on the smaller ones, someone always needs a dressing down. But let us put that aside. "Just who is here that I might know...what am I to call you exactly?"

The Rebel Pilot finds his attention being drawn to the avian costumed female, with all of her glittering plummage as she eyes him up and down, he replies, his voice sounds almost eeriely like Skywalkers, "Just a pilot, Ma'am." He watches with a brief bit of amusement as she is drawn away by the colorful count, her sister catching his intention as she replies appologetically pouring him a drink, "Oh, it's not a complaint, it is busy so I figured it might take some time. This party looks to be a hit though.." He offers, flashing her a brief hint of a geunuine smile.

It's not a costume. The wings are real. The blue skin isn't make-up or a tint job. The silver hair isn't a wig. Kyrin Sh'vani pads into the lounge of the ship and makes a beeline for the bar, asking for _elerain_, an alcoholic drink native to her homeworld. It's fairly rare, but even the New Republic manages to import enough to make it available to her normally. Her grey eyes scan the crowd and the costumes, and one silver brow arches at the sight of a Rebel Pilot. If she had a digital recorder of some kind, she'd take a holo or two, simply because she thinks Luke would find it terribly amusing.

The Birdie grins cheerfully at Shael. "Oh really, hun, you could have told me, I can help you with blonde highlights and all that! But that dress is a good start.", she smiles and pats the girl's shoulder, then looks around to scan the crowd and try to answer the Count's question. "I don't know all of them either.", she admits, looking at the odd Rebel Pilot and the woman with the wings in particular (the one with the fake wings, not the new arrival with the real wings), then turns back to the Count with a grin. "But even if I do, I wouldn't tell you! It's part of the fun of the masquerade... find out for yourself. And now if you excuse me, I have an announcement to make... You two go and dance and have fun!" She pats both their shoulders and pushes her way to the stage once more.

The firery red kitten purrs and nods. "Oh, don't worry. I'm not here to..bite today." she says and grins wide, before she rubs against the woman's legs again and parts wordlessy, moving through the growd, glancing left and right. She almost doesn't need to focus anymore on the four-legged walk, she notes to herself in amusement. But it sure is exhausting, she also begins to notice by now. Perhaps she should practice it some more during the next days. She stops at that thought, blinking, and shakes her head. "Silly me." she murmurs and giggles, before she begins to move again, changing directions, moving towards where Shael and the count and..well, quite a gathering seems to form there. The next person to feel the kitty brush against the legs is, in fact, the count. "Rawr." "Oh, I don't dance!" Shael replies immediately, fending the tiki fellow off with raised hands. At the count's question about the identity of the various guests, Shael lets her eyes wander the room again before giving a helpless shrug. She recognizes very few of them. Except for- "Oh, I know her!" Raising a hand in greeting, she waves it towards the blue-skinned avian. "Kyrin! Hey!" It's been too long since she saw the woman!

Inanna returns with a warm smile to the Rebel Pilot, as she answers, "Yes... Thank you." Her attention goes to the next customer, the wingedbeing who gets a good long looking over in interest, and then a thoughtful expression from the human in the spotted catsuit, before she says "I think we have some of that, let me check." She ducks down behind the bar to dig into the bottles, soon producing the desired elixir. Pouring it out in a tall blue glass for the winged being she passes it across the bar, saying "there you go."

"I wan' Lum." Is Juran's order for booze. "And.. no in one of those.. Wee glass thingies." He lifts up his hands, making the shape of a tall glass. "No one of these. Naw. I wan' one of these." He lifts up his hands making the size of a bottle, and then tries to shape one out of the thin air. Not really with much skill, mind you, before he then plants his armoured hands onto the bartop. "Big bottle! Yon one o' t'big yins and all." He then grunts, lifting up his hands as he tries to remove his helmet. Nevermind its a fuss to get it off, usually, when he is completely sober, so now it's a force to be trifled with. "Bloody.. 'hing.."

Lepidoptera laughs again, having drifted through the crowd to approach the Pirate from behind, standing just behind him as he places his order. "What do you have against those 'wee things'?" she jokes quietly from over his left shoulder. "I mean, they're perfectly respectable," she says, "in fact, they're even - oh, I don't know - customarily used when drinking in public." Her smile remains in place as she slips into place beside the pirate and speaks to the bartender, "Got any Caridan rum on hand?" she asks, a tone of hope in her voice, nodding towards the Rebel-Pilot with a brief smile.

The Pilot lifts the glass, inspecting it's contents, "There is nothing as lovely as the hue of a good Gold Coast single Malt...something about the peat in the salt bogs. He takes a sip, setting the glass back down on the bar, "Perfect." He comments, his attention shifting to the Chylani arrival. This was certainly not expected though it mattered little to his plans, at the moment those involved copious amounts of whiskey, at least till the convergence in the Force that had drawn him here had made it's presence known.

The Birdie has somehow managed to climb up the stage despite those inconvenient stilettos and an increasing influence of pink booze. She gestures for the band to stop playing and picks up the microphone again. "Well... wow! This is quite a crowd! Thank you all for coming! I hope you're having fun!", she beams and hopes for a chorus of "Yes!" from the audience before she continues. "Now what would a masquerade be without a prize for the best costume? Two prizes actually. Inanna will explain the details to you. INANNA!", she yells out, which, amplified by the microphone, might make the odd glass or two shatter, "Come up here please, will you?!"

He nearly leaps metres into the air when he feels something touch his legs, looking quite startled for a moment, and quite irritated. "Touch me again and I will make certain to drop you into the nearest cold lake I find.", see, he can be mean too. Rasi smiles next, returning to his otherwise pleasant mood in the blink of an eye and looking where Shael turned to see the major. "Well that's cheap, that doesn't take any effort at all.", then again, aliens always have the advantages in situations such as these.