Strategy Managment Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Strategy Managment - Assignment Example The organization should continue with its online business strategy as it will help to gain more competitive advantages. The organization should implement aggressive marketing strategies in BRICK countries to increase its global market share. Threats Intense industry competition and economic downturn can affect the business performance of Tesco. Tesco requires huge marketing and investment to sustain in the international market. Overseas market revenue may reduce due to competition or economic conditions. Price war between the competitors can affect the profitability and large client base of Tesco. External Analysis PESTEL Analysis Political factors The market revenue and performance of Tesco depends upon the legislative and political conditions and European Union of these named countries. For employment in the country, government supports foreign retailer companies to provide jobs from lower paid, and flexible to high paid and highly skilled jobs to the students and other workers. Ec onomical factors Economic factors can largely influence the cost, profits and demand. High rate of unemployment level is the vital factor for economy. Unemployment rate would significantly decrease the demand of goods and also influence the demand required to produce the goods. Tesco highest market share is in UK, if in case of slowdown of UK market would affect badly on the company. Social factors Current trends for customer are now bulk and one-stop shopping. The amount of non-food products to be sold is increased by Tesco. UK retailers such as Tesco is giving attention towards the services and value-added items because due growth of female works and ageing population.... This paper approves the changes in business environment world create need for new services and products. The strategy of product development must be considered by company when developing new products for existing market. It also necessary to focus on internal development of Tesco when new products are produces for existing market. The expanding and diversifying the product development of Tesco would help to create customer relationship. Tesco can create new product line depending upon the need of the customers. Tesco should consider focus on extent and nature of diversification. The company which provide better innovative service and products can have better competitive advantage. Due to this unique store Tesco can use premium prices. To sustain in this competitive market, Tesco should maintain optimum quality on their internal strengths by implementing technologically innovative outlets and retail stores. This essay makes a conclusion the expansion of the market and to increase company’s revenue Tesco should enter into new markets like Japan and China. Survey shows that consumers in Asian markets have increased their spending and changing their trends towards retailing. This provides high opportunity for major supermarkets like Tesco. International alliance strategy should be used by Tesco. This can explained as entering in to the Asian markets by partnerships or joint venture. This will significantly provide huge market presence and large scale of economy. However, Tesco may feel it is high risk to be first mover depending upon the market complexity.

How is the national and international tourism helping Spain overcome Essay Example for Free

How is the national and international tourism helping Spain overcome Essay Spain is one of the countries in the world that has been severely affected by the global economic crisis originated in 2008. It is the country with the greatest number of unemployed citizens in all Europe. Its rate of unemployment reached an all time high of 26. 9% in May 2013. The European Union is worried about this situation, and has therefore forced the Spanish Government to apply some strict cut backs to their economy in order to decrease its high public deficit. These measures are mostly affecting public labor force, who realized they dont have sufficient income to last them through the month. In addition, college students, mainly those who study architecture, engineering and medicine, have realized that there is not a promising professional career that can be developed in Spain. Since the beginning of the economic crisis, more than 300,000 young Spanish citizens have left the country in order to find a job in markets overseas. All these negative aspects of the countrys critical situation are bringing Spain forward to be a candidate of receiving a bailout from the European Union. Despite being in this delicate position, it is not all about negative figures in Spain. There is one sector of the Spanish economy that is helping the country to come back on track: tourism. The purpose of this report is to find out how tourism is helping Spain to recover from the economic decline. I have divided the findings into two sections: First, I will explain the importance of tourism in Spain. Second, I will describe the general changes in both international and national tourism, without analyzing the monetary effects in the economy. Third, I will provide information about the economical consequences that these changes are having in the reactivation of the Spanish economy. Findings 1- Importance of Tourism in the Spanish Economy Spain, behind France, the United States and China, is one of the top world destinations to go on vacation. Its 7,876 kilometers of beautiful beaches, pleasant weather and 44 world heritage monuments, position the country as the 4th country in the world to receive the highest number of international tourists. In terms of revenues, the country is ranked in second position right after the United States (Butler, 2013). According to the World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC), tourism represented a total contribution of 15. 2 % of Spains Gross Domestic Product in 2012. In other developed countries, such as the United States, France and China, tourism represented a 8. 6%, 9. 7% and 9. 3% of their respective 2012 GDP (2013). This shows that, despite receiving more tourists than Spain, these countries economic lives are less affected and determined by the changes that might take place in the tourism sector. The Government of Spain knows how crucial tourism is for the performance of the countrys economy and gives this sector high importance. As a touristic oriented country, Spain has 47 airports, 2,000 km of commuter rail trains and 2,900 km of high-speed rail network (Butler, 2013). These elements make Spain one of the countries with the best transportation system in the world. This advantage of Spain facilitates the arrival of international tourists and the transportation of national tourists all over the country. In addition, as I mentioned before, one of Spains biggest problems is its increasing rate of unemployment. The WTTC published that travel and tourism directly supported 894,000 jobs in Spain. This means that 5. 2% of workers were related to this specific sector of the economy (2013). All the figures I just pointed out reflect the positive and remarkable impact of tourism in Spain’s economy. Now, I am going to present some more detailed information about the changes in the national and international tourism, and the consequences of these changes relating them to the fact that tourism is the main force that is helping Spain to overcome this fragile situation. 2- Changes in Tourism in Spain Since the beginning of the global economic crisis, tourism in Spain has changed in many ways. Not only has it influenced the amount of foreigners visits to Spain, but it has also affected the domestic conception of going on vacation. Changes in International Tourism As I said in the Introduction, Spain received more than 57 million tourists during 2012, which means it had a year-over-year growth of 2. 7%. The countries that contributed the most to this growth are France, Germany and Russia. In addition, some Nordic and Asiatic countries also collaborated on it (Institute of Touristic Studies of Spain [ITE], 2013). The main positive elements of the Spanish economy come from the foreign sector. It is important to point out that the total nights international tourists stayed in Spain increased by 2. 3% in 2012. Looking at the low rates of unemployment in France, Germany, United Kingdom and Russia, it can be deduced that these countries are performing economically better than Spain. This means that foreigners, who have not been as affected as the Spaniards by the economic crisis, have enough income and are willing to go on vacation outside of their home countries. The Institute of Touristic Studies from Spain, assures that Spanish tourism has become more competitive in the last few years. By analyzing the changes in prices and the value of the currency compared to other countries, this Institute has used the Competitiveness Trend in Tourism Ratio to measure the performance of the country. It has arrived to the conclusion that, due to the low prices compared with other countries from the European Union, Spain has achieved a beneficial position to attract international tourists to the country (2013). Changes in National Tourism As well as the international, national tourism has experienced many changes during the past few years. National tourism in Spain closed the year 2012 with 158,9 millions domestic trips. It is important to highlight that 9 out of 10 of Spanish citizens trips were effectuated inside the country. Due to the difficult economic situation that many Spaniards are experiencing, travelling to other countries decreased by 4. 8% in 2012 (ITE, 2013). This new setting where saving money is the main concern for Spanish citizens, has helped new forms of travelling to arise in the Spanish touristic sector. Even thought Spain has always been seen as a sun and beach destination, Antonio Villanueva Cuevas, Doctor at the Castilla-La Mancha University, explains that news forms of travelling such as rural, cultural and natural tourism are becoming popular between Spaniards that are looking to travel with minimum expenses (2012). In addition, those who still prefer going to the beach have found their way to get cheap options by either going during low season or taking last minute deals. 3- How are These Changes Having a Positive Impact in the Spanish Economy? Since tourism in Spain represents a large part of its Gross Domestic Product, this sector of the economy will have a considerable impact on the countrys economy performance. The growths of international and national tourism have helped the country to stay economically alive (Barreira, 2013). Positive Impact from International Tourism In relation to the international tourism, Spain is the 4th country in the world to receive the highest number of tourists. More than 57 million tourists visited Spain in 2012. Moreover, there was a high new record of 56 billion Euros reached in spent by international tourists in Spain. The growth of the number of international tourists that visited Spain in 2012 helped the countrys economy by contributing â‚ ¬57. 1 billion to the GDP (ITE, 2013). Even though Spains GDP fell by 1. 3% in 2012, the growth of the international tourism made the GDP experience a shorter descent. Another positive impact of the international tourism is the fact that the number of workers hired in the tourism sector increased by 0. 6% in 2012 (World Travel and Tourism Council [WTTC], 2013). It might be seen as an insignificant growth, but, taking into account that the general rate of unemployment increased to 26% in 2013, any contribution has an important meaning for the reactivation of the countrys economy. International tourism also caused the growth of capital investment by 7. 4% to â‚ ¬14. 8 billion in 2012 (WTTC, 2013). In addition, the fact that prices in Spain are low compared to other countries in the European Union, makes Spain more attractive to receive investments and be chosen as a holiday destination. All these positive consequences of the international tourism in the Spanish economy are helping the country to achieve the goal of not seeing Spain as a burden for the European Union. The recuperation of the countrys economy will be determined by the growth of GDP, decrease of unemployment rate and increase in foreign investments in the country. All these aspects are represented by the good performance of Spains international tourism. Positive Impact from National Tourism Even though national tourism has not shown as many positive figures as the international one, it is helping the country to improve economically. As I explained before, a large number of Spaniards cant afford to travel to another country during vacation. They decide to stay in the country, and look for new cheap ways of travelling. Spaniards are starting to purchase last minute deals, and to travel during low season periods. Even thought the number of national trips decreased by 1. 2% in 2012, Spain registered a growth of 22% in national tourism from 2008 to 2012 from 130 to 158. 9 million national trips (ITE, 2013). It can be deduced from this, that national tourism has had an overall positive performance during the Spanish recession. The fact that Spaniards choose national rather than international destinations makes them invest money in their own countrys economy. Moreover, even thought national tourism slightly decreased in 2012, new sectors of the Spanish national tourism have showed positive figures during the last few years. Juan Pulido and Pablo Garcia, members of the economics department at University of Jaen in Spain, explain that the rural sector of the Spanish national tourism has increased by 7. 5% in the last 10 years. Since Spaniards dont want to spend too much money during vacation, they decide to stay in the country and look for new attractions. Spaniards spent a total of â‚ ¬18,046 million in rural destinations during 2011 (2011). Rural tourism is affecting positively the economy by activating some unusual tourism destinations, and giving them the opportunity to create a new emerging business in Spain. The increasing importance of this new way of tourism creates jobs and activates the economy of certain domestic areas. These new ways of doing tourism are making Spaniards stay in their country during their holidays, invest money in the national market, and contribute to the reactivation of the countrys economy. Key Points Spain is one of the countries that have been affected the most by the global economic crisis originated in 2008. However, there are several facts that explain how tourism is helping Spain to overcome this situation: Tourism represented a total contribution of 15. 2 % of Spains Gross Domestic Product in 2012. Tourism has a great impact in the performance of the Spanish economy. Spain has received more than 57 million international tourists during 2012, which mean it had a year-over-year growth of 2. 7%. There was a high new record of 56 billion Euros reached in spent by these international tourists that visited Spain in 2012. The number of workers hired in the Spanish tourism sector increased by 0. 6% in 2012. International tourism has also caused the growth of capital investment by 7. 4% to â‚ ¬14. 8 billion in Spain during 2012. Spain registered a growth of 22% in national tourism from 2008 to 2012, from 130 to 158. 9 million national trips. The fact that Spaniards are choosing national rather than international destinations makes Spaniards invest more money in the domestic economy. The rural sector of the Spanish national tourism has increased by 7. 5% in the last 10 years. This has created a new sector of tourism that creates jobs and gives opportunities to local areas to develop an emerging business. Conclusion The overall situation is perfectly described in an article written by Victor Barreira (2013), a journalist who works for El Pais, the most sold newspaper in Spain, which says: The national GDP fell by 1. 3% in 2012, unemployment raised to 26%, the bailout petition to the European Union was still active however, tourism is staying as a life-jacket to which Spain can keep held in order to ride out of the storm. It points out that the economic situation of Spain has affected the country in an extremely negative way. However, tourism has been the most important sector of the economy that has shown positive figures and has helped the country to better deal with the economic situation. It is important for the Spanish Government to keep working on the improvement of the countrys touristic attractions and promote Spain as a holiday destination. References Barreira, V. (2013, January 16). Espana registro en 2012 el tercer mejor ano de la historia en llegada de turistas [Spain registered in 2012 the third best year in history in arrival of tourists]. El Pais. Butler, M. (2013, February 27). Spain as an international tourist destination [Electronic version]. Atlas of the brands. Institute of Touristic Studies of Spain. (2013). Balance del turismo ano 2012 [Tourism balance year 2012]. Retrieved October 13, 2013, from www. iet. tourspain. es Pulido, P. , Cardenas,P. (2011). El Turismo rural en Espana [The rural Tourism in Spain]. Asociacion de Geografos Espanoles. Villanueva, A. (2012). Las nuevas formas de turismo como instrumento para lograr un desarrollo sostenible e integrador [The new forms of tourism as a tool to reach a sostenible and integrative development]. Universidad de Castilla-La Mancha. World Travel and Tourism Council. (2013). Travel and Tourism, the economic impact 2013 in Spain. Scowsill, D.

A Poker Addiction :: Personal Narrative Descriptive Papers

A Poker Addiction As Manny sits there, with half the chips he began with, he faces the hardest decision of the night. Does he call? Does he fold? There are so many things to consider, so much at stake. As the seconds tick by, flashes of frames from the World Series of Poker pass before his eyes; Johnny Chan slapping his cards down on the table, calling out â€Å"All in,† in front of God knows how many people. He sees Phil Hellmuth with his chin supported on his hands, shuffling chips and staring down his opponent. He smirks at the thought of Chris Moneymaker’s famous bluff against Sam Farha. He’s glad he doesn’t need to bluff this hand; he has very solid cards in front of him. At this point the adrenaline rush that is going through his body is one like no other. It is a mixture of excitement, nervousness, and competitiveness. It is a feeling players love to hate. They hate having it, but they love wanting it. As all these scenes pass before Manny’s eyes, he suddenly gets an urge to be bold and risky. He decides that calling his opponent would just weaken his position. â€Å"It would only make him think that I have a losing hand and am hoping for the best†, he reasons, â€Å"I’m all in† he then says, and slaps the cards down on the table in a Chan-like manner. Now it is up to Alex, it is his turn to decide whether to fold or call. Alex, though, is sure he has Manny beat, he gives Manny a smirk and says, in a Russian accent imitating the KGB guy from the movie Rounders, â€Å"I call.† All of sudden everyone is interested. One of these guys is about to lose all his chips. â€Å"Flip ‘em† somebody yells. As Manny flips his cards the whole table gets a look at them, A-K, an enviable hand. Alex flips his: 10-10, also a good hand. Alex definitely has an advantage, with a pocket pair. Both players look at each other and then back down at the table. Manny is hoping his bold move doesn’t backfire on him, and Alex just wants to finish the hand without having a heart attack. Here come the next three cards, also known as the flop, 7-9-K. Manny sighs as he sees his King, he is now in the lead. A Poker Addiction :: Personal Narrative Descriptive Papers A Poker Addiction As Manny sits there, with half the chips he began with, he faces the hardest decision of the night. Does he call? Does he fold? There are so many things to consider, so much at stake. As the seconds tick by, flashes of frames from the World Series of Poker pass before his eyes; Johnny Chan slapping his cards down on the table, calling out â€Å"All in,† in front of God knows how many people. He sees Phil Hellmuth with his chin supported on his hands, shuffling chips and staring down his opponent. He smirks at the thought of Chris Moneymaker’s famous bluff against Sam Farha. He’s glad he doesn’t need to bluff this hand; he has very solid cards in front of him. At this point the adrenaline rush that is going through his body is one like no other. It is a mixture of excitement, nervousness, and competitiveness. It is a feeling players love to hate. They hate having it, but they love wanting it. As all these scenes pass before Manny’s eyes, he suddenly gets an urge to be bold and risky. He decides that calling his opponent would just weaken his position. â€Å"It would only make him think that I have a losing hand and am hoping for the best†, he reasons, â€Å"I’m all in† he then says, and slaps the cards down on the table in a Chan-like manner. Now it is up to Alex, it is his turn to decide whether to fold or call. Alex, though, is sure he has Manny beat, he gives Manny a smirk and says, in a Russian accent imitating the KGB guy from the movie Rounders, â€Å"I call.† All of sudden everyone is interested. One of these guys is about to lose all his chips. â€Å"Flip ‘em† somebody yells. As Manny flips his cards the whole table gets a look at them, A-K, an enviable hand. Alex flips his: 10-10, also a good hand. Alex definitely has an advantage, with a pocket pair. Both players look at each other and then back down at the table. Manny is hoping his bold move doesn’t backfire on him, and Alex just wants to finish the hand without having a heart attack. Here come the next three cards, also known as the flop, 7-9-K. Manny sighs as he sees his King, he is now in the lead.

Music Video Proposal Essay

The track I’m going to use to make a music video has a genre of a mix between indie and very chill out music this has made me think about what video will suit the music. My idea for the music video will be a narrative based , and the story will between a girl and boy in a relationship and they have split up and they cant see the love they have for each other anymore based on this the story will also involve them getting back together. Reason I have chosen this is because the track that was mixed has a somewhat depressing feel to it when you listen to it and the lyrics also explain this story well (referring to different parts of the lyrics) My video will promote the track, as it is not a piece of music you can listen to on the radio and sing to it. That would get plaid on the radio. Therefore, it needs something to make it viewable and push the viewing of the music. By using a video, that’s video to go with the track will really help also I think using the video it will appeal to a wider range audience. With the story of a break up I think it will stereotypically appeal to older teenagers to around the age of mid 30s, because often in this age a girl would have been through a relationship and then broke up and maybe been upset then it could appeal to them as a target audience. My music video will be relatively simple and include animation at the start of the music video and the end. The animation will consist of a boy and girl sitting at a bench and they have sad expressions on their face, in between them will be an animated heart which will split as they get up and walk separate directions to each other. And then animation at the end will have the bench with this time another man on the bench with half a heart then the girl also with half a heart joins him on the bench and the heart makes one. This will be in a style of narrative because its telling the story of the lyrics in the song. From narrative animation to concept real life my music video will carry on from the animation to a shot of the girl filmed in Ipswich town centre she will be moving very slow and the rest of the people around her will be moving very quick. With this effect it will be given the proposed reading that everyone is moving on and she is not. I will achieve this effect by filming the shot with the girl moving very very slowly and then in the editing stage I will speed up the pace so it gives the effect she is moving very slow and everyone else is moving fast. My video will use this shot when the girl sings but I will use different angles and cuts so it does not look boring. in the song there is also the boy singing he is very much in the same mood and cannot move on but wants to and he is very much sad. My idea for this shot will be that he is in the underground where he is alone and he can be sitting on the floor not really knowing what he is doing there giving the audience a picture that he is very much confused and upset. Also I will be using the graffiti wall in Ipswich close to the train station , the man in the video will be walking along this wall. Close to the end of the track both the male and female are singing for this I will use footage from the graffiti wall and the girl walking slowly but showing both on screen so we get a view of both persons point of view and then when the music stops is comes to the animation showing the girl has moved on .

Succubus Heat CHAPTER 26

Unfortunately, Roman wasn't entirely joking. â€Å"What are you doing?† I exclaimed when we got back to my apartment. He'd flounced on my couch and promptly grabbed a remote. There was no sign of my car on the street, but if Seth had driven it back, Carter-transportation would have arrived much more quickly. â€Å"I have nowhere to go,† he said mildly. Aubrey strolled out from the bedroom and jumped up next to him. â€Å"You just got amnesty from an archdemon. That's unheard of for a nephilim. I thought you wanted to put down roots? Why don't you go get a place in the suburbs? Work on your lawn?† â€Å"No one wants to live there.† I raked my hand through my hair in exasperation and then immediately rearranged it. God, I'd missed shape-shifting. If I was going to be damned, I might as well enjoy the perks. â€Å"You can't stay here. This place isn't big enough.† â€Å"I don't mind the couch.† I prepped myself for a rant, but then someone knocked at the door. Part of me hoped it would be Seth, even though that was pretty impossible. There was no immortal signature, which meant my visitor was a human. Yes, I'd definitely missed my abilities, even if they had strings attached. I opened the door and found Maddie. â€Å"Hey,† she said cheerily. â€Å"Hey,† I said, not sure I matched her enthusiasm. â€Å"Come in.† She stepped through, then faltered when she saw Roman. â€Å"Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to interrupt-â€Å" Roman hopped up from the couch. â€Å"No, no. I'm just an old friend. Roman.† He extended his hand. She shifted some papers she was holding and shook his hand in return. Her smile returned. â€Å"I'm Maddie. Nice to meet you.† She turned to me. â€Å"You got a sec? I was on my way to work and wanted to show you something.† She handed the papers over to me. They were in-depth reports of the new condo over on Alki Beach. There were detailed price listings, as well as room-by-room photos of one unit in particular. It wasn't finished yet. The floor was only a foundation, and the drywall wasn't painted. Nonetheless, the pictures were clear and gave a good idea of the spacious layout. One picture showed a balcony that opened up to a breathtaking view of the water and the Seattle skyline beyond. It was nothing like what Seth and I had shared, but it was nice. Roman, peering over my shoulder, let out a low whistle. â€Å"Nice.† I elbowed him out of my personal space. â€Å"Where'd you get these?† Maddie smiled. â€Å"You said you were busy, so I went over there myself and talked to the builder. This is the only one left, and they let me go through and take pictures.† I jerked my head up. â€Å"You took all these?† â€Å"I knew how stressed you were and wanted to help. Look, keep going, and you can see all the options you can still get. There are the floor choices: maple, bamboo, cherry†¦Ã¢â‚¬  I took a deep breath to steady myself. Maddie hadn't just printed out info for me. After all that searching and fine-tuning, she'd actually gone out of her way to assemble an entire dossier on this place, a place I'd just been acknowledging at random to make her feel better. â€Å"They've got a realtor on-site, but you can get your own too,† she continued. â€Å"Someone else was just looking at it, but the guy said if you were interested and put a bid in soon, he'd consider it along with the other person's.† â€Å"Look,† piped in Roman. â€Å"Two bedrooms.† â€Å"Maddie†¦Ã¢â‚¬  I swallowed. â€Å"You shouldn't have done this.† She gave me a quizzical look. â€Å"Why not?† â€Å"It was too much work.† â€Å"Whatever. Besides, after all the stuff you've done for me? Georgina, this is nothing. Are you going to go talk to them? I'll go with you if you want.† I sank down onto the couch, flipping through the pages without really comprehending them. I'd been angry when she and Seth hooked up. I had no right, however. She hadn't known about our past. And if I hadn't been so dead-set on keeping things secret, if she had known Seth and I had dated, I felt absolutely certain she would have never, ever gotten together with him. Because she was my friend. I felt a burning in my eyes and willed myself not to cry. I didn't entirely know what I'd done to deserve that kind of friendship. She was a good person. She believed the best in me-just as Seth did. In this dark phase, Seth had never given up on me. Both of them were so good, so kind. And at the end of the day, there really wasn't much of that among humans. Carter had said that if there were no other complications in the world, I would be the one Seth chose. But we did have complications. I still refused to hurt him because of sex, and that problem was now in full effect again. He'd thrown himself into danger for me on the beach. There would always be danger with the life I led-danger for him, not me. I wanted him badly, wanted to reestablish what we'd had, but if I did, I'd only be subjecting him to more of this rollercoaster existence. I'd deny him a normal life, a normal love. I couldn't do that to him, no matter what he said about trying it again. Just because things don't work out, it doesn't mean there aren't other people you can't love. Love is too big a thing for you to go without it in life. At least for humans it was. I wanted Seth and Maddie to have that. I wanted them to have the dream I couldn't have. Maddie's expression softened as she peered at me. â€Å"Why are you looking at me like that?† I swallowed and gave her smile. â€Å"Just still amazed you did all this.† â€Å"Will you go take a look?† she asked excitedly. â€Å"Yeah. I will.† This earned me a hug and a smile, and then she had to scurry off to work. I sat back down on the couch, papers still clutched in my hands. Roman sat down opposite me. â€Å"You're going to end it, aren't you?† His voice was surprisingly gentle. â€Å"With Mortensen?† â€Å"Yeah. I mean, I knew we would, but it didn't hit me until just now. We were deluding ourselves†¦caught up by a temporary situation. They deserve to be with each other, and I shouldn't have done what I did to her.† I sighed. â€Å"Nyx tricked me with the dream. It wasn't real.† Without thinking much about it, I rested my hand on my stomach. Even if there'd been any chance of getting pregnant while in stasis, it was gone now. â€Å"It might be real for them, though.† Roman looked so pained, so sympathetic that it was hard to imagine he still wanted to kill me. Though I was pretty sure he did. â€Å"I'm sorry,† he said. â€Å"Sorry you can't have your man and your daughter. I'm even sorry you can't have your cats.† I glanced over at where Aubrey slept, recalling the tortoiseshell cat from the dream. â€Å"Well, I think she's happier being an only child anyway.† Seth showed up later that evening. Roman was mercifully gone, off to buy groceries. No matter my protests, he seemed intent on staying with me. I thought about complaining to Jerome but was pretty sure my boss wouldn't appreciate such a petty concern right now. If he was still even my boss. I was taking no news as good news for now. Seth handed me my car keys as he walked in. â€Å"It's out behind the building.† â€Å"Thanks.† â€Å"Sorry I took off like that. I didn't want to†¦God, that was so hard.† â€Å"It was what I wanted,† I told him. We stood a couple feet apart, hesitant to get much closer. â€Å"I'm glad you listened to me.† â€Å"I wasn't going to, you know. As soon as I got off the phone with that demon-and let me tell you, that was weird-I was going to head right back, and†¦I don't know. I don't know what I would have done. I would have stood by you.† â€Å"You could have gotten yourself killed.† He shrugged, like that was inconsequential. â€Å"I did actually head back, and then†¦then I saw Dante.† I crossed my arms, still fearful about approaching him, largely because I was afraid I'd throw myself at him. â€Å"I knew that's what you'd done. But why? You don't like him. You know what kind of person he is.† Seth nodded. â€Å"I don't like him, but†¦they would have killed him, wouldn't they?† I thought about Jerome, that cold and barely repressed anger in his eyes. He'd been pissed off, and I knew it must have killed him to not be able to take his wrath out on Grace. There were taboos about directly harming and interfering with mortals, but well, it wasn't unheard of, and there were always loopholes. He would have gotten in less trouble for it than for smiting Grace. â€Å"Well,† I said, â€Å"let's just say, they would have at least made him suffer considerably.† â€Å"I figured. And I couldn't let that happen†¦not even to him. What he did was wrong-it seriously messed things up for you and put you at risk. But in some bizarre, crazy way, he did it because he loved you. And I'm not sure someone should be tortured for that. And†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Seth studied me carefully. â€Å"I had a feeling you wouldn't have wanted that.† He was right. No matter how much I'd been hurt, despite the betrayal†¦I had cared about Dante. I still did a little. â€Å"God, I have to stop getting involved with unstable men. Where is he now?† â€Å"I dropped him off at his place. He started coming around and was able to walk and everything.† â€Å"If he has any sense, he'll be long gone. I think Jerome'll have a long memory.† â€Å"And, so†¦things are back to normal?† I took awhile to answer. â€Å"Yeah. I'm back in full succubus glory.† He turned away and began pacing. â€Å"I knew it would happen†¦knew this was coming, and yet†¦I kept pretending it wouldn't.† â€Å"Me too. I think somewhere in my head, I had this fantasy that I could find Jerome and still be with you.† Seth stopped and looked at me. â€Å"We still can be. I meant what I said†¦that I would try again†¦Ã¢â‚¬  I met his gaze levelly. â€Å"What about Maddie?† â€Å"I†¦I would end it with her†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"Do you love her?† My words were blunt. I think I caught him by surprise. â€Å"Yes†¦but it's different. Different from the way I love you.† â€Å"It doesn't matter,† I said. â€Å"You and I can't be together. If you have a chance to be happy, then you need to take it. We can't do this to her again. It's wrong. She doesn't deserve it.† â€Å"I told you I'd end things with her first if we were getting back together. I can't cheat anymore.† â€Å"You can't break up,† I said, surprised by the vehemence in my own voice. â€Å"She loves you. You love her. And after what we did to her†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"You want me to stay with her as some sort of compensation?† I balked. â€Å"Well, no†¦not exactly. But you guys deserve each other. You deserve to be happy. And you aren't ever going to be happy with me. It's going to always be up and down-just like before.† â€Å"I'm starting to think all relationships are like that,† he said wearily. â€Å"I still don't want to hurt you. I can't stand that-I can't forget what Hugh said, about how that would destroy you. And yet†¦something keeps pulling us back. I told you-we're never going to be able to stay apart.† I knew exactly what he meant, but I didn't say so. â€Å"I thought ending things before would fix all that, that the short-term pain would be worth the long-term stability. But I was wrong. We just found a whole new set of problems, and Maddie's in the middle. I'm willing to try again†¦no matter how hard it is.† â€Å"You were right to end it with us,† I said harshly. â€Å"And I'm not willing to do it again.† He stared at me, shocked. My words were a lie, of course. Part of me wanted to try again, to endure anything to be with him. But I couldn't stop thinking about Maddie. Couldn't stop thinking about the hurt she would go through. It was ironic, really. Last time, he'd gone out of his way to hurt me purposely because it was for the greater good. Now I was doing the same for both of them, saving her from heartache and him from more grief with me. We were in an endless cycle. â€Å"You can't mean that. I know you can't.† His face was a mixture of incredulity and pain. I shook my head. â€Å"I do. You and me are a disaster. What we did during this stasis†¦it was wrong. It was disgraceful. Immoral. We betrayed someone who loves both of us, who wishes nothing but the best for us. How could we do that? What kind of precedent is that? How could we expect to have a solid relationship that was built on that sort of sordid foundation? One that was built on lies and deceit?† Saying those words hurt. It was tarnishing the beauty of these precious few days we had, but I needed to make my case. Seth was silent for several moments as he assessed me. â€Å"You're serious.† â€Å"Yes.† I was a good liar, good enough that the person who loved me most couldn't tell. â€Å"Go back to her, Seth. Go back to her and make it up to her.† â€Å"Georgina†¦Ã¢â‚¬  I could see it, see it hitting him. The full weight of betraying Maddie was sinking in. His nature couldn't ignore the wrong he'd done. It was part of his good character, the character that had gone back to save Dante, the character that was going to make him leave me. Again. Hesitantly, he extended his hand to me. I took it, and he pulled me into an embrace. â€Å"I will always love you.† My heart was going to burst. How many times, I wondered, could I endure this kind of agony? â€Å"No, you won't,† I said. â€Å"You'll move on. So will I.† Seth left not long after that. Staring at the door, I replayed my own words. You'll move on. So will I. In spite of how much he loved me, how much he was willing to risk, I truly felt he'd go back to Maddie, that he'd believe what I said. I'd driven home the guilt, made it trump his love for me. You'll move on. So will I. The unfortunate part about being a good liar, however, was that while I could get other people to believe my words, I didn't believe them myself.