November 28; 7:24 A.M.
230 Marlett Lane

    "Rorie! Get out of the house now! You're gonna be late for school!"
    "I know mom!" A small, compact, big brown-eyed, brunette shouted from the main hall of the house as she quickly pushed her socked feet into her shoes.
    Grabbing her book bag, which she had just bought that weekend, Rorie ran through the door, snatching her key just before she exited the building. Forgetting to shut the door, the small girl jumped down the two steps from the porch as she swung the strap of her shoulder bag around her head and ran down the pebble walkway. Pushing the picket fence open, Rorie ran down the sidewalk, sneakers hitting the pavement, brown, uncombed hair flying like a cape, brand, new, black, shiny shoulder bag held in place with her right arm while the other one pumped up and down, in time with her stepping.
    Down the block, the white and black back of the bus could be seen at the bus stop. Gritting her teeth, Rorie tightened her hold on her bag and forced her legs to move faster, her arm pumping faster simultaneously. Her eyes locked onto the bus as she ran faster and faster. 'Stay, stay, stay, stay,' she told the bus silently as her feet pounded the pavement at second intervals.
    To her relief, the light had turned red, and the bus was forced to stay at the corner. Rushing over to the door, she knocked on the plexiglass to get the driver's attention. She waited for the man in uniform to open the door, her chest heaving up and down from the recent exertion. Flashing her winning smile, she put her student metro card into the slot and waited patiently for it to pop back up. When it did, her slim, flexible hand whisked it from its position and placed it somewhere within the depths of her bag, to be found later.
    Checking her fashionable, metallic watch, she saw that it was exactly seven thirty. She wasn't going to be late to school after all. Rorie swung her large brown eyes around the bus, seeing that it was surprisingly empty. Brushing the capacity  of the bus off as a result of the extremely cold weather, she swaggered, almost drunk-like, to an empty window seat near the middle of the bus just as the vehicle started to move.
    The small girl plopped down onto the blue plastic chair, automatically pushing her bag onto her lap as she did so. Turning her head to the window, her bright eyes watched the swiftly passing scenery of the small town she lived in. They were all familiar to her, she saw them each and every weekday morning and afternoon, unless there was no school. She watched as the store owners took down the remnants of their Thanksgiving decorations. There were paper turkeys and strung letters. Pretty soon they would be putting up Christmas wrappings all around their windows, Santas would be greeting customers at the doors, snow would be flicked along the floors of every shop.
    A small feeling of excitement rose in Rorie's chest. Christmas would be the first time in a long while that Rorie's family would be together. Aunts, uncles, cousins, nephews, nieces, they all would be at her house Christmas Eve. She couldn't wait 'till then, her family had always been fun to be with. Christmas would be the greatest this year, especially for the town. Rorie grinned as the bus drove through the streets on its way to the school.

3:38 P.M.

   "Mom!" Rorie called through the house as she walked into the door. "I'm home!"
    Not getting an answer, she figured that her mother was off on some shopping list excursion and tossed her bright and shiny bag into the nearest chair. Shearing off her large, puffy winter coat, Rorie tossed it onto a peg that stuck out from the wall. Somewhere in the house, the phone rang, barely audible. Straining her ears to find the direction of the sound, Rorie followed it through the house, walking through the living room, stopping here and there to see if the phone rang from under a cushion of chair.
    Standing in the kitchen doorway, she wondered what happened to the phone. It rang again, this time louder. Tracing the sound, Rorie tracked it to the clutter of clothes near the laundry basket. Quickly getting down on her hands and knees, she hoped with all her might that the person wouldn't hang up. Glimpsing at the crystal clock that hung on the opposite wall, she saw that she had been tracking the phone for at least three minutes. Tucking her hair behind her ears, Rorie extended her slim, deft hands into the pile of clothes and began to dig through them like a dog. Shirts and jeans flew nearly everywhere as Rorie shoved them aside to uncover the ringing that hid itself underneath all that cloth.
    The stack had shrunk to half its size within thirty seconds and the ringing had gotten louder. Encouraged, Rorie sped up her digging, tossing a pair of socks out of her hands' way. Forcing her hands through the thick layer of clothes, the fingers of her right hand struck something hard. It could either be the floor or the phone. At the touch, her digging turned into a frenzied whirl of flying clothes as they flew from their position on the pile to the backs of the kitchen chairs, the kitchen table, even the counters near the opposite side of the room. Suddenly, the sleek, shiny white phone revealed itself amongst the socks and underwear that was left in the pile. It was ringing for what seemed like the hundredth time. Snatching the phone from its nest, Rorie pushed the talk button and placed in next to her hair in one, swift motion of her arm and hand.
    "Hello?"
    "Rorie! Is that you! This is your Aunt Janice!" A bright, shrilly voice announced through the phone.
    A smile lighted Rorie's pink lips. Aunt Janice was one of her favorite family members to be around with.
   "Hi Aunt Janice. Sorry to keep you waiting like that, but the phone had gotten itself lost."
    "Oh that's quite alright," Aunt Janice said. "Anyway, I called to make sure of the time and date that we are supposed to arrive."
    Aunt Janice was always very meticulous about the details of anything. She always double checked to see that she had everything before she left her house in the morning for work.
    "Christmas day, around eight in the morning," Rorie answered.
    "Ok, thank you darling. See ya soon!"
    "Bye Aunt Janice," Rorie said before she hung up.
    Getting off her knees, she placed the phone on its proper bed on the wall before looking around at the accidental mess she had made. Her eyes danced on the shirts that hung on the counters like table cloths and jeans that rest on the backs of chairs. Reprimanding herself for making such a big mess, Rorie set out to put all the clothes back into their pile before her mother came home from whatever she was doing. While she was at it, she decided that she might as well fold and iron the laundry.
    That was how her mother found her when she came home a few minutes later, in the kitchen, a few piles of folded clothes around her feet, a pair of jeans on the ironing board and an iron in her hand. Smiling at the sight, her mother walked into the kitchen, heading straight for the refrigerator. She had spent the afternoon buying food and drinks that the family was going to need when they came to visit in less than a month.
    Rorie's mother didn't look all too much like her. She is tall woman with shoulder-length, silky blonde hair that is usually cut to the latest styles of the day. Here eyes were the color of the water in the Bahamas, blue and clear. They danced brightly as her eyes lit upon her small daughter doing laundry.
    "I thought I've never see the day that my daughter would be doing housework," she teased.

3:40 P.M.
Alley on 51^st Street

    It was surprisingly freezing at this time of the year in the city. The two towering brick buildings blocked the harsh blowing winds on both sides. Nothing could help the ones blowing from the ends of the alley. A newspaper page skittered across the ground as the breeze toyed with it, causing it to dance to a soundless tune. The dancing page skipped across the sneakered feet of a girl hugging herself through the used coat on her shoulders. Burying her face deeper into the plaid scarf she had recently acquired from a large cardboard box filled with clothing, the girl shuffled her feet in worn, dirty sneakers and walked a little faster. The quick wind lifted the strands of blond hair that escaped from within the scarf, causing the strands to wiggle around like captive snakes.
    A few more steps later, the girl found herself at the doorstep of  The Fifty-First Street Orphanage. Removing a gloved hand from its position, she reached out and pushed the wooden door open. Stepping inside the orphanage, she let the door swing shut with a loud slam as she began to remove the winter clothing she bore. The young girl, around the age of eleven, was standing in a large, spacious room. The tiled floor was cracked and worn, though clean. An empty reception desk stood a few yards away, at the center of the room. The ancient wallpaper was littered with drawings of children of various ages. A happy Halloween sign hung from the sides of the desk.
    "Julia, would you mind watching little Mackie for me? I have some paper work to finish up," a woman in her mid forties with softly graying hair in a sweatshirt and jeans with a small child attached to her hand said as she came from a room beyond this one.
    "Sure, no prob.," Julia said as she peeled her mismatched gloves from her hands.
    Stuffing the gloves into the pockets of the oversized coat, Julia took the little boy's hand with her left and the coat with her right. Smiling sweetly at the little boy with red hair she winked at him and towed him off.
    "We gonna play?" Mackie asked, big, round, green eyes looking up into Julia's gray ones.
    Julia glanced at the bursting brown teddy bear that he held in his other arm. Noting that the stuffing was coming out in three places, she turned her attention to the question at hand.
    "Of course we are! What did you think we were going to do? Clean?"
    The toddler giggled and hugged his precious companion tighter to his chest. The cartoon sweatshirt he was wearing didn't fit him at all. It hung low across his clothed legs and covered his hands. It made Mackie look smaller than he actually was, although it did help with the adorable charm he oozed every second of the day. Anyone happening to come upon him would think him underfed, whilst the opposite is actually happening. He rubbed his chubby, glowing face against the top of the stuffed animal's furry head.
    "You know it'll be Christmas soon," Julia said in a high, lilting tone as she led him to the orphanage's extravagant playroom.
    "Uh huh," came Mackie's muffled reply.

    The orphanage was better off than other orphanages in the city. It had received donations from large companies and citizens of the country and city. The building, though old and worn, stood firm and tall, filled with dorms, playrooms, a large library donated by the richest woman in the area, Mrs. Trinklis, an enormous  cafeteria, a modern kitchen, and a gym for exercise. The building looked like it would collapse any second, but the interior had been redone and inspected many times over so the brick tower would remain standing. The only thing that showed any improvement of the building are the two new plexiglass doors that stood as the main entrance into the orphanage. 
    Julia led Mackie by the hand to one of the playrooms. They were all behind majestic oak doors on the ground floor. Nothing told them apart from each other except for the signs that stated that they were playrooms for babies, toddlers, or children. There were two playrooms for each category, each containing different toys to play with. Opening one marked "Toddler Playroom," Julia and Mackie found themselves in a room littered with colorful plastic building blocks, stuffed animals and mats. Children from the ages of 2 to 6 were playing with the scattered toys with the older orphans watching over them. Shouting and laughter emanated from the very walls of the playroom.
    "What you wanna play with first?" Julia asked the child as she dumped her coat in one of the room's corners, piling it on top of other people's coats.
    At the age of four, Mackie had already learned not to suck his thumb and to play nice. Being very bright for his age, he scanned the room, looking for spare toys lying on the colorful mats the carpeted the tiled floors. He saw many of his friends playing together with building blocks, stacking them up on top of each other. Hugging his stuffed companion tighter, he spotted an abandoned tower nearby.
    "Dat," he said, pointing to the tower with his free hand.
    "Ok," she replied and followed the toddler to the building blocks.
    Her feet sunk part way into the firm blue mat as she stepped toward Mackie's choice of toys. The little boy walked expertly on the mat to the towering blocks. There were at least twenty stacked on top of each other. The tower was made of the large building blocks and stood taller than he did. Looking forlornly up at the top block, he turned to Julia.
    Seeing the height of the tower, Julia looked at her charge and saw him looking at her, green eyes pleading. Laughing silently, she reached out and began dismantling the tower slowly. Passing each color block she removed to Mackie slowly, she watched him out of the corner of her eye. When she was done, she sat down cross-legged next to Mackie, flicking her blonde hair behind her.

November 30; 10:13 A.M.
230 Marlett Lane

    "Hello? Mrs. Trinklis?" A kind, woman's voice asked from the other end of the phone.
    "Yes, this is she," Rorie's mother answered.
    "Would you like to schedule a visit to The Fifty-First Street Orphanage?"
    "Oh finally! Of course I would!" Lauren Trinklis exclaimed.
    "We have social workers available next week, when do you have time to come?"
    "Hmmm.....I think Friday at around six thirty would be good."
    "Wednesday...six thirty..." the voice repeated. "You're in luck! Anna is available to give you a tour of the orphanage. Thank you for your donation, we'll see you on Friday."
    "Alright, goodbye," Lauren said and hung up the kitchen phone.
    Going over the wall calendar, she took a pen from the kitchen counter and marked down the date and time of the tour. Nodding to herself, she checked the clock. Frowning, she wondered why Rorie hadn't gotten out of bed yet, but oh well, it was Saturday. 

    Rorie rolled over on her soft bed, making sure that her fluffy pink blanket remained in place. Opening her eyes to peer at the clock she saw that it was after ten in the morning. Frowning, she debated on whether she should or should not get out of bed. Her brain wanted to, but her body wanted to remain in the soft, warm environment it was in now. Giving into her body's want, Rorie pulled the blanket higher upon her shoulder and closed her eyes to fall asleep again.

10:17 A.M.
The Fifty-First Street Orphanage

    "Fran! Hurry up!" Julia called from the end of the hall on the third floor of the four story building. 
    She had on her tan coat, plaid scarf, and mismatched gloves, the right hand covered in blue and the left in red. She had her hair tied in a low ponytail with Snoopy scrunchie she had received last Christmas from her roommate, Fran. Her sneakered feet were dressed with two layers of socks. Just as she was about to go back down the hall, a thin brunette girl came out of one of the doors on the left side of the hall. She was dressed in a black beret, blue winter coat, green gloves and a pair of black boots. Her shoulder-length hair was pinned behind her right ear by a rhinestone clip she received last year from Julia. It was apparent that she made quite an effort to look her best.
    "You know, some of the boys from school are going ice skating," Fran commented as she and Julia quickly descended the recently repaired wooden stairs.
    "Is that why you took so long?" Julia questioned.
    Fran didn't answer, but Julia knew the answer before she even asked the question. Her blue gloved hand slid down the shining banister as they ran down the stairs as fast as they could. They were already five minutes late, and didn't want to keep everyone waiting.
    The ice skating excursion is a yearly trip the orphanage took during the fall or winter. It was sponsored by the local law firm, Incrinence Law Firm. The firm provided the orphanage with buses to drive the kids to the skating rink and paid for all the expenses, including lunch at McDonald's. Lots of teenage and adult volunteers came to help the social workers and orphanage employees control the kids. This trip was looked forward to by every child in the building. It meant that they get to have fun and see the city, enjoying the pleasures that they wouldn't have any other day. To the little children, the trip meant fun and partying, to the older children, like Julia and Fran, it meant a chance to have fun, get out of the orphanage and just be free, in a sense.
    As they flew through the stairway door, they saw a crowd of people dressed in winter garments down the hall, in the lobby. Running the rest of the way, they joined the crowd, hoping not to be noticed. The volunteers were beginning the head count as Fran and Julia caught their breath. No one seemed to have noticed the two late comers. Julia placed a gloved hand to her neck and grinned to herself. She was going to have the time of her life today.
    "All right!" John, an eighteen-year old volunteer shouted above the babbling talk of the children and adults. "Everyone's here so lets pile into the buses one by one!"
    A shout of joy resonated from the mass of squirming and shouting orphans as they made their way to the front door. Julia hung back with Fran and a few of the older kids. Fran was gossiping about some couple with another girl that seemed to have taken her time getting dressed also. Giggling like two Catholic school girls, they stepped through the door, followed by Julia.
    A small gush of wind flew at Julia's face, stinging and caressing it at the same time, as she stepped through the barrier. It pushed the stray strands of her hair all over the place, causing to wave about her head like a barely visible, glowing halo. The wind brought the winter coldness right to her face. She felt her cheeks get cold and red from the temperature and rubbing of the wind. Digging her face further into her dark scarf, she looked to see the two school buses that stood on the street in front of the orphanage. Their doors were open, welcoming the stream of gushing, laughing kids. She saw that one of them was already half-filled with shouting and bubbling orphans and their monitors.
    The swishing sea of colorful children split as they began to fill the two yellow buses. Volunteers and social workers guided the sea to one of the yellow vehicles, hurrying them along. Julia spotted Frank, one of her friends, and followed him to the second bus. The bubbling talk of the orphans made it nearly impossible for Julia to hear the roar of the wind, to decipher its language. She felt it blow her ponytail to and fro as she followed the river of kids. The wind drove at her and bit the exposed flesh of her face. It wanted her to listen to its tale, but Julia just buried her face deeper into the scarf and shuffled her feet along, getting pushed from all side by the excited band of youngsters.
    Finally making to the opening of the bus, Julia looked up to see the bus driver, a chubby man in a bus driver's uniform. He had one arm draped leisurely over the steering wheel and the other  hand wrapped around the control of the accordion door. Taking a small step forward as the line moved, Julia waited patiently for her chance to enter the yellow structure. She saw that the other bus was already filled and the kids left out were beginning to join the line entering the second bus.
    Suddenly, the black, ridged steps of the bus appeared before her. Taking the small metal banister in hand, Julia stepped one foot onto the step and climbed into the bus. As she did, the warmth of the heater pervaded her scarf and warmed her stinging cheeks and the smell of fake leather rose to meet her nostrils. Climbing onto the floor of the bus, her blue eyes scanned the two rows of seats, looking for an empty one, preferably one next to a friend. 
    "Julia!" She heard someone yell over the babbling voices of the orphans.
    Quickly looking for the source of the sound, she spotted Frank, a tall, lanky Asian boy around her age waving his arm like crazy over the green seats filled with beaming children. She pressed her lips together to stop herself from giggling at his humorous appearance. His waving caused his hair and body to sway with it, making him look like a strange boy rocking crazily like a doll stuck to the dashboard of a moving car. Walking down the aisle towards him, she saw that Fran was sitting with the girl she was gossiping with. Shaking her head at them, Julia made her way through the jungle of limbs and clothing that blocked the small aisle, the other kids behind her pushing along. Finally reaching Frank's seat, she plopped down next to him, landing on the hard seat of the bus chair. 
    "New bus," she commented.
    "Yea," Frank agreed who sat down after making sure that Julia had found him.
    "Can't wait to see you fall on your butt," Julia teased.
    "I'm not gonna fall this time," he said. "I'm gonna make you fall!"
    "Yea right."
    "Uh huh," Frank said, removing his large, black gloves and unzipping his coat.
    "Nuh uh," Julia disagreed, shaking her head so that her ponytail swished back and forth behind her.
    Following Frank's example, she removed her gloves and unzipped her coat. Her keen hearing picked up the sound of the bus door squeaking shut. The vibrations of the engine rippled through the bus as the driver turned the ignition.
    "Uh huh," she heard her friend say, his voice seeming to have been buried within the other voices of the kids.
    Turning her head to him, she noticed that his usually perfectly spiked hair had remained flat and un-gelled. Raising an eyebrow to the unusual appearance of her hair, she asked why he didn't put any gel in it. It reminded her of a conversation she had heard a few days ago.
    "I forgot," was his answer.
    Frank's voice was flat, with a hint of playfulness. Figuring that he must've have run out of styling gel, she asked another question.
    "You gettin' adopted?"
    She watched through her blue windows as he raised his eyebrows, wrinkling his forehead under the hair that hid it. His long, thin face showed surprise. 
    "How'd you know?" He asked.
    "Answer me first," was her reply.
    "I dunno."
    "I heard that Chinese couple talkin' 'bout it a few days ago with Ellen."
    "Oh."
    "Aren't you happy?"
    "I dunno, I guess."
    Frank fell silent and turned to look out the window. The bus had begun moving into the traffic, following the one before it. From the pieces of the window not covered by his head, she saw the streaming traffic of 51^st Street. A jumbled mess of feelings emanated from the body of the awkward boy. Julia looked down at her hands, wishing she hadn't mentioned a thing.
    "I betcha that you'll fall flat on your butt," she said brightly.
    Turning back to his neighbor, he stated his disagreement. 
    "You always do," Julia insisted.
    "Well...Not this time," he said mischievously.
    "Why not?"
    "Cuz me got better at it," he sniffed.
    "Uh huh, yea right."

1:43 P.M.
Trinklis Residence

   Rorie had finally had enough of sleeping and was making her way to the second floor bathroom in her fluffy, white bathrobe. She stumbled down the carpeted hall, rubbing her eyes. Her silky, brown hair hung in a tangled mess from her head. She had forgotten to tie it up the night before. Her bare feet tripped over each other as she headed for the bathroom.
    Fumbling with the light switch, she finally turned the light on and blinked quickly as her eyes adjusted to the brightness of the bathroom. Shaking her head to wake her self up, Rorie stepped onto the blue tiled floor, the coldness running up from her bare feet, and to the sink. Turning on the tap, she removed her toothbrush from its place next to the sink and filled her cup with water.
    Lauren heard the sound of water running from the living room, where she was reading a book. Glancing at the stairs, she checked her watch and closed the book, marking her place with a bookmark. Getting up from her comfortable position on the armchair, she headed for the kitchen to heat up her daughter's breakfast. Humming to herself, she heard the soft pat-patting of bare feet on carpet over the sound of sizzling bacon.
    "Hmmm! What smells so good, mom?" Rorie asked after she took a deep breath at the door of the kitchen.
    "Bacon," her mother answered without turning her attention away from her cooking.
    A wide smile spread across the girl's pink lips, lighting up her sleepy face. Her eyes sparkled at the prospect of eating a full, delicious, home-made breakfast. Rorie quickly took a seat at the small kitchen table. A plain, red checkered tablecloth protected it from the spills and stains of food. Rubbing her bare feet together to warm them up, Rorie waited patiently for her breakfast.
    Her round brown eyes watched her mother's back as she worked over the electric stove. Running a hand through her tangled hair, Rorie wished that she had brought  a comb or a brush down with her. The sizzling of oil surrounded the unusually spacious kitchen. Wincing, Rorie raked her hand through her hair in hopes of looking presentable. She also wished she wore socks to prevent her feet from freezing off her leg.
    The smile widened as her mother placed the plate filled with bacon and pancakes in front of her nose. Taking in the deliciously pleasant scent, Rorie grabbed the fork her mother gave her and stabbed it into the pancakes. Lauren poured rich, brown maple syrup on top of the stack of golden circles. Rorie thanked her mother, she always thought of everything.
    Nodding, her mother placed the syrup on the table, near her plate. Making sure that the frying pan was cleaned and put away, she returned to the cream colored armchair in the living room.  She grabbed her book and ensconced herself into the chair.
    Rorie chewed the soft pancakes, savoring every bite. Her mother is the best cook she ever knew. Looking around the kitchen as she chewed, she noticed something new on the kitchen calendar. Her mother must've written it last night or this morning. 'It must be one of her meetings or something,' she thought and speared a piece of bacon. Grinning evilly at it, she popped it into her mouth. The rich flavors escaped from the very molecules of the meat as she bit into it with her pearly white teeth. Her tongue soaked up every juice and flavor as it rolled the bacon all throughout her mouth.
    'Hmmm....Saturday,' she thought. Suddenly, her eyes widened. Nearly choking on the bacon, she grabbed the glass of water that was just an arm's length away. Gulping it down, she coughed for air, her throat feeling like it was on fire. Running to the calendar, she checked what date it was. November thirtieth. Rorie was supposed meet her friends at the ice rink in the city to go ice skating at two o'clock. Swirling around she stared at the clock. 
    "Oh my god!" She muttered and spun on her toes.
    Running out of the kitchen and up the stairs, bare feet slapping against the tiles, then pounding against the carpet. She was going to be late, she knew that, but how is she supposed to make herself look the remotest of decent in just a few minutes? Especially since she hasn't even combed her hair yet.
    Scolding herself for forgetting her appointments, Rorie pounded down the hallway to her room. Flying to the closet, she swung it open and quickly scanned its contents. It was filled with hanging sweaters, shirts, skirts, and pants. Her fall wardrobe. Shoes lined the bottom of the closet and hats piled themselves on the shelf above the hanging clothes. Remembering what she was planning to wear, she shot out her hand and parted the hanging sweaters, looking for a specific one. 'How could I forget something like this? I even wrote it in my schedule book.'
    Finding the sweater she wanted, she pulled it off its hanger and swung it onto her unmade bed. It was a red turtle neck that always looked good on her. Red seemed to be her color. Frowning she grabbed the nearest pair of jeans and swung it onto the bed. Slamming the closet door closed, her eyes quickly judged the outfit she chose. Pleased with it, she proceeded to dress.
    Minutes later, she was brushing her hair into a ponytail as fast as she could. She still hadn't put on her socks and it would take her a while to get to the city, unless her mother drove her. Wrapping her red scrunchie around her hair, she called for her mother, then scrambled around her sock drawer to find matching socks.
    "What is it?" She heard her mother ask from downstairs.
    "Could you drive me to the ice rink today?"
    "Now?"
    "Yes."
    A triumphant smile lit her face as she found the perfect pair of blue socks. Hopping around to put them on, she headed for her bedroom door. Stopping to lean against the doorjamb to put her socks properly on her feet, she raced down the stairs, the socks and carpeting padding the sound of her pounding feet. 
    "I forgot that we were going skating today," she explained to her mother as she ran past the living room to the hallway.
    "Do you want me to get your skates?"
    "Yes!" Rorie answered as she scrambled to put on her coat.
    She was zipping her small, yet warm, sky blue coat and putting on her shoes at the same time when her mother appeared next to her with her skating shoe bag in hand. Glancing at her, she stuffed her left foot into the shoe and placed a hand into her coat pocket to check that she had her gloves.
    "I'll go get the car started," Lauren said and placed the bag with the skates on the hallway table.
    Rorie nodded and heard her mother put on her felt coat. Envying her mother's coat, she struggled to get her feet in the shoe correctly. Her mother didn't have to spend the day out in the cold, so she could just wear her light, felt trench coat and still stay warm. Once she was done, she grabbed her skates and raced out the door to the silver land cruiser that was parked in the smooth, black driveway. She saw that her mother was already in the driver's seat. 
    Opening the passenger door, she felt a blast of heat hit her face from the heater that her mother had turned on. It reminded Rorie of the cold that she forgot she was feeling. Jumping on the seat, she swung the door shut and made herself comfortable. The automated seatbelt swung against her coat as the door closed. Glancing at the car clock, she closed her eyes and sighed. It all took twenty minutes. Her friends wouldn't mind her being late, after all, they were probably late also.

    A half an hour later, the silver land cruiser pulled up near the ice rink. A small, warmly dressed girl jumped out of the passenger side and waved to the driver. Closing the car door, she ran into the roofless ice rink, a heavy looking bag swinging by her side.
    Once inside, Rorie made her way expertly through the small batches of people to the ice rink. Looking around for her friends, she saw them waving to her at the stands near the rink. They were just putting on their skates. Running to them, she was about to apologize for her tardiness, but decided against it  when she saw that they had also just arrived. Sitting down on the seat next to her best friend, Beverly, a thin red-head, she proceeded to pull off her shoes. 
    "Where's Johnny?" Liz, a blonde girl, asked.
    "Probably on his way," Beverly answered as she laced up her white skates.
    Rorie nodded her agreement as she placed her right foot into its proper skate. She heard screams and laughter from the rink, looking up, she saw that a tall Asian boy had fallen and his friends were trying to help him up, except that he was making them fall on purpose. The scene made her tie her laces faster. She wanted to have fun with her friends too.

    "And I thought that you said you weren't going to fall," Julia commented as she reached down to take Frank's outstretched hand.
    He just grinned and giggled a bit. When she had his hand clasped firmly, he pulled-hard. The strength of his pull forced Julia to fall onto the ice next to him. Bracing her fall with her hands, she turned to hit her friend lightly on his arm. Fran and a few other friends were trying to help him up, but he just kept pulling them down.
    He was laughing and having a good time making everyone fall. He didn't mind the hits that the girls gave him, just to see them fall was good enough to justify it. The ice was cold underneath him, but he didn't notice it.  He saw the rented skates from more of his friends and grinned at the prospect of making them fall. Julia got up and tried to help him up again. He tugged her arm, but this time she was ready. 
    "Awww," he said when she didn't fall.
    Grinning at him, she helped him to his feet.
    "Just try and make me fall," Julia said haughtily.
   "Yea," Fran said above all the shouting of the other skaters.
    Frank grinned at the challenge and took a step towards Julia. His grin disappeared when he found himself falling to the ice again. His surrounding friends laughed at his fall and helped him up, cautious not to let him pull them down with him. When he was up and standing confidently on his feet again, he began slapping his legs and back, trying to get rid of the remaining traces of the ice.
    "Hey look, there's Johnny!" Fran said, looking to the stands.
    "Really?" Maria, the Fran was talking with on the bus said, turning to see where she was looking. "Let's go talk to him!"
    "Ok!" Fran agreed and they skated away.
    Julia made sure that Frank would not fall before she skated away to a group of little kids from the orphanage. They were skating clumsily, hand-in-hand, in a straight line near the edge of the rink. They were being led around the rink by one of the teenage volunteers. A few of the better skaters were skating in a cloud around them. Her blue eyes told her that Mackie was one of the better skaters.
    A tingling feeling crawled up and down the back of her neck. Stopping instantly, Julia turned to see that Fran was about to fall, possibly embarrassing herself in front of Johnny, a pale boy with black hair with good looks. Grinning mischievously, she concentrated on the figure of Fran struggling to maintain her balance. Julia concentrated on the drunken way Fran was skating, on the arms that were trying desperately to keep the girl's balance. Soon, it became all that she could see, a figure of a girl in a black beret and blue coat wavering on the blades of her rented skates. Biting her lip, she wished  that Fran would not fall. As she stop concentrating on her, Fran slowly regained her balance and skated confidently with Maria to the side of the rink to talk to the boy that reminded her of a raven or a crow.
    Turning to look behind her, she saw Frank skating slowly through the gaps of the people that either whizzed by or stumbled by. Confident that he would not hurt himself, she skated to the toddlers that were holding on the each other, and the boards of the rink.
    The sound of metal sliding across artificial ice was everywhere, bringing back many of memories of past falls and flops. As she skated towards them, she listened to her own rhythmic sounds from her skates. They seem somewhat soothing to her soul. Getting closer, she did a T-stop and helped one of the fallen toddlers to get back on his feet.
    "How are we doing over here?" Julia asked cheerfully.
    "Fine! Good! Ok! Bad!" They all said at once.
    Feeling a tug on her coat, Julia looked down to see Mackie's green eyes staring at her.
    "What is it?" She asked, squatting down as best as she could without falling to get to his eye level.
    "Nancy said we gonna go eat at McDonalds," he said and continued when he saw Julia nod. "Are we getting toys?"
    Surprised by the question, Julia nearly fell over trying not to laugh. 
    "Of course you are! Who wouldn't go into McDonald's and not get a toy for you guys?"
    "Ok!" Mackie said through his smile.
    Beaming brightly at the toddlers, she watched as they followed Nancy, the volunteer, around the rink.
    "Keep holding onto each other and the boards," Nancy shouted behind her to the line of kids following her. "If you need help, stop and call me."
    Her blue eyes saw a misshaped line following a tall green thing around the ice. They were moving slowly, allowing every color to be visible of the rainbow line.
    "Boo!" Someone said behind her.
    Turning around, she came face to face with Frank and one of his friends from school, Neil.
    "Hi," she said to Neil, waving a bit.
    "Hi," Neil greeted, placing a hand absently on the hat he wore.
    "What do you want?" Julia asked, turning to Frank.
    He just grinned for an answer. 

    "Hi!" A cheerful little voice said.
    Looking up from lacing her last skate, Rorie saw that two girls were standing at the boards. The girl who spoke was Fran. Saying hi to them, she returned to lacing up her skate.
    "Hey," she heard Johnny's deep voice say.
    "I didn't know you guys were going to be here," a different girl's voice said, possibly the girl that Fran was with.
    "And I thought that Beverly announced to the whole entire school that we were," Johnny mused.
    "Shut up, Johnny!" Rorie heard Beverly say, followed by a slap of clothing. 
    "Hey, just because you have a big mouth doesn't give you the right to harass me!"
    "Shouldn't we be eating lunch?" Fran said absently.
    "Didn't you guys eat already?" Johnny asked, checking his watch. "It's like nearly three."
    "Really? Oh my god! We totally lost track of time!" Fran said. 
    Sitting up, finally finished with the long laces, Rorie saw the girl next to Fran look around the rink. 
    "Hey!" She said. "Frank, Julia! When's lunch!"
    "I dunno, now?" An Asian boy answered.
    A blonde girl checked her watch.
    "He's right," she said and skated away, to a gathering group at the end of the rink. "See ya Neil!"
    The Asian boy followed her, after trying to convince the other boy, Neil, to come with him. Rorie saw him shake his head and his friend skated away, leaving Neil all alone on the ice. Fran and the other girl also skated away, but not without saying bye.
    "I thought they were going to stay here forever," Liz commented.
    "Who?" Johnny asked.
    "Those girls, you idiot," Liz said.
    "Fran and Maria?"
    "If that's they're names, then yea."
    "Don't be so mean," Beverly said and stood up. "Who's ready to hit the ice."
    Rorie grinned and stood up.
    "Race ya," she said and walked to the ice.
    "Hey! Come back here!" Johnny said and climbed over the seat in front of him since he had seated himself behind the girls.
    Liz tired her best to make the boy fall. When he stood firmly on the ground, she gave up and followed him out onto the ice. Rorie and Beverly were already doing figure eights and spins on the ice.
    "So much money for skatin' lessons when you can learn for free," Johnny teased, watching the two girls.
    "At least we don't look stupid next to you," Liz commented, stepping onto the ice. "Jeez, those orphans must've made up the bulk of the skaters."
    Rorie stopped her spinning and looked around the ice rink. It wasn't as crowded as it was before Fran and the others left for lunch. Now, there was enough room for a few jumps, maybe part of a routine. The remainder of the skaters were just skating around aimlessly, probably killing time waiting for the others to come back from their meal.
    "It's too cold for most people to go out and skate," Neil commented.
    "Yea," Johnny agreed. "Hey, Neil, race ya 'round the rink!"
    The two boys bolted away from their positions, their skates slicing through the ice, creating the scratching sound that had filled the air earlier. Watching the two boys go, Rorie shook her head and looked down at the lines her skates  had created. 'Hmmm...' she thought, 'I need to try and spin in the same area.'
    "I just learned how to do a triple-triple combination," Liz said.
    "Oh really! Cool!" Beverly exclaimed.
    Rorie heard the sound of skates coming nearer, the interval of the skates were just seconds apart. Brushing the sounds off as just an average skater, she skated to her friends, who were discussing Liz's recent skating lesson.
    "I didn't just hear you say you learned to do a triple combination," Rorie said, astounded.
    "Yup," Liz said, beaming and confident.
    "You're so lucky," Beverly whined. "My instructor went on vacation and won't be back 'till next week."
    "Mine got sick, so my session was cancelled," Rorie added.
    The sound of skates were getting louder, but the girls ignored it during the heated discussion of Liz's newly acquainted skills. Beverly was complaining about her teacher and twirling her red hair around her index finger. Rorie was itching to get all the details from Liz's lesson while the she just stood there and beamed. Liz loved being the center of attention, no matter how small or big, so she was beaming and enjoying herself to the fullest as her two best friends badgered her for instructions, tips, and details. She didn't even hear the noises around her except for the questions from the two girls that surrounded her. This put her back into her cheerful mood, which was darkened previously by the interruption of Fran and the other girl, she had forgotten her name. Fran is just one of Johnny's many girl friends, and deprived her of his attention when she was around.
    Rorie was trying to get Liz to spill her guts when she felt an icy cold hand lay itself on her shoulder, near her neck. Her heart skipped a beat as its coldness seeped in through her skin and careened straight to her heart. Here eyes widened, her breath came in short, wispy gasps as she imagined all the different, horrible possibilities the hand could belong to.
    "BOO!"
    "IIAAAH!" The girls shrieked and turned to see two, familiar, laughing boys.
    The sudden sound of a voice had caused all the girls to jump out of their skates. They hadn't paid any attention to the approaching sounds of skates as they were all busy discussing an aspect of their skating. Liz's blood boiled. Rorie folded her arms across her chest. Beverly kicked the nearest boy, Neil, lightly on his leg.
    "JOHNNY!" Liz yelled as everyone's head swerved to look at the seemingly hysterical blonde girl. "What the hell was that for!?!?!?"
    The pale boy was laughing so hard, he couldn't even make a sound close to a word. He opened and closed his mouth in attempt to speak, but spasms of laughter just ran through his body uncontrollably. Neil was no help, either. He had fallen onto the ice from the hysterics that claimed his body. His rented skates scratched the ice, creating strange pictures on the white ground. He barely even noticed the kick he received from Beverly, who seemed to be seeing the light side of the situation for she was giggling behind her hand.
    Liz took glared at Beverly, her mouth twitching at the corners. Rorie was already biting her lip as hard as she could. Looking at the two boys and Beverly, Liz couldn't take it anymore, and started to giggle. Taking Liz's cue, Rorie began to laugh. Beverly started to laugh so hard that she was beginning to lose her balance. Grabbing onto the side of the rink and her stomach, she buckled over in laughter. Liz was clutching the boards with both her hands so hard that her knuckles were white with the pressure. Rorie had sat down on the ice to prevent herself from falling at hurting herself if she had fallen. The two boys were rolling along the ground, the pieces of the loose ice clung to their coats and pants.
    When they stopped, a few minutes later, they either on the ice or leaning against the rink's boards for support, catching their breaths. Rorie watched she exhaled into the cold air, her breath becoming visible, nearly a solid, then disappear into the atmosphere. She remembered when she and her friends used to pretend that they were smoking when it was this cold. Her nerves were beginning to send impulses to her brain, telling it that the temperature of the ice was numbing her lower body. Every now and then, small bursts of giggles will escape Beverly's mouth.
    "We...we should...get...up," Johnny said between breaths, his voice barely a whisper due from the lack of air.
    Rorie nodded and got up slowly, trying to fight back the giggles that were itching her throat. She slowly headed the seats that she had occupied earlier. The others followed her, still fighting back giggles, and occasionally losing their control.
    "That was fun," Beverly said softly as she fell into her seat. "I wished I hadn't sat on the ice, though."
    This comment threw Johnny off completely. Within seconds he was laughing and clutching his aching stomach. Beverly stuck out her tongue at him and began removing the pieces of ice from her clothing that hadn't melted yet. Rorie suddenly felt the dampness of her jeans and looked down to see them nearly soaked through. She was glad that she wore leggings underneath to help keep herself warm. Patting at her legs, she watched as the flakes of ice flew from the denim and landed softly onto the ground. She couldn't wait till the first snowfall of the season to come.
    Liz rubbed her hands through her gloves and scowled. She had held on so tightly to the side boards that a crease had been left on her hands and they ached, along with her stomach. Taking off her gloves, she proceeded to fix her hair. Neil was standing in the seat next to the laughing Johnny, patting away at his pants and coat. He occasionally hit Johnny in attempt to stop him from laughing.
    "I can't believe I didn't hear you guys coming," Rorie said.
    "That just shows how dense you girls are," Johnny replied, who had stopped laughing a second ago. "Nothing can get through those heads of yours."
    "And your heads are so thin that anything can pass right through," Liz rebuked.
    Johnny attempted to look hurt by Liz's rebuttal. He contorted his face to look like a sad puppy dog's, but only achieved to look adoringly like a sad toddler.
    "Aww, poor Johnny," Beverly cooed, patting Johnny's head softly. "Did mean ol' Lizzy hurt your feelings?"
    "Yea Liz," Neil said. "Why'd you hurt his feelings?"
    "Did you want me to hurt yours?" Liz retorted.
    "Stop fighting, you're only making it worse," Rorie insisted.
    "Shut up, mom," Johnny teased.
    "Who said I was your mother?"
    "Who said you weren't?"
    "Are you two married?" Beverly asked.
    "NO!" Rorie and Johnny shouted in unison.
    "And what would be wrong with that?" A new voice inquired.
    All looked up to see a seemingly well-bundled up blonde girl standing before them, the rented blue skates slung over her left shoulder. Her blue eyes shone brightly underneath her yellow hair, which was being blown wildly around by the untamed wind. An amusing smile showed itself on her lips, making her look like she was watching a comedy. Her hands were in side her oversized coat pockets as she stood in the stands near them.
    "Hey Julia," Neil greeted. "I thought you went to lunch."
    The girl -Julia- shrugged nonchalantly and asked Neil if he had seen one of Frank's gloves. The brown haired boy shook his head. Nodding her thanks, Julia turned and walked away without another word.  She didn't even wave goodbye or apologize for her interruption as she walked away, the skates banging against her shoulder. Johnny saw that the glare of the sun glinted off Julia's hair, making it shine almost like the sun. They all watched as the unexpected visitor walked away, possibly heading to her friends.
    "Who was that?" Liz asked, a bit perplexed by the strange girl.
    "Julia," Neil answered huffily, as if he thought everyone should know who she was. 
    "Ain't she Fran's best friend?" Johnny asked.
    "Yea," Neil answered. "Hey, dude, did you do the English paper?"
    "English pa-" Johnny repeated, confused by the question. "Oh! No."
    "That was weird," Beverly commented, ignoring the private conversation about some paper that the boys were having.
    "Yea..." Rorie agreed, watching Julia walk away. "I didn't even hear her."
    "Well she's one of Fran's friends," Liz said, brushing the subject off.
    Rorie saw Beverly give their friend a queer look, as if she suspected that Liz had a hidden meaning in her statement. Her eyes were clouded with suspicion.
    "Yea...." Beverly said, dragging the word on, as if waiting for Liz to explain herself.
    Rorie wondered what was going on between her two best friends when she realized that she was getting too cold.
    "Let's go get something to eat," Rorie suggested. "I'm freezing my butt off here."

December 6; 5:39 P.M.
Trinklis Residence

    Rorie scowled into her full-length mirror. She was scrutinizing herself in her dark blue dress that sparkled with her every move. She had worn it last Christmas during her party. It looked too formal for a regular visit to the orphanage. Sighing, she glanced at the clock. 'I gotta hurry up,' she thought and threw open her closet door for the twenty somewhat time that night. Behind her, a pile of her previous clothing covered her bed. Her room looked like a washing machine, but Rorie didn't care, she had to get dressed and ready to leave soon.
    Frowning, she wondered what kind of outfit would be perfect for such an occasion. A dress was too formal, it seemed, and it is an orphanage after all, maybe just a normal, everyday outfit would do. Nodding at her decision, she roused up a good pair of decorated jeans and a maroon twin set. Throwing off her dress, she quickly got into the jeans and shirt. Looking at herself in the mirror, she decided that she looked fine enough. 
    "Rorie!" Her mother's tense yell came from downstairs.
    "Coming!" Rorie replied and quickly split her hair in half; the top half she tied with a band.
    Grabbing a pair of white socks from the  sock drawer, she ran out of her room and down the stairs. Her mother was waiting in the living room, playing with her keys. Giving her a brief smile, Rorie quickly covered her feet with socks and shoes. Her mother handed her coat and scarf to her and got up from her chair.
    "It's about time," Lauren said. "How long does it take to get dressed?"
    Rorie didn't bother to answer as she wrapped her dark plaid scarf around her neck and slipped her coat on. She agreed to go visiting with her mother because she was interested in where Fran and the others lived. She had seen them around in school, but she wasn't really close to any of them, unlike Johnny and Neil. She couldn't resist the dangling ball that had appeared in front of her face, so she caught it between her two paws. Who said curiosity killed the cat?
    Minutes later, the mother and daughter pair were driving down the road leading into the city. It was a quiet evening with only the sound of passing cars, the heater, and the engine. It was already dark and the street lamps glowed a brightly against the sky. The crescent moon glowed eerily white above the world. Looking at it, Rorie wondered if she and her mother had driven into a different world: she had never seen the moon glow so brightly. Scanning the sky, her idea of a different world increased as she couldn't find any stars hanging in the sky. If it was a different world, she wasn't afraid. The moonlight cast a spell on her, leaving her peaceful and comfortable in the car traveling down the road.

    Julia looked out of her bedroom window. Her blue eyes fell upon the crescent shape of the moon; it was the brightest thing on the velvet sky. A tiny smile spread across her lips, something good is going to happen. Her blood boiled with her anticipation of the moon's foretelling. She felt it course through her veins and arteries, rushing through the chambers of her heat, then around her body again. It was anticipating something, and the feeling exhilarated Julia. Giving the moon one last smile, she turned away from it and walked out of the room.

    Rorie gazed curiously at the building that her mother was parking in front of. The words "The Fifty-First Street Orphanage" was carved into the decorative stone that hung above the glass doors. Without those etchings, a person  would have thought that it was just an ordinary apartment building. She was glad that she went with jeans instead of skirts.
    "So what do you think so far?" Lauren asked as she put the parking brake on.
    "I dunno," Rorie answered. 
    Lauren shut the engine off, leaving them sitting in the dark with the only the remainder of the heat. They sat silently, listening to their own regular breathing for a minute or two.
    "Are you ready?" Lauren asked, suddenly breaking the silence.
    "Yea," Rorie said and got out of the car.
    The cool, brisk air stung at her face as she walked into the world outside of the vehicle. Her sharp intake of breath showed that she wasn't expecting the cold. Waiting patiently for her mother, she examined the building more closely. The outside didn't tell much, just that it had been standing for a while. Seeing her mother, Rorie followed her the the doors of the orphanage.
    She saw her mother ring a doorbell that was located on to the side of the doors. Waiting patiently for the doors to open, Rorie felt the wind tousle her hair slightly. Looking up, she saw the shining moon again. It seemed to be smiling on her, shining brightly, smiling so happily. Her eyes searched the sky again, only to find it dark blue in color, without a single star. She heard the door creak open and looked down to see a smiling brunette standing in the doorway, bathed in the artificial light of the lobby beyond.
    "Ms. Trinklis?" She inquired.
    "Yes, and this is my daughter, Rorie," her mother answered.
    "Hi! Come on in," the brunette said cheerily.
    Rorie followed her mother through the doorway into the light. As she walked she was amazed at how different the interior is from its exterior. The entire lobby looked old, but not as old as the building itself.
    "I'm Jenny," the brunette introduced. "Would you like to take off your coats?"
    "Yea, thanks," Lauren said as she began unzipping her coat.
    Rorie followed her example, peeling off her coat silently as she looked the area over. Her mother's and other people's money seemed to have been put to good use. Handing her coat to Jenny, made sure that her scarf was securely placed in her coat pocket. Straightening her twin set, she waited patiently and silently for Jenny, who appeared to be their tour guide, to begin.
    "Did you guys eat?" Jenny asked as she stuffed their coats into a closet. 
    Rorie found it strange that there would be a closet in a lobby. Ignoring its queerness, she took another look around. The receptionists desk was empty, probably previously occupied by Jenny.
    "Yes we did," Lauren answered politely.
    "Alright then, let's get started," Jenny said, closing the door. "We'll begin with the playrooms. They're right down this hall."
    The brunette led the two visitors down the hall. Rorie followed her mother silently, feeling a bit self-conscious next to her mother's business suit. They were led into a hallway filled with wooden doors that had labels on them. Reading one of them, she saw that it was a playroom for toddlers. Screams of laughter sounded from behind the doors.
    "These are the playrooms," Jenny said, indicating the doors. "We usually keep the doors closed because we don't want anyone getting hurt, or anything getting lost. Here, let me show you what one looks like."
    Jenny opened a door marked "Children's Playroom." Peering inside, Rorie saw that it contained toys of all kinds. Smiling, she wondered how it felt to be a child in a room full toys as she watched the eight, nine, ten-year olds play.
    "It looks like the children are having fun," Lauren commented.
    Jenny smiled brightly and closed the door.
    "The cafeteria is just down the stairs if you want to see it," Jenny said.
    "Well-" Lauren began.
    "Jenny, Jenny!"
    A small girl had burst through the wooden door of the playroom they had just visited. 
    "Something's wrong with Dar!"
    Jenny's cheerful expression instantly disappeared as she rushed into the playroom to see what had happened. What she found was Dar, a nine year old boy, lying on the floor, coughing hysterically. Veins were popping up in his neck from the coughing he was doing. Rushing to his side, Jenny patted the little boy's back gently. A crowd of children gathered around the two on the floor, including Rorie and Lauren.
    When the tour guide saw that her patting wasn't helping, she pulled a small object from her pocket and put it to the boy's mouth. Upon closer look, Rorie saw that it was an asthma pump. She watched fearfully as Jenny told the boy to take deep breaths. She hoped that nothing bad was going to happen to him. 
    All the kids held their breaths and watched as Jenny tried to help their friend stop his coughing. Their concern was plainly visible in their eyes and faces. After a few breaths, Dar seemed to be getting better. His veins disappeared and his breathing became regular. Jenny comforted him and patted his shoulder. Rorie breathed a sigh of relief when she saw that the boy had regulated his breathing. When the surrounding children saw what was happening, a shout of cheer rose through them. They were just happy that their friend was alright and that he wouldn't have to go to the hospital or something.

    Julia was sitting in the staircase, when she got the feeling that she would be needed. She envisioned that Dar was having an asthma attack and that Jenny would have to cancel the tour in order to take care of him. Running down the flight of stairs, Julia headed for the first floor, where the playrooms were. When she got there, she saw that the hallway was devoid of human beings. Walking down the hall, she saw that one of the playroom doors were open. Getting closer, she saw that everyone was crowded around a spot in the mat, probably Dar and Jenny.
    "Need help?" Julia inquired lightly, leaning against the doorway.
    Everyone turned around to look at her. She saw a dozen pair of eyes turned towards her, two of them belonged to the visitors. Smiling at them, she turned towards Jenny, who was still hovering over the fallen Dar.
    "Would you please show our guests around? I'm afraid I have to look after Dar," Jenny apologized to the visitors.
    "No, it's alright. We'll come another time," Lauren insisted.
    "You don't have to," Julia said. "I could just give you the grand tour, no problem."
    Julia waited patiently as the woman looked her over. She guess she must look like a street rat, but she didn't care, she just smiled and oozed charm out of every pore in her body. Leaning lazily against the doorjamb, she allowed them to see that she was just another orphan girl, happy with life, willing to show them her home.
    As she waited for their decision, she glanced out one of the many windows of the playroom to see the moon shining brightly down upon the earth. Giving it a small smile she returned her gaze to the two visitors that stood before her. She recognized the girl to be Rorie, but gave no hint of knowing it. 'This must be what the moon wants,' Julia thought.
    As Lauren studied the girl, she saw that she was around the same age as Rorie, smart, and eager to help. Her feelings told her to trust the girl, and she trusted her feelings. Looking her over once again, she saw her eagerness to help in her eyes. Not willing to let the girl down, she decided to go ahead with the tour.
    "Ok," Lauren said, finally giving in.
    Julia's smile broadened at the answer. Glancing down at Dar to make sure that he didn't need any more help, she told them to follow her.
    "Where were you guys up to in the tour?" Julia asked.
    "We were going to see the cafeteria," Rorie answered, wanting to talk to the girl.
    "Alright then, so let's go," Julia said and led the way down the hall to the stairs. "The cafeteria is in the basement. It may still be messy since we just ate dinner, but don't mind it ok?"
    Rorie nodded as she followed her down the stairs. She noticed that they were in good condition and wondered what kind of person the housekeeper is. Hearing her mother's light steps behind her, she quickly descended the stairs since she had already lost sight of Julia. When she got down the stairs, Rorie found her waiting patiently by the cafeteria doors.
    "This is the cafeteria," Julia said, opening the metal doors to reveal a large, spacious room that resembled that of a school cafeteria. "The food here isn't all too bad, but it all depends on the cook."
    Julia beckoned for them to go inside as she held the door open. The doorway revealed a clean, empty room filled with tables and chairs.
    "Julia, how old are you?" Lauren asked out of curiosity.
    "The same as Rorie," she answered and led them across the cafeteria to the other side. "The gym is just over here."
    "A gym?" Rorie asked, amazed that an orphanage would even have one.
    "Yea," Julia answered. "A lot of us like to play sports or stay in shape so we converted a few of our larger storerooms into a gym; with the help of donations of course."
    "An orphanage is kinda like a boarding school, ya know," Julia added after a pause, giving Rorie a sly look.
    "I see," Lauren murmured as she looked around the empty cafeteria.
    "Maybe we should just go to the library, after all, without you, it wouldn't even exist," Julia suggested.
    "No, we would like to see the entire building," Lauren said. "Wouldn't we, Rorie?"
    "Yea," the girl agreed as she followed Julia across the room and through the doors.
    Neither of the two Trinklis women noticed the small, devious smile that spread across Julia's lips. She knew she had them wrapped around her finger, but she would only keep her spell for the tour. Julia knew that Rorie was susceptible to almost anything her friends can dish out, and she was eager to prove to her that herself and her friends didn't live like bums. 'I wonder how it feels to be so weak,' Julia thought, thinking of Rorie's self-esteem.
    Julia had seen the popular girl everywhere in school, always surrounded by friends and friendly faces. Even though Rorie had confidence in herself, she guessed that without friends like Liz always pushing her, Rorie would be just an average girl. And she knew that Rorie doesn't want to be the average girl, she wanted to be recognized. Julia wondered curiously what would happen if everyone in school suddenly didn't know who Rorie was.
    Rorie and her mother followed Julia throughout the entire building as the cheery girl told brief stories about every place they visited. At the moment, Julia didn't seem to be the same mysterious girl at the ice rink, instead, she seemed to be the happy-go-lucky girl that everyone liked. Rorie found herself asking questions about the orphanage and the everyday life of its inhabitants. She was amazed every time her mouth opened to ask another question she didn't plan on asking, but she was so comfortable around Julia that she didn't mind at all.
    Lauren seemed pleased that her daughter was so interested in one of her "clients." Rorie would normally follow her mother quietly around and only ask questions when her mother nudged her. Rorie was interested in how the children lived, but she herself was interested in how their education was going and how well their emotional states were. She asked Julia about how it felt to not have any parents.
    "I don't really think about parents," Julia lightly. "Our parents are people like Jenny that work here. Besides I can take care of myself."
    Lauren nodded, pleased to see that most of the orphans weren't having problems dealing with the problems their lifestyle provided.  
    "Do you get regular checkups?" Lauren asked.
    "Yea," Julia answered. "Every one of us gets physicals, checkups, and dental visits regularly. Usually, a doctor, or group of volunteer doctors come and visit us to make sure we're healthy. We even get a psychological exam every once in a while."
    Lauren felt confident that she had picked the right place to donate her money to. The building is inspected and kept clean, the children and the workers are kept healthy and fit, and help is provided to the children if they need it. It seems like The Fifty-First Street Orphanage is perfect, but Lauren knew it was far from that. It needed money to maintain the children's health, lots of it. She was also amazed that this little girl knew so much of the orphanage. If she didn't know better, Lauren would have thought that Julia was a grown woman working here.
    "And finally, here is the library," Julia announced as she opened the wooden door labeled "Library."
    Rorie caught her breath as she walked inside. The was modern, but the walls and walls of books made her think of libraries that belonged to people like Merlin. She was made of a lot of wood, and keeping it termites-free was hard, so the library wasn't entirely made of wood. The floor was made of tiles, like every other floor in the building, but these tiles come together to form intricate patterns of curling lines and shapes. The lights hanging from the ceiling lit up the room, showing all the tables and chairs that were stood before them. Behind the furniture were the rows of bookshelves lined with books of various subjects. When she first walked in, Rorie thought that it was a real library, and not just a room in a building.
    "It functions sort of like a real library," Julia said, as if reading Rorie's thoughts. "If we're going to take a book out of the room, we have to sign it out and bring it back in two weeks or Linda, the head librarian, would get on our cases."
    "I can't believe what you guys did to this room," Lauren said, in awe of what her helping hand had done.
    "I want to thank you on behalf of the orphanage," Julia said, her smile gushing more sweetness. "The library helps a lot of us with homework and boredom."
    The look in the woman's blue eyes told Julia that she had just sealed the door. They would do anything that she said, but Julia wasn't the type to use people for her own greed, so she just smiled lightly and invited them to browse around as she got the librarian to explain more about the room. The glint of the moon caught her eye as she passed by an aisle that led to a window.
    Rorie and her mother took seats in the chairs that were littered across the small area before the bookshelves. It looked like the furniture had been rearranged several times to a person's need. Leaning over to look at a pile of books on the table in front of her, she saw that someone had been researching ancient civilizations. Picking up the book on top of the pile, she flipped through it absently as she waited for Julia to come back.
    Lauren didn't sit down right away. She wandered around the room, inspecting the room she had help to build. Along one wall, she saw that a plaque was placed in her honor. Touching it lightly, she read the lines to herself:

The Fifty-First Street Orphanage built this library with the help of:
Lauren Trinklis
Thank you for your generous heart. Your help is greatly appreciated.

    Rubbing her finger gently across the letters of her name, she felt a lightness surround her heart. She enjoyed helping the community, and the thanks she gets are good enough for her efforts. Giving it one last look, she returned to sit with her daughter. Sitting in an armchair, she contemplated all she had seen this evening. Unlike all the other places she had visited, this orphanage seemed to be filled with life. Children were in nearly every room with supervisors doing what they normally do before bed. Some were in their rooms doing their homework, others were walking around in the halls, chatting with their friends. Indeed, the orphanage does seem to be like a boarding school.
    "Hi!" Julia said, approaching the seated females with a tall brunette by her side. "This is Linda, the chief of the librarian staff."
    Lauren looked up to see a middle-aged woman with glasses standing before her. She looked like a professional in her black skirt and white blouse, but she had a laid-back expression on her face. Standing up, she introduced herself and her daughter as she shook the librarian's hand.
    "I'll leave you to your business," Julia said after they were introduced and walked out of the library.
    Closing the door behind her, she let go of her hold over the two visitors and walked down the hallway, pleased with her work. She felt the moonlight shining down on her from the window at the end of the hall. She mentally gave the moon a smile and headed for the stairs.

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