An Orphans Wish is Answered

L

lynzy

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Original poster
The pebble hit the pond with a loud skerplunk! The ripples spread across the water, quickly shifting the image of the girl in the tattered old dress. Plunk! Went another small rock, followed by the whole handful. Kari wiped the tears away with angry fists and snuffled loudly.

"It's not fair! They liked me, I know it!" She dropped down on the ground and buried her head in her crossed arms on her knees, sobbing.

It had been a long day for her. The anticipation of the couple coming to the orphanage had all the children bouncing because the word was out they were a nice couple looking for a child and not fussy about whether it was a girl or boy. Then the fear that she might not be chosen and now the heartbreak of not being picked again. She had run off to her personal hiding spot, again.

"You would think I would learn." Another sob wracked the girls small frame. "No one will ever pick me, I'm too skinny!"

Kari clenched her hands into fists and pounded them onto her knees as she lifted her head. Tear tracks ran down both cheeks washing away some of the dirt smudges from when she had wiped her eyes.

This was her second year in the foster home and they had been long and lonely ones. Keri had lost both her parents and her little sister when the house had burned down in the middle of the night two years ago. She had been spending the night at a friends house when the horrible news came. Everything, her whole world, was gone.
The case worker had come for her that very day, she had been in too much of a shocked state to argue or even remember much of what happened. The first thing she did remember though was the other children whispering about her in the big dormitory room. She never did get along with them. They always seemed to find ways to ether hurt her or embarrass her in front of the Mistress and other adults.

She picked up a stick and swirled its tip in the water, "I wish, I wish... I wish I had a home and a family." Some of her tears fell and made tiny ripples on the pond.
 
It was a nice sunshiny morning and Eveline had just woken up to the smell of coffee. Her housekeeper who lived with her was making her nice traditional German breakfast of Sausage, baked breads, honey, pastries, and Hazelnut Omelets.

"Whatever you are doing in there, it smells delicious, Addi." She said with a mild Irish accent. Of course, she already knew what Addi was making because everyday had been the same thing. A huge breakfast, sometimes lunch, if time permitted, and dinner with her neighbors. However, for the past six months, Eveline had been visiting different orphanages and homes of the such in hope that she might find someone she could call family. Eveline had been dissapointed every time because no orphanage yet had granted her a child. Nevertheless, Eveline had felt that today would be different.

After a while of sitting on her bed and thinking, as she stared out the window, she stands up and dresses in her nicest duds. She had plenty to choose from but, she felt that only one outfit would bring her luck.

As she left the room, Addi looks up at her. "Oooh, don't you look as pretty as a raven." She says as she holds her cupped hands up to her chest with a big grandmotherly smile.

"Well, don't you know? We are going to have a new member of the family come home with us today?"

A smile never left her face as Addi replied with a hearty laugh.

"You are a lot like your mutter, you know." And with that, she patted Eveline's bottom, pushed a sausage filled pastry into her hand, and rushed her out.

"Bring me home a granddaughter, Eveline!" Eveline laughs and quickens her step to run to her BMW M3.

As she started on her way, she receives a prank call from some boys claiming to be a funeral home director. She just rolls her eyes.

"I can hear the other two in the background laughing. If you are going to prank call someone, try to shut up the others in the background and at least change your voice up a bit."
She hangs up and tosses her phone in the dash. Today was going to be a good day; luck was on her side today.

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"NOW THAT'S ENOUGH!!" The Mistress yelled. Then looking down at the milk dripping off of Kari's head and dress. " Go get cleaned up girl, there will be company coming soon."

The 6 year old girl looked up quickly, eyes wide with surprise. "Yes Mistress." She yelped while dipping a quick curtsy. Turning to run off for the bathroom she slipped in her puddle and almost fell with chortles and giggles from the huddle of offending children across the room.

"Careful! Don't want a hospital visit today." Said the Mistress as she turned back to the office to finish the papers needed for today's possible adoption. She snapped her fingers at the children who had been giggling. "You! Come clean this mess up, the rest of you finish your meal in silence then back to your studies."

Sometimes she felt bad for little Keri, sometimes. That girl could find trouble blindfolded in the dark. The old woman shook her head and sighed. That last couple had looked promising for the girl. They seemed to like her a lot until one of the others had tripped her into dropping the vase of flowers into the young woman's lap, after that they had picked the boy... what was his name? She shook her head again, they all blended together, she was having a harder and harder time of remembering who was who among the children these days. Except for Keri, that little skinny-as-a-rail child had descended on the home like a storm of trouble. Where ever trouble was, there was Kari in the middle of it.

"Mistress! Mistress!" The young boy slid to a stop in front of her. "The lady is here Mam! Look there!" The child pointed though the window out at the drive way where a fancy green car was pulling up in front of the orphanage.
 
Eveline smiles with bright red-orange eyes as she pulled into the driveway of the orphanage and came to a stop. Quicker than you could say her name, Eveline was out of the car and at the door. She saw all the children at the window and waved excitedly.

"Hello, sweet loves!" Today was the day, she kept saying to herself. Eveline knocks quickly and then shows herself in.

"Oh...!" She exclaims then regains her posture and poise. "Keep calm. Don't freak out. There is plenty of time here." The orphanage did seem quite nice if not nicer than the others she had been too. Clean, well kept, and the children seemed happy and well fed. Today was definitely the day.

"Alright, kiddies! Who wishes to go home today!" She had the whole day planned out and she was hoping to look for a girl to go shopping with later in the day. Her mind was racing because she knew it would only be a matter of time before she would be walking through the door of her house holding the new family member, ready to show off to the world.
 
"Children, children! Manners now!! Get in line, that's it, hurry! Don't dawdle boy, move over there, let others threw the door." Quickly she brought order to the growing mass of bobbing heads and darting bodies as everyone scurried for their places.

The word had gone out like wild fire that the new possible parent was here. Usually it was a married pare, not just one person and so young a one at that. Whispers went around the room about the oddity of it and about the young ladies looks as well.

"She's so pretty!...Look at her eyes!...Is that real lace?...Her hair is so red...Where is the husband?..."

All around the room there were faces behind hands, nervous smiles and even angry looks from the older children who had given up long ago on the hope of adoption. A great hush came as the Mistress clapped her hands together for silence and turned to the young woman with a cold smile.
"Welcome to Harington, Ms. Eveline... umm, I am terribly sorry I missed your last name on the phone, but we will fix that when we do the paper work, wont we?" Her cold manner was belied by the sweet tone of her greeting.


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Kari bit her lip as she wrung out the dress as quickly as she could, "I might as well not go down stairs." She mumbled to herself and almost sobbed again, " I hate those girls!"

She had come back to her bed and locker only to find her Sunday dress, the one meant for church and visits of parents-to-be looking for an adoptable child, torn to shreds and stuffed under her pillow. In a panic she had started washing out the one she had on when the milk had been dumped on her head at lunch. Now the word had come up the steps about the lady with red hair and she could hear the Mistress calling the hall to order for the new parent to pick from the possibles. She hadn't even enough time to rinse her hair out. Thankfuly she was thin enough she could shimmy into the wet dress quickly. Improvising, she grabbed up a tatter from the Sunday dress and tied her hair into a tail, she didn't have time to brush it and it was too sticky anyways to get a comb through. Looking like a drowned rat she ran down the steps taking two at a time and slid to a stop behind one of the big doors to the main hall, the pick had already started. She peeped around the door at the beautiful woman.
 
Eveline smiles lightly at the woman and sees a small child peeking out from the corner of the room over the madam's shoulder.

"Oh, yes, a last name. MacKenna. Eveline MacKenna. I suppose I can start my inspections from here?"
She shoots a glance to Kari and then back to the row of children.

"Now... Look at all these fine young lads we have here. And the lassies! Oh, beautiful."
She goes down the line, complimenting, and brushing there cheeks before standing up.

"I feel like there is someone missing. In all the movies I have watched, there was always that one child that was always too shy to come forward. Do you know anyone like that, ma'am?"
Eveline spins on her heel and looks to the mistress with a curious and kind of playful look in her eye. The red curly hair plays along past her shoulders as she peeks around the lady to Kari.

 
A blush rose to her cheeks as she stared intently at the floor as Ms. MacKenna looked her way not just once, like was normal, but twice and then a third time! Then a tall girl in front of her kicked the other door shut and almost smashed her fingers. She jumped back and bit her lip to keep back the tears of frustration. Then she sighed and turned to leave. "Oh well, she wouldn't have picked me anyways..." Kari mumbled to herself as she walked off in a well deserved funk.
 
"Now where do you think you are going, little lady? I wanted to see all the children. Don't think I didn't see you too." Eveline puts her hands up on her hips and the sound of her heels clicking on the floor get closer to Kari. The door slowly creeps open and Eveline pokes her nose around the opening.

"Come on now, little lady. Let me see you out in the light."
 
Kari froze and slowly turned around with wide eyes, to scared to be hopeful. "Me?" She squeaked out and pointed at her own chest timidly.
 
She smiles and nods with her hand held out.

"Yes, you. I want to see what you look like. Standing out from the group won't get you out of here anytime soon, now will it?" She keeps her gaze on the girl and her stringy hair as she reaches out with the other hand to pick up a strand of hair.

"I think... Its about time we get you out of these clothes and into something new, hm?" She smiles brightly and picks her up, turning to the others and the mistress.

"I will take her!" She nods with approval.



 
Kari wanted to jump for joy and pinch herself at the same time. She was having a blast looking down on those mean faces that were full of jealousy. She almost stuck her tongue out at them, but didn't dare, incase this was just her imagination going wild again.


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Somewhere inside her cold heart the Mistress was feeling a bit of joy too for the skinny child. A smile came to her face that she actually meant as she clapped her hands and scurried the other children back to the classrooms.

She turned back to Kari and Ms. MacKenna. " I am very happy for you both! Now all that's left is the finishing of the paperwork and of course there will be visits from the caseworker to make sure the child is well placed and doing well, but I am sure those are mere formalities for the two of you." Mistress led them into the office to sit in the soft chairs that Kari barely remembered when she first came there two years ago.
 
The girl was extremely happy and Eveline shared the emotions. The walk to the office felt the longest in her life because she just wanted to take Kari home and show her the room.

"Kari, it is? That is a very pretty name. In Norse, it actually means 'Gust of Wind' and I think that is a good thing."
Eveline sits down in one of the chairs, with the Kari in her lap.

"The wind has no barrier and it will flow freely wherever it may wish to go. For you, it means that no matter how bad something can get, you will always find that small bit of a crack to escape through."
Eveline speaks softly and rests her cheek against Kari's forehead as she looks at the lady.
 
The thin child smiled at her new parent...no, mother, yes mother....she had a mother again. Her birth mother would have been happy, Kari was sure of it.

The mistress sat behind her large desk and lifted a sheaf of papers and moved them across the desk top towards the happy couple, " Now if you will please sign here, that's it now here and of course here and lastly here, this last one is for the caseworker's visits, they will be in one month from now, then in six months and then the following year. Alright, all done. Kari doesn't have very many personal effects and she can go get them now if she likes." the old woman looked over at the little girl expectantly.

Kari shook her head, "It's OK Mistress, there isn't really anything important in my locker, the others can have what's there." All that was in the thing was a few pretty rocks and an old rag doll more rags than doll. She had come to the orphanage with only a few things from her sleep over and even they had been stolen or destroyed by the other children over the last two years.

"Well! Then I guess it is good bye dear Kari and good luck to both of you, Ms. MacKenna." She held out her hand and shook both of theirs respectively as she stood up and came around to the front of the desk.
 
Eveline nods and listens to the woman, shaking her hand when requested, then begins to sign. Though the signature was quite a mess from her excitement, she figured it would do all the same. With that, Eveline pops up, with Kari in her arms and bows her head to the woman.

"Thank you. Thank you so much." She spins Kari around with a small laugh.

"Kari, what do you say we go shopping? Then perhaps a movie and lunch? Or if you'd like we can just go home and let you rest. You surely should be quite tired lass after today, I think." A smile couldn't be smacked off her face even if it meant death to her. She knew that today was the day.
 
To excited to answer properly, Kari grinned and nodded yes to everything. She was still in shock from being chosen, chosen! Oh that word was so wonderful! She never for a moment.... and this lady was so nice too! It was more than she had wished for or even expected. "Ca-can I have a b-bath Mam?" She wasn't just sticky anymore, she had a strong smell of sour milk about her now.
 
Eveline laughs and smiles with a quick nod.

"Of course, baby girl. You have a room and bathroom all to yourself. You can do anything you want today. Today is your day." She quickly walks out of the orphanage with a few quick goodbyes and a waves.

"Remember, put your seat belt on. It won't be a long ride. We are close to home." The car started up with a strong rev of the engine and before Kari knew it, Eveline had pulled out of the driveway and made her way home. Wasn't Addi going to be delight to see the child?
 
The car ride was fantastic! The world whizzed by incredibly fast and on top of that the lady, no, m-o-t-h-e-r, she had to remember that. Mother wasn't even upset a bit about her messy clothes on the car's fine seats! She stuck her head out of the window feeling the breeze blow by enjoying her new found freedom.
 
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As they pulled into the driveway of the small Irish cottage, Eveline rolled down both windows and let the smell of Lilac and Lilly fill the car.

"Tis a beautiful day, isn't it Kari? You will be meeting a dear old friend of mine in a moment. Her name is Addi and she has been with the family through 3 generations. I believe that ol' lass will be with us till the end of time. What do you think?" She giggles heartily and turns the car off in front of the house.

"Alright. Now, let's go say hi to ol' Addi." She gets out of the car, walks around to the other side, then opens Kari's door.

"First thing you will see when you get in there is something to munch on. Find something you might like while I go to check and make sure your room is ready." She smiles and opens the door to their home for Kari and steps in after her.
 
Kari nodded at every sentence the new mother said and followed her into the beautiful house marveling at the flowers on the way. As soon as she entered her nose was assaulted by many wonderful smells; fresh baked bread, cookies, was that ham? An overlay of onions and some other smells she couldn't figure out, but smelled wonderful! Her eyes almost popped out of her head at the sight of the tons of food laid out on the table, even at the Christmas feast there had been nothing so grand as this at the orphanage!
 
Eveline smiles and looks at Kari with a shake of her head. Kari sure seemed to like it here already and Eveline was ecstatic she approved. The door to Addi's room was slightly cracked when she approached it. She saw a note on the door in a very fancy envelope and paper with writing in the most beautiful calligraphy she'd ever lain eyes on. Upon opening, she read some terrible news and slowly walked into Addi's room sat down in a chair next to her bed and held the recently deceased woman's hand for the last time.



My dearest Eveline,

I have been with your family for ages and you've been so very nice to me. I am sad that I was not able to live to see the newest MacKenna but I will be looking down every now and then to watch over you. I've known my time was coming for a long while but never wanted to worry you. I knew that... Well, like you said, today was the day.

In the next few days, you should receive a packet. He was a very close friend of your mothers and will have some very sensitive details to talk to you about. You can trust it is nothing to be called bad news or bad detail. In fact, I believe you and the new MacKenna will live comfortably for a long time.

As for me and my earthy body, I believe I would appreciate to just be buried underneath that nice old oak tree by the house without any special requirements; that nice blanket I won at the state fair would do me quite nicely. Oh, and don't forget my bible and little tin box. I've already been dressed for the lovely occasion so, all that is needed is a nice few words from you and the MacKenna baby.

I love you, Eveline. Say hello and goodbye to the newest one for me.

Sincerely,

Addi Berlitz



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Eveline sighs and rises from the chair to put a few quarters on Addi's eyes.

"Rest in peace, Ms. Addi." The door to Eveline's room opened and shut again. Eveline walked into Kari's room and started the bath, adding soaps and colour to the water so it was fun and relaxing. Then, she set out a bunch of shampoos, conditioners, and soaps for Kari's liking. Eveline planned to bury Addi when Kari was asleep in bed so she might not be disturbed on her first day home.

Soon after the bath was drawn, Eveline quickly perked up and ran into the kitchen to scoop up Kari.

"When you are finished eating, I've got your tub drawn up."