Chapter 27

When Blake and Velvet informed Kali of their intent to further pursue adoption, she was ecstatic. It was entertaining watching the elder woman bounce around, like a child told she was going to the circus, or waiting for the candy store to open, babbling about how wonderful it would be to visit so many children, and how sad it would be that they could not adopt all of them. It honestly worried Blake. What if Kali grew too attached? What if they could not find someone as comfortable with them as Summer? It was not even fair to think that way. It was not a competition, Summer was not a standard to be surpassed. But they were so enamored with the girl, it was difficult to resist. They wanted someone who could love them as much as they were loved, and that was a tall order by any stretch of the imagination.

Kali's enthusiasm refused to wane, intensifying as they headed to their first chosen orphanage, or rather, the first on their list that they had not visited already. "Ooh, I can't wait to see their smiles!" Kali squealed excitedly.

Blake rolled her eyes, but she and Velvet both wore amused expressions. At the very least Kali helped soothe the nerves. Blake always felt placed on a pedestal during her visits, with every child silently asking 'will you be my new mummy?' It was intimidating, and sad, so many little eyes would be filled with disappointment, and there was nothing she could feasibly do about it. "We're nearly there, just wait a tad longer." Blake teased.

A little later, they arrived, and Kali barely controlled herself long enough to greet the caretaker, and be introduced to the children. At first the caretaker - Ebony - was put off by her enthusiasm, until Blake and Velvet explained her occupation and love of children, and so Kali found herself in charge of an entire playroom full of bubbly orphans, all crowding around her for attention, attention given freely. The last sight Blake caught of her mother before heading into a side room was a borderline dogpile. With the majority of the children taken care of, they were free to begin one on one interviews.

Blake and Velvet awaited the arrival of their first prospective adoptee, a young girl of six named Shirley. She was incredibly shy, with auburn hair so tangled with curls she could scarcely see through it. Timid though she may be, Blake and Velvet were able to glean some aspects of her personality. She loved to play tag, had a bad habit of tripping - showing off a freshly bandaged knee - and wanted to be a doctor when she grew up. Shirley spent the majority of the interview blushing and hiding behind her curls. It would have been endearing if it did not make Blake think so much more fondly of Summer, whose steadfast eye contact through their every interaction always impressed her, coming from such a young girl. No, this one just did not feel right, a hard admittance Blake was thankful not to have to utter to her face. The girl would find a wonderful home one day, but not today.

Still, Blake and Velvet escorted Shirley back to the playroom hand-in-hand. It was the least they could do for the unintentionally cruelty Blake felt herself inflicting. She must have inherited a heavy heart from her mother, she thought as she passed through the doorway. Kali was conducting a game of hopscotch, a plastic tarp laid out for the children to hop on, as their peers sung rhymes to a steady beat. Kali shot a bright smile to Blake and Velvet as they left with another child, a boy this time, and one of the few not participating in the game.

Theodore was silent on the way to the interview room, and remained so as they sat down. He seemed tired, mumbling answers to their questions. He looked right through them, a disturbing contrast to the prior girl, as if he was not really seeing anything at all. When asked if he was alright, he nodded sleepily, then leaned forward and fell asleep on the table. Ebony entered in a hurry, checking on him and sighing in frustration. She apologized for not being observant beforehand. Blake asked if he had taken medication, or been sniffing glue. Ebony could only smile apologetically, Theodore had strange habits.

A little dismayed, Blake and Velvet returned to the playroom while Ebony handled the boy, only to be met with a relatively calm atmosphere. The children were playing in their own little groups, and Kali? It took them a while to spot her, sitting half-hidden beside some desks in the corner, seemingly dozing with a head of vibrant cyan hair in her lap, which she stroked gently. The body the head belonged to was hidden beneath the desks, and her face was hidden from view, buried in Kali's kimono. As they approached, Kali opened her eyes, and raised her free hand to her lips, signaling them to be quiet. She looked deeply troubled, even as Blake and Velvet sat beside her. She opened her mouth to say something several times, but no sound came out. Her lips pulled into a thin line, face screwed up in an effort to swallow what emotion threatened to burst forth.

Ebony returned shortly thereafter, stopping to stare in shock before approaching. "Did she say anything?" Ebony asked.

Kali nodded and the girl stirred, murmuring and turning to look up at Kali, who plastered on a warm smile. "Hey sweetie, how are you feeling? Better?" She asked in a caring whisper. The girl groaned and hid herself in Kali's skirt again, but did not shrug off Kali's hand. "Would you like to go back to your room? It would be quieter, more peaceful." The girl merely shrugged, and Kali swallowed. "Come on dear, I'll come with you." She patted the girl's head, and with a huff, she slowly moved to sit up. Tired green eyes flickered between Blake and Velvet, before moving away as she pushed herself to her feet.

Kali accepted Blake's help standing herself. Holding out her hand, Kali waited patiently as the girl stared blearily at it, before reaching up and pulling her along and out of the room. Exchanging a look with the shocked Ebony, the trio began to follow, the girl leading Kali up a flight of stairs and down a long hall, various rooms filled with bunk beds flanking either side, until they reached the very end, and Kali followed the girl into her room.

Electing to grant them some privacy, Blake, Velvet and Ebony waited several minutes for Kali to slowly emerge, gently closing the door behind her. Blake approached her mother only to be pulled into a tight embrace, catching her off guard until the first sob came, muffled by her blouse. Blake quickly returned the embrace as the older woman broke down in her arms. She knew something like this would happen, and yet she was completely unprepared for it.

Reese Chloris - four years old, orphaned not two months prior, parents the victims of tainted drugs. None of her few relatives had been willing to take her in, and so the confused and scared girl had been placed in an orphanage, barely able to comprehend the magnitude of what had happened to her life. Everything was gone, the bare minimum of support was afforded to her by the government. The handling of the case infuriated Blake, baffled Velvet and pained Kali deeply.

"She was hiding under the tables, so I didn't see her at first." Kali recounted when she calmed. They had since retreated to Ebony's office, where they were given Reese's file. "I told the children to keep playing and I tried to speak with her, to see what was wrong, but she was a stubborn one. She ignored me, then told me to go away...I said I wanted to help, and she told me I couldn't help. Her parents were gone, and she didn't know where, but everyone said they weren't coming back, and that she was going to a new family. But she doesn't want a new family, she wants her real family back. She doesn't understand. She's just so lost. She needs help. Why hasn't she received it?" Her voice was stern in spite of her grief.

Ebony sighed. "We have a lot of children Mrs. Belladonna, and our funding only takes us so far. Occasionally we receive extra charity support, but when it comes to allocating funds, repairs and resources are a higher priority than counselling. I had hoped Reese would come to terms given time and space, but it doesn't seem to be working. She hides away, when she's not sleeping or crying. You're the first person she's interacted with outside of staff, and the only potential adopter."

The trio mulled the information over, considering their next course of action. Kali spoke first. "We need to discuss this in private."

Ebony nodded and stood. "Take as long as you need. I'll be with the children." She left the room, shutting the door behind her.

Kali deflated, burying her face in her hands. Blake lay a hand on her shoulder. "I can't leave her like this." Kali insisted. "That girl needs proper care. I'll sponsor her, adopt her myself if she allows it."

Blake exchanged a look with Velvet. "Do you think she'll meet with us?"

"I...don't know, sweetie." Kali sighed. "You don't have to consider this just because of me."

"But we are." Velvet noted. "We're not just...shopping for a child. We're looking to give someone a second chance in life. Maybe Reese needs that."

"Are you sure?" Kali pressed. "I don't know how she'll react. She might not accept you, or talk to you at all."

"She accepts you, that's a start." Blake suggested.

"And we can go from there." Velvet added.

"Are you sure-" Kali started.

"Mom, come on, she can't be worse than the last kid." Blake cut in. "He literally passed out in front of us."

After discussing the situation with Ebony, the trio agreed to return the next day. Kali met with Reese first, in her room, where she would be the most comfortable. After a few minutes, Kali opened the door and beckoned Blake and Velvet in, shutting the door behind them. Reese sat huddled in the corner of her bunk. Blake and Velvet stood there awkwardly as Kali sat near the shy girl.

"Reese, this is my daughter Blake, and her wife Velvet." Kali introduced. She nodded toward the neighboring bed and the two sat, ducking beneath the upper bunk.

Reese started at them blankly. "Hi."

"Hi." Blake greeted.

"Hey." Velvet offered a smile.

"Don't be afraid." Kali encouraged with a gentle smile. "You can ask anything you like."

Reese's gaze flickered between the three, quick and nervous. "You wanna' take me away?"

"We want to give you a home." Velvet declared.

"I have a home...I wanna' go back." Reese insisted.

"We know...but you can't." Blake sighed.

"I don't care." Reese snapped. "I miss my house, I miss my bed, I miss my mommy and daddy. Why can't they come back? Why do I gotta' be here?"

"Because sweetie, mommy and daddy have passed on." Kali replied.

"Whadda' you mean?" Reese pleaded. "I don't understand. Why did they leave? Why can't they come back?"

"Because they're not here anymore sweetie." Kali continued. "The Maidens took them to heaven. You know about heaven don't you?"

Reese shook her head, trembling. Kali moved closer, sitting beside her. She looked across to Blake. "Blake, do you remember how I taught you?"

It had been a very long time since Kali had taught Blake, the memories were fuzzy, but scripture and pop culture had burned the tale into her mind. "God and his Maidens created our world, and with it the heavens. Eventually, there comes a time when we stop living on this world, and rise up to join them in paradise." Blake recounted, smiling as Kali beamed at her.

"That's where your parents are." Kali took over for Blake. "They lived here as long as they could, and now they've passed on, and they're in heaven. Do you understand?"

Reese trembled as she nodded. "Can't I go see them?"

"Someday sweetie, but not for a long time." Kali explained. "I'll see them before you do. And I promise, I'll visit them for you, and tell them all about you."

"You will?" Reese asked.

"I promise, but I want to be able to tell them I've helped you." Kali continued. "Mommy and daddy want you to be safe and happy. You don't feel happy here, isn't that right?"

"No...I hate it here...it's too loud and there's too many people, and they keep asking me why I'm sad and I just wanna' be left alone." Reese answered.

"We won't force you to come with us Reese." Velvet noted. "But if you do you'll have your own room, and all the time alone you need. We just want to help."

"We all do, if you'll let us." Blake added.

"We can't replace your family Reese, but you can join ours, whenever you want to." Kali offered.

"A-and mommy and daddy will be happy?" Reese asked.

"Yes sweetie, I promise." Kali nodded.

"Pinky promise?" Reese held up a shaky hand, pinky extended. "Mommy and daddy didn't pinky promise to come back, and you need to pinky promise!"

Kali smiled sadly, raising her own pinky to curl around Reese's, and squeezing. "I pinky promise Reese. As long as you're happy, mommy and daddy will be happy, and we'll do everything we can to make you happy again, okay?"

"Okay...do I have to call you moms?" Reese asked, looking to Blake and Velvet.

"No Reese, not unless you want to." Blake shook her head. "You can just call us Blake and Velvet if you like."

"Alright...o-okay...what now?" Reese asked.

"Now, boring adult stuff." Kali replied. "But we'll have you out of here soon, okay?"

"Promise?" Reese pressed.

Kali smiled. "Pinky promise."

It was not the sort of restaurant they would normally have visited, but the pregnant ladies got to decide, and they chose a gimmicky burger restaurant that specialized in mixing odd ingredients into their meat. Winter was content with a salad, but everyone else - Yang, Sun, Nora, Pyrrha, Blake, Velvet and Melanie - all chose to have some sort of strange burger. The tastes were...interesting to say the least. At least the fries were good, and Nora was more than happy to vacuum up anything the others were unable to finish.

"Fish was a poor choice." Blake groaned. Not only had it not been particularly palatable, but now her burger was churning up her stomach.

"Hot Sauce and Cheese Explosion...tasted great, but I regret everything." Yang grimaced.

"The Carrot and Kale Veggie was pretty good." Velvet observed. "It didn't have much taste, but that's better than bad taste, right?"

"I'm never coming here again." Melanie grumbled. She had barely eaten a quarter of her plain burger.

"But it's so good!" Nora insisted, clearly finding herself in the minority.

"It was okay." Pyrrha allowed. "But I can see why it's not for everyone."

"You guys need to cut it out with the pregnancy cravings." Sun complained. "You're going to kill us all."

"I quite enjoyed my meal." Winter smiled smugly. Her decision to skip a burger had originally been derided as cowardly. Now it appeared that discretion had been the better part of valor.

"Wanna' come back tomorrow Pyrrha?" Nora asked.

"No...but yes." Pyrrha sighed.

"So, how does the future of Solstice look?" Sun changed the subject.

"There won't be a future if you don't stop knocking up my employees." Winter teased.

"Sorry for being so potent." Sun rolled his eyes.

"I'm tellin' you, future employees." Nora suggested.

"With those genes they're bound to be comic book superhumans." Velvet joked.

"We'll talk about it...in 20 years." Winter smirked. "Anyway, we've got a company car now. Glynda sold me the one she...inherited. I suppose Melanie would need it most, given your current living situation." Winter sighed, shaking her head. "You can use if for your commute if you like."

"Can I get reimbursed for the gas?" Melanie asked.

"Yes, but only if you smack Qrow for me." Winter replied. "Film it."

"Done." Melanie agreed.

"So...you're dating my uncle...go on any actual dates yet?" Yang asked.

"One." Melanie answered. There was a silence as the others waited for her to elaborate, but no further information was forthcoming.

"Care to tell us about it?" Blake finally pressed.

"Not really" Melanie deadpanned.

"Come on, please." Nora insisted.

"Fine." Melanie huffed. "We went to the gun range."

"That's...different." Velvet noted.

"It was alright." Melanie shrugged. "Qrow went through this whole speech about needing to know how to defend myself, and being familiar with weapons. I know how to shoot a gun. I also know how to kick the shit out of someone."

"You've fired a gun before?" Pyrrha asked.

"Yeah, who hasn't?" Melanie answered.

Nora, Pyrrha and Winter raised their hands. "Shit Winter, really?" Yang chuckled. "I need to take you to the range. Shooting is fun."

"I'm not going on a date inspired by your uncle." Winter grumbled.

"I'll go...after I give birth of course." Pyrrha offered. The others stared at her in shock. "What? It sounds like fun...and I want to try new things."

"Can I go too?!" Nora squealed.

"No." Sun flatly forbid it. "There's no way anyone would ever let you near a firearm."

"But I'm all careful and responsible now." Nora whined.

"We'll see if that sticks after the kid pops out." Sun countered.

"Anyway...Mel, after your date...you get lucky?" Yang smirked.

"Nope." Melanie replied. "Unless you consider snuggling and watching a movie getting lucky. We haven't done anything more than that."

"That does sound nice." Winter thought aloud.

"Really?" Yang tilted her head. "I thought ol' Qrow would've been chomping at the bit. Guess he's going soft...in more ways that one."

"Can we talk about something else?" Winter sighed.

"Fine." Yang rolled her eyes. "How's the adoption thing going Blakey?"

"We think we found the one." Blake replied. "We're just waiting for the paperwork to go through."

"This one half as cute as Summer?" Yang asked.

"Reese is cute." Velvet answered. "She's not as bubbly, but given her situation, that's hardly surprising. It's going to take some time with her."

"She's not like Summer." Blake explained. "She had a family, and she'd rather have them back then get a new one."

"She really connected with Kali though." Velvet added. "And we're hoping she'll do the same with us in time."

"If she needs counseling, I'm sure Glynda can find room in her schedule." Pyrrha offered.

"I don't really want to impose." Blake noted. "She's got a full plate as it is. We'll do what we can for now. Once you're back to work we'll look into counseling if we have to."

"Good luck." Yang smiled. "Hmm...I guess Kali won't be around to babysit much anymore."

"We could ask Yatsuhashi." Winter suggested. "I'm sure he'd like to spend time with his daughter, and Arslan tells me he's great with kids."

"He already spends all day at the orphanage, I don't think he wants to babysit in his spare time." Yang noted. "Besides, being around Summer might still be painful for him."

"I guess there's always Raven then." Winter sighed.

Blake smiled. "Don't worry, Summer's always gonna' be Kali's granddaughter."