𝐅𝐎𝐑𝐆𝐄𝐃 𝐅𝐑𝐎𝐌 𝐁𝐋𝐎𝐎𝐃 ♛ ꜱᴘʏ ✗ ꜰᴀᴍɪʟʏ

ೃ⁀➷𝘖𝘧 𝘧𝘢𝘮𝘪𝘭𝘺 𝘱𝘩𝘰𝘵𝘰𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘦𝘭𝘧𝘪𝘦𝘴

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The walk out of the orphanage was awkward, to say the least. Even without the clown's glare burning holes into the back of their heads.

Probably making sure he managed to get rid of us.

Not that Lia cared what he thought of her. Which was probably the reason why she decided to give him the middle finger behind her back.

Judging from his lack of reaction, he either didn't see it or didn't know what it meant.

Sadly, she'd been hoping he'd make an idiot of himself, claiming a 7 year old girl flipped him the bird.

In hindsight, he does a good enough job of that by himself. Dare I say a better job than his actual one.

Perhaps her plan to get him fired was a bit of a long shot but-
God knows she'd be doing the orphans a favour.

What was more unnerving were the stares of the children crouching at the sides of the hallway. The way they didn't seem all there. More like ghosts than pale humans.

Though that could also be attributed to a severe vitamin D deficiency.

She almost wished their sunken eyes were filled with jealousy just so they wouldn't seem so empty.

Feeling the need to fill the silence, Lia blurted the first thing that came to mind. She admits most conversation she makes is rather inane but this one takes the cake.

"Thanks for the going away party guys. Though I think you missed a few streamers." She was being sarcastic, of course, but they didn't need to know that.

Either way, they didn't deign her with a response. "Tough crowd," she muttered, not really surprised.

Anya tried to say goodbye to a few of them which Lia frankly didn't think they deserved. She was proven right right when Casper the friendly ghost's lookalikes ignored Anya's shy waves.

The familiar itch of indignation bubbled under her skin but she gritted her teeth and didn't say a word, reminding herself that they were orphans. Only criminals kicked orphans.

While her jokes were criminally cringey, she didn't quite want to stoop to that level-

"See you next week if they don't send you back by tomorrow," snickered the same kid, still looking dead inside.

-yet.

Anya lowered her head but Lia could still see tears threatening to leak at the corners of her eyes and the heartbreaking way she bit her lip to try and stop them.

That was her breaking point.

The anger radiating from Lia was palpable.
"Shut your mouth before I send my fist into your face you little gremlin-"

The only thing that stopped her from helping that kid get a family reunion was Anya. Tugging on her sleeve with such a nervous expression that she couldn't bear to let this angel witness the ensuing violence.

Violence that likely only included throwing dust in his face or kicking his kneecaps as apparently she was now too short to do much damage. She regretted not having any height. Or a baseball bat.

So Lia hissed under her breath as they passed him, just loud enough for him to hear.

"Enjoy taking your family photo," she smirked, the very picture of innocence, "though, wouldn't selfie be more accurate?"

She revelled in the way his sneer dropped off his smug face, triumph rising like helium in her chest.

The feeling dissipated when she realised emerging victorious in a 'fight' (if it could even be called that) with a prepubescent child wasn't an achievement to boast about.

Lia acknowledged the value of celebrating the small victories but this kid probably didn't even have chest hair yet.

"Lia, that wasn't nice."

"Yeah, well it doesn't seem like these guys care all that much about being nice."

Anya frowned, probably wondering how she was petty enough to roast orphans. To be honest, Lia was also reflecting on how she'd arrived at a point that enacting revenge on fatherless children was satisfying.

"Besides, that was me being nice."
Though my joke may have hit a little too close to his nonexistent home.

Lia waited with bated breath, half expecting Anya to scold her.

So when she giggled, it was startling. The sound cut through the dust motes drifting in the stagnant air, like a sweet bell echoing off the crayoned walls. It filled her with a warm glow of affection and she grinned except-

Anya had giggled for no evident reason. Lia considered herself a funny person but usually she at least tried to be funny.

Still, she kept her mouth shut, not wanting to ruin whatever had made her newly adopted sister laugh.

After all, it was a substantially preferable outcome to crying. Lia couldn't handle crying children.

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