Author's Note:- Well, here I am again! And I know what you're all thinking: "NOT a Harry Potter fan fic!" Well yes, you would be correct there. I've recently been hooked to the 'Tracy Beaker Returns' series. And seeing as there's no category for that, I went with the next best thing. This will probably be the first and last story in this category, unless I get any other ideas. I had this idea and wanted to write it, so I hope you like the change!
Update on 'Occlumency': I haven't abandoned this story. I'm in the process of writing chapter four, and I should have it uploaded in two weeks or so, if everything goes to plan! Be patient, my dears!
The sleek, black Ford pulled into the gravel driveway, before coming to a halt outside a vast building. A woman with short, straight blonde locks opened the driver's door, and stepped out into the open air. The badge which was pinned to her black jumper read 'Alexandra Halt. Social Worker'. She took in her surroundings, before she turned towards the motor again, kneeling down to attend to the young girl, who was sitting in the passenger seat.
"You'll be fine. This is a nice place to live, I promise." She smiled sweetly – maybe a little too sweetly. Anyone who saw her making that face would instantly think she was putting on a fake smile.
After a long hesitation, the girl opened the passenger door, and like her social worker, stepped out of the car, and shut the door behind her. She had long, auburn curls, sharp blue eyes and rosy red cheeks. Her name was Alexis Skym. The building that stood before her was a children's home, which went by the name of Elmtree House. Alexandra had been right – it didn't look scary here – on the contrary, it looked like a friendly place. But it was still new and different, and children's homes were never a good thing. Or so Alexis had been told by everyone but Alexandra.
Alexis hadn't wanted to come here, but at the tender age of eleven and a half, she had no choice in the matter. Her parents and her younger sister, Daisy, had been her only family. She had no other relations to stay with. She had been told that coming here would not be permanent. She would be fostered in no time. She didn't believe that, of course. Though, she pretended that she did.
Alexis was a fairly quiet girl, and she always had been. She probably always would be. She was also small for her age, so other children mostly saw her as an easy target. She had fathomed, (ever since she had been told that she was going into care), how she could possibly fit in or make friends, when she would be overlooked and invisible for the majority of the time. She had been so engrossed in her own thoughts that she hadn't noticed that the front door had opened, and a man was standing on the threshold to greet the new girl and her social worker.
The man was tall and pleasant looking, with not much hair, and the hair that he did have was turning grey. He wore a kindly smile on his face.
"You must be Alexis." He had an Irish lilt to his voice. He held out a hand for Alexis to shake. After a long indecision, she took his hand into hers and shook. "I'm Mike. Welcome to our humble abode." He said, trying to sound like a British man in the 1950's. He actually did it quite well, and at this, Alexis had to smile. Mike didn't release her hand as he gently guided her into her new home. It looked a lot better on the inside than it had on the outside. It was colourful and cheerful looking, and pictures hung against the orange coloured walls of the hallway. The floor was thinly carpeted, and several doors led off to various other rooms. Despite how homey this place looked, Alexis still had her objections.
The door to the office creaked open, and two women appeared in the doorway. One was wearing bright colours, had slightly tanned skin, slightly overweight, but on the whole, she looked like the main authority figure. The other was short and skinny, with black hair. She couldn't have looked more than nineteen or twenty. In Alexis' opinion, she didn't look old enough to be a care worker. Another thing that caught Alexis' attention was, she was sure that she had seen this woman somewhere before.
"Alexis?" The older and larger woman smiled pleasantly. She spoke with an accent, but Alexis couldn't work out which accent it was. The eleven year old nodded, timidly.
"People usually call me Lex or Lexxi..." She replied in a tiny voice.
"Okay then, Lexxi. I'm Gina..." She nodded to her younger co-worker, "...And this is Tracy. She can take you to meet the others while Mike and I speak to your social worker." Lexxi said nothing, as Alexandra left Lexxi's suitcases outside of the office door, and followed Mike and Gina into the little room. Tracy smiled at Lexxi. She looked like a lot of fun, if a little mischievous.
"Come on." Tracy encouraged, as she made her way down to another door, and Lexxi followed behind her. She found herself in the doorway of a large lounge area, littered with toys, and full of other children of varying ages. Some were playing pool, others watching television and fighting over the remote, and the others were scattered here and there, either chatting or doing their own thing.
"Guys!" Tracy called. Surprisingly, the other residents could hear her over the noise that they were making, and they silenced, turning to listen. Tracy looked taken aback. It was as though they had never listened to her before. "This is Alexis. She's just arrived. She's the new girl that we were talking to you about this morning." Tracy's grip tightened on Lexxi's shoulder, and she soon found out why. Before she knew it, a tanned girl with long, chocolate coloured hair, and dressed in a lot of pink, came running enthusiastically up to her.
"Hi Lexxi, I'm Carmen! I'm ten. Nearly the same age as you! Everyone's friends here, promise! Oh, I love your top!" She gasped, gesturing to the sparkly pink top that Lexxi was wearing; that top was the last thing that her mother had ever bought for her. Carmen had said all of this so rapidly that Lexxi's head was spinning in the confusion of it all. The other girl's bubbly personality and enthusiasm unnerved her, and made her all the more nervous. She wasn't ready for that yet. She had only just got here.
"Don't crowd her, Carmen. She's nervous enough as it is." Tracy warned, not unkindly, but Carmen did take her seriously, and she backed off. Lexxi was relieved to be given some space – she found all of the people a little intimidating. The only other time she had been in a room with this many people was at school, and even there, she never felt comfortable.
"Can I see my room please?" She whispered. She didn't want to be unapproachable or cold. She would introduce herself to everyone properly later. Just not now. Tracy gave her a slight, reassuring smile.
"Of course." As they were leaving, Lexxi looked over her shoulder and said:
"Bye." She was led by Tracy up a flight of stairs, and through a door. It was the first door on the left, right beside the stairs. Perfect, she thought. Her suitcases were sat beside her bed; someone had obviously taken them up to her room. She blinked back tears, as she looked around her new room. Realisation had set in. She had to stay here, in a place where children went if they were unwanted. She sat on the bed, taking a good look at the interior design. It had flower wallpaper. Not her style at all.
"We'll have it redecorated so it's more your style." Tracy was standing in the doorway. She walked further into the room, and sat down on the bed, placing an arm around Lexxi's trembling shoulders. "I used to live here too, you know. And I turned out perfect, right?" She teased. When she got no response from Lexxi, she sighed, and stood. She knew that not many things would lift Lexxi's spirits at the moment. "I'll leave you to settle in."
Once Tracy had left the room, and shut the door behind her, Lexxi unzipped one of her suitcases, and took out a picture that was sitting on the top of her clothing. The picture was of her family. Her mother on the left hand side: auburn haired, pretty, and smiling. Her father: dark haired, and holding a small girl on his lap. Lexxi's sister, and best friend. She was in the picture too, standing between her parents, and pulling a face at the camera. That was how things used to be, and Lexxi wanted that back desperately. She held the picture close to her heart and cried. Today was the first day of the rest of her life.
Author's Note:- Well there it is! I know it's short, but it's an introduction, really. I have ideas for chapter two, so see you there! x