Marilyn glowered at her reflection in the shoddy, spotted, orphanage-owned bathroom mirror. She ran a brush through her thick, curly ginger hair before sighing in frustration. It looked even bushier after a brushing. She sighed and observed her features, a short button nose, high cheekbones and freckles all over.
She pushed her red framed glasses up her nose and exited the bathroom to walk back to her room hurriedly. When she opened the door she threw herself down on her bed and her identical twin sighed from across the room on her own bed.
Carolyn knew that Marilyn hated her looks but Carolyn was fine with them, considering they were hers as well. In fact the only physical differences between the twins were their glasses, Marilyn's glasses were red and Carolyn's were blue.
Carolyn actually went by Carol and Marilyn by Mary but all people ever called them was Marilyn and Carolyn. Never any variation. They were just one person to everyone else, Carolyn assumed.
They really couldn't be more different people. Both ten year olds were like polar opposites, Marilyn was allergic to strawberries, she wanted to be a dancer, her favorite color was red and she loved makeup and all those girly things. While Carolyn was allergic to pet dander, she wanted to be a writer, her favorite color was blue and she hated makeup and girly things with a passion, yet the biggest difference between the girls, was that Carolyn was almost 90% deaf.
She contracted an extremely high fever when she was a baby, barely three months old. She lost 80% of her hearing in her right ear and 90% in her left. They were in the care of the orphanage at the time and that's why it went untreated for so long.
Now she had hearing aids but she refused to wear them. She preferred to lip read and speak while signing, or just sign. She hated her own voice, she was told that it sounded nasally and odd. So she only spoke when she trusted who she was speaking too.
"Car! How can you read that stuff?!"
Marilyn sighed, looking at her sister's book, 'Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire'. Of course, Carolyn loved Harry Potter.
"There's nothing wrong with Harry Potter!"
Carolyn rebuffed, frowning and signing quickly as she spoke. Marilyn rolled her eyes and flopped back onto her bed. Looking at the ceiling with the familiar shaped crack in it, she hummed contently.
"Mar?"
Carolyn asked tentatively from her bed and Marilyn lifted her head to look at her sister. She looked sad and nervous as she bit her bottom lip.
"Mar, I think we should opt for them to separate us. You're never going to get adopted with me hanging on like a leech."
She sighed and Marilyn was up without a second thought to grab the corner of her bed and tug it over to her sister's and grabbing Carolyn into a tight hug. After most of their lives in a girl's home they had quickly learned that no matter how amazing Marilyn was or how creative and self-reliant Carolyn was, nobody wants a deaf child and Marilyn was aways held back because of it. The orphanage doesn't separate siblings, let alone twin sisters without their consent, so Marilyn couldn't get adopted without Carolyn.
"Never! Nobody will ever take us away from each other! That I promise you!"
Marilyn swore, hugging her twin tightly.
-TimeSkipLikeThreeDays-
Marilyn and Carolyn were walking down the street, groceries in hands that weren't clasped together. They had gone to go get some groceries for their orphanage. When Marilyn was pushed roughly to the side by a pair of men who hurried down the streets of London. The tall black haired man just kept walking but the short blond one apologized before hurrying after his companion. Carolyn glared after them and tugged Marilyn towards her. She wanted to follow them.
"Come on, Mar! They look so cool!"
Carolyn insisted, signing with one hand and Marilyn shook her head.
"No Car! What if they're police!"
She yelped and was silenced by a look from Carolyn, finally she let her sister drag her after them. Both were extremely curious anyway. They followed both men to a house that was covered in police cars and bright yellow caution tape. Both men hurried inside and the girls looked at each other, both grinning and hid the groceries in a huge bush before darting in after them.
Oddly nobody noticed them, until Carolyn ran face first into the torso of a tallish man with combed dark hair and an annoying voice.
"What are you kids doing in here!?"
He snapped, grabbing Carolyn's arm hard and causing her to yelp involuntarily because she hadn't seen him move. Marilyn's face darkened instantly and she yelled angrily.
"Nobody touches my sister!"
And lashed out a foot, kicking him hard in the knee, causing him to scream and buckle forwards falling on top of Carolyn. Marilyn yelled and tried to shove the man off her sister.
"Anderson! Why are you harassing two children?!"
A heavy baritone voice sounded behind Marilyn along with three other voices.
"Sherlock!"
"Anderson!"
"Get out you little freaks!"
Marilyn turned around in horror and was faced by a middle aged man with graying hair, a young black woman and short blond man from earlier. Marilyn smiled sheepishly before the man with the annoying voice-Anderson, spoke.
"She attacked me after I tried to kick them out!"
Anderson cried, pointing at Marilyn. Who in turn pointed at Carolyn who was sitting in the middle of the floor, looking dazed.
"You grabbed my sister! She couldn't see you and she's deaf!"
Marilyn cried as Carolyn stood and grabbed her hand. The short blond man, the tall, dark curly haired man with high cheekbones and the middle aged man all glared at Anderson who held up his hands.
"Hey, how was I supposed to know the kid was deaf?!"
He snapped and the short blond man rested a hand on Marilyn's shoulder, comfortingly. He gave her a kind smile.
"Hey, how about Sherlock and I take you back to your parents, now?"
He said, kindly and Marilyn rolled her eyes looking at him with a anger beyond her years.
"Good luck. Mom's dead and we don't know where or who Dad is. We're orphans, we live in the orphanage three blocks down."
She snapped and pushed past him, to march out of the house, Carolyn in tow.
"Wait! What are your names? We could at least walk you to the orphanage!"
John cried after them, worried for the two girls.
"Our names are Marilyn and Carolyn Holmes and leave us alone!"