I waited outside the doors to the school, for almost ten minutes after the bell.

Where was she?

I finally spotted her, walked out, her books in a small satchel slug over her shoulder and hands by her sides.

"There you are! Come on, let's go!" I gave a gentle tug on her wrist, and she trudged alongside me, as I made my way to an ice cream stand near a local park.

After paying for two cones, one chocolate, one vanilla, we made our way to a bench to sit down.

If this doesn't help cheer her up, who knows what else might.

"Zank you, Vill. I don't get ice cream often."

I arched an eyebrow. "How come?"

"Vell, ze people who took me in, vhile I'm here, vere told zat I'm an exchange student. But zhey soon found out I vasn't. Zhey veren't very happy, und zhey really don't like me."

"Well, that's mean. Did you tell them about your brother and everything?"

"Nein. Zhey don't care, und zhey never speak to me, except for blaming somezing on me, zat I never did. Zhey vould kick me out, but because zh orphanage is paying zhem, zhey havf to."

"That's just… well, rude. And mean." I needed to change the subject. "So, um… What's your brother like?"

"Hans? Vell, he's really nice, to say zhe least. He iz ze kind of bruder zat people vant. He vill always support you und puts anyone before himself. Vhen I vas little, about sieben, he vould take me to a small ice cream parlour, und he alvays bought me chocolate." She sighed, looking at locket she brought out from under her shirt.

There were two photos inside; small, black-and-white photos.

One was of two adults, each in their thirties, and a tall boy, about eighteen.

The other was three guys and two girls, other than Ilsa.

"Zese vere taken just before I left. Zat's mein family, and ze boys over here are mein friends."

"I'm so vorried now, zat none of mein family, or friends, vill make it home. If ze Allies vin, und zhey probably vill, zhey might be put in to a jail, or killed during ze var."

"You know, now I'm kind of hoping that too. Before, whenever I heard something about those Nazis, I thought that all of them were evil. But I was wrong. Everyone's wrong. What else are we wrong about?"

She looked up from trying to keep the ice cream cone from dripping. A slight smile formed on her face.

"Zat ze Goose Step iz an eazy march. It iz not."

"Seriously? It looks easy. Can't be that hard."

She nodded. "Vhen you are doing it on your own, it iz. But vhen it iz a large group of people marching, it iz very hard. If one person is out of step, it could cause some chaos. If ve veren't in such a public area, I vould try und show you."

"Well, I'm going to have to take you up on that. I'm curious now. Anything else we're wrong on?"

"Ja. But I do not feel like talking about it, in a place like zhis." She shook her head slightly, smiling a little. "Too many people. Zhey may zink ve are spies or somezhing of ze sorts."

We both laughed a little at that idea.

"So, how do you like America, apart from the people you're staying with and all?" I asked, curious.

"Vell… It iz like Germany, vhen it comes to individual people; zhere are nice ones und mean ones. But ze economy iz better, I think. Zhen again, in var, who can tell?"

"True, true."

After finishing the ice cream and a walk around the area, we went our separate ways.

With a lot to think about on what's going on, across the water.