Chapter 11

Thank you Shine-Of-A-Star for reviewing – poor us being forced to be humans instead of fairies

Thank you Candy-Apple14 for reviewing

Thank you Cookie05 for reviewing

I didn't actually create the character names to spell Sam, it was unintentional and I discovered it later.

Sorry about my slow updating, I meant to upload this on Friday but didn't finish and went of my D of E practice weekend on Saturday and only just got back.

Sam stared at the ceiling, bored, Arietta was helping out with the younger ones. Every since they had exchanged stories they had been joined by the hip, Ari had only been in the Dumping Ground just over a week and she was already a big part of Sam's life. And Sam a big part of Ari's.

She would have thought that she would have felt almost stifled by Ari's attention but instead she was happy. There was something amazing about Ari, the same thing that was in both her Mum and Shine, something she hadn't seen for two years.

She felt something too.

She felt wanted.

When she joined the Dumping Ground she thought it would be perfect, Erin showed her attention and she was always included but as the summer wore on and the leaves turned brown it become quite apparent that she wasn't one of them.

She was left out, if the Dumping Ground was a primary school Erin and Rick would be the leaders picked by the teacher and they would select the people they wanted for their teams. Sam would be the kid left over. Then the new kid turned up, Arietta. No one wanted her either, so she grabbed Sam by the hand and they made a team together.

The two kids no one wanted, united.

It was funny, Sam never mattered to Kitty till Erin was gone, she then started hanging out with the blonde, while making it apparent that she was only a temporary replacement for Erin. Soon as Sam fould someone else Kitty was desperate for her attention. Only wanting her as a friend to get one up on Arietta.

Now Erin was coming home, Sam had always been loyal to her, desperate for her attention.

I love you the more.

I am your spaniel; and, Demetrius,

The more you beat me I will fawn on you.

Use me but as your spaniel: spurn me, strike me,

Neglect me, lose me; only give me leave,

Unworthy as I am, to follow you.

What worser place can I beg in your love

And yet a place of high respect with me

Than to be used as you use your dog?

They had been studying A Midsummer Night's Dream at school and this quote had stuck in Sam's mind, in retrospect she would have been willing to do anything for Erin, just for the beautiful brunette to give her the slightest bit of attention.

In her mind she had glorified Erin, placed her on a pedestal and worshipped her.

Dreamed about her, thinking about all the things she wanted to do to Erin, thinking how beautiful she would be after...

There were two things that broke Sam's illusions.

Firstly the pregnancy, at first jealousy, how could Rick do that to her Erin?

Secondly Arietta. Ari's story made her remember that life was too short to be chasing a girl who was A: head-over-heels in love with a BOY.

B: Pregnant.

C: Straight.

D: Not interested in her.

The illusions of Erin's feelings shattered into a thousand pieces.

Erin would never love her.

Erin would never leave Rick for her.

Erin wasn't perfect.

Neither was Arietta.

At least Ari admitted it.

Arietta and Erin were similar, admittedly Ari's past was hundreds of times worse than Erin, both were great with kids, both were pregnant/had been pregnant. They both were kind, musical, clever, beautiful. Arietta could out shine Erin just by playing scales but then again Ari was professional. She could pretty much outshine anyone on the violin.

Both were smart, Erin academically while Ari was not clever academically, the only science she understood was music but she spoke two languages fluently, as well as snippets of other languages, as well as having a love of Shakespeare, from a few trips to the Globe theatre.

Both had been through too much, but then again so had everyone in the Dumping Ground.

The main difference was how they looked at the world, Erin had pretty much fallen for Rick at first sight, and examined Sam when she arrived. Ari hadn't looked at Sam, she had looked through Sam and seen who she really was.

To some people Ari might have sounded like a consolation prize but she wasn't, she was so much more. She was someone whose eyes wouldn't glaze over as she excitedly babbled about Sam's team winning, she would listen intently, actually interested.

At night Sam would climb into Ari's room via the window, they would chat for hours. Sometimes about meaningless stuff such a post boxes, sometimes the conversations would evolve into something important. Sam told her of the anger and the pain that controlled her for almost two years of her life, that clouded her judgement, that got her kicked out of children's home after home. The times she would just run and run, see how long it would take for the Police to catch her. The days of hassling kids on street corners.

When she cried Ari would pull her close and tell her to let it out, one time she started singing a Chinese lullaby, completely different to the one her Mum used to play or sing her.

Arietta knew what Sam needed, it was probably left over maternal feelings, she knew when to hold Sam, knew when to tell her a happy story, when to just be silent and hold her hands, she knew when music was all they needed.

Something only her Mum and Shine had managed to do before.

Something Erin could never do.

Xxx

A triplet rap at the door smashed Sam's reflective silence, before Sam could answer Ari had entered.

"The point of knocking is waiting for me to say you can come in, I could've been changing,"

"I wouldn't have minded," Arietta told her sitting down next to her, "biscuit?"

"I suppose so," Ari grinned her and passed the biscuit, on it scribbled out in purple was the words Sam.

"Personalised biscuits," Sam replied, Ari nodded, not quite meeting her gaze. "Cariad, what is it?"

Ari sighed, "it's nothing, was just thinking about Erin, what it's going to be like,"

"Cariad," Sam sighed, "Erin won't hate you, anyway it would have come out sooner or later,"

"Kitty hates me,"

"Kitty's Kitty, Erin isn't, and Rick will get over it,"

"they'll all hate me, they'll all hate me, they'll all hate me," Ari repeated in an almost sing song voice.

"They won't Ari, honestly," Sam replied, "I've already told you what they're like and I know what they're like, it's nothing like you imagine." Ari sighed and made her way over to the bed where Sam was sprawled, Sam shuffled closer and Ari hugged her.

"Thanks," the Chinese girl whispered, "I'd probably go mad without you." She swung her legs up onto the bed, "how close were you and Erin?" she asked after a minute,

"really close..." Sam trailed off, Ari raised her eyebrows, "ok we were friends but a friend that you wouldn't hang out with by yourself,"

"did you have a crush on her?" she questioned, Sam almost choked on the biscuit. "Thought so," Ari grinned,

"you don't mind?" Sam questioned,

"of course not, you can't be a proper lesbian if you haven't fallen for your straight best friend. Anyway I'm just glad it wasn't Kitty."

"Kitty got with Johnny the second she got here," Sam told Ari,

"what's with the people who live in here, they all seemed to be coupled up, it's like they have single Pringle phobia."

"I know what you mean Erin and Rick, Kitty and Johnny, Tee and Tyler,"

"Tee and Tyler! Wow, I didn't see Tyler as the relationship type."

"Well they were never properly together, not like Erin and Rick or Johnny and Kitty."

"Well no one will replace my favourite couple Mason,"

"I really need to meet Matty and Jason, they sound pretty cool,"
"they're my favourite guys," Ari told her, "they're you know... gay."
"Was that meant to be a let's kill Hitler reference,"

"yep, I like Doctor Who and post boxes.

Xxx

"Johnny," Kitty whispered, he had been pacing all day, ever since they found out Erin, Rick and Tee were coming home. "Johnny, please calm down, Tee will be fine with you, she's probably as nervous to see you, so you don't want to make it any worse," Kitty begged.

"I hit her," Johnny cried, "I hurt my little sister," Kitty pulled him into a hug,

"she still loves you. She will always love you," she whispered, "just like me."

Harry sprinted in, "when will Erin be home?" he asked, again, for about the 7th time that hour,

"soon," Kitty told him grinning, Harry ran off again. "I reckon Rick will give Ari what she deserves," she told her boyfriend,

"she said it was an accident," Johnny muttered,

"yeah right," Kitty snapped, "Ari just wants to bring Erin down, she's jealous because Erin is brilliant and she isn't." Johnny nodded in agreement, not listening, he had learnt to tune out the moment Kitty mentioned Arietta's name because it would likely end up being a half an hour rant about her.

Just smile and nod.

He went back to thinking about his sister, praying she would forgive him.

Xxx

Ari tugged on her thick cardigan, her fingers needing something to fiddle with, they went to her hair. Hair up or hair down?

"Ari you are fussing again," Sam told her, not looking up from her maths homework,

"I know," she sighed, "I just don't need another Kitty and her overprotective boyfriend on my case."

"Erin is better than Kitty, Kitty is honestly just a poor replacement for Elektra."

"Elektra?"
"Erin's old best friend, she was hit by a car at the end of the first week of school. She was paralysed from the waist downwards, had to go to a specialist care home. She was nicer than Kitty, and Kitty was decent when she started, without Erin she has just got bitchier and bitchier. I think also the ego boost from not being the new girl."
"And she's always had it out for me," Ari added,

"probably because the whole house was a mess, everyone was moping around and you gave the house something to smile about."

"What?" Sam asked,

"Before you arrived we sat in silence, unsure what to do with ourselves, but you brought some normality into our lives and things started go back to normal. Possibly a reason Kitty doesn't like you."

"You would almost think Kitty was the one with the crush on Erin," Sam laughed at Ari's comment.

"Why is Kitty in care?" Ari asked the blonde a few seconds, Sam sighed,

"basically her Dad sexually abused her,"

"is that all?" she questioned, confusion clouding Ari's face.

"Ari, it isn't normal to be sexually abused,"

"I forget that sometimes," she admitted, "it's just paid such a big part of my life."

"He touched her since the age of 5, raped her age 9, and she was taken away age 10."

"Meanwhile when I was 5 I spent my days in my little den made of asbestos playing the violin, age 9 I had just left China and was either living on the streets of London or just joining the orchestra, in 10 we were on an orchestral tour."

"When I was 5 I was locked in my bedroom, when I was 9 I was locked in my bedroom, when I was 10 I was locked in my bedroom."

"I definitely had the best as a kid," Ari commented, "I got to do what I loved everyday and see the world. Sure my parents were a bit shit but they could have been a hell of a lot worse."

"Dad could have been worse," Sam admitted, "I don't think he ever hit me, just neglected me."

"But you're happier in care?" Ari asked,

"I wasn't at first," Sam told her, "but I am now, now I have a best friend,"

"you are so sweet,"

"I was talking about Kitty," she joked,

"Samantha Marcia Carter, we are over."

Xxx

"Will I have to drag you?" Sam questioned,

"I'm not going," Ari told her, peering out into the garden, "everyone is happy and all in love with Miss Gorgeous Straight Girl, and I'll stick out like Putin at Pride."

"You, Arietta Tara Rosenberg, come out with the strangest things,"

"I am quite proud of that one," she admitted, grinning ear to ear,

"now, come on," Sam said grabbing her hand and pulling her out into the garden, only to hear the most unfortunate thing.

"Someone revealed your pregnancy to the whole school and a lot of people have been saying stuff…" Kitty trailed off,

"Who was it?!" Rick exclaimed angrily, Arietta stiffened and backed into Sam,

"Rick hun, calm down," Erin whispered, she stopped turning to stare at the new girl.

Both girls stood together, unsure what to do.