Earth past, 1989
The Earth suddenly shook as the door transported two little kids out of it. One of them was Jack-Jack. The other was a young girl dressed in a multicolored outfit and feather hair clips.
The girl was 7 years old and had a shade of mocha, a mixture of black and brown straight hair, and brown-black eyes. She looked at her hands and screamed, and realized she had a voice.
"My feathers are gone!" She cried, and then put a hand on her mouth. "I can talk? I can talk!"
She then took one step at a time, realizing she can walk on her two legs. Her two HUMAN LEGS.
Everything around her looked so much bigger now that she was human height.
Soon, Jack-Jack began to cry. The girl kneeled beside him and tried shushing him to make him stop.
She picked up the baby and carefully walked out of the forest when a couple of police officers came.
"Hello there, little girl." One of them greeted her. "What are you doing out here all alone?"
The girl had to make up her new name and make up a story.
"My name's Ke- uh, Kelly, and I found this baby alone in the woods." She explained.
"Alright, Kelly, what's the baby's name?" One of the police asked, writing everything down. "How did you end up in the woods?"
"His name's Jack." She replied. "We got separated from our families, and now we're lost."
"Well, you two kids get in the car while we contact the orphanages." One of the police officers said.
"Ok." Kelly nodded. She climbed into the police car and held Jack-Jack in her lap. "Question. What is this place?" She asked.
"This is Northern New England." One of the officers answered.
"Which state?" Kelly asked, getting Jack-Jack to sleep.
"Well, right now we're on the outskirts of Massachusetts." He replied.
Kelly was shocked. She was in the world without magic. "What time is it?" She asked again, looking out the car window.
The officer glanced at his watch. "It's 2:30 in the afternoon." He answered.
Kelly sighed, remembering her last moments with Carl and Russell.
"You must look out for this child, in this new land." Carl urged, bringing Kevin to the door.
"It's the only way we'll see each other again." Russell added.
A few hours later, the police called all of the local orphanages and foster systems to take them in their care. While on the drive, Kelly and Jack-Jack were taking a nap.
They soon arrived in Boston, and the car pulled up to a large building.
"What is this place?" Kelly asked, yawning, and picking up Jack-Jack.
The officers stepped out of the car and opened the door for the two kids. "This is Kindred Hearts Orphanage. Your new home."
Kelly and Jack-Jack followed the officers up the stairs, and maintenance, and to the office where Ms. Marie Raskind, a middle-aged curvy, brown-skinned, red-headed, purple-eyed woman was. She had a few wrinkles despite being 32, she wore a green polo shirt, long red skirt, and some black high-heels, and her shoulder-length hair in a braid, and glasses.
She looked up from her work and greeted the policemen. "Good afternoon, Officers. How can I help you?" She asked.
The officers explained everything to Ms. Marie Raskind. She was shocked at the thought of two children being abandoned in the woods. Not to mention a baby. Kelly shyly looked up at Marie.
"Hi, there." Marie said, getting down to her eye level. "It's okay. No need to be scared." She assured her.
Marie then signed them in and began showing them the orphanage. They soon reached one of the bedrooms and Marie opened the door. "This will be your room.
Kelly and Jack were amazed by the room, and many kids were talking amongst themselves, and many beds. Some of the kids turned toward the door and saw the new arrivals.
"Kids, these are the kids joining us." Marie announced, kindly. "Would you and Jack like to introduce yourselves?" She asked Kelly and Jack-Jack.
"Hi. everyone. My name's Kelly," Kelly introduced herself to the other kids. "and this little guy is Jack."
The kids began greeting each other. Marie then left the room, letting the kids get acquainted.
A few months later, May 1990. It was morning, and everybody was getting ready. Jack-Jack was crying in his crib next to Kelly's bed. She came over to his crib.
"Shh, shh. Don't cry, Jack-Jack." She tried to quiet him. "Look at me, watch this." She made funny faces at him. Jack-Jack quieted down and looked at her. "There. That's better, right?" Kelly then held her nose and pretends to drown. She sat on the floor next to the crib with a box by her side.
Kelly started to fix one of the legs of the crib when a man entered the room.
"Do those tools belong to you?" He asked. It is Marie's husband, John Raskind, a man her age but with a chubby body and a mustache.
"I was just trying to fix the crib. I didn't want Jack to fall out and get hurt." Kelly explained, frightened.
Mr. Raskind kneeled to grab Kelly's arm. "Don't ever touch anything in this house again. Nothing belongs to you." He said sternly.
"Yes, Mr. Raskind." Kelly said.
Mr. Raskind took the tools back and left the room.
Amy, an 8-year-old girl with short red hair, light freckles, pale skin, and magenta eyes came over to Kelly. "Hey. You okay?" Kelly nodded. "Uh, can you keep a secret?" Kelly nodded again.
Amy pulled a roll of cash from her pocket and showed it to Kelly.
"Wow. Where'd you get that?" Kelly asked.
"I stole it from the sock drawer." Amy explained. "It's enough to buy us all bus tickets out of here."
"You're leaving? When?" Kelly asked.
"Right now." Amy said. "You wanna come?" She questioned.
Kelly glanced a Jack-Jack in the crib. "I have to take care of Jack. Can he come, please?"
"We can't take care of a baby." Amy complained. "You want to stay here for the rest of your life, be my guest." She started to leave.
Kelly looked distressed for a moment. "Wait." Amy stopped with three other children. Kelly turned to the crib. "I'm sorry, Jack-Jack." She whispered. She kissed her fingers and rubbed his forehead with them before leaving.
At the bus station, Kelly was with Amy and her girlfriends. Mary, a tall 10-year-old African-American girl with curly short black hair, and amber eyes. Samantha, her twin sister, with blue eyes, and brown hair in pigtails, and Amelia, a short 12-year-old German-Spanish-American-Canadian girl, with shoulder-length reddish-brown hair, mocha skin, light freckles, and green eyes, with some of their bags, except for Kelly who was holding a newspaper reading '7-Year-Old Girl Finds Baby on Road."
Kelly still felt guilty about leaving Jack-Jack behind and breaking her promise.
At 2 years of age, Jack was moving to one family to the next, until he found a Hispanic couple who wanted to take care of him. The couple was being interviewed at the adoption agency as candidates for the baby boy.
Jack had messy hair and wore a green t-shirt, blue shorts, and black sneakers. He was watching behind the walls, hoping to be adopted.
Soon, the adoption agent stood up and shook hands with the couple.
Jack looked at them, shyly.
The couple's faces lit up when they saw him. "Oh, he's adorable!" The woman said, smiling.
Jack blushed. "Ummm...Hi. I Jack." He introduced himself, shyly.
"Hi, Jack. I'm Isabella and this is Carlos." The woman introduced themselves. "We're here to adopt you."
"Really?" Jack asked, rubbing his arm.
"Yes." Isabella nodded. "No need to be shy. We're your new parents."
While the parents did the paperwork, Jack was getting his things, including his black eye mask. His only possession and memory of his parents. He couldn't help but wonder about his parents, and why they didn't want him.
After Jack got his things, he began getting in some SUV with his new parents and they began to drive 3 hours to the house.
They soon arrived at a single-story, light blue, modern Colonial House with small windows.
Jack was in the car, very nervous.
Isabella opened the door and let him out of his car seat. "Here we are, mijo. Your new home."
Jack was amazed at the place and decided to wander around. While he explored, Isabella and Carlos decided to take his things to his new room.
Jack looked around the house, and it was amazing, and even had a garden. As he looked outside, he suddenly felt himself phase through the back door.
Carlos came to the garden and saw Jack. "What are you looking at, son?" He asked.
"Flowers!" Jack replied, pointing at all of the plants.
"Well, come on, We need you to see your new room." Carlos said, picking up Jack.
"Yay!" Jack cried, happily.
He was taken to his new room, and he was amazed by a big bedroom. The walls were painted blue. Toys and books were displayed on the shelves and floor.
Jack was surprised by the room. "Is this my room?" He asked.
"Yes, it is, son." Carlos nodded and put Jack down on the floor.
Meanwhile, that same day with Kelly. She was with her friends, finding some disguises to get at the store. While Kelly, now 9, looked at herself in the mirror at the wondrous changes of girl-like puberty, since she read books about puberty when she left with Amy and her friends.
She hadn't realized the kinds of things humans go through as they grow up.
"Hey, Earth to Kelly." Amy said. "Looking at your growing curves again?"
"Huh?" Kelly snapped out of her thoughts. "Oh. Yeah."
"Hurry, get your disguise on!" Mary said, tossing Kelly a blue t-shirt, and a red skirt. Mary, now 12, grew a couple of inches than the other girls, she decided to cut her curly hair into a cascade haircut.
Kelly caught the clothes and quickly began to put them on. "Why are we doing this again?" She asked.
"We're gonna get the food and drinks, and find a place to sleep before the storm comes." Samantha (now Linea) said. She grew into pretty much a Tomboy. She often cut her hair really short, and often wore a simple t-shirt, some overalls, and some red sneakers.
"Ok, but I don't get why we have to be in disguise if we're just going to buy some food." Kelly said.
"Because security guards can easily catch us kids for sneaking in the shop without adult supervision or adult escort." Amelia, now 14, said. She was now almost taller than Kelly and Mary, and a bit shorter than Amy and Linea. She had decided now that she was a teenager, she wore a mix of her traditional German and Spanish clothing with modern ones and had her hair changed from traditional German pigtail braids to a modern hairstyle like a choppy lob haircut.
Kelly looked unsure. "But it feels wrong to be doing this."
"Oh, don't be a scary cat. We've been in them before." Amy said. She had been a leader of the group since their time at the orphanage, but now at the age of 12, since they escape, she had some changes to early puberty as well. She grew a bit taller than the girls, she decided to wear more fashionable trends to keep up with the times, unlike her twin sister. "Besides these dollar bills and fake IDs can get us to buy what we want."
"Yeah, I guess I guess you're right." Kelly sighed, giving in. And I'm not a scaredy-cat."
The girls quickly got to the store but were stopped by the security guards.
"IDs please?" One of the guards asked.
The girls got their IDs out and showed them to the guards.
"Alright right." One of the guards said, letting them in. "Enjoy your shopping." One of them said suspiciously.
The girls thanked the guards. They each got their lists for food and other necessities they needed.
"Ok, girls, let's split up. We'll meet back out of the store, after the checkout thing." Amy instructed the girls.
The others agreed and they started their shopping. Kelly went to the pharmacy aisle, hoping to find something for her periods. She then stopped by the snack aisle and picked up some chocolate.
Kelly then got to the clothing aisle, hoping to find some new clothes for herself, and something based on their personalities and interests. She picked out some multicolored clothes for herself, and some feather hair accessories.
She then went to the hair care aisle and decided to get some brushes, combs, and hair ties, for herself. the multicolor ones. For Amy and the other girls, their favorite colors. Kelly's hair had grown a little from a neck length hairstyle to an upper back hairstyle. She had gone and used to caring for her hair over the years, even dying her hair on the bottom part.
Soon, the girls finished their shopping and headed to the checkout.
The clerk looked suspiciously at the girls. "How old are you people?" He said. "ID?"
The girls took out their IDs and showed them to the clerk.
The clerk then took a look at their fake IDs and sighed. "Already, I'll check out the items, and tell you the price." He then checked every item the girls got. After the clerk finished ringing up the items, he told the girls the total price.
Amy gave the clerk the same amount as the price, which was $325.36. "Thank you so much, Sir." Amy said and she put the check out items in each bag. "Have a nice day." She said.
"Thank you. You too." The clerk replied as the girls left the store.
The girls soon got to a far-off alley and took off their disguises.
"All right girls, let's see what you got." Amy said, getting the bags. Each bag was winning in their names to know which was which.
"That was close. I thought he was gonna catch us." Kelly said, relieved.
"I agree." Linea said, getting her bags. "We need to see what kinds of stuff we got from the store?"
They began to show each other the items they bought and sorted them into the different bags.
"Kelly, I thank you for getting the things we needed to get fresh and clean." Amy said, putting her things in her pink fabric bag.
"No problem, Amy." Kelly smiled, putting her things into her multicolored bag.
Jack was having his first dinner with his new family. "So, you guys are a Cuban?" He asked, looking at a flag, which had five blue and white horizontal stripes, and a red triangle on the left side of the flag with a white five-pointed star in the middle. "And what are we eating for dinner?"
"Yes, we are, mijo. We came here to America when we were young." Isabella nodded. "We're having empanadas and arroz con pollo."
Jack took a bite. "It's so good!" He said and ate it all up. "How old were you two when you got to America and why?" He asked.
"I'm glad you like it. Just don't eat so fast." Isabella warned him. "We were about 16 at the time. It was a bad time in our country. Our families sent us away for our safety, and made us legal American citizens."
"Sorry." Jack said. "What was going on in your country at the time, and what year did you two escape?"
"It's ok. Do you want some more?" Isabella offered. "It was around 1986. We had to leave because there was a bad man who ruled the country." She explained.
- Meanwhile, the girls got a duffle bag full of cash, went into an alley next to the diner to eat something for dinner.
"I'm glad we found this place. I'm starving." Kelly said.
The girls went into the diner. The waitress stopped them and gave a suspicious look. "Do you girls have parents? Where are they?" She asked.
Kelly was afraid that they had been caught.
"Our parents are waiting for us at home." Amy spoke up. "They gave us money and let us come here to get some food."
"Alright girls, what would you would like to order?" She asked.
Kelly ordered a Fluffernutter. Amy ordered a club sandwich. Linea asked for a BLT. Mary ordered a Cheesesteak. Amelia asked for a Sloppy joe. They each also asked for a side of fries.
"Here you go." The waitress said, handing them each bag of the orders. "That'll be $12.99." she placed her hand hoping to get some money.
Amy took the money out of their bag and handed it to the waitress.
"Have a nice evening, girls" the waitress said waving her hand.
"Thanks." The girls replied and waved back as they left.
The girls went back to the alley, got out their bags, and Mary got each of the girls the water bottles she got from the storm.
"Girls, I still don't feel right about this." Kelly said, taking her sandwich and water bottle. "Soon someone's gonna catch us."
"Oh, no way." Amy disagreed, as she took a bite of her sandwich. "As long as we have our disguises, we'll be fine. Right girls?"
"Yeah." The others agreed. "Quit worrying so much."
1 year later, Isabella and Carlos found out that she was pregnant with twins. The couple was so excited to they have their own children but were also worried that they wouldn't have enough room for them. So they had to tell Jack about the babies and returning him to the Foster system.
Jack was so excited to be a big brother but was shocked that he was going back. "Why? You don't want me anymore?" He asked, sadly.
"We do love you." Isabella explained. "We only have two rooms. One for me and Carlos, and the other for the kids." She said.
"But we'll always remember you." Carlos added and got a special photo album with pictures of them. "Here, something to remember us by." The photo album had the design of the Cuban flag and some golden trimmings.
"Ok." Jack took the photo album and hugged the couple. "I'll miss you."
"We'll send you emails and letters every day." Isabella promised.
"Now go pack up your stuff. The Foster group will be here in about 10 minutes." Carlos instructed.
"Ok." Jack nodded. He headed to his room and began to pack up his stuff.
"Do you think it's the right thing?" Isabella said, concerned as she patted her stomach.
"We've talked about this, mi amor." Carlos put his hands on her shoulders.
When Mr. and Mrs. Raskind came just in time. "We're here." Marie said. "Where's Jack?"
"He's getting his things." Carlos replied. He then noticed Jack coming. "Ah, here he comes now."
"Hi...Mr. and Mrs. Raskind." Jack said, shyly. "I'm gonna miss them."
"Hi, Jack." They both greeted him.
Marie got down to his eye level. "I know, sweetie. But it's for the best."
"Alright." Jack said. "Bye, guys." He said waving goodbye to them and looking at the house one last time.
"Goodbye, Jack." Carlos and Isabella said emotionally and waved goodbye to him.
On the way back to the orphanage, Jack looked at the family album and all those wonderful times he had with them. Jack still felt sad about being sent back. It made him feel like he wasn't wanted.
When they made it back to the orphanage, Jack got nervous about coming back. He was afraid of what the other kids might think of him being returned, and tease him about it.
Marie took Jack out of the car, and her husband got his stuff. They soon entered the building. Most of the kids greeted them, while some of the new orphans waved shyly at them.
Jack smiled shyly as he waved to and greeted the other kids.
Jack was soon back in the same room he was since his first time at the orphanage, but this time, the room specially decorated as if his own. He put his bag down and began to unpack his stuff.
Meanwhile, the girls had become masters of crime and disguises, except for Kelly, who was always kind to others and always kept the promise no matter what. She had gotten pretty used to her new human body including the changes.
They were in the alley when Amy began to scream at the blood between her legs. "No, no, no!" She panicked. "My new dress and underwear!"
Luckily, Kelly came prepared and got some newly bought large pads from her duffel bag.
"Don't worry, Amy. I got some pads." Kelly tried to calm her down. "Look, that building probably has a bathroom." She pointed to a nearby building. "You can clean yourself up and change your clothes."
The building was full of people, but they snuck past the security guards to make sure no one noticed. They secretly snuck away from the checkout corner and into the elevator to the restrooms, with a double bag full of clothes.
They soon reached the bathrooms. Amy took one of the pads, a change of clothes, and hurried into the ladies' room.
Kelly was looking at the newspaper, while Amelia was checking her growing leg hair. Mary, now 13, was smelling her changing odor. Linea was reading "Odd Girls and Twilight Lovers: A History of Lesbian Life in Twentieth-Century America, By Lillian Faderman." And Amelia, now 15, was checking on her growing breasts.
Soon, Amy came out of the bathroom, feeling relieved and refreshed. "I guess I'll wear some red shorts for a while." Amy said, looking at her new shorts.
"You can also try wearing dark colors. That's what I do." Amelia suggested.
"Good idea." Amy said. She suddenly heard footsteps coming. "It's the guards! Run!" They then ran away. The girls soon made it out of the building.
"Good thing we escaped before they caught us." Amy said, trying to catch her breath.
"I agree." Mary said, also trying to catch her breath.
"Girls, I've been thinking." Kelly spoke up. "I don't want this life on the streets anymore."
"Why do you ask?" Linea asked, putting her book away in her bag. "You're saying we find someplace to live?"
"Yes." Kelly nodded. "That way we don't have to be always running or sneaking in and out of places."
"Maybe you're right." Mary said. "We have some money for a place to stay."
"Also, we could buy plenty of food, clothes, and other things." Kelly added.
"You're right, Kelly." Amy said, giving in. "I should've listened to you about sneaking in and out. We might need to find a place to live."
"It's ok." Kelly said. "We're just glad that you've come to your senses."
So then, they immediately went to find a place to stay. They were able to find a shelter for young women. After the girls had met with the owner and signed in, they were shown to their rooms.
The rooms were so much different, but they decorated each room in their personalities.
Kelly's mind began to wander and couldn't help but think about Jack-Jack. She hoped he was ok, and wondered if he got adopted.
Jack was playing with the other kids. Some were stacking a few blocks scattered around, and some were playing with dolls and stuffed animals.
Marie came to the room. "Dinner."
The kids put down their toys and games and followed Marie down to the dining room.
It was something different tonight. It was a delicious spaghetti and meatballs with parmesan. The kids were served their meals and sat at the tables.
Jack ate his food, steadied. He had asked for some cookies to have with his food. Marie say it was ok and gave him two chocolate chip cookies, and told him not to tell her husband about giving him sweets. Something about eating cookies felt almost familiar and made him think about his real parents.
After dinner, everyone was getting ready for bed. Before Jack went to sleep, he looked out the window and wished that he would one day have a family.
4 years later, mid-December 1995, Mr. And Mrs. Raskind and the kids went to see 'Pocahontas' at a big movie theater in Minneapolis, Minnesota. As they entered the theater, Jack, now 6, with combed up hair, a red t-shirt, blue pants, and black sneakers, stole a Hershey's chocolate bar from a kid who wasn't looking.
Jack then sat down in one of the empty seats near the end of the row and was about to open the chocolate bar.
"Don't." A voice said.
Jack was surprised to see the usher standing and looking at him. She was a young less curvy, black woman, with short brown hair, and green eyes. "What?" Jack questioned.
"Don't." She repeated.
"I'm sorry." Jack sighed.
The usher then took an empty seat next to him. "I wasn't talking about the candy bar, Jack." She said.
"How do you know my name?" Jack asked, giving her a strange look.
"I know many things." The usher said. "And I'm here to tell you, don't do it."
"I don't understand." Jack said, confused.
"When you do something that you're not supposed to do." She explained. "Even if you do it for the right reasons, bad things would happen, Jack. Bad things. One day, an arrow is going to lead you down a path." As she talked, the screen showed Pocahontas looking at the compass arrow. "But you mustn't follow it."
A young girl sitting in front shushed them, making Jack look at the girl and turned back only to find the usher was gone. He searched for the usher but gave up. He continued watching the film with worry shown on his face.
Towards the end of the movie, Jack was focused on the screen when he felt lasers shoot from his eyes. Jack was terrified and ran out of the theater in tears. He couldn't believe that it happened again. Jack thought by now he had control over his powers. Hopefully, no one saw that it was him.
In Boston the same day...
Kelly, now 13, was reading a book about South America, reminding her of her old life as a bird. She liked being a human, but she missed her old friends and hoped that one day she'd see them again.
"Earth to Kelly." Amy said, looking up from her fashion history book.
"Are you daydreaming again?" Linea added, looking up from her mechanical engineering book.
Both the twins were now 13 years old. Their personalities did change a little. Amy still wore skirts, but now with pants underneath. Linea still had tomboyish her looks but wore some lip gloss. Their hair became completely different but grew medium length. Amy's in curls from the 1940s, and Linea in a braided ponytail from the 1970s.
They had different courses in their new school. Amy was studying to become a fashion designer, and Linea was studying to become an engineer and inventor. Both had planned to start dating after high school.
"Huh?" Kelly snapped out of her thoughts. "Oh, yeah. I guess I got so caught up in reading my book about South America."
"We are in the same class you know." Mary said, now 16. She let her hair grow half curly and a bit straight. She now had a mix between her African heritage and a mix of traditional and modern clothing. She was in the same world history class as Kelly, but she also went to after school classes in clubs related to her culture's past and planning a become an African zoologist and African-American historian when she graduates high school. She was also part of the basketball team due to being the tallest girl in school and the group. She was also dating a guy almost shorter than her.
"Oh, yeah. That's right." Kelly remembered. "Sorry. It's just that I can be a little birdbrained sometimes."
"Well, you can say that again." Amelia said, rolling her eyes at her homework on the discovery of King Tut.
Now at 17, she got a part-time job at a local grocery store (just a couple miles from the shelter), to keep up with her and her friends' school fees and saving up for her college. She decided to cut and style up her hair in a medium length wavy style, deciding to go to the 'normal girl' look. She was also in honor roll classes due to excellent grades and her knowledge of many cultures. She even in some classes to get into university or college, she always dreamt of becoming a cultural historian or teach you when she graduates college and plans to date a boy or girl until she was 23.
Kelly was a little offended by Amelia's comment. She meant it as a joke, but it felt like Amelia was making fun of her. Lately, Kelly was starting to see them differently. She was even having second thoughts about hanging out with them.
"I'm just joking," Amelia said. "What page are you on, girl? Because I'm on the final 2 out of 14 questions for my King Tut homework."
"Oh. Ok." Kelly felt a little better, but it didn't make the feeling completely go away. "I'm just finished page 46."
"Really? What part of the page you on?" Amelia asked. "I'm reading about the rainforest and all of the native animals." Kelly replied.
"Such a gifted teen who knows so much about South America, and moves one right for being an all-time prodigy." Amy said, joking.
"Why, thank you." Kelly said, proudly. "I've actually been to South America."
One year later, Mid-Winter, Minneapolis, Minnesota, 1996
Jack, now 7, wore a blue jersey, brown jeans with a ripped hole on the right knee, and red sneakers ran away from the Boston orphanage after a recent argument with the owners of the place. He decided to live on the streets for a while. He read the Ugly Duckling and hated it so much, due to his unknown parents.
Jack ripped out several pages from the book and started to throw them in a trash can fire to keep warm.
Kelly, now 14, wore her ponytail with colorful highlights, and something warm for the winter. She was talking with her friends when she saw Jack and how much he'd grown since the last time she saw him.
"You're not gonna burn that, are you?" She asked, coming over to him.
"My problem right now is cold." Jack said, trying to look away.
"If you're out here, lack of kindling is the least of your problems." Kelly said. "What's your story?"
"I ran away, okay?" Jack confessed. "I was in a crummy group home, and..." He changed the subject. "...and it's none of your business."
Jack was about to burn some more pages, but Kelly stopped him.
"Please. Don't." She took the pages and looked at them. "These stories are great. Look. 'The Ugly Duckling.' I loved this one when I was a kid."
"You're still a kid." Jack said.
"You've got spunk." Kelly said, impressed. "When I was your age, it was great. The best fairy tales are about the same thing... transformation. You know?" She showed him the pages. "See, a duck becomes a swan. It's beautiful."
"That's not what it's about." Jack said, not impressed. "The duck was... always a swan." He continued "It just... didn't know it."
"Maybe that's how you see it, but I see it as about belief." Kelly explained. "About a duckling believing so hard that she'd become a swan... one day... it actually happened. If we believe in something strongly enough, we all have the power to change our fate. Speaking of which, is this really the fate you want?" They both looked around at the other homeless people. "Maybe your last home was bad. Doesn't mean you won't find a good one someday."
Jack looked at the pages, considering her advice.
Sometime later, Jack decided to go to the police station. He sat in front of one of the desks while drinking a cup of hot chocolate.
"So, how long have you been on the streets, dear?" A middle-aged caseworker asked.
"A few days." Jack replied. "And then... my friend, she brought me here."
"What's your name, boy?" She asked, writing everything down.
"Jack." He answered.
"Jack." She wrote them down. "You got a last name, Jack?"
"Swan. My name is Jack Swan."
She nodded and wrote it down.
From then on, both Jack and Kelly took on new names and identities. knowing for years to come. They'll meet again.
To be continued...