This was the first time Marcy's caretakers met her parents.

Marcy's hospital room was fairly standard for a recovery ward. She had plenty of privacy, nurses and doctors checked her around the clock, and they managed to get a room with a window they didn't have to cover from the press. There were police in the building, and the military was still in the city despite the invasion being over. A regular Army division and an air force presence put the city in a state of mind it had only experienced on the barest edge of living memory.

That didn't matter to a certain group of people though. Marcy was awake again, and she was healing. Anne, Sasha, Lady Olivia, and General Yunan stood by her around the clock. It took her weeks to wake up, with some collaboration between human and Amphibian doctors. Anne's parents came and went, staying as long as they could, bringing the Plantars with them in similar intervals.

Marcy's parents arrived within days of her being moved to the hospital, but the others rarely saw them. When they did, they were rotating shifts, or in a public setting. The military, the government, and the media all wanted to talk to pretty much everyone.

It took about a day after Marcy woke up for her parents to arrive. And so this was the first time they actually met Olivia and Yunan.

There they stood at the door, Mr. And Mrs. Wu, shifting awkwardly, looking at the four faces. Marcy's eyes widened. "Uh...hi."

Anne and Sasha looked at each other. Yunan straightened up from where she'd been leaning over the bed. Lady Olivia stood up, brushed herself off, and glided over to extend her hand to the humans. "Good day, I am Lady Olivia, of the–"

Mr. Wu looked down at her, and gingerly extended his hand to shake hers. "Yes, uh...hello." His eyes wandered around the room, pausing briefly on each face. His eyes angled toward Anne and Sasha. He looked back down at Olivia, "If you don't mind, please leave us. We need to speak with our daughter alone. This is a family matter."

Olivia blinked, "I…sir, Mr. Wu, your daughter has been in our care, and I thought you'd like to know about–"

His wife turned her head to the small newt, "Yes, we'll hear all about that later. But first, we would like some time alone with our daughter, understand?"

Olivia blinked again. Yunan stood up. She glanced at Marcy. "You gonna be alright, human?"

Marcy's eyes shifted downward. Sasha and Anne exchanged looks. "Please leave us." Mr. Wu repeated.

Olivia's gaze narrowed, but a lifetime in the court hid her emotions well. Anyone would mistake the look for an idle twitch. She jerked her head slightly, "Very well. We will wait outside."

Yunan patted Marcy on the shoulder and moved around the bed. Anne hugged Marcy and trailed her hands slightly as she released. Sasha dove in for a quick hug and then gently nudged Anne toward the door. She pointedly turned her head away from the parents as they passed. Olivia closed the door and looked at Yunan. The general frowned, "The kid and I hung around a bit, but this is strange for her. Shouldn't they be more excited that their daughter is alive?"

"We are among humans. Who can fathom the ways of Earth creatures?" Olivia mused.

Yunan blinked, noting Olivia's ruminative expression. She wasn't great with social cues, but she thought she recognized something. "Something wrong, my lady?"

"We're not that complicated," Anne grunted.

Olivia turned to see an odd look on the Thai girl's face. She frowned. It was barely a minute before the shouting started. "How could you do this to us? Because of your little stunt, we're a national embarrassment!" Mr. Wu roared.

Yunan looked at Olivia in alarm, then to Anne. The girl looked alarmed as well, but looked down and rubbed her arms. Sasha's hands formed fists, and she scowled, looking into the distance. Yunan's left hand opened and closed, trying to unsheathe weapons that weren't there.

"...what did you do to yourself?" Mrs. Wu demanded on the other side of the wall, his voice a little less audible.

"We fed you, we kept a roof over your head. We had to move, so what?"

"What is happening?" Yunan hissed in shock. The arguing became more muffled. Olivia furrowed her brow and frowned. She shifted toward the door. She could hear Marcy's voice, only to be suddenly stifled.

"...And aside from all that…aside from all that, we found that journal of yours." There was a muffled sound, then the addition of "Don't lie to me! That journal with those…that pair of…those queer children!"

Olivia's eyes widened. Sasha and Anne looked at each other. There was a low sound, a whimper. Then a sound Olivia was far too familiar with.

She was on her feet and reached her hand for the door in seconds. Yunan was a hair faster; she twisted the handle and burst in the door, teeth bared. There was none of her usual excitement of the thrill of a fight, there was the grim determination of a battle. Marcy's parents were standing to either side of her bed, practically on top of the side tables. Mr. Wu was leaning down into Marcy's space, and pointing at her face. Mrs. Wu had her arms folded in exasperation. Marcy cried into her hands and looked up in shock. The man straightened up, "What the–?"

Yunan's eyes widened, "Get out!" she snarled.

"Madam, whatever you are, this is–"

Yunan raised her fists, "You're upsetting her! Get out now, before I have to–!"

Olivia pushed her way in the door, "Get out before we call security. Disturbing a patient while she is recuperating from severe physical injury and psychological distress is–"

"What is going on here?" A voice demanded. Behind the newts, Sasha and Anne whirled about, still in the corridor, to see a nurse behind them.

Mr. Wu pushed past, "Nurse, these people are disturbing us!"

"That's a lie! They were shouting at Marcy and insulting her, she doesn't deserve that!" Yunan barked, following them out.

"They were yelling at her!" Anne added.

"These fucking assh–" Sasha began, only for the nurse to hold up a hand.

"Alright. Mr. Wu, Mrs. Wu, out."

"There, you see–?" Mrs. Wu trailed off, "...I'm sorry?"

"Get out before I call security. You're disturbing our patients."

Mrs. Wu narrowed her gaze, "I can't believe this."

"How we raise our child is none of your–"

"I'm not talking about that," The nurse said cooly, "I'm saying you're causing a disturbance. Now get out before I call security."

"Oh, need some pals to help you out?" Mrs. Wu demanded.

"No, I need some pals to keep me from hitting you," The nurse said in a low voice.

Mr. Wu scowled, "This isn't the end of this! I'll sue your asses!"

The nurse pointed at the end of the corridor, "I'm sure you will. Good luck." With snarls and threats, the couple left. The nurse turned around, "Sorry about that." He walked into Marcy's room, "Ms. Wu, are you okay?"

Marcy looked utterly miserable, curled up on her bed. She cried quietly, hugging the blankets to her chest. Olivia moved quickly to her side, and put an arm around her, "It's alright, Marcy, they're gone."

"Marcy? Marcy!" Anne and Sasha rushed into the room. Anne embraced her friend, and looked her over, "Are you okay? Did he...did she…?"

"Marcy, are you hurt?" Yunan asked.

"I'm fine," She sniffled.

"Son of a bitch, I'll...I'll… break something of his! I don't know, I'm pissed!" Sasha snarled.

The nurse put up his hands, "Whoa, someone explain what happened." He looked at Anne with a curious expression, "What are you looking for? Is there something to this? I saw on the cameras, and I could hear them down the hall…"

"Bruises," Anne muttered.

"Bruises…?" The nurse echoed and stepped over. He glanced over the teenager's form, "Where?"

"Nowhere!" Marcy garbled.

"They...she gets them on her arms," Anne muttered.

"Son of a bitch…!" Sasha snarled.

The nurse looked at Marcy. She avoided eye contact. He turned to Olivia and Yunan and raised an eyebrow. Marcy's head snapped up. Her eyes were red and her cheeks stained with tears. She shook her head hard, but the side-to-side motion was very small. Olivia felt her heart ache. She looked at the nurse, "When she first came to us, there were bruises on her upper arms. We believed them to be from the fall she had, but they were marked with five-fingered hands." Yunan looked at her in surprise.

The nurse nodded. "Excuse me, I need to consult the doctor."

The doctor was summoned, and within minutes, listening to the information being repeated back to her. She peered at the newts with folded arms, "Can you verbally confirm you have been her guardians since her disappearance?"

"Of course! Who else would we be?" Yunan demanded.

"It's a formality ma'am. I've got the chart and information I just need to be sure."

"Yes, we have been her guardians for the last several months," Olivia said more precisely.

The doctor nodded. "Ms. Wu?"

Marcy's eyes shimmered. She garbled out some gibberish, then started crying again. "Oh, Mar-Mar…" Anne hugged her friend close.

The doctor grimaced, and she looked back at the adults, "I'm going to have Mr. and Mrs. Wu banned from the ward, and I'll let security know. I need to make some phone calls."

"Marcy, are you okay?" Yunan asked gently.

Marcy garbled something, "No, no, what...Why? Why did you tell them?"

Yunan was surprised, "We couldn't let them hurt you!"

"But...but…"

"Take it slow, Ms. Wu, it's alright-"

"No! No it's my fault, it's…" She burst into tears completely, letting out sad howls of agony.

"Oh, little one…" Olivia said softly and moved over to put her arm around the girl. "It's not your fault, it's not."

Yunan muttered curses, and paced back and forth, swinging her fists as her tail swished back and forth, "Those monsters! Those fiends! Brutes and villains, roguish brigands! Those good-for-nothing beastly reprobates!"

"Yunan!" Olivia admonished.

"Liv, you saw what happened! Those monsters, I'll duel them myself!"

"Dueling is illegal in the states," Sasha said with some annoyance, "I checked."

"Hell of a lot of paperwork anyway." The doctor muttered.

Yunan scowled, and cursed again, "What is this world coming to? I can't even defend my charge's honor?" She looked at Marcy, still weeping. "By my bones, what kind of parents are they?"

Marcy shook her head and tried to say something, but dissolved into tears. Anne spoke in a low voice. "She doesn't…"

The doctor gestured for Yunan to follow. They stepped away. "Some American families have...problems."

The nurse spoke, "You're familiar with domestic abuse, correct?"

"Well...yes, but…" Yunan looked at Marcy, "But why didn't she tell us?"

The doctor tilted her head, then back, "I'm going to speak with her therapists. She's obviously got some emotional trauma, and it will take her some time to... understand."

"Domestic abuse victims…" the nurse began, but Yunan swept her hand through the air like a knife.

"No, why didn't anyone know? Anne knew! Sasha knew! Liv knew! You humans and your technology…!"

The doctor scratched his head. "Yeah. Good question."

Yunan looked at her in befuddlement. She looked between Anne and Marcy, "But...don't humans love their children?"

The doctor and the nurse looked shamed. "Humans? Yes. The United States? Absolutely not." The nurse murmured.

Yunan's eyes were wide with horror. "What?"

"We imprison kids in huge numbers," The nurse snarled, and the doctor held up a hand.

"Laws in the US regarding childcare are…not what I'd call progressive," Said the doctor.

"We're the only country in the world to sign but not ratify a declaration on the rights of children that the rest of the planet has," The nurse grumbled.

"That's enough, nurse," The doctor murmured, noting the newt's expressions.

Yunan reached down and put a hand on Lady Olivia's shoulder, "Give us a moment, surgeon."

"Of course."

They went out into the hall again. They took a seat on the nearby bench. Olivia had to hop up a bit and settled down. Yunan sat down and twiddled her thumbs for a moment. There was only the sound of the air conditioner for a long moment.

"We can't let her go back."

Yunan was taken aback. "What? Liv, we can't do that to her! Earth–"

Oliva narrowed her gaze, "I'm not talking about Earth, I'm not talking about the United States, I'm talking about her parents. We can't let them take her back. We are adopting that girl."

There was a long pause. Yunan nodded. She then blinked several times.

"'We'?" The general asked with a sly look.

Olivia flushed. "I…" She turned to the other newt, "Yunan, I…"

Yunan took her hand, "Liv, I'm not that dense. I know."

"K-Know what?" She flushed further, her skin darkening to a mixture of blue and purple. She was worse than a schoolgirl. She shouldn't be this flustered, this confused, this…this…this…! She blushed even further

Yunan smiled lopsidedly, "Oh my…you didn't figure it out? I thought…well, you did just ask to help me raise a kid."

"I…in my defense, I did figure it out when we started sharing a bed."

"I believe your words were 'only one bed'?" Yunan said with a smirk.

"Well…" She smiled a little mischievously and flushed a shade of maroon. "I rather did enjoy your embrace during our first escapade."

"So the newt of your dreams picks you up and your response is to say 'maybe we're just friends–" Olivia cut her off with a kiss. Yunan's eyes went wide, she turned beet red, then returned it, melting into the gesture as she embraced the smaller newt.