Disclaimers: I do not own PLL or the characters. This includes the Lily and Grace. I do own Jonathan Dilaurentis-Fields and all other children.
Spoilers: None
Rating: T
Notes: This is a super long one! Set over a couple of months. I also tried to get their trip as realistic as possible. To do so, I checked each of the stops they make for snow, cold temperatures, etc. but they would have run into no bad weather so the drive would have straight through with only a few stops.
Here is the next chapter. This will be the last one except for chapter 10 which is the Epilogue. Thank you to everyone that has reviewed, favorited, and/or followed.
Enjoy! :)
Previously on Always Loved, Never Forgotten – Alternate Version
"Caleb, Hanna," Julia greets, standing up. "Thank you so much for coming on such short notice." She shakes their hand while they return the greeting.
"Are you two ready?" They nod. Julia turns towards the playground and calls out, "Kids, could you come over here, please?"
Hanna and Caleb watch as three kids, – what looks like two older, maybe teenage girls, and a toddler boy, – come running over.
The little boy, who couldn't possibly be older than three, runs straight over to Hanna and throws his tiny arms around her legs. He is about 3 inches taller than her knees. He looks up at her and she is taken aback by his striking forest green eyes and his curly red hair.
"Are you going to be my new mommy?"
Wednesday, November 21st, 2001
*Park*
Hanna feels like she can't breathe. She looks at this young boy and she has no idea what to say.
One of the older girls step forward and takes the boy's hand.
"Georgie, come over here and sit down." Georgie follows her over to the picnic table.
"I'm two years and three fourths old!" Georgie suddenly yells out and the oldest girl giggles.
"He tells everyone we meet that," She says. "He corrects you if you say he is only 2 years old." Then Harriet properly addresses Hanna and Caleb. "My name is Harriet Madeleine. I'm 16. This is my sister Eleanor Rosalie. She's 12, almost 13. And that is George Michael."
Eleanor gives a shy wave but for the most part, Hanna and Caleb both notice that she does not really have an expression on her face and she looks immensely uncomfortable sitting there, as if this is all overwhelming and she is unsure of how to act.
"Ellie," Harriet gently says to the younger. "It's ok. You can say hi to Miss Hanna and Mr. Caleb, if you want to." But Eleanor – Ellie – doesn't do anything.
Wanting to take the pressure off the young girl, Caleb smiles at Georgie. "Georgie, I see you have some awesome Batman shoes there," The toddler grins at the mention of his light-up Superhero shoes. "You know, I just so happen to love Batman, too. I think he is much cooler than Superman."
Georgie giggles. "I like Batman more den Superman! He's soo cooler." This prompts Georgie to get out of Harriet's lap and go over to one of the backpacks that is on the table.
"I gots colors and paper, Mr. Caleb. Do you wanna dwaw wif me?"
"Well, of course, I would!" Caleb helps him up onto the bench seat. "What kind of pictures do you have, Georgie?" While the toddler and Caleb are occupied, Hanna turns to Harriet and Eleanor.
"Harriet, I love your shirt. You look so pretty in that color." Harriet smiles as she glances down at her shirt. It's red and white striped, long-sleeve. She has on dark jeans and boots also, and her long, curly strawberry blonde hair is in a waterfall French braid.
While the two talk about everything having to do with fashion, and Caleb and Georgie are occupied with their Superhero coloring pages, Eleanor sits there looking around the park.
She is uncomfortable at the moment. She feels like Hanna and Caleb do not like her as much as they do her siblings. She's nervous, what if she says the wrong thing, and they decide they only want Harriet and Georgie? She's in that awkward stage between being a child and becoming a teenager, so what if they don't want to deal with a child and all the hormones that come with this age?
She wants so badly to speak. To tell Hanna that she enjoys fashion and clothes also, to tell Caleb that, while Georgie thinks Batman is better, she thinks Superman is the best. She wants to say to both Hanna and Caleb that she gets good grades, so they won't have to worry about her being a "trouble" student in school.
Watching her siblings interact with the couple, she wishes that the lump in her throat, the one that is preventing the words from coming out, would go away. She wishes that her hands were not shaky or sweaty. She wants so bad to be able to be a part of the conversations going on.
She wants to say how she is in the eighth grade, because she skipped the sixth grade. And how she is teaching Georgie to read, even though he is only two.
But she can't.
The anxious feeling won't go away. It prevents her from speaking, from telling Hanna and Caleb all these things. From asking Georgie if she can color also, from saying to Harriet and Hanna that she helped Harriet get dressed this morning because the older girl was so nervous for this meeting.
So, instead, Ellie just sits there and watches as her siblings interact with who could possibly be their "new" mom and dad.
*1 month later – December 12th*
Four weeks have gone by, and Hanna and Caleb could not be happier. After a home check, they were able to bring home Harriet, Eleanor, and Georgie the Saturday after meeting them in the park on Wednesday.
They have gone out and bought bunkbeds for Harri and Ellie's room, and a toddler bed for Georgie. Caleb, Toby, and Ezra painted the girls' room a purple color. It has a reading corner for Ellie and a big closet for her and Harri's clothes.
The walls are decorated in themes of their favorite Superheroes. They have a bookshelf of books, sketchpads, and pens for Ellie, and a stand for Harriet's guitar that she brought from the Children's Home she was last at.
Georgie's room is dark blue and black. Everything is Batman-themed, the walls, furniture, and bedsheets. He has an art corner, a reading corner, and even a Lego corner.
All of his new aunts and uncles have bought him new markers, crayons, coloring books, paper, pencils, Legos, books, stuffed animals, a play kitchen and food, a play center with pretend tools like hammers and a saw, and every other toddler boy toy.
They gave him a set of markers, crayons, and paper and pencils, along with one box of Legos, and the tool play center. The rest is put back for Christmas, which is only 13 days away.
Right now, the kids are just getting home from school. Georgie stays with Aria and Ezra during the week because Caleb and Hanna have decided to keep him out of school until he is three. Harriet is in the tenth grade and Eleanor in the seventh.
They ride the bus home, and as of right this minute, Georgie is eagerly looking out of the window in the living room, waiting for the bus to pull up.
The bus pulls up to the driveway and Georgie excitedly runs to the door where Caleb opens it for him. The toddler is already dressed in sweatpants, boots, a jacket, and a hat, as Hanna and Caleb have learned he loves to run out the door and meet his sisters in the driveway.
"Sissy Elle, Sissy Harri!" Georgie yells nearly tripping over his feet as he tumbles down the steps and the sidewalk. Harriet holds her arms out and he jumps into them.
"Bubba George!" She yells in the same tone of voice. "It's been too long, how are you, Dear Brother?"
"I good, Sissy Harri!" He reaches out for Ellie and the older girl takes him. "Hi, Sissy Elle!"
"Hello, Dear Brother," Ellie says. "It is so nice to see you again." Hanna and Caleb stand on the porch, watching their children interact.
The three come to the door.
"Hey, girls," Hanna greets. Caleb takes Georgie from Eleanor and lifts him up to his shoulders as they all go inside. "How was school?"
"It was great!" Harri says. "I'm done with all of my tests, and Ellie made an 89 on her math test!"
Hanna smiles at Ellie. The young girl is still shy and really only speaks to her sister and brother, although she does nod or shake her head to communicate with Hanna and Caleb. The two want to help as much as they can, so they are not pushing her to actually speak.
"That's so great, sweetie," Hanna tells her. "Why don't you three go wash up and then come to the kitchen? Caleb and I made cookies that you can decorate."
Georgie and Harri cheer while Eleanor smiles. The three go to wash up and come back to the kitchen and the next few hours are filled with discussions of Christmas break and decorating cookies.
*Dilaurentis-Fields Residence*
While Hanna and Caleb have spent the last three weeks getting Harriet, Eleanor, and Georgie settled, Alison and Emily have been working with Jon.
It's now been a month since being diagnosed. Jon is still sleeping in their bedroom, but he now sleeps on the mattress. He is doing so well on that part. He hasn't spent a night in their bed since the weekend of the next week after Thanksgiving.
They have been talking to him, explaining that he has something called Separation Anxiety Disorder. It does not mean something is wrong with him, just that they have a name for the way he has been feeling and acting the last few months.
They have worked with him, and shared the things they've learned with the girls, and Emily's mom and dad.
Alison and Emily have made up this idea where, each day, when they leave for work, they give Jon a hug, kiss, and tell him goodbye. Then, they hand him a heart made out of pieces of fabric being sewn together.
Whenever Jon is feeling anxious, he will squeeze the heart and remember the promise that Emily and Alison made to make sure they come home every day.
And no matter how much they want to promise, no matter how much they want to say of course, nothing will happen, we promise, they know they cannot do that.
They know that they can't do that because three months ago, Alison almost lost her life, they almost lost her. So they cannot just promise, without consequence, that they will, without a doubt, positively, come back home every day.
So, they use the heart. To remind Jon that they will try their best to come home. And if he misses them, all he needs to do, is squeeze the heart and he will feel ok.
At the end of the day, the heart will go into a jar, with the others. And soon, Jon will be able to just look at that jar, and remember all the times that Alison and Emily came home, just as they promised to try and do, and that everything was ok.
It's not an instant fix, they know. And he still has days where he needs to call them because the heart just doesn't do it. But they are making progress, slowly but surely, and they are happy with that.
Alison and Em hope that over Christmas break, they can get Jon to start sleeping in his bedroom. It has been three months since they have been alone, but even so, Jon is almost 10 years old and it just isn't good for him to continue sleeping in their room.
*Thursday*
Thursday morning, Emily lets Wesley in while Alison is in the kitchen getting the last minutes things together for Lily and Grace as she speaks to Pam.
"Hey, Wes!" Emily smiles at him. "Come on in, Jon is in the kitchen having breakfast." The two go in there. "Al, you ready, babe?"
Alison nods and goes over to Jon, bending down beside him. "All right, J-bug, Mama and I going to work now. You be good for Mr. Wesley, and work hard, okay? I love you, baby." Emily and Alison have already given him the heart for today.
"I love you, Mommy," Jon tells her. He stands and goes over to Emily, hugging her. "I love you, Mama. Have a good day at work! Bye, Grandma, bye Gracie, bye-bye, Lil!"
Later in the day, when the bad feelings creep up on him, Jon pulls out the heart from his pocket. It's blue and green today. He gives it a squeeze.
"Mommy and Mama promised to try and come home," He whispers to himself. "They are ok, they are not going to be hurt. Good away, you stupid bad feelings. I don't want to be anxious. I don't want to be worried. Mommy and Mama are ok, and they will come home at 3:30, just like every other day."
Wesley comes over then and smiles at him as he bends down beside Jon. "You doing all right?" He asks as he saw Jon get the heart out. "You tell that silly Worry Monster to go away?"
"Yes, Mr. Wesley," Jon nods. "I told it to leave me alone. Mommy and Mama are ok. They are not hurt. The Worry Monster needs to leave me alone."
"That's good, Jon." Wesley and Jon talk for a few more moments before Jon feels ok enough to put the heart back into his pocket, and the two go back to working.
:/:/:/:/:/:/:/:/:/:/:/:/:/:/:/:/
*Thursday, with Hanna & Caleb*
On Thursday, Hanna, and Caleb check Ellie and Harri out of school early. They have school officially until Friday, although most kids have not gone since yesterday, because that is when semester tests were finished. Ellie and Harri wanted to go to school just because, so Hanna and Caleb let them.
Besides, it wouldn't be a surprise if they have kept them home. And that surprise is, the girls and their families are going to drive to their hometown of Rosewood, Pennsylvania this year for Christmas, instead of flying.
Alison is still frightened of flying. She still has panic attacks and gets antsy and unnerved just thinking about going on plane, let alone actually being on one.
And it seems this has rubbed off on Jon as well, as he asked if they "really, really had to" fly out to see Grandma and Grandpa.
Emily explained that it might not be the best idea to fly to Rosewood this year. Everyone agreed and was ok with driving. They are a little worried about maybe running into some bad weather, so they are going to not go on any backroads.
All roads are going through states with towns that might have Inns, Bed & Breakfasts, or hotels/motels for them to stay at. They are brining plenty of cash for those scenarios, along with a few gifts for each child, like Legos, books to read, a few outfits to wear, etc.
They have also made up a "Surprise Bag" for each child. This will consist of the kids' favorite things. For example, Harriet and Eleanor both absolutely love to read, as well as doing crossword & word search puzzles.
Harriet has two news books, while Ellie has one, and they each have a Mega-sized book of crossword & word searches their bags. Ellie also has a new sketchbook & pens in her bag.
Georgie, however, was harder to pick for. He loves drawing, but he also loves Legos. He loves looking at storybooks but he also loves doing word searches with Harriet.
So, everyone pitched in and got him a little bit of everything. The smallest box of Legos available, a new Superhero coloring book, some Batman crayons, stickers, a kid version of a word search, and three storybooks.
Hanna and Caleb got Harriet a new Nintendo, and also bought Georgie one. The Nintendos, boxes of Legos, clothes, etc. will be opened in Rosewood, if they end up getting there in time. Otherwise, they'll be open wherever the families get stuck.
:/:/:/:/:/:/:/:/:/:/:/:/:/:/
For the Montgomery-Fitzes, Ezra and Aria had an easier time picking out Harper and Finley's Surprise Bags. Harper loves photography. And she loves black and white movies. She loves reading, and doing crossword puzzles with Ezra.
So, her bag consists of three cameras, the old ones that have film and each only about 15 or so picture spaces. She'll love taking pictures of everyone and everything. They also got her two Mega-sized crossword puzzles. She'll probably have half the first one finished, by the time they can leave, if and wherever they get stuck.
Of course, you can't forget that, even though Harper is 12 years old, she is still a kid at heart. She loves coloring, especially with Finn and Georgie. So, a pad of paper, an "older kid" coloring book, markers, colored pencils, and crayons, are also in her bag.
Finley is the average 4-year-old little boy. Superheroes, coloring/drawing, action figures, building blocks, etc. In his bag, once again, are Superman crayons and a Superhero-themed coloring book, a book of letters and numbers that he can trace, a box of Legos, and three action figures.
:/:/:/:/:/:/:/:/:/:/:/:/:/:/
Alison and Emily were the easiest out of the bunch. Jon loves his videos games and he loves Legos. He's not really into coloring or drawing, but he does enjoy reading.
Other people may be against how much it seems Ali and Em "encourage" Jon to be on his Nintendo or playing his video games. Jon's bag consists of two new games for his Nintendo, a new video game, two books to read, and a jump rope, silly putty, a stress ball, and two packages of play-doh.
Jon has ADHD-Inattentive Type, as well, which means he has trouble with focusing or paying attention. Movement, with his body or hands, help keeps him calm and get out all the extra energy. That is why he has the jump rope and other items.
Lily and Grace are only 5 months old. They don't get a Surprise Bag, however, they will be in their playpens if the families have to stop anywhere, so they will get teething toys, and a couple of blankets with tabs on the ends, which can be used as a teething object.
Gracie will get a baby doll, and Lily will get two stuffed animals. They will also get a new rattle toys, a stacking toy, to share, and a shape-sorter bucket.
*Around 2 p.m., Thursday*
"Okay, sounds good. We're loading up here and then we'll meet you over there." Hanna hangs up the phone and looks at Caleb. "Em said she and Ali have just finished packing the twins' diaper bags, Jon is packing up his video games, and then they'll load up and head to the meeting spot."
"Sounds good," Caleb starts a pot of coffee and also a tea kettle of water, so he and Hanna can have coffee to-go, while the kids get travel mugs of hot chocolate.
"Have you told the girls they needed to pack?" He asks. They have decided last minute to tell Harriet and Ellie what their plans are – to drive across the U.S., to Pennsylvania, where they will meet Hanna, and the other girls', parents.
They decided to do this because they did not want Ellie to be caught off guard. The poor girl is still so shy and scared, that if they sprung meeting a whole bunch of new people on her, then it would make her anxiety skyrocket.
"Yes, Ellie is helping Georgie pack and I think Harri is checking to make sure they have all their games and toys." Hanna sighs as she glances out of the kitchen window.
"I just hope we don't run into any bad weather on the way." She says. "I really would like Mom and Dad to meet the kids."
Caleb comes up behind her. He wraps his arms around her waist, resting his chin on her shoulder.
"Well, at least if we do, then we will all be together," He reassures her. "I checked the weather for the next couple of states and it should be clear. Once we get to a hotel, we can check it for the states will be driving through next, and just continue doing that until we either hit bad weather, or we arrive in Rosewood."
Hanna nods. It sounds like a decent plan. One that, hopefully, will work to their advantage.
The tea kettle goes off and Hanna makes the kids' hot chocolates while Caleb pours coffee into two travel mugs. Then, they call the kids downstairs and start loading up the bags.
Everyone shows up at the meeting spot – a mutual friend's house. Emily and Alison decide to ride with Hanna and Caleb because Georgie wants to ride with Finn and the twins in Spencer and Toby's vehicle while the older kids are with Ezra and Aria.
Emily and Alison are sure to tell Jon how proud they are of him, choosing to go with is cousins in a vehicle that does not have his moms in it.
*Approximately 24 hours later – Denver Colorado*
With 5 hours taking up food and bathroom breaks, a stop at a park, and some sight-seeing, staying in a hotel overnight (9 hours), and driving the remaining 10 hours, the families arrive in Denver, Colorado exactly 24 hours after leaving their home.
They left at 3 in the afternoon on Thursday and it is now 3 in the afternoon on Friday. They did pretty good. Getting in just over 1,000 miles in one day, especially considering they have a 4-year-old, a toddler, two babies, three teenagers, and a 9-year-old in the cars with them.
Now, they are stopping for just a few hours. Long enough for Georgie, Finn, Lily, and Grace to get in a nap along with a few of the adults. They find a nice Bed & Breakfast, explain that only want two rooms for a few hours, and receive them at a reduced rate.
The owners are a nice older couple, who gush over the kids. They adore Lily and Grace, and are absolutely smitten with Finn and Georgie. They love Harper and Ellie, who are so good with the little kids, and comment on how polite Harriet is and how well-behaved Jon is being.
Emily takes a nap along with Caleb, Aria, and Spencer, while Alison, Toby, Ezra, and Hanna take Harri, Ellie, Harper, and Jon out to sight see a little.
They stop at a McDonald's to let Jon get some of his extra energy out, because even though he has ADHD–Inattentive Type, which means he has trouble focusing, starting and finishing projects, and waiting patiently, he still has extra energy that will turn into impulsive decisions if he cannot run around for an hour or so.
The families eat dinner at 6 p.m. at the Bed & Breakfast, then load up and head out by 7:30. They drive for 12 hours and end up in Jefferson City, Missouri. They stop to get breakfast and for bathroom breaks.
Another three hours and they find a rest stop for the kids, minus Lily and Grace, to burn some energy. They do jump rope, hopscotch, and tag before they get back on the road.
:/:/:/:/:/:/:/:/:/:/:/:/:/:/
It is not until they enter Indianapolis, Indiana, that they, or, moreso, Ezra and Aria run into trouble.
Ezra and Aria have the older kids with them still – Jon, Harper, Ellie, and Harriet. Ezra is driving while Aria and the kids jam out to the radio; even Ellie has opened up to singing.
Everything is fine until…
BAM!
The kids all let out a scream. The car swerves and Ezra jerks the steering wheel to the right running into weeds and grass and gravel.
"Fuck!" Ezra lets out once everything is calmed. Caleb and Hanna are three cars behind them and pull over when they see the Montgomery-Fitz' car. Spencer and Toby do a U-turn and come over also, because they were ahead.
Once their hearts no longer feel like they are going jump out of their chests and run away, Ezra climbs out of the car and takes a look.
Their rear-right tire is blown out.
The kids all pile out with Aria.
"Everything ok?" Toby calls out as he comes over. Emily and Ali get out of Hanna and Caleb's car and one goes to make sure Jon is ok while the other goes to sit with the younger kids in the Cavanaugh van.
A tiny voice calls out, "Mommy!" and Aria turns to see Finn coming over.
"Hey, Mister Man. What are you doing?"
"What happened, Mommy?"
"Our car just has a bad tire, is all," Ezra answers instead of Aria. "No problem. Uncle Toby is going to help me change the tire and then we'll be back on the road in no time."
Finley nods, satisfied with that answer. He gets a hug and kiss from his daddy and then Aria takes him back to his car seat.
The older kids are told to get out of the car while the tire is being changed and to go sit in the Rivers' car. Harri and Jon go while Harper decides to go over to her mom and brother instead, and Georgie is let out to go and see his sisters and Hanna and Caleb.
Ellie, in a moment of confidence, goes over to who her siblings have been calling "Uncle" Toby and "Uncle" Ezra.
The young girl taps Toby on the arm. Ezra is getting the spare tire out so Toby turns around and smiles at Ellie.
"Hi, Ellie. Is everything all right?"
Ellie nods. She takes a deep breath and, for the first time to anyone other than her sister and brother, says,
"Can I help with the tire?"
Showing only slight surprise, Toby nods. He isn't sure how much the younger girl would know about changing a tire, but he does know that this is the first time Ellie has spoken to anyone other than her siblings, and he sure as hell is not going to discourage her.
"Absolutely." He tells her getting a smile in return. "Do you know about how to change a tire, or would you like me to show you and walk you through it?"
Ellie sighs gently. "I know that you have to use a jack," She answers. "And that you have to use a drill thingy to put the bolts in."
"Well, you have it just about figured out. How about you go and get the jack and I will help you put it under the car. Once we have the car raised, Mr. Ezra will put the tire on, and you can help drill the bolts on."
Ellie does just that, and with her help, it only takes about ten minutes for the tire to be changed.
Hanna and Caleb watch from their car as their foster daughter interacts with their best friends.
They could not be more proud of her, and they tell her exactly that once everyone is situated again. Ellie smiles and hugs Hanna while Caleb gives her a kiss on the forehead.
Maybe this new family will be The One, she thinks as she sees Caleb pick up Georgie, and "flies" him back to Spencer and Toby's car and into his car seat, the toddler giggling the whole entire time.
:/:/:/:/:/:/:/:/:/:/:/:/:/:/:/
The rest of the drive is without incident. They make plenty of stops for food and bathrooms breaks, a little sightseeing, and for Jon, Georgie, and Finn to run off their energy.
They make it to Rosewood with a few days to spare and, of course, the parents are absolutely thrilled to see Harriet, Ellie, and Georgie. Pam and Wayne are already there as they had flown in on Thursday.
This is the first time George will experience a real Christmas with a tree, lights, cookies, songs, presents, snow, and Santa Clause.
Harriet and Eleanor have distant memories of being at home with their parents, 6 and 8 years old, but to see their baby brother who is nearly three and only knows of Santa because his big sisters and cousins told him in the last month, well, this is memory they most definitely will never forget.
*Christmas Morning 2001*
*pitter-patter*
"Mommy! Daddy!" The voice of a toddler, one that is finally in a home, with a family call his own.
He gets out of the bed he was sharing with Jon. He runs down the hallway and checks the rooms as he goes. Alison and Emily with Lily and Grace. Harper, Ellie, and Harri. Spencer and Toby in with Hanna and Caleb.
"Mommy! Daddy! Wake up – it's Chwiss'mass!"
Hanna groans as Georgie's voice registers with her brain.
But it's not only his voice.
It's what he is saying.
Mommy.
Daddy.
He hasn't called them yet. Just Hanna and Caleb.
"Mommy!" She smiles as her son whisper-yells this time. He comes over and taps her arm. She opens her eyes and sees Georgie, all 2 and ¾ of this little boy who is dressed in red footy pajamas and has his stuffed bear in his arms.
"Mommy, it's Chwiss'mass!" He repeats.
"Is it?" Sitting up, Hanna lets Georgie crawl into bed with her and Caleb, who is now waking up also.
"Daddy! It's Chwiss'mass!" The toddler reaches for his father and Caleb, in his just-woke-up confused state, takes his son into his hands. Looking at Hanna, he confirms what he just heard by the tears rolling down her face.
"Yes," He turns his attention to George. "Yes, it is Christmas. Let's go downstairs and see what Santa left, shall we?"
They leave Spencer and Toby alone in the other bed. Spencer is 4 months pregnant and the drive over the last few days has worn her out.
Downstairs, of course, Ellie and Harri are up with Jon and Finn. Harper is nowhere to be seen, so they guess she is still asleep.
George is let down when he sees his sisters. He runs over to them. "Mer-we Chwiss'mass, Sissy Elle! Mer-we Chwiss'mass, Sissy Harri!"
The kids look in their stockings but not anything else because Hanna and Caleb want to wait for the other parents and grandparents to get up.
About 9 in the morning, the kids all get to open their presents.
Everyone agrees to let Georgie go first, because he is the youngest one that can open his own gifts.
"Woah! Batman 'jamas!" He holds up a shirt and matching pants. "Oooh and socks! Sissy Elle, look at my socks!"
This goes on for a while until he has opens everything. Toys, clothes, books, art supplies, tracing workbooks, because he started learning how to write while with Ezra and Aria, and every other item a toddler would get for their "first" Christmas.
Once he has finished, Hanna and Caleb tell Ellie, Harriet, and Georgie to open up the presents for them that are similar in size.
"Woah, a new Nintendo! Thanks, Miss Hanna, thank you, Mr. Caleb!" Harriet tells them in complete awe. She really wasn't expecting much. She is 16 now, and usually does not get many "toys" for presents, just clothes and bathroom products.
"You're welcome, sweetheart," Hanna tells her, happy to see her smiling and wanting her to know that they don't think she needs to not be a "kid" just because she is 16.
Georgie opens his present next. It is something the toddler never thought he would get, but also something he really wanted.
"Sissy Harri, look!" He shows her his very own Nintendo. "It's a Bee-teno, like yours!"
Harriet and Ellie grin at his mispronunciation.
"You mean a Nintendo, Bubba," Harriet tells him while trying not to laugh.
"Dat's what I said!" Georgie huffs. Harriet just smiles once more and ruffles his hair.
Finally, Ellie opens her own present. She's in shock at what she finds. When Hanna and Caleb had talked to Harriet about whether she thought Georgie was old enough for a Nintendo, and had talked to Ellie about whether she wanted a new one as well, Ellie had wrote them a note.
She did so because she was just too overwhelmed and couldn't actually speak to them. So, in the note, she wrote how she liked her old Nintendo, and she would be happy with simply a new case and maybe a new game.
She pulls everything out. A new carrying case, three new games, extra stylists, a new charger. More than what she asked, but exactly what she really wanted, and was just unable to ask for.
She didn't feel as if she had a right to ask for some many things, seeing as they had been with Hanna and Caleb for only a few weeks.
She smiles at them and leans over to Harriet. Harriet then translate what she has said. "Ellie wants to know she is very thankful. It's all exactly what she wanted."
Caleb smiles gently at the younger girl. "You're welcome, Ellie. I hope we got the right games? If not, we go back and you can pick the one you would like out, okay?" he says this gently, to let her know they are not pressuring her to feel one way or the other, and if she genuinely does not like the games she received, they can go and exchange them.
But Harriet glances at the three game boxes and sees that they are exactly the ones that Ellie had stared longingly at, every time the three siblings passed by a store that had Nintendos and their games on display in a window.
"Oh, no, Mr. Caleb," She smiles at her little sister. "These are exactly the ones Ellie has wanted. You and Ms. Hanna did a perfect job picking them out."
:/:/:/:/:/:/:/:/:/:/:/:/:/:/:/:/
After a little bit longer, Hanna and Caleb share a look.
They have a present for their kids, but specifically for Eleanor and Harriet, because they are the ones who can read.
"Harriet, Elle," Hanna says. "Caleb and I have something for you guys and Georgie."
Hearing this, Georgie runs over and plops down into his oldest sister's lap.
Caleb leaves and comes back a moment later with a very flat and about 8-inch long wrapped present.
He hands it to Harriet.
"Oooh, what iz'it, what iz'it?" Georgie asks while bouncing up and down excitedly.
Harriet opens it and slides papers out of a folder. She scans over it with Ellie doing the same from beside her, and then gasps as tears fill her eyes.
Adoption papers.
Georgie looks at them. He is only 2 and ¾ years old, but he knows these are special papers. Because kids who get these papers?
They leave the Children's Home and don't ever come back.
Eleanor jumps up before anyone can move or do anything else and runs over to Caleb, throwing her arms around him, around her father. "Does this mean I get to call you 'Papa'?"
Caleb feels the breath be knocked out of him as he hears these words, spoken for the first time, to him, by the little girl who, before now, was too overwhelmed to speak in his or Hanna's presence.
"Yes," Finally his voice is working and he has to struggle to keep it from breaking. "Yes, sweetheart, I would love to be your Papa."
And here it is! Longest chapter yet. What did you think? Jon is making progress with is Separation Anxiety, Hanna and Caleb are adopting Harriet, Ellie, and Georgie, and Ellie spoke for the first time to Hanna and Caleb!
I am not sure when I will post the Epilogue. It depends on what you guys want. I may do it in a few weeks to a month, or I will wait until 9/11 this year and post it as a "one year later" type thing.
Just let me know what you all want. And please do review! I've been getting once review on each chapter (thank you, btw, to Boris Yeltsin for reviewing each chapter). But I would love to know what everyone else is thinking! :)