Happy 106th birthday Hazel! (Today June 24, 2012)

Edward's POV

June 24, 1912

I couldn't believe my little sister was six years old…the day she was born seemed like it was literally just yesterday. However, this year our birthdays weren't really celebrated much.

One of the major reasons was because our mother's sister Helen and her son Michael (our aunt and cousin) were aboard the RMS Titanic a ship that had crashed a little more than two months ago.

Aunt Helen was Mama's older sister and we'd only met her twice before…she was pretty nice but our cousin Michael was a lot of fun especially since he was a lot older than Hazel and me and knew a lot about the world.

I walked into my little sister's room and she was awake and writing a letter to our grandmother who was still in England...we had never met her before but sent her letters often.

Now that Hazel could write for herself she was able to send her own letters it was still pretty weird saying that.

"Good Morning Hazel, my six year old sister" I said and couldn't help smirking.

"Thank you Edward" Hazel muttered while looking deep in thought.

"What's wrong Hayz?" I asked sitting on the edge of her bed.

"Nothing, I just…"

"You feel bad for mama I know me too." I said and that startled me…for some reason I just knew exactly what my sister was thinking.

She sat up "how did you know what I was thinking?"

"I've no idea" I said and she shrugged seeming to believe my story (and I was telling the truth).

"We should do something special for mama" Hazel said abruptly.

"Like what?" I asked.

"Maybe we should make a memorial to Aunt Helen or something or perhaps light a candle in her memory on her birthday or we could ask mama if she ever needed to talk about Aunt Helen she could talk to us."

This all sounded so mature coming from Hazel I mean just before the whole Titanic thing she was just a normal little five year old and now she was sounding like an adult…I didn't even think I was mature enough to say something like that.

"I think that's a great idea Hayz, come on let's go" I said and picked her up much like I did when she was a baby.

"Eddie I'm six years old you can't hold me like this forever." She said again and then the reality hit me again.

It hit me that Hazel wasn't my baby sister anymore now she was my little sister…my young sister. Maybe it had been when she was four or five when it wasn't like this but now mentally she was older.

That night Hazel insisted that we take mama out to dinner to cheer her up. Mama felt bad since it was Hazel's birthday but Hazel said that she didn't need anything and clearly mama did. Mama just smiled at Hazel.

That was a good sign since Mama hadn't smiled in a long time.

Summer 1912

That summer was rather uneventful. I went to work as a paperboy, mama worked as a seamstress and sometimes she brought Hazel along. Hazel often worked with the other little girls. It wasn't really until August 19, 1912 that anything major happened.

Hazel's POV

August 19, 1912

It was a hot day and I was bored. I was a six year old girl, the youngest girl at the factory I wasn't really in the mood to sew stupid tags on the stupid clothes that read the name of the stupid company we were working for.

Even though papa provided our family with a lot mama found it necessary to work (not that I minded working). Working was fun as long as it wasn't stupid girly work.

I didn't understand why did being a boy or girl matter about what you couldn't or could do. Why was Edward allowed to wear pants and shorts and I had to wear skirts instead. Why was it that Edward was allowed to play after working and get all dirty but no I had to stay like a lady?

I didn't want to complain about it because that would be a bratty thing to do so I just kept my feelings to myself.

Once summer was done I would have to go into First grade and once again be in Mrs. Baudelaire's class boo! Unfortunately I was stuck in her class until I was in fourth grade when I would be moved to Mrs. Newberry's class. That class was for 4th, 5th and 6th graders.

So anyways I was sewing tags onto the shirts with my bare hands when mama said "Hazel could you switch with me and use the sewing machine…my hands are getting a little tired.

"Sure" I said and got up to sit with the other women and girls using the sewing machine. As I worked I wasn't really paying attention. Mostly I began to think about how my mother was a ghost pretty much after her sister's death.

My thoughts drifted to my life…everything that had happened I wondered if I would just stay ordinary Hazel Lucy Masen for the rest of my life. I felt utterly ordinary…like I wasn't meant to be a human but something more. It was strange.

As I became engrossed in my thoughts I didn't realize that the machine was still on. As the needle continued to go in and out of the clothing my finger got stuck in its path and sewed through my finger…literally through my finger.

At first I didn't really feel it until I saw it…then I was expecting to feel pain but…didn't. Suddenly as the injury began to register with my brain I felt it…it hurt…A LOT! I didn't scream or cry though surprisingly for me. I remained calm and like the idiot I was I thought that I could try and get it out myself.

That plan totally backfired on me. I pulled the needle out fast but a little too fast and the blood poured out of my finger. I realized that the needle had sliced right through my nail and I ran to put a towel on it.

"What are you doing!" a woman asked.

"Um nothing" I said and the woman grabbed the towel off of my hand.

"GO ON CLEAN UP! I'VE TOLD YOU TO BE MORE CAREFUL!" she screeched at me and I walked away much like a dog with her tail between her hind legs.

I walked away and went to go get my mother.

"HAZEL! What did you do!" she asked.

"I hurt my finger with the sewing machine. See?"

Mama's eyes widened "Come on we need to go home."

It was around six in the evening so Edward was home and papa wasn't. Mama carried me to the house and instructed me to get her a cauter from the cupboard and I had no idea what she was talking about so Edward got it.

"What happened Hayz?" he asked me.

"I cut my finger on the sewing machine." I answered shyly and he ruffled my hair.

"How did I not know?"

"Come sit Hazel" mama ordered me and I did. She was holding a small iron thing in her hand.

"What are you doing?" I asked in a scared voice.

"I need to cauterize your finger so the bleeding stops." Mama said.

"How do you know how to do it?" I asked nervously.

"I had some medical training in England as a doctor before I came here." Mama answered.

"Really?" I asked and she nodded.

I sat down in a chair in the kitchen and she took a compress and cleaned my finger off before starting.

I shut my eyes tight and looked away "Eddie I sit on your lap?" I asked.

"Sure" Edward said coming over and I buried my face in his shirt. By the time Mama was done Edward's shirt was soaked with my silent tears.

Mama put a bandage on my finger and told me to take it easy. Edward carried me to my room and we sat on my bed talking about school and stuff.

September 18, 1912

Today was my first day of first grade. In the morning I woke up and put my uniform on with Mama's help putting my hair in braided pigtails.

Edward walked me to my classroom since he was in the sixth grade class.

Next year he had the choice to either stay at Chicago Prep (our private school) or he could go to an even more expensive school called Washington Hills Prep which only really smart kids could go to (Edward was really smart). But I was sure he would stay in Chicago Prep.

"Hello Hazel, Good Morning!" Marilynn said excited to see me.

"Good Morning Marilynn how was your summer in New York?" I asked since Marilynn spent the summer with her grandmother.

"It was lovely was yours?" she asked.

"Well I cut my finger on a sewing machine if that counts" I said and Marilynn chuckled.

"That sounds so you" she said and I smiled.

Stupid Mrs. Baudelaire didn't even acknowledge me today. She said hello to everyone in the class except for me who she regarded as "tree." Only Hattie, Bessie, Nora, and Olive laughed.

There were two new kids named Chip and Anne who were cousins they seemed quiet, like me and didn't find it amusing when Mrs. Baudelaire tortured me.

January 19, 1913

Today was the worst day of Mrs. Baudelaire's torture so far. Today she made me wear the Dun, Dun, Dun…THE DUNCE CAP! And for no reason at all! She claimed that it was because quote "I was a horrible student and the worst little girl she had ever seen."

First she whipped my knuckles with the ruler which hurt and then she told me to sit in the corner and let Hattie place the dunce cap on my head while everyone laughed and threw kernels at me.

During the walk home with Edward he sensed something was wrong and I told him "Mrs. Baudelaire made me wear the dunce cap and had the entire class throw kernels at me."

I saw my brother's expression go mad…well madder than a normal eleven year old's face should look like.

"I'm going to seriously kill that woman!" he shouted and I grabbed his arm.

"No Edward its fine" I said.

"No it's not she can't just bully you like that" he said

"Well I'll just have to endure it until fourth grade." I said

"Yeah but Hazel that's not the point you shouldn't have to suffer" Edward said.

"I'm fine." I muttered.

"No you're not" Edward said and I forced myself to look down.

Edward picked my head up and kneeled down to my height "listen to me…if she does something like that ever again you tell me…do you understand? I mean if anyone gives you a hard time you tell me."

I nodded and just sighed.

Edward's POV

It sickened me to know that my little sister's teacher was treating her this way. Wasn't she the one who was supposed to make sure people weren't doing this sort of stuff?

I made my little sister a promise the day she was born…that I would protect her from anything that was threatening her. This was and she didn't even realize it. I was going to do something about it. Whether I liked it or not.

Well I was going to like teaching this bitch not to mess with my sister or she would get my full on rage.

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