Most people think of a court as a big room with a judge and a suspect, only to lead to certain drama. And this was, naturally, what Ivan had expected when Katyusha mentioned court.

Oh, but this, was much different from what he had first expected.

No, court, in the department of child support, was much different. It was simply a conference room where divorced parents and their attorney settled things such as monthly pay. There wasn't even a judge involved, unless two couldn't agree on a reasonable amount of money. And, thankfully, this wasn't Ivan's case.

But why was he even here?

See, money had been running tightly in the Braginsky household, and the three were struggling to make ends meet. Katyusha was just a college student who carried Ivan and Natalia's title of Legal Guardian, but still being an undergraduate the state would only pay her so much, and student loans would only get her so far. She'd been trying to make things better for weeks now, and Ivan genuinely felt bad for his sister. She did so much to make sure Ivan and his younger sister were taken care of.

She deserved much more than she received, he thought.

But this wasn't the first time Ivan had been here. He was practically on first-name basis with everyone who worked in the child support office, and even a few employees from other departments of the DHS office. It was a rather hectic place to be in Ivan's opinion, though he'd heard from attorneys that the child support department wasn't as chaotic as some other segments of the entire office. He'd been told he was lucky to only be in a minor situation like this, and at least Katyusha couldn't have her custody of Ivan and Natalia taken away since she wasn't abusive in any way, and none of their other relatives were American citizens. He was told that they were just hitting a rough patch, and that thing would get better over time. They'd reassured him that they were going to do everything they could to help their situation, but it still didn't make the Russian feel any better. If anything it made him feel worse, thinking he didn't have the right to sulk around because he knew someone had it worse off.

But sadly, that was how just one of the many systems of DHS seemed to roll, and unfortunately Ivan was a new addition. The Russian sighed and spun himself around in the desk chair of the conference room, fixing his eyes on the engraved glass doors of the courtroom. Tuning out the voices of his older sister and their attorney, Ivan stared out the door, watching numerous people pass by and disappear into many rooms and cubicles that sat just beyond the crystal-clear door.

His mind seemed to go numb until a familiar looking mop of white hair caught his eye, and looking over the boy's rather thin figure and choice of clothing, Ivan concluded it to be someone he knew. Ah, what was his name again? So much had been on his mind lately he could barely remember. But his name came to Ivan's mind immediately as their eyes met for a brief second, before the albino boy scowled ever-so-slightly and whipped his head away.

What's his problem? It's like he hates me or something, but he does act that way toward everyone… Ivan thought, watching as Gilbert and another, older-looking girl vanished behind a clouded glass door labeled Child Welfare.

Wait, what? Why did he go in there? Why is he even here? Ivan continued to wonder about the boy, no longer paying attention to whatever was going on in court.

Maybe he's got more than just an anger issue, I guess. Why am I even wondering about this? I barely know his name and it's none of my business anyway. The Russian shook his head, sighing and focusing elsewhere outside the door.

XxxX

Elizabeta pulled into the crowded parking lot of the office, turning the key out of ignition and leaning back in the car seat. Gilbert stretched and practically rolled out of the car, leaning against the front while he waited for Elizabeta to "escort" him inside.

"Home, sweet home." Gilbert remarked rather sarcastically, rolling his eyes as he pushed open the doors to the office. Elizabeta hit him gently upside the head, laughing.

"C'mon Gil, don't be like that! I worked hard to get you that phone, and this is how you treat me?" She mock-whined, waltzing in front of him.

"Well, I still have to charge the thing." He retorted, not even trying to keep up with her upbeat gait.

"I know, but I'd be excited to get a new phone whether it was charged or not." Elizabeta shrugged, practically dancing down the aisles of cubicles and doors. Gilbert only rolled his eyes, until he caught a glimpse inside on of the child support courtrooms.

Ivan.

Why the hell was he here, of all places? Gilbert quickly looked away, resuming his conversation with Elizabeta.

"I guess, but I can't really use a phone that's dead."

"Sure you can! I mean, you can show it off to people."

The German gave a falsely frustrated sigh. "You know I'm not that kind of person."

"Uh-huh, sure. I know you, Gil, you're plenty a show off—"

"Yeah, and like you're not." He interrupted, trying to conceal a laugh.

"Hey! I never said I wasn't! And for the record, I'm actually a modest person!"

"Uh-huh, sure." Gilbert retorted sarcastically, imitating her earlier words.

Elizabeta sighed, opening the door and shoving him into her office. Gilbert stumbled in, looking over his shoulder.

"Rude!"

She only scoffed, sitting in her desk chair. Gilbert himself sat across from her in his own chair, spinning himself around. He stopped to face her, crossing his arms.

"So why am I here, exactly?" He asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Besides the phone and Lud, and everything."

"I just want to know how you're settling in lately. I know it's hard for you to move all the time, especially with school starting up. Do you like it here?" Elizabeta asked, her joking tone melting away with her words.

Gilbert paused for a moment, shrugging. "I dunno. I mean, the place is nice and everything. School is okay too, I mean I don't have any friends but I'm not being bullied or anything like that." He admitted, sitting up a little straighter in the chair.

"My foster parent's okay. He's always off on business for whatever job he has and if he is home he usually leaves me alone, which I don't mind. Not the most heartwarming person, but I'm sixteen, not five. I can take care of myself."

Elizabeta was silent for a moment, as if contemplating everything he'd just told her.

"Look, Gil, I'm not saying you can't take care of yourself. And as much as I'd love to put you in an independent living program, that's not much of an option right now, and you know it. We've been through this more than once. You are sixteen, but you're only sixteen, so you're barely old enough to be in the program. And besides, until we can get those felonies cleared from your record, the state's not going to pay you enough to support yourself without a job. And between school and what's still on your record, you're not going to be able to get a job. It's just how the system works."

"Than fuck the system!" Gilbert bit his lip, rolling his eyes.

"Language, Gilbert Beilschmidt. These walls are thin as paper and I'm not about to get in trouble with my boss again." She scolded, shaking her head.

"Yeah, but I honestly don't understand why I'm the one who can't be upset about this. I was framed for most of those felonies anyway, and I bet the judge knew that too. But everyone blames it on the foster kid. The judge even said it, that the older they get the worse they become. So I don't understand why I'm not allowed to accept the fact that nobody actually wants to adopt me. They want the young kids so they can spend more time with them, but me? Hell, two years and I'll be an adult. Two years and I'll be totally out of the system. So—"

"Your brother got adopted, and he's only three years younger than you."

"And so, what does that make him now, thirteen, fourteen? He's still plenty young, Liz. And he was only ten when they adopted him. Besides, do you really think someone will adopt now? So I don't get why I can just get into independent living and get all this shit over with." Gilbert finished, leaning back in his chair and spinning so his back was turned to Elizabeta.

She paused for a long moment, sighing. "Gil, you're a great kid, and it makes me sad that not very many people can see that. It makes me sad that you can't see that. But I'm not just going to give up on you. You're like a little brother to me, not just another client. And someone is bound to make a an effort to get to know you, but you're going to have to learn how to let them in. It'll get you a lot farther in life." She paused for another short moment, thinking of other things to say.

"I'll tell you what. If no one has taken you by the time you're eighteen, than me and Rod will talk about letting you in our family. I'd gladly take you in, but more as an older sister, and you can live by yourself if you want to. Alright? But you have to promise me that you'll make an effort these next two years." She finished, waiting for his response.

Gilbert looked over his shoulder before spinning back around in the office chair, biting his lip once more.

"Sorry, Liz. But you've got yourself a deal." He answered after a moment, giving her a light smile.

She returned the smile. "Great. Also, I was wondering if you'd like to stay with me and Rod tonight, we're fostering a little girl named Lily and I think you'd like to meet her. She's quite new to the system, and until we can get Lily and her brother reunited, we'll be taking care of her." Eliza explained, shrugging slightly.

"She's almost eight, but I think you two would get along well."

"Yeah, I wouldn't mind staying with you guys. I'd like to meet her, though, I really would."

XxxX

How long had they been here? Ivan couldn't decipher the amount of time they'd spent in this court room. He didn't understand why he had to come with Katyusha to these meetings, what was the point? He was rarely a part of court any time he came. What was he supposed to be, a witness? Maybe that was it, but he still hated to sit around and do nothing for a few hours.

It was only when his older sister ruffled his hair that he snapped out of his daze, looking to her as he motioned her to follow him.

They were leaving, finally.

Smiling, Ivan got up from the office chair and eagerly followed his two sisters.

"How'd it go?" He asked Katyusha, as they passed by that child welfare office. He could see Gilbert and the other girl talking, but what about?

It wasn't his business anyway, so he pushed the thought away.

"Were you even paying attention? Typical you." Katyusha giggled.

"But it did go well! The state upped my pay, and since I found a better job the independent living program is helping me pay for college." She explained, pushing the door of the office open.

"Hopefully things won't be as tight as they were, but we're still on a budget." Katyusha sighed, fishing her Keys from her pocket.

"But aren't a lot of people? Things will surely get better soon."

Hopefully so," Ivan agreed, looking back at the office once more.

"Hopefully so."

Hey you guys! Sorry for the really late chapter update. I've recently started another story (the chapter should be up later today), and I would really appreciate it if you all would check it out sometime! You can also get updates and sneak peaks of my fanfiction on my tumblr (icecream-you-scream). Summer's well underway so get ready to see a lot of updates, since I don't usually do much during the summer. Constructive criticism is always welcome, and I hope you like the story so far!