Moon did a camera patrol and marked it down. Management probably wouldn't get testy with him over not doing it when a sleepover was scheduled, even if the people had scheduled it at the last minute. Moon didn't care either way. He wasn't leaving Harriette alone, not when she'd specifically requested him not to. Even if she hadn't been cradled in his arms.
five o'clock rolled around and the daycare was open for the day. Though most kids didn't enter till later. Moon gently as he could woke Harriette, settling her down in his lap and helping her stay up right while she rubbed sleep grit from her eyes. She looked up at him with a sleepy expression, then gave him a sleepy little smile.
"G'mowin Misser Moon," Harriette said sleepily, letting out a tired little yawn, and a stretch. She looked like a little kitten.
"Morning, little one, time for breakfast," Moon said. Harriette perked up, eyes widening.
"I'm allowed breakfast? Now?" She sounded so amazed, and wonder struck. Moon's heart broke again.
"Yes," Moon said, lifting the girl up with him as he stood. "Breakfast, the daycare is open, Mayla and Emelia will be here soon, and they can eat with you if you want?" Harriette nodded excitedly.
"Wanna get dressed first then?" Moon asked. Harriette looked down.
"I don't really want to put on my dirty clothes," Harriette said, nose wrinkling.
"Hmm, well Mrs. Raywood will be bringing clean clothes from home," Moon said. "So, they, ah, they just clocked in. Mayla and Emelia will brush their teeth here too.. So that covers all the morning basics." Harriette yawned again, and laid her head against Moon's shoulder.
"Mm'hmm," the little girl said. "When they get here?"
"Soon, they'll be here any minute now," Moon said, booping the girl's nose causing her to look at him in sleepy surprise. It was too f'ing cute.
"Moony!" Emelia called, from the area next to the top part of the entrance slide. "Harriette!" the girl shrieked. Adrianna was settling into her area and chatting with Emelia's parents and Mayla's grandparents. Mayla waved, and the two girls made their way down the slide.
"Hi. I got a call from my dad. Can you believe it? He called me on his own. I mean he was just making sure I was happy here, but still HE called me," Mayla said as she sat next to the others for breakfast. Harriette tilted her head.
"Yeah! It's so cool that you got to talk to your dad, and even better that he called you on his own!" Emelia chattered. Harriette tilted her head the other way. Then made an oh with her mouth seemingly catching up to the conversation. So, cute. Moon was a little worried about the way an absent father might affect Mayla growing up, but she did have a good support network.
"I know, right!" Mayla said, gleefully. "He never remembers to call me on his own, Granny Nova or Bram-Paw have to remind him, but he remembered on his own!" She wiggled like a gleeful puppy and Moon almost laughed at the cute display. "He's always busy, but when he does call he tells me he loves me all the time! So, he must love me lots!" Mayla insisted though some of her enthusiasm died.
"If someone doesn't love you that says more about them then it does about you," Moon said, brushing another strand of Harriette's fine hair into his attempt at a french braid. He doesn't want Mayla's self worth tied to someone who won't even get to know her properly, and he didn't want Harriette's self worth tied to people who clearly weren't worth loving. So, it was an easy thing to say. He brushed another strand in, finishing the braid with a carefully bowed ribbon.
"Done," Moon said. Harriette felt the braids carefully, before turning to grin as Moon.
"Thanks Mr. Moon," she said.
"You are very welcome," Moon said, smiling. Mayla and Emelia had still be chatting about Mayla's parents, and Emelia's night, like they were holding two conversations at once. But it seemed this caught their attention.
"Your hairs so cute now," Mayla said. "Why were you here so early? Did your relatives forget you? Do you want me to bite them?" Harriette shook her head, eyes wide.
"Harriette's family won some daycare sleepover passes," Moon stated. "So, she'll be staying here for the next three nights." Harriette looked back at him eyes wide with joy and worry and some other emotions too old and ragged to name. Nova and Bram rubbed their noses, but said nothing. The older wolves could smell a lie but understood why one would lie.
"That's nice," Mayla said. "You won't have to go back to your awful, awful relatives." Harriette turned to look at her, trying to decide how to best defend her relatives.
"Hey, they at least kept me," Harriette said.
"That is too close to a lie sweet pup, it tickles my nose," said Bram as he looked at her, a loving smile on his face.
"Lies tickle your nose?" Harriette said. "But I'm not lying, it's true." Harriette pouted. "They- they didn't have to keep me, and they have to pay a lot of money to keep me 'cause of-of special laws." Harriette tried to explain without revealing she was a freak. She couldn't risk it. "I mean, they even let me go to school and come here." Harriette said.
"That is a lie, there are no laws that make it so anyone has to pay to keep a child. In Fact they could app…I am not going to even finish that. Moon I'll be back. I need to figure something out," Bram said, still smiling.
"If anything they were trying to make it more expensive to not have children, even though it cost a lot to just exist anyway. But there are lots of programs that help people with children."
"Really?" Harriette said. "They probably don't let kids like me in." Harriette said, so softly she probably thought no one could hear her.
Bram followed the scent that Harriette carried on her to his first target. The woman was with her son. Another six year old child. He wore clean clothes, was a little overweight, and perfectly clean. Unlike the little girl who he'd first met in the daycare. She was so young, and as skittish as a dear. She'd burst into tears at the slightest provocation, yet she was so kind. She deserved better, and the fact that she wasn't getting it while they clearly favored this boy. It didn't matter who's child was who's. They'd taken her in, they chose to keep her with them and deny her the ability to go to a more loving home, trapped her. He couldn't stand for it, he wouldn't stand for it. That's why he was going to confront her. The woman was Harriette's Aunt, the child of this woman's sister blood. How could she allow-?
"Do you think Harriette would like this?" the woman asked.
"Harriette likes drawing and Puzzles more," the boy said. Bram Froze. Why were they talking about Harriette? What were their reasons? Bram decided to use his strong hearing to eavesdrop.
"Oh," the woman said. "That's good." The woman said, examining the shelves. She had one of those purchasable bags for shopping. "What snacks do you think Harriette would like?"
"She'll eat anything," Dudley said. "I once saw her eating bugs." He sounded both grossed out, but equally concerned. "Do you think we can sneak it into her cupboard without Dad knowing."
"We'll have to claim it's for you," Petunia said. "But I think we can manage."
"Those are too sweet," Dudley said. "Fruit is the sweetest thing Harriette can stomach usually."
"She might like dark chocolate?" Petunia asked. Dudley shrugged.
"She likes all kinds of chocolate." Bram said, kindly.
The woman flinched, moving away from Bram while still tucking the boy behind her. She looked between him and other things, before her shoulders drooped in relief.
"I-I gu-guess you work in the- in the daycare," She looked like a frightened bird. She was tall, but bony, too thin, a fish could swim in her collar bones. She turned to her son and fiddled with his hair before, like she was assuring herself he was there and fine, before turning back to the shelf. "Tha-thank you," Petunia said. "She's uh- she's an a- especially diff-"
"She is a lovely, kind, caring, hurt,and frightened child
The woman looked at him with tears brimming in her eyes, which darted around from place to place before meeting Bram's eyes. A tear leaked out, and she looked away sharply. Brushing it away roughly.
"Oh, it's not that- she's just she gets sick easily and she's-" her eyes were darting around like she was sure she was being watched. "C'mon we have to go!" She made her way out of the store, a scared rabbit. Not of Bram though, of someone else, she didn't look to Bram once except to wave a tentative good-bye. Someone else it seems was responsible for the stress Harriette was under, and it seemed she wasn't the only one.
Bram walked toward the man who was hurting one of his grand kids. In short he was on the war path and a fat necked man was his target. The less important pack member saw him and waved him over.
"Here comes the head of this branch of the company now. This is Bram Raywood, Sir these are the people with the drill company," David said, he was a short man in his late 20s, and while taller than the Veron and his boss, looked almost like a child next to the tall man walking quite quickly to the table.