𝚂𝙿𝚈 𝚡 𝙵𝙰𝙼𝙸𝙻𝚈 - ᗯᕼᗩ丅 ᔕ ᑌᑭ ᗪᗩᑎǤᗴᖇ

Mission 1: Family Ties

"Man, what an exhausting day...."

The tired voice of someone who had a full day's work echoed down the empty street. It was no surprise that no other pedestrians graced the dirty cobblestone road. It was one of the rougher sides of town. The perfect place to hide away the dregs of society.

The street's only occupant was a young woman who'd just breached the cusp of adulthood. Her feet dragged on the ground as her shoulders slumped. Each hand was occupied by several bags filled to the brim with various items. From bread to socks.

Each step caused red hair–which was pulled back in a low braid–to sway back and forth, tick-tocking from shoulder to shoulder. Her head reeled back just a bit as her jaw dropped in a well-earned yawn. Dots of tears crested the edge of her unique eyes. One gold and one green. Doctors called it heterochromia but there were those who still clung to superstition and old wives' tales calling the mismatched coloring a curse.

The young woman stood straighter earning three low pops. She let out a satisfied sigh as she cracked her back.

"But I'm happy that I can finally head back. I'm sure the kids will love the food I got and there are even some treats too."

This is Zuri, she's 19 and an orphan. Technically an adult now she still regularly visits the local orphanage.

"I was even able to get peanuts, I'm sure Anya will be excited."

Zuri chuckled at the memory of the little pink-haired girl that appeared in her head. How they met was an odd one but Zuri is grateful. How long had she'd known Anya for? Zuri was sure it'd been almost three years now. They'd have to celebrate soon.

Anya had fallen into Zuri's life like a mini whirlwind. "Big Sis! Big Sis!" Anya would always chant when she spotted the older girl. Zuri had been first taken aback by the title given to her, but Zuri took it in stride. She was grateful to have a little sister.

▀▄▀▄▀▄🅆🄷🄰🅃'🅂 🅄🄿 🄳🄰🄽🄶🄴🅁▀▄▀▄▀▄

Zuri arrived at the orphanage. Even with her help and dedication, it was hard to upkeep such a large facility all on her own. To her knowledge, it used to be an old church but was abandoned during the war. It became a temporary hospital for the sick and injured and soon opened its doors for orphans. Everyone else left but the orphans remained.

Signs of battle still lingered within the halls of the old church. Zuri had done her best to scrub the place from top to bottom but was unable to scrub away the scorch marks on the outside back walls. It took her a full year to rebuild the garden and another to get the soil well enough to actually grow something. Occasionally kids would find old remnants of the past, a medal or patch from a soldier. Perhaps a trinket of a former patient here.

There was no money to replace the worn-out wood flooring but Zuri spent hours upon hours scrubbing, polishing, and sanding them down. The wallpaper was torn down and the walls were done over with a fresh coat of paint. Zuri worked hard to help build a safe home for her fellow orphans. It wasn't perfect but it was better than before.

"I'm back!" Zuri sang out as she stepped through the doors.

Her voice was like a siren's call bringing forth throngs of children. They rushed to the door excitedly greeting the girl. Zuri was hit with a wave of enthusiasm and questions. Tiny hands pulled at her skirt, each child attempting to get her attention.

"Did you bring us something?"

"What's in the bags, what's in the bags?"

Zuri chuckled, "Alright, alright calm down everyone."