Adopted

Emma

Running down the alley of a small grocery store Emma didn't hear the screams of profanity aimed towards her. She only kept running as the grocery clerk gave up his attempts to chase after the child. It was only a few groceries, though his manager would not be happy about the loss of inventory, he was too old to keep up with the child.

The clerk may see them as only a few groceries but to Emma they were a weeks worth of food. She knew the streets of the small town well. Stevenson, Vancouver was a hidden gem of Canada.  Her long strides took her far. She ran as if she were really blowing along with the wind. She came to a stop a mere 5 blocks away in front of a building that held a smiling sunshine sign. " Little Miss Daisy's Sunshine Home"

A group home for children abandoned and forgotten. For children just like Emma. The cloth tote over her shoulder felt heavy as she walked up the steps to the door. She knew no one would question her as she entered. No one would have noticed she was gone in the first place. At 15 Emma was one of the older girls in the group home. She wasn't the oldest. No, there were girls 16 and 17 years of age but at 15 she held more power than them. They may be older but Emma ran this house. She made sure that fear was the one thing associated with her name when she first entered the walls of this home.

When she first came here she was only 12 years old. Yet she quickly earned a disposition of strength when she protected one of the younger children from harm.

Two 17 year old boys were about to beat up a 13 year old named Charles for taking a piece of bread first. They had this idea that the older kids got to choose when the younger ones ate but this boy was as new as her. They wanted to teach him a lesson and use him as an example for kids who made the same mistake in the future. Though Emma did her best to mind her own business she hated bullies and she also needed a way to establish a reputation here. As they cornered the boy in one of the dorms where the boys resided she came up behind one of them with a toy wooden sword. It didn't kill them but it certainly left a bump on their heads after that swing. As the first fell to the ground Charles and the other boy turned to stare at her in shock.

"I suggest you back off him before you end up unconscious like your friend." She said as she held the sword up.

"Do you think I'm scared of a little girl." He said as he stared at her with a smug smile as he walked towards her.

"Don't say I didn't warn you!" Emma said as she waited for him to near close enough. As he finally came the right distance she took no hesitation in kicking him where the sun doesn't shine. As he bent over in pain she swung at him with the flat part of the sword. He fell to the ground and though not unconscious he didn't get back up anytime soon.

The boy Charles looked at her with fear as he held his hand in front of his face." Please don't hurt me." He begged.

"I suggest you not piss off the older kids again." Was all Emma said as she walked out the room dropping the wooden sword on her way out. After that day the older boys never bothered her again. Too embarrassed to admit they lost to a 12 year old, though it didn't matter much because a few months later she was sent to another foster home.

After only a few months she returned to the group home. By the time she returned she was met with whispers and running. She had become a legend. In those few months stories of her attacking those older boys had be told over and over. Those boys had turned 18 and left so they weren't there to deny them and now she was "the girl to be feared". Though this was never her intention she took advantage of the opportunity.

Having been back and forth from foster homes to the group home she kept her moniker she earned at the age of 12.

Now as she entered the group home she went straight to the kitchen to store her new found treasures. Food in a group home was like money. Finder's keeper's. Though everyone knew not to touch something that belonged to Emma. Even the guardians avoided her. She knew their names but she always referred to them as guardians. There was no point in getting close when they cared nothing for her. They only let kids stay there because they got paid to. They bought food and made meals but other than that they rarely interfered. They let the children run ramped as long as they didn't cause them trouble. As long as we made curfew and kept to our chores we were free to roam as we pleased. It was every kid for themselves. Now during the summer break there was no school and no obligations.

After storing the food she obtained Emma returned to the girl's dorms. As she was older she was separate from the younger children. She shared a room with Margo the eldest girl, Sarah who's 16, and Kate who was 15 as well. Like the others they feared her and kept to themselves. Most days they were never here and lucky for Emma today was most days.

She sat at the windowsill and stared out at the town. She was on the second floor so she stared out at the streets of Stevenson. She watched as she saw a family walk down the sidewalk. A couple with a child the age of 4 between them. They lifted her by the arms and swung her back and forth as she screamed out in laughter. They laughed along with her with faces full of joy.

A tear came to her eyes as she thought of her own parents. Her own Family. Her father died in a car accident before she was born.  Her mother died in a building fire when she was 3 .Or at least that's what she's read in her file. She could hardly remember her mother at all. The only way she knew both their faces is because of her social worker. Sasha showed Emma their driver's license pictures when she was 10 years old after begging to know her real family.

Now as she stared at this happy family she scolded herself as she wiped away her tears. Crying would solve nothing. This is life so she needed to get over the fantasy she had in her head of having a real family.