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Chapter 1 Trinity Lila Palmer as in trouble. Not just normal, "Oops, I broke a window" trouble- but deep trouble. Her teacher had to call the Department of Children and Families, DCF, on her father because of his constant late arrivals at school and departures from school. If that wasn't bad enough he gad just lost his job and was on the verge of losing his apartment. But that was just the start of her issues. As he was meeting with DCF regarding the issues with Trinity, her father went into cardiac arrest and died suddenly leaving her with nobody to care for her. With no immediate relatives, she was placed into foster care pending review of her situation by social workers. To make matters more complicated, Trinity was not a normal girl. Trinity had been born Terrence Lyle Palmer and her insistence on being called a girl was causing issues with the DCF caseworker. Despite helping thousands of kids per year, DCF had little experience with someone in her position let alone someone with the full documentation backing her up claims and it was causing her trouble with them. Mark Sylvester was asked to takeover her case and was at wits end trying to place Trinity. She was a sweet girl who was bright and lovable, but nobody on his list would accept a transgender child as their foster child. He genuinely feared for her life if she was placed into a group home, but it was looking like she may have to be placed there as no other place could house her. Anne Connors wasn't able to help much either. Neighboring DCF districts refused to take her on, citing overcrowding but the real reason was they didn't want to deal with the issues that Trinity brought with her including medical and legal fights. She was all alone with nobody to help her. They were about to give up until Mark muttered a defeated, "Why can't this be like Kennedy and Willie where you have caring parents who need a child to love?" Anne's eyes lit up and she made a desperate phone call to Alison Eliza, asking her and Katie to take on Trinity as her foster child until she could be placed permanently with a family who were willing to deal with her. Alison had to hold back tears as Anne was desperate, practically begging her to house Trinity. She didn't have the heart to refuse. The pregnancy hormones in her body making her maternal and protective. She didn't have the heart to refuse to help, not when she was needed by Trinity. They understood her issues, they understood what it is to be transgender and all alone in the world. Anne tearfully told Mark, "I found her a place. Alison and Katie will house her until we can find a permanent home for her." Mark was relieved but felt that it might be premature to celebrate, they were good people but unless she was adopted by them she would be at the mercy of DCF and its employees. Alison didn't know the connection between Trinity and Katie. Katie told her about what happened to get her hired as a first grade teacher but not the full details of the child involved. If she had, the name Trinity would have raised alarms. As it turned out Katie is Trinity's teacher and the reason for her being in this mess in the first place, she had to inform DCF about Trinity's father's problematic situation. Katie returned from school just after Alison ended her call from Anne. She had to sit Katie down and explain to her, "Anne Connors just called me practically begging me to help her and Mark out. A little girl just lost her father and none of their foster parents can house her nor will any other region's foster parents. What's worse is she won't survive in a group home. She was desperate, I had to agree to house her until they could find her a permanent home." Katie started to get a horrible feeling in her stomach. She asked if she knew the child's name, getting a soft, "Trinity Palmer. She is a fully diagnosed transgender girl which was why nobody would accept her. She needs our help, we are the only ones who can understand her." Katie shed a tear and confessed loudly, "It's all my fault! I had to report her father for his constantly leaving her alone after school! I was concerned about her and this happened! It's all my fault!" Alison had to hug her tight, kissing her forehead and rock her softly until she calmed down. Katie then confessed, "She was why I got the teaching job, her former teacher verbally abused her in front of her class. She's why Virgil and Tyler were so upset, she is why Valerie was involved and why Ricardo is suing the school. It's all my fault, I caused her to lose her father, he was her only family and because of my actions he died. I cost her her only family." Alison hugged her and admitted, "You had no choice. If something happened to her you would be the one in trouble. He was already sick and you couldn't predict that he would pass away so suddenly. She needs you, she needs someone who she can trust and who will help her. She needs both of us. We have to do this. She needs us." Katie calmed down and asked when they would go get her. Alison smiled and told her, "Anne is on her way. She will need to clear out her apartment but that can wait. She needs love and support, you can give that to her. I can't be there for her as her psychiatrist but I can ensure that she gets the proper care and ensure that she isn't tossed aside by the system." Anne arrived with a scared Trinity holding her hand. Katie and Alison came outside to greet them, immediately causing Trinity to grab hold of Anne to keep them from her. Alison hugged her, letting Trinity know that she was in safe hands before leading her inside. Taking a deep breath, she explained, "We know you are upset at Katie and blame her for what happened but we want you to have know that you are safe here with us." Katie knelt down and explained, "The last thing I wanted to happen was your father passing away. We have seen what happens when kids are left alone on the playground, especially ones your age. It is dangerous for you. We also know what happens to kids whose teachers don't follow the rules and report someone possibly hurting a child. Children are hurt and it hurts all teachers. I had to say something, I had to protect you." Anne interceded and added, "A little girl like you and a boy were both severely hurt by teachers when they were in kindergarten. Your teacher last year replaced the man who hurt them. The person who let it happen was a principal and thanks to that the kids have scars on their bodies and it took years before they were able to fully recover. He sadly died in prison before he could be tried for his crimes but she is in prison for more than 20 years." Katie was on the verge tears again, telling her through sobs, "I had to call DCF, I didn't want you to be hurt. Your father was a good man and we will see if he was being wronged by what happened to him at work or by the doctors who were supposed to be treating him. Unfortunately your father was too sick to take care of you anymore but you are safe and we won't let anything bad happen to you." Trinity had tears of her own, telling them, "Dad was threatened by his boss, he said he would fire him and call DCF on him. He hated me, he wanted me taken away from dad." Anne softly added, "We will look into this, you don't make a threat like that lightly." Katie added, "My friend will look into what happened, you will get justice. He won't let it go unanswered. He will pay dearly for hurting your father and threatening you." Alison looked at the time and told her that they would go get her belongings then it was time to eat. She added, "You will be out of school for a few days. We have a few close friends who will watch you, they will help you deal with your grief and keep your friends from pestering you." Anne smiled, mouthing, "Valerie?" and getting a nod. Katie added, "Amanda" which got Anne to smile back at. Alison picked up on what was going on and added a somber, "We have to tell the two or they will think the worst." Anne asked what they meant, being told, "Virgil and Tyler are in her class, they will be worried about her not being there especially as they knew her father was in bad health." Anne nodded, but told them to do so when Trinity wasn't there so she didn't get upset even more so than she was now. Alison agreed, asking that they go to her apartment to gather he clothes and personal items to keep them from being stolen. Anne couldn't argue with that, simply asking David Peterson and Ian Bailey to help them out just in case things got dicey. Katie called Lindsay Reagan and Tanya York and asked that the boys come over. Her tone was serious so neither waited for them to finish their game, letting JD and Cat Finn finish the level for them before they went to go play with Lindsay's daughter Willow. Lindsay suspected that something was up that involved Trinity as she hadn't seen Katie since that morning but Tanya thought it could be anything. The four walked over to Katie's house just after Trinity, Anne, and Alison left. Katie sat them down and through tear filled eyes explained, "Trinity Palmer's father died. I had to call DCF on him to check on her well-being but his weak heart couldn't take the shock and he passed away. Your aunt was asked to house her as there were no foster parents willing to house a girl like her. She didn't know that she was in your class or that I was the reason DCF became involved. She will be staying with us for a while so please try to protect her in school and stop anyone who thinks badly of her." The boys were near tears hearing that. Both asked, "Why" to which Tanya explained, "Junior and Kylie. Something terrible happened to them at the hands of their kindergarten teacher four and five years ago that was never reported by the principal. She has to tell the principal and DCF or she could go to jail. She didn't want this to happen but it did and Trinity needs your help. Please help her." Both boys agreed to protect Trinity. They both got up to leave, not wanting to talk further about what happened. They were angry that Katie ratted Trinity's dad out but sad that they knew the truth was that it was because people they knew were hurt. Their only concern now was for Trinity. Tyler asked where Trinity was. Katie softly explained, "She is with Alison and Anne getting her things. They are going to get as much as they can and keep people from stealing what they owned. She will be back later, after it's time for you two to go to bed. She won't be in school for a few days so you two have to tell the truth about what happened and tell me if any parent tries to spread rumors." Lindsay and Tanya led them home allowing Katie to settle down and cook dinner for the three. She hoped that Trinity didn't have any allergies or dislike the food she was making but it was a gamble with kids her age. She seemed to be open to anything but it was easier to make a simple pasta dish for them. Over at the former Palmer apartment, Trinity tried to use her key to let them inside but the door was already wide open and people inside. David and Ian went in, announcing they were police and all were under arrest for trespassing. They didn't let anyone escape, detaining four while Ian called for cruisers to remove the soon-to-be-arrested people inside. The leader of the group claimed they owned the building and were clearing out a tenant's apartment. David grinned, telling him firmly, "You do not have the right to just enter without prior authorization nor do you have the right to remove property belonging to the tenant. Further, I know for a fact that you have no right to be here as the tenant is deceased and his next of kin didn't give you any authorization to remove any items nor did her representatives." The man tried to claim that he had every right to be there and take what he wanted, the man was dead and his kid was with DCF so the stuff was his now. David asked if he knew that he had not only just confessed to trespassing but also grand theft the man immediately shut up and tried to tell them to leave or he'd remove them himself. The three people with him tried to intimidate David while Ian calmly told his dispatcher, "Send us an ambulance, there is about to be an assault on two police officers and we will protect ourselves." As they tried to grab at him he grabbed one, pulled his arm out of its socket, and kicked out his knee. One went for David and got a knee to the groin followed be a kick to the back. A third went for Ian and ended up with a broken arm as he grabbed Ian's belt but ended up with his arm wrenched back hard snapping his elbow. They on the floor writhing in pain before they could lay a single finger on the duo. The leader was left speechless as Ian and David stood tall over him, almost daring him to strike. He backed down, claiming he was going to have their badges for assaulting his brothers. Anne just shook her head and added, "We recorded the whole attempted assault, and Ian's radio is still on so dispatch heard them rushing at him. You are lucky they aren't sending every available officer here, they didn't mention you having any weapons so only three are coming." Three officers rushed inside and secured the men. Ian's sergeant asked if they recorded it, then proceeded to explain, "You are under arrest for burglary, trespassing, assault on a police officer, and grand theft. Be glad that there was a little girl here or these two could have easily put you in the hospital instead of making you piss your pants." Both turned and saw the wet patch on the man's legs and had to hide their smiles, he would have to explain that to his cellmates in the police station. Trinity was asked to look over what was inside the apartment to see if anything was missing. She just nodded, telling them, "Mommy's jewelry and picture frames and daddy's musical instruments. Daddy's guitar is old and expensive and mommy gave him his keyboard. I don't see any of them here." Ian took down the information and called to have the cars searched. He then told them to take pictures of everything so they knew what was missing from where before they removed Trinity's things. David was already on it, noting a dozen frames missing from the wall and mantle as well as the TV and a computer. Over in a corner, he saw the location of where the instruments had been along spotting a pair of good quality headphones on the floor. Finally in the bedroom he saw where the jewelry box was. In Trinity's room, they saw that her own jewelry box was taken along with some frames. What upset her the most was the pictures were removed and the glass broken causing her to cry. Alison helped her gather her toys and clothes then her favorite blanket and quilt allowing her to settle down. They had a search warrant for the cars of the men arrested and found everything inside. What's more they found, "Property of T. Palmer on the instruments and amplifiers and the name, "Trinity" engraved on some of the jewelry. Most of the picture were kept in the frame so it was clear who they really belonged to, the ones without pictures also didn't have glass so it was clear those were taken from the apartment as well. David was busy with the paperwork and statements but got ribbing from the locals about being stuck playing detective. David just grinned, telling them, "I want to play detective, the more experience that I get before class the better. Next month I am done with the airport and can finally officially help you locals instead of having to do it without credit. Just don't make things too tough on me." Ian grinned at that. They liked David as he was not arrogant and saw things from their side. The fact that he had two uncles who were cops, one who was a federal agent, and a cousin who was one helped too, but they appreciated someone who was in it for the people not the glory. He'd get the glory, but he wanted to help first. He was a cop's detective but one who did right for all the right reasons. Trinity watched the group ribbing David who just grinned and let them enjoy the fun. Ian was getting ribbing as well, which he laughed at. It was weird to her to see them being so normal, she wasn't used to people being so nice to one another let alone ones who were at ease around her. Alison and Anne watched her observing Ian and David, making them think that she may not have had the best relationship with people before her father's death. Anne thought she might have to see Dr. Dane so she didn't feel like she had to do things just to please them and maybe help her adjust to her new situation. Alison agreed, adding that she would have done that anyway as she didn't seem to be grieving as much as a kid her age should be. Alison eventually led Trinity back home with the three securing the apartment with warning tape and a note that Valerie should properly dispose of the items so they could help others. Trinity agreed to do that with Valerie also adding that she would have Greta Nelson and Beverly Bollinger take a look at her money situation to ensure that she was properly covered no matter what. They didn't tell her about the money though, this was more for Katie and Alison so they wouldn't have to deal with vultures claiming anything that Trinity's father owned as their own or repay his debts. At the house, Trinity ran inside to her new room to lay down. Alison and Katie took in her things and helped set up her room for her then coaxed her downstairs to eat dinner. Trinity smiled at seeing the food, it was her favorite. She loved pasta, it was what her father frequently made once her mom passed away. It was quick and easy to make but she loved it before her mom died forcing the cheap and quick meals to be the necessity for them. The two were relieved and ate in silence as Trinity tried her best not to make a mess. It was tough but she was careful and didn't get any sauce on her. The two told her to relax for a bit before she had to shower and go to bed prompting her to groan but really feel relieved that they were trying to make her feel comfortable. She was feeling tired, but she didn't want to let on that she was. After waiting for them to finish, Alison helped her shower. She didn't flinch at seeing her extra parts, instead turning away so she could wash on her own and ensure that she wasn't going to fall. Trinity hugged her tight once she was dressed again, thanking her for not saying anything about her body. Alison knelt down and confessed, "I am used to girls who, like you, were born as boys and boys who were born as girls. I know how it makes you feel and I don't want to cause you any pain by saying anything about it. You are a beautiful little girl and that is all that I see no matter what you have." Trinity asked what she mean by, "Used to girls like her" getting a swift, "I am a psychiatrist, like the doctor you are seeing. I don't know which one you are seeing yet but I know all about what you are going through as I help many children through their transition. I can't help you though, being your foster mother means that legally and ethically I can't also be your doctor as well. But I will ensure that you are seeing someone who respects you as a person and tries to do what is best for you not what they think is best. I couldn't live with myself if I didn't do that for you." Trinity asked if Katie was alright with her becoming a girl. Alison just smiled and told her warmly, "She will have a talk with you. It's something she has to tell you on her own. But know this- you are not the only girl in this neighborhood who was born with the wrong body and you will meet a lot of people who love those girls regardless of how they were born. Your friends Tyler and Virgil know the truth and accept you, they learned that from knowing girls much like you." Katie sat Trinity down on the couch and hugged her tight, then told her warmly, "I am like you. I was born a boy but didn't get to become a girl on the outside until I was badly beaten by my father and ran away. I was taken in by a lovely man and woman and allowed to be as I should have been. I had the final surgery after I graduated from high school and went on to both college and law school. I trained alongside some amazing people and met my best friend in the world at a law firm. I was fired for having been born a boy on the outside then went to work as a teacher before I was fired for the same reason. Both those times it was because I was born with a boy's body but I made them pay each time. My point is that I can't have a problem with you as you are what I always wanted to be- a beautiful little girl with support from people who are real friends and who want you to be happy." Trinity looked up at her as if she was joking. Katie nodded, explaining, "Tyler and Virgil already know you are living with us. Tyler is my nephew and Virgil is my cousin but he calls me Aunt Katie. As Alison said, they have grown to respect girls who are like you as they know many of them including the girl who caused your parents to seek out help for you. She will meet you, we can't keep her or her cousins away especially as her sister and brother will want to play with you. Cat and JD know about you being born a girl but don't know you are living here yet but that will quickly change." It was a lot to take in. Katie hugged her, adding, "I would give anything to have your father back but we can't bring him back. All we can do for you is ensure that you have a home and people who love and support you. You aren't alone, and you never will be. As long as you are staying with us you will be loved and you will be safe. Even if we have to adopt you as our own daughter we will ensure that you are going to be happy and loved." Katie burst into tears causing Trinity to do the same. Alison just sat back and let them get their tears out knowing that they had been hold them back since Trinity arrived. When they both finally stopped she walked Trinity up to her room and tucked her in, kissing her forehead and telling her that they would wake her for breakfast. The next morning Katie woke up Trinity so she could eat with her before Katie went to school. Trinity took a few minutes to gather her wits but eventually realized she wasn't home anymore. Alison came up to help her get ready while Katie cooked, then ensured that Trinity ate before Katie left. After Katie left Alison explained that she needed to visit a friend so she could handle Trinity's affairs while Alison went to work. When Alison led her inside she explained, "It's alright, she know a lot more about you than you realize. She is going to help you legally and ensure that you don't have to worry about DCF again." Valerie Finn rang the doorbell and Alison let her in. Trinity recognized her from the first day of school and felt relief. She heard some of what Valerie had said to her former principal and it made her feel better. Alison saw the look of recognition and knelt down, telling Trinity, "This nice lady is Valerie Finn. She worked with your father to get you allowed to attend school as a girl. She and her husband are two of the people responsible for allowing girls like you to attend school throughout this state and country. She wants to help you, but I need you to trust her and listen to her while Katie and I are at work." Trinity agreed. Valerie thanked Alison and told Trinity, "I'll take you to my home so you can talk there without fear of saying the wrong thing. Alison needs to get to work so I am going to be watching you until Katie gets home. It's only for the next few days so you get adjusted and deal with your loss." Trinity took her hand and walked out with her. As they were walking Valerie explained to her, "My daughter and three of my nieces are like you, as is my niece's girlfriend. We have another niece who was forced to become a girl because of a bad accident to her privates but she has adjusted to being a girl so much that we have trouble remembering that she is still accepting her girlhood. In fact she is in full bloom as a woman and making all the boys drool over her." Trinity giggled over that last part. After the snickering ended Trinity looked like she didn't believe her but inside her home Valerie then showed her pictures of the girls. Trinity stared at them and thought she was lying to her. Valerie smiled and added, "They are amazing girls and we love them deeply. It's tough to accept it but that's what they really are, girls like you. Valerie asked what her father did for a living, getting a quiet, "He taught music and played at night clubs and bars. He played all over Boston for big crowds." Valerie nodded, jotting down something that she needed Ricardo to investigate. The two talked about her apartment and what she wanted to do with its contents. Not surprisingly to her Trinity wanted to be rid of everything. Valerie got her to hold onto some of her father's most prized possessions, having found out just what he had and what they were really worth. Valerie asked if she played any of the instruments. Trinity blushed and timidly told her, "Mommy taught me to play the piano when I was three, daddy tried to teach me the guitar but it was too big for me. I haven't tried to play since mommy got sick." Valerie had a good idea about what the two could do to help her adjust. Alison was a fairly decent piano player and Katie knew some basic chords for the guitar, they could play with her to help her get used to them. She suppressed a smile as Trinity was thinking about something, with her hands unknowingly tapping in tune with a piece of music in her head. The two talked some more, mostly about what Trinity liked to do outside of school. She started to get the sense that she didn't do much once her mom died but wanted to do more with other kids. She had Virgil and Tyler nearby but she might also let Cat and Willow play or Faith Jones may let her join her and Daisy Peterson in some of their playtime. Time had flown by as the two talked. Ricardo rang the doorbell and entered causing Trinity to flinch but Valerie calmed her down. He asked if she was doing better, getting a heartfelt, "She is taking it better than any kid should." Ricardo shook his head at hearing that, she was gong to break at some point. Ricardo looked over some legal documents and told Trinity, "Your parents left you a tidy sum of money from music royalties and stocks. All of it was in your name and with your blessing Valerie can have some people that we know and trust handle from now on. In addition to that, you are also entitled to the money your father had in his savings accounts and from the security deposit for your apartment. We will be seeking the full amount and will sue the landlord if need be. His attempted theft violated the lease and kicked in a clause that pays you back the amount for the full month as he died on the 31st but paid for September already." Valerie looked over the amount and shook her head in disgust. She was owed over $6,000 just from the lease termination and violation. She was also entitled to her father's life insurance of $500,000 along with his $25,000 bank account. All told, she was getting $531,000 in inheritance alone, not counting unpaid wages, vacation and sick money, and retirement money. It was close to $550,000 due to her before you even considered the value of the musical instruments and music royalties.. Ricardo added a solemn, "You are also going to receive big $2 million in a settlement from the city for violating your civil rights. I would have sued your landlord for what he did but he is going to prison for the assaults on Ian and David. Basically you are a rich young lady but with your permission we will put it into a trust. Your foster mothers have agreed with this and will sign off once Valerie signs off." Trinity agreed, not knowing what it all meant but knowing that Valerie had shown that she cared about her already that first day of school. With that out of the way Valerie asked if she had gone to the doctor lately, getting a nod and wince as she added, "He game me shots. I hate shots." She was up to date medically as far as the school was concerned but she had to be sure that she was actually healthy. Richard Samuels would see to it that she was looked at just in case and if need be she would see him for a standard checkup. The other issue was her psychiatrist, which she needed to see. Trinity was asked if she knew her psychiatrist's name, getting a nod and quick, "Edith. She won't let me call her Dr. Bell or doctor, only Edith." Valerie nodded at hearing that, she was known to the family through Deborah Peterson and Katie so she was trusted to handle delicate situations like Trinity's. Valerie called Dr. Bell and asked about an appointment on behalf of Trinity. She had to explain who she was and why she was calling and her relationship to Trinity. Dr. Bell was shocked and asked about her, then gave her an appointment for that afternoon, asking to speak to her foster parents alongside Trinity. Valerie was at a loss as she didn't want to make plans without their approval. Dr. Bell asked what the issue was and upon hearing that it was Alison who was her foster mother Dr. Bell asked if she would get Katie to come anyway and if not she would still like to see Trinity if only to speak about what was going on and be assured that she wasn't going to harm herself. Valerie smirked at that, she gave her word that she would tell Katie then the told her that she should speak with Alison if possible as she would need to know. Dr. Bell added that she wouldn't be able to treat Trinity as a doctor but Valerie countered with a quick, "She needs to know as her parent, especially as she is the one who will have the least contact with Trinity due to her workload. She understood fully and explained it to Trinity already when she was introduced to her, she just needs to be updated." Valerie ended the call and explained what was going on to Trinity. She was a bit scared but Valerie assured her, "She needs to meet with you because she is concerned about you. This is a big loss to you and she wants to know that you are not going to harm yourself. She knows your foster mothers, her being your psychiatrist is good new, Alison will be relieved to know that you are in good hands." Ricardo asked if they should tell her to which Valerie had to think. She carefully added, "We know some people who have had Dr. Bell as a psychiatrist and are happy speaking with her. We have not spoken to her directly but she has talked with some of our family as patients. If she wants to talk with you then it's important to talk with her, she needs to know that you are alright or she will worry about you." It was getting late so they made their way over to the Early Learning Center to speak with Katie and update her. Valerie also had to change Trinity's records to show that Katie and Alison were her new caretakers with Valerie and Katie's mother and father as the emergency contacts. Ricardo winced at the latter, adding a somber, "They are going to be coming around soon." At the school, the principal met the trio and listened to the situation. He was pleased that the school wasn't caught in the middle over Katie having to call DCF on Trinity's father but it was tough to deal with a teacher now being the foster parent to a student. They were already in a tough situation with her being transgender, this could be taken the wrong way by the wrong people. Valerie simply informed him, "It's no different than the Hermans teaching their daughter or my husband teaching our sons and daughter. She knows to keep her home life separate from her school life unless she has to intervene. She has myself, her mother, and her father serving as emergency contacts for her, with another 11 adults willing to help out at a moment's notice. That is no exaggeration, that is just those who are able to assist quickly." Ricardo added in a quick, "She is not bluffing, Katie knows exactly what she is doing and when she needs to defer to others. If Trinity needs to go home early one of those three is able to take her home or if need be one of those 11 with the off chance it could be one of 20, care for Trinity until school ends. The one thing they are able to do best is care for kids in need." Valerie started to spout off names of who was able to babysit Trinity with several names catching the principal's ear. She just nodded and added, "It's a long list, but of people who are known and trusted to keep the kids in line and not slack off. Trinity may be with me today but she could easily be with Olivia Samuels tomorrow for a checkup or her foster grandparents while we settle some of her affairs." The changes were made to Trinity's records with the note about a list of approved people who would care for Trinity in the event of emergency dismissal. Valerie added a quick, "This list is also doubled for Tyler Reagan and Virgil York as they are related to one another, Katie is Tyler's maternal aunt and Virgil is her cousin through Virgil's grandfather and Katie's father. It's confusing but true." Classes ended for the day and Katie was sought out. Tyler and Virgil were still in class as Trinity entered with Valerie and Ricardo, prompting both to hug Trinity as they tried to fight for words. She hugged them back telling them, "I have to go to the doctor today" causing them to nod to her. Valerie told Katie, "I talked with Trinity's psychiatrist earlier and she has asked that Trinity see her this afternoon. She wants to speak with you as well. It's just a reassurance that Trinity is doing better and accepting what has happened and won't hurt herself. Trinity doesn't know that you saw her before, only that she knows Alison from their work." Katie shot back a surprised, "Dr. Bell?" Valerie nodded, adding, "She has to know already that you are involved as I had to tell her that she was also staying with Alison. She is already speaking with her about Trinity, I just hope that Trinity isn't too worked up about everything going on." Katie and Trinity left with many teachers staring at the two. The principal fielded concerned questions, sticking to Valerie's declaration that Trinity was her foster daughter and would treat her as a student during school hours and as a parent during non-school hours just as is done with other teachers who are parents of their students. The subtle name drop of Herman and Finn helped a lot as well but that was saved for those who questioned the legality of it. Chapter 2 Trinity was silent as Katie drove to Boston to their appointment with Dr. Bell. She looked out of the window and enjoyed the views of the Mystic River Bridge, the Charles River, and the Back Bay Fens. It was her favorite part of the drive to Boston to speak with Dr. Bell when her parents took her, and even though she was with Katie it still caused her to feel better. It was a small connection to her birth parents, but it was a connection that she needed at that time. Dr. Bell greeted Katie at the receptionist desk. She ushered them inside and sat them down so she could speak with both before speaking to Trinity alone. She asked Katie some pointed questions, gauging her responses and seeing if she was being truthful while also gathering information about whether Katie was handling this change in her life well or if she was hiding her true feelings. Katie didn't lie, she admitted that she was afraid for Trinity and hoped that she would recover quickly from her emotional trauma so that she could lead a normal life again. She admitted that motherhood scared her, it was something she never thought would happen and wasn't prepared for it even though Alison was just about two months pregnant with their first child. Trinity looked at her shocked, Katie nodded, telling her, "She hides some of the signs but she is pregnant." Dr. Bell asked if she had told Trinity her past yet, getting a nod from Trinity. Dr. Bell then asked if she had told her about Katie's relationship to her getting an odd look from Trinity. She shook her head no to which Dr. Bell gave her a disappointed head shake knowing that she didn't tell her on purpose. Katie sighed and had to explain, "I used to see Dr. Bell as a patient back when I started to transition. I saw her once a month until a few years ago when I was fired from my job as a lawyer. I couldn't face her knowing that I had failed as a woman, that's probably why she wants to know you are alright. I wasn't strong enough to overcome something that hurt me badly while you have had something even harder to overcome happen to you and I can't run away from it." Trinity saw her on the verge of tears and fought them herself. Katie was a lawyer and a teacher, she was what Trinity wanted to be like and she was stronger than she could believe herself to be. Dr. Bell saw the dawning of Trinity's resolve and smiled at Katie, knowing that the girl was going to recover quicker knowing that someone had trouble before and come out stronger. If Katie had done it then so could she. Dr. Bell gave Trinity an appointment for the following week and told her to ease into her new home. She then told Katie, "Don't go overboard on mothering her, she is still going to have her bouts of grief and anxiety over what has happened. Just try to support her. If need be, have her interact with kids her own age so she adjusts and accepts things better." Katie snorted at hearing that. She added a swift, "It'll be tough to keep them away. My nephew and little cousin are close by and in her class and there's several other older and younger kids in near us, all of whom will want to be around her." Dr. Bell chuckled and joked, "You make it sound like she is stuck around The Finns" to which Katie added, "That's exactly who I'm talking about." Katie sighed and explained, "The main part of the family lives a block over. My sister lives behind them and my niece is close friends with their daughter. My cousin ended up marrying their neighbor and became part of the family. My father made me see that everything I feared about them in high school wasn't real and they went out of their way to protect me with John, the man who I thought hated me, was badly hurt by protecting me. The man put up with constant abuse from his own brother over me and still protected me. They wouldn't let me get away, they have kept me close and treated me like a friend and sister. The kids treat me like an aunt. Both Alison and I have been adopted into their family and have grown to love being around them." Dr. Bell just smiled widely before informing her, "I could have sworn 20 years ago that I told you that you should have kept close to those five. Your father said the same thing. That young man turned out to be something greater than you could have imagined and he opened up your world to new people who have included you as one of them. I don't have to have met him personally, his name has come up more often than I can count and always in good terms. I believe that you were always meant to be alongside him as his friend, confidant, and dare I say his sister. Trinity will be in great hands, those are who I would hope would be around her especially the young lady- Jaimie Finn." Trinity asked who Jaimie was. Katie took this as her cue to leave and thanked Dr. Bell while explaining, "She is a young lady who has changed the lives of a lot of people including your own. She just wants to be a normal girl but she has helped others by being their friend and taking them into her family. You have met Virgil and Tyler, they are just two of the kids she has helped out over the years. She has also saved several lives through the family and have brought together multiple couples including Ricardo and his husband and Alison and I." They walked over to New England Children's Hospital where Alison worked. Alison was expecting them sooner but seeing that they were alright she didn't pry into what took so long. Katie saw the look and immediately told her, "She was told about just who lived nearby and made it a point to remind me that my father was right all along. She also said that Trinity was in good hands with the kids." Alison just nodded and explained, "She has an appointment with Charles for next week. He didn't think that the gravity of the situation has fully sunk in yet and she may have a breakdown this weekend. He wants Tyler and Virgil to stick close to her but also having Daisy and Faith as well as JD, Cat, and Willow spend time with her so she isn't only around them." Trinity asked who they were, getting a smile and warm, "Daisy and Faith are 2nd graders, Faith lives across the street. Willow is Tyler's younger sister. Cat and JD are Valerie's twins. You might have seen them at that part after school talking with other teachers. They are also Faith and Daisy's cousins. They are great kids and will love it if you play with them." The trio left with Alison taking Trinity in her car, happily pointing out a new booster seat that fit her small size. Katie had to make a stop to buy her a booster seat. She cursed herself for overlooking something so simple but she didn't want to tempt fate and get pulled over. She had to smile that Alison knew enough to make the stop before work or during her lunchtime and get it installed properly. In the car Alison asked Trinity if she wanted to play with the boys or would she like to play with the girls. Trinity had to think about that, it was an honest question but one that she had no answer for. Her gut told her to play with the boys as she knew them already but her heart was set on just being a normal girl and playing with ones who are older than her was something she always wanted to do. Alison asked if she wanted to know a secret. Trinity nodded to which Alison admitted, "These girls know that you are special. Virgil told them all about you already last year and you probably played with them in the park. They have greatly matured in the past few months and we believe that they would happily accept you as a friend if you let them. Besides, Faith could use a girl closer to her own age as Cat and Willow have found one another meaning Faith is now the odd person out in the neighborhood." When they arrived back home Alison called over to ask that Faith come over. Sarah Jones, her mother, was quick to tell Faith that Trinity wanted her to come over and insisted that she bring her dolls. Faith and Sarah entered and Trinity immediately recognized her from the last school year relieving some of her tension but not all. Faith moved to Trinity's room and played with her for an hour, getting used to one another and gauging the others' interests. They synced up but Trinity had a more vivid imagination that fed into Faith's own making Faith happy to have someone who knew how to vocalize what she was thinking. Daisy Peterson was playful but she often was structured and it took some arguing to agree to what Faith wanted to do. Trinity would be a counter to Daisy while allowing Faith to have her own fantasies played out and grounded. Sarah and Alison listened intently and smiled to one another. Trinity was having fun with her and Faith was enjoying being able to speak out without need to justify her actions. When Katie finally arrived she heard the girls talking and she too felt relief, only adding that she was happy to have her feeling normal around girls who she knew already albeit not directly. The girls entered and saw the three staring at them. Faith just rolled her eyes, explaining to them, "You knew we would play with her, we played with her on the playground last year and David and Patrick knew her from when she visited her mommy in the hospital and that bad man who hurt Deborah yelled at her. Daisy may be pushy with her but we will play with her if you let us. Besides it's boring without Daisy around and Cat stopped bothering to ask to play with me and Kylie is always with Nancy now." Sarah took this as their cue to leave. Faith begged and got permission for Trinity to see her room and toys so she could see what they wanted to play with next time. Faith's father Mick was home and greeted the two with Trinity getting a happy, "Thank goodness your hair grew out, it looks much nicer than the short pixie cut you used to wear. It suits your pretty face much better." Trinity blushed as Faith introduced her to her dad, his friends Autumn Nieves, and her partner Johanna Loup. She whispered to Trinity, "Autumn is an FBI agent and Johanna is a deputy US Marshal. Daddy made a big bust after someone tried to steal guns from Uncle Willie and Aunt Kennedy so they are talking about it before they go to court." Trinity didn't believe her but Faith nodded hard. After showing Trinity her dolls and toys and making plans to play again Trinity asked Mick, "Are you really a federal agent?" Mick smiled and showed his badge as did the two ladies. Trinity was shocked, but Faith added, "Daddy investigated the big truck crash near Kensington, on Wednesday night. Someone tried to steal it and the man didn't let them and everyone but the man driving died. Uncle Willie got the people who were responsible and Aunt Kennedy found who was paying them. Daddy and the agents said nobody believes the story about the big red truck, but it's true. He is really scary, but he makes people pay for trying to hurt him and his truck." Trinity told them, "Daddy and I saw a really big red truck Wednesday afternoon. He said it looked nice. It was really shiny." Mick grinned and added, "Not many people believe the stories about the driver but he is a bit scary and makes you not want to meet him. Reed seemed to like him, but Kennedy didn't." Faith giggled as Trinity was shocked. The two ladies kept quiet but had big grins, she understood the story fully. Trinity walked back home with a shocked look but Katie explained to her, "Mick and his colleagues are good people who investigate a lot of bad things. He cares deeply about you kids and will protect you so don't be afraid of him. His story is pretty crazy but he never lies and he told you because he wanted you to know that you are one of the kids now, under his protection." What Mick hadn't told them was, there had been one survivor. One of the flunkies had to be rushed to the hospital, wild-eyed and shrieking about a truck that came from Hell. Roaring with laughter and flames coming out of its smoke-stacks, driven by the Devil himself. Mick saw the coin. The ornate stamped F on a silver coin. Running ballistics on the slugs was pretty much an afterthought. They all knew who the shooter was. Ballistics did confirm it, .475 caliber slugs milled from A-666 steel. They had tried to hijack the driver called Faust. Trinity wasn't the only one who was in trouble at the start of the new school year. After a tumultuous Spring and summer 13-year-old Pauline, "Polly" Cook that saw her father imprisoned and her mother humiliated and begging to retain her job, Polly was left to fend for herself most of the time. Her mother had finally stopped trying to be a mother and worked 16 hours a day in Boston. Polly had long ago learned to cook and clean for herself but during the summer she also worked herself to the bone working for the summer jobs program then taking any job that would hire her so she could have the basic necessities. She was glad that she had paid attention to the sex education unit in science because she got an unwelcome visitor just as soon as school let out, her first and to her the one that showed just how alone she really was. Polly managed to earn enough money to buy a decent wardrobe and enough personal products to last her through the year. She feared having to ask her mother for anything as her mother seemed to get more and more angry at her for no reason. Whenever she came home from work Polly had to run to her room because her mother would yell at her and blame her for everything wrong with her life even if Polly had not been the cause of any of it. There were nights when her mother would drink and smoke weed, something that she had never done before but her father once told her that she did before Polly was born. She hated it, her mother would become someone else and spark fights as Polly silently accepted her yelling. Poor Polly waited for the day where her mother would finally strike her, but thankfully for her that didn't come. When school began, Polly struggled immediately. She was slow to catch onto the subjects and would never say a word in class unless she had no other choice. Mr. Taylor, her history teacher and homeroom adviser, tried to get her to talk to him about what was bothering her and why she wasn't understanding the work but she simply wasn't grasping some of the basics that she should have learned in 7th grade and the two years before. After a week of trying, all of her teachers were in agreement that she needed help that they just couldn't give. Principal Dorothy Vega requested a meeting with her mother but Polly wasn't able to give her any information about how to contact her let alone when she would be able to come. Dorothy tried to call her workplace but she was immediately told that she had been terminated back in June for breaking the terms of her probation and trying to steal controlled medications. Dorothy tried to phone her mother's cell phone but that was disconnected. Something was amiss and they needed to get to the bottom of it. She released Polly but admitted that she would have to contact DCF if she wasn't able to contact her mother by the following day. Polly simply said, "I'll have my bags packed, I don't think she will bother talking with you." Dorothy felt shame at having one of her students suffering but without her mother she couldn't do anything directly. She discussed Polly's situation with Alice Rodriguez, her fellow principal and closest friend and was at a loss for words. Alice suggested that she ask Mark or Anne to check in on her to ensure that Polly was actually alright but do so subtly, she had to report her suspicions and it would easily clear her if there was nothing wrong. Better to err on the side of caution than react when something did happen. They almost lost Amy Bollinger the previous April due to not reacting quickly, she didn't want the same to happen to Polly. Mark made the decision to visit based on Polly's delicate legal situation. As she was on probation and under strict terms she had to be open to these inspections so as to ensure that she wasn't being harmed or that she wasn't doing wrong. Anne joined him just in case as it wouldn't be right for him to go visit her alone especially if she was possibly being left alone. Polly was at home and cooking for herself but her mother hadn't been home for three days. In fact she thought her mother may not be coming home if her cell phone was out of service already. Upstairs her clothing hadn't been touched in days, but her largest suitcase was gone. Polly stopped lying to herself and broke down. Her mother had fled from her. She was all alone. Mark and Anne rang the doorbell and were greeted by Polly, who had clearly been crying. She got up and got a bag together, telling them, "No point in trying to lie, my mom ran off." She fought back more tears as Anne walked her upstairs and Mark started the paperwork right then and there. Polly had things neat and tidy and easy to pack away. It was almost as if she was expecting this but Polly didn't look like she wanted to go. She was fighting back tears to the point that her eyes were closed tight and she was moving clothes without looking. The poor girl on s on autopilot. Anne sat her on the bed and asked her what happened. Polly started to cry and blurted out, "I don't know! She just stopped bothering to be my mom once dad's affairs came out. She said she was working but Ms. Vega heard she was fired. Whenever she was home she was drunk or high or both. I just don't know why she finally left but she left so I'm going to the group home because nobody wants a teenage girl with a criminal record who is going to flunk 8th grade." Anne tried to comfort Polly but she was resigned to her fate. Sadly for Polly it was true, she would be a hard placement. She had issues that were not that bad but they took devotion and there weren't many if any who would be willing to put the time and effort into helping her. She hoped to find someone to take her in even if she had to beg them but it was a tough job for someone who had little going for her. Mark came up and took Polly's suitcase down to the car. Anne locked the house up tight then drove Polly to the girls' group home the Kensington/Winnisimmet line. It was heartbreaking, but she couldn't be left all alone. Polly didn't deserve it but she had to accept the hand dealt to her. Inside, Anne checked Polly in and got her situated before leaving. Polly waited for her unavoidable onslaught of bullying and quickly accepted her beatings without fighting back. She was in no mood to do so, they were trying to get her in trouble and any fighting back negated their actions. She took her bruises, getting two black eyes and a busted lip but neither crying nor fighting back. They lost interest immediately as she didn't give in to their entertainment. They tore through her clothes but couldn't find anything that fit nor that they could sell. One thing that Polly had working for her was her small size and tall height, all of the other girls were shorter and heavier making them too big to wear her blouses and jeans. Not even the leggings or underwear fit, they simply left a mess for her to clean up once they lost interest in her clothes. Polly walked to school the next day, making the journey alone as the girls all attended Kensington High School. At the school, Dorothy was shocked to see her appearance and asked for an explanation. The only thing she got from Polly was a quiet, "Girls at my group home. Can't say who so don't ask." Dorothy called Anne and Mark to tell them what happened then had to scramble to figure out what to do with Polly. Anne was concerned that this was the start of something bigger while Mark felt that the next attack could hurt her permanently. Polly refused to name names, citing her probation and her own safety. Anne was a loss as to what to do, she needed to get out of there but had no place to go. Alice looked at Dorothy and quietly told her, "Help her. You have a room and she trusts you to help her. She can't go back there, just let her be your foster daughter. She needs you." Anne asked if she was serious, getting a hearty, "The girl needs a parent who won't put up with any trouble and needs structure in her life. She has atoned for her sins, she shouldn't suffer because she was at the mercy of a man who is nothing but an overgrown child on a temper tantrum. Help her, Dorothy." Dorothy signed the paperwork to foster Polly. In doing so she told Alice, "Her education is now in your hands, I can't be involved directly." Alice nodded then told her, "I think she is too young for 8th grade. We already know that she was a 'last day eligible' kid, she needs to repeat the 7th grade. I am sorry Polly, but I don't believe that you got the proper help in such a short period of time to keep you on the same level as your classmates. I think you need a second chance at this grade and will do better with people who are more on your age level." Dorothy looked at Polly who told Alice firmly, "They already say I'm too stupid to be with them and the teachers don't want to help me anymore. I'm too much work for them. Only Mr. Bollinger bothered with me this week. Mr. Taylor can't focus on me anymore so nobody will bother with me anymore." Dorothy signed the order and asked to speak with Mrs. Eagleson. When Mrs. Eagleson came in she was told what they were doing and why. She then asked her to have the six help Polly if possible, they knew best how to welcome someone who is in Polly's situation. Dorothy had to excuse Polly for the rest of the week. She called Ricardo who agreed to take her on for the day allowing her to have her privacy while getting situated into her home. Dorothy then handed her a key, showing Polly that she was now in her care and it was now her home. Ricardo escorted Polly out and gathered her personal items from the group home. Ricardo had little trouble getting everything then explaining that Polly was no longer their concern but they had better settle their abuse situation or the state would settle it for them. Anne grinned and added, "We will be doing a review of the girls in the home and why they are allowed to do what they did. This happened too quickly to have been an isolated incident." Ricardo then drove Polly to her former home, letting her gather everything that she needed to get or wanted to have. There wasn't much that she wanted, she had all of her clothes already and didn't own many electronics. Once done he drove on to Dorothy's house and helped Polly inside. Polly nearly fainted when they encountered Juanita and Carmen Vega, Dorothy's nieces. Ricardo had to quickly explain, "Polly is going to be staying with your aunt for an unknown amount of time. Would you two be so kind as to help Polly settle in while I make some phone calls?" The two teens helped Polly upstairs to her new bedroom, not asking why she was there only knowing that Dorothy was doing it for the right reasons. They helped her put her clothes away and fought back grins as they saw the style of underwear that she had, they were more mature than something a girl her age should have and would prompt Dorothy to say something. Her blouses, pants, leggings, and skirts were tasteful and some made them jealous prompting them to smile at her developing sense of style. When they were finished they asked if she needed anything. Polly had everything in hand and couldn't think of anything to get. Carmen asked if she had any makeup to which Polly blushed, telling them, "I stopped after we were barred from ballet. I don't like wearing it, I hate all the eye shadow and blush we were forced to put on for performances." The girls were grinning widely as they pulled out some of their spares. They were the youngest of their cousins back in California and didn't hadn't had the chance to try out their techniques on the younger girls in the family yet. They went right at Polly, helping her hide some of the bruising and the cut on her lip while making her eyes pop and give her a more mature look. Ricardo had to fight back saying something to them but they were determined to do it for her. Polly let them go to work, figuring that it was just easier to accept the punishment than to fight back. When they were done she couldn't make out the bruising but the swollen lip was still visible, there was only so much they could do to hide it. She wanted to cry. Carmen softly admitted to her, "We had to learn to do this to cover up dad's punches. Mom wouldn't stop him from hurting us and we didn't trust social services or any of our relatives. Aunt Dorothy will understand why we did this, but don't think she will let you put on so much makeup in school. She already told the girls they are only allowed some lip gloss and eye liner." Polly's face went white at hearing that. She hated that she would have to face Amy, Al Samuels, Trina Phillips, and Stephanie Rodriguez. Ricardo had to chime in and explain, "They are in your class and are going to be told to help you out so you understand the work. We trust them to do the right thing, if they don't they will have a lot of people who are upset at them." The duo had to leave for class and let Polly know that she didn't have anything to fear. It reassured her but she was still anxious about the whole situation. Ricardo tried to allay those fears but without Dorothy there he could only say so much without it seeming hollow. Ricardo informed her that they had to go to visit a doctor to document the bruising and check her health. She was reluctant but gave in without a fight. A half hour later they were awaiting Dr. Samuels with Polly's anxiety rising again once she realized just who he was without having be told. Richard Samuels took a look at her and could see marks that were covered up. He asked her to remove the makeup so he could get pictures then examine her more thoroughly. The nurse with him assured her that it was alright and she was in no trouble, it was just standard policy. She agreed, removing the eye shadow, lipstick, concealer, blush, lip liner, and eye liner. It took several minutes but when she was done the pictures were hard to argue, and thankfully the nurse said they would start to fade in a few days making them easier to conceal. Richard was grateful that there wasn't any broken bones in her face and her nose wasn't damaged, it just looked worse than it was. Once that was done he had to perform a physical examination. The nurse stayed with her and didn't say a word. There was nothing physically wrong with Polly, in fact she was in perfect health physically and was developing as a normal just-turned-13 year old would. Polly was relieved to hear that, but the fact that she wasn't dancing three days a week and binge dieting to get into shape for Madam Pavlova's specifications helped immensely. Richard added a soft, "You have rebounded from your previous weight. I don't have to know what it was to say that you have gained a healthy amount of weight while keeping yourself fit. You are on the slim side but you are going to be naturally tall and slim anyway so you are due for some additional weight gain to go along with the increase in bust, hips, and buttocks that comes with puberty." Polly didn't respond to that. She learned not to even think about Pavlova anymore and what she had gained in weight was nothing to think about in her mind. She ate when she was hungry, she ate small meals because she couldn't afford to spend a lot on food for herself, and she didn't bother with sugary drinks or desserts since they weren't worth the effort to buy and drink. Ricardo asked if she was all set, getting a hearty, "She is fitter than most patients. Just tell Dorothy to go easy on the food as she needs to ease into being a family. I'll tell the girls to go easy on her as well, if they know what is good for them they will do the right thing regarding her. She could use the friends." Ricardo drove back to the school where Dorothy was waiting for the news. She spotted bits of makeup leftover and immediately asked about it causing Polly to grow scared. Ricardo just sighed and blurted out, "The girls got to her before I could tell them not to. Your brother's legacy was at work, they just wanted to help not knowing that she needed to be seen by Richard and her bruising documented." Dorothy nodded at hearing that, it was a good sign. Turning to Polly, she softly told her, "The girls are a little too experienced at this but the thought was there, I don't mind it. I would prefer a lighter touch, just some mascara, lip gloss, and eye liner will be enough for your face but they were trying to help ease your mind at others seeing the bruises." Dorothy waited several more minutes then told Polly, "The girls will be coming in shortly. I have asked that they come by so I can give you a soft introduction and explain why you are joining them. I trust them fully, but if they are unable to fulfill their promise you are still going to be in their class but I'll have people who I know can do the job without prejudice help you out. I'd prefer they do it but I can't assume that they will let bygones be bygones." Alice entered with Trina, Stephanie, Al, and Amy. Dorothy had them stand and explained the situation, "Polly has been asked to repeat the 7th grade due to her lack of development as a student. This isn't a punishment, she simply isn't ready for 8th grade and barely made it into her class year due to being born a few minutes before midnight. I want you four to help her learn. If you can't or worse if you won't I'll ask Scott Nelson and Jaimie Finn to help her instead." The girls needed to think. Alice led them out and sat them down, telling them firmly, "She is already humiliated, been badly beaten, and been left alone by her mother for almost three months. I know you have had your problems with her before but you are better than those girls were. She needs people who know what it is like to be all alone with nobody to support them, I only ask that you try to help her." Alice could see them seriously considering what they were being asked. This wasn't their normal school thinking, this was deep seated soul searching. She knew her daughter would demand the whole story and parrot it to the others but the fact that they were thinking was a good sign. Mrs. Eagleson was called to Dorothy's office and sat down for the necessary discussion. Dorothy didn't waste any time, explaining, "Due to a horrible act by her mother and an assault at the local girls' group home I have taken on Pauline Cook as my foster daughter. Prior to this I came to the realization that our recently retired colleague, Shannon Uxbridge, has shown her true colors as she rubber-stamped several students into passing on to the next grade. I received complaints about two of them already with Polly being the third and the only one to still be a student with us. By mutual opinion she is going to join your class this year to overcome that glaring violation of her rights as a student." Mrs. Eagleson was taken aback by Dorothy's statement. She asked why was she being demoted. Polly beat Dorothy to the answer, blurting out, "I'm too stupid to be in the 8th grade." Dorothy clarified it, further explaining, "She is not on the same grade level as her classmates, she was actually over a year behind but Uxbridge chose to ignore her work and let her fizzle out. From a request to a friend I was able to find out that her father also paid Uxbridge off to pass her to the next grade, sadly with him no longer around she is suffering the impact of those actions." Mrs. Eagleson asked if she had some corroboration, and after reading some of her language arts and science written assignments she saw the problems right away. She needed help, but she was also not quite there on paper. She wouldn't catch up to her classmates in the 8th grade that year, but she could catch up to the 7th graders shortly if given proper help. Turning to Polly, Mrs. Eagleson was firm in explaining, "You are to do the work, if you are still having trouble let me know immediately. There are a lot of people who will help you especially if Dorothy is going to be your foster mother. I can count at least 10 people ready, willing, and able to help you not counting Dorothy's own daughter." Mrs. Eagleson got up and hugged Polly, softly telling her, "Things will get better. Just let Dorothy help you. She is tough as a principal but is caring as a person. You are in safe hands with her." Dorothy led Polly out and left with the four still in deep thought. She drove right home, then sat Polly down on the couch and confessed, "I have no experience as a parent. I have a daughter but I never actually raised her. She was stolen from my wife and I when she was just a young infant. She found her way back to me as a full grown woman, the closest I have come is helping Carmen and Juanita after they moved out here last spring. I love them all deeply but I am still new at this." Polly hugged her, crying into her shoulder. Dorothy let her cry herself out, it had been simmering all day and she needed this release. Polly felt better, it had been a long time since she had anyone treating her like an adult and not some poor dumb girl or someone to pity. Dorothy smiled at Polly, feeling tenderness and affection towards her. Polly was awakening the inner Dorothy, the mother that had been suppressed for 20 years by that horrible kidnapping of her only child by her family and a bigoted judge. She felt alive again. She hugged Polly again, this time telling her, "I haven't felt this good in years. I love Deborah, Carmen, and Juanita but this is different. I missed this feeling, I missed being a mother to someone in need." She walked over to the stove and started to cook dinner for the four of them. Polly innocently asked, "Who is Deborah?" Dorothy drew a sharp breath then explained, "She is my daughter. She is married to a lovely gentleman named Patrick Peterson and is a student at Salem State. She starts student teaching in a couple of weeks and should come around every once in a while to check in on us." Carmen and Juanita came in with dinner and set the table while Polly set the food down. Dorothy received a text message then chuckled at it. Polly looked at her oddly to which Dorothy shot back, "Doctor's orders are to be followed. Ricardo really didn't want to make Richard angry." She filled Polly's plate with veggies then went easy on the rice and meat. The girls ate their fill with Polly having to hold back due to Dorothy's insistence. They were able to get Dorothy to allow Polly dessert, but only a little until Richard said it was alright. Dorothy called Richard and asked about Polly while the girls were cleaning up. Richard was brutally honest, telling her firmly, "She has lost muscle tone and weight slowly over the summer. I don't think she was eating right and eating a lot of food that wasn't good for her. She would gain too much too soon if you didn't hold back, but once she gets active again she will be able to burn off the excess calories the right way. I would suggest getting Amanda Kelly to let her dance again, if only for the exercise and interaction with the other girls." Dorothy understood what he meant, she needed to interact more to ensure that they buried the hatchet. She called Amanda Kelly and got her to give the OK to teach her provided that all of her old ways were set aside and she followed her instructions to the letter. Dorothy just nodded, adding, "She is eager to please so it won't be a problem." Amanda then dropped the pretense of the tough instructor and asked how Polly was doing. Word had gotten around through the grapevine among the kids about Polly living with her. Amanda was able to overhear the conversation as the name Polly was known to her. She was aware that Polly was hurt and that she was in Dorothy's care but not how she was handling herself emotionally. Dorothy was honest, telling her, "She is fighting her true feelings. She is attention starved, she needs affection and is latching onto me for it. I don't know if I'm the right person though." Amanda smiled at her humility. Dorothy was the one person that all of the mothers were proud of even if she would never accept it. Amanda sighed and asked that she bring her by the next day. She could use the company and wanted her to keep from going too stir crazy. Plus she wasn't going to be alone, she had Trinity there as well so both could help one another heal or at least talk things out. The girls talked with Polly for two hours helping her get used to them and helping ease her anxiety. Dorothy finished up some work during this time, fielding inquiries from Mr. Taylor and Polly's other former teachers about Polly being demoted back to 7th grade. It was tough to explain but she didn't hold back in her criticism of Uxbridge and her laziness. John Finn was the toughest critic, telling her that he'd ensure that she was blackballed from any future union gatherings especially the retiree gala. Valerie was the only one who was concerned that Dorothy was being hasty but reading between the lines she wanted to ensure that Dorothy was taking in Polly for the right reasons and not because of her own maternal clock ticking. She had to smile at Valerie, she was her oldest friend but she wasn't afraid to be blunt and ensure that Dorothy was on the right track with her life even if it was hard to accept. Polly eventually started to fall asleep causing the two college teens to hold off any further talking. Dorothy made sure that Polly showered and brushed her teeth, getting a happy, "Thank you" from Polly who loved the little gesture even if it was unnecessary. Carmen and Juanita both smirked at Dorothy's inquiry, asking her if she was happy being a mom again. Dorthy tried to deflect the question but it was hard to admit to herself that she was loving it. Polly wanted a mother, Dorothy wanted to be a mother, and the two were acting like a parent and child. The two teens were to the point and asked her, "If you could, would you adopt her?" Dorthy just nodded, finally admitting to herself that Polly fulfilled her maternal love that had been lacking. Up in her bedroom Polly was quietly contemplating what had happened that day. She had gone from her school's laughingstock to the daughter of the principal to cousin to two amazingly cool teens. She couldn't help but feel pride at that, she was happier now than she had been in years. Her father's browbeating and humiliation was gone, her mother's neglect gone. In its place was affection and attention that she had craved and it was coming from someone who needed her too. The next morning Polly was up early and helped Dorothy make a quick breakfast before Dorothy dropped her off at Amanda's home. Amanda winced at seeing the bruises but was grateful that there wasn't anything broken. Polly was glad that she didn't ask about the bruises, she seemed to understand them better than others, with Amanda telling her affectionately, "They will go down over the weekend." Polly had one of her leotards with her so she got changed for the dance lesson. Amanda helped her stretch while they awaited their guest who would arrive in a few minutes. She told Polly firmly, "The little girl who will be here has gone through a lot of trauma so please be respectful of her especially if she confesses to you her secret. You don't have to like it but be respectful of her feelings." Polly asked what happened to her. Amanda looked down up at her and saw the concern, telling her firmly, "Her father just died. She is now an orphan in the care of her teacher and her wife. She is very fragile and is barely holding herself together. If you react poorly to her secret she may break down worse and could do something horrible to herself." Polly gasped in shock. She didn't want to hurt her, she had no right to do so. In her mind the poor girl had the worst thing that could happen to a kid happen and Polly didn't want to hurt her no matter what. Chapter 3 Trinity slept soundly after her dinner and some makeup homework. In the morning she was up early and showered on her own, then dressed herself. Alison was happy to drop her off with Valerie then went to work. Valerie was beaming with pride as she told her how much Faith loved playing with her the night before and what it meant to her to have another girl in the neighborhood to play with. When they settled in Valerie told her that she was going to spend some time with Amanda Kelly and another girl who had to stay home from school for a few days. Trinity was unsure about that but Valerie smiled and told her, "It's so you have some exercise and she thought you might like to do some dancing as the girls were going to be doing it too but haven't started classes yet." Trinity nodded at hearing that, if they were gong to do it she wanted to do it too. She had one concern. Valerie sensed that she was afraid because of her little birth defect to which she grinned and added, "Amanda is aware of your situation, she's actually your next door neighbor and spoke with Katie and Alison about you back at the start of the year. She saw you going inside when you first arrived and wanted to give you some time to get used to Katie and Alison before she introduced herself. She is happy to teach you and any girl or boy like you. She is great with kids, she even got Al to try dance once the other girls showed her that it could be done and how good she really is at it." Valerie walked her over to Amanda's house and introduced her to Amanda and the reluctant Polly. Valerie had to hold her tongue at seeing Polly's bruises but Trinity didn't have that ability yet. Being the inquisitive six-year-old that she was she asked point blank what happened to Polly. Polly didn't lie, she told Trinity, "Some girls in my foster home didn't like me so they tried to hurt me to get me to get in trouble. I didn't do anything back so they hit me more before they ran off to hurt someone else." Trinity accepted what happened and moved on, going inside and changing into a pair of her leggings and a borrowed leotard. Trinity was taking a bit too long for their tastes so Polly went up to see if she was alright. Trinity was inside the bedroom and had the door unlocked so when Polly entered she accidentally saw her fumbling with her clothes naked from the waist down. It never occurred to Polly that that was the secret that Trinity had but it made sense now that she would be warned and Amanda would want her to be careful of how Trinity would react. Polly immediately apologized and tried to run off but Trinity was it tears. Polly helped her get dressed, putting her legs in the panties and leggings then stretching the leotard until she was able to put up up and around herself. Once it was on Polly hugged her tight with tears in her eyes. She felt horrible at scaring Trinity and it was the last thing that she wanted to have happen to the little girl. Trinity calmed down during the hug. Polly cleaned her face and led her downstairs where Valerie and Amanda were waiting. Polly came clean, telling them timidly, "She is scared because I saw her secret. She was having trouble putting on her leggings and pulled off her panties when she was trying to fix which leg they went on and exposed everything." Amanda tried to see if Polly being sincere or hiding her revulsion. Trinity blurted out, "I fell down and couldn't get the leggings on right." She hid her face in embarrassment as she looked at Polly who was waiting for them to say something about it. Amanda sighed and told her, "You found out her secret. She is a girl born with boy parts. We didn't want you to make a big deal out of it because she is already scared of people reacting badly to her. Only a few people have actually accepted her so she is scared of new people knowing her secret." Polly looked down and saw the scared look on Trinity then picked her up and hugged her. She wasn't about to say or do anything to hurt her, she was hurt enough. Polly asked that they do what they were supposed to do, hoping the tense situation was over and getting a nod from Amanda. Valerie made note of Polly's reaction. Something smelled off about it but it wasn't due to her, it was due to someone else. She grinned at the realization, her father's influence was backfiring. Polly had no ill intent towards Trinity, it was as if she was trying to protect her from others without knowing it. The girl wanted to be a good person and help someone who needed her help. She was the opposite of her father and was starting to show signs that she was a changed person, albeit subtllely. Polly finished stretching then helped Trinity stretch. Polly was as flexible as she had been before but she felt herself feeling some twinges as she went too far too quickly. Trinity tried to do the same but a loud, "No" from Amanda and Polly stopped her before she tore a muscle or ligament in her legs. Amanda had Polly show her what she knew, expecting her to go all in right away. Polly thought back to what she knew and what she had learned and didn't bother trying the hard stuff yet. She danced but built up on each skill level before finishing where she left off with Madam Pavlova before her arrest. Trinity was in awe. Amanda had to think and saw where she was in terms of skill level at that point and sadly informed her, "You are still on an intermediate level. You have potential but you have to work at it. You are rusty but you haven't completely forgotten your basics nor tried to overcompensate. Some time with the trio could do wonders for you if you let them." She then turned to Trinity and helped her with the basics. Trinity was wobbly but eager to follow instructions, learning quickly the basic poses and copying each then going into that pose on command. Amanda was pleased with her, she wanted to do better but it would take a lot of time and energy to get better and she wasn't entirely sure that it wasn't hero worshiping an older girl just yet. Polly helped Trinity with the basic positions, ensuring that she remembered what to do when told what position to get into. It took a while to master the most basic of steps but Trinity kept trying, looking at Polly for assurance while keeping an eye on Amanda for guidance. She was doing her best but it was still an uphill struggle for her, but she was eager and could learn in time if given time and effort. If she was serious about learning it would be an asset to the other girls especially Cat and Willow. The thought made her smile, she could be a gap between the four younger and older girls that made them come together with a common goal. She had seen it before but the spark was definitely there. Valerie checked in on them and had to fight a smile as Trinity continued to emulate Polly's moves while trying hard to do her own correctly. They didn't notice the time passing by, it was lunch time and they needed to eat. Amanda wrapped up the dance lesson and had them cool down then shower while they got the meal together. Polly helped Trinity shower, not even flinching at seeing her anatomy again. She surprised Trinity by joining her, letting the little girl see her nude, making her blush at seeing things that she was years away from growing on her own. Sensing this bit of embarrassment Polly softly told her, "Mom's family is really hairy and dad's has big boobs so it makes me look older than I really am. I hate it but I can't change it, only shave more and hope these don't grow too big too fast." Trinity snickered, letting Polly feel at ease at being a little too candid with a six year old. They took a bit of time as the shower was small but they finished and didn't say a word about what went on in there. Amanda just shook her head and grinned, they heard it through the thin door and it was what Trinity needed more than anything else, someone who wanted to be herself around her. The girls ate quietly and slowly, feeling a bit tired from the dancing especially as one was unused to it after trying it for the first time and the other participating after months of inactivity. Trinity was fighting fatigue prompting Amanda to ask her mother-in-law to watch the girls so she could pick up Junior. Polly wasn't sure what she should do, but Danielle Kelly told her to rest and keep an eye on Trinity and wouldn't need to do anything else. Trinity finally succumbed to exhaustion and slept soundly on the couch with Polly by her side watching TV. Amanda eventually returned with Junior and two rambunctious boys who could barely contain their loudness. Amanda had to sigh at the three nine-year-old boys, they were good but that was their one trait that they shared with all other boys: being loud. The trio walked into the living room and saw the sleeping Trinity and silent Polly then backed away slowly, apologizing to Danielle while keeping their eyes glued on Polly. Danielle had to feel giggle at the sight, they were stopped cold by a cute girl for the first time. Danielle whispered to Polly, "I think the three of them may have a crush on you." She blushed, it was a first for her and it felt nice. Danielle checked on the boys and told them to do their homework before playing the game system in Junior's room. That got a groan but they didn't fight her on it, not wanting to make Polly mad at them. The boys kept trying to go into the living room to get peeks at Polly which both caught and smiled at, it made Polly feel pretty and Danielle knew that Polly had the boys in her grasp. Eventually Trinity woke up. Seeing the boys she wanted to go back home, but the entering of Faith caused her to change her mind. Polly though was told by the entering Dorothy that she had work to do for school and called it a day, getting a hug from Trinity before she left. The boys were sad to see Polly leave, which in turn caused Danielle to grin widely. As they walked off Polly quickly told Dorothy, "Just my luck that the first boys that like me are too young to go out with me." Dorothy grinned at hearing that, she could have easily been upset that they were infatuated with her let alone fumbling for her attention. In time there would be plenty of boys to take notice of her. Dorothy's daughter Deborah greeted them at Dorothy's house, carrying some workbooks and a simple, "We have work to do" for Polly. Dorothy told her not to overdo it and keep things light as she needed to ease into the work instead of diving in heat first. Deborah tried to look offended but Dorothy grinned and pointed out, "I know your style, your mom was the same way and it doesn't work for Polly. We tried it last year and it didn't work the way we wanted it to. She needs a different approach." Sighing, Deborah sat her down and began to go over what they learned the previous year then read samples of her writing. She compared them to the curriculum that she was supposed to learn the year before and it was severely lacking in what she had to know. She had her baseline, she needed to get her to see things from a different angle and maybe help her get the words from her thoughts down on paper. Polly struggled but she was showing improvement and was articulating more than anything. Dorothy noticed what was going on and thought that it might work with Reyna Toro's tutoring method. Polly was perplexed and asked about it, getting a smile and soft, "She helped Francesca, who finished her mom's book for her after her mother and mom died. Reyna will help you if you want her to." Polly nodded, not caring one bit about knowing nothing about the girl. She wanted to learn and wanted to show she was not some retard as the kids in her class called her. Dorothy called Reyna and got her blessing but the only time she could come was between the end of school and the football game so Polly would have to go to her. Deborah snickered at hearing that, it wasn't planned but Polly was getting a crash course in meeting the older girls. Pointing out just who was going to be there, Dorothy realized she had a math, science, and language arts tutor to go along with the normal social studies work that John Finn would want to do. Polly would not be allowed to fall behind again, not if those girls had anything to say about it. The doorbell rang and Dorothy was surprised to see Al there with Kyle Douglas. Al looked uncertain then handed Dorothy a packet, explaining, "Mrs. Eagleson said this was for Polly so she was ready for class on Monday." As she turned to leave Dorothy asked, "Have you four decided if you were going to help or let Polly go at this alone." Al stopped short. She was hoping that she wasn't going to be asked that directly. Sighing she mumbled, "Trina and Amy need more time. Their moms aren't certain that you should be so hasty in putting her in class with us. Mom said we had to help and Stephanie doesn't want to upset her mom. If they don't want to they don't have to, but we don't want to go against our moms." Kyle was nervous that Dorothy was going to ask him something. Dorothy looked at him firmly, then told him, "You don't have to do anything, she never did anything to you or Oscar." Kyle looked down and mumbled, "Margaret said we had to because she is like Rachel and didn't do it on purpose. She never hit the girls and her father and the girls made her do everything." Al couldn't refute that, telling Dorothy, "Rick is going to tell Courtney and Jessie to talk with Amy." Polly asked why getting a soft, "They forgave Scott and Rachel. Scott hurt Jaimie but Rachel never hurt anyone. Amy doesn't go against her sisters' requests so she may change her mind which will make Trina do the same. Stephanie already tried and failed, she will follow Amy's lead though." Al and Kyle left with Deborah escorting them to the Finn home so she could talk with Valerie and John. Valerie needed to know about Gabby Bollinger's and Margo Phillips' concerns regarding Polly and the impact it was having on the four girls and their boyfriends. Dorothy wished she could get her help so the legal issues were removed since they weren't her fault, it was her father's and friends' doing. Ricardo called her and alerted her that Polly's mother had been located and it wasn't pretty. The woman was drunk and disorderly and when sobered up she was combative towards officers. She was in no condition to be a mother let alone Polly's mother. What's worse is she said she had no children and that she refused to acknowledge Polly as her daughter. She said DCF could have her for good, she didn't want her anymore. Dorothy broke the news to Polly who shed a tear and curled up in shame. Dorothy hugged her, which prompted Polly to say, "You have been more of a mother to me than she has been in years. I wish you were my mother not her!" That stung Dorothy badly. She felt for the girl but didn't think she could respond in any way that wouldn't cause Polly to become upset. She softly told the sobbing girl, "I wish I could be your mother but it doesn't happen instantly. There are hurdles to go through and there may be better parents for you out there. Just hold on, we are going to get you the help you need to get past your parents' treatment." Deborah spent an hour talking with Valerie about Polly's situation. It pained her to do it but she had to put Gabby and Margo in their place over Polly. She was innocent and it was proven that her former associate Megan actually masterminded the plot to steal items from the store as well as planted them in Amy's bag, Polly actually tried to talk her out of it and was only caught in the mess because her father went after David. Valerie called Ricardo and had him start the process of annulling the plea agreement based on evidence that Polly was innocent and coerced. She hated to pull out the biggest cards but Polly needed them to pressure the right people to make it happen. Judge Matthews, their frequent judge, was willing to hear the evidence the next day but only if they could have Polly explain why she did what she did and didn't speak up against either her friends or her parents. The last ones to be called were Margo and Gabby. Michael Finn had relayed that the girls were being pressured by Stephanie and Al which they didn't like but he figured was due to direct requests from Dorothy herself. When Scott and Rachel were brought up there was little to argue, Gabby just stormed off and refused to talk about it anymore. Olivia called Valerie direct for her views and was pleased to hear that it was not a hasty request, rather it was a plea for help from those who had known the same isolation. Her husband Richard hadn't shared any information about Polly due to confidentiality and Dorothy was evasive except to say that she was in the girls' class at her request, Valerie was her best chance at the truth. Valerie simply told her, "Rachel situation with a touch of Reed. She needs friends and support, not reminders of what she did." Olivia needs no further explanation. This was serious enough already. Reed was close to breaking down multiple times two years before and Rachel nearly succeeded in her attempt, Polly may not be able to stop herself from harming herself. Valerie asked if Olivia could look after the girls the next day while she got the legal mess figured out. Olivia couldn't say no, in fact she was hoping to meet Polly herself and gauge her actions on her own. Trinity would need to be there but with some careful planning it wouldn't take much for them to entertain a six-year-old who just needed a distraction. She could also help get some of her grief out as well but that was a bonus on top of the distraction. Trinity spent the afternoon playing with Faith and Daisy. It was clear that she was making the girls play differently and from the sounds in Trinity's room they were using more imagination and treating Trinity like she was a little sister not as a little kid. Katie had to fight back giggles at some of the things they were coming up with, it was funny and cute and made your heart melt as only a little kid could come up with much of what they were coming up with. The girls had dinner there with Daisy asking about the dancing that Trinity did, trying to get some insider information for the others. Trinity honestly told her, "It was hard work and the stretching hurt. Polly was good at it but Amanda was better. We almost fell down trying to copy her." Katie asked the pointed, "Did you like doing it or did you only do it because the other girls do it?" Trinity had a big grin as she admitted, "I loved it. It was fun and Polly showed me how to do moves that made me jump and spin. I hate wearing a leotard though." Katie sensed something went one and asked what happened. Trinity mumbled, "I fell down trying to get into my leggings. Polly had to help me put them on. She saw everything." Katie shot the girls a glare as they started to snicker at her falling. Katie knew that it wasn't a bad reaction or she would have heard about it already so she made a point to ask what Polly did. Trinity blushed and confessed, "She didn't say anything, she helped me get into them then helped me get out of them later. I didn't mean to but I saw her naked when we showered afterward." Katie grinned at that, it was Polly accepting her and trying to help her. Katie looked at the girls and boldly told them, "Make sure when you tell your sister and cousins that she did something that Trinity needed- she treated her like a normal girl and helped her get dressed like an adult should. I don't want to hear them gossiping, they tried hard to focus on anything except their problems and the last thing they need is the whole lot of them trying to help or direct them to do something they don't want to do." Sarah picked up the girls and herded them back home, thanking Katie for letting them blow off steam for a bit. She looked at the tired Trinity and asked if the dancing took all the energy out of her, getting a nod and a smile. She asked about her two, getting a somber, "They were warned about gossiping." Sarah was pleased, adding a hopeful, "They won't tell the others too much, just that the girls had fun. The two are strongly considering trying dance but only because everyone else seems to be doing it and they want to join in. Kylie, Nancy, and Margaret are always talking about it and they feel left out. Nichole doesn't mind not being part of it but the girls are starting to think that they aren't good enough for them even if they know they care about them." Sarah went off with her two while Katie helped Trinity with her homework. Valerie called to tell her the plans for the next day which Katie agreed with and hoped Trinity didn't mind. Olivia was a good person for them to be around and if they were lucky they might get to spend some time with Bryan and Paige Smith if they were home. Over at the Bollinger home, a vigorous debate was going on between Courtney and Jessie Bollinger, their sister Amy, and their mother Gabby. Their father Zeke and brother Donald wisely stayed out of it, opting instead for a walk around the neighborhood until their heads cooled. It would be a while until that happened, but eventually the arguments would slow down and one of them would win out. Gabby wanted the girls to take things slow and not rush into anything they could regret. She knew that Scott and Rachel would be brought up by the girls but Polly had actually been arrested and has a criminal record, neither of them had one and Rachel's arrest had been vacated due to her former parents' finagling before she ever got charged by the police. Polly had one, in fact she was on probation for two years because of her plea bargain with the state. Amy didn't want anything to do with Polly. She hated the idea of her even coming near her in school let alone being in the same classroom as her. She had to put up with her snide comments and bad attitude constantly before her arrest and it left a bad taste in her mouth that no amount of pleading by her sisters could remove. Jessie wouldn't let either of them get away easily. She pointed out exactly what was going on and why and heard it directly from Ricardo. She called him directly and demanded an explanation about why Polly was even allowed near Amy. He wouldn't lie to her and he told her point blank that Polly had a way to get out of any punishment as she wasn't directly involved and was forced to participate, she was a victim not a participant and they were trying to help her. Courtney had the strongest point, Amy was perfectly fine with Scott and Rachel yet she had an issue with Polly. Scott had physically hurt Jaimie multiple times which resulted in her needing major surgery. Rachel had actually tried to hurt Sam and Iris but deflected it so she didn't make contact. In fact, Rachel could have let two people die but chose to go against her own parents and get them sent to prison risking her own freedom to save Iris and Leslie Sylvester. Amy admitted that she found Scott to be hot and was now at Rachel's side so much that she was almost becoming a computer nerd like her. To shun Polly was nothing short of sheer hypocrisy by Amy. Amy fumed at being told off by her sisters and went up to her room to sulk. She didn't find any help from either Al or Stephanie, only terse, "We are helping her with or without you" responses from them. She wanted to hate Polly for any reason, but her sisters made their points hard that Scott and Rachel were accepted and beloved by her yet they had done much worse and were given a chance to redeem themselves by everyone. Gabby was fighting an internal struggle. She wanted to protect her daughter but she had also forgiven a known bully who had hospitalized someone and a girl who could just as easily be sitting in a prison cell while another girl and woman were dead. She tried to ask her best friend Lilly Peterson what she should do, only getting a warm, "You already know, you just have to gather your strength to tell her. If you weren't already feeling what was right you wouldn't have hesitated" from Lilly. Gabby walked upstairs to Amy's room and knocked, finding her crying to herself on the bed. Gabby sat down and hugged her, Amy mumbled a quiet, "Why did she have to come back" from her. Gabby shed a tear as well, the poor girl was torn up inside over being angry and being a good person. Finally figuring out what to say Gabby told her, "She came back because she didn't belong in the alternative school. She had a problem, but it wasn't what they thought it was. She is only a few weeks older than Stephanie, yet was a whole year ahead of her. She didn't belong in 8th grade nor should she have advanced but she was and now that Dorothy knows about her problem she can solve it and help her. You girls can help her, you know about being all alone and having nobody willing to help you. That is until someone like you stretched their hand out to help, someone who has been there before. Stephanie and Al had each other, you had them, and Trina had you. She needs all four of you to help." Amy asked, "Did her teacher really just pass her along just to get rid of her?" Gabby nodded, then added, "She did it for all three girls. She is really a good person at heart, she showed it today by helping a little girl who needed a friend and mentor and accept that she was a girl and not a freak of nature. She was there to show her how to be a girl and that she was no different than her even if she was born with a birth defect." Amy looked at her oddly. Gabby smirked and admitted, "She helped Trinity, the little girl staying with Katie and Alison. She was in a bit of trouble trying to put on leggings and a leotard for the first time and fell down exposing her birth defect to Polly. Polly just helped her into them and then helped her out of them without saying a word about what she saw. She treated her like you treat Cat, Willow, Daisy, and Faith. She treated her like a person and made her feel like she was normal." Amy didn't understand what she meant. Gabby shook her head and blurted out, "She's not genetic girl, Polly did her best to help her learn to dance." Calming down, she added, "Polly is trying hard to get back to normal but it's tough when she's staying with Dorothy and has to hide her bruises for another week. Dorothy wanted you four to help her because she trusts you four to do the right thing. You don't have to like her, but she hopes you at least give her a chance to catch up and fly on her own." Amy was left to think it over. A half hour later she entered her mother's office and solemnly told her, "I'll do it for her. Any acting like she did before and it's off. I don't care how much you beg us I refuse to help her again if she acts like the prima donna she used to act like." Amy went back up to her room to get some sleep while Donald, Zeke, Courtney, and Jessie came back inside. Donald asked her pointedly, "Did she give in?" Gabby nodded, adding, "She has conditions but nothing unreasonable. She only put on a show to hide feeling sorry for her. The girls beat her soundly." Courtney added, "It would be hard to avoid her anyway, we have been asked to tutor her by Deborah. The only time we are available is before the football game and she would be there with you." Donald asked why they were tutoring her getting a grin and solid, "Francesca had a similar problem that Reyna helped solve and Jaimie and Stacy are the best at tutoring science and math." The whole thing reeked of a setup but it was true that she needed help and Deborah wasn't one to ask something like that without it being legitimate. Donald let it go, he wasn't the strongest student and being the only non- athlete in the teens it was hard not to be stuck with the younger girls. He might get to help Polly, it all depended on who was at the game and what she needed done. Zeke waited for the teens to go to their rooms before he added his own take on things. Polly was trying but something in her was off and the truth about her home life made it all make sense. The thing that surprised him most was Dorothy's behavior towards Polly, it was almost motherly after only a day and a half around her. Gabby had it dawn on her just what was going on with Dorothy. Hugging and kissing Zeke, she told him warmly, "She wants to adopt her. There is no doubt about it, the woman wants to become her mother permanently. She is making Dorothy experience some of what she missed with Deborah but with the added experience of some of what Deborah couldn't experience, boys and periods and breasts. I don't have to see it myself, I can tell that Polly is the child that Dorothy needed to raise as her own." The next morning Polly awoke to Carmen and Juanita cooking and Dorothy already gone. The two teens happily let her help, telling her what to do and when while they got the items ready to cook. Polly enjoyed doing that, her mother was a perfectionist and refused to let anyone into her kitchen as she was cooking not even to get a glass of water. They made four plates, knowing that Olivia would join them just as soon as she dropped off Al at school. Trinity was going to eat at home with Alison dropping her off before she went to work so all she would do was watch TV while they ate. Olivia entered and hugged the girls then dug into her plate, not batting an eye at seeing either Polly or Trinity for the first time. A half hour later the trio left for Olivia's home with Trinity grumbling about a booster seat. Polly helped her in it which eased her complaining, something that miraculously stopped once Polly told her that it was the law and she didn't want an officer to complain about her not being in one. Polly figured it was more about appearing to be a baby to Olivia than actually having to sit in one but it was also something that she had seen other six and seven year old s do at times so it was expected. Once they were at the Samuels home Olivia had them relax and do some light work on the workbooks that Katie and Dorothy had gotten them. Trinity went right at the books, trying to rush through them but finding herself slowing down and redoing some of her work. She was finished quickly, forcing her to draw and color while Polly did her own work. Polly just sat silently and read, then wrote out her answers and reworked them over again. Olivia could see that she was having confidence issues and second and third guessing her work causing her to redo tings that were right the first time. She didn't say anything about it, noting that she needed to talk with her about it later once she was finished. Polly eventually finished and helped Trinity color. Over lunch Olivia subtly asked how Polly did on her work getting a quiet, "I finished it. It was just as tough as I thought it was." When they finished Trinity was told to go in the backyard to play to which she happily agreed while Polly and she could talk alone. Olivia wasted no time and informed her, "You were right the first time with your answers but you kept changing them. You know the answers, you just need to realize that you know them and not let your mind talk you out of a correct answer. I saw Rick and Al doing this plenty of times, you just need to stop overthinking things and just accept that you are smarter than you realize. Trust in yourself, you can do amazing things if you just trust in yourself." Polly looked down with tears in her eyes and confessed, "I keep hearing his voice telling me that I don't know anything, that I am wrong, that I'll never get things right. I write something and as soon as I am done his voice tells me I am wrong and I have to change it then he does it again and tells me I was stupid to change it in the first place." She now burst into tears, letting them flow freely for the first time in days. Olivia expected this would happen, she was hoping that it happened there instead of somewhere like the school. At least there she was in the privacy of someone who understood and wouldn't use it against her. Trinity hugged her tight, she didn't know what was going on but she hugged Polly making Polly feel better about the whole situation. Polly hugged her back, thanking her for caring. Trinity just smiled and ran off to play again, her work was done and it was what Polly needed at that time. Olivia had to stifle a giggle as the little girl had used her six-year- old's logic to help calm down Polly and give her exactly what she needed when she needed it. Calmly Olivia explained, "That man was a blithering idiot who has no business insulting the intelligence of others let alone a young lady who doesn't deserve to be called his daughter. No real father would insult his daughter that way especially when she is struggling to better herself. You are smarter than you realize, you just need to let yourself see it. Reyna and Francesca are going to help you out, let them help you." Olivia showed her what she was talking about, pointing out that she had the right answer and kept changing it. Polly felt horrible but Olivia calmly explained, "It's unintentional and due to your father's influence. You are better than him, remember that he was wrong and if you are wrong you can learn from your mistakes and correct yourself. You will be given that chance, the school has to let you." Polly felt a lot better and relaxed finally. Trinity had her running around in circles in the yard and trying to climb into Rick's tree house which Olivia had to stifle a laugh over seeing. Polly was too big but Trinity was just right for it, it was meant for a kid and Polly was too tall to not get stuck inside of it. Olivia heard the doorbell and happily greeted Bryan and Hannah Smith as they came out back. Trinity stopped short at seeing them while Polly was unsure what to say. Trinity asked, "Are they the married couple Junior said lived near you?" That set Olivia off causing the twins to scowl at her. Olivia quickly explained, "They are twins, her husband and his wife are probably in class." Hannah looked Trinity over and grinned. Bryan groaned and told her, "No. If you even think about asking her I'm staying with Emma and David." Hannah ignored him, telling Trinity, "Ignore him. We were going to take the four toddlers to the park while everyone was watching the game, it doesn't feel right to immerse you in the adults while they go play. Besides, he will be too busy talking with our uncles to care about the game anyway." Olivia looked over at Polly and sensed that she was thinking. She whispered to Polly, "She has a handle on the kids, her little brother and cousin are a handful if they don't have a distraction and Trinity may not like being the center of attention. You are going too since you have to meet with the older girls before the game for your tutoring." Hannah sat down with Trinity and told her happily, "Faith loves you. She just loves having another girl close to her age and is making Daisy jealous. But please be careful of them, they can be real brats when they don't get their way especially when they are wrong." Looking at Polly she grinned widely. Hannah happily teased, "Poor Ethan hasn't been the same since he saw you. He always falls for pretty girls but you had the three of them fumbling over one another." Polly's face went red as she added, "The first boys who have crushes on me and they are too young for me." Hannah snickered and shot back, "Get used to it, they fall for any pretty girl and if you are lucky you can get them to do your bidding. Maybe Aunt Dorothy will let you watch one of them for some extra money if you improve enough, Ethan will love that." Bryan shook his head as Polly blushed deeply again. Hannah was making her uncomfortable but it was more to get her used to the teasing that the others would do. Olivia just shook her head and grinned, that young lady had a mind of her own and knew how to manipulate the situation if given a chance. The two left after picking up what they needed to pick up from Bryan's house. Olivia calmly explained to the girls, "They were checking in on you for Katie and Richard just in case you sweet talked me into letting you do something you shouldn't. The boys really did love seeing you and the kids are going to need a break from the adults so they got stuck with babysitting duty at the game. And you should be glad they weren't squabbling, normally they do it for show but they fight a lot." Chapter 4 Olivia got the girls ready to go but received a text that surprised her. Shaking her head at their boldness she told Polly, "We are going to stay here for a while, the girls have something to tell you and the way it sounds it is something they need to do soon or they won't have the drive to do so." Turning to Trinity she added, "They don't mind you and they know of you through others so they will be respectful of you. Don't worry about trying to impress them, it won't work on them especially Al. They would rather you be yourself than try to be the girl everyone wants you to be." Olivia texted Katie to tell her what was going on and why, getting back an, "Alright" from her. Polly was extremely nervous as she waited on the girls while Trinity wasn't sure what to feel. Olivia tried to ease their tension but it was building up and only the inevitable meeting could spring it from them. Al entered with Trina, Stephanie, and Amy behind her. Gabby was the last to enter, with a reluctant Margo Phillips in tow behind her. Olivia waited for them to sit and led the adults to the adjacent dining room so they could listen and let the girls talk without their influence making them hold back. Al wasted no time and told her she'd help her in school. Stephanie parroted Al and added she had no choice in the matter. Amy reluctantly told them, "My sisters and brother would never forgive me if I didn't help you." Trina said no, refusing to even think of it. This caused the three of them to demand a reason why. Trina was adamant, Polly didn't deserve their help and just because she was hurt by girls in the group home or was all alone and falling behind everyone in school they shouldn't have to help her. Al shook her head and asked her sharply, "Do you know why Ms. Vega asked used to do this or are you so far gone that you don't want the truth?" Trina tried to refuse to listen so Al bluntly told her, "She has nobody else. She is all alone because nobody wants anything to do with her. She didn't cause any of this. She should never have been in the 8th grade let alone put in with a bunch of brats who hated her. Does this sound familiar? She is us! Don't even try to deny it because it's the truth- she is right where you were before you were moved into our class last year!" Amy looked at Trina with disappointment. She mumbled softly, "Were were helping Rachel yesterday install some computers at Mr. Alvarez's office. Did my sisters or Al's brothers tell you her story yet?" Trina mumbled a soft, "No" to which Amy shook her head in disappointment. Al told her firmly, "Over a year ago Rachel was what Polly is. Her mother and father were involved with a fake preacher who wanted to kill Iris and Aunt Leslie for causing his church to get investigated by the police. Rachel could have let Iris and Aunt Leslie die but she went against her own parents to get them help and stop their murders. Before that she constantly bullied all of the girls in school for five years and even hit Mrs. Rodriguez when she was saying nasty things about Iris and Sam. So how is it that you are fine with her but you won't even consider trying to help Polly? How?" Al had to leave as she got so angry. Trina walked out and asked Gabby if it was true about Rachel. Gabby sat her down and confessed, "She really was a bitch to the girls for years and before Rebecca came Iris, Francesca, and Jessie were part of her group. But that wasn't the real Rachel. She was trying hard to please her parents and it only fueled their manipulating of her to do what they wanted. She is a good person at heart but she just wanted her parents' love. That is exactly what Polly went through, but we don't know exactly what they did to her as she has kept that to herself and Dorothy. Rachel treats you girls like little sisters and tried hard to make sure you are appreciated, Polly just wants the same thing. Giver her a chance to prove that she isn't her father's or mother's daughter." Trina slunk away ashamed of herself. Margo asked if Rachel was that badly mentally abused, getting a nod and quiet, "Rick got jealous of her and tried to run her out. She tried to kill herself because she felt she had nobody else. Zeke is concerned that Polly is leaning towards that if she hasn't already thought about it. The girls are going to save her life if they can drop their old feelings and accept her as the girl we see outside. The one playing with that little girl." Polly had kept to herself out back, hoping for the best but expecting the worst. She deserved the worst, she had been horrid to Trina and Amy when they had broken away from Madam Pavlova and had made horrible claims about them among the other dancers. She had refused to corner the girls and hurt them as Megan and Ruby had wanted to do but actively spread rumors about them when others started to notice that Amy was growing breasts. Ms. Vega and Ms. Rodriguez killed those rumors but that didn't stop the girls in Amy's class from starting their own about them. Trinity stopped playing and asked, "What's wrong?" Polly didn't have the will to lie to the little sprite and confessed, "The girls are inside talking about me. They don't like me because I was mean to them last year and said some bad things about Amy. My parents and supposed friends were the ones who hated her, but I didn't stop them and made fun of her with them so I'm just as bad as them." Trinity saw the girls staring at them talking and glared at them. Al shook her head at the sight, Trinity claimed Polly and they would have to explain why they were against her. Stephanie vocalized the sight, telling Amy and Trina, "You are going to have to explain to a six year old why you don't like Polly and you had better have a good reason because she won't accept your excuse once she knows about Rachel and Scott. Uncle Ricardo said she is the kind of kid who won't accept half truths or lies." Trinity waited for them to come out then asked point blank, "Why do you hate Polly?" Trina told her, "She bullied us." Trinity shot back, "Daddy said to not let words hurt us. Did she hit you?" Trina shook her head no to which Trinity asked, "Then why do you hate her if she didn't hurt you? She couldn't have hurt you. Polly doesn't hurt anyone." Trina realized she had been outmaneuvered by the six-year-old. Stephanie gloated, "I told you so" to which Trina tried to glare but Trinity glared back. Al hugged her, then told Trina, "It's your call, but you can't look Rachel in the eye and accept who she is without doing the same for Polly." The three went inside to let Trina think about Polly. Polly stayed as far as she could get away from the girls with Trinity having to pull her inside behind her. Amy reluctantly sat next to Polly while Al and Stephanie sat opposite them. Trinity figured out that they needed to get together and that it was important that they do so no matter what. Polly didn't say a word, Stephanie did all the speaking. She was to the point with, "Mom said we had to help you and it wasn't your fault that you got screwed over by that lazy witch. If she was still teaching mom would have had her fired but she is out of reach. Mrs. Eagleson wants us to ensure that on Monday you are able to keep up in class and work with us since we are broken up into groups of four and the other groups won't take you." Al showed what they were working on in science to which Polly started to remember some of what was taught. Her old notes were thrown out so she had to retake notes or borrow them from the girls. Al and Stephanie started to compare notes then had Amy add hers building up a pile of the best of the bunch. The only one who was missing was Trina but until she came to her senses they would do without. Trina felt horrible and went to where her mother was sitting. Margo asked what was going on so Trina blurted out, "Amy is going to help. I don't want to but Trinity is making me feel horrible for not." Olivia snorted at hearing that, then told the two adults, "I guess Daisy and Cat aren't the only brutally honest little girls around. She knows that they need to help Polly and called you on it." It took some thinking but Trina finally asked her mom what she should do. Margo looked at Gabby who nodded, to which Margo replied, "The girls wouldn't help her unless it was the right thing to do. Polly will either prove that she is changed or she is still the brat you knew. Either way it's her job to make you accept her. Just try, she might be a good friend to you. You have nothing to lose except time." Trina joined the others, sitting next to Polly then hugging her silently. Trinity had a big smirk on her face which caused Al to roll her eyes at. The others snickered with Al telling Trinity, "You better not get together with Cat and Daisy or the whole city might end up enslaved to you three." Trinity shot back, "I can't help it if I'm cute" causing the girls to laugh and Al to groan. Trinity got up and went to where the adults were, smiling brightly as she sat down waiting for Katie to pick her up. Al mumbled a soft, "She is going to make Tyler and Virgil do her bidding soon if she keeps it up. Those poor boys don't stand a chance." Katie arrived and took Polly and Trinity home. Trinity kept grinning while Polly was silent. Once inside her booster seat and driving away Trinity told Katie happily, "I got the girls to be nice to Polly" prompting Katie to nod. Katie shot back a hard, "Don't think that you can manipulate everyone, the girls were very emotional and didn't want to upset you by saying the wrong thing. Most of the time they can see when they are being manipulated and will retaliate. Al is especially good at spotting manipulation." Turning to Polly Katie explained, "The girls are good people, they just needed to have the reality that not everyone were perfect angels like Jaimie and her friends. Rachel wasn't yet she was forgiven and accepted as a valuable young woman by everyone, as was Scott. You never hurt them physically, he did so multiple times and even caused Jaimie to lose part of her anatomy and yet the kids still went out of their way to get him to come east with his family to protect him from a monster posing as his father. They are accepting of them, they needed to see that you just need the chance to prove you are your own person and not your parents' child nor your former friends' friend." Dorothy was waiting for Polly and asked what happened. Polly quickly hugged her, thanking her for getting the girls to help her. Dorothy looked at Katie who pointed at the grinning Trinity and realized they had been outfoxed by the little minx. Dorothy just shook her had and added, "Thank goodness she didn't demand payment or we'd be bankrupt paying her off or adopting a puppy for her." Trinity just grinned and let them have their fun. To her it was helping someone she liked and who accepted her as a person. She didn't have many people who did and Polly was the first who wasn't her classmate or an adult who had to accept her because she was in their care. At home, Katie asked about her day, getting a happy recollection of Polly and her doing school work then of Polly crying over something involving school. Katie understood the why, but didn't tell Trinity it. Trinity was happy to be doing normal things again and wanted to get back to school, even if it meant that weekend she had to endure a wake and funeral for her father. Katie had made all of the arrangements and gotten everything cleared with Ricardo. Trinity was kept out of the loop but would be there for the two events despite her own reservations about her going. She needed closure even if it was traumatic for her. Alison came home and greeted the two with warm smiles. She explained to Trinity, "You are going to have an appointment with a friend of mine. He is different than Dr. Bell, he is someone who helps kids through tough situations. You have been quiet about your father dying which concerns us, he wants to talk to you about it so you can understand everything. You don't have to talk a lot, but he just wants to ensure that you are doing better and it isn't hurting you inside." Trinity silently nodded, if Alison was asking her to go then it was a good idea to go. Katie assured her that it was alright, explaining, "He has talked with the older kids before and knows a lot about your situation. He is a good man, he is great with kids and will help you adjust to being here." Trinity looked down and stated, "Daddy is dead. Mommy is dead. I don't want to leave here. I like it here. I don't want to lose you. Can you be my new mommies? Please" Alison looked at Katie who looked back at Alison and tried to hide their tears. Both hugged her and told her a happy, "Yes!" Trinity now started to cry, telling them firmly, "Mommy said to find a new mommy for me, daddy said if anything happened to him to find new parents who loved me. You love me, I want to stay here with you. I want you to be my mommies." The two let her hug herself out then watched as she went up to her room to rest until dinner. Katie quickly texted Ricardo to ask him to pull the adoption paperwork for Trinity while Alison called Mark to tell him what Trinity wanted them to do. Mark quickly told them, "I'll have to have someone outside review your situation but short of getting someone who is going to be a problem you will have no issue legally from my department standing in your way. Congratulations, she is a lovely young lady." Ricardo had a hard time suppressing his smile as he reread the text from Katie. Stephanie asked what was going on to which he told her, "A little girl just asked her foster parents to adopt her." She pressed on, asking, "Trinity finally asked Aunt Katie to adopt her? She worked fast!" Realizing that Polly was still in foster care she asked him, "Has Polly asked Aunt Dorothy to adopt her yet?" Ricardo reluctantly admitted, "She hasn't asked yet, but Dorothy is leaning towards it. Gabby thinks she has already set her heart on being her mother, but Polly hasn't asked her yet to adopt her." Stephanie frowned. It didn't take much to see that Polly was the kind of person who would not ask for something like that out of fear. There was nothing they could do short of forcing her to admit that she wanted it and if they did she could just as easily shut down and push them away from her. Dorothy asked Polly about her day getting a sigh and defeated, "The girls are going to help me but they are doing so because they were guilted into helping me by their mothers. Something about a girl named Rachel is causing them to help me but I don't want them to do it unless they want to." Dorothy sat next to her and held her hands, confessing to her, "Rachel and you are so much alike it's scary. But she differs from you, she was naturally bright and inquisitive and found her calling early on. You are your own person but you aren't that kind of personality, you actually care more about others than about yourself. You learn differently and the girls will help you learn once we get you proper help from people who have been through this struggle before." Polly hugged her, accidentally saying, "Thanks mom" to Dorothy. She immediately let go and tried to apologize but Dorothy was in tears, telling her warmly, "I have always wanted for someone to say that to me. I'd love to be your mother, if you will let me." Polly started crying now, nodding furiously and hugging Dorothy tight. Juanita and Carmen entered and caught the scene then tried to back out slowly only to be forced inside by Juanita's girlfriend Zoe James. Zoe wouldn't let them out of a family night because they didn't want to disturb the touching moment, Polly needed to know that she was part of their family even if only as cousins to them. Zoe dished out their dinner and talked with Dorothy while the two helped Polly set the table. They didn't make mention of what they saw but did tell her quietly, "Aunt Dorothy loves you." Polly didn't want to ruin things by replying but gave a soft, "I love her too" bringing smiles to their faces. The meal was quiet but Polly sensed that something had changed. Zoe hugged her tight and told her warmly, "You are going to love being Dorothy's daughter. Trust me on this, she will not let you get away. It sucks being in foster care, but once she signs that paperwork all you need to do is just wait until the judge gives you the blessing. By Christmas you will be Polly Vega if not sooner." Carmen and Juanita went to their rooms to do homework leaving Dorothy and Polly to talk. Dorothy asked if she really wanted her to adopt her getting a tear filled nod. Letting out a sigh she texted Ricardo and asked that he pull the paperwork for her, betting a terse, "Not her too" from him. Dorothy giggled and told Polly, "I guess Trinity finally asked Katie and Alison to do what you want me to do. Ricardo is complaining about having to do two sets of paperwork." Polly smiled then added, "She needs parents and she loves being with Katie and her wife. She is a good girl, I hope they don't have any problems with the process." The next morning was hectic as Valerie was going to take care of the girls and also ensure that Polly's mother's assets were taken care of and kept away from her. In fact she had to deal with both girls' assets. She had to postpone her meeting with Judge Matthews due to the other pressing needs, which he fully understood and gave his heartfelt good luck to. Looking over their assets had Valerie shaking her head. Trinity's father left two cars, Polly's parents left two cars and a house with the house being in Polly's name instead of her mother's. Both girls had no use for either car nor the house and would be happy to rid themselves of all of the items but they still needed to be disposed of properly for the girls' financial well-being. She had an idea. Addison Carter, a friend of Polly's future cousins, could use a newer car as could Reed Pena. In fact, Reed was just about to earn his license making it a necessity in the eyes of the teens. The others were a problem. She figured that the James girls could make good use of one while Carmen and Juanita could use the other. That solved that problem nicely. She ran it by Polly who scoffed and told her, "Do what you need to do, I don't need them or want them." Valerie grinned and told her, "Your new cousins are getting one, their friends another. It'll make their lives a lot easier and they would appreciate it more knowing they came from you." Polly's eyes lit up. Valerie nodded, the girls were good to her and it was a small way of showing that she appreciated them. Plus they wouldn't accept them if the cars came from Trinity. Those two would go to girls like her, albeit with Reed's sister Kylie Pena being an indirect recipient. Mid-morning, Ricardo brought over the paperwork and explained the process to Polly and Trinity. They would need an interview with a representative from DCF and character witnesses for Katie, Alison, and Dorothy. They had those easily in droves but the interviews were a wildcard. They could get anyone who ranged from a newbie who didn't know how to react to their situations to a hardened veteran who didn't accept change of any kind to a lazy worker who just rubber-stamps their cases. What is more they needed someone with no ties to Mark or Anne so this mean someone from outside the area which made getting one of the wrong kind of social worker more likely. They had no choice, they had to accept this fact and hope for the best but prepare for the worst. Being honest to Valerie, Ricardo feared the hardened veteran the worst. The others could be retrained and possibly retained but those kind of people thrived on doing as they pleased and often had clout to force their views on their underlings. Despite Governor Christian James' best efforts to remove them, there were a few still left in the region so he hoped they didn't end up with one. Valerie grinned at hearing that. They would have the full weight of the courts behind them to fight back. In fact they would have the courts looking over their shoulder as Judge Matthews was taking a keen interest in Trinity's case as he smelled something fishy about some of the agency's recent dealings particularly by one or two of their senior social workers. The two filled out the paperwork and only needed the signatures of Katie, Dorothy, Alison, and the girls. Trinity signed her name as carefully as she could followed by Polly. Just in case the judge took issue with Trinity being transgender Ricardo had her sign as Terrence as her name change could be an issue. He didn't think it would but there was always a chance it might happen. Legally she was still Terrence, but that would change shortly. Valerie had to smirk as the girls played around after doing some more homework. Polly took less time to do her work and didn't correct herself as much. Valerie noticed that she still had some confidence issues but it seemed to stem from the work itself rather than her father's influence. Polly knew what she wanted to say but couldn't get the words out, that would be rectified later on that afternoon. The girls worked hard and didn't notice the time slipping by. They were startled when Valerie told them they had to get going to meet Katie and Dorothy. Trinity didn't try to fight getting into a booster seat especially when she saw it wasn't hers. She blushed at remembering the twins were at school, which was why they needed to go. Valerie dropped off Polly at the middle school with Ricardo taking her inside to have the paperwork signed. She went on to the Early Learning Center to have Katie sign. Alison would meet Ricardo at the courthouse to file the paperwork once they joined together at the middle school. Katie signed it quickly, then hugged Trinity tight as they went to her car. They got some stares but she didn't say a word about it. Valerie, though, let it slip that Katie was Trinity's foster mother and in the process of adopting her so it was perfectly fine parental behavior and not something that could get any of the teachers fired for falsely accusing a coworker of inappropriate behavior. At the middle school, Dorothy happily signed. Polly hugged her, giving her a quiet, "Thank you, mom" which Dorothy hugged her back for. Ricardo grinned and told them they would know in a few days about interviews but it should be fine from there on out. Katie handed over her paperwork with Ricardo telling her affectionately, "You two ladies wanted to be mothers, I guess becoming one seven months early is no big deal." Katie smiled and told him, "It's a big deal, she is the perfect daughter and we are happy to have her with us." Alison was already at the courthouse waiting for Ricardo and signed as soon as he handed them over. He looked at them closely then agreed that they were all in order and filed them. The clerk tried to kid him by asking if he was finally taking the plunge. Ricardo just smiled back and told him, "Not yet." Ricardo and Alison had to field calls from Katie and Stephanie, asking if they were done yet. He had to smile at the girls wanting to know, she couldn't keep that a secret from the other three and if it helped Polly she would ensure that it got used the right way. Katie just wanted an ETA on when Alison would be home so they could go to the football game and break the news to the others, especially her father. Dorothy drove to the high school to meet the older girls and fielded multiple questions from them when she arrived. Jake Bollinger had to redirect them to Polly who was scared stiff at the group hassling for information from Dorothy. Reyna Toro and Francesca Herman seized the chance and walked Polly to a table letting the other girls deal with the questions knowing they wouldn't get much from Dorothy. Both girls asked what she was having trouble with. Polly meekly replied, "Everything. I just don't know what I have to do and when I try to finally write something I stop and erase it then write something else then erase that. I can't focus and get the right words out." Reyna looked at Francesca who nodded. It was similar to what Iris suffered through back when she was in 7th grade. Recalling what Sam York did for Iris they got Polly to see that her first choice was almost always the best choice and to think the question through first before answering. She knew the answers, she just needed to make the connections. Looking at her written assignments they could see that she was trying too hard to be like someone else and not letting her mind do the writing. She knew what she wanted to say, she just needed to trust in her mind to let herself type the words. It was helping some but she still had some trouble with thinking. Francesca told her to slow down so that she wasn't in a rush to get the question answered. The words were coming, the more she thought about what to say the less she was actually saying. In fact she was hurting her writing by rushing, making it into a jumbled mess. Letting herself think clearly made her mind put things into proper order making it decipherable. This worked. Polly was able to type the answers to several questions that she had written out haphazardly and almost unreadable. She tearfully thanked the girls, it was life changing for her. The girls told Dorothy about Polly adapting their suggestions and decided to get her clearance to use a computer for her writing assignments. It would cause some to complaints but it was within her rights as she has a diagnosed learning disability. Valerie smirked and added that she would have the diagnosis legalized so there was no issues and Polly would be free to finally learn in peace. The girls made their way out to the field with Dorothy and Polly in tow. Dorothy had to explain to a few of the teachers who Polly was but a nod from Valerie got them to accept the truth without delving into anything further. Jake grinned at Dorothy's reactions, she enjoyed telling them that Polly was her new daughter with Polly slowly getting used to hearing her say that. Alice Rodriguez joined her then had to pry her son Raul out of the arms of his girlfriend Avery James. Dorothy shook her head and giggled, the girl would not let him go so he could get changed. Alice rolled her eyes and told Polly, "I swear I need a spray bottle to cool them off at times. She is a great young lady but their libidos are running on high. Thankfully they just kiss and not try anything more." Katie came over with Trinity and Alison in tow. Trinity was unsure about being there with so many new people but Polly calmed her down, picking her up and hugging her for assurance. The two Elizas had to stifle smiles as the sight was just too cute to believe. The group walked over towards a small group of men in suits and uniforms. Katie held Trinity's hand and asked one man if she could speak with him, leading him to walk over out of earshot of others. Polly asked what that was about, being told solemnly, "Katie is telling her father about Trinity." Katie's father, Louis Reagan, looked her over and asked her firmly, "What did you do?" Katie gulped then admitted, "Monday afternoon Alison and I were asked to take in Trinity Palmer after her father died. No foster home would take her in and she is too young for a group home. She needed a home." He smirked, then asked for the rest of the story. Sighing, she finally admitted, "Yesterday she asked us to adopt her. We signed and filed the paperwork today. Hopefully in a few months and after the DCF interview she is going to become our daughter." Louis knelt down and hugged Trinity. She was unsure what to do so hugged him back. Turning to Katie he told her, "Your mother and I knew all along. Your sister refused to let this be a secret especially as it could have been interpreted wrongly by some enterprising vultures. I already had a few inquiries from supposed 'concerned parents' and the city solicitor so I set the city straight. You are entirely in the clear especially as you have followed the guidance of Anne and Mark and have her best interest at heart. The city won't stand for any attempts to besmirch or ruin you." Kneeling down he smiled at Trinity and told her warmly, "Virgil and Tyler can't stop talking about you. They really miss you in school. They will be happy to see you again on Monday." Trinity smiled brightly at hearing that. Katie walked back over to where Alison and the others were and sat down. A short time later Tyler and Virgil called out Trinity's name and ran over, hugging her when they finally reached her. The boys were nearly in tears at seeing her again, they each had a bad feeling that she may not be returning to school again. The boys sat down on either side of her, not wanting to let her get away from them. Willow Reagan thought it was funny but seeing Katie giving her a cold stare she stopped laughing. She knelt down in front of the three and told them the news, causing Trinity to get more hugs from the boys as well as from the now smiling Willow. The trio waited for their future cousin Nancy to arrive then told her the news as well, getting her to hug Trinity as well. Trinity was all smiles and asked if anyone else was going to hug her getting a grin from them as they waited for Cat and JD Finn to come by with their mom. Trinity looked over at Katie who added, "She and Willow do everything together, she can't keep it a secret from her." Willow told her that Cat was going to want to play with her especially now that there was another girl around to even the numbers among them. Trinity was alright with that, it was better than doing nothing during the game. The boys saw that Willow was trying to ease Trinity into being their friend full time and let her have her moment of fun. Over on the other side of the bleachers, Amy, Trina, Stephanie, and Al welcomed Polly to their own little area. Polly was the odd person out as Trina was sitting in Stephanie's lap and Amy and Al were cuddling with their boyfriends Oscar Pierce and Kyle. That was alright to her, as long as they were friendly to her it was fine. The girls asked what she was going to do the next day, getting a shrug and soft, "Mom hasn't told me anything but I think she said Trinity had to go to a wake for her father." The girls felt bad, Trinity was too good to have had that happen to her. Kyle asked what happened, getting a somber, "Trinity's father passed away on Monday, that's why she is with Aunt Katie and Aunt Alison. She is going to be with them as their daughter from now on." Stephanie asked if Polly had her tutoring session with the girls. Polly nodded, telling them, "They knew what was gong on and why. They had done it before and it was a tough thing to fix but it was possible. I have to type out everything now due to my writing issues. They said it had to be allowed for me." The girls weren't upset at hearing that, they understood that if the older girls said she needed to do that then she had to do it. They kept to themselves and watched the girls stretch, getting ready for their cheering. Amy snickered as Avery had to be calmed down by Jaimie causing the others to laugh. The girls just sat silently while watching the game. Polly was just another girl to them when they let the pent up anger go. She too felt relief at being allowed to just be normal and not worry about anything. The highlight was the nine-year-old boys coming over to see Polly. The way they were acting caused the others to giggle as they squirmed and tried to get her attention. Polly blushed at the attention and let them down easy, saying she wanted to talk school with her friends prompting them to apologize. Polly grinned widely as the boys walked away with sullen looks while Ethan's sister Nichole and Neil's sister Faith teased them. Polly had to explain, "The three have a crush on me. The first boys who have crushes on me and they are too young to be boyfriends." The girls giggled at that, making Polly smile at them not teasing her. Amy announced, "There aren't any good boys in our class this year, we got the two good ones." Polly shot back, "The ones in the 8th grade aren't that good either, they won't get a girlfriend until college the way they act around girls." Trinity came looking for Polly and asked her to go tot he park with her. The others joined her, it wasn't much of a game and the cheerleaders did mostly the same routines every game so they weren't missing anything. Cat got the girls to push them on the swings seizing their boredom and making them focus on them while the time passed. The kids were enjoying themselves and were soon joined by Benny Herman, Billy Pena, Nigel Smith Jr. and Jack Bollinger. Polly kept them rounded up and had the kids listening to her giving their mothers a chance to relax. Beverly Bollinger had her eyes on Polly the whole time and was pleased that the girls were no longer shunning her and were letting her do what she needed to do especially as the kids were gravitating towards her instead of pestering them for attention. The kids had fun until several kids Trinity's age came into the park. They saw her and laughed at her, teasing her over being a sissy and wearing girls clothes. The adult with them saw her and tried to pull her out of the park, telling her loudly, "Get out of here! You don't belong around normal people!" Polly grabbed the woman's hand away from Trinity and got between them. Trinity was in tears with Tyler and Virgil huddled around her to protect her, daring the woman to go after her again. Al and the others surrounded the woman who was now outnumbered nine to one causing her to scream for help. JD ran off to get his dad and uncles. James York saw his son trying to protect Trinity and bolted fast for them followed closely behind by John and Louis. Willie Pena caught sight of them rushing and went with them, signaling to Ian Bailey to back them up. The woman was screaming at the tweens to leave her alone but James immediately told her to stop. Turning to them he asked what happened. Polly explained, "Those kids started teasing Trinity as soon as they saw her in the park and when that lady saw Trinity she went after her trying to drag her out of the park." Willie asked to see Trinity's arms, to which she showed the red marks from the woman leading Ian to announce that she was under arrest for assault on a minor. The woman screamed that she had no right to be there, that she was trying to get a pervert away from her kids. Ian loudly told her, "You were given your Miranda Rights and have chosen to forgo them. Your statement will be used against you in a court of law. And for your information this is a public park and anyone can use them no matter if you agree with their gender change or not." The woman tried to fight Ian prompting Willie to have to intervene and give her a dose of pepper spray to keep her from harming him. He shook his head and announced, "You are now under arrest for two counts of assaulting police officers and resisting arrest." She was hauled away with Willie checking on Trinity again to ensure she was alright. Trinity was shaken but told Polly, "They always do that. She hates me because I am a girl and lets the boys hit me whenever they want. Daddy got a piece of paper to stop her but the boys still tease me." Willie grinned, the woman was now in deep trouble with the law. He explained to her, "That piece of paper is called a restraining order and it is meant to protect you. She has to stay away from you and by grabbing you she broke it, so she is in deep trouble. This makes what she did even worse, she won't get away from that trouble. You didn't do anything to deserve what she did to you and she won't hurt you anymore. Not if we have anything to do with it." JD and Cat were sticking close to Trinity while Willow kept the toddlers occupied. Polly realized that she may be in trouble because of what she did causing her to grow anxious and near hysterical as it dawned on her. John just grinned and told her firmly, "She may try but we have multiple witnesses that say you stopped her from trying to harm a little girl who you were with. She won't succeed, it will only backfire especially when Judge Matthews sees her on Monday." Valerie had seen the whole incident and got on top of it, having Ian talk with the ADA about what happened to ensure that her claims were ignored and nothing happened to Polly. He nodded, adding that the woman doubly screwed up as she was both in violation of a restraining order and was barred from school grounds due to it. She now had trespassing charges making her claims fall on deaf ears. The girls went back to their little area so Polly could calm down. It took a lot out of her and she was feeling miserable over potentially going to jail because she helped Trinity. Al cautiously asked Trina, "Any doubt that she isn't changed?" Trina shook her head, the fact that she jumped in to protect Trinity before anyone else and risked her freedom to do so spoke more than anything else about her change. The old Polly was gone. The new Polly was someone who was willing to do what they hadn't had the chance to do- stand up for someone who needed them. This was a Polly that she could like. Chapter 5 The bulk of the group went home before the end of the game so the kids could unwind and the toddlers could go to bed. Polly and Dorothy were greeted by Zoe, Addison, Juanita, and Carmen when they came in and saw Polly's dour expression. Carmen demanded to know what happened then was furious that someone would be so bold to try to hurt a girl they were supposed to keep away from. Addison understood it best, telling her, "It doesn't matter that they are told to stay away, you just can't reason with them. They will ignore the order no matter what. In their eyes we don't belong anywhere no matter what the laws say. That lady is lucky that she never got Trinity out of the park or she might be facing kidnapping charges instead of just assault She deserves worse than she is going to get." Carmen hugged Addison to calm her down. Dorothy led Polly into the kitchen and fixed her a snack then told her, "Addison is like Trinity only she couldn't be who she really is until she left home. Her family tried several times to force her to come back home but each time she fought back. The last time they only stopped thanks to her landlord's close friends and Chief Pena being close by. She knows how those people think, sadly she saw it firsthand too many times to count." Polly didn't say anything further, simply going up to her room to sleep and prepare for Trinity's father's wake. Dorothy sat with the four girls and told them, "She had a long day. She will be alright soon, she just needs to relax and focus on something else. She at least found four friends from all of this, which is what mattered to her the most." Polly had a restful night after some serious pondering about that evening's events. She felt bad for Trinity and couldn't believe the nerve of people but was glad that Trinity wasn't hurt and was around people who knew how to deal with people who disliked her or wanted to harm her. Her biggest source of pleasure that night was settling things with Amy and Trina. She could never admit it but was jealous of them. They had everything that she wanted and had found friendship and love while she struggled to deal with what happened to her. She thought that Ruby and Megan were here friends, but they treated her more like she was a minion or henchman than a friend. Over at the Eliza home, Trinity was restless that night. She sobbed for a bit but Alison held Katie back as it was something that she needed to sort out on her own. She needed to know that people are not the best of people and her optimism is going to take hits at times. It was a tough lesson to learn in someone so you, but she also saw that people who didn't know her would help her when she needed it. The next morning, they helped Trinity dress in a new black dress with black pantyhose. She quickly remembered the leggings from earlier in the week and tried hard to put them on right, getting Alison's nodding approval while Katie whispered that she was doing well. It took longer than it needed to but she learned to put them on right by herself and without any runs which was a big thing. Katie and Alison dressed in similar black dresses which made Trinity feel better. They waited for Louis, Katie's mother Tamara, and her sister Lindsay to come by so they could leave together. Tyler, Willow, and Virgil wanted to go so Trinity wasn't alone which prompted the other three Yorks to come as well as the Flynns and their parents the Raymonds. It was a mini Reagan family reunion, with all members being there for Trinity's sake. Dorothy and Polly arrived next, followed by the Petersons. Trinity saw Deborah and shed a tear at the memory. Deborah hugged her and told her warmly, "Mom said he died, we couldn't let you go through this without others who met him." Emma Peterson was the only one who hadn't met Trinity's father before but she refused to stay home. Her husband David and Virgil's father James were in their dress uniforms making them stand out from the group but made Trinity feel better at knowing someone powerful was there. She stuck close to Polly, leaning on her for support but she was happy to see people who had met her father there and wanted to be there for her. She wouldn't let Polly go so Polly drove in with Katie and Alison. Mark was already there with his wife Leslie and infant son Marcus. Valerie and John joined them as they awaited their slot to mourn. Marcus looked at Trinity and Polly then at John and started to get fussy. He wanted to go to Polly hoping that she'd give him attention. John glared at him as he gurgled back at him. Polly held him tight while he hugged into her shoulder and giggled at Trinity trying to make her feel better while also giving John a reason to complain again. Trinity saw John getting snubbed and asked what was going on. John tersely said, "He and his cousins love to make fun of me by refusing to go near me. It's a big game for them, until they get old enough to want me to start buy them things. He will change his attitude around Christmastime." Trinity played with Marcus while he was in Polly's arms causing him to giggle and play back. Marcus grinned at John who rolled his eyes at the little boy being cute for show. The others could see that he was sensing that Trinity wasn't happy and wanted to make her happy thus the playfulness. The group ensured that Trinity had a moment alone with her father before entering. She didn't say anything, only shedding tears at seeing her father at rest in the casket. She leaned in and kissed him, catching everyone off guard making them shed a tear at the sad sight. Looking at him again she hugged Katie tight, finally letting loose tears. It was hard for her to accept it, but her father wasn't alive anymore and she was with Katie and Alison now. Before it seemed like a dream, but this was the final proof that he was truly gone and she was in their care forever. She stopped and sat silently, not wanting to say or do anything until it was time to go. The others paid their respects and silently waited with Trinity, while Marcus hugged her tight and tried to get her to be happy again. It was both a sad sight and touching moment as he didn't understand what was going on, only that he had to do something to make her happy again. After everyone left Katie drove home in silence as Trinity tried to accept the fact that she had seen her father for the last time. Hugging Polly, she felt that it was time to move on and let Katie and Alison be her parents. She loved them for all they did for her, that was what mattered to her most. Willow asked Trinity to play with her which was followed by the girls wanting to see Polly. Their parents agreed but Willow was told to not be forceful with Trinity. They thought she might be trying to get Trinity to feel better, but that was left unsaid as she would think she could do that more often. The foursome were waiting for Polly at her house and walked with her to where they were going to do some more work. Katie and Dorothy caught their sly expressions but let them do what they needed to do, it was for Polly's benefit to do so. Polly was surprised to see that the older teens there waiting with Reyna telling them, "You didn't tell her we were going to be here?" catching them in a bind. Reyna shook her head and had her sit while the girls brought out their books and started to help her get up to speed with what they were doing in class. Rachel Sylvester hovered in the background as her girlfriend worked with Polly with her sister Iris ensuring that she was understanding what was being said and focused her thoughts on what was important. It took a while but they finished all of the work. Trina and Stephanie went to Trina's house while Al and Amy were left to hang out with Polly. She asked why they were staying with her, getting terse, "My brothers and her brother and sisters are with their boyfriends and girlfriends leaving us stranded here until they are done making out" from Al. Amy added, "Donald is why Francesca wasn't there, the two are making out in her living room while they babysit Benny for her parents." The trio went up to Polly's room to relax while Dorothy did some cleaning in the kitchen and living room. Amy asked if she was going to dance again, getting as blush and soft, "I have to. Trinity wants me to do it and won't dance herself if she doesn't know any of the other dancers." Polly asked if the others danced getting a groan from Al. Amy shook her head at her friend's reluctance to admit it so she told her, "Nancy, Junior, Virgil, Margaret, Kylie, and Al all dance too. Al doesn't like to talk about it but she is good plus Kyle has to watch her dance making her feel a little exposed." Polly blushed at that, it had to be embarrassing to be around your boyfriend in just a leotard and tights. She was surprised at the boys dancing. Amy shook her head and bluntly informed her, "Aunt Amanda doesn't like to exclude boys, she loves having them in her class. Junior wants to dance because his mom is the teacher and Virgil does it because Kylie did it but now it'll be because Trinity does it too. He has done well with the little parts she gives him." The girls looked out into the backyard and saw Trinity trying to teach Willow and Cat to dance with all three failing to do the moves correctly. Al gestured for Amy to look and all three saw them make spins and dips that were far too advanced for them. It was funny and cringe worthy but they were trying, with Trinity doing her best to try to do the moves to show she can do them. The three girls walked downstairs and were about to leave when Dorothy asked where they were going. Al quickly shot out, "Trying to stop the three girls from hurting themselves. Trinity, Willow, and Cat are trying to dance and are doing a bad job of it. They are falling down ad spinning too fast for their own good. If they don't stop one of them is going to break an ankle or worse." They walked out to the yard and Amy demanded to know what they were doing. Trinity meekly said, "Trying to dance. Cat and Willow wanted to know what Polly and Mrs. Kelly taught me." Polly shook her head disappointed. She turned to Trinity and asked her, "Did you stretch first? You know that you need to stretch first to get your legs moving right and not hurt your muscles. I told you that already, twice in fact." Trinity stopped and started to do the stretches that she was taught. Cat and Willow both followed her motions and did the same. A half hour later they were finished stretching and were trying to do the moves that Trinity knew and going slower this time, as Trinity did. Amy and Al watched Polly get the three to follow her every word as she corrected them and helped them learn the basic positions. It took a while but eventually Cat and Willow were moving from one position to the next while keeping themselves from falling down. When Al and Amy called it quits the three were happy and hugged Polly, Al, and Amy tight. Cat grinned and boldly said, "I told you they were going to watch us." Cat saw that the girls weren't happy and shuddered when Al told her, "You could have hurt yourselves! This is not something to play around with, you could have broken your feet or ankles or wrists trying to get us out here." Cat wanted to cry but Polly softly told her, "You could have asked us to show you. Mrs. Kelly said you two were going to dance with Trinity." She apologized and tried to look away but Amy told her firmly, "You will follow Aunt Amanda's rules or you won't dance. We have the follow the same rules as you do, they are there for our protection. Aunt Amanda won't let you get hurt, neither will Aunt Valerie." The girls led the trio inside to where Valerie, John, and Lindsay were sitting and braced for the worst. It didn't' take long to figure out that the trio would manipulate the girls into helping. Al sighed and told Valerie, "The girls want to dance like us. They tricked us into showing them what to do but are still too scared to ask you because they heard what could have happened to them." Valerie tried to look tough and asked what could have happened. Amy angrily told her, "Broken feet, broken ankle, and the way they were falling over broken wrists and fingers too." Valerie shook her head then told them, "I'll clear it with Amanda. This won't happen again, you are not to dance without someone who knows what they are doing watching you. You also need the right clothes so I guess we have to go shopping for more tights and leotards for the three of you." The girls were happy now. The trio walked out back to the Vega home and greeted Dorothy who asked if they fell for the girls' trick. Al asked how she knew to which Dorothy smirked and pointed to a text from Valerie that told her they were talking about doing that while they thought nobody was listening to them so to look for them going to stop them. Amy and Al realized the parents were setting them up to get them used to one another. Plus ,with Polly being the one Trinity knew better thus more respected, it was a smart trick. They just let it slide. They had more things to do without the younger girls tricking them. Again, up in Polly's room, Amy looked over Polly's clothes and saw just what she had and what she didn't have. Polly blushed at her seeing the larger bras, Al snickered and told her, "Mom hates that style, she said I'm too young for lace or see through ones." Amy added, "Mom only lets me have two of them and I can't wear them during the week, she said boys would go nuts if they knew I owned one." Polly added, "My former mom actually got me those. She hated the regular styles but it was either take the ones she got me or buy my own and I didn't know what ones to get. I don't really like that they are see through, it make me feel like I can't wear a white shirt for fear of getting it wet and every boy seeing my boobs through it." That set the girls off as they inspected her blouses and t shirts. There weren't any that they disliked, Amy actually found a couple that she wanted to wear while Al wasn't as big as the girls so they were a couple of sizes too large for her. Al didn't mind it, she was going to be shorter but might have the same bust size as the girls which would be a good trade off in her mind. Amy offered to trade some shirts leading Al to joke that she was going to end up setting up a sleepover prompting Amy to grin at the idea. Al realized her mistake then told her, "You are asking our moms, it was your idea!" Polly didn't know what to do so Al led her downstairs and told Dorothy, "Amy kind of accidentally set up a sleepover at her house for us so she could trade blouses and shirts with Polly. Is it alright for Polly to go?" Dorothy shot back a firm, "So long as your parents say it's OK to do. And no boys over, except Donald. I would rather Kyle and Oscar not have themselves get the wrong reputation." Al agreed in full and had to giggle at that statement. Poor Donald was too much of a big brother to them already and would never allow them anywhere except the bathroom, living room, and kitchen. Amy reluctantly called her mother and took a deep breath and blurted out, "Can Polly and the girls stay over? We promise to be quiet." Gabby sensed something was up and asked the full story, giggling at the unintentional sleepover. She agreed but added, "Please be quiet, your brother is acting up and I don't want to cause him or myself any trouble. Plus Donald will be upset but knows to not say anything." Al had it easier, getting a snicker and yes from Olivia. Alice was intrigued at the whole event and agreed to let Stephanie stay, provided they remembered to not do anything that would upset Gabby. Stephanie blushed and agreed while Trina tried to look away in fear. Gabby took the liberty of calling Margo to get her approval on the girls' behalf. Margo was a little reluctant until she heard just how they ended up getting into the mess, agreeing in full and adding the warning that Alice had already given. Margo called Dorothy to get her final approval, thus all was set. The three girls made a stop at Al's home to get her things then went to Amy's home. Polly asked why they made her bring her dance things causing both to snicker and tell her, "It's a surprise." Al added, "It's nothing bad, it's just that we don't want to spoil the surprise." Amy led them inside and immediately Donald groaned at them having another sleepover. Francesca teased him by saying, "You can have a sleepover at my house" which Gabby immediately shot back, "And you two can watch Benny tomorrow morning then clean the backyards for both houses." Gabby gave her a, "Don't joke like that" look which Francesca prompted her apologize to her immediately. Polly dropped her bags then went with the duo upstairs to change. Seeing Al for the first time startled Polly. Al shook her head at that but Polly blushed and admitted, "You are bigger than I thought." Al let out a quick, "Oh, I thought you meant because you don't see anything bulging out down there like the other girls in school think I still have." Polly shook her head, telling her, "I kinda saw you when you took off your skirt for gym since the first class. It was hard not to see what wasn't there, you are flatter than some of the girls. They have big labia lips and a lot of hair. I meant that your breasts are so big." Amy snickered and added, "Poor Al will end up bigger than all of us." Al teased her back telling her, "You are one to talk, we all saw what that witch who spawned you was sporting and they didn't have silicone in them." This caused Amy to stick out her tongue which then caused Polly to start to feel at ease with them, she hadn't accidentally sparked a war of words. Trina came in and started to change quickly. Polly asked if Stephanie was going to do the same getting a quick, "No" from all three. Al confessed that Stephanie was too uncoordinated to dance and usually controlled the music. She also teased that she got to watch her girlfriend dance which Polly had to admit was a nice extra for anyone to have with their boyfriend or girlfriend. Polly was going to head outside thinking that they were going to a studio but Amy redirected her downstairs to the basement where she told her the surprise was. When Polly saw Amy's barre she was shocked that someone would have one in their home let alone one tat was fastened to the wall with mirrors. The floor was similar to the one in Madam Pavlova's studio but she noticed that it lacked the dents that she often put into the floor from her large staff. Polly looked at Amy who grinned and happily told her, "Mom thought I would love this so she bought it. My sisters use it for stretching and mom used it before Walter decided he didn't like her moving around so much. The girls joked that it's also why she ended up pregnant" causing laughs from them. The girls stretched and went through their normal routine while Stephanie cued up the music. Gabby crept downstairs to watch and was happy to see that Polly was working with the three trying to mimic their movements. It was sweet to see the four so focused with Polly doing everything they did in sync. Donald sat down next to her and watched the girls. Polly wasn't a concern to him, he was just bored and didn't have a date night like the other teens were having. The girls ignored their presence as Amy whispered to Polly, "He's bored and mom doesn't want us showing off, just pretend they aren't there." Eventually the girls finished their routines with Al complaining that they were too far ahead of her. She was still a beginner and starting to learn some intermediate level moves but months behind the others. It was both embarrassing and frustrating that she wasn't dancing with them and they lost two days of the week because of the difference. Polly told her that she was less than a year behind and closing fast which made Al feel while Amy and Trina smiled. Neither girl had the heart to tell Al that she was doing better than anyone else nor that she could dance for the greats if she chose. Amanda wouldn't want them to nor would she ever make a claim like that, it was made clear to them when they first started dancing for her months before. Upstairs the girls settled into the living room with Donald being forced to watch the movies that they wanted to watch. They teased him about being with a bunch of girls. He shot back, "Be glad it's me and not normal boys, they only want one thing from a bunch of girls." Gabby caught that joke and asked, "And what would that be?" The girls knew he was caught in a bind at making a sex comment but he turned it around and told her, "Cheap labor." Gabby shook her head, he recovered nicely and left the girls without a comeback and only suffering a bruised ego. The group went to sleep soon after the last movie ended and before Courtney and Jessie came home. Both girls saw Polly sleeping and grinned, telling Gabby, "That didn't take long." Gabby shook her head and added, "Your sister accidentally did it. They were great together but she is still reclusive around them. It'll take time but she might open up more." The two saved their, "I told you so" responses. They just wanted what was best and they saw the sleeping girls together as being for the best. Gabby sighed and told them, "You were right." The five girls weren't the only ones having fun. Trinity, Cat, and Willow fooled around all afternoon in the Finn home, enjoying the freedom it provided them. Willow and Cat followed Trinity's orders and played what she wanted to play. To their happiness basic things like playing with their dolls and stuffed animals was what she wanted to do most, especially with their stuffed cabbits. The girls played up in Cat's room and in the playroom for hours, only breaking for dinner and even then they brought their dolls to the table with them. John and Valerie were happy that Cat was listening to Trinity while JD kept his distance and let the girls do as they wanted without him. After dinner, the girls wound down with a trip to the park then started to fall asleep. Trinity went home but the girls wanted to stay close to her and invited themselves over her house. Katie and Alison were shocked but accepted the two guests as they quickly went to sleep without a fight and cuddled around one another so Trinity felt their warmth and felt better about the next day. In the morning, the girls went back home as Trinity got ready for the funeral. This was going to be even smaller as the Yorks, Raymonds, and Flynns didn't think it best to intrude. Willow and Tyler stayed home, they were upset as it was and didn't want to feel worse. Trinity was happy that her new grandparents were coming as was her new aunt. She understood why the others didn't want to come and was happy that they cared enough to do that for her. Katie and Alison held her close and told her it was alright to cry, she needed to do it for her own good. The ceremony was short and Trinity fought the urge to hug the casket as it was lowered down. She hated to see her father go but he wasn't coming back. She had tears in her eyes and hugged Katie and Alison, finally releasing the last of her grief as the casket went entirely below ground. Trinity wanted to be alone the rest of the day, coming down only for meals. Katie and Alison checked in on her but she was mostly coloring and watching TV in her room. She had cried several times but it was expected of her given the emotional nature of the day. The tweens were doing a similar thing to Trinity. They just lounged around the house, not bothering to do much except watch TV and help Polly with some more work. Gabby threatened to chase them out but thought better of it as they weren't actually causing any issues. Eventually, the time came for them to break up for the day. Courtney drove them home with Trina giving Polly a big hug goodbye. Margo was caught by surprise but she had heard just how much the girls had done with Polly so it wasn't entirely shocking to see them being friendly. Al complained that she had to wait a while because Jaimie and Rick were necking. Polly was surprised at how much she complained about Rick which caused Courtney to laugh hard. She had to explain, "You are suffering from being an only child, those three squabble and fight just as much as any brothers and sisters. She squabbles less than Amy does with Donald." Al shot back, "And you do the same with Jessie and Amy and you and Michael neck even more than Rick and Jaimie or Jessie and Reed!" Polly wisely kept out of it. At home, she told Dorothy about what happened and got a laugh from her, Carmen, and Juanita. Polly didn't think it was funny but Carmen admitted, "It's true, you aren't used to being a sister let alone getting into arguments with them. Just because we don't do it in front of you doesn't mean I don't complain about her being a slob." Juanita shot back, "Or you taking too long in the bathroom. How long does it really take to shave those matchsticks you call legs?" Dorothy just smiled and let the girls settle down. She loved every second of it, especially as the girls weren't lying about doing that arguing. They kept it quiet because of Polly but they still did it. Polly turned in early and got everything prepared for the next day. Dorothy checked in on her and saw her picking out clothes, smiling at her picking one of her new outfits that she traded Amy for. Juanita and Carmen wanted to help but they were waived off, Polly needed to do the choices on her own. In the morning, Polly was up early and eating with the sisters as they got ready for their early classes. They offered to drive her in but Dorothy vetoed that idea. Polly gathered her things and got ready to face Mrs. Eagleson and the school again, knowing that she was already the subject of rumors and speculation but only a select few knowing the truth. The girls were waiting for her outside. Gabby and Margo snickered at Polly wearing Amy's old outfit but both had to agree that she looked better in it than Amy. Amy herself was wearing one of the outfits she got from Polly, one that was a little loose on her but was loose in the right places. The five went inside and greeted Mrs. Eagleson. Polly was asked if they had helped her, getting a quiet, "Yes" from her. Al added, "She got help for our older cousins as well. They found out her problems." Mrs. Eagleson asked who helped her out and was told, "Reyna Toro and Francesca Herman did much of it but Iris Sylvester did the rest." Mrs. Eagleson didn't recognize the names. Dorothy popped in and explained, "Iris was Iris Donaldson and Francesca was Francesca White-Clark before their adoptions. Reyna wasn't your student but is close with the girls and Al and Amy's brothers." Things started to fall into place. Iris and Francesca had similar issues while they were in 7th grade with Francesca not entirely solving hers that year. Dorothy added, "They found a strong link that was missed by Polly's assessment last May, she should do better in class but it'll take time to fully sink in. She'll need some time to adjust to your style but she should be fine in a couple of days." Mrs. Eagleson understood and asked if there was anything else. Dorothy nodded, telling her, "She also requires the use of a computer to type her answers as she is unable to fully answer questions or write essays with pencil and paper due to her learning disability and psychological issues. Sorry if it causes issues but Valerie already had that added to her Individualized Education Program." Valerie didn't fool around and if it was serious enough to be required by the school via Polly's IEP she wasn't about to argue. Students who complained would be told that it was required of her and would be allowed if they had a documented issue like she had. Mrs. Eagleson didn't actually mind their usage, it made things easier on her as she could simply print off the papers and hand them back once graded. Valerie entered and handed Polly a laptop, explaining, "There is special software that allows for minimal editing. Your teacher sets the time limit for the test and it stops allowing changes to be made when time runs out. It also doesn't let you edit it unless you finish early so be careful with your time management. Good luck and don't let the others intimidate you for needing this, they are probably just jealous of you and see this as being easier on you even if it's the same test questions." Mrs. Eagleson noticed the software and was pleased. It was geared towards getting things done rather than being 100% right. Polly didn't have to worry about what was spelled correctly, just that she was getting her points across. It also emailed directly to her once done so it was there for her to read. The class started to trickle in and Polly's presence noted. The class jerks did their usual snickering and whispering but Polly ignored them. They were the people that Mrs. Eagleson expect to have the most issues with Polly using the laptop but they were also having issues that had nothing to do with learning, they were simply cruising by and too lazy to bother trying hard to get decent grades. Oscar and Kyle came in and sat next to Polly, giving her a silent hello. The two hesitated in asking how the sleepover went but it was hard to avoid the questions. Polly asked how they knew, getting a crooked smile and quick, "Kylie told Margaret after she saw you leave with Al then saw Courtney drop you off. She knew you stayed over Amy's house, it's the only reason for both of you to be together. Plus Reed told her not to call Amy or the girls, he never does that unless they are having a sleepover." The boys weren't interested in her like the other boys were so she was happy to openly talk with them as friends and classmates. They asked about the whole tutoring thing which Polly admitted, "The girls knew about what I have wrong with me and are trying to help. They fixed it in Francesca and Iris two years ago." Both nodded, it fit what Reed told them about Polly. Mrs. Eagleson started class and kept them moving all day. During gym, Zeke Bollinger asked Polly if she was back to normal getting a nod and quick, "Don't overdo it and tell someone if you are hurting. Al, Miles, and Jaimie were hurt bad and put up with the pain to the point of almost dying, you should not have to and if I find out you are doing that I won't trust you again." During lunch, she endured the whispers and stares of her former classmates and other 8th graders as she walked in with her new class. One asked if they finally got tired of the retard, earning him a detention and warning about bullying. Another said she was too stupid to be in the school and belonged with the criminals at the alternative school, earning a suspension. The whispering and teasing stopped after that, nobody dared to say anything about her being back in 7th grade lest they get suspended too. Amy, Al, Trina, and Stephanie were asked what was going on with Polly. They didn't bother to lie or fudge the truth, the told their classmates, "She had a severe learning disability that nobody bothered to correct before today. Add to that her teacher last year was a lazy bum who took money to pass her along to the next grade. She should have been in our class years ago but her father paid to have her birth certificate say she was born on August 31st in stead of September 1st like she really was. She is right where she belongs, with us in 7th grade." Polly caught that last part. She looked at Al who nodded, telling her, "Dad found the truth. Your former dad threatened the hospital staff until they changed the birth certificate as it was proven in the notes regarding your birth. You were born a little earlier than you should have been and you had some health issues back then which his why the records exist. The one you have is not even real, they gave him a fake but filed the real with with the city. You got screwed and are where you were supposed to be." Polly was relieved. She was with people she should have been with. They were sticking up for her and making others get over her being there. The best part was the rumors died out when it was told that she was actually supposed to be in 7th grade but her father lied so he got to look bad now not her. The rest of the day went quietly as Polly eased into being in the class and started to understand what was being taught a lot more. Some of what she, "Learned" already started to come back and make more sense as Mrs. Eagleson explained it better than Ms. Uxbridge did, she actually learned more in one day with Mrs. Eagleson than she learned all year with Ms. Uxbridge. After class, she let Mrs. Eagleson know that and got a happy, "As long as you are learning again that is all that matters." After school, the girls hung outside the office. Dorothy asked about their day, getting a happy smile across her face as Polly told her what was happening. The others didn't think it was a big deal but having it explained to them they understood why she was pleased. The girls left with Dorothy accidentally letting slip, "I'm happy for you, Polly." Polly blushed and shot back a happy, "Thanks, mom" sending the students nearby into a frenzy as they got the truth from Al and Amy. Polly being Dorothy's foster daughter was big, but being her adopted daughter was epic. Polly was put into the, "Untouchable" category as no student wanted to upset the principal no matter what you felt about Polly or the girls. Over at the Early Learning Center, Trinity was a bundle of nerves as she went inside with Katie. It was weird being early but she was happy to be around Katie and treated as a normal kid again. Willow, Cat and JD found her and hugged her, followed by Tyler and Virgil. All were smiling at her being back. Katie spoke with the principal about Trinity's situation with Valerie alongside her. There was no real conflict of interest provided Trinity could separate Katie her teacher from Katie her mother. Trinity had been trying to do that all weekend whenever she wasn't with Katie and was fine with doing that. The other issue that concerned the principal was appearances. Katie was adamant that she be honest with parents about Trinity being her foster daughter and being adopted. Valerie countered with a firm, "She is on solid legal footing and with DCF support from Trinity's social workers. Any allegations of indecency are coming from false rumors and the main culprit is already in jail as we speak." Valerie produced the copy of the restraining order on file with the school. The principal nodded at seeing it, Katie explained, "The woman who is named went after Trinity on Friday in the park at the stadium. She tried to pull Trinity out of the park but was stopped by a young lady who was overseeing Trinity and several other children. The woman then attacked two police officers arresting her for assaulting Trinity. She is facing three counts of assault, one count of trespassing, and two for violating an active restraining order." This was to be expected of her. The woman was a known annoyance and was trespassed from the schools because she made contact with a teacher rather than because she assaulted Trinity's father on school grounds. She was also ruthless, going after anyone who got in her way and ranted and raved about whatever it was that upset her so going after a little girl on school grounds was not out of the ordinary and it was only a matter of time before she did it. The principal sighed and told Katie, "We will be ready for whatever she pulls. I know the truth, I just have to inform the school department's lawyer in case there is a legal challenge or other issue." Valerie countered with, "We did this already and he is backing Katie no matter what. As is the city council and teacher's union. The only one without support is that woman." Katie saw the trio deep in discussion and smiled. Tyler and Virgil were grilling her about her sleepover while Willow, Cat and JD were trying hard not to snicker at them being so inquisitive. Trinity asked, "Did you two have one yet?" getting the two to shake their heads causing her to add, "You should." Katie herded her trio to class while Valerie walked hers to theirs. Inside, Tyler asked about what they did getting a blush from him when she talked about playing with the dolls all evening. Virgil knew the feeling, he had been stuck doing that with Daisy and Faith too many times to count. Other kids started coming in and were shocked to heard that Trinity was learning ballet with the other girls as the trio continued talking. Tyler asked why she wanted to do that to which Trinity added, "It's fun and tough. The older girls make it look easy but it takes a while to learn." Virgil added, "It's tougher than it looks. It took me weeks to learn the right moves." The boys looked at him in shock but he countered with, "Eight of my cousins dance, one is a boy. Aunt Amanda is even getting my cousin Kyle to dance so he can dance with his girlfriend and help with their Christmas recital. Trinity wanted to do what the older girls were doing and got our cousins to try too." Tyler nodded, adding, "The girls were good. Mom said they are going to dance when they prove they really want to do it and not because the others are. Aunt Amanda is a good teacher but I don't want to do it too. I am just going to help put the decorations up on stage. Virgil can do all the dancing." Katie just sat back and watched as the kids were making their classmates rethink things. Trinity kept silent as well, she didn't have anything to add especially as it might cause her to talk about why she wasn't in school the past week. The kids thankfully were kind enough to no ask where she was. Katie kept things in order and had them working hard until lunch. Trinity was by Virgil and Tyler's side throughout the day and didn't let her out of their sights except when she went to the bathroom. The kids barely noticed the time going by and all too soon it was time to go home. After class, a couple of girls asked if she really was dancing. Trinity nodded, telling them, "Last week Polly showed me how to dance and her friends taught us more. They have danced for years and are really good. Mom said if I wanted to keep doing it I had to be on my best behavior in school." That slipped out before Trinity realized she had said it. The girls asked what she meant by, "Mom" so Trinity confessed, "Mrs. Eliza and her wife are going to adopt me as their daughter. They have been taking care of me all week and are treating me like I am part of the family. She is the best mom, she lets me play but makes me do my schoolwork and play with the other girls in the neighborhood." She waited for them to say something but they seemed to accept it. They asked, "Who are the other girls" to which Trinity happily told them, "Cat and Willow, and across the street is Faith. Her cousin Daisy played a couple of times but she was busy with her brothers. They are fun, especially Cat." Trinity pointed out Willow and Cat with Cat entertaining Willow while Tyler and Virgil tried to look bored by their actions. She added, "That's JD, Cat's twin brother with them. He plays girl games with the girls sometimes but he likes to be around Virgil and Tyler. Daisy and Faith went to school here last year, you might have seen their moms before." Trinity went off to where the five were playing and joined them in their game. The girls looked on surprised at how quickly they took her in as a friend. Tyler and Virgil were open with her and joking which they never did in class, Trinity was causing them enjoy playing more with others. Chapter 6 The kids stuck close to Katie as they waited for Valerie to arrive, doing their homework then playing their own game when they were all finished. What was odd was that Valerie was running late, Katie suspected something was up. Valerie texted to tell her to keep the kids in her classroom and not answer her phone until she gave her the all clear. Something was going on that Katie didn't like and Valerie was quelling for her. She hated to just sit around and do nothing but Valerie wouldn't tell her that unless it needed to be done by her. After dropping off the kids that morning Valerie was present for the arraignment of the woman who assaulted Trinity the previous Friday night, Mrs. Brandy Shay. Valerie was acting as both a witness and had her parents, Evelyn and Joseph Johnson, acting as Trinity's advocate. Judge Matthews shook his head, knowing full well that if the three were in attendance then something had to have happened that needed his attention. Brandy was led inside the courtroom and upon seeing Valerie lashed out, "I'll get you and that tranny kid for what you did to me!" Judge Matthews now knew what was going on but kept himself impartial. He had a strong disliking to Brady but he had to hear the charges first before offering any judgment. The court officer told her to stifle her language as it was in open court and would be used against her by the judge. Brady scoffed at it, assuming she would get her way. Judge Matthews asked to be read the charges and nodded as they fit what he expected from the woman. The woman pleaded not guilty to all charges and valiantly proclaimed her innocence. The ADA read the circumstances of the charges including the fact that it was witnessed by multiple young children and toddlers. He then added, "The victim has an active restraining order against the defendant, she is also barred from all Winnisimmet Public Schools properties. She had no right to be there in the first place nor was she allowed within 100 feet of her alleged victim." Judge Matthews set bail for $50,000 and ordered the woman to remain away from all parties involved in the incident. Brandy didn't flinch, almost scoffing at the amount. The ADA shook his head and made note of the conditions and explained exactly what they entailed and what the punishment would be for breaking bail which she seemed to understand. She didn't care about the money, it was the stipulations that insulted her more. Judge Matthews called Valerie, Evelyn, and Joseph into his chambers once the last of that session's arraignments concluded. He sat down and asked what was so pressing as to go before him yet again. Valerie tried to suppress a giggle then admitted, "I was a witness to what happened to Trinity Palmer's assault but I am also here on behalf of a young lady who needs your help to undo a wrong. We were scheduled to meet about this last Friday but that meeting was canceled. Sadly, due to the rescheduling, she is facing jail time because she defended Trinity from that Shay woman." Judge Matthews reviewed the request especially the evidence presented at the divorce proceedings. He sighed and asked for the ADA to come in so he could question him about the case as it was his signature on the original plea bargain agreement. The man rushed, he hated to disappoint the judge. Judge Matthews looked at the probation officer and asked for him to come in. There was a problem, he hadn't been keeping up with his cases and let Polly's fall by the wayside as other, more important cases were pushed forward by people who had some power and influence. Judge Matthews wasn't impressed and was on the verge of summarily ordering a review of the case just to spite the man. The ADA entered followed close behind by the probation officer. The man recognized Valerie and wasn't happy to see her, in fact he was downright hostile. Valerie just grinned, he had to answer a lot of tough questions about his treatment of Roland Finn's case years before and was reprimanded for it. Judge Matthews asked the ADA why he didn't review all of the evidence on- hand before going after the girls directly. The man tried to lay the blame on her parents but Valerie showed the court transcripts where they were not given a chance to work on their case before being forced to accept a plea deal. She knew about this as she had to help with the legal mess to get Polly into the alternative school after she broke with the other girls and begged to be allowed back into school. Judge Matthews took some of the blame as he was outraged at the actions of Polly's father but seeing that there was evidence that not all of the girls were involved and that there was really only collusion between the girls Ruby and Megan he sought a refiling of charges with intent to dismiss all of them against Polly. It would be what was best, it would negate her plea and allow all charges to be dropped removing her from probation and expunging her record. The ADA couldn't argue against it as Valerie played video of the girls plotting while Polly was in the bathroom then produced a statement from Ruby and Megan that stated Polly wasn't involved in any of the planning. The ones who did the actual theft were Megan and Ruby, all Polly did was walk in front of them as she was actually there to shop. It was clear cut that Polly was innocent. David also gave his own statement that he had overheard their talking but didn't hear Polly speak. The probation officer wasn't ready to give in. He held firm that she had violated her probation in assaulting Brandy Shay. Joseph caught the mistake before anyone else and told him, "Nobody else has made mention of Brandy Shay. Your honor, I believe that he is abusing his position to get retaliation against Ms. Cook for intervening on behalf of Ms. Palmer. We never spoke Mrs. Shay's name in his presence so how could he have possibly have known this was about her involvement on Friday night?" Valerie grinned, telling the ADA, "As you will note, there is a hold in place on potential charges due to the number of reliable witnesses to state that any assault was the result of an attempted kidnapping that was stopped by Ms. Cook which is why she is not present here today. I spoke to the DA today and he is going to refuse all charges against Ms. Cook on the basis of being necessary force to stop a serious crime in progress with multiple verified and reliable witnesses all sharing the same claims that she had intervened with necessary force to stop an assault and kidnapping attempt." Judge Matthews shook his head and demanded to know the connection between Shay and the probation officer. He refused to speak so the ADA called in his chief probation officer who grinned and told the judge, "My colleague is Mrs. Shay's brother. The fact that he is acting on behalf of his sister against one of the offenders under his watch is against multiple rules and regulations. He should have reported this to me as soon as he learned about it and he should have transferred the case to another person." Judge Matthews was firm in telling them, "I do hereby order Ms. Pauline Cook's cases to be reviewed by an ADA from Middlesex County. I am ordering all legal action against her to cease and the previous pleas to be withdrawn. I am also refusing to allow charges against Ms. Cook to be filed on the basis of abuse of the system as it has been shown that Ms. Cook acted in defense of a child in danger. I am ordering that you are suspended indefinitely with intent to terminate for abusing your position to pervert the course of justice." The clerk made the orders official and that afternoon a hearing was to be held in Woburn District Court to handle Polly's legal situation. Judge Matthews made a note to have the ADA at that courthouse review all evidence before making any decisions and alerted his judicial counterpart that he rescinded his own order on behalf of a young lady who had never had what was going on explained to her by either her parents or her legal counsel. The case would never hold up to appeal if Valerie had wanted to fight so it was easier to get it settled at the district level to avoid making the ADA's career evaporate due to his inexperience. Brandy Shay wasn't going to let the judge keep her from her revenge. In her eyes the, "Tranny freak" wronged her by taking away her right to go to her kids' school and take part in school events. All because that father of, "Hers" let, "Her" dress as a, "Girl". She told him off several times and finally grabbed hold of the little freak and spanked, "Her" then dragged, "Her" out of the school. She knocked down two teachers who tried to stop her and would have succeeded in getting the kid, "Help" when a cop grabbed her from behind. She was banned from all schools and couldn't go anywhere near the school let alone drop her kids off in person. She was allowed to let them out of the car but she couldn't set foot outside without violating the order. She blamed it all on Trinity and wanted her to pay for the humiliation she endured. Shay made bail quickly. She made a couple of phone calls and was released without fanfare while Valerie was in with Judge Matthews fixing the Polly situation. Shay would just wait and bide her time, her revenge would take a day but she would be the one laughing as Trinity was outed and humiliated. Valerie's phone rang after she left Judge Matthews. A reporter was asking questions about the school and about Trinity. Valerie realized that something serious was going on and alerted her parents who got the information about the reporter then placed a few phone calls of their own. Ricardo was free that day and went to the reporter's station to seek an answer directly from the station's general manager as to why his station was investigating a six-year-old girl and her family situation. The man's face froze as he heard that, he hadn't heard about it and he mumbled, "I would never approve of such a story. I'm calling in the assignment producer to get what the story is about." He didn't need to do that. The principal sat down with the reporter and demanded to know why she was sniffing around the school. She was to the point, asking about Trinity then about the allegations that she was being physically abused by a teacher at the school. The principal knew not to answer the questions and told her firmly, "We take those kind of allegations seriously and will investigate it. This is the first we have ever heard about any such allegations under my watch so please enlighten me as I will ensure that the full force of the law is brought down on those responsible- be it those falsely accusing the alleged suspect or the suspect who is abusing a child." The reporter explained, "My source has told me that teachers at this school are allowing a student to be abused. My source states that the school is covering up the abuse by claiming that it is allowed under the law. Care to comment about these allegations?" The principal couldn't recall any such incident nor anyone who was even remotely involved in such a situation. Then it struck: Katie and Trinity. This had to be about Trinity and Katie was the indirect victim of the attack. The principal gathered his thoughts and boldly proclaimed, "I believe I know exactly the student you are referring to. The source of the allegations is a liar. This child is in no way being abused nor is this school allowing abuse. I can go no further as I will not ruin the privacy or confidentiality of any of my students. It is on you to prove that there are actions being done to abuse this student and I believe that the information you have is both wrong and being used by the informant to further a personal vendetta against this child. We will be in contact with our lawyers as well as the child's lawyers, whom I know by now have already contacted your station about this story." The reporter was taken aback by being rebuffed and took it as a challenge. She was escorted out and told that no filming was being allowed of any students and that any footage of students would be dealt with legally by the parents of the students and the city. She was left to ponder how to get the story now. Ricardo's meeting went better. The producer entered and was asked point blank about the story. He denied trying to get a story out at the school to which Ricardo told him, "I have witnesses at the school who counter that claim. Your reporter is known to them through her being a scholarship winner that they are directly involved with. The school's police officer has also verified that she escorted out a reporter just before I arrived here." The producer wasn't able to say anything as his phone rang and the reporter asked for guidance about the story. He was ordered to hand the phone to the GM who in turn told the reporter, "Come back to the station, we have something important to discuss." She complied, sensing trouble if she didn't do it. Ricardo called Valerie and told her to come quick. The producer tried to back out but was told that if he left he was terminated for damaging the station's reputation and would find himself all alone in any legal case that arose from his actions. He reluctantly stayed, cursing under his breath at them. Valerie arrived just before the reporter and took her seat beside Ricardo. The GM let out an angry moan, telling Valerie, "I had no knowledge about whatever is going on and my station will not back anything illegal or immoral by our employees." Valerie shot back, "If that is true then you have no problem with us. If it is a lie then all bets are off and he will ensure you are toast in the business." The reporter finally entered, her face full of fear at what would happen. The GM asked about the story that she was assigned to cover. The reporter sighed and told him, "I am hitting roadblocks that I need to get around but it'll take time. I can't run anything yet because I would be facing legal hell if I did." The GM asked for more background about the story, being told, "Three hours ago I was asked to speak with a woman about alleged abuse at the Winnisimmet Early Learning Center. This woman claims that she was facing legal issues because she tried to expose the abuse being done against a student by teachers and administration at the school. She alleges that the school is covering it it up by claiming it's being done under the proper legal procedures yet nobody believes that the kid is being abused." Valerie nodded to Ricardo who then stated, "Would this woman happen to be a Mrs. Brandy Shay, arraigned this morning in Winnisimmet District Court on charges of assaulting a minor, assaulting two police officers, trespassing, and violating an active restraining order?" The woman refused to answer to which Valerie told the GM, "She doesn't have to answer that, her reaction to it is enough of an answer to verify that she is indeed the source of the allegations." Turning to the producer Valerie asked what his relationship was to Brandy Shay. The GM bluntly told her, "That woman is his wife." Valerie grinned and stated, "Then she is in violation of her bail conditions as she has used her husband and your reporter to go after her victim. Your station was being used by the Shays to exact revenge against a six year old who is in no way being abused by anyone no matter how much Mrs. Shay claims her to be." Mr. Shay cried, "That freak is being abused! They are letting a boy go around dressed in girls clothes! They need to be stopped and the abuse exposed!" The GM smiled and told the reporter, "This story is dead. I am not going to go against Valerie Finn or Ricardo Ramirez on any legal issue, especially when it regards children and gender issues. Shay used you as a patsy so that any blowback would go against you and not him. You have a lot to learn, if he was so concerned about this kid why didn't he go to the authorities himself? Why have his wife talk with you and not them? You didn't ask enough questions nor did you question the facts. Those are rookie mistakes that he used to his advantage. This is Boston, not Minot, North Dakota. Mistakes like that can and will get you sued and ruined in this business." Turning to Shay he loudly proclaimed, "You are terminated from this station effective immediately. You left us open to a lawsuit and you could have ruined the careers of everyone here. Why? Because you and your wife can't accept that she is wrong about a kid or that you two are transphobic idiots? Get out of my sight and don't even think about trying to file suit against us because corporate will have your ass in a sling You will be lucky if that little girl doesn't sue your asses back to the stone age!" Turning to the reporter, he informed her, "Due to the sensitivity of the claims this story is dead. The real story is a woman trying to defame a child, a school, and people who are supporting that child in a time of great need." Valerie added, "All state and federal guidelines have been followed and there was never any abuse except by the person driving the story. We have extensive experience and one of the people caring for the child in question is a leading expert in children suffering from her situation. Further she is being overseen by four lawyers as well as two social workers and multiple law enforcement personnel. She is receiving better care than just about any child in her situation is receiving." The reporter got the gist of it, the kid really was transgender and they were no strangers to what needs to be done for the child. She confessed to her boss, "I received a scholarship from her husband and met her daughter, I can't report what I know is false especially given the involvement of people that I know have the most experience of any person in this area of health issues." He nodded then told her to get back to work as there were more stories to report out there. Valerie and Ricardo left and alerted Judge Matthews about what happened. He sighed and issued a bench warrant for Brandy Shay's arrest for violating the restraining order and conditions of her bail. The clerk grinned, the Shays were about to lose their house as it was put up as collateral to make bail. Valerie called Katie and gave her the all clear. Katie was relieved but the kids were annoyed at having to stay there for a while. Katie explained why they had to stay and got them to see that it was for their own good. Trinity felt bad about what happened but it was not her fault and Katie let her known this. At home, Katie had her do her homework then surprised her with her own leggings, and leotards for ballet. Alison had the best gift, her own ballet slippers. They told her that the next night she had ballet with the other girls and would be doing it for real and not as a diversion. Trinity slept well that night as she was happy to know that she was going to be doing something that she wanted to do and loved being part of the girls. She was concerned that the boys wouldn't want to be around her anymore but her her gut said they would like her regardless. She then realized that they had to like her, she was going to be family to them soon. Valerie's day wasn't over after the tense meeting at the TV station. She met with one of the ADAs at Woburn District Court about Polly's cases and got everything dismissed in seconds. The justification was easy, she had hard evidence that she was innocent and everything was done without her knowledge or participation. Polly's record was expunged with prejudice and all traces of the charges were removed from the records. The cases against Ruby and Megan were altered to show that the third participant was unknowingly and unwillingly involved. Polly's restraining orders were also noted as being done as part of a group rather than due to individual actions. Thy had been rescinded with the blessing of Margo and Gabby the previous May but with no notation as to why they were rescinded was added until now. Essentially, Polly had a clean record again and did not have to worry about violating probation again as she was not bound by it anymore. Valerie wasn't able to tell Polly the good news as the hearing took much of the afternoon and she was deep into her homework by the time she was finished. She texted Dorothy to tell her that Polly was fine but wasn't able to tell her directly. She hoped that it didn't affect Polly badly. Polly endured some questions from her future cousins but nothing too pushy or invasive. Dorothy had her do her homework immediately so she could focus on relaxing and not rush to get it done prompting the two to do the same with their own work in solidarity with Polly. She was deep int thought and writing when Valerie told her the good news so Dorothy wasn't able to tell her it yet. Polly had an appointment the next afternoon with Dr. Dane which Olivia was happy to drive her to. Al had an appointment with Alison so she was going over there anyway. Dorothy told her what happened with the courts and if need be she should tell Dr. Dane and Polly but she would rather tell her herself. The drive was quick as Al and Polly were doing homework together and bouncing questions off one another making Olivia grin as they were doing so well. Dr. Dane greeted them warmly with Polly following him inside as Al waited for her appointment. She knew Polly would be alright on her own. Dr. Dane asked about Polly's week and got a glowing review from her. Her affection for Dorothy was evident, almost to the point of reverence. He focused on why she felt that way towards Dorothy and wasn't surprised to hear that she was what Polly wanted in a mother especially after losing her own. There was deep seeded resentment and anger regarding Polly's parents but given what he was hearing about them he wasn't surprised. She was young and they tended to latch onto people who give them what they need and Dorothy gave her the love and attention that she craved. Dorothy was a good person at heart and was doing everything right and she kept Polly from going overboard which was what she needed more than anything. Dr. Dane asked about her fears to which Polly told him the story about being arrested for what the other girls had done because she was part of their group. She regretted it deeply and was almost in tears at recalling just how badly it was affecting her life. He stopped several times but she continued on. The hour was up fast and he told her that she needed a lot of work to build up her confidence. Seeing Al sitting out there he told her warmly, "Those four girls are going to be your lifeboat. Keep with them, they are what you need and will help you recover fully. They know what they are doing." Olivia sensed that she was doing better and didn't tell her the news about the court cases. Polly started to relax more and ended up talking most of the hour with a boy sitting next to her that was waiting for his appointment. The two were in the same grade but went to different cities, he attended the private International School of Boston on a special scholarship which intrigued her. He was making Polly feel like a young woman and, in turn, she was unknowingly flirting with him. He was blushing and flirting back at her. Neither were seeking companionship but both were enjoying each others' company. The boy's mother was silently observing his interaction with Polly. He was different with her, it wasn't normal interest in a girl, but it wasn't love. She was seeing him as a boy and not as something else. Al's hour went slowly but Polly was busy talking with the boy making Olivia see a new side of Polly. The boy was called by Alison causing Polly to suddenly realize that he wasn't a normal boy, he was born a girl. She just smiled as she watched him walk in with Alison, happy to have won his attention and felt more mature than she had ever felt before. His mother carefully asked her if she knew his secret. Polly just smiled and admitted 'he was nicer to me than any boy has been and treated me like a lady and a friend. I don't care if we have the same parts in our pants, he was a gentleman and I am happy to have met him." The trio walked out as the boy's mother breathed a sigh of relief. Polly had caused her concern but she had done something no other girl yet had done for her son, she had accepted him. Polly was a smart cookie, but outside she realized what she had done and someone to assure her that she was doing right by the boy. Olivia let her know just what she had done for him and his mother, she had talked with her before at a support group and this was a huge thing for both of them. Back at home, Polly talked about Dr. Dane with Dorothy. Olivia told her what happened and the big step that had happened to both Polly and the boy. Dorothy then asked about the other news to which Olivia shook her head indicating that she didn't tell her yet. Al moved back to let them talk, sensing a pressing need that didn't involve her directly. Dorothy sat Polly down and in a low voice told her, "Valerie talked with Judge Matthews yesterday about your situation. Judge Matthews agreed that you were screwed by everyone else. He tossed out the plea bargain that you agreed to and ordered a review of your case by an ADA in another county. They agreed that you were innocent and should never have had any charges filed against you let alone forced to agree to a deal that you didn't need. All charges are dropped and the record expunged. You are legally in the clear: your arrest never existed, you are a free woman!" Polly was in tears. She would no longer have her father's actions hanging over her head. She could now move on, attend college, and even dance professionally if she wanted to. She was free to be herself. Polly went up to her room silently. Al followed up behind her and was immediately hugged by Polly. She was smiling at her, telling her, "I am free of them! I'm really free! They can't hurt me anymore!" Al hugged her back, she was trying her hardest to accept the situation but Polly was going to crash from the adrenaline rush and emotional turmoil. Al brought her down to dinner and told her to get to sleep early, she would need it. Polly thanked her for being her friend which Al grinned at hearing. Trinity had a very emotional day. The girls in her class asked what she was doing after school and she had to fight screaming her happiness about learning to dance for real. One asked where she was going to dance, getting a happy, "Mrs. Kelly's dance school. She's my neighbor and taught me some things already last week." The girls gasped: Trinity was going to be in their class with them. The girls asked if she was going to have to wear a leotard to which Trinity nodded, telling them, "Mom bought me one along with dance shoes and leggings and tights. I tripped trying to put leggings on for the first time." The girls snickered and understood what she meant, it happened to them all the first time they tried to do it on their own. The girls barely noticed the time but Katie ended their discussion and had them focus on school. She was happy that the girls were getting friendlier with Trinity the more they talked. The girls told her to sit with them at lunch prompting Tyler and Virgil to push her towards the girls. Trinity got the message and sat with them, talking about a lot of things that she was well versed in that they had in common. It was the highlight of her year so far, she was making inroads with the girls! After school, Trinity was on edge but Virgil simply told her, "It's not a big deal, Aunt Amanda helped you learn some things already. Polly did more with you than she will do for a few months." She felt a little more at ease but she was still on edge until they left school. At home, Trinity was a bundle of nerves and did her homework quickly and to Katie's satisfaction. Cat and Willow came over to join her for the ride over to the dance studio and ended up forcing her to play in the backyard so she was doing something except worrying. Amanda saw just how anxious Trinity was and told Katie that she probably knew more than any girl there so it was an easy night for her. The time came for them to drive over to the studio. Amanda left before them to open up for the evening with the girls eagerly waiting for their turn to leave. Katie explained to the trio that they would have to be on their best behavior or they wouldn't attend classes again getting a quick, "Yes Aunt Katie from Willow and Cat followed by a happy, "Yes mommy" from Trinity. Amanda's studio was big and bright with barres on every wall and a locker room behind. Katie went into the office and officially signed the paperwork for all three allowing them to officially be students and to protect the studio just in case. It was unnecessary but she didn't want to risk anything. The girls quickly changed and came out with Trinity asking for help with something that she didn't know how to put on. Amanda whispered to her about a dance belt which Katie rushed to help her with, making Cat and Willow ask what that was about. Amanda softly told them, "It's so that her birth defect doesn't show. It's worn by boys and men but she needs to wear one too. Kylie has to wear one so she isn't the only girl to use one." Trinity blushed at having to strip and put on the belt but Katie didn't bat an eye, just telling her to think of it as an extra pair of underwear. Once they were on Trinity put on he tights then her leotard then finally her dance shoes. She looked in the mirror and cried at the sight, she looked like a normal girl! Katie hugged her and told her she was a normal girl, she just had a little something extra that can be corrected in the future. Hearing that eased Trinity's tension as she joined Cat and Willow waiting for the rest of the class to come. The two didn't ask about the belt, simply talking about other things. The other kids started to trickle in with most of them already dressed and ready to go. Several of the parents were shocked to see Katie there and even more shocked to see Trinity there with the duo. Katie carefully explained her relationship to Trinity with Trinity sticking close to her just in case. Amanda started the class by showing them how to stretch. Cat, Willow, and Trinity were used to doing the stretches so they helped the other girls to do them the right way. Amanda was happy to have them being able to help, it saved her a lot of trouble and enabled her to think steps ahead so she could teach them more of the basics before the end of class. Katie fielded questions about Trinity from the parents throughout class. They were surprised that she looked so much like a girl with her hair pinned back and out of the way while others were shocked to see that she didn't have the telltale bulge in the front. Katie carefully explained, "She is wearing a dance belt which helps hide what the girls are too young to see and as for her hair, she had an older dancer show her what to do with her hair as well as how to stretch and do the basic moves. She had several of them help her learn, it's why she is helping the other girls so much this class." They were intrigued. Trinity was keeping up with Amanda and the other girls following her lead. The younger girls were doing their best to keep up with her while her classmates were trying to emulate Trinity as best they could. After an hour Amanda wound down the class by having them do their cool down routines. She led them then had Trinity take over as she was going by memory now with the rest following her. Amanda herself just rested while she waited for the next group to get ready. Katie was surprised to see Astrid Raymond coming in with Nancy Flynn, Kylie Pena, and Margaret Douglas. Katie asked where Kyle was, getting a grin and happy, "He is home with Oscar, he doesn't have to go to the class anymore since I moved in with Todd and am taking over driving the girls here." Katie smiled at hearing that, the boy was known to complain about being bored and having little to do while Margaret did her class and with Al at her appointment that week he wasn't able to enjoy seeing her dance so there wasn't a reason to come anymore. Trinity was hugged by Nancy once she came out of the locker room with the younger girls. Kylie noticed the lack of bulge and asked if she had to wear the belt, getting a blush and nod to which Kylie added, "You get used to it after a while. Just remember to wash it with your other gear or it gets stinky." The older girls started to do their stretching while the other girls started to leave. Trinity's classmates all smiled at her telling her that she was good. Trinity blushed and told them, "I just had a head start." They were getting along well which caught their parents off guard but couldn't argue against as they were doing it on their own and being civil to the point of almost being friends. Back at home, Valerie greeted them and was regaled with what happened in class. Katie was all smiles at telling them about Trinity being friendly with the girls and having them following her every move. Alison was happy that she was starting to make friends albeit tentative ones and that there wasn't any animosity from the parents against Trinity being there. The next day, the girls sought out Trinity and talked with her as if she was one of their own. They actually wanted her to be part of their group, loving having her be there and enjoying having her talk with them. She was thrilled to be part of the group especially as she wasn't treated differently. The kids were focused all day but disappointed when Katie had to take Trinity to her appointment with Dr. Dane. She had to explain, "It's a special doctor who deals with kids who have lost family like she has. She will able to play tomorrow and this weekend if you want but she has to go today." Dr. Dane was easy on Trinity as her struggles were tough to bring up in discussions She was open with him, telling him that she missed her parents but Katie and Alison were amazing people that she loved as her mothers. She spoke highly of Katie but offered little about Alison. Dr. Dane sensed that she could use more time with Alison and thought some mother/daughter time with her was overdue. Katie was simply around her so much that it was tough not to get close to her, but Alison was working a lot and not around her. It was a simple thing to do, but important to Trinity. Her grief had all but evaporated with the return to school and her making friends with the girls. He suspected that she had accepted the death quickly because of the previous experience and getting a chance to say goodbye with Alison and Katie by her side. He suggested that she talk with her parents a lot as well as getting to know them so she didn't feel the need to please them or adapt to their needs. Alison took the news hard as it made her feel bad for working so much but Trinity just smiled and told her that it was because she was needed. She would love to have Alison take her to her dance lessons and spend time with her on the weekend giving Katie time off. Katie agreed with her, but she would have to find something else to do as the dance lessons were at the same time she was working. In school, Katie received requests from the girls for Trinity to come by. Katie had to clear it with their parents but the ones from their dance class saw that they wanted to befriend Trinity so let them have some time that weekend provide they did their homework and acted good in school. Katie cleared it with Alison, she would handle it for Katie allowing Katie time to spend with her sister or parents. Things were going well for the duo but not all was as it appeared. The girls' cases had finally come up for review by DCF as part of the adoption process at the request of Anne. The man assigned to do the evaluations for Trinity and Polly was named Randolph Masters and Masters was not liking any of what he was seeing one bit. He saw Valerie as abusing the system to get Polly out of punishment while Katie and Alison were using it to bring another child into a lifestyle that he did not approve of, to him this was akin to abuse. What is worse, he saw Katie and Alison as being unfit because of their relationship. Married or not he didn't believe they should be allowed to foster a child let alone adopt one. Masters efused to sign off on the adoptions. In fact, he was going to demand that the girls be placed elsewhere as they were being manipulated and used by their parents and people around them. Anne and Mark had no say in the matter, this was someone who was independently reviewing their cases on the girls' behalf and he would see to it that their objections were ignored regardless of DCF regulations. Anne asked for a status update on both cases and was shown the decision by her colleague. She swore loudly and asked for the written justification only to be stonewalled by her colleagues. She went to her immediate supervisor and got the truth and informed him, "This will not end well and will only blow up in our faces. This isn't something to play around with, Masters is using his personal views to get what he wants for these children and doing it against two of the people who are never to battle legally." Anne's words were stinging. Her next words were harsher as he told him, "Given the bias against Valerie Finn this will be heard by Paul and Alexandra James. Yes, they are who you think they are. Any yes, he will know about this and he will not be pleased. We are going to lose and he will have your head for it. Get your resume in order, he won't be letting you out of this unscathed. You will be terminated for not overruling Masters when you found out what he was doing violated DCF rules and THE LAW!" Chapter 7 Anne immediately called Valerie to tell her what was going to happen. Valerie sighed deeply then told her, "We will get an injunction filed on the girls' behalf." Anne told her that it would harm things to which she countered with, "I said we, I didn't mean just me. I hate to get them involved but Alexandra and Paul James are going to need to represent the girls in Ricardo and my place as they have no vested interest in this case. They may know us and know of the girls, but they don't know the girls and are fully backed by the courts if need be. Mom and dad can't even represent them due to us." Anne was at a loss for words but Valerie told her firmly, "Get all of the paperwork and everything that he is going to use against Katie and Dorothy. Don't let him destroy it or hide it or make fake copies. He needs a valid reason for trying to remove the girls and he has to have a good one. We both know that he has no excuse for going after Dorothy except personal bias against me and his reasons for going after Katie and Alison will result in his getting his ass tossed out of court and facing a federal lawsuit on all three of their behalf. She doesn't fool around, Katie will take your department down hard and leave Christian to pick up the pieces politically." Those were not idle threats. Anne had known the man far too long to not know that they were about to get their asses handed to them from multiple fronts and nobody standing in the way would survive. She may even be taken out in the aftermath in an effort by some of her colleagues to save their own skins. It wouldn't work, she had an ironclad record and had her staff fully supporting her. Over in Boston, Randolph Masters was working hard on his case against Katelyn, "Katie" Benson, Alison Eliza, and Dorothy Vega. He smelled a promotion and brownie points with the legislature, ones that would lead him to be the next head of the Massachusetts Department of Children and Families when Christian James finally got booted out of office in three years. He had stayed under the radar for far too long doing menial work while others were promoted over him, he deserved the top job more than anyone and this case would be his ticket to the top. His moles in the court had assured him that his information was gold and that laws were being broken as well as the two so-called women living together forcing a boy to dress as a girl. He hit pay dirt in being asked to evaluate the children by Anne's supervisor and saw his chance to get them away from people who didn't belong anywhere near children. He didn't bother to meet with them, instead going to a judge who then ordered their removal for their own protection. The order went out Wednesday afternoon. There was nothing Alison or Katie could do to stop it, state troopers arrived at their house with Masters and removed Trinity then placed Katie and Alison under arrest for child abuse. Trinity was screaming at the top of her lungs for them to let her go and for someone to help her causing everyone to look over at the commotion. Mick Jones came rushing over to demand an explanation and flashed his badge to stop the removal. The troopers showed him the order while Masters was happy to blatantly call Katie a, "Pathetic piece of tranny trash." Mick held his tongue while the troopers gave him an eyeful, he produced his digital recorder leading them to nod and get the man talking further. The sergeant asked if he knew that Katie was transgender, Masters happily said, "I know everything about that piece of human trash. That thing is a man in a dress no matter how much surgery he has. That dyke that got duped into marry him is going to get what is coming to her for letting this boy dress up in girls clothes. They are going to prison and so help me god they won't see the light of day again!" Mick didn't say a word, informing him, "Everything you have just said has been recorded and will be used against you in a court of law. I am asking my colleague with the FBI who also heard your multiple statements to open an investigation into you for civil rights violations and will see to it that you are both fired and prosecuted for using your office to violate the rights of innocent people." Masters claimed that he would have his badge to which Mick told him firmly, "Try it. Seriously, try it. Better men than you have tried and failed. I have two federal law enforcement witnesses to all of your abusive statements and I know for a fact that your department is conducting an internal review into your activities as we speak. When you enter work in the morning you will be greeted by state troopers who will place you under arrest. As they now know that I have to report your activities, these troopers will have to testify about what they saw and I doubt they will dare to back you up." Off in the corner Sarah was on the phone with Anne while Amanda was on the phone with Mark. Both of them heard the statements and had already called the director to report their colleague's vile acts as eye witnesses to the behavior. Mick's claim wasn't a threat: he would be meeting the troopers in the morning and the two arresting troopers would have to report what they witnessed to save themselves from federal investigation. The troopers had to take Katie and Alison with them until the warrant for their arrest was vacated but Mick told them, "Expect your lawyers to already be there when you arrive." Neither said anything, just letting the troopers take them away. Mick had to control himself as Masters was smugly gloating. Mick's phone rang and he grinned widely as he listened to the person on the phone. He got a chuckle then announced, "A formal federal investigation is being conducted into your activities. As three federal agents witnessed your offensive behavior and words and sent the recording to the FBI for review this is being taken extremely seriously. You will be visited by agents tomorrow, don't leave the state or a federal arrest warrant will be issued by the US Marshal." Masters ignored his threat. He just drove over to Dorothy's house and did the same thing to Polly, this time not getting a fight from her. He made a big mistake in saying the wrong thing in front of the arriving Paul James, telling Dorothy, "You are going to pay for what you did. Your little trollop got my cousin arrested again because she couldn't keep her trap shut. Kiss her goodbye because when I am done with her she won't be seeing the light of day for eight years." Paul shot back a loud, "Is that so? You are going to ensure that my client is sent to a juvenile detention center without reason, without having committed a crime, for having her name cleared while the actual perpetrators of the crime were punished for their crimes. Please continue, you are already going to be in jail for your civil rights violations of my other client, this is going to ensure that your ass is sued for every penny and every cent that you make in prison is paid toward restitution for my clients!" Paul was fuming. Alexandra took over and handed him an injunction from the court barring him from taking Polly away as he had no just cause to do so. Alexandra then handing him a lawsuit on her behalf listing him and his department as violating her civil rights as well the rights of Dorothy. Masters tossed them in the trash, telling her, "I can do as I damn well please, now get out of here or I'll haul your ass off to jail as well." Masters grabbed onto Polly to drag her away. The trooper with him grinned and slapped his handcuffs on Masters saying authoritatively, "You are hereby placed under arrest for violating a court order and assaulting a minor under the age of 14." Masters tried to pull away but ended up hitting the trooper in the face, leaving a bloody lip. The trooper just grinned and told him, "You are now under arrest for assaulting a police officer and resisting arrest." He was grabbed tightly and was lead to the nearby cruiser and placed in the back while the trooper called for a tow truck. He sighed and told Paul, "The old man will be pissed at what happened. The little girl who was just taken away is going to be in deep trouble and may end up hurt. Do whatever you must do to get her out of there fast, but she won't be able to return to the couple she is housed with until the mess is cleaned up." Polly's marks were noted for the record with the trooper's lip having the same treatment. Dorothy was trying her hardest to keep herself from breaking down but it was impossible. Polly was the one to comfort her, telling her warmly, "You didn't do anything wrong. You were the best mom and that guy just wants to get at you because he wants to hurt me. You didn't do anything wrong." Paul and Alexandra finally left Polly once Dorothy was alright. They went right for the home where Trinity was staying and were met by Anne. Inside they saw that Trinity was stark naked, being beaten by boys who were twice her size and shouting obscenities and threats to rape her. Anne immediately called the police while Paul rounded the boys up and Alexandra sought out the home's overseer. She didn't have to go far as he was actually filming the assault which led Paul to nearly beat the man. Alexandra seized the camera from him while Anne led the officers inside. Trinity was huddling in the corner shivering from the cold and horror of the abuse, sobbing to herself while Alexandra draped a blanket over her. Ian Bailey had to be held back from harming the overseer, the man cowered in fear as the 6'8" 350 lbs. Ian towered over him ready to rip him to shreds. The next officers entered and asked what happened, getting loud, "We were showing this fagot sissy what real men are like. He got what he deserved!" The other boys parroted the self-appointed leader causing the officers to ask what that was. The boys were falling for a trap and didn't know it, they were proud to admit, "The fagot deserved a beating. He is lucky they stopped us or we would have shown him what real men are like with girls!" The others realized they were in deep trouble as the officers announced, "You are hereby placed under arrest for assault, sexual assault, conspiracy to commit sexual assault, and are going to ensure that you all receive a hate crimes designation in addition thanks to your bold statements. What you tried to do will follow you around for the rest of your life!" The overseer claimed they couldn't do that, they were kids. Ian's booming voice loudly told him, "They assaulted a child presenting herself as a girl who is undergoing treatment for gender identity disorder, who was illegally taken from the care of legitimate foster parents who were following all state and federal guidelines for proper care for a child suffering from that disorder. They willingly use language to show that they were assaulting this child because she is is suffering this disorder and willingly admitted to trying to rape this child. There is no argument, those are serious charges and won't get brushed under the rug because of age." Turning to him Ian added, "You are under arrest for assault, sexual assault on a minor, conspiracy to commit assault and conspiracy to commit sexual assault. You are also under arrest for possession of child pornography for filming the assault." Ian led the man away while the children were placed in multiple transports. Anne was at a loss for words, she didn't know what to do now. Paul and Alexandra had been given custody of Trinity pending the outcome of Katie and Alison's case, they would have to take her home with them to their house in Endicott for the time being. Trinity went with Alexandra and Paul without a fight. Anne would get what she needed from the Eliza home while they calmed Trinity down. She was in no condition to go to school and have to endure the questions of parents and other teachers which was not what she needed at that point. The trio left but made a stop first to get Trinity some dinner then to check in on Polly. Polly was more concerned about Trinity while Trinity was upset that Polly was almost taken too. The two cried in one another's shoulders, trying hard not to think about what almost happened to both of them. Zoe asked her parents if they were going to be the ones caring for Trinity until Katie and Alison were freed and Trinity returned, getting solemn nods from them. Zoe hugged Trinity tight, telling her warmly, "You will like it. Sela is a bit of a slob and Isobel snores but it's a nice place." Trinity tried to fight a laugh and lost, causing Zoe to feel relieved that she was feeling better. Paul told them they had to get going prompting Zoe to kiss Juanita goodbye while Trinity hugged Polly. Trinity loved seeing Juanita blush at the kiss while Zoe tried not to do the same, it made her feel like they were treating her normal which they didn't think they were doing. The drive took longer than expected but Trinity slept through most of it once she was strapped into her seat. Anne had her bags ready to go with Zoe and Polly giving her enough time to get everything together for the week. She hoped that was more than enough, but the courts could drag their situation out for days or months. It all depended on who the judge was who would preside over their case. Sela and Isobel had to be held back from disturbing Trinity as they entered. Zoe led them aside and explained everything, having to hold back Isobel while Sela went right for Trinity's room to set her clothes out for her. Sela didn't mince words, Trinity needed normalcy and they would give her that. In the morning, Trinity took several minutes to gather her thoughts before she realized that she wasn't at her new home, wasn't with Katie and Alison, and was not even in her hometown hit. Alexandra entered and helped Trinity get dressed, first having her shower. Trinity didn't fight it, she had given up trying to fight anymore. She had lost everything that mattered to her the night before. Alexandra led her downstairs to where she could enjoy breakfast. The girls didn't say anything to her, not wanting to upset her. Trinity herself didn't want to talk, only go back to her room to be alone. Paul was in contact with his father the night before and had to yell at him to stay back as much as possible. They needed to do this the right way and not use their full force unless it was required. Christian did have his observers ready to intervene if need be, they had already been in contact with both the DA and the US Attorney regarding the mess and were getting action taken immediately. This was beside the investigation that Mick had started with his friends Johanna Loup and Autumn Nieves. Both had spent the afternoon interviewing the state troopers who took Katie and Alison into custody and had their statements matching up with what the court clerk at West Roxbury Municipal Court had witnessed. There was little doubt that Masters was unjustifiably targeting them. Masters made a huge mistake, he had neglected to mention why he was involved in the first place as he was based out of the Worcester office and the girls' cases were out of the Winnisimmet office nor did he mention that Polly had been cleared of all criminal charges. He knew that Polly was innocent and Anne and Mark's reports all stated that all procedures were being followed for Trinity's care. He was intentionally vague on his claims which should have been gone over by the judge but never was. The FBI had a clear case of civil rights violations and abusing his position to violate their rights. The fact that he was under arrest for assault and violating a court order while also stating he knew that Polly was cleared legally sealed his fate, there was no denying that he was going after them. His own words being witnessed by multiple law enforcement officers ensured that there was no way they could sweep the actions under the rug, Masters was going to go down hard. After Trinity finished breakfast, Alexandra called the Early Learning Center on behalf of Katie and explained the situation then explained that she had her rights violated by a man who was now in jail and facing both state and federal charges for his actions. The principal wasn't happy to hear that but when Alexandra explained that Valerie was going to act as Katie's lawyer he backed off. Alexandra didn't state who her father-in-law was but the name rang a huge alarm in the principal as well. He was in a bind. People would want to know why she was not in class to which Alexandra explained, "Tell the truth. Tell them that she was targeted by a man who has taken issue with the fact that she is transgender and her wife is a lesbian and that they are married. Any lie or misdirection will backfire against you and any attempt to permanently remove Katie from the classroom will result in what she did in Endicott happening you. It is better to just tell the truth and let the people see for themselves just how bigoted people can be even in our liberal state." A substitute was called in and the principal explained just what happened to Katie to the parents. There were gasps and requests for information about Trinity to which he explained, "She was assaulted after being forced into a boy's group home. The overseer is in jail for taping the assault and as it resulted in her being stripped naked and sexually assaulted he is facing child porn charges as well." This led to more gasps from the crowd There were questions about where Trinity was and how she was dong. He admitted, "She is staying wit her advocates outside of the city and will remain there until she is able to be returned to her foster parents. They are people who are known to the Elizas and trusted by them and who are well connected." Paul had a rough go that morning as he was given the runaround by the court clerks as he tried to meet with his clients. He finally stopped fooling around and demanded to be shown to his clients or they would answer to the chief judge as to why they were violating the rights of prisoners. That prompted swift action as Paul heard them mumbling about Katie and Alison without either being mentioned. That was a bad move. This was heard by Valerie who recorded their comments and called the court clerk who then fired both for their actions and had them held until Judge Matthews saw them. Valerie informed Judge Matthews about the actions of the clerks getting him to tell them, "30 days in jail for contempt of court. You just caused two cases to be dismissed because the two of you felt you had the right to violate their rights." The clerk called Alison's and Katie's case immediately after Paul finished talking with them. The ADA read the list of charges to which Paul countered with a request for a probable cause hearing to dispute the charges. Judge Matthews grinned as he told the ADA, "All charges are hereby dismissed due to a lack of evidence, blatant abuse of position by a member of social services, violating the rights of two minors, violating the civil rights of two minors and the defendants." The ADA tried to protest but Judge Matthews countered with, "I am not even going to entertain any attempt to reinstate charges, I know exactly who these two are and what they know as professionals. I know that one is a leading psychiatrist in the field of gender issues involving minors and the other is a practicing attorney with more than a decade in front of the bench and who has fought and won more money from people who have had their rights violated than you will see in a lifetime. That isn't even considering the fact that she is an accredited teacher who has the full backing of her city over this situation and who has no reason to be charged with any crimes at all." The ADA tried to play it off as no big deal but Judge Matthew announced, "The man who initiated the process is sitting downstairs in a cell for assaulting a minor and a police officer while also willingly violating a court order against him preventing him from enforcing one obtained via another court and using false, outdated, and misleading statements. He is on record as being heard by five officers of the law three of which are federal agents, openly mocking and spewing slurs against the defendants. I am aware of legal situation of one of the children he tried to have removed as I had her case brought up for review and subsequently cleared her of all criminal charges. He failed to disclose that he has a personal relationship with a former probation officer in a case in which she was cleared therefor had no business acting on behalf of DCF so save me the lecture." He waited to drop the big bomb. He grinned and added, "The district attorney called me this morning to tell me that all charges against Dr. Alison and Mrs. Katelyn Eliza were to be dropped and a formal apology issued by the state. You either ignored or never read that memo but I have a copy that was delivered in person by his personal secretary." The clerk handed it to the ADA who swore. Judge Matthews grinned as another ADA moved forward and handed Judge Matthews something of interest. He stated loudly, "The review of the original case files has uncovered the person who initially claimed abuse. This person has been named as Mr. Josiah Shay, husband of Mrs. Brandy Shay whom has a restraining order in place against her by the targeted victim. DCF ignored the connection between the Shays and the alleged victim. There is an active criminal complaint against Mrs. Shay but also there was an attempt by Mr. Shay to falsify a media investigation into Mrs. Eliza violating the terms of her retraining order. Therefore I am ordering that charges of perjury against Josiah Shay be filed along with falsifying documents against Mr. Randolph Masters be brought by the court." Banging his gavel Judge Matthews exonerated Katie and Alison. He strongly told the ADA, "Get your resume in order, I don't believe for a second that you didn't see the memo. The DA is going to go after you for your role in this. You don't pervert the course of justice or use my court to get revenge!" Katie and Alison were led out and Masters led in. He was smug and had a big grin on his face as if he was going to be released. After hearing the charges being leveled against him, Judge Matthews was firm in his statement, "Wipe that smile off your face! You have abused your office and done something unspeakable against three people who have done nothing wrong." Masters boldly told him, "I did nothing wrong. I removed a kid being hurt by two people who have no business being around children. I made sure that boy is taught what people think about what he is doing and I made sure those two got the beating they deserved." Judge Matthews realized that Masters had just confessed to a crime that wasn't known and told the ADA, "Place him under arrest for criminal conspiracy and investigate thoroughly. I believe he has just forfeited his 5th Amendment rights by admitting to two crimes, one of which has not occurred yet. And if any harm should come to either Alison or Katelyn Eliza he will be charged with a second count of criminal conspiracy for that act." The ADA replayed what Masters had said and announced, "Your honor, he caused bodily harm to fall on a child who was sexually and physically assaulted and whose assault was recorded. We have the perpetrators in custody and will arraign them later today." Judge Matthews just grinned, ordering the new charges to be filed and denying bail for Masters. Masters's face went white as he realized that he had screwed himself over. He wasn't getting out. He swore at the judge and ADA then proclaimed, "I'll get you for this! I have allies! Your career is over!" Judge Matthews shook his head then added additional charges of criminal threats to the list. Katie and Alison were released and their mug shots and arrest information destroyed under close scrutiny by Paul and the DA. They were in limbo though as they couldn't go to work nor could they take Trinity home. They were stuck. The two were emotionally spent. They were physically exhausted from their stay in jail in isolation for their own protection. If what they were arrested for got out they wouldn't leave the cell block alive. Now free to go, they went directly home while Alexandra and Paul worked on getting their reputations untarnished by what Masters had done. Anne had already met with the DCF commissioner and gotten a blanket statement stating that it was a personal grudge by someone who abused his position to exact revenge and enforce his personal views on others and all allegations against the couple were false and brought about by people in jail awaiting trial for crimes against the alleged victim. That quelled any media inquiries as they used their contacts to get the truth known before any reporters tried to sniff around. The GM at the station Josiah Shay formerly worked at went so far as to declare the story fiction and gave the real story, one that was picked up by reporters prompting the Shays to try to go on the run from the police and from the media scrutiny. The story of a lesbian couple who were trying to adopt a transgender orphan was nothing compared with the story of a couple trying to frame that same innocent couple for sexual abuse in retaliation for the wife's own criminal punishment. Christian James had the toughest job to do. He had to tell the media that one of his DCF social workers had done something unthinkable and tried to railroad the rights and civil rights of four people. When asked why he was honest, explaining, "The man held a grudge against one child and was both extremely homophobic and transphobic. He had no reason to launch an investigation after two separate colleagues cleared the children's foster parents of any wrongdoing and gave their blessings for their adoptions. He used the claims of two people who are facing legal action for their roles in trying to besmirch the good name of two of the victims as well as assaulting another. He is in jail on related assault charges and is facing state and federal investigations as well a complete review of his prior cases." The media knew of Christian's soft spot for DCF children and asked about them. Christian explained firmly, "Both are in the care of people who seeing that this horrible event doesn't happen again. One is with her foster mother and the other is with caring parties who are awaiting the all clear from the courts to allow their ward to return to her loving foster parents. Both children are on track to be adopted and I firmly believe that they will be as I know all of them and they are some of the best people you will ever encounter in their lines of work." Christian made his point, this was a private matter now and the courts were involved so they had to back away. His personal involvement wasn't questioned, some knew why and others knew not to dig deeper. Christian simply went home and hoped things settled the next day. Up in Endicott, Heather James was doing her best to keep Trinity occupied while her son and daughter-in-law fought to free Katie and Alison. She swam, ran around the yard, and did her schoolwork. Trinity didn't complain nor did she enjoy being there, she missed being in school and seeing her new friends. Heather was running out of ideas when Christian came in looking exhausted and relieved. Trinity stopped short at seeing him, he was someone she never met before and grew scared at seeing. Heather had to quickly explain to her, "This is my husband, Christian, you didn't get the chance to meet him last night as he in bed early and left early this morning." Trinity meekly said hello and shied away from him, trying to do something else and not wanting to upset Christian. Heather redirected her to something else leaving Christian to think about how to help her. He hated seeing kids in trouble especially ones who were given a bad lot in life like Trinity. Christian had a brilliant idea and called Anne to have her file paperwork for an immediate hearing in front of a judge in family court. Anne demanded an answer to which Christian casually told her, "The state has a burden of proof to show that they have reason to deny applications from both Dorothy Vega and the Elizas." She got the gist of it, he was killing any potential issue with judicial force. Paul and Alexandra were on the verge of laughter as Christian told them. He had outfoxed the DCF on two fronts and there was nothing that anybody inside the agency could do to stop it from happening. His issue was with who the case would be heard but a call from Anne brought all of that to an end- they had ended up being placed in front of Judge Perez, the ruthless, no-nonsense family court judge that wouldn't allow and shenanigans in her courtroom especially from people who were supposed to be protecting children. Heather was thrilled to hear the news. Trinity was told that she had to go to court the next day and would be dressed up in her best dress. Heather loved helping her, she grinned as she played the proud grandparent to Trinity with Paul and Alexandra trying hard to not say anything but getting a glint of parental hope. Neither wanted to tell her that it wasn't possible anymore without help, but she could be a great-grandmother if Ian and his wife Sheila had been a bit careless with their loving. Polly was upset most of the day which was easily picked up by her friends. They were aware of what happened with Amy having to see her sister trying to control Michael Finn while Al saw her parents scrambling to ensure that Alison's reputation wasn't ruined. Trina was the least affected, but she felt the worst because she had the least amount of contact with Polly and didn't know how to help her. Mrs. Eagleson kept them focused and got Polly to keep herself from overthinking about what happened. She hated that someone so young had experienced so much pain and suffering through no fault of her own. What was worse was whenever she made progress something would happen to cause her to fall back to being the quiet and scared little girl instead of the confident girl she truly was. Dorothy was just as bad. She threw herself into her work but it was just a distraction. Alice had to keep her focused and her secretary had to deflect calls as much as possible. She handled the administration tasks for the day while Alice took over her disciplinary actions lest she do something too harsh or not give a harsh enough punishment. Before the end of the day, Anne called Dorothy and calmly told her, "A hearing is being held in Boston tomorrow morning that you and Polly need to be at. This is the big one, this will end Polly's problems once and for all." Dorothy had tears in her eyes, she would either be a mother or she would be back to being the loner principal. Alice knew the outcome already but didn't get her hopes up for Dorothy's sake, Judge Perez was never going to deny her application especially when the only refusal was based on a lie from people who had a grudge against her. The teens went home with Polly to keep an eye on her and keep her focused on school. They were so engrossed that they didn't notice the time and had to be pried away from her to eat dinner. Polly was still in a daze and going through the motions so she barely noticed anyone left. Over dinner, Zoe and her sisters told Polly that she was going to have to accept the outcome of the next day. They were going, along with their grandparents, Carmen, and Juanita. They had to keep Addison and the Smiths at bay, this was too personal and they would get too emotional to control themselves. Hannah would not be able to hold her tongue while Paige would rip into her own mother for allowing this to happen in the first place. In the morning, Dorothy had to help Polly shower and get dressed. She was in such a daze she didn't even notice that she was in a dress or that she had her hair styled differently. She finally came out of her daze over breakfast as Dorothy cooked for her, the smells lifting her mental fog. Trinity was the same way. Zoe, Sela, and Isobel helped her get dressed and eat ensuring that she didn't forgo anything while also helping her keep from thinking about what was going on. Trinity was finally surprised that they were all dressed up, not knowing that they were going with her to the courthouse. The girls happily told her, "We are going for yours and Polly's sake. We have to be there for you two." Christian led the way with the state trooper escorts creating a convoy south. Trinity was quiet, her only thoughts were of Katie and Alison being sad at her being taken away from them. She fought back tears but was losing badly. Dorothy and Polly were driven in by Valerie who was there with her parents, all representing Dorothy. Katie and Alison went in on their own, Katie hired Ricardo to be her lawyer as she couldn't do the job herself with so much on the line and her emotions at their breaking point. Alison was the one who was the biggest wreck, she was going to be a mother but felt like she had already lost the child that she had grown to love as her own. Inside the courtroom Trinity ran towards the couple, hugging and crying into their arms and releasing the sadness she had for the past day and a half. The couple did the same before they stopped at the urging of Ricardo. Polly had to take Trinity over to the side so she could cry herself out and not disturb the proceedings but it was tough to keep herself under control at the sad sigh of losing the couple. Judge Perez caught the hug and tears unnoticed from the doorway to her chambers. The clerk wanted to do something but he stopped at her urging, it was something that needed to be seen and went a long way towards her ruling. Raw emotions unmolested by legal issues counted more in her view than the arguments she would hear, it was the unbridled true feelings and to her the couple were Trinity's real parents in all but name. The clerk called the court to order. Judge Perez asked for the reason for the hearing, being told firmly, "We are reviewing the custody of one Pauline Cook and one Terrence Palmer AKA Trinity Palmer." Judge Perez looked at Trinity and realized the crux of the matter, her gender change was at issue. Judge Perez asked all parties to identify themselves. She grinned at Katie, Ricardo, and Valerie being involved and told all three, "I know you wouldn't be here unless it was serious, well I am of the belief that all facts must be heard and despite your previous appearances before me you must still state your cases. I am however suspicious about the true nature of what is going on but will reserve judgment." DCF's lawyer presented the evidence they had against both Polly, Trinity, Alison, Katie, and Dorothy. Judge Perez shook her head at hearing it. She waited for him to finish and asked firmly, "Is all of your information up to date and the statements and claims true as far as you are aware. Bare in mind that perjury will not be tolerated and attempts to use the legal system to harass, defame, or promote any personal views that infringe upon the civil rights of others will not be tolerated." The man said as far as he knew, they were accurate. He stated that all of his information came from Randolph Masters, the case manager reviewing the two children's cases. He was only going off of the information provided provided to him by Masters and Masters alone. Judge Perez grinned at hearing that then told him firmly, "I received an email from my colleague Judge Matthews last evening stating that DCF was about to present two cases where they sought to terminate the permanent custody of three people based on false and outdated information. He personally presided over the arraignment of the witnesses against the Elizas and ordered a review of the case against Ms. Cook and gave the docket numbers to verify the existence of those cases." Turning to Polly and Dorothy, Judge Perez declared, "Young lady you have had justice miscarried twice against you. This second time was a travesty and will be rectified this second. I am awarding permanent custody of Ms. Pauline Cook to Ms. Dorothy Vega and approving Ms. Vega's application for adoption. With your blessing, I am including an order changing your name from Pauline Cook to Pauline Vega. Congratulations Ms. Vega and Ms. Vega." Dorothy hugged Polly tight, crying into her shoulder as Polly did the same. Carmen and Juanita joined her in hugs, with Zoe happily hugging Dorothy. Judge Perez was pleased at the sight and waited for the Vega family to calm down to continue. Turning to the DCF lawyer, Judge Perez continued, "I have reviewed the claims against the Elizas and I am fighting the urge to laugh. Your department chose to go after the one person who is both fully aware of the legal issues involved in a gender change as well as the impact it has on the child. Dr. Alison Eliza is a leading expert on gender identity disorders and has followed every single rule and regulation on the books. She has not in any way forced this young lady to be what she was not. The young lady was undergoing treatment under the direct watch of a separate and just as experienced gender identity disorder specialist. Your source specifically neglected to mention that she was seeking treatment for the disorder for well over a year before she came into the care of the Elizas, nor that she had cleared all of the legal hurdles to do so both in and outside of school." Turning to Katie, Judge Perez added, "I have a statement from the school stating that Katelyn Eliza was hired by the school the second day due to a violation of Ms. Palmer's civil rights and was assigned as her foster parent due to there being no other person willing or able to do the job. I also have an internal memo stating just that, signed by members of your staff stating that Katelyn and her wife were the best choices due to Katelyn's own gender change and Alison's job. I have a written statement from Trinity Palmer's own psychiatrist stating that all proper policies and procedures were followed and Trinity was thriving under the care of the Elizas. I have a stack of police reports stating that the abuse that Trinity suffered at the hands of occupants of a DCF sanctioned group foster home for boys, with sickening actions taken against her. The worst of all was the report about the overseer of said group foster home." Turning to the Elizas Judge Perez proclaimed, "There was no logical or legal reason for you two to have been removed as Trinity Palmer's parents let alone be arrested. I am ordering that arrest expunged and a full apology given by the DCF with a lawsuit to be filed by both of you seeking damages for false arrest, damage to your reputations, and emotional damages." Turning to address Trinity, Judge Perez told her to stand and continued, "Terrence Palmer is no more. I have here a petition in your name showing that your parents were in the process of legally changing your name but I understand that didn't happen due to your mother's sudden illness and your father being too busy trying to provide basic needs for you to continue the request. His sudden death was tragic but in it you were given two people who need you as much as you need them. It is the order of this court that all parental rights of Terrance Palmer be permanently granted to Katelyn and Alison Eliza and that Terrence Palmer be renamed Trinity Eliza, the daughter of Alison and Katelyn Eliza. Congratulations to the three of you." Trinity rushed to hug her mothers. All three were in tears with the judge smiling at the sight. She saw Christian in the back but didn't make mention of it, she had every reason to rule in their favor and his being there was just confirmation that this was a serious matter that she had to address fully. The newly minted families walked out smiling. Trinity and Polly were hand in hand, both happy to have this over with. Dorothy could barely contain herself, she was finally the mother she was always meant to be and of a young girl who needed her guidance. Back at the house, the ladies were treated to a quiet afternoon as they were told to relax. Polly was asked to babysit Brent Jones while Mick worked with his colleagues on the case against Masters. Trinity was happy to help out, with Brent enjoying all of the attention from both. Polly was intimidated at meeting Johanna Loup andAutumn Nieves. Trinity happily told Polly that they were nice ladies and they had lots of adventures. Polly nodded and didn't disagree, she was just surprised as neither looked like they were federal agents let alone ones that had cool stories to tell. The girls watched Brent for hours as he worked on crawling and grabbing things. Polly was a natural with him and enjoyed the feeling of being wanted with Brent enjoying the closeness that she gave him that the others didn't seem to give. Autumn and Johanna snickered that Mick's son had claimed his first babysitter which he was happy to tell them, "He knows who he likes and he likes her." Reed Pena was sent to get Polly and Trinity for their parents. Seeing Mick working hard with Autumn and Johanna he complained that all they ever did was work in the office. That set the duo off while Mick told him, "I got something special for you, take a close read ad the second chapter" as he handed Reed a book that the ladies are working on. Reed read through it and dropped the packet. He looked up at the two then at the names and almost fainted. Trinity just about lost it while Polly tried hard not to laugh. Polly finally asked what the big deal was to which Reed blurted out, "They are Jessie Wolf and Alecia Snowfall!" Polly was still lost so Trinity told her, "Faith said he reads their books and watches their TV shows." Polly gasped and asked, "Does Al know? She has their books in her locker." Mick snickered and added, "She knows, she found out a couple of months ago and hugged both tight. Kylie also knows. Reed was the only one not to notice the name similarities. I guess you haven't been paying enough attention in French class. I need to speak to Beth Herman about that." Autumn snickered and asked if he was still going to read the books. Reed nodded, telling her, "You made me sound cool, and made mom and dad into heroes. It would be too tough not to read them." Mick grinned and added, "They knew you would take it that way which was why you were in there, you just never knew the outcome and you never will know the truth, understand?" He nodded, knowing that some things were not meant for his ears as they were too sensitive and could get people hurt or killed. At the Pena home, Kylie teased her brother while Kennedy shook her head. Polly and Trinity asked what was going on to which Katie announced, "We have some things we need to do with your blessings. First we need to deal with your parents' cars. Reed just earned his license so with your blessing, Trinity, we wanted to give Reed one." She nodded and handed Reed the keys to a six year old Honda Civic, the perfect teen car as it wasn't too big nor too small and was fairly safe to drive. She then asked about the other car to which Katie told her, "We were going to give that to Addison, she needs a newer one to get to and from school and work." Trinity nodded in approval at that. Dorothy asked Polly if she was alright with her cousins getting one car which she happily said yes to. She then asked Polly if Zoe, Sela, and Isobel got the other which she smiled and agreed to. It was then settled, the five ladies would have their own transportation and not need to ride the T to get to school or rely on their parents to drive them. It also meant that they would be around more often which was a fringe benefit for all five as well as Dorothy and Polly. There was one last thing to take care of. Polly's former home was in her hands so Dorothy asked what to do with it. Polly was quick to say, "Sell it" which she was happy to do. Dorothy, though, had other plans and asked the ladies if they wanted to live there so they had their own freedom and not have to endure being with Dorothy and Polly all the time. The ladies had to think it over. Juanita finally told them, "We talked it over, we think it best that Carmen move in with Addison and Zoe, Sela, and Isobel move in with me." The James trio grinned widely, they were getting their freedom from their parents while Juanita took a big step in her relationship with Zoe. Polly told them, "Are you against your cousins visiting?" getting a quick, "As if we could keep Sheila and Avery away- you know they'll be keeping an eye on us" prompting a laugh from them. The next day things were returned to normal. Katie happily told her principal, "It's all done and legal, I am Trinity Eliza's mother." She then showed the paperwork leading to a happy, "Congratulations, the kids have missed you deeply." Tyler and Virgil were all hugs for Trinity as they saw her. The girls in class asked what happened so Trinity told them the truth, "I was taken away from mom and mommy but they got me back and now I am mom's and mommy's daughter forever!" She was happy as she said she was now and always Trinity Eliza to which she was hugged as they sat down. Over at the middle school, Dorothy simply made the changes to Polly's records and given a quiet congratulations from Alice. The girls, though, were happy to hug her and Polly with Amy telling her affectionately, "Does that mean you are stuck with us?" Polly nodded, adding, "I even caused my cousins to move out so mom and I could have our own space." Stephanie grinned as she told them 'Raul is complaining that Zoe, Sela, and Isobel are going to be around all the time now. He hates being the target of their affection." Al added, "He is just mad that they caused him to have to run off by making him embarrassed at seeing him in his swim trunks. It's his own fault that they were too loose!" The girls giggled and joked with one another until they reached Mrs. Eagleson's room. Polly showed her the change of records copy with Mrs. Eagleson grinning and telling her, "Congratulations. I hope you enjoy your new mother and don't think it gets you any special favors" sending the five laughing as they took their seats. Mick, Johanna, and Autumn had created an ironclad case against Masters, the ADA who tried to arraign Katie and Alison, Polly's former probation officer, and the Shays. The physical evidence and electronic paperwork, the testimony of the clerk at West Roxbury Municipal Court as well as the fired assistant clerks in Winnisimmet District Court were damning. None of them escaped unscathed as the web of conspiracy was untangled and all were caught in it. Masters was tried and sentenced to 25 years in prison as well as receiving a hard 15 years in federal prison. The Shays received 15 years each civil rights violations, criminal harassment, and lying in court documents. Brady Shays received a separate 5 years for her assault charges. The overseer of the group home that allowed Trinity to be assaulted and nearly raped received a heavy 30 years in prison for pornography charges after it was discovered that she wasn't the first kid who was filmed by him being sexually assaulted by the boys. The boys who were involved in the assaults each received sentences that would keep them in juvenile detention until they turned 21 and require them to register as sex offenders afterward. They were defiant to the end with the leader and loudest complainer getting shifted from juvenile detention to adult prison at age 16 with an additional 10 years added for assault with hate intent. Ricardo's threat was fulfilled as Katie filed suit on behalf of Polly, Dorothy, Alison, Trinity, and herself. DCF couldn't fight the lawsuit and was forced to shell over $25 million for the huge violations of their rights. Neither Alison nor Katie accepted the money but were talked into accepting some of it for their unborn child. Dorothy accepted it but split it between her nieces so they had their own nest egg. Trinity and Polly put theirs into a trust. Trinity's was combined with her previous trust fund. She knew that she had a lot of money but refused to touch it unless it was absolutely necessary. Polly was the same way, in fact she wouldn't acknowledge it even to her friends. Amy and Al told her they had similar ones but Polly kept quiet about hers not wanting to think about why she had it anymore. Trinity and Polly thrived after that tumultuous two weeks. They had found themselves new families and friendships that, although rocky at first, slowly grew to be ones that each would cherish deeply. The preconceived notions about each were slowly eroded as the inner personalities shone through. Polly and the boy she met at therapy would talk frequently but they weren't allowed to date yet. She liked him, and while they were good together neither had a spark of love that would have caused them to want more than friendship. They spent several weekends at one another's houses and enjoyed talking for hours while working on schoolwork. Eventually he found a girlfriend at school and had to slow down their meetings. Polly understood, it was still a nice friendship and she appreciated the camaraderie more than anything else. The boy's mother was thankful to her and was sorry that they weren't moving closer to a relationship but Polly just accepted that people moved on and was happy that he had finally gotten someone to see him as a boy that he truly was enough to want to date him. Kyle and Oscar kept close to Polly, with both helping her fill time whenever the girls were busy doing something else. They liked being around Polly and were the first guys to treat her as an equal, which she loved. She got some ribbing from the girls in her class but she ignored it, they were just her friends not potential boyfriends. She didn't find any boys to her liking so she remained single. The girls seemed to feel guilty but Polly didn't mind. She would gladly play arbiter for them when they had their squabbles and proved to be a good ear and able to keep each of them in line. Polly would prove to be a great dancer and mentor to the younger girls and boys, much more so than Amy had been and much to the relief of Amanda. Polly clearly had a future in dance if she chose, but her calling lay in trying to help others overcome issues that others couldn't understand. Trinity, Willow, and Cat saw her as a role model and tried their hardest to emulate her which was causing the older girls to try to do the same whenever the were with the little girls. Their parents were pleased that they would see that as a challenge and happy to encourage them. Trinity kept close to Tyler and Virgil and would often play with them after school. Days that she didn't, she would play with the girls in her class and dance class. She made several friends from both and in time would find two who were happy to be her friend at all times. The girls were the newest students and never knew Terrence and their parents understood what was gong on with Trinity but chose to not make an issue of it. The twin girls simply saw Trinity as their friend and only as her friend. Katie and Alison were ecstatic to learn that they would not be having one- but two children. Twins weren't unheard of for ladies Alison's age and undergoing fertility treatment so it was a surprise but not a shock. She was just happy to be having a child while also giving Katie her second biological child. They wouldn't undergo the treatment again, there was no need and she was happy to be becoming a mother to the children of the woman she loves. Trinity took the news well. She was gong to be a big sister and to two babies! Katie asked her to pick out a name that she liked and immediately pointed out the name, "Hunter". Alison nearly cried, Trinity told her, "I like the name and I want the baby to have a name that could be for a boy or girl." Alison asked if she wanted the baby to be like her getting a head shake and soft, "Nobody should be like me, not even mommy. We had the wrong bodies, the baby shouldn't have to go through that." That finally caused Alison to cry. Trinity told her she loved them both to which they both told her, "We love you to. You are a gift that we are happy to have in our lives." The End.