The Little Princess

It wasn't unusual, for someone to be sitting in the foyer of the neat but dull orphanage - though it had started to be a rare occurrence. And it certainly was odd for Cordelia. She had spent all the other times where the other children now were, sitting and spying - watching to see who would come and take their friend away. Only Cordelia, not good at trusting anyone, wouldn't call any of them her friend, and, much better at hiding, was out of site. Turning her head she could see a foot, or flash of hair dangling out of their hiding places. The matron would soon be along to usher them all back to where they were supposed to be - which was not watching her.

They had dressed her up for this occasion - they always dressed the children up for when someone came to get them. It was as if they thought if they child did not look their best whatever poor soul had decided to take them if they looked anything less than supreme. Cordelia, even at her young age - just over four - couldn't help but wonder if that was true. If it was true wouldn't all these children come back as soon as their new "parents" saw them from what they were. None of the children in the orphanage had enough manors to stay pristine for long. She wondered if she could do that - they wouldn't listen to her. She didn't want to go.

Although she still hadn't come to trust the people at the orphanage, in the two years that she had stayed there no one had tried to hurt her, and she had to admit that they even tried to help her, when she was sick or hurt herself. But these new people... how did she know they didn't want to make her disappear like they'd made mummy? The Matron said that they knew her mummy, but didn't the people who made her disappear have to know her too? That was how she disappeared.

Cordelia, clutching Bubba tightly to her chest, and standing beside her small battered trunk, wanted to do nothing but run away and hide, like she did every time someone new came into the building. But she couldn't, Mrs. Pond was standing beside her, there was no escape. There was nothing for the small girl to do, but stand where she was and wait.

Someone was coming for her.

The time had come. Silas had managed to locate the child a month and a half before, but the time had not been right. Her location was secure, possibly more so than another. Even if others had discovered that the late Regina Volans had had a child (and Silas was not so arrogant as to believe he'd been the only one), who would look for her at so inadequate an orphanage?

Following behind the overly tired and far too talkative orphanage worker, Silas was led into the room where the child waited. He was... adopting her, at least so far as the orphanage was concerned. They were also under the impression that he was married. It had been the easiest means by which to acquire the child.

Silas gave a polite smile to the matron, gaze moving to the little girl. She was so small. Vulnerable. She made him think of his sister at that age. Crouching down, his expression turned warm, more sincere and less a mask. Despite his own motives, the man really did wish to protect her.

"You must be Cordelia," Silas said, extending a hand towards the child. "My name is Silas. Who is your handsome friend, here?"

Nodding her little head, blond hair bouncing as she did so, glancing at the hand that was outstretched for a long moment, glancing up at the face that owned it hesitantly before she took the hand, giving it the tiniest of shakes. After half a second she quickly pulled her hand back, wrapping both arms around herself and Bubba more securely.

Ducking her head she wasn't going to talk until the matron gave her a stern look and a pointed "Cordelia".

"Boris T. Wilson," she murmured softly looking down at the bear, before holding him out slightly. "He let me call him Bubba, though." She nodded her head for another moment before pulling him back to herself, and falling silent once more. There was no where for the young girl to hide at the moment so she did the next best thing - she hid within herself.

The Matron looked at the girl for another moment before turning to the man, "She's always been a frightfully quiet girl, ever since she got here. We think it has to do with," she lowered her voice as if Cordelia couldn't hear her if she whispered. "Well, you know. Its hard for all the children."

"Boris T. Wilson," Silas repeated with a friendly smile. He wasn't acting the part. Acting could be seen through, even by someone so young--perhaps, especially so. No, Silas had become the part; he'd become the young man genuinely interested in the small child he'd taken pains to adopt.

"Such a refined and dignified name," he said seriously.

Despite the fact that the matron was addressing him, Silas remained crouched and, save for a brief glance, he kept a kindly gaze upon the child. Open, but not obtrusive. To have given the woman his full attention would have given her importance over the child. The girl was more important, now. The woman would merely take him for being taken by his new 'daughter'.

"Nothing wrong with being a bit shy, now, is there, Miss Cordelia?" Silas said.

Head ducked, she kept giving nervous glances back at the man in front of her; she was trying to figure him out in a way that her young mind could understand. As far as she could tell he certainly seemed interested in her.

But that could be both good, or bad; no one had ever taken any real interest in her, not since her mother had passed. Could interest just not mean they wanted to hurt her like they had her mother?

Worrying her lip at the 'Miss', she had never been called miss, she shook her head slowly, eyes going up again and staying focused on the man for just a little bit longer, "No." Though she every thought of herself as shy. She was cautious - not that she defined it in such a way, having never heard of the word cautious; staying hidden had been the only thing that had kept her safe before. Truthfully hiding was the only thing she knew how to do.

And hiding meant you had to be quiet.

"Well then," the Matron again taking charge of the situation in the brisk manor that she had, "If you will just sign these last few papers we spoke about, you'll be free to go. Both of you."

A sharp glance from the little girl, panicked gaze going back to one of hesitant curiosity as it made its way back to Silas, and then she was looking back at the ground.

Silas did not miss the flash of panic that flickered across the little girl's face. "Hey," he said soothingly, tone reassuring. "It will be alright. I'm going to take good care of you." He slowly rose back to his feet, avoiding sudden movement. Extending a hand towards the child, Silas gave a benign smile.

"Would you and Mr. Wilson like to help me sign the papers?" the man asked.

Brushing her neatly combed hair away from her face with her hand, a nervous gesture, Cordelia glanced at the offered hand with uncertain curiosity. He stated that he was going to take care of her. Like being called Miss, no one had really told her that either. As any child would, there was a great desire within her to believe him, but she was still hesitant; why would he want to take care of her when no one else seemed to want to?

Finally, after a pause, she pushed Bubba higher on her arm and took the hand with her small one. The only commitment she felt willing to give. She nodded her head, and voice was almost inaudible when she finally spoke, "oh-kay."

Silas rewarded the girl with a soft smile when she took his hand. He hadn't been entirely certain that she would. Gently holding her hand, he moved to the counter when the paperwork was to be signed.

"I am going to pick you up, now, Miss Cordelia," Silas let the child know before matching action to word. He set her up on the counter top beside him, eyes carefully gauging her reaction. Picking up a muggle pen, the man turned his attention to the papers.

"Now, you and Mr. Wilson will have to help me out," he said seriously, pulling a thoughtful frown onto his features as he quickly skimmed the documents. "Where to sign... Ah, yes. It should be next to this 'X' here, don't you think?" He looked to the child, apparently awaiting her confirmation before penning his signature.

The young girl tensed for a moment as unfamiliar arms were wrapped around her - in all honesty, the girl probably had not let anyone touch her for more than a second since her mother had died - she did not relax again until she atop the table and skimming the unfamiliar words, trying to decipher the strange symbols that were there, figure out what they meant to the rest of the world, but as always, she came to no conclusion at all.

Blinking owlishly at the man, Cordelia turned to her stuffed bear, pressing her ear to his snout as if listening. It was very important to listen to what he had so say before answering this question. After all, it seemed very important to the man, and Delia was well aware that Bubba always had the good answers.

Finally she nodded her head, blond hair bouncing as she gave her silent approval.

At the child's confirmation, Silas signed his name to the form, quickly doing the same with those beneath it.

"There, now," he said. "That should do it." He gave the girl a smile before handing the paperwork back to the woman.

"Shall we get the rest of your things, then, Miss Cordelia? I know some people who are very eager to meet you. I do believe there are homemade biscuits waiting for us," he leaned in a little to say the last part in a confidential tone, like a secret only they were allowed to know. "But only when you and Mr. Wilson are ready."

There was such a finality in the simple action that it almost overwhelmed the small child for a moment. Nothing in her life had seemed so set in stone as that moment suddenly had. Every child that had left the orphanage seemed happy to do so, but Cordelia didn't know what to be.

Blinking slowly, she hugged the bear closer to herself and looked at the man, "Waitin' for me?" Cordelia could not remember anyone ever waiting to see herself, and she was not certain that that always meant it had to be a good thing. This uncertainty turned her expression more wary than it had been before. With a deep breath she was eager to take his slight suggestion that she could spend as long as she wanted in the office that although she rarely entered was part of the building that she had known her whole life.

Yet the finality of the signing still hung in the air, and something tugged at her, insisting that no matter how long she waited she would have to go eventually. What would waiting get her.

"I go now."

"They're very nice," Silas said reassuringly. "They will like you." He didn't say that the girl would like them, although, he was certain his mother and sister were well capable of winning a little girl over. His mother was particularly adept at getting past people's barriers without them noticing.

"I'm going to carry you and Mr. Wilson, now, Miss Cordelia," he warned the girl before picking her up. He gave her another kind smile, that that assured that everything would be okay. And with that, he took up the case holding the child's belongings in one hand and walked out the door.