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Fall rains were ever pouring down again as Syrcaid opened the door to headquarters.

"Fzhzhhhh...!" burbled Taylor, having learned to make spit bubbles.

"I'm glad this is the reversible raincoat," Syrcaid snerked, peering down at the infant in her baby sling. "Otherwise we'd've drowned in your spitbubbles than from the rain!"

Taylor giggled impishly and continued to nibble on the nylon drawstring from the collar of the raincoat. It was still as it had always been inside as of late, perhaps that meant things were still going.... erm.... good? Well? Was the fact that another world was in mortal peril a good thing? On one selfish hand, Syrcaid got a new baby from the ordeal, on the one selfless hand a whole world was being torn asunder. Syrcaid didn't know whether to be happy or sad about it all.

Her previous thoughts on the matter were unearthed once more as she walked into the main room and looked at the new infant polaroids tacked onto the corkboard decorated in a frame of crepe paper and punch-out letters reading "NEW ARRIVALS!". Plastic baby charms hung on the end of each pin but something within each individual image was bittersweet, all the same.

Jade stared out the glass door of the HQ, her paws pressed firmly against the cold glass. Her eyes grew wide as she was in a daze, staring out into the endless streets of rain?lost in thought maybe? Where was Lillian, she left her alone in this ?place? A place she had never been too, saying she would only be a second; a place she said was safe. How careless of a parent could she be? Jade let out a long soft growl, not liking the feeling of being alone in a room of people she didn't know. The padding on her paws started to chill, and fat tears tumbled down her furry cheeks. Lillian said it would only be a second, how long could it take? Jade hated to think about it, but she would rather be with Mia than here.

Syrcaid hadn't noticed someone else was here, perhaps because it took some convincing to get Taylor to stop nibbling on the nylon drawstring so she could finally hang her coat on the rack.

"Alright, alright, you can have your apple..." sighed Syrcaid.

The -last- time she gave Taylor an apple slice to gum on, she smeared the pulp in every conceivable piece of clothing within the vicinity. S-D wasn't too thrilled when he discovered she had nibbled soggy spots on his favorite sweater, let alone the tell-tale applesauce Taylor had made on his band shirt. Oh, well, that's what he got for not doing his own laundry these days!

Syrcaid sat on the floor, on a spread blanket. Taylor knew "apple", as young as she was. Somehow, through the muddled thoughts and impulses, that one word rang like a little silver bell that caught her attention. Syrcaid took out a plastic baggie from the baby bag, wrapped the apple slice in a cool bit of cloth, and let Taylor have at it.

"If you muck the carpet, it's -my- butt on the line, I'm sure..." Syrcaid chuckled.

Little nose twitching, Saara picked up a bit more speed...almost bumbling over her own feet as she made a beeline for the object of her interest. Not only was there a babe....there was SNACKS!!

Aki entered the room only a few steps behind her, already apologizing. "Saara, wait! That isn't yours! Oh, I'm sorry, excuse us!" Blushing the slightest bit, Aki tried not to make too big of a deal about it. After all, a kid was a kid!

Saara galloped on, undaunted by Aki's attempts to stall her. Climbing a bit unsteadily up the leg of a chair, she scurried along the arm and jumped. Arms and legs spread wide, Saara tried to glide down to the apple...but landed heavily somewhere in Taylor's blankets instead. "Ninini!" No time for blankets, there was fruit to be had!

Letting out a sigh of relief when Saara landed without major disaster, Aki glanced up at a tiny sad noise. There, against the door, was a tiny panda babe...and none too happy at that! Brows knitting, she shared a look with Syrcaid though they hadn't yet been introduced. Not her child? Well then!

"Aww, little one! Are you okay? You can come here if you want, things will be better soon!" She didn't know what the problem was, but she wouldn't just let the sweet little thing cry!

Jade didn't turn around to the sound of Aki's voice, it was her worst nitemare...a stranger trying to come in contact with her. Her back stiffened as she tried to hold in her tears; oh why did she have to draw attention. She rubbed her eyes with tiny fists, maybe this person wouldn't be bad; Lillian had said it was safe here. Jade scooted around and faced Aki, her face scrunched up into a pout as her cheeks were damp just like her nose. ?E ack in sec-and.? She mumbled quietly under her breath, feeling the tears build up inside her. Maybe this person was here to help her, had Lillian sent her?

"Saara, wait! That isn't yours! Oh, I'm sorry, excuse us!"

Syrcaid and Taylor stared as the blankets went "Nininini!" Then suddenly both of them were laughing, Taylor rolled and kicked with a shrill whinny and Syrcaid went fishing in her baby bag.

"I've got a whole one, you know," she said to the toddler. "Now, if you can find your way out of Taylor's blanket, I can give it to you."

Saara's head poked out of the blankets suddenly, ears perking at the tone in Syrcaid's voice. She knew that tone! Climbing swiftly to higher ground, which in this case happened to be Taylor's chest, Saara gave the babe a pat on the forehead and smiled. They could eat apples together!!

She was momentarily distracted by Aki's concerned voice on the other side of the room. Tilting an ear that direction, she spotted the panda babe and cheeped in shock. She hadn't known someone else was there!! Squeezing her eyes shut as she smiled, tail flopping happily behind her (and right against Taylor's nose) Saara practically glowed with good will and energy. No need to be sad!

Aki was working on the same issue. Settling down slowly, she patted a space near her....trying to puzzle out what the little one had said. "In a second? Don't cry, sweetie, everything will be right as rain. Well, maybe that was a bad analogy." Smiling wryly at the weather outside, Aki tried a different approach.

"Look, there is Saara and her new friend! I'm Aki! Maybe you could come sit with us, just for a little while?" The introduction was pitched to carry to Syc as well, Aki followed it up with a wave of her hand to the other guardian.

Taylor stopped momentarily to snuffle at Saara's tail with fierce curiosity. Then without another word started trying to nibble on it, Taylor took it upon herself to taste-test everything that was presented to her and Saara's tail was an open invitation. Fortunately, she didn't nibble hard, but the drool was starting to pool again.

"Taylor, don't eat her tail!" Syrcaid gently pulled it out of Taylor's mouth and stuck the bit of apple back in. "Apples, not tails. Apples!"

Taylor stared in cross-eyed wonder at her for a moment, sucking the apple's juice through the cloth and clutching it fiercely once more.

"I'm gonna have to hide all the jars from this one," Syrcaid noted with a nod.

How could a stranger be so nice? Jade breathed in deeply, a little snot bubble forming in her nose. No matter how hard she sniffed, the damn thing wouldn't go away. She put her paws together and tapped her claws, one by one. Her eyes now were placed on Sara; a happy little child was she. Jade gazed down at the carpeted floor then glanced back up at Aki. ?Aki.? She said clearly and quietly. ?Mommy e ack in a sec-and.? The little panda girl nodded, trying not to cry this time. ?Jade...? One of her claws pointed to herself. ?Jade mommy e ack in a sec-and.? Sit over there? Jade hunched over her lap as the thought of interacting with more people ran through her. It wouldn't be so bad, right? Just a baby, two adults and Sara. With much hesitation, Jade stood up and stared at the blanket covered with the 'strangers'.

"Oh, aren't you adorable?" Syrcaid said to the little panda girl. "Do you like apples, too? Taylor doesn't mind sharing, just ask her older brother."

Taylor tried to whinny, but bits of apple burbled out instead. Syrcaid -then- thought to take out the bib.

"I'm out of practice," she said to Aki sheepishly. "I'm Syrcaid, this is Taylor. She's teething, so she's out to nibble her way to world domination."

Saara twisted around, flopping onto her back. Staring with wide eyes at the wet tip of her tail, she grabbed it with her little pink hands and hauled it closer for inspection. Yes! It had DEFINATELY been nibbled on!! Mouth opening wide, she glomped down on the end of her own tail and gave it a try. After all, she'd try anything once!! Amazing...her tail tasted like apples! It hadn't occured to her that this was due to the Taylor drool it was soaked with.

As Jade stood up, Saara twisted to watch...still lolling about on her back. She offered the tip of her tail to the panda girl, in case Jade wanted a nibble as well. "Ah Jah?" She couldn't quite say 'Jade'...she spoke too quickly, and everything tended to jumble together.

Aki let out a sigh of relief as the panda babe stood, and rose to her feet as well. She walked with that peculiar waddling stance that parents of young children used...at the ready should the child toppled over. She was surprised how well the child could speak...she must be a very smart girl! "Jade! Well, I'm sure your mommy will be back before you know it! If it takes her two seconds instead of one, I'll go get her for you! How does that sound?"

She hated to see a child cry. She didn't know what Jade's mommy looked like, but it would be worth it to ask every person on the street if it made the pandaling happy!

Jade let out a small giggle, this girl sure did seem more amusing then Mia. She sat down on her knees nervously at the edge of the blanket next to Syraid. ?Sy-rad, tay-er? Jade spoke to herself, planting the names into her mind. ?Apple?? The little panda girl glanced up at Syraid in confusion. She certainly had had one before, maybe when she was a baby? Jade turned her head towards Aki, she was trying even more than Mia to be nice. ?Ew sec-ands.? She glanced up at the ceiling nervously, what if she made contact with the other kids; would they hate her?

The apple, that's right! Flipping over once more, still tickling Taylor's nose with her wet tail, Saara gave Syc and Jade big pleading eyes. She didn't know quite who to ask for the apple, so she covered all the bases. Gliders didn't purr, exactly...but she managed something close. "Eeeps?"

Aki rolled her eyes. You'd think she starved the child! "That means please, just so you know." Winking at Syrcaid, Aki settled back to watch the little ones play. Saara had wiggled out of her sarong at some point during the day, and was once again clad in little more than her peacock colored neck ribbon. Just as well....by the time she finished eating whatever apple bits she was given, they'd be all over anyway!!

"I'm probably going to regret this in the immediate future, but what the heck," Syrcaid opened up the plastic baggie and spread the slices of apple on the blanket.

"Have at it!" she announced. "I'm pretty sure Karma thought to put a pressure hose in this building somewhere..."

She looked around again, it was certainly nice to have company this time around. The place definitely seemed less bittersweet when life still went on.

Jade hesitantly took a slice and examined it before she handed it to Taylor, then another to Sara. She clawed another slice, holding it up in the air; looking at ever nook and cranny before she stuck it in her mouth. ?Mmm!? Her face lite up as she bit down on the tender/sweet apple slice. Only for a second did she forget about Lillian and her 'i'll be one second.'

Saara accepted the slice from Jade with a wide smile, nose twitching eagerly as she sniffed the apple. Breaking off a large piece, she crammed the whole thing in her mouth....cheeks poking out ridiculously as she chewed.

Aki laughed quietly, resting her chin in her palm as she settled down cross legged. They were all so cute...it was amazing they were getting along! She didn't question it...she was too busy being thankful.

Saara chewed loudly, eyes sliding shut in happiness. Little wet apple crumbs plopped lightly down upon Taylor's blanket, but she didn't seem to notice. Clutching the remaining apple piece with both hands, tiny claws piercing the crunchy fruit, she abruptly decided to swallow. Eyes popping open once more, she peered from Jade to Taylor. They were much bigger than she was...perhaps that meant they needed more food! Saara set to work breaking her remaining apple piece into littler sections...setting one aside for Jade. Leaning over to pop the other into Taylor's mouth with a chirp, Saara bobbed in joy. There was SO MUCH apple!!

Taylor whinnied with the novelty of food being delivered to her mouth without any effort on her part. Syrcaid got up and brought back a pile of Little Golden Books - to read for herself. She hadn't remembered just how many she were. Taylor kept trying to roll to her belly, only to be distracted by more apple in her mouth, she looked like a rolly-poly rocking horse in a diaper.

"Aaawww, I remember this one," she said to Aki. "I don't think I ever bought Zizzi this one, though."

Jade laughed loudly as tiny bits of apple were everywhere, even on the corners of her furry mouth. She finished up her apple before piercing another one with her thumb claw. “App-el, App-ul.‟ The panda girl repeated in different ways, finally feeling happy around other people. Maybe there were nice people in the world? Jade rocked on her knees before she started tumbling over and onto the middle of the blanket. 'J-adey go boom!' She let out a soft giggle, rolling over onto her back in the midst of giggles.

"Aaapah!!" Trying the word on for size as well, Saara bunched...jumping suddenly from Taylor to Jade. Landing on the panda only for a moment, Saara slid off the other side...tumbling head over tail and coming to rest against Syrcaid. "Oooha!" Upside down, tail draped across her head, Saara grinned and flopped down to the blanket. It was play time! She LOVED play time!

Giggling as she watched Saara play, Aki called out to the hyper little glider. "Ten more minutes, honey, then we're off to bed!"

Saara ignored her, busy trying to find a way to wiggle between Jade and Taylor. She wanted to be where the people were...the REAL people! Not the weird furless people!! Ducking under the blanket, intending to hide, Saara poked at anything that threatened to roll over and crush her. It never occured to her that she might be poking ticklish parts!

Syrcaid noted Taylor's attempt at a yawn as apple fell out of her mouth, she stopped in mid-yawn to watch it sloooooowly ooze along a string of drool. Teething was never a pretty picture.

"I think it's time for Taylor's bath and nap," Syrcaid said with a laugh, setting the books aside. "I hate to ruin the party, but she's been up since this morning without a nap. I think she's sufficiently worn out now."

She decided to leave the blanket there for the two other toddlers, seeing as there didn't seem to be one of those fun indoor tents around the place.

"I think I'll have a peek in the attic tonight to see if I can find Zizzi's old baby toys, we've got so many that it wouldn't even put a dent in our inventory to donate a few to headquarters."

Jade felt a little something poke at her forearm, it was the spot! In almost one second flat she was curling up with laughter, something she had never expressed before in front of anyone other than Lillian.

Lillian ran into the Hq, her arms wrapped around her chest. ?Jade?!? She called out in desperation, her breathing heavy and her wet hair clinging to her face.

Jade's ears perked up, that voice, it was Lillian's. She broke off her laughter and ran over to Lillian, as fast as her tiny legs would carry her. ?Mommy!? A voice cried out, and outstretched arms wrapping around Lillian's thigh. Tiny tears began to form, she was so scared, she felt so alone before Aki saved her.

Lillian swept Jade into her arms and kissed her cheek. ?I'm sorry hun, it was an emergency... knew you would be ok here.?She paused and poked Jade's belly lovingly. ?...I did hear you laugh, must of meant something.? Lillian walked over towards the blanket and flashed a warm smile. ?It's good to see that she's not as shy anymore. I'm Lillian, and this is Jade.?

Aki perked up, smiling as Jade began to giggle. What a lovely sound!! All at once, Syrcaid began to pack, and Jade's mother bustled into the shop. Leaning back as the panda girl dashed by, Aki nodded at the introduction.

"I'm Aki! And this is Saara." Peeling back the blanket, Aki revealed the startled little glider. Saara grinned sheepishly, and spiraled up one of Aki's legs....coming to rest on her shoulder. Apparently she hadn't hidden very well!

"Looks like Syrcaid and Taylor are on their way out, and we might be as well. Unless you're planning on staying for a while, we could walk you out!" It was sad to end the play time just as Lillian arrived, but bed time was bed time.

"Here's a present for Jade until we come back again," Syrcaid said, plopping a whole apple into Jade's lap. "Don't eat it all in one go, though! I'll see you all again soon!"

She took Taylor's sticky hand and like a puppet, made her do a little wave. Taylor stared at her own hand wiggling, trying to figure out what was making it do that.

Making her way out the door with those that wished to follow, Aki made sure to hold it open carefully. A few minutes later, she had popped her umbrella open, and both elf and glider were waving their goodbyes.

"You had quite a day, hmm! Who did you meet today?" Aki was using her 'teaching' tone...Saara's little face scrunched up as she pondered.

"Jah!"

"Yep! You met Jade! Who else?"

Saara knew who else, but saying Taylor's name was something entirely different. "Ta-oh!"

Aki giggled, turning her face to the side and puckering up. Still perched on Aki's shoulder, Saara chirped happily and butted her head forward...pushing Aki's lips right between her ears in her favorite kiss spot. "Mwah!"

The rain continued to fall as they strolled, chatting happily until they disappeared around the block with one last wave.