Climbing the stairs was like climbing a mountain, according to Scotlynn. There were a thousand on every flight, with three flights per floor. Weather beat against the roof outside, the windows crying along. Every once in a while it was muffled by the radiators whirring. Grabbing the rails with her tiny pink hands she climbed up the mountains. Lightning flashed and thunder cracked, but it didn't scare her. Nothing could scare Eloise when she was on a mission.

Lifting a hand to her eyes squinting from the wind, she took notice of a piece of the mountain shredding away. Rock after rock tumbled her way, the girl barely jumping out of the way in time. After a bounty descended the earth, Eloise adjusted her harness, then continued pulling herself up. Aside from the tortuous wind pressing her face, it seemed the worst was over.

The top of the mountain was in sight. One last heave and she stood on the apex, gazing at the progress beneath her. The clouds darkened while the rain poured down. She slipped the backpack off her shoulders, carefully, and pulled out a small lantern. The task behind her was finished, but another one lay ahead. Her peer miles away requested a find; any find she could scavenge. Prepared for the challenge, Eloise made room in her backpack for the greatest prize she might see, leaving space only for the lantern.

With a slip here and there, she made her way through the dim trail, the light of her lantern swinging, cutting her shadow in half. She gripped her jacket around her shaking frame, and pressed on. Echoes bounced off the walls of Nature around her, faintly resembling the sound of children. The ground beneath her began to shake, but she had to go on. Lightning exploded in the sky scaring her out of her wits. More rocks than ever before broke from their hold on the mountain and crashed in one massive avalanche. The world shattered in every direction, turning into wallpaper and poor paint jobs. The lightning was a flickering light fixture, the wind from the broken radiator. The ground ceased to shake, yet the screaming echoes enhanced themselves. She glanced up to see three children racing down the hall, yelling and stomping the whole way. It was difficult to stop at the speed they were going.

Scotlynn jumped out of the way just in time. Two of them glanced over their shoulders, staring at her, before finally resuming attention to the race. The further down the hall Scotlynn walked, the more stares she received. A few whispers were heard as well. They hardly moved out of her way when she squeezed through a group of girls talking, their conversation silencing as she made her own path. On the other side there were doors lining the wall, each a number she had never counted to before. Never daring to search in any of those rooms, she found herself in the janitor's closet, hearing giggling behind her. Ignoring them, she began her exploration.

The mop bucket offered nothing save for a mop. The shelves only stored cleaners and rags, something she might get in trouble for if she brought them. She needed something small, something she could hide. A battery was preferable, but the chances of finding one of those in here were slim. Scotlynn knew the shelf was too high for her to see everything on it. There could have been a whole store of batteries up there she could grab. As long as no one saw her...the coast was clear. Bracing herself, she stepped on the lowest shelf and pulled herself up to the next one. Her foot kicked a broom behind her which crashed into some boxes full of extra cleaner. The bottles scattered all over the floor in a symphony of noise. The shelf wobbled forward a bit until Scotlynn shifted her weight pushing it against the wall again. Her mind capacity wasn't wide enough to think of checking the shelf to make sure it was bolted to the wall. Maybe she'd better climb down before she got hurt. Someone was bound to check on the noise anyway. Planting her feet on the ground, she let go of the shelf.

This was one mountain Eloise wouldn't climb.

Scotlynn was right about someone checking on the noise of the fallen cleaner. When she turned around, two older girls were staring back at her, opening the door wider for their snoopy eyes to see. "You can't be in here," the blonde one said right away. The other girl was also blonde, but much shorter in stature. Both had shirts with numbers on them, although different. Scotlynn wondered if maybe they were on a team. "You're not supposed to be in here," she repeated.

"Are you lost?" the shorter girl asked. Scotlynn was too scared to speak. Something about their ages seemed authoritative to her, like they had the ability to get her in a world of trouble. After all, they were teenagers.

Scotlynn wished she hadn't left her necklace in her room.

"I...I was looking for something," she mumbled. The taller one turned the light on.

"What were you looking for?" Scotlynn racked her brain for an answer. "Did you lose something in here?" She shook her head.

"Then why do you need in here? Do you need a mop?" Again she shook her head. Scotlynn backed up a bit, bringing her hands up to her chest. "Well...unless you need something to clean something up with, you can't be in here."

"Isn't there a closet on her floor?" the taller one asked her companion.

"I don't know, it's been years since I've been there."

"No," Scotlynn interjected. "We don't have one." It was silent as the three stood there, Scotlynn waiting for her removal.

"Well...what are you looking for?" The shorter one seemed in her own world as she looked around the room, the taller one staring daggers into her soul.

"Uh, I was, I was-"

"Now now girls, just skedaddle away from the janitor closet, there's nothing for you in there." Scotlynn's attention perked at the sound of a woman's voice. Her physical presence was hidden in the hall, but her voice was loud and commanding.

"But we weren't going in the closet, there was a girl in there-"

"Come on." The two teens had futilely tried to explain their current situation but were offered a different destination to hang around in. Scotlynn stayed statue still. She wasn't seen, or believed in by the old woman. Reaching a hand in the closet, she pulled the chain from the ceiling leaving the girl in complete dark. The door was closed as well, shutting out any possible visitors. Scotlynn waited a few minutes. Then with one foot in front of the other, she started her search for the light switch.

Buckets, bottles and boxes barricaded her way, as she stumbled and stepped on every obstacle imaginable in such a small space. Finding the chain on the ceiling was near impossible with her size. Faintly spotting a silver train of beaded plastic, she jumped. And jumped again. It was too far above her head. Opening the door would be risky, as she could hear plenty of voices outside.

The children in the nursery never talked this much. Scotlynn liked it better there.

Her feet crashed into everything a second time as she made her way to where the mop bucket was, and a third to get back to the light switch. The bucket was placed upside down under the chain. She must have been a whole foot taller standing on it. It was barely enough to firmly grasp it, but just enough to pinch it, and pull it down. The light popped on.

Aside from the mess she had made, there was nothing new to bestow on Jimmie Bean the next time she saw her. Venturing up to the third floor was a brave thing to do, but it had also proved to be rather stupid and pointless. She felt her shame magnify as she heard Bon Scott whisper in her ear these words of discourage. At the same time, she felt the fight within her swell. She would prove to him her journey had not been pointless, she would prove it to herself. Jimmie didn't care what she brought back, even the slightest tissue with the liquid gold, aromatic Clorox stain on it would suffice. Starting with the boxes in the back, she began to rummage.

There was absolutely nothing in there Scotlynn perceived worthy enough to barter with. Giving up was looking pleasant. Then when she turned her head at such an angle, she noticed a small shine on the shelf adjacent to her. It was crowded by dustpans and hand brooms, but it was there. Sneaking her way over, she clasped it. It wasn't as shiny up close, but definitely real. And most certainly something Jimmie Bean would be proud to add in her collection. Pocketing it, she pushed and kicked bottles out of the way, hoping it looked clean from the other side, and reached the door.

It was a scary thing when the door didn't open. It wasn't as if someone was blocking it, the knob just didn't turn. It was stuck, or in Scotlynn's case, locked. She had no idea the door locked from the inside. Pushing the handle down was no use, and neither was pulling it up. Her little muscles, even after strengthening another whole year, were still not strong enough. What she needed was a key. A key was also what she didn't have, nor could she get the attention of anyone outside the door. Knock after knock was simply ignored or unheard.

That didn't stop her from trying to break the door down.

After the second dinner that evening, Mrs. Vitello walked down the hall, a rag in one hand, a spray bottle in the other. The bottle was near empty while the rag was saturated with a child's idea of fun. Despite the rules about manners and etiquette, the table would be caked with macaroni at the end of every day. She was never upset; it gave her a job, so that she too could have macaroni on her table at home to clean up.

She reached the closet in a matter of minutes. Her keys were in her pocket, just in case the door should close locking her in. Seeing the door had been closed confused her. Clearly she remembered leaving it open ajar to air the tiny space out. It was a silly idea, but when the numerous cleaners co-mingled in one cramped spot, opening the door brought out a deadly aroma. Bracing herself, she opened the door. The smell wasn't too bad, but it was as dark as an inkwell inside. Pulling the chain did nothing, and the closet was still shrouded in darkness. The light from the hallway illuminated the room well enough to see outlines, but when the outlines and shadows ran forward it scared her senseless. Of no fault of her own, she failed to see any extra persons residing inside. Without stopping to chat, the being ran past her down the hall to the stairs.

Scotlynn was never going into one of those closets again.

Someone was getting adopted today. The whole morning kids buzzed in the hallways about the new visitors. Someone said they were tall. Some said there were three of them. One even said they brought a little dog along. Of course, no one had actually seen the visitors for themselves and couldn't really tell. The kids were ordered to go about their day like normal and pretend the strangers weren't there. It was difficult though. A line of snoops made their way to the first floor, sneaking a peek at the scene. The attempt proved fruitless as no one could see over Miss Atkinson's desk anyway.

One child had no trouble at all ignoring the coming of new people to the facility. Scotlynn lay in her bed all morning in a deep snooze. Getting stuck in a closet all day left her tired and hungry, but sleep overtook her before she could satiate her appetite. The kitchen had been closed for the night anyway. Her absence to breakfast had been marked along with dinner last night, and eventually, Mrs. Valerie came to check on her.

"Rise and shine, time to get up, dear," she called as she welcomed herself inside the room. Scotlynn lay still. "Come on, let some sunshine inside." Her curtain was pulled open making a cloud of dust visible. "Whoo, should send the maid up here to clean your room. Alright, dear. You already missed your breakfast and you know how fast those older girls eat." The commotion filling the halls and the woman in her room finally woke Scotlynn up.

She wasn't happy.

Whether or not they were the adopted child, it was customary for the children to dress their best for the visitors. Itchy uniforms were the clothes they were given for these occasions and Scotlynn dreaded every second. Since Mrs. Valerie was in the room, she helped the girl put her hair in a silver ribbon. Scotlynn had to pinch herself to stay awake, her stomach roaring over the yells of the kids downstairs and outside the window. Dressed in a black and white sweater dress, the sleeves heating her skin from the sunlight, Mrs. Valerie hurried her out of her room and to the mess hall.

Not a single child did Scotlynn recognize. Miles taller than her, covered in acne and makeup. She huddled into Mrs. Valerie, nervous she'd be stepped on. Though the woman next to her didn't offer much protection herself. She was stared at by some, smiled at by others, ignored by most. Deciding not to have her eat lunch with a bunch of older kids, she was allowed a small snack from the kitchen and sent outside to eat where her age group was. Scotlynn took a scone and a carton of chocolate milk.

"Of all days to sleep in late," Miss Atkinson said upon seeing Scotlynn enter the yard. "You'll soil your uniform. Oh well, eat slowly. Uh, Betsy, don't eat the sand!" Miss Atkinson hurried as fast as her pudgy legs would carry her to stop the first graders from consuming dangerous minerals. Crumbs fell on Scotlynn's dress and powdered her lips. The chocolate milk was a lot better in her mouth than in her hair.

Bon wasn't standing by the gate. She didn't expect him to. After all, he had a lot of work to do with the guys. He wasn't very specific with it, and that drove the girl nuts. Curiosity about his life had somehow become a focus in the back of her mind. He never answered her question the other day either. She was afraid the answer would never come.

"Thank goodness you're here." Scotlynn turned her head to see Miss Atkinson, unsuccessful in her attempt with directing Betsy away from the sand, walk towards a woman with blonde, greying hair. "With the adoptions going on and the kids to watch, I need a second pair of eyes."

"Lucky I got better today," the woman answered. It was Gertrude Grandall, the usual play yard monitor. "Flu nearly blew me down but the wind was right for me." The women smiled. "Days like this get the kids all riled up."

"Sure do. I hope they found who they're looking for, it's best to get them in and out as soon as possible. Can't take how loud it gets sometimes." Miss Atkinson collected her paperwork and clipboards before heading inside. "We had one oversleep today," she sighed.

"Well, it'll be over soon, then maybe she can get back to sleep. You heading back in?"

"Yep, got to meet them inside, give them the form to fill out. I'll see you later, huh?"

"Sure will." Gertrude Grandall was alone now watching the girls outside. Though she was much smaller than Miss Atkinson, she was tougher. No one dared step in front of her. It didn't stop Betsy and friends from eating sand though.

A couple rounds of tag were started, another cricket game afterward. Scotlynn was too tired to play. The scone and milk didn't replace all her energy and her itchy uniform bothered her too much. It wouldn't be an exciting game anyway, the players had to be extra careful not to get dirty. Where was the fun in that? Sitting on a bench with the rest of her breakfast, Scotlynn decided to watch instead.

She wished Bon were there to watch with her.