Memori had felt bad about not going to meet Mori and Rinko. She knew that Marilyn was right, it was time to put everything behind them. Yet something had prevented her from looking at Mori, it just wasn’t the time. She knew if she looked at Mori – she would be reminded of the time she wasted in talking to her, how close she had been to winning, and how her failure had doomed the team to disaster.
She had had the match in her hands, and waited so long, Mori had been able to figure out her power. In fact, it was Mori doing that silly ‘goody-two shoes’ pose that had set it all off. That was key to letting Mori use her mind control – and Memori had shown her the way.
She was so worried that Marilyn had been disappointed in her for not confronting her fears. However, Marilyn never mentioned anything about it after that to her. That of course just made Memori more nervous. Now she didn’t know what had happened in the place, what had been said and if Marilyn thought she was a coward.
Memori had always been worried about Marilyn thinking she was a coward. She reckoned it went back to when they had both been seven and Marilyn had wanted to go on a ferris wheel. Marilyn had so much wanted to go up in the pretty wheel, but Memori had refused…she didn’t like high places. She had begun crying when Marilyn insisted too much. As they walked away, Marilyn had been so quiet. Memori knew she had let her Princess down. She had disappointed her and because of Memori, she didn’t get to ride the large ferris wheel, something Marilyn had wanted to do for a while.
From that day forward Memori had confronted her fear of heights, taking every opportunity to go up high, to take the highest vantage point. In fact, she got so good at it, that Marilyn put her on point often to scout. Memori could hang upside down from the tin roof of a 20 story building now and not be worried.
Yet, again, history had repeated itself. She had let Marilyn down by refusing to face her fears. And she had probably made Marilyn sad.
“I’m so stupid.” She breathed out as she lay back on the couch.
“No argument there.” Matthew smiled from the table where he sat cleaning his machine guns. “In fact, add ‘blazingly arrogant’ and I’ll give you a cookie for accuracy.”
“I’ll give you accuracy, Dick wad!” Memori yelled, sitting up. She grabbed a mug and threw it at Matthew. The man easily moved his head out of the way and the mug hit the wall, smashing into pieces.
“As always, too slow. Oh and a few months at the target range MIGHT be in order.”
“I’m gonna KILL you with my BARE hands!” Memori seethed.
“Yeah… I’ll be waiting for that moment, kid. You know, you’ve been real uptight since Mori’s visit. You should learn to relax.”
“I AM RELAXED!” Memori yelled.
“Although.” Matthew smiled, closing his eye and stroking his chin. “That Mori is cute, and so small and gentle, I bet Marilyn would MUCH prefer a girl like th…”
Marilyn walked in shortly afterwards with Baron and Pudding behind her, only to see Memori on top of poor Matthew, choking the life out of him.
“Aww…so sweet.” Marilyn smiled. “Almost like a married couple.”
“GyEEEEeeeaaAAAAAAAHHHhhhhhh…” Memori yelled and jumped up. “Not likely…”
“Breathing…air….return…to…life…”
Marilyn giggled a bit. “Well come on you two, Daddy wants to see us somewhere, all five of us. We don’t want to keep him waiting.”
Memori and Matthew both nodded and quickly got up and dusted themselves off.
The group of five climbed into an old military jeep together. A green paisley, it was dented and dingy with years of running, chasing and fighting. It hadn’t been given a fresh coat of paint for years now, and it looked so much like a broken hearted relic from a forgotten time. However, those times would never be forgotten from the ones who climbed inside of it.
The five teens sat silently in the jeep for a few minutes. remembering how eight-year old Matthew had struggled to steer the jeep, as the five friends fled from a rain of machine gun fire. Pudding and Baron were both bleeding from wounds while Memori held the food supplies she had snatched. Memori has stood up on the mid section, and struggled to balance herself as she pointed the gun ballast to the back and fired back, trying to desperately buy them some space to escape.
In those times, victory was when all five kids came back to camp alive. Those were some of the toughest times…and no one else knew them times other than Billy.
After a bit of silence, Matthew stuck the old dulled key into the ignition. At first, it did nothing. It seemed to be deep in a long deep slumber. A few twists and fumbles later, a slow rumbling began, and gently, Billy woke up…the engine softly humming with a bit of rasping and spitting in between. The five would swear in the old days Billy’s engine roared with fire and pride. Those days were gone now, but within their heart’s was still the memory of how Billy had gotten them through the worst of it. Every bullet hole and dent a shock it had taken for five brats with no world of their own.
“That’s the way…” Matthew smiled as he patted the side…and slowly revved the engine slightly more as they pulled out of the garage and down the long driveway.
The five friends stayed quiet for a while, lost in the same memories as the wind blew across their faces.
The tune that had crossed Marilyn’s mind the previous day returned to her again. She softly began to whistle the tune, as it returned to her again from across the sands of time. Matthew as well began to whistle with her.
After a few bars, Pudding began to sing the words they couldn’t remember.
“Go to sleep, you weary orphans.
Let the towns slip slowly by.
Listen to the steel rails hummin’,
That’s an orphan’s lullaby.
Oh ho ho ho ho ho ho ho ho.
Oh ho ho ho ho ho ho ho ho.
Oh ho ho ho ho ho ho ho ho.
Oh ho ho ho ho ho ho ho ho.”
The memory returned. A few shops had tried to stay open during the civil war days, but it was hard going. Most people had no money, and theft was more than common. Marilyn’s team was no less guilty than others of stealing just to eat. Desperation meant desperate measures. However, the end result was the same – it was almost impossible to make a decent living with a shop.
Yet, one man had braved it for years. His antique shop had been opened for as long as Marilyn and the others could remember. And he had an old vinyl record player on which he would play old vinyl records to attract customers. Since, he had a distinct interest in old folk music of America and also because the children had no other source of music at that time, the children grew up hearing folk music.
There had been one which had touched the children greatly and somehow, whenever the children were creeping around the area, the crotchety, bent-over owner would always seem to play that one tune. The children would sit down, relaxing in the sun, eating what food they had, and taking comfort in the words of a long dead poet and singer.
“Do not think about tomorrow
Let tomorrow come and go
Tonight you’ve got a nice warm boxcar
Safe from all the wind and snow”
Eight years later, the same children heard the words float through their souls again, and one by one – Marilyn, Memori, Matthew and even Baron, found the words again..and sang the song in one voice.
“I know the police cause you trouble
They cause trouble everywhere.
But when you die and go to heaven
You won't find no policemen there.
I know your clothes are torn and ragged
And your young eyes are turning red
Lift your head and smile bravely
You'll see brighter days ahead.
So go to sleep you weary orphans
Let the towns drift slowly by
Listen to the steel rail humming,
That's an orphan's lullaby.”
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Standing next to an old dilapidated set of bungalows, Frederick Carry lit another cigarette as he waited outside his car for his daughter to arrive. When he finally heard a noise, he looked up and saw a jeep slowly humming towards him. When Frederick first saw the cargo through the dusty, he thought for a moment, it was filled with children. As the dust cleared more and the vehicle carried its passengers closer, Frederick could see that the passengers were not children…at the very least, they were in the stages of passing from childhood to adults.
As the jeep pulled out, and the five disembarked, Fredrick could sense a certain serenity and nostalgic feeling among them, and he didn’t dare thrust himself into memories that likely only belonged to those five. However, he did need to get down to business.
“What can we do for you Dad?” Marilyn smiled softly, throwing her blonde hair back behind her shoulder again.
“Hi, Marilyn. Hello gentlemen, and of course, Memori. I just bought these buildings and I need them checked for stragglers and such. I also want a systematic run down on the condition of each building.”
“That’s all?” Matthew said. “Do you think there are some violent types hiding in there?”
Frederick looked over at the buildings and then looked back. “No, I doubt that. We can never be sure though. However, I also reckon you guys can do a more efficient job of gently moving ‘squatters’ on than the police would. As well, getting someone out to evaluate a property would cost me an arm and a leg. You guys have a pretty strong sense of structural integrity. I could at least use that as a preliminary mark.”
Marilyn shrugged her shoulders and she quickly mobilized the team into small groups, breaking the set of buildings up into sections and assigning them to each group. The groups then were set off to search each area for signs of recent habitation and structural damage.
As they walked through, they found a few signs that stragglers had stayed here temporarily, however obviously they had known someone was coming and had moved on. Beyond that, it seemed these bungalows had not seen life for near four years now. It was a sin, since the buildings were very well made and had probably once been comfortable living quarters. It was the kind of place a lonesome traveller could have made themselves quite comfortable in. Four years of neglect had taken a bit of a toll on the places, but nothing that a bit of money and care couldn’t fix up.
Memori and Pudding noted the majority of the damage to the property, while the other three opened some windows to let some fresh air in. Gradually, all bungalows, including the main central one had been checked and cleared, and the five eventually regrouped and joined Frederick out front.
“It must have been quite the place when it first was built.” Memori said as they walked up.
“It was.” Frederick stated. “It was built as a ‘home ship’ for the upper middle class. And they of course moved off when the times changed. And because its so far away from town, people don’t quite find it convenient to live here. Shops were supposed to open here, but well, that never happened either.”
“So why has my father rushed to buy this property then?” Marilyn smiled.
“For my ‘Broken Wings’ project.” He stated.
Marilyn raised an eye brow while the others looked confused.
“Ah..sorry…let me explain to the rest. For a while now, I’ve wanted to see up a home for wayward youths and homeless kids. Sure I know there are orphanages, but I want ‘Broken Wings’ to be different. This one specializes into taking the cases that the others prefer not to. The dregs, the laze abouts, the violent throw-aways – basically the ones others have given up on. To quote my daughter – The Robert Hayden’s. I know how she and her other friends feel about the boy, but I get this feeling that if he had had a place like ‘Broken Wings’, he never would have taken the path that he did.”
“Sounds like a great place.” Pudding says.
Even Baron nodded. “I give it three thumbs up…er..wait…”
As Baron began counting his thumbs…and fingers, Marilyn looked up and whispered. “You didn’t bring me here to check the buildings did you Dad?”
Frederick took another puff. “What ever could you mean Dear?”
“Give it up, you’re a lousy liar. You want us to take ‘Broken Wing’ on. Is it because they’re all orphans too Dad?”
“Now darling, I wouldn’t do something like. That’s a small fact in my factoring.” He said. “Marilyn, I could give a job in any of my offices. I could trust in any position I would put you. And I know you’d do your best. But it wouldn’t be you. Ever since your return, I have worked my brain over a thousand times for a place to put you where you would be happy. But an office job would never make you happy. Sales? Logistics? Not your bag, Marilyn, and we both know it. And your empty handed army is out of battle to fight for you. You all need something.”
He paused for a while and then continued. “And running ‘Broken Wings’ isn’t a baby sitting job. It’s a tough complete dedication to an ideal and a concept. To take on ‘Broken Wings’ is a promise. A vow to never give up on these kids, even though everyone, including themselves, have. I can’t think of anyone who could make that commitment other than you Marilyn.”
Another pause came, as he let his words sink into his daughter - and the group.
“Take these kids out, like you did the others when you were a child. Give them a goal, a purpose, a reason and desire to live. And you will garner the same, Marilyn. THIS is the spot for you Marilyn. And there are a lot of souls who need the Princess.”
Marilyn’s face was emotionless and then she said. “This is stupid. Let’s go guys! You’re nuts Dad.”
She stormed off, and jumped into the jeep, waiting for everyone to climb in too.
As Matthew gunned the engine, Frederick smiled over at Billy and said. “By the way, I want the rebuilding to start next week. Try to come up with a report on changes for me.”
“Whatever.”
“I love you too Dear.” He smiled and waved as the jeep - and its occupants - drove off.
She still had problems showing her true feelings, just like he had years ago. Well that would come with time. ‘Broken Wings’ would help heal a lot of kids who had seen too much pain.
Hopefully, one of those it helped would be his daughter.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
On the way back, true to Frederick’s predictions, Marilyn was already planning with Team Marilyn what they would need to do to prepare the buildings for ‘Broken Wings’. Although she acted as if it were a pain, the others were sure Marilyn didn’t mind it as much as she let on.
Just as they were entering the city outskirts, they passed by a fair that was being held. The lights flashed out brightly as the sky grew darker and darker.
Marilyn thought back to something a friend had said, and suddenly called out “Pull in there Matthew! Drop Memori and I off here!”
“Huh? Now? What did you want us to do here?”
“You guys head on back…Memori and I will catch up later! Don’t hold dinner on our account!”
“How will you get back?” Baron asked. “Are you sure it’s safe?”
“It’s fine you two. Don’t worry.” Marilyn smiled.
Matthew pulled up into the parking area outside the fair grounds and Marilyn grabbed Memori’s hand and pulled her out with her.
“C’mon girl, let’s go!”
“Marilyn! Waiiiittt…” Memori cried out as she was dragged off.
“HEY!!! Don’t blame ME if you get in trouble!!! And TRY not to get into any fights!!!” Matthew called out.
“Yes Mommy!” was Marilyn’s only distant reply.
Matthew sighed as the two figures quickly disappeared in the distance. “There goes the happy couple. Y’ know…I shouldn’t feel so jealous, but I do.”
“It’s all good…It’s all good.” Pudding smiled, repeating his signature phrase. “Marilyn-sama will always be Marilyn-sama. And we’ll always be her friends. It’s not a shock she would choose someone. We should be happy it’s Memori, so we have to don’t have to worry about someone we don’t know hooking up with them.”
“Yeah, I know.” Matthew sighed. “But who’d a thought Memori would be the one our Princess chose. And they’d be the first to get hooked.”
“Yup.” Pudding smiled. “They’ve got a long road ahead of us. And also, who’d thought you’d lose out to Marilyn, eh Romeo?”
“Remember on that bridge when we were seven, and we took an oath of eternal friendship?”
“Yeah?”
“I lied.”
“It’s all good…It’s all good. So did I.”
“HEY!!! I’m hungry!!!”
Matthew laughed and gunned the engine. “The Friendly Giant’s stomach calls. Let’s get back before we’re the main course. Take us home, Billy.”
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The two girls ran for what seemed an eternity through the bright lights and the excitement of the fair. It was as if they were seven again, rushing among the adults to find the next ride.
When the older Marilyn DID stop finally, Memori almost fell over from exhaustion. Her chest heaved up and down as she tried desperately to catch her breathe.
“What *puff* on *puff* Earth*puff* are you .. *puff* running to?”
“That!” Marilyn smiled and pointed up.
Before Memori stood the largest Ferris wheel she had ever seen.. It’s bright lights sparkled in the night and the cars lightly moved back and forth in the wind. Memories returned and everything clicked into place.
“Marilyn…” Memori said turned around to her lover.
Marilyn stood before her and put her hands out.
“It doesn’t matter if you have fears, Honey. We all do. Bravery isn’t the lack of fear, but the presence of action in the face of one’s fear. And you never have to face them alone. Let’s face our fears…all of them…together my love.”
Tears flowed down Memori’s small face and she sniffled and nodded. “Yes, Marilyn-sama.”
The two joined hands and ran to the main gate.
The man there was closing the gate when they ran up.
“Sorry Ladies…we’re just closing up for the night.”
Marilyn winked. “Well… Can you make one last request for us? Just this once?”
She slipped her hand on to the man’s leaving a roll of bills in it. Memori didn’t get a chance to see the amount, but it sure changed the man’s plans in a hurry.
“Certainly Miss! One carriage to the top on its way.”
“Why thank you, Kind Sir.” Marilyn giggled.
As they got in, and the man closed and locked the door to their car, Marilyn leaned over and said. “Feel free to take a supper break. We’ll be just fine alone.” She winked and the man went red from understanding. He walked back to the lever and pulled it back.
With a sudden shake and shudder, the machine went into action, slowing moving the circle of cars around. Marilyn and Memori looked outside excitedly, seeing the fairgrounds get smaller and smaller with each passing moments. It was, after all, their first time on a Ferris wheel, and it had been worth the long wait.
With a sudden lurch, the car stopped, pulling the girls out of their revelry. They were at the very top of the World. Now, it was just the two girls.
Marilyn and Memori turned to look at one another.
“Well…We finally made it dear.”
“I’m…I’m sorry for all the times I let you down, Marilyn-sama.” Memori said. “I’ll always make you proud from now on.”
Marilyn pulled Memori close to her and pulled her face closer to her own.
“You have never let me down, my love. Never. And I have always been proud of you, my sweet sweet Memori-chan.”
With that, Marilyn pulled her lover in for the longest and most beautiful kiss of all time. As her lover’s hand slowly wandering up her shirt to begin the night’s love making, Memori’s eyes locked with Marilyn and she felt yet another lock on Marilyn’s closed heart break.
