Last Day

"Come get us, Norman!" Don yelled from their hiding spot. "We'll outrun you this time for sure! Right, Connie?"

"Don, that's gonna notify him that we're here!" Penny hissed at him.

"Oh, sorry." Don chuckled sheepishly.

Penny glanced at Connie, who was smiling at the two. "Don? Penny? Thanks for always being there to help me."

"Aww, Conn-"

"Nah, you don't have to thank me!" Don grinned, running up to her. "I'll always help you. Any time, anywhere you need me!"

Connie giggled, and placed her finger to her lips. "Shh!"

Don and Penny quickly covered their mouths. Don glanced down at the ground to see Norman's footprints, and he grinned widely. "Judging from the size of these footprints..." He snickered. "You let your guard down, Norman!"

"Uh, Don..." Penny snickered, pulling at his sleeve. Don turned around and yelped in shock to see Norman smiling at the three.

"No, Don, you did," Norman smiled. He walked up to him. "I tell you this every time...your weakness is that you make a judgement too quickly. And then, loose your cool." He chuckled and walked up to Penny. "Your weakness is that you love your siblings."

"So what?" Penny humphed.

Norman chuckled and ran off.

Don sighed.

When Penny, Don, and Connie made it back to the group, Don's eyes widened. "He got everyone?!"

"That happens when Norman's it." One of the boys grinned.

"There's only one survivor left!" Anna grinned at Gilda.

"Yeah!" Gilda grinned back. "Emma's still going!"

Emma huffed as she ran through the woods. Something caught her eyes and she turned her attention to her pursuer, smiling.

Norman smiled back in between huffs. Emma jumped over a small cliff. Norman stopped at the cliff, and decided to walk. He glanced around a clearing, looking around.

Emma snickered to herself quietly as she watched him from her well-planned hideout: a tree.

Norman took a few steps, and then tripped.

Emma gasped. She hopped down from her hiding place and ran to check up on him. "NORMAN!"

Norman snickered and turned to her. "Just pretending."

"WHAT?!" Emma cried. "You had me worried about you!"

Norman turned to Emma with a smile. "Emma, your weakness is that you're too nice."

Later...

"I CAN'T BELIEVE HE CAUGHT ME AGAIN!!" Emma wailed as she had a small temper tantrum on the grass next to Norman, Ray, and Penny. "Why do I keep loosing?! It's so frustrating!"

"Question."

Emma, Penny, and Norman glanced at Ray, who looked up from his book. "What's Norman good at that you're not?"

Emma hummed thoughtfully. "Planning ahead? And staying calm? I guess he's also good at being smart..."

"He's also good at being a peacemaker..." Penny added. "It's also...."

"It's strategy."

Emma and Penny turned to Ray.

"Just think." Ray said, closing his book. "If it's about simple physical ability, then you have the upper hand. But it's more than that." Ray pointed to his head. "Norman has brains. Like no other. And tag is a game where you compete with strategy."

"Makes sense." Penny hummed.

"In a game of tag?" Emma asked, tilting her head curiously.

"The way I see it, tag's like chess but using your whole body." Ray turned to Norman. "Don't you think so, Norman?"

"Yeah, sure." Norman grinned. "And I'd say you're more of a tactician than I am, Ray."

Ray leaned back against his tree and closed his eyes. "I don't know about that..."

"But it's true, Ray!" Penny grinned at him.

"If you say so..." Ray sighed.

Emma glanced down at the ground. "So try to anticipate the enemy's moves..."

"But still." Norma said, glancing up at the other kids, who were playing around. "We can't compare Mom's ability to read a situation."

Emma nodded. "That's true. Come to think of it, none of us have ever come to beat her at chess, huh?"

Norman smiled.

"That's right!" Penny grinned. "I totally remember the old days..."

"NORMAN!!"

Penny, Ray, Norman, and Emma glanced down at Don. "Rematch!" The ten-year-old yelled. "Next game, everyone's gonna be it but YOU!"

"CALM DOWN!" Emma yelled.

"DON, THAT'S NOT FAIR!" Penny added.

Gilda sighed. "Don's all worked up again..."

Anna smiled.

Soon, everyone took off running again. Penny saw something at the corner of her eyes, and the ten year old walked up to it.

A fence.

She turned around to see Norman standing there, and walked up to him, placing a hand on his shoulder.

Norman smiled. "Guess you caught me."

Penny turned around and whispered the one important rule that Mom told them when they were old enough to understand. "'Never go near the gate or fence."

"Yeah, Mom always tells us that." Norman said, watching his little sister walk up to the fence for a closer look. "Because going near there can be very dangerous."

"She says that, but it's not even true."

Penny jumped and turned around to see Emma and Ray standing there. Emma glanced at Ray curiously.

"What do you mean by that?" Norman asked.

Ray glanced down at the short fence. "Well, look at it. What part of this do you find dangerous? The fence is low, and I don't see anything remotely threatening."

"Ray's right..." Penny muttered to herself, scanning the forest ahead of her.

Emma frowned. "But we should do what Mom told us."

Ray sighed. "You really love Mom, don't you?"

"Sure, everybody does..." Emma began.

"HEY!"

Penny gasped, and she, Emma, Ray, and Norman turned to see Don running up to them. "What are you guys doing way back here?"

"Oh..." Emma gulped. "Is the game over?"

"We should call it a day." Norman smiled. "If we're out too late, Mom will be worried about us."

As they treaded down the hill, Don glanced up at the fence. "Someday, we'll have to leave here. Won't we?"

"This is an orphanage." One of the kids said. "Of course we'll leave one day. By the time we turn twelve."

"You know, it's weird."

Everyone turned to Gilda.

"What's weird?" Penny asked curiously, grasping Connie's hand.

"None of us have gotten any letters."

"Letters?" Emma asked.

"Yeah." Gilda turned to her. "Nothing from any of our siblings who've been adapted over the years."

"Oh, that?" Norman smiled, and everyone turned to him. "I'm sure they're just being considerate to their foster parents."

"But still!" Don said. "We were bought here as babies! We're the only family we know! Even if we aren't blood related, we're truer siblings than most!"

Gilda crossed her arms. "Maybe...the outside world is so incredible that they forgotten all about life in the house."

"Well, in that case, let's be happy for them!" Emma grinned.

"UGH! I wanna go outside soon, too!" Gilda whined.

"And what would you do out there?" One of the kids sneered at her. Gilda hissed at him. "Isn't it obvious?! Try on new clothes!"

"This again..." Don sighed.

Gilda turned to him. "I DESERVE to! We only have this one uniform! I read a book one time, it says that this world has hundreds of clothing designs and patterns! And I wanna wear them all!"

"Oh! Me too!" Penny grinned. "As long as they're long and appropriate."

"I wanna eat all the yummy food!" Another boy said.

"Isn't the food here yummy enough?" Penny teased him.

"That's different!" The boy said.

"I can't wait to find a cute girl to date!" Don grinned.

"You realize that's an insult, don't you?" Gilda hissed.

"Oh, I didn't mean it like that..." Don chuckled nervously.

Phil raised his hand. "I wanna see a train!"

"That's a good one!" Don grinned at him.

Emma grinned at Norman. "And what about you?"

"I wanna travel." Norman said. "To see places I've never been to before!"

"Nice!" Emma grinned. "What about you, Penny?"

"Well, I heard they had something called movies." Penny smiled happily. "They have so many movie companies, and they even have things called cartoons for the children! When I get to the outside, I wanna watch as many as I can grab!"

"Really good!" Emma turned to Ray. "What about you, Ray?"

"Once outside..." Ray closed his eyes, took a breath, and opened them. "I'd have to learn how to survive first."

"You're such a downer." Don sighed at Ray. He turned to Emma. "And you?"

"Who, me?"

"You wanna ride a giraffe with Penny, right?" Norman asked teasingly.

"HEY!" Penny glared at him. "That too is insulting! We were around five when Emma said that!"

"I said that?" Emma smiled. She glanced down at the ground. "I guess...I don't really wanna leave." She turned to the group. "So I'd stay forever."

"C'mon, that's not a real answer." Don sighed.

"Why not?" Emma grinned. "We're all happy here. Right?"

"Happy..." Ray sighed. "Yeah."

Connie walked up, clenching Little Bunny. "I promise to write to you. I'll write you stacks of letters! You mean too much to me!"

"Connie..." Penny breathed, bringing the girl and her favorite stuffed rabbit in a hug. Connie continued. "When I grow up, I wanna become a mother just like Mom! And I'd never even think of abandoning my children!"

"You love Mom very much, don't you, Connie?" Penny cooed at her little sister.

Connie smiled.

Finally, it was time for Connie's parting. Connie, now fixed in a black suit and hat, said her final farewell words. "I couldn't run fast, and I wasn't as clever as the rest of you are, but once I leave, I'll do my best! And I can, with Little Bunny's help."

"C-Connie..." Penny sniffed.

"Connie..." Don repeated.

Connie whimpered, her happy expression suddenly changing to sadness. "I don't wanna leave you!" Connie sobbed. "I wanna stay right here!"

Penny burst into tears, along with Don, who sobbed, "Connie, I'll miss you!"

Soon, Mom took Connie out, closing the door behind her.

"Connie..." Penny whispered.

As Mom led Connie towards the gate, she started humming a song.

Connie glanced at Mom. "Um, Mom, what song is that?"

Mom gave Connie a loving glance, but still didn't stop humming.

Connie shrugged and stared at the gate that was coming into view.

Penny opened the door to the dining hall, followed by Emma. Something caught Penny's eyes.

"Huh?" Emma asked curiously. "What is it, Pe..."

Emma paused and glanced at what Penny was looking at, and her eyes widened.

LITTLE BUNNIE.

"CONNIE!!!" Emma and Penny shrieked together. "YOU LEFT LITTLE BUNNIE?!"