Finding Selene

Chapter Six: 13 Years Prior To Present Day

It was shock. Minor concussion. She only survived because of the stuffed wolf. Parents didn’t make it. Need to find family. Poor girl. Poor child. Poor orphan. Orphan. ORPHAN. This is what Selene heard over and over as doctors, nurses, social workers, and rescue workers threw her pity filled looks. She wanted to run, she wanted her mom, her dad. She wanted Apollo. She understood her parents were gone, dead. She knew but she wanted them. She couldn’t run because she had no idea where home was. She was scared, sad, hooked up to machines, and alone. Her moms’ words rang in her head, find Apollo. But how did she find Apollo if she couldn’t find home?

The week she spent in the hospital was the worst of her short life. The only word she uttered was “Selene” when a nurse called her Baby Girl. She wouldn’t eat, the smell of disinfectants and medicine made her nauseous, and that resulted in more IV’s. Selene stayed on her side towards the window cuddling with her giant stuffed wolf she refused to let go of. It wasn’t until the last day of her hospital stay that she willing moved. And only when the soft-spoken lady in the purple pant suit and pink hat walked in with the salvaged belongings of her parents did, did she sit up and accept the items. The new necklace her father gave her mother, her hair clip and her mother’s matching one, and her mother and fathers’ wedding rings. A small sob finally spilled out of her mouth as a dam opened up and her feelings were let out into the universe.

The kind lady, who would be only her first social worker, wrapped her arm around Selene’s back and let her cry for as long as she wanted. After the first ten minutes Selene accepted the comfort and leaned against her. After hours Selene was finally in a fit sleep, clutching her newly gained objects in both her small hands with all her strength.

After her first good sleep in a week Selene woke up in a daze. She brushed her hair and put both the clips in her hair, one on each side. Her social worker helped her put her mother’s necklace on and get dressed in an outfit the social worker had bought for her. Selene was then checked out of the hospital and driven to a large white building that had what seemed like millions of little windows. It was daunting and scary. Selene was glad she was able to bring her wolf.

Once inside Selene was directed to a room with a small couch, two chairs, a brown plain lamp sat on top of a matching brown table, and a large mirror that almost consumed the top half of the wall opposite where Selene sat on the little couch. Her social worker told her she’d be back after and backed out of the room quietly closing the door behind her. Shortly after the door closed, it was opened again by a different lady with a serious face, her hair pinned tightly against her head, a blue button-up blouse, and a brown pencil skirt. She sat in a chair across from Selene and Selene couldn’t help but think she looked like a princess. The next hour was Selene and Dr. Marshall, Selene learned was the princess ladies name, talking about the accident. Selene didn’t remember much about the accident itself, or the events that led to her getting to the hospital. She told Dr. Marshall all she remembered was holding very tightly to her wolf with her head down in its fur and her mother telling her she’d be safe with Apollo and that she loved her.

“Who is Apollo, Selene?” Dr. Marshall asked in a curious tone.

“My best friend everrrr!” Selene looked excited for a moment, then sad again, “I wish he were here. I miss him a lot.” She buried her face in her wolves’ fur and gave a little sniffle, but no tears came out. After a few moments Dr. Marshall continued with another question.

“Where is Apollo?”

Selene lifted her head. “He’s at home. Could you help me get home, please?”

“I’m going to try my best. Where is home?”

“We live near the pack house in the Silver Crescent pack. Wellllll, my parents and I do, Apollo lives in the pack house.” Selene was starting to get hopeful about going home and tried to think really hard about where home was.

Dr. Marshall didn’t correct Selene on the present term use when she talked about her parents. The last thing she or Selene needed was for Selene to close up again. However, she was beginning to think information from Selene wasn’t going to be as factual as she hoped. It seemed the shock and trauma from the accident had mixed up details and she was confusing a story with reality. Dr. Marshall continued for another hour trying to get factual details from Selene, but everything seemed to be confused with fiction, or religious beliefs. It was unfortunate but with no identifying information found inside the car, or on Selene’s parents she would have to go into foster care and that was Dr. Marshalls professional opinion.

Dr. Marshall thanked Selene and looked at the one-way mirror, indicating that Selene’s interview was over and Samantha, the social worker could get Selene. Selene thanked Dr. Marshall for helping her find her home and left with Samantha. Dr. Marshall stood where Selene had left her for many moments- guilt ridden at Selene’s words because she knew it was likely Selene would never go home. When Dr Marshall left her office, she didn’t stop until she got home. She walked through the door and called for her own two little girls, 7 years old and 4 years old. When they ran up to her, she closed her arms around them and let out a breath she didn’t know she was holding. Once again, she felt guilty because she was thankful it wasn’t her family; that her family was safe and whole.

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Selene slept in the car, unsure of where Samantha was taking her but filled with hope that she was headed home. However, this was unfortunately not the case. Being released from the hospital meant Samantha had to find her somewhere to stay since they had yet to locate her family. This meant temporary foster care was the only option but there weren’t any families available in her district. This meant instead of taking Selene home, Samantha was taking her to the precinct two counties over where there was temporary placement open. Selene would soon be without family forever, or so it seemed.

The next few weeks were a whirlwind of paperwork and unfamiliar faces. Selene couldn’t keep everyone straight and learned early on it was best to just call everyone “Sir” or “Ma’am” so nobody would be offended or get angry. At 5 years old it was a hard lesson to learn, that she was now considered temporary, and nobody cared enough about a temporary little girl to make her feel like anything other than that. That’s not to say they were all terrible, not specifically so. Many were polite, cordial, asked if she had a specific snack or favorite color when new clothes were bought for her since she didn’t have many that survived the accident. There were a few, however, that were nasty towards her. One service worker in particular, whose voice dripped with so much honey it could fill three hives, made Selene’s skin crawl.

This particular social worker was the third one Selene was passed to and when given Selene’s name she asked Selene where it came from. Selene’s eyes lit up as she told her the story of the moon Goddess and how Selene knew she would always be safe because she was the Goddess’ name sake. The social worker scoffed at Selene and told her with narrowed eyes that “good girls” have good Christian names and only good girls find families. She told Selene her name would be Mary and that’s what she was writing on the paperwork. Selene sobbed and pleaded to keep her name but the lady with too sweet of a voice didn’t listen. Instead, she walked away to fill out the rest of the paperwork.

Everyone called Selene “Mary” from then on, after all it was the name on her paperwork and who has time to listen to the ramblings of a 5-year-old. She was passed from person to person, house to house, school to school for two years. With her only comfort being her two wolf hair clips, her mothers’ necklace, and her stuffed wolf “Apollo” that she named after her best friend now believed to be imaginary and the God of healing, truth, and light. In the back of her mind, she kept hold of the namesake she bore. She reminded herself repeatedly that her name is Selene, that she is a daughter of the moon Goddess, and that her mother promised her that Apollo would protect her.

Shortly after the second anniversary of her parents’ death Selene was pulled out of class by her current social worker. She excitedly rambled to Selene, but she wasn’t making any sense, so Selene just followed her and when she got into the social workers’ silver car and saw all her stuff she sank down in her seat. She was being moved again. Selene leaned her head against the window and watched as the buildings, roads, and trees passed in blurs of color. After miles and miles had passed, Selene felt the car stop and she lifted her head to look around. They were parked in a long driveway in front of a house that sat in a yard with so much grass stretched out behind it that she struggled to see where it ended in a small hill bordered by a fence that separated the grass from the dense trees behind it. The house itself was taller than it was, wide, white with green shutters on the multiple windows, and a matching green door. The porch seemed to go on forever as it wrapped around the house with white columns placed uniform- holding the top steady. A dark wooden swing with a matching table and chairs sat not far from the front door and vaguely reminded Selene of a swing she used to sit on with someone she couldn’t quite picture. In front of the house was a large tree with hanging branches and wispy leaves. The tree held a tire swing with a boy that looked about her age swinging on it. It was like a movie, peaceful, beautiful, and perfect- the thought made Selene sigh, the one lesson she learned clearly from the last two years was that her life was anything but a movie.

Upon seeing the car, the little boy ran up the concrete steps that led onto the porch that didn’t seem to have an end to it and into the house. The social worker picked up a file folder off her passenger seat and got out of the car, walking to the front of it before seemingly realizing that Selene wasn’t with her. Selene sighed and unbuckled herself before hugging Apollo to her chest and slowly exiting the car. A woman, who looked vaguely familiar, came out of the house with a big smile on her face followed by the little boy from the swing. Selene’s social worker walked up to the woman and handed her the file, talking animatedly to her while the little boy stood next to the woman smiling and staring at Selene. The social worker looked back at Selene and sighed, motioning her forward. As Selene walked up next to her the social worker put her hand on her shoulder and continued talking. Selene stared at the ground not caring to listen to what was being said as she lightly kicked the ground with the toe of her shoe.