Aisling stared in surprise at the small girl standing before her. She had black hair pulled into two ponytails with metal pins pushing her bangs back from her face. From behind a small pair of glasses green eyes peered curiously at Aisling. The girl looked about 2 years old.
“Hey, kid, wewe lost?” Aisling asked. The little girl nodded then pointed to the bracelet in Aisling’s hand. “This yours?” Another nod. “Here.”
The girl latched onto Aisling who was once zaidi shocked. She pulled the toddler away and looked into her eyes. “What’s your name?”
The girl tilted her head to the side, reminding Aisling of a small Yorkshire Terrier. “Um... Mckenzie.”
Aisling smiled. “Well, Kenzie, want to come with me? We can find your parents.”
Kenzie nodded vigorously, then paused. “I don’t got no parents.”
“Oh,” Aisling realized. “Well, I’ll take care of you.”
Kenzie grinned and climbed onto Aisling’s back. “What’s your name?”
“It’s Aisling. au Ash.” The thought suddenly occurred to her that a two mwaka old probably couldn’t pronounce the -sh sound.
“Ass?”
“No, no, uh--”
“A-s-h. Ash!” Kenzie smiled in delight.
Aisling smiled. She was a quick learner.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“Hey guys, I’m back!”
Mercy looked up at Aisling’s unusually happy voice. She was startled to hear Ash laugh at something. “Why so peppy?” she inquired, walking out to the training hall. Then she saw.
“Oh my gosh!”
Mercy picked Kenzie up and whirled her around, making the toddler giggle with glee. “Who is this, and can we keep her?”
Aisling grinned. “This is Kenzie, and yes?”
Some zaidi of the team came in confused. They saw Kenzie. She had a similar effect on some, and others just kind of smiled.
When Robin came in, he was a little startled when the kid latched onto him and wouldn’t let go. He lifted her up and carried her like a normal kid. “She reminds me of someone,” he pondered, and she hugged him closer.
Fang wasn’t impressed. “It’s a stupid kid. Not a big deal.” He unwrapped a stick of gum and threw the wrapper towards the trash can. He missed and didn’t notice as he walked to the sink.
Kenzie’s eyes narrowed and she turned to Fang in Robin’s arms. “Karma,” she whispered, and snapped.
A rumble came from the pipes and Fang was suddenly covered in the remains of what had gone into the garbage disposal. “What the hell?” he exclaimed, wiping off the grime, while everyone was laughing. Kenzie smiled sweetly, though her eyes were bright with mischief.
“You did this?” Fang asked, staring at the small girl, who nodded. “Huh... not bad.” He ruffled her hair as he passed by. Delta looked at Kenzie and thought for a second.
“You know, if wewe were old enough...”