Mission 243: Fosters Origin
From Accct Wiki
The fire was warm in this cold winter night, with the trails of flame licking against the top of the fireplace, long since stained black. The large but still somehow cozy lounge was the perfect place for humans and imaginary friends alike to wait out the cold Winter's chill. Though it wasn't exactly the most exciting place, and so not everyone would want to dwell in this perfection.
"Man, they get enough business around here, you'd think they could spring for a Sega or something." Bloo whined.
"Foster's Home For Imaginary Friends is non-profit Bloo." Frankie reminded him from a nearby chair, where Mac was sitting on her lap, leaning against her while they read a book called 'The Tortoise VS The Hair: One Long Trial'. "Everything we get comes from donations of people who believe in what we do. It just so happens that a lot of people like imaginary friends."
"Why would Madam Foster make this place non-profit anyway?" Bloo continued on his bored rant, sliding around the carpet randomly like a strange blue ghost. "It'd be better to make it profit, then she could make it actually worth living here." He heaved a deep, fake sigh and fell to his back on the floor, half-closing his eyes. "I'm dying here. We need SOMETHING."
"Master Blooregard, you know better than to sprawl out across the floor like that. You constitute a tripping hazard." Mr. Harriman chided as he hopped into the room in his usual manner, casting Bloo his usual disapproving glare. "And if you don't find our accommodations to meet your undoubtedly high standards, you're free to leave."
"Cool your jets, I'm not going anywhere. I'm just saying... this place is boring!" Bloo countered.
"Come read with us." Mac suggested.
"Blech, no!" Bloo stuck out his tongue in disgust. "The only story I'm interested in is the one where I have something to do that doesn't involve reading some stupid book. And if stupid Madam Foster would just charge a few bucks, I'd have it!"
"Make money eh?" A grating but energetic and kindly old voice spoke from the entrance to the lounge. Bloo seemed to wince as he turned along with everyone else to see Madam Foster hobbling into the room, leaning on the cane she carrier with her. She was older than Bloo or Mac had known people could get, but she still seemed as bright and spry as any of their grade-school friends. "We could always start by charging your friend Mac a few dollars." She quipped innocently.
"Uh... n-no, that's okay!" Bloo insisted quickly. Madam Foster and Frankie both giggled while Mr. Harriman harrumphed. Mac finally breathed again once he realized it was just a joke. Frankie chuckled and patted his head comfortingly.
"It would behoove you to show more respect to the woman who allowed you to stay here against the standard house rules, Master Blooregard." Mr. Harriman glared down at the blue blot balefully.
"I'm plenty respectful!" Bloo complained. "I just don't get why Madam Foster wouldn't want to make a few bucks while she's busy doing all the work it takes to keep a place like this going."
"That's true, actually." Mac mused. "How did this place get started Madam Foster? I've never heard of anything like it before."
"Oh deary me..." Madam Foster made her way to the leather recliner that sat directly in front of the fire and lay down in it, sighing and stretching out comfortably. "It was so long ago now... I don't know if I remember." She looked up at Mr. Harriman with a warm smile on her face. The rabbit stood with his usual poise, his hands clasped behind his back.
"I believe it all started the day you imagined me, Madam." Mr. Harriman reminded her gently.
"Of course! Hohoho..." Madam Foster laughed. "I remember that... it was the day my life changed. It was also my seventh birthday..."
The sun was out and shining down on a backyard full of small, screaming, joyous faces and larger waning, exhausted, ones. The yard was full of tables and decorations all proclaiming the happiness that was felt at the seventh birthday of a special little girl named Francis Fullbright. She was a blue-eyed redhead with boundless energy, who made even the other little girls feel tired just watching her. "Presents, present, presents!" She tried to make a mad dash toward the table piled high with brightly wrapped boxes, and it took several adults to hold her back until finally her father picked her up with a laugh.
"Francis, you need to calm down. You'll get them soon enough, just find other ways to enjoy yourself for now." He told her with a kind smile.
"But... but my presents are right there! There! There!" Francis pointed furiously at the brightly colored packages on the table.
"Well they'll stay there, there, there until it's time to open them." Her father set her on the grass and patted her on the butt to send her off in a different direction. "Now you go play with your friends, they won't be able to stay forever you know." He told her. Francis sighed and walked away from him irritably, looking around. Kids were playing in all corners of the yard, but she saw a small group of girls huddled in the side yard.
Francis walked up to them curiously. "What's going on?" She asked.
"We're telling scary stories." One of the girls, whose name escaped Francis at the moment, grinned devilishly. "Come on, do you wanna tell one?" She asked. Francis thought about it a moment, stroking her little chin in deep thought until finally she nodded.
"Okay, I'm gonna scare your undies off!" Francis agreed with a return grin. The other girls gathered around her as she began to think of the scariest thing she could think of. "Once upon a time, there was a bunny rabbit."
"A rabbit? That's not scary!" One of the girls scoffed.
"But this was a special bunny rabbit... it was bigger than me... bigger than you... bigger than our daddies!" Francis exclaimed, holding her arms out to their fullest capacity. "And it was so... so... ruley, that it made the rules. Everything was rules... no snacking before dinner, brush your teeth before bed, no swimming after eating. And if you broke a rule, he would get sooo angry." Francis was speaking in a low tone, so that the other girls' teeth chattering was audible over it.
"It had a glass eye, and was dressed like a butler. And scariest of all... at night, when nobody was breaking any rules... he would wander the hallways of his mansion moaning. 'Ruuuuuulllllles'!" Suddenly the other girls let out a piercing scream and ran as fast as they could. Francis laughed, holding her stomach. "Come on guys, it's just a sto... ry..." She stopped when a shadow fell over her.
She looked back slowly, craning her neck to look up at the tall bunny rabbit with a spectacle over his eyes. She stared for a moment... then let out a shrill scream and charged away from it. "Rule Rabbit! Rule Rabbit!" She screamed in desperation as she charged around to the front yard, darting toward the garage on the other side of the house.
She yanked the door open, jumped inside, and slammed it shut, resting her back against it. Her eyes went wide when she heard its hop steps coming toward the garage. Ka-thump. Ka-thump. Ka-thump. Francis whimpered in fear, trying to hold the door shut. Ka-thump. Ka-thump. Ka-thump. Finally her nerves gave out and she ran from the door, diving into a pile of leaves nearby just before the door opened.
She watched from the pile of leaves as the rabbit hopped into the shed, looking around with its one spectacled eye and its hands clasped behind its back. Its back was so straight... its gaze so stern that it made her heart beat even faster. She thought she was a nice girl, but she knew adults didn't like some of the things she did. If he caught her, he would surely punish her...
He hopped toward the leaves, looking straight down her. Francis shied back into the leaf pile, but the rabbit leaned down, poking one of his fuzzy ears in her nose cutely.
"Hello little girl..." He told her softly. "I apologize for startling you." He remained hunched down, so that he only appeared to be just over twice her height. "I am pleased to meet you... Miss Francis. But I do believe I need a name as well..."
"Hairy man..." Francis said numbly. It was about all she could manage, still frozen with fear as she was.
"Very well then, I shall be known as Mr. Harriman." The rabbit nodded. "It's a good name, befitting one such as myself." He held his hand out to her. "Please, allow me the pleasure of helping you out of those filthy leaves." Francis considered for a moment, then reached out and grasped the rabbit's hand to let him pull her out of the leaf pile. He set her on the floor, brushing some stray leaves off of the frilly dress that was a staple of the time.
"You're... the Rule Rabbit...?" Francis asked confusedly.
"Little girl. I am your friend." Mr. Harriman smiled and ruffled her hair in a warm friendly gesture. She smiled and flung her arms around his neck. He stood up to his full height, holding onto her so she wouldn't fall.
"Let's go back to the party!" Francis shouted excitedly.
"Very, well. Hold on." Mr. Harriman put her on his shoulders and waited for her to hold on before he started hopping out of the shed. Francis laughed madly as they bounced up and down toward the backyard, and back toward the party that was dedicated solely to her, with her brand new best imaginary friend.
Mac and Blue were sputtering in a vain attempt to control their laughter. "Y... you..." Bloo gasped, looking up at Mr. Harriman. "You were Madam Foster's NIGHTMARE!?" Finally they could take no more and they both burst out laughing, falling to the floor. Which was somewhat painful for Mac, who had still been sitting on Frankie's lap. "That explains SOOOO much!" Mac shouted as the laughter intensified. Even Frankie couldn't resist a chuckle.
"Yes yes, utterly fascinating." Mr. Harriman grumbled grumpily.
"So what happened then Madam Foster?" Mac asked curiously.
Madam Foster giggled and touched Mr. Harriman's hand lightly. "Well, things came to a head the next time we went to school... do you remember that Mr. Harriman?" She smiled wistfully.
"Absolutely... it is a day I will never forget." Mr. Harriman sounded less than pleased by the subject.
"Ooohhhh do tell." Bloo grinned mischievously up at Mr. Harriman. The rabbit looked miffed, but couldn't do much about it with the owner of the house sitting right beside him. Mac had a feeling Bloo was going to catch Heck for this later though.
"Well... imaginary friends back then weren't as common or... accepted as they are today."
The day was bright and cheerful as a pair of large feet hopped their way to school with a little girl perched on the rabbit's shoulders. They made their way across the playground toward the school, the girl laughing the whole way, while the other students watched with various expressions. Some looked amazed, others confused, and some downright resentful. They entered the school and hopped down the hallway toward the classroom. Halfway there they were stopped by a large, bulky looking back wearing a dark blue business suit.
"Excuse me, little miss. What do you think you're doing here?"
"We're going to class, Principal Kerry." Francis explained.
"Well your friend is going to have to wait outside I'm afraid." The man told her, eyeing the large rabbit warily. "We don't need some silly rabbit bouncing around distracting the students from their work."
"I assure you sir, that I have no intention of causing a ruckus." Mr. Harriman replied reasonably. "My only interest is seeing that Miss Francis performs adequately in order to ensure the security of her future educational efforts." The principal stared up at the rabbit with a stunned look, but suddenly his expression darkened.
"Uh... yeah." Francis agreed.
"You're awfully smart for an imaginary friend." The principal noted with a grim smirk. "Maybe you were made to help the girl cheat on tests?"
"I beg your pardon!?" Mr. Harriman exclaimed in shock. By now a crowd of other Elementary School students was beginning to form around them out of curiosity. "That's preposterous!"
"Is it? You hop innocently into the room and whisper answers in the girl's ear? Doesn't seem that far-fetched to me, Mr. Smart Rabbit."
"I would never commit such an act, because I know that education is the path to success. To give Miss Francis test answers would only hurt her more in the future than it would help her now." Francis was kind of disappointed, but didn't say anything. "And furthermore, my good sir, you do not know me, and cannot justly assume that I would do something without sufficient evidence." The students around them remained silent. This rabbit was actually talking back to the principal of their school... and more than that, WINNING the argument.
"You're already being a disruptive force in this school." The principal growled under his breath. "Now either leave, or I'll have to call someone to escort you out." Mr. Harriman's back straightened indignantly, but seeing the principal's serious expression he didn't press the issue. He reached up and plucked the little girl from his shoulders.
"I shall be waiting out front for you to return, Miss Francis." Mr. Harriman said.
"Okay! I'll be out soon!" Francis wrapped her arms around the rabbit's neck and he lowered her to the floor. As he hopped away, Francis turned to look up at the still scowling principal. His expression scared her, so she started to slink away, but he grabbed her arm and kneeled down in front of her. His tone was dark and harsh.
"There's a time and a place for imaginary fun, Francis. And school is not it. Have I made myself clear?" He demanded.
"Yes sir..." Francis nodded quickly. The principal let her go, and she quickly turned to run toward her classroom. She wasn't sure why the principal hated Mr. Harriman so much, but she definitely wouldn't make that mistake again.
Mac whistled. "Wow Mr. Harriman. You stood up to the school principal? I never thought you'd do something like that." "Yeah! Stick it to the man Mr. H!" Bloo shouted with a devilish grin on his face.
"I was not 'sticking it to the man'. I was defending myself against an unjust and unwarranted attack on my character." Mr. Harriman corrected him. Still, there seemed to be a hint of pride in his tone.
"I never knew there was a time when imaginary friends weren't accepted." Frankie commented from her chair in front of her grandmother's. "It just seems like they've always been around." She said. Madam Foster giggled.
"Well you're just a young girl yet Frankie." Madam Foster cackled. "Just because they've always been around doesn't mean they were always accepted." She sighed wistfully and leaned back in her leather recliner, which Koko had bought her for her birthday.
"So what happened after that Madam Foster?" Mac asked. "You said you were going to tell us how Foster's Home For Imaginary Friends started."
"Oh yes, that's right." Madam Foster nodded. "Well, things were fine for a few years. As with any imaginary friend and creator, we played whenever we could..."
"When she had no homework to complete." Mr. Harriman added.
"Yes of course." Madam Foster agreed with playful bitterness in her voice. Then she chuckled. "And then when I turned twelve, my parents decided that it was time for us to have... 'the talk'..."
Francis was in her bedroom, playing with a childhood friend named David Wensworth and, of course, her ever-present imaginary friend Mr. Harriman. Well, Mr. Harriman wasn't playing so much as being played with as the two youngsters made him do embarrassing and often downright humiliating things. The rabbit took it all in stride though, even when Francis made him dance around and sing a ridiculously fruity song. In fact he even seemed to enjoy it, because it put a smile on her face. "I know, let's play Chef." David suggested as he picked up a fork from the dinner table that evening and looked across the table at Mr. Harriman. "I'll have some rabbit's legs." He teased.
"You'll have to pry them off yourself." Mr. Harriman countered logically. "And I don't believe that you have the ability."
"Oh yeah, fuzzbutt!?"
"Yes, burpling." Mr. Harriman countered, bringing David's chronic gassiness out as a counter. David bristled... then couldn't suppress a giggle as he did indeed burp. Francis busted up laughing as her mother walked into the room and set their normal number of plates around the table. Francis grabbed her fork, but stopped when she heard her mother cough in that 'you're in trouble' way she had.
"Can we talk in the other room, Francis?" Her mother asked.
"Okay... I'll be right back." She told David and Mr. Harriman as she got up to follow her mom into the bedroom. Her mom closed the door behind them and looked back at her as Francis sat down on the bed.
"Francis... sweety..." Her mom approached and sat down on the bed beside her, pulling the little girl closer to her. "We really need to talk... about Mr. Harriman."
"Did he do something wrong?" Francis asked.
"No of course not. He's the most well behaved imaginary friend I've ever seen. But... you know, you're getting older now, and you father and I decided that it's time for you to give him up." She said bluntly. Francis stared up at him shock, her eyes going wide. "I know you love him, but it's time for you to move past this. It's juvenile... and you're becoming a big girl now."
"But... but I can't do that. Where would he go?" Francis asked.
"Francis, when imaginary friends are let go, they go to a better place." Her mother said.
"Really...?" Francis asked curiously. "Where?"
"I don't know. But I know, that it's time for you and Mr. Harriman to move on." Her mother told her. Francis sniffled and looked down. "Can I trust you to show him out?" her mother asked. "Or will I have to do it?" Francis remained silent for several minutes before responding.
"It's okay mom... I'll do it..." Francis said softly. Her mother nodded, kissed the top of her head and left the room. Francis gulped and slid off the bed, walking back out to the kitchen. Davis, Mr. Harriman and her father were all still sitting around the table eating dinner as she approached.
She approached her imaginary friend, refusing to meet his gaze. "Mr. Harriman... come here." She gestured for him to follow and turned to walk into the front hallway. Mr. Harriman blinked and followed behind her, his large feet slapping against the hardwood floors in a pleasantly familiar manner. Francis stopped before the front door and pulled it open, still unable to look at him.
"Is something the matter, Miss Francis?" Mr. Harriman asked worriedly. "You know you can share your worries with me."
"I know..." Finally Francis looked up at him, even though she knew her eyes were red with already shed tears. Mr. Harriman frowned and ran one gloves hand over her cheek to remove the tearstain.
"What's the matter?" He asked softly.
"Mr. Harriman... my mom wants you to go." Francis told him. Mr. Harriman stared at her for a moment, then pulled himself up to his full height. "I don't want you to... I love you... but I don't want to keep you from your better place..." She said. Mr. Harriman stared at her for a moment, then nodded and brushed his hand over her hair lightly.
"I understand, Miss Francis..." He smiled slightly, despite the tears that were still flowing down Francis' face. "I suppose I should be going to my... 'better place'." Something in his voice betrayed the lie, but Francis wouldn't figure it out for years to come. "Farewell, and have a good life... said funny bunny... to sweet little girl." He smiled slightly and turns to leave through the still open door.
Francis watched him go, wiping the tears from her eyes. "G... goodbye... Mr. Harriman... I'll never forget you..."
"Wow... you actually left?" Frankie asked in amazement. "I didn't think you two were ever apart..." Madam Foster sighed. "I didn't know then that my mom was just trying to make me feel better by saying imaginary friends had a better place to go. Of course that was a lie, but I didn't know any better. And in time, as with most little girls I suppose, I forgot about my old imaginary friend. I moved on to other concerns, like schoolwork and boys."
"So while you were living... what did you do?" Mac turned to look up at Mr. Harriman, whose face was almost eerily mask-like in the flickering light of the fireplace.
"I? I made do well enough." Mr. Harriman replied curtly. It was obvious by his demeanor that he wasn't too keen on the subject, and Mac did back off... but Bloo lacked both the discretion and the concern to follow suit.
"Come on Harriman, this is getting interesting. Did you live in the streets like some kind of pathetic beggar? Crawling on your knees and flapping your floppy ears for scraps of money and food that anyone who saw you might want to give you out of a sense of pity and maybe some perverse sense of smug superiority that makes them feel better about themselves?"
Mr. Harriman stared down at him stonily. "In so many words, yes." He said. Mac and Frankie glared down at Bloo, who for once actually seemed mortified by his own thoughtlessness. "Dignity is not something one can afford when they have nothing to offer but petty amusement and chuckles in return for the necessities of life. Nobody was about to adopt a homeless dirty six foot tall rabbit."
"But obviously she came back to you didn't she?" Mac asked. "I mean, you're both here. You must have found each other again to help start Foster's Home For Imaginary Friends."
"Yes, of course we did." Madam Foster smiled slightly and shook her head, deep in thought. "But that wasn't for several years... I was already a grown woman, twenty years old, married to a man made like a Greek God and with the kindness and understanding of an angel." She smiled wistfully, staring off into space, talking more to herself than her rapt audience.
"What happened? You never told me anything about granddad." Frankie asked curiously.
"We met, courted for a few years, and then married, as a young couple was supposed to do way back then." Madam Foster chuckled lightly. "Things weren't like they are today where a young woman can get away with working instead of finding herself a husband." She looked straight at Frankie, who sighed and rolled her eyes.
"Times are changing grandmom. I don't need a boyfriend right now. I have plenty of company around here." She gestured around the room to encompass Bloo, Mac, and even Mr. Harriman. "So what happened to him? Why isn't he here with us today? Did he pass on?" Frankie asked, more gently than Bloo would have if he'd been the one interrogating.
"I really don't know dear." Madam Foster shook her head. "We were only married for a few months before I was walking down the street one day..."
The young woman of twenty-one years walked down the street, humming merrily to herself with her hands engulfing the not-yet-very-large bulge in her abdomen. There was a basket hanging from the crook of one arm, swaying with her lighthearted movements down the clean-swept street. The wind was blowing exceptionally hard, but the sun was shining as brightly as ever, creating a perfect contrast for her. She stopped when she saw movement in a nearby alleyway. It wasn't unusual for some to skulk in the shadows, usually less savory characters, so she slid away from it and moved to head past it, keeping a sharp eye on it until she heard a familiar voice echo out.
"I assure you, I have not taken anything from you that was not given to me!" The voice was rougher around the edges, more ragged somehow, but it was unmistakably familiar to Francis. "And furthermore, these rough tactics you are using are not acceptable in a civilized society!"
"This ain't civilization cottontail." A rougher voice pointed out from deep inside the alley. "Now it's time to pay up." All of the voices fell silent, giving way to an unpleasant rustling sound that seemed to seep into Francis' bones like a bitter Winter wind. She walked slowly into the alley, shaking in fear and uncertainty. She hadn't thought about him in so long.
Slowly the sounds got louder, until suddenly they dissipated and the sound of footsteps running away could be heard. Francis moved through the alley until she emerged into a small area behind a group of buildings. She could see a giant rabbit lying in the center, bruises covering his body and his monocle broken on the ground in front of him. He looked smaller than she remembered... but then, she hadn't seen him since she was just thirteen.
"Mr. Harriman...?" Francis walked up to him slowly and knelt down beside him. It was difficult in her current physical state, but she got down on one knee and cradled his chin in both hands. He opened his eyes and looked up at her dizzily. "Mr. Harriman, what are you... what are you doing here?" Mr. Harriman stared up at her steadily for several moments before responding.
"Madam Fullbright..." He said softly.
"Actually, I'm married... it's Foster now." She shook her head. "But that doesn't matter... why did they do this to you? What are you doing here? Why are you so dirty?"
"Congratulations on your marriage." Mr. Harriman pushed himself up slowly, wincing at the pain of his bruises. "And this is merely what happens when one cannot hide fast enough with the others." He stated.
"Others?" Francis blinked in confusion. Mr. Harriman looked around, so Francis did too in time to see dozens of forms emerging from the shadows. Things of all sizes, colors, and shapes she couldn't even begin to identify. "Are these... are these all imaginary friends?" She asked in surprise.
"Of course. Imaginary friends whose creators have outgrown them." Mr. Harriman clarified. "As you can see, there is no 'better place' for us. Most of us stay here." Francis looked around at the group of gathered friends, watching as a few small ones zoomed out of the crowd and up to her face. They looked like random ink scribbles floating through the air in front of hr eyes. They almost seemed to be sizing her up.
"This..." Francis scanned the area in shock. "This is horrible... you all just live in the streets? Nobody helps you?"
"Of course not. Being mere figments of young imaginations, we are not as important as the real people of this world. And since others would rather not be confronted with us, we do our best to remain out of sight as much as possible." Mr. Harriman stated.
"But you bring so much happiness and joy into children's lives... just to be dumped on the street after they're finished with you? That's just... not right." Francis stated.
"Yes well, nobody ever stated that life was fair. It's simply a fact of life Madam Foster, at some point all imaginary friends are abandoned by their creators." He spoke calmly, but there was a tinge in his voice and a glint in his eye that told her he wasn't just talking about everyone else.
"Mr. Harriman... I'm so sorry." Francis walked up to him, holding her hands up in front of her. "I am so... so sorry. I didn't know... if I'd known, I never would've..."
"What's done is done." Mr. Harriman cut her off. "Nothing now can change the fact that you are a grown woman with a life, and I have my life here." Mr. Harriman turned around and looked around at his gathered friends. "Come, let us all return to our shelters before night falls, we would not want to encounter any more unsavory characters."
As the other friends turned to leave Francis tried one more time. "Mr. Harriman... please... I'm sorry..."
"I bid you good life, Madam Foster." Mr. Harriman bowed to her graciously and turned to hop after the others. As Francis watched them go, her shoulders slumped slightly, guilt flooding into her mind like a tidal wave.
"Wow..." Frankie looked up at Mr. Harriman, then looked back down at her grandmother. The surprise of hearing all of this was weighing her down, and it seemed to have the same effect on Mac. Bloo though had long since grown bored and taken to shadowboxing, which proved extra difficult in the flickering light of the fireplace. "So what happened then?" "For a few days I fought with myself... and finally I decided to try to do something. David was pretty well off, so I convinced him to help me build a place for imaginary friends to go after they were abandoned by their creators." Madam Foster gestured to the house around them. "This mansion, Foster's Home For Imaginary Friends. At first it was much smaller than this, with few people inside it, but over time it began to grow and grow until we didn't know what to do with them all anymore. It didn't help that our little Robert was still growing."
"I loved every second of it. All of these imaginative and funny friends around, they were so good for Robert too. He loved them all to death, and we were happy..." She sighed. "But David was not. He got tired of the constant company... our marriage grew worse and worse until one day it felt like I looked up and he wasn't there anymore."
"Granddad left you with all of that responsibility?" Frankie scoffed. "What a selfish greedy-" Madam Foster interrupted her.
"It wasn't his fault. Between Robert and the friends I never had time for him... I knew it and so did he. I never tried to find him, but he left me with enough money to run the home until we started getting enough donations to keep it open ourselves. Everything was so wonderful, and I started to notice some faces from the alley showing up in the house... but it wasn't until a year later when I saw that face again..."
Foster's Home For Imaginary Friends was doing well. Friends were abundant around the place and living happily, while Francis was having the time of her life in between the upkeep that obviously had to be done on a house this size. Robert was a growing boy of two years old, and probably would have driven Francis up the wall if not for a helpful friend named Maidy. She did a lot for the boy, leaving Francis time to relax and cool off when she needed to. Suddenly the front doors opened and a friend walked in, carrying a smaller, frightened looking friend under the crook of one of his eight arms. "I found another one Madam Foster."
Francis smiled and swept up to the tiny frightened creature with a smile on her face. "Hello, and welcome to Foster's Home For Imaginary Friends." She curtsied delicately, then picked up the tiny creature from the bigger friend's hand. "And what's your name?"
"Um... Corny..." The tiny yellow friend looked embarrassed.
Francis laughed happily. "That's a wonderful name, I love it." The small corn-friend seemed surprised by her reaction. "Go ahead and show Corny to one of the rooms with free space, will you Asura?"
"Of course Madam Foster." The larger friend nodded and picked up Corny from her hand again to carry it to the stairs. Francis giggled and shook her head as she turned to close the front door, but she stopped when she saw a familiar large rabbit standing in the doorway.
"Madam Foster..." Mr. Harriman said uneasily.
"Mr. Harriman..." Francis replied. They stood in silence for a few moments until Francis bowed slightly. "Welcome to Foster's Home For Imaginary Friends."
Mr. Harriman hopped further inside, looking around both to get a good look and to avoid her gaze. "This looks like a rather wonderful home."
"The friends seem to like it." Francis agreed. "And it's been my home too since my divorce so..."
"A divorce? I am sorry to hear about that." Mr. Harriman said.
"Yeah well, people change, things happen..." Francis trailed off.
"They certainly do..." Mr. Harriman agreed.
"People are still sorry..." Francis stared at him steadily as the rabbit stared back. Mr. Harriman seemed to study her directly since he hadn't been able to replace his monocle.
"And I am bound to accept..." Mr. Harriman smiled slightly. Francis smiled and leaped into his arms, engulfing him in a massive hug. He hugged her back warmly, his floppy ears brushing against he side of her face pleasantly.
"Please, stay here with us." Francis said. "I would love to have you back. I've missed you so much..."
"And I have missed you, sweet little girl." Mr. Harriman said. Francis smiled and pulled away from him slightly. He looked around and hopped up to the mantle, brushing it off. "It looks like this place needs a good manager anyway. This place is filthy."
"Excuse me?" Francis said in shock.
"I shall have someone clean it right at once. You, you look handy." He hopped up to Asura as Francis watched in an oddly mixed state of joy and shock. She had her somewhat bossy friend back... and she wanted nothing more.
"And that's how it all happened." Madam foster nodded to officially end her story. "Wow. That was pretty cool." Frankie smiled. "I never knew you had to rough it once fuzzbutt." She looked up at Mr. Harriman.
"Where I was has no bearing on your responsibilities today Miss Francis, such as your responsibility to Master Mac." Mr. Harriman said.
"Huh?" Frankie looked down to see that Mac had fallen asleep on the floor. It was dark outside. "Oh shoot... I'll take him home." She cradled Mac in her arms and lifted him up off the floor. "I'll be back in a few minutes."
"We'll wait up for you dear." Madam Foster waved as Frankie left with the unconscious little boy in her arms. She sighed, then giggled and slid off her leather recliner, grabbing her cane. "Oh that was fun. They may not think we old folks are good for much, but we are good for telling good stories." She laughed and shook her head whimsically.
"She probably believed every word of it." Mr. Harriman couldn't hide his wicked smile anymore.
"I think it's more exciting than the truth, don't you?"
"It is a fine legend to be passed down among the occupants of the house, Madam Foster." Mr. Harriman agreed with a curt nod. "Now let us get you some tea before we tuck you into bed."
"That sounds pretty good." Madam Foster nodded and turned to follow the large rabbit out of the room. She was getting on in age, and Foster's Home would always be her legacy... but she'd be damned if she didn't have any good legends to go along with it.
