The Rising Dawn, #32— "A Lonely Caterpillar Sat and Cried..."

Freeing the young Dorothy Catcher from her abominable living situation was a task that required a team of specialists, and even though Needle was a fresh recruit, she seemed a likely assistant for the job.

Dorothy’s original mother had OD’d on powerful drugs, and her father had gone to prison over a debacle that was also due to drugs. Like Gimmick, her growth was stunted due to prenatal drug use. This affected Gimmick with arrested development, but it affected Dorothy by leaving her in her own little world, a place where her dolls and toys were more real than her foster parents, who simply kept her as a paycheck.

When she was finally sent to school, she struck terror into the hearts of her peers and of faculty when it was learned she could make insects do as she pleased. She played games with ants, mostly, and on two occasions she invited them to the classroom with her. The faculty responded by poisoning them, which made Dorothy so incensed that she found a nest of yellow jackets and wreaked havoc by setting them upon her school.

Generally, Dorothy was simply able to cause plagues, and was not capable of normal human relations. She was often found talking to herself, her dolls, or insects, far and gone from being interested in loving her foster family or fellow students. She would sing songs to them in her own invented language, and impinging on her playthings would often result in nasty incidents involving insects.

Once, when she was very upset after a boy squashed her pet bumblebee, she unleashed biting flies on him and her entire classroom. From there, she was policed and kept separate from the rest of the school. One of the staff that monitored her was a Low Man, who was making arrangements to take her into the custody of The Shop, where she would go out of the frying pan and into the fire.

Citizen Snow, Ratcatcher, Parse, and Needle were deemed to be the ones who could bring her into the Rising Dawn Society, with Freedom Tower as her home, and they were accompanied by Brawler as the muscle.

Parse had the deportment of a dorky but professional representative of the corporation of Gifted (called Outliers by their enemies), and Snow had a way with children.

But before they approached Dorothy’s home, Ratcatcher began singing in the streets of the housing projects where she lived. John Stokes, or Ratcatcher (or the Pied Piper) had an enchanting voice that would calm, pacify, and bring joy to those who heard it. He needed to store the dark spirits he drew away from his surroundings in a relic— this time it was an old telephone. Whenever Rat carried dark spirits in his relics, people would inexplicably dislike him, being able to feel the angry evil he had stored in his dated technology.

“The legend lives on, from the Chippewa on down,

To the big lake they call Gitche Gumi,

The lake it is said, never gives up her dead,

When the skies of November become gloomy…

With a load of iron ore, twenty six thousand tons or more,

Than the Edmund Fitzgerald weighed empty,

That good ship and true, was a-born to be chewed,

With the gales of November came early…”

When Dorothy’s foster family opened the door, they were in rare form, although their clothes were shabby. All three of their children appeared with them, all being enchanted by Rat’s magical voice.

Rat’s singing petered off after a bit, so the rest of the party could be heard.

“Hello, everyone,” said Parse warmly. She looked at Dorothy and knelt to see her eye to eye. “This must be Dorothy.”

Dorothy seemed to gaze right through Parse, like a cat who could see what no one else could see.

“Can we help you?” said the woman, who might otherwise be irritable, but was entranced by the music.

Parse stood up straight. After greetings were made, she said, “We’ve received intelligence that your girl Dorothy is Gifted. She can manipulate insects.”

“If you call that a gift,” said the foster mother.

Needle said, “We have a win-win proposition for you.”

The mother looked at her expectantly.

Needle said, “It must be hard, with a special-needs daughter with such a frightening ability.”

The father said, “She keeps pet cockroaches. We have to learn which ones are hers.”

Without warning, Dorothy ran to Rat, and raised up her arms, signaling she wanted to be held. Rat picked her up, still singing,

“Does anyone know where the love of God goes,

When the waves turn the minutes to hours?...”

“We’re ready to take her to a facility,” said Parse, “Where her needs will be met.”

“What about us?” said the woman, entranced by Rat’s singing. Normally, these people would likely be hostile by default. With John’s singing, they were calm.

Parse said, “We’re going to pay you for a full year of benefits, plus 25% extra, while you find another foster child.”

Needle added, “We’re excited at all the contributions she’ll be making to science, with her unique ability.”

Brawler stood without, remaining relaxed and observing quietly. He was only there in case trouble started.

“Our facility specializes in Outliers like Dorothy,” said Citizen Snow, “We may even be able to get her to acclimate to more diverse social settings.”

“We’d like to see some paperwork. Or at least the money.”

“Tell her to take the roaches with her,” said one of the de facto siblings.

At length, after Brawler produced the cash and the other four Gifted set her foster family’s fears to rest, they left with Dorothy in tow. She insisted on bringing a plastic box full of insects with her, including cockroaches, a caterpillar, and a daddy-long-legs.

“You’re getting a new family, Dorothy,” said Citizen Snow,  “What do you say?”

“My name is Ladybug,” she said.

There was some laughter.

“Well, we all have our special names with all the other Gifted,” said Snow, “Ladybug it is!”