The Nanny 2: Another Nanny

Chapter 1
Another Nanny

Chapter Description: Always there for the children, always

Always there for the children

Protector

Guardian

Nanny.

Given a scale of one to ten for the creepiness of the location, she had to give it a strong nine point five. Although that could rise.

“If I had hackles they would be a rising” Agreed there, this place was seriously creepy. The rating was definitely going up. Even stranger was the complete lack of any animal life, no rats, no birds, not even insects. It was like this place was a no go area for the non-human kind.

They should have just gone to a local pub or a nightclub but this pandemic was making that hard, she didn't want to risk catching that virus so here she was at a long abandoned creepy former workhouse that's been standing here for close to a century since the years when child labour was legal in the UK.

“I'm thinking home, video games and pizza. This place is making my goosebumps have goosebumps” Cliche, yes, but accurate. She was feeling the same way.

“You have a bloody good point. Let's just go” They were bored of being in quarantine so had come out here to the old workhouse to have a look around, locals said that the place was haunted while others simply said it was dangerous. By the looks of the place it was probably both.

She didn't know a lot about the place, only what little history she had read about it. Build a few years before the child labour laws had been introduced in the UK in 1938, in it's short operation time there had been at least eight deaths of children and fifteen deaths of adults.

It had been built on the foundations of an orphanage which had been torn down in 1931 following the death of it's main owner. When the child labour laws were introduced the workhouse was shut down and it's surviving workers were left without work.
The second world war began not long after for the UK and people were more focused on surviving the war, the workhouse was left to rot.

After the war there had been efforts to tear the place down and build new buildings for industrial work but every time such efforts were attempted they were abandoned under claims that something at the old workhouse wasn't going to let them work.

The disappearances began after the last attempt had failed, no bodies or any indication of what had happened, they simply disappeared.

“Right, agreed, let's go” Turning on her heel, her best friend turning around at the same time, they make for the doorway only to find that it's disappeared.

“It was right there just seconds ago! I felt the wind!” Her friend cries out in surprise, he was even more scared than she was.

“Maybe we weren't paying attention, it is pretty dark here so we could have wandered in too far” Thing is though that she couldn't see a doorway anywhere, the building was empty, all of it's old equipment long since removed leaving a barren building with three empty floors. There wasn't even any rubbish here.

The windows still had glass but it was dusty with only one or two broken ones, but no glass to be found if the lower window close to them, one of the few broken ones, was any indication.

“I am not going to die here, I'm too handsome to die!” She rolls her eyes, she cared about him a lot but he could be quite the drama queen when in a stressful situation.

“You are not going to die, we'll find a way out and go home, that pizza sounds good every time I think about it. Keep calm and we'll find a way out” The air starts to feel different, almost warm and there's a scent almost like baby powder.

“Who the hell is that?” Her friend asks as a woman in rather old looking garb, maybe a century old or so, walks out of a doorway towards them.

“Hey, whoever you are, we're just leaving! We're sorry if we trespassed” The woman says nothing as she approaches, her footsteps silent against the old wooden floorboards.
“I mean it, we're sorry! We'll leave!” The smell of baby powder gets stronger, it's almost like it's all around them now.

The air is filled with screams, but only for a less than a minute before those screams become the cries of babies.

~~

Investigation ~ 2021:

Stale coffee mingled with the sweet small of over sugared pastries, the typical smell for her office. Well study, okay corner of her living room. She hasn't been able to go back to the office for over a year as her boss is quite the germophobe and wasn't willing to reopen the office until this pandemic was truly over and the virus no longer a threat. That was going to be a long wait with how bad things were on Plague Island, as the UK was tagged as these days. Well that and Terfland due to the extreme transphobia, another nickname was in use at times as well – Pratland, due to leaving the EU and how badly things have been doing since.

To say that the UK is a mess would be an understatement of the millennium.

“Another two people have disappeared, interesting” She mutters to herself as she browses the news pages on Google. The article she was reading was mentioning the disappearances of two young adults a week ago, a young woman and a young man. They were last sighted heading for the old workhouse six miles from her location, they never returned home. No bodies, no indication of foul play, they were just gone.
Their parents were pleading for any information as were the police but what information was there to be had? So many have disappeared in that area since 1951 with no trace of what had happened.

There was another article close to it, a pretty small one. It said that two abandoned babies had been found placed outside one of the few respectable orphanages of the area, a baby girl and a baby boy. Seemed like quite the coincidence but maybe wasn't connected, there were a lot of abandoned children as well as a lot of children who's parents had died from the virus that was still as active and dangerous as ever.

Still it did seem oddly coincidental. Sounded like it would make for promising investigation and something to do other than sitting here at her desk reading the news.

She was going to need some back up though, she wondered if Andi was up for some investigating.

~~

Protector ~ 1926:

She watched quietly as another child was brought in, another orphan. She knew what had happened to their parents, they had both died just yesterday. Their mother had gotten her throat torn out by heavy machinery when trying to remove some tangled thread that had gotten caught in the prongs, the machinery had suddenly been activated and her throat had been torn open by a prong, he rhead almost completely removed.
The father had died in a local coal mine, there had been a collapse in one of the deeper tunnels, he was crushed to death. Both parents had died within minutes of one another and now their only surviving child, the others had also died from work related incidents over the past few years at the various workhouses and mines around the county, was facing a life without their family. All other relatives were either not interested in caring for them or dead.

This was only the first child for today, there were several more to join the orphanage. It was going to be another day of tears and lost innocence.

“Nanny, he's here again” Another addition to the day, this was going to be a very long day. Thanking the woman who told her, Elizabeth Kins heads through to her office. She was nicknamed Nanny by the children and staff as she had been a former nanny for a wealthy family but had wanted to help the children who's parents had died from the hard manual labour jobs that the poor had no choice but to work in.

It horrified her how many children died in those jobs, how many were left without a family. Cruel labour to make the wealthy richer, not that those who profited form such suffering and misery ever cared.

Stepping into her office she can smell the disgusting cigars, such vile displays of avarice.

“Have you considered our offer?” He didn't even wait for her to sit down, not that he ever did. Ever since she had opened this orphanage ten years ago he has been one of the many opponents who have no taken kindly to what they perceive as interference in their ideals of business.

“No is still no” Nanny replies before sitting down at her desk, it's a little worn but that just shows how well it's used. “They are not commodities, they are children. They have lost their families and you would demand that they be put to work so to line your pockets and your bank account. So no still means no” Before her is a rather loathsome man named Anders Harington, one of the many Tory MP's who kept the cruel workhouses and lethal mines around. They cared little for safety measures, only money and power.
His avarice is well known and his lusts for more are even more known, his ambitions to become prime minister are no secret. His family line for generations has always been one of extreme greed with no care for those they regard as inferior to themselves, which is basically anyone who isn't wealthy.

“Be reasonable, my dear, these are slaves, nothing more than collateral for the great British Empire to use to their last breath. They have no rights for they are not people like I am, they exist only to work and to make people like myself all the richer for it. They will be sent to the workhouses and the mines” Despicable man, she had watched him beat a child to death a few years ago while his goons had held her back. The child had been crying for their parents who had died the day before, Anders ordered the child to stop crying and whipped out a hard wood cane tipped with lead.
The child had screamed in pain until the screams became gurgles, blood flowing from their nose, mouth and cars. Anders hadn't even cared as the child died with a gasp of pain, he stepped on the child's throat instead and pressed down while telling the child that they had brought it on themselves for being poor.

That child was buried in a graveyard two miles away that she had commissioned with her own money, a graveyard for the children lost to greed and the heartlessness of the wealthy.

“They are not slaves, Mr. Harington! They are children, they are innocents who have lost their families! How dare you look down on those who don't even have a say on their lives! I swear that there will be a day when the people of this country will rise against parasites like you and make you all pay for your disdain of their lives! Now get out!” Anders tuts in disapproval as he hefts himself up, his bulk indicative of his tastes for fine alcohol and rich foods that only the rich can afford.

“You can not protect them forever, Miss Kins, I will have this quaint place of yours torn down and the children where they should be, working for their betters. Good day, Miss Kins” The arrogant man canters out of her office, the smell of his vile cigars lingering in the air while the sound of his polished hardwood cane, the same cane he had used to kill that child years prior, thudding on the floorboards.

The wife of her former employer had told her something when giving her support of Elizabeth's plans for the orphanage – 'No economy is worth a person's life'. She held to that every day, no amount of money was more important than any life. She would do all she could for the children she cared for no matter what it took, they deserved a future, they deserved to have hope.
They are her children and she is always there for the children.

~~

Investigation~2021:

Face masks, check. Camera's with extra batteries, check. Night vision attachments to the camera lights, check. Sanitary towels, check. Sodding periods and their timing. Extra underwear, check. Spirit box, check.

“Proton packs, PKE meters, ghost traps, how about Ecto One?” Every time.

“No, Andi, none of those. I don't think the Ghostbusters do rentals”

“Aww, pity. Could probably rock a proton pack” Shaking her head as she goes over the checklist, Irene Larion rubs her stomach as it twinges, it just had to kick in today when she was eager to do an investigation into the disappearances at last. Ghostsbusters are the only pop cultures references that Andi really understood, she loves Ghostbusters.  Mostly the science of it.

“Heat pads?” Andi asks, Andi or Annie Harit as she's really known as but tends to be nicknamed Andi as a joke when she used to be fond of someone called Andy when they were younger, she had tried to alter her name to a more feminine term to fit and the name had stuck. She didn't mind it as long as it wasn't used maliciously.

“Yep, also got some chocolate and painkillers. I had hoped that I would be late this month but nope, guess the vaccine side effects decided to let me suffer my period this month unlike last month where it was a breeze. Oh the joys” The check list was complete with nothing missing, unlike the last time when they had forgotten to take batteries along for their torches and spent the majority of the investigation with torches while investigating the ruins of an old church that hasn't fared well in the second world war, their boss had insisted though.

Having a sore ankle after lightly twisting it when stepping over debris had not been fun.

“I'm so glad I don't get them any more” Andi had sought a hysterectomy after she had been found to have ovary cancer, she had begged and pleaded for her ovaries to be removed before the cancer could spread. Thankfully her pleas were heard otherwise she wouldn't be alive today, she had to take estrogen hormone treatments to keep her levels stable but she was fine with that.

Irene however still had to endure them.

“Yeah, so you've said many times. Alright we ready?” The car's boot door slams shut making a nearby cat jump and bolt. “Sorry puss!” Irene calls out.

“Sure, I guess we are. I've been collecting all the information I can on the old workhouse, it's prior years as an orphanage before that was torn down and replaced with the workhouse, previous owners and all information I can find connected to all of it. I'm frankly surprised that it's still standing, it wasn't exactly made to code as the politician who had demanded it's construction was known for being rather skimpy with money when it wasn't sitting in his bank account, it was made with substandard materials by half arsed construction workers who were tired of working for bugger all but did the job anyway.
It honestly should have collapsed years ago before the first disappearance, but somehow it's still standing and still intact for the most part. The local council has been trying to get it knocked down for decades but keep coming across the same problem, their equipment stops working and the people who are hired are scared away by something they encounter there”

“Maybe it's a big ninja rat with a family of four ninja turtles named after Reminiscence painters and inventors” Irene jokes as they get into the car.

“Haha, seriously though it's weird. The last attempt was before the first disappearance and the workmen claimed that some woman had appeared and terrified every single one of them to the point where they were running down the street wetting themselves in fear. The local Council gave up and just left it there and it's been standing there ever since, it's never up for sale and it's never been had anyone staying in it. Even the homeless steer clear which says a lot about how creepy the place must be” The car starts with a slight wheeze, the car was almost as old as Irene who was 34, the car was 32. It kept on going despite it's rather worn for wear condition, Andi took to naming it the I'm Not Dead Yet Car because it clearly wasn't ready to die yet no matter how much it sounded like it was on the verge of giving up.

“Then why are there people who go there like they're drawn to go there? At least thirty disappearances at last count and thirty babies appearing on the few respectable orphanages in the city shortly after the disappearances occur, is there anything about those babies?” Andi checks through her information before answering.

“Yes, each one has been found by family. Oddly they seem to recognise but they never report it to anyone, they just seem to know who they are automatically. The strangest ones are the ones where there's been some men and women disappearing and babies of the opposite sex and gender appear at those orphanages, don't know about you but it sounds like whatever is going on at that place is drawing in trans people as well or people who would have been tagged as trans had they been able to be themselves instead of repressed by transphobic demands.
Interestingly the first disappearance was of a former solider from the second world war, when they disappeared a baby girl appeared at one of the few respectable orphanages. I'm still trying to get more information in regards of names, it seems the families didn't want to report this to the papers. Probably for the best considering the attitudes of the time towards anything unusual” The car sputters a little as Irene takes it out beyond the street and heads for the old workhouse, the sun is setting early as winter nears in and while she wasn't fond of doing this during the night it did make things easier as they weren't likely to be bothered unlike in the day and they were both armed with rape alarms, mace and tasers as a precaution. Not they they were supposed to have mace and tasers, Irene wasn't going to take chances though.

“Odd coincidence when you think about it, these people disappear and abandoned babies appear at those orphanages shortly after. X-Files like shit there” Andi shakes her head at her friend's pop culture references, she respected that her friend was quite the sci fi nerd but sometimes she could lay it on a tad thick.

“None of us are Scully, we both believe in ghosts and other paranormal stuff. You could be Mulder if you want, I'll just be me” Irene smiles as the car turns off from the main street.

“You could be Velma” Andi raises an eye brow.

“Who?”

“You know, Scooby Doo, she was the brains. Wore glasses, was very smart” Andi blushes a little, she wasn't used to being complimented for her intellect, usually people, not Irene though, tended to be rather nasty towards her love of learning. They already judged her for her surgery.

“Oh, I'm not into the whole pop culture thing like you so I don't fully understand what you talk about most of the time when you use those references” Andi returns to her information gathering, she was in her element.

“Jinkies, well Spock we'll be there shortly. Anything more you can find will be very helpful” Andi just mmm hmms while she works, once she got started on fact finding she was hard to rouse. She had spent much of last year scolding conspiracy theorists for their nonsense about the virus and later the vaccines, not that they had listened. She had presented so many facts only to be mocked and insulted, Irene would unleash her anger in order to protect her friend. She cared deeply about Andi, she was like a sister in many ways.

Anyone harmed her and they would have to answer to Irene.

~~

Protector~1927:

Winter's chill was setting in, the summer had been muggy and unpleasant with the air near burning people's lungs at times. She hoped that winter wouldn't be too harsh like it had been last year, and she hoped that she wouldn't lose any more children to the Tories. They had kidnapped two of her children last winter, she had managed to rescue one but the other had died shortly after being sent to work at the docks. Speared through the throat by a dockworker by accident, they hadn't been paying attention when moving the larger fish-hooks to storage, one of the hooks had come loose and lodged itself in the throat of the child who had been helping. She was told that the death had been protracted before they had lost too much blood.

The men in power had dismissed her when she had tried to bring this incident to their attention, they didn't care. One dead child was nothing compared to the profits they got from that death.

Another funeral, another small coffin in the ground. Another young life cut short.

She could hear the children in the orphanage playing and it brought a smile to her lips, she loved to hear them play. It was a sound of happiness, of joy and learning. She wanted to ensure that they would have a chance to live and grow instead of being denied so much for the avarice of the greedy.

They deserved so much better than an early grave.

A familiar sound makes it's way down the street, a thudding sound of a cane and the wheezing of a man out of shape from his life of excessive luxury at the suffering of others. Harington. The sounds were sharp and clear in the cold air.
With a deep sigh she walks towards the gates just as the arrogant man rounds the corner flashing his usual greasy smile when he sees her.

“Miss Kins! How lovely it is to see you” How much she wishes she could wipe that smile off his face but she had to maintain decorum and manners, she was a lady after all.

“Mr. Harington, tell me you are just passing by” She hoped he was, he was detestable.

“I have vacancies for small hands, I require some of your children” She fought back a growl as she stood before this odorous excuse for a man. He didn't take no for an answer.

“No, Mr. Harington, the children are playing and they will not be interrupted. Surely you and your friends could do the work, perhaps get a taste of the real world” Oh how much she wanted to be rid of him.

“Me? Work? I am a busy man making money, Miss Kins, that is my calling. The only calling your children has is that of work, that is all they are good for” Breathe, rein in the temper, do not let the rage out. A woman must not let her anger out no matter how much she wishes to, it was good decorum after all.

“Please leave, Mr. Harington, I'm sure your carriage is waiting. Good day” She closes the gates and secures them before he can enter the grounds, she would stand out here all day if she had to. He was not going to enter.

“Very well, Miss Kins, till we meet again soon” He turns and heads back the way he came, the thudding of his cane and his laboured breathing the loudest sounds in the street. Soon he turns the corner and is thankfully gone.
She wonders how long he'll keep this up before he resorts to more forceful measures, he has never looked upon her orphanage kindly. When it had been opened for the first time he had been a vocal opponent, she knew she couldn't keep him away forever but she had to try. For the sake of the children.

“Please Lord, please help me keep the children safe” She pleads to the sky. “Please”

~~

Investigation~ 2021:

Sputtering to a stop with a wheeze once the engine goes quiet, Irene and Andi step out of the car and go to the boot which Irene opens to grab their gear. The old workhouse looms over them in the near distance like a solitary guardian of a cruel past that many hope never returns, although the Tories were clearly set on bringing it back.

“Creepy place” Andi remarks once she secures her backpack and checks the straps to be sure they aren't too tight nor too loose.

“Very, add some organ music and you've got Dracula's Warehouse. What is a van but a miserable little pile of bolts! But enough talk, hit the gas!” Andi looks at her puzzled.

“What?” She asks as they walk towards the old workhouse, the gates already open when they really should be closed. Strange.

“Just a video game reference, modified. One of these days you'll know all these”

“I hope not, I may be a nerd in my own way but pop culture really isn't my thing” Walking into the long abandoned and very silent yard leading into the workhouse, Irene takes out a camera and starts recording.

“This is Irene Larion back with a new investigation, today we're investigating a long abandoned workhouse which was one of the last to be built in the country before the introduction of the child labour laws in 1938. Although it took time the workhouses were eventually all closed down, they are well known for their inhumane conditions and the many casualties that would occur in the former British Empire's push to be the strongest. Of course that empire is long gone now but the shadow of it's cruelty and harsh ways still remain, many in power still cling onto the old ideals that saw the working classes pushed into lives of literally slavery where they were worked to death for very little with no hope of a future.

Many children were also forced into such a life and like the adults forced to work in such deplorable conditions they too would suffer. Many would die horribly while the survivours struggled to keep living, some would go to war when they were old enough and if any came home they would struggle to adjust to a Britain that was beginning to change while many in power tried to keep things exactly the same as they had been.

Today the Empire is long gone, children are no longer forced into such inhumane work conditions in this country at least but we are still ruled by selfish greedy fools desperate to drag the country back to an era of cruelty and despair for the masses. It has been a rough decade for many under their rule and things are looking to get worse, I can only hope that the people of this country will not let that happen.

Our investigation tonight will try to solve the unusual disappearances that have been happening at this long abandoned building since nineteen fifty one, hopefully we'll find something to help us solve this mystery and hopefully bring the disappearances to an end” Lights from the cameras and wrist torches click on, Irene loves these wrist torches, it makes her think of Star Trek.

“And in we go” Andi mummers as they enter the building.

~~

Protector~ 1928:

Another small coffin in the ground, another young life gone. A young girl of barely four years, she had been playing in the front garden of the orphanage when Mr. Harington's carriage had pulled up. The child had been so trusting only to be thrown under the wheels out of malicious intent when Elizabeth has demanded that he leave and the horses whipped into action, the child's head had fractured and burst open within seconds. Death had been quick.

Barely four years old and no one but those at the orphanage cared, she was just another nothing as far as Harington and his friends were concerned. He had even laughed at her death.

He was a monster, he and his friends, all monsters.

She stayed behind at the grave site after everyone else left, she watched the hole be filled in and she fought back her tears. She would cry later but right now she needed to burn this into her heart, a young life had been murdered because she had refused one of the most powerful men in the city. She wasn't sure how much more of this she could endure, she was doing all she could for the children but they were being murdered and their murderer was being allowed to do so with impunity.
This couldn't keep going on, Harington was willing to kill to get his way.

“Miss Kins” Him, how dare he come here.

“Leave, you murdered her, leave!” A laboured deep breath and equally laboured exhale, his cane tapping on the ground.

“Consider my offer, Miss Kins, I always get my way” Her fists close and open, her anger was building and she was struggling to keep it in check.

“LEAVE!” He staggers back a little at her outburst, he could see the rage in her eyes.

“Very well, I will meet you again later. Miss Kins” He tips his hat and leaves, his breathing and cane the loudest sounds in the graveyard. How dare he come here.

“I'm so sorry, little one, I failed you” She whispers as she turns back to the now filled grave, a small marker with the child's name and her date of birth and death being all that indicated that she had even lived if only for a short time.

“I'm so sorry”

~~

Investigation~ 2021:

The building is silent with only their footsteps to be heard as they echo within the empty space. No rubbish anywhere, no trace that anyone has been here in a long time, even the wind seems to avoid entering.

Holding a thermometer up to a wrist torch and studying it carefully, Andi checks the ambient temperature before saying anything.

“Oddly cool in here, not cold like it is outside. The temperature in here is comfortable which doesn't seem right” Looking around slowly so to try and cover as much as possible in the cameras, both women slowly walk farther in with Irene holding a spirit box in her left hand and checking it periodically.

“So an unusual temperature when it should be cold, no trace that anyone's even been here. It's like someone's been going around cleaning. Andi, some history on the place if you will while we move slowly in” Andi opens her lap top, all of her collected historical information on the building popping up just as she had left it when she had closed the lap top.

“Okay, in 1916 an orphanage was opened by a Miss Elizabeth Kins, she was nicknamed Nanny as she used to work as a nanny for a well to do family. They had supported her opening the orphanage and provided all the funding required, the intention of the orphanage was to provide support and care for the children who had lost their families to the harsh working conditions of the era.

She had been inspired to open the orphanage when a child who's mother was dying had begged Miss Kins for help when she was having a lunch break, she had tried to help the child's mother but the mother died in her arms. The child died minutes later from an infection that hadn't been treated, this was before the NHS existed. The mother couldn't afford medical care.

The orphanage was opposed by many men in power at the time, they claimed that her efforts to help those children was a threat to their profits. They saw the children as expendable workers to be forced to work to death for the glory of the Empire and their dreams of avarice.
One man in particular, a Mr. Anders Harington, would take to harassing Miss Kins for over a decade until her death in nineteen thirty one. After her death the orphanage was torn down and the children taken to live a life of forced labour until the child labour laws were passed in nineteen thirty eight, by then Harington had disappeared without a trace. The second world war was kicking off at the time as well.
This building has stood abandoned since nineteen fifty one and other than an unusual string of disappearances it has been left alone” Andi closes her lap top after saving her research while Irene looks around more.

“I honestly dread to think of the pain and suffering that must have occurred here in it's hey day” Irene mummers. “So many lives forced to work to literal death for nothing more than the greed of the few and an empire that was in it's final decades” Andi sniffs the air, stopping in mid step.

“Can you smell baby powder?”

~~

Protector~ 1929:

A room full of pomposity in it's element, so many men in expensive clothing looking at her with such disdain as if she didn't belong there. But then women weren't generally allowed in the Houses Of Parliament.

“Lords of the house, I ask this for the sake of those who have no voice. Please desist in the harassment that you bring upon me and my orphanage because of your lust for more money. Mr. Harington has killed several of my children and made it very clear that he will not cease in his harassment, so I must ask that you stop him. Surely not all of you are comfortable with what he is doing” The men only glare at her, their state one of unmitigated hatred at a woman being in their bastion of manhood.

“Remove this woman from the chambers immediately!” A man demands from one of the seats. They weren't going to listen, as usual.

“Miss Kins, we are aware of what Mr. Harington is doing but we can not tell him to stop. He is within his right after all” Of course he is, one rule for the rich while everyone else had to obey thousands of rules designed to oppress them.

“So you will do nothing, you will not stop the harassment. I am trying to help those in need and he is killing them at will for his own sick pleasure. How is this acceptable behaviour? He needs to stop” Hands grab her arms and begin pulling her out of the chamber.

“HOW IS IT ACCEPTABLE TO DISMISS THE LIVES OF THE MANY? DO ANY OF YOU EVEN HAVE SOULS!”

But none of them listen, they never do.

~~

Investigation~2021:

Irene sniffs the air, there was definitely a smell of baby powder, it was getting stronger.

“At least it isn't burnt toast” Andi looks at her with a sideways glance. “Sorry, inappropriate humour” The air starts to feel different, almost cozy while the baby powder smell gets even stronger.
Irene shines her wrist torch over to a doorway as a shape starts to form, it begins to take on a feminine appearance.

“Who are you?” Irene asks as the shape solidifies to show a women in her mid to late thirties.

~~

Protector~ 1930:

A final gurgle and soft rattle in the throat, another young life gone in her arms. Harington stands over her with a snide grin on his face.

“Consider my offer, Miss Kins” A young boy of about seven years old, he loved auto-mobiles and hoped to own one some day if he could ever afford to. Now he was another dead child, Harington had shot him as a message to Elizabeth when he came round to push his demands.

“Please stop killing my children!” Harington bends down as best as his avarice created bulk will allow, his eyes cold.

“No, Miss Kins. They are expendable, you will give in to my demands” Tears fall into the dead child's face, he had hoped so strongly so have an auto-mobile when he was older. Now he would never be older.

“Never, leave now!” Cruelty with impunity, murderous intent in the name of profits. And no one cared.

~~

Investigation~ 2021:

The woman before them is so prim and proper, yet has an almost modern stance to her as if she's learning how to fit into the current times while maintaining older times.

She is slim and about the same height as Andi at five foot four, she doesn't seem threatening at all. If anything she comes across as warm and kind.

“Hello. I am Miss Elizabeth Kins, but those who know me well call me Nanny. You are not here like the others are, you weren't drawn here. I suppose you must be here out of curiosity instead as neither of you is really broken, scarred within yes but not broken. Not like those I help” The woman takes note of the equipment that the woman have with them, she doesn't seem startled by it, if anything she seems intrigued.

“I see, you are here to learn about what I do. How interesting” She steps towards them.

~~

Protector~ 1931:

The gates were closed and secured, they had to be as Harington was outside with an assorted collection of rough looking men.

“Miss Kins, you will open these gates or we will use force. I have lost my patience with your resistance, those children belong to the state and they must be put to work. You will obey the law” The children behind her with her staff, Elizabeth stands her ground with her arms folded.

“No, Mr. Harington, I will not” He nods to one of his men who unpacks a mortar, adjusting it's aim.

“Be reasonable, Miss Kins, you can not stand before the law. Those children must work, that is their lot in life, all they exist for. You will abide by the rule of law!” She looks over at the mortar, she couldn't do anything but there had to be someone out there willing to help. This couldn't be allowed to happen!

“Please don't do this, this is their home! They are my children!” A heavy sound indicates that the mortar is loaded.

“Very well. Fire” A loud sound like something being ejected from a tube can be heard and part of the orphanage explodes, debris falling to the ground as the staff pull children to safety.

“PLEASE STOP!” The sound of a lorry around the corner furthest from the men and Harington lifts a hand, the lorry slams into the gate buckling it enough so that he can walk in.

“No, Miss Kins, I think not” His cane snaps up and a blade shoots out, he thrusts it into her chest hard. “These children are mine, you are only a lowly woman who has worn out her welcome and her stay of execution” He pushes the cane up causing Elizabeth to gasp in pain, she can hear the children and staff screaming in horror.
“Just die, Miss Kins, you should have respected me and my position in life. Good bye” He pulls the cane and lets her fall to the ground, her hands weakly to her chest as the blood flows out down her clothing onto the cold stone.

“My...children” She whispers, her eyes fixed on them one last time before darkness takes her.

“Gentlemen, acquire my acquisitions if you will!” The screams increase in volume but Elizabeth can no longer hear them.

~~

Investigation~ 2021:

Both women step back as Elizabeth steps towards them, Andi holding out a cross and feeling a little silly about it.

“I am not going to hurt you. I can sense that you are not like the others who have come here, you do not need resetting. I will have to adjust your memories though as I really do not want you to remember being here, plus your equipment will not maintain anything you have on me. I have spent many years watching, observing, learning. I know what has happened in the years since my death and I have seen the march of technological progress. I can ensure that I will not be exposed, You are safe as I have no reason to reset you, I will answer questions but you will not remember the answers nor asking the questions” Andi is literally shaking as she holds the cross, Irene though senses that this Elizabeth was telling the truth. She lowers her camera slowly.

“Okay, then why are you making people disappear?” Elizabeth smiles softly, her gaze a little sad as she addresses Irene.

“Because they were dying”

~~

Nanny~1937:

He ignores the reports of the children and adults who have died like he always has for years, he doesn't care about inferiors. His attention is instead of his ever increasing wealth at the cost of their suffering, the destruction of the orphanage near seven years ago had increased his wealth tenfold. It had filled his heart with joy to see those worthless children toiling away for his pleasure.

He was living the family dream.

He doesn't notice a shadow starting to form on the other side of his office, nor the air seem to become cooler in temperature. His attention was elsewhere, at least until a small feminine cough causes him to jump. He looks up to see the impossible, Elizabeth Kins standing before his desk.

“Hello, Mr. Harington” Her voice seems distant yet present, her eyes are cold yet warm at the same time. It's like she is there but how could that be, she is dead and buried in that graveyard for children that she had commissioned. He had felt it fitting to dump her body in a grave there without a headstone.

“It can't be you, I killed you!”

“Yes, you did. I felt my blood flow from my chest, I felt the cold stone, I felt my life end. I am very dead” Harington tries to form a cross with his fingers bus his panic causes him to fall out of his chair instead.

“Back, spirit, you have no power here!” Elizabeth shakes her head with a soft smile on her lips.

“I have more power than you, in a sense I always did but I was bound by corrupt laws and rules. I am no longer bound to those. I have been watching you and I am disgusted by what you have done, my children suffer and die for your greed, they cry for freedom but you are deaf to those cries! You took their shelter from them and gave them chains, you took their futures from them and gave them an early grave” She walks through the desk to stand over the cowering man, his cheeks flushed with fear.

“Leave me, spirit!” Elizabeth bends down to look him in the face.

“No, Mr. Harington, not without administering your punishment. From this day forth you will be what you despise, you will be trapped in a new life only able to observe, only able to watch while your new life lives her life and never, ever, dreams of avarice. And this will happen from life to life, always observing, always watching but never interacting, never living a new life ever again. Eternity as nothing but a weak shadow in the dark recesses of someone else's mind” Pain begins to kick in all over Harington's body as it begins to undergo changes, his weight melts away within seconds as his genitals shrink and invert. Facial and body hair disappear, hair grows and his features soften to a more feminine appearance.
Within a moment a grown woman is there Harington used to be and the changes don't stop there, she begins to shrink as her features become younger, her body slipping backwards in development to a young child. Soon there is only a baby girl who is gently picked up by Elizabeth.

“Welcome to the shadows, Mr. Harington”

~

Less than an hour later one of the few respectable orphanages receives a baby girl at their doorstep. Harington can only watch in horror as this life matures over the years, never becoming rich but always happy with what she has. He tries to scream, to be heard, but he no longer has a voice. He is only a shadow of a life that is soon forgotten.

~~

Investigation~2021:

Curious about Elizabeth's words, Irene presses her for farther information.

“What do you mean by they were dying?” Andi hasn't moved at all, she's still holding the cross up.

“They were not dying in a physical sense but more in a soul sense, I could hear them crying for the pain to end. The first was a solider who fought in the war that occurred some years after I had died, they had fought and seen so much death, they had tried to be what society had demanded of them. They returned home unlike so many others and the pain only got stronger, it was straining their relationship with their family.

So I called them to this place, I appeared in their dreams and offered them hope. I gave them a new life, a new start. They were able to be the girl and the woman they knew themselves to truly be and I called out to others, not always trans people, I sought those who couldn't keep living and I gave them a reset. I am always there for the children” Elizabeth examines Irene's face for a moment before softly smiling again. “I see, she had grandchildren. The first I reset, she had a child young who also had a child young. I did not expect to meet any of her grandchildren. It is very nice to meet you” Reaching out a hand Elizabeth takes a step towards them.
“I will not hurt you but I must make sure that you do not remember me, I have already distorted your equipment so all records of me are lost. I need to do this, for the children” A soft bright light fills the building.

“It was very nice to meet you”

~

The car sputters to life and almost stops before gaining a second wind, it refused to die.

“So I guess we can call that a bust” Irene remarks as she pulls away from the old workhouse.

“Yep, equipment's fried and we didn't see anything. I just want to go home, get dressed for bed, have a pee and go to bed” Irene shifts a little uncomfortably, her pad needed changing soon.

“I need to get this pad changed, I'll drop you off and head home. See you tomorrow?”

“Sure, I'll take you something for your cravings, I know how you get”

“Then tally ho for home”

~

Elizabeth watches them leave, she hadn't wanted to alter their memories of encountering her but she still had much to do for those who needed a reset.

She can already hear another so close, someone who was not going to last without help. She had to be there for the children, the ones who yearned to live.

That was her only calling, her only reason to stay around.

Always there for the children.

~~

She dreams of being trapped forever within a prison that wasn't her, the horror of never having the strength to break free. Trapped forever in an ill-fitting body.

“Hello” A gentle voice speaks to her in her dream. “You can call me Nanny, let me help”

Always there for the children.