A Strange New World [Chapter XVI]

[Tenjou, Utena]

Laura saw the flashing red and blue lights of a police vehicle in her rear view mirror where Miracle had gone, an worried expression washed over her face as she stepped out of the car and ran over to where the police officer was speaking with Miracle.
"What's wrong? What happened?"
Laura knelt down beside Miracle and looked her over.
"Did these people hurt you?" she asked, referring to the surrounding poor people before turning back to the officer. "Did someone hurt her?"

[Miracle]

"What's wrong? What happened?"

"Settle down, ma'am."

"Did these people hurt you? Did someone hurt her?"

"I'm fine."

"I said settle down... I just need to know where the child found all this bread."

"And I already told you."

"Right... This your kid, ma'am?"

[Tenjou, Utena]

"She's in my care, yes."
Laura looked to the bread still in Miracle's hand and then looked around to try to find a hint of where she could have gotten it but everyone around them had bread in their hands and everyone around them were eating it and happy. What was the problem?
"Miracle, do you mind telling me where you got the bread, hon? You didn't have it in the car."

[Miracle]

"Miracle, do you mind telling me where you got the bread, hon? You didn't have it in the car."

"God."

Answered the child.

"I got the bread from God and I used it to feed the others."

"You see my problem, ma'am?"

"Yes. You have no faith."

[Tenjou, Utena]

"Look, officer. I don't know how she got this really but it's clear all she was trying to do was help the needy. Here--" Laura took the remaining loaves of bread and gave them to the cop. "You can take this and try to track down the owner."

[Miracle]

"Thanks for your cooperation, ma'am."

Said the police officer as he took back the remaining loaves of bread.

"You're free to go."

The police officer took his leave, suspecting that one of these poor people must have stolen the food and the child got involved from there. Once the officer was out of ear shot, the High Priestess turned back to Laura and spoke:

"You leave your poor to starve on the street and your law enforcement reprimands you when you feed them. Why?"

[Tenjou, Utena]

Laura was caught off guard by Miracle's question clearly not expecting it and more than a little insulted that the girl was implying they left their poor to starve to death.
"It's not that simple, Miracle. We can't just go around feeding the poor like this. There isn't enough food for everyone and the cop was just trying to do his job."

[Miracle]

"It's not that simple, Miracle."

"Why not?"

"We can't just go around feeding the poor like this."

"I did."

"There isn't enough food for everyone"

"I had enough."

"and the cop was just trying to do his job."

"He cared more about the food than the people eating it..."

[Tenjou, Utena]

Miracle was proving to be a stubborn child. Laura was pretty stubborn herself evident by the fact she had opened her mouth to argue in favor of the police officer until she closed her mouth and just looked at the child.
"Where did you get all this food?"

[Miracle]

"Where did you get all this food?"

"From the Lord."

Replied the High Priestess as she headed back for the car.

"I thought this was supposed to be a nation under God?"

Miracle opened up the passenger's side car door and buckled herself back inside the car seat as she looked out the window to Laura.

"Come. We still need to close that rift."

[Tenjou, Utena]

Laura didn't say anything in response to the child's latest statement about the rift as she reentered into the driver's seat, still convinced that once she saw the concealed area where the portal lied that she would give up this silly notion that there was an actual danger there. Starting up the car they drove down to the woods which was sealed off with 'Caution: Quarantine Area' in black and yellow all around with guards to boot. Stopping the car at the side of the woods that led to the road, Laura took out a pair of binoculars and handed them to Miracle.
"You should be able to see it just fine from here. Sorry, this is the best I can do. Even with clearance I'm not allowed to bring in civilians, especially children."

[Miracle]

"You should be able to see it just fine from here. Sorry, this is the best I can do. Even with clearance I'm not allowed to bring in civilians, especially children."

"It's quite all right. Thank you."

Miracle took the binoculars and looked at them funny. Figuring she had to bring them up to her eyes she did so and looked through them, only trouble was she had looked through the side that made everything look further away than it really was as opposed to pulling it closer so she could see nothing.

"It's too far away."

Miracle lowered the binoculars and looked back at Laura.

"You need to find a way to get me closer."

[Tenjou, Utena]

Laura had to refrain from laughing when Miracle looked through the wrong side of the binoculars. She was just too cute for her own good some times. Taking the binoculars back, Laura turned it around and brought the binoculars back to Miracle's eyes.
"Try now."

[Miracle]

Miracle blushed a little when Laura corrected the positioning of the binoculars for her.

"Thank you."

The High Priestess could see much better now and was shocked at what passed for 'secured' in this world. The dimensional rift could be seen casting a dark purple light from behind the plastic curtains covering all sides of it as men in white came in and out with the guards keeping watch.

"Do you have any idea what you people are doing?"

She asked while lowering the binoculars.

"If I don't close that rift now good people are going to die."

[Tenjou, Utena]

Laura frowned at Miracle's words after seeing the quarantined area herself. So much for putting to rest the child's concerns once she saw that everything was okay.
"Miracle, what did I just say earlier? I'm not allowed to bring anyone in. I couldn't get you any closer if I wanted to it could cost me my job. That rift has been opened for a while now and nothing bad has happened so don't you think you're overreacting just a tad?"