"I like it here," says unbasket child.

"All right," says Chris. "We're going to have to give you a name eventually. Want to help me pick one?"

"Yes please. I want a good name."

"What do you think of Katie?"

"Kaaaaaytie. Yes. I like that," says, apparently, Katie.

"It's short for Katherine," says Chris, "but you don't have to use the rest unless you feel like it. Katie Kirsch. Not bad. Do you want a middle name, too? Most people have one."

"Then I should probably have one too."

"Jordana," she suggests. "Ingrid. Tara. Nicole."

"I like Tara best of those ones."

"Katherine Tara Kirsch. Sound good?"

"What's Kirsch?"

"That's our last name," she says. "You need one of those too, and you didn't come with one."

"Oh. I get the same last name but different first and middle ones?"

"That's generally how it works."

"Okay. Katherine Tara Kirsch. Katie," repeats Katie.

"Yep," says Chris. "Welcome to the family."

"Thank you," says Katie politely. "Um, what now?"

"Now," sighs Chris, "I get you a bed."

"That sounds useful," agrees Katie. "Where will it go?"

"Still thinking about that. Would you mind sharing a room with Lizbeth?"

"That would be okay. Lizbeth is nice."

"All right," says Chris.

"Will she mind?"

"Nope."

"That's good then."

"Yep."

"Will I go to school, like her?"

"Eventually. When you're approximately five instead of approximately three. Oh, you'll need a birthday too," she realizes.

"What's that?"

"Most people know what day they were born, so they can tell how old they are. I, for example, am twenty-three. My birthday is October twenty-first, in a few weeks, and then I'll be twenty-four. You don't know what day you were born, but we have to pick something or we won't know when to decide you're officially four instead of officially three. Also," she adds, "on your birthday you get cake and presents."

"Is cake food?" asks Katie dubiously. She has encountered an awful lot of not-food masquerading as food.

"I'm sure we can find you a cake that is food."

"Okay," says Katie contently. "And presents!"

"And presents," she confirms.

"I think I will like presents. Can my birthday be soon?"

"Well, I'll need some time to figure out what to get you," she says. "And Christmas is coming up in a few months. You'll get presents then too."

"So many present days!"

"Yep," says Chris. "And lucky you, you get to pick whether to have them close together so you get your presents all at once, or farther apart so you don't have to go as long without getting any."

"Are there other present days besides birthday and Christmas?"

"Nope."

"Hmmmmm. I think far apart, then."

"All right. Sometime in the summer. How's June sound? June... sixteenth."

"Okay!"

Chris smiles.

"What kinda presents will I get?"

"Don't know yet," says Chris. "I know what to get Lizbeth, but you are a mystery."

"I am kind of mysterious," muses Katie. "I wonder how to stop."

"I'm sure we'll get to know you."

Katie nods thoughtfully. "What does Lizbeth get for presents?"

"Books. Toys. Puzzles. Trips to interesting places. Last year—" she stumbles over the words, abruptly less cheerful "—last year we took her to a museum and she really liked it."

"Me and her mom," she says quietly.

Katie doesn't ask another question, but she looks at Chris steadily, in case there is more about to be said.

"What happened?"

"A car hit her. I don't like to talk about it much."

"Samantha."

"That's a pretty name," says Katie earnestly.

"Yeah," says Chris.

"Should I not ask more things about her?"

"That would be nice of you," says Chris.

Katie doesn't say anything else.

They could stay like that for a while, then.

"Can I," asks Katie after a while, "ask you why you don't like talking about her?"

"Because I miss her a lot."

"Why does that make you not want to though?"

"If you don't know, I really can't explain," she says, shaking her head and looking away.

Katie thinks some more.

"I'm gonna make dinner," says Chris.

"Is it food?"

"Ostensibly."

"I'll just have carrots, I think."

"Fine by me."