Alejandra’s chair creaked softly as she settled her weight back into it, the laptop screen throwing a faint, bluish glow across her tired face. In the dim hush of her studio, the only other sound was the delicate clink of the fork Charity tried to lift with both hands, the tiny girl nibbling at scraps of fried egg as if each crumb might vanish if she didn’t hoard it fast enough.
For a moment, Alejandra simply watched her. Watched how the once unshakeable Miss Stevens , the girl who had once tossed Alejandra’s tip envelope on the marble counter without a glance, now burrowed so deep into her old hoodie she looked like a child lost in her mother’s coat. The faintest tremor still chased over her shoulders despite the warmth. A little creature shivering in the seams of her borrowed safety.
Funny, Alejandra thought dryly, flicking her gaze back to the laptop’s login prompt. This gringa used to tell me what floor cleaner to use on marble. Now she shakes if I take my hoodie away.
But the joke lost its flavor fast. There was too much at stake now, not just for Charity, but for Alejandra herself. She had worked too damn hard to let this unexpected complication yank her back into shadows she’d crawled out of once before.
She drummed her fingers once on the table, callused fingertips making soft thumps against the battered wood, then typed out the familiar web address:
registro.smallara.mx
The Mexican Smallara Registry page loaded with its crisp corporate seal and pastel-colored menu. Its slogans always made Alejandra snort: Protegiendo su CER. Resguardando su futuro.
Protecting your Little. Guarding your future.
It sounded so noble, but it was really about making sure the right people got paid.
She leaned her elbow on the table and rested her forehead on her knuckles for a moment. In Sonora, they’d been managing Smallara for years. No one in her town worried about “catching it” anymore. Babies were tested the minute they wailed their first cry; those who tested “vulnerable” never went home with their mothers. That cruelty happened behind soft glass doors and quiet clinics, polite but final.
Here in the States? Money talked and old bloodlines thought they were untouchable. Well… they weren’t.
Alejandra’s eyes flicked sideways again. Charity was licking grease off her fingers now, her hair limp and stuck to her forehead. A spark of something mean flickered through Alejandra’s chest before she tamped it down. No. Not mean, just practical. She didn’t owe Charity any fantasy of control. Not anymore.
She clicked “Registrar un peque hallado.”
The form bloomed open in seconds. Her Mexican National ID number was muscle memory; she typed her father’s home address by instinct, Calle Jacarandas, Sonora, her childhood street, where the cracked cement smelled like dust and corn tortillas every Sunday.
She typed Charity Stevens into the Nombre Original Humano box.
Paused.
A grin tugged briefly at her lips, more disbelief than malice, then she typed Charity Jiménez under Nombre Legal CER. Hers now. Legally as she entered in the remaining details.
She could almost feel the weight shifting in the room, as if the very walls acknowledged this new reality: that a girl once bigger than life was now smaller than a housecat in a foreign hoodie, and legally registered to the undocumented maid who once scrubbed her floors.
The system took seconds. The final screen flickered: “Registro completado con éxito.” Then the confirmation pinged her inbox.
Alejandra clicked open the email, her eyes scanning the official Spanish, words she could read as easily as breathing:
Estado de Custodia: Asignada a Residencia Particular. En revisión administrativa del estatus de guardián (24 a 48 horas).
Done.
Her mind thrummed with a quiet, vicious clarity. Even if ICE came tomorrow and dragged her back across the border in handcuffs, they’d have to send Charity with her. Registered as her Little. Mexican law didn’t care where the virus first touched your cells, once documented there, you were Mexican property.
She leaned back, the old chair groaning again before standing up and heading back over to her old sofa. As she sat back down, she saw Charity’s small form looking up at her from within her hoodie.
“…Alejandra..” Charity started to say the food giving her a bit more strength but she couldn’t yet find her voice.
Alejandra didn’t answer immediately. She took a slow breath, letting the comforting smell of egg and cheap oil calm the sudden racing of her pulse. She stared at the girl burrowed in her hoodie, a little wraith whose eyes, once so sharp with casual cruelty, now looked like a cornered stray dog.
She leaned in close enough that her words would sink in, Spanish accent wrapping around each syllable like silk and steel at once:
“I did what you never thought I could do, Patrona. You’re mine now. And we gonna do this my way.”
Her voice was calm, almost tender, but behind it, years of poverty, crossed borders, and nights sleeping on bus benches whispered one promise: This time, life answers to me.
Full Email:
From: registro@smallara.mx
To: AJimenez@genmail.com
Subject: Confirmación de Registro — Charity Stevens
Estimado(a) Guardián Autorizado,
Le informamos que el siguiente Ciudadano de Escala Reducida (CER) ha sido registrado exitosamente en el Registro Smallara México, bajo la supervisión de Generitech® y conforme a las Normas Federales de Protección CER vigentes.
📌 Datos del CER:
- Nombre Humano Original: Charity Stevens
- Nombre Legal CER: Charity Jiménez
- Nombre Común Registrado (Pet Name): Patrona
- ID Smallara: MX-SM-0098216
- Estatura Registrada: 13.843 cm
- Estado de Custodia: Asignada a Residencia Particular — En revisión administrativa del estatus de guardián (24 a 48 horas)
- Zona de Registro: Ciudad de México, Delegación Benito Juárez
Acciones Siguientes:
- El proceso de revisión administrativa de su estatus como guardián oficial se completará en un plazo estimado de 24 a 48 horas.
- Mantenga a su CER disponible para validación o inspección si el inspector Smallara lo requiere.
- Para verificar o actualizar información adicional, acceda a su panel de control en registro.smallara.mx.
¿Necesita ayuda?
Contáctenos a través de nuestro Centro de Soporte Smallara 24/7:
☎️ 01-800-SMALLARA
📧 soporte@smallara.mx
Gracias por su cooperación.
Registro Smallara México
Administrado por Generitech®
Protegiendo su CER. Resguardando su futuro.
Well damn charity going to Mexico wow that’s something
Damn. Kinda wanted this but at the same time kinda worried for her. I wonder if she might get caught and noticed by Sarah or Chloe but can’t do anything. I think as they both get older Charity and Al might learn to get along but it’s kinda nuts how simple it was for the Mexican side. But I also wonder what happens to littles in Mexico. It seems like a different kind of cold.
Huh didn’t think it was that easy to register a little.
Different country different process. It’s talked about more in a future chapter.
That makes sense.
sad. even with all she’s done i feel bad for her to end up in this situation, she’s getting hard fucked by being registered in a different country and being owned by a seemingly disgruntled employee with a chip on her shoulder. I can’t imagine this being much better than sarah
Yeah this situation is very tough and maybe it could be good for charity you never know but damn there massive dangers for her at the moment
I’m sure we’ll see in the upcoming chapters, but I don’t even think Al gets any of charity’s assets because of being registered in Mexico. If she was on a visa or had her greencard or something, I think she would be fine, but i doubt she gets anything from this now
Which makes this decision to have her more odd to me I get wanting some payback sure but what’s the benefit overall which she’ll probably at least i assume she will regret that choice of getting charity into a world where she’s even less safe and has no way of getting out and she’s responsible for her safety so it’s odd decision
thats the thing, I think she cares more about owning charity than she does about her stuff lol going through the US process requires a crap load of money either by the registering party or via a loan, neither of which she can do, Mexico might have something similar but way cheaper, but the only benefit there is that she gets charity. Al could be worse than Sarah would have been lol
Oh god that sounds insane but she does show signs of caring for charity in some way so maybe it’s a slow growth process of wanting to own her to actually care for her ( kinda like piccolo and gohan where he wanted to use gohan for his own goals to befriend and deeply care for him) so it’s gonna be interesting to see how this plays out
Like having a child when she can barely take care of herself. Doesn’t make sense.
Giant Sara would be a major step up.
As much as I love Latin woman, they have told me not good stories of the corruption and danger in their home towns and based on that I think Sara would have been a huge step up. She is a little that might go to a place where the humans live in terror. How is she going to protect 6 inch charity with her issues with heat and wild cats and dogs everywhere. And don’t get me started on food she can eat lol. I have been to Mexico more times then I can count, and there is a behind the curtain danger even in the nice areas where we would visit. Poor charity is going to wish she had a giant Sarah or her best friend that would make her a pet find her now. Fear makes you make bad decisions I guess lol. Americans that have never left the states don’t understand how lucky we are to live where we do. Even poor people in the US are rich in most other place in the world.
1) “The Mexican Smallara Registry page loaded with its crisp corporate seal and pastel-colored menu” Interesting… why the Mexican one?
2) “Babies were tested the minute they wailed their first cry; those who tested “vulnerable” never went home with their mothers. That cruelty happened behind soft glass doors and quiet clinics, polite but final.” oh that’s dark, but it’s always interesting how other countries handle it.
3) “Money talked and old bloodlines thought they were untouchable. Well… they weren’t.” that’s a universal truth.
4) “A spark of something mean flickered through Alejandra’s chest before she tamped it down. No. Not mean, just practical. She didn’t owe Charity any fantasy of control. Not anymore.” Well, it does seem a bit mean that she seems to be sending Charity to Mexico instead of leaving her in the US, not that I’m against meaness unto Charity.
5) “then she typed Charity Jiménez under Nombre Legal CER. Hers now. Legally as she entered in the remaining details” Al did it, she really did it.
6) “Done. Her mind thrummed with a quiet, vicious clarity. Even if ICE came tomorrow and dragged her back across the border in handcuffs, they’d have to send Charity with her. Registered as her Little. Mexican law didn’t care where the virus first touched your cells; once documented there, you were Mexican property.” That was quick, and apparently free. I’m really interested to see how the US and Mexico would fight over Littles.
7) “I did what you never thought I could do, Patrona. You’re mine now. And we gonna do this my way.” Damn, Al’s gonna get a lot more interesting.
8) “Name: Charity Stevens, CER Legal Name: Charity Jiménez Registered Common Name (Pet Name): Patroness” That pet name is gold.
9) “The administrative review process of your official guardian status will be completed within an estimated 24 to 48 hours.” Does Al have a guardian licence, or does Mexico not require such things?
1) She’s has reasons. It comes out in future chapters. I actually want to explain it all to you because I know your a lore guy so you will enjoy this. But I have to contain myself.
2) yup, Mexico has dealt with Smallara longer then in America. They have taken actions and have policies that reflect that. They also made decisions that made sense to them and their country and their situation. So while it may not be what the US would do or people in the us or other countries would agree with it was the decisions that made sense for them.
3) Yup. them thinking they do is also universal truth they have so its nice to see it proven wrong.
4) Well it is and it isnt.I mean it depends on how you view charity. If you find a stray dog on vacation and you decide to adopt it and take it with you. Some would view its you being generous. They wouldn’t view it as you ripping the dog from its country and what its known. So its kind of perspective is what I was creating with this.
As yes it mean when you think about your taking a person who is an American and then ripping them from everything they know. But that’s only if your looking at it from that perspective.
5) She did type the thing. I forget if I mention it but CER is Certifcado de estatus registrado or CER for short which is Certificate or Registered Status. I actually went through creating the form and everything because it seemed like something the Smallara lore scholars would be interested in.
6)Well the Mexican process is more streamlined as they have dealt with it. So it is just a process they go through. There are still costs but its done differently. You will see.
7) Its been fun seeing people debate what would happen or how it would happen. So hopefully it was worth the wait. Maybe more so once the full pictures revealed.
8) I was particularly proud of the name. Your reaction was the same reason I had when I thought of it. Its very fitting for her.
9) It will be revealed in the coming episodes of what the case is.
1&9) looking forward to it.
2) Interesting, so when was Mexico’s first case?
4) I’m definitely in the camp of she’s a person being functionally abducted and ripped from her home country. But I’m also of the opinion that Charity is a bad person for whom I don’t sympathise.
5) I did see that, it was very appreciated. (Though I had to put the whole thing through Google Translate.
6) I’m imagining less vetting and check-ups, possibly no social worker checking in on her.
7) It was, and technically, my guess of Evan or a new character was correct.
8) It’s perfect.
1) I don’t think she can use the US site because she is not a legal US citizen or worker.
2) I don’t understand the reason for the stealing baby’s from the mothers. Littles are not worth that much to rile up the people in the country. If that happed little to no one would use hospitals and would go back to midwives like many still do today.
3) Money doesn’t by health, I am a prime example. It does help get you the best equipment but your still heath still is bad. Or in their case small lol.
4) I think Al wants charity to live in her world but the problem is, where is she going to get pellets so charity will be heathy ? Again prides ugly head peaks out and instead of calling Sara or her friend when her symptoms started, she didn’t and now she is off to wither away from malnutrition or death by a ally cat or rat based on Al’s description of her home.
6) Al is showing a darker more possessive side to owning a rich American girl. It will be interesting what Al will make her do to earn her keep. I am guessing there are no little safety laws like in the US. there would be no money to pay for it.
7) Like many humans that have had no power in their life, they get a little and they get a God complex.
8) Well it all sounds good on paper, but so far I don’t think she understands what it takes to keep a little safe and heathy. Its a pain for rich kids, what’s a girl basically on the run with little money and losing one of her good paying jobs going to do?
9) I am guessing there is no guardian classes, I am guessing just a online course and you pay small fee for a license like for a car and that’s it. Most country’s don’t have the money to pay for the 70% of government red tape the US and Europe have. So everything is cheaper or not there at all because nobody would pay it. I learned this the hard way working with locals all over the world and looking stupid asking if I had to do X lol.