Ladle sniffled once more, wiping his face on his sleeve. He had to stop crying and be strong. His father would not have wanted him to weep.

"Stop crying, boy! Have a taught you nothing? Stand up and face your challenge with your head held high and your pride as great as ever." his father's voice echoed through his head.

Ladle stood up, trying to stand tall. No more tears. No more useless emotions. He was going to be strong and carry on. His father would have wanted that.

Just then there was a growling noise. Startled, Ladle jumped in surprise before realizing the sound had come from his own insides. The child knew that whenever his stomach made noises like that it meant he was either hungry or thirsty. His father had always provided food for him but his father was gone now. Usually it was water, but every once in a while, it would be other things like fish or apples. The namekian child preferred water over anything but he didn't mind nibbling on other things every now and again.

Ladle looked around once more. He had no idea where to go so he began walking forwards. Anything was better than sitting by a rock all day because he certainly wasn't gonna find any food or water that way. As he walked, the young child looked around. This planet was so different then his home world. Why was the sky blue instead of green and the grass green instead of blue? It was all so confusing to him.

Finally, after walking for what felt like hours, Ladle happened to stumble upon an odd looking place with lots of big buildings and metal things that moved. There where also weird, tan colored creatures that were different shapes and sizes. Some were dark and some were light. They had hair and weird clothing on. Some didn't even have hair at all. Unknown to Ladle, the young Namekian child had run across a city. Although he was a bit frighten by all the hustle and bustle going around the place, he continued on, entering the place. As soon as he entered the city, he was nearly run over by one of those metal things when Ladle strayed off the sidewalk. The driver honked the horn angrily as it nearly swerved out of control.

"Hey! Watch where your going, freak show!" the driver yelled in an irritated voice.

Ladle's eyes widened as he scrambled back onto the side walk before another car could come by. Well, he had discovered one thing at least. Stay out of the road to avoid cars or "giant metal things," as Ladle called them. Ladle walked on, not sure where to go. He tried to stay out of the natives way but this was difficult with so many around. Occasionally, Ladle would get a weird look or two and some people would even point and say something like "What's that green kid doing?" and other things as well. This made Ladle uncomfortable as he scurried along.

Eventually, Ladle decided it was best to stay hidden. He didn't like all the attention he was getting so he kept to the shadows. Ladle's stomach growled again. He wasn't having much luck finding a water source or any food for that matter. Suddenly something caught his eye. As the young Namekian child peeked out from behind a garbage can from an alley way, he spotted a building. The building wasn't what got his attention though. It was the cart in front of the building. Right beside the entrance to the place was a cart, filled to the brim with bright, red apples. There were other carts and shelves scattered about on the outside of the place filled with other various fruits and things but these Ladle didn't recognize.

Ladle was starting to get an idea. He would just take a few apples from the cart and use them as a source of food. He had to admit to himself that he would prefer to drink water instead but it was better than nothing. Besides, there were tons of apples up there and if they belonged to anybody they surely wouldn't miss a few right? Ladle sure didn't think so. The young Namek had made up his mind. He was gonna take some of those apples for himself.

With his mind made up, Ladle moved forward, heading for the apple cart. It wasn't long before he reached his destination. Eager to sink his teeth into an apple or two, he jumped up, attempting to reach what he had come for. Due to his small height and him being so young, he couldn't quite reach the apples. Ladle was so busy trying to reach the apples that he failed to notice that he had unwillingly been spotted. The man who owned the apples was looking out the window when he spotted Ladle trying to steal them and this did not make him happy.

"Hey! Green kid! Stay away from my produce!" Ladle heard a voice shout. Startled, Ladle looked about, wondering where the voice had come from. The voice had come from none other than the man himself, who was walking towards Ladle with an angry look on his face. He clutched a broom in his hand, which startled Ladle even more.

"I'll give you five seconds to step away from my produce." the man growled, stopping in front of the Namekian child. Ladle froze where he stood as his eyes grew wide with fear.

"P-please d-don't hurt me, S-sir." Ladle stuttered. He began to back away, afraid of getting hurt.

"That's right, little man. Just back it up. You thought you could just walk over here and steal my produce? Well, let me tell you something, kid, you thought wrong." he snapped in an aggravated voice. Ladle was confused. Steal his produce? What did that mean exactly? The man edged closer, broom in hand.

"What are you stupid? Go on! Scram! Get outta here, you no good thief. Your not welcomed here." The man yelled. Ladle's eyes filled with tears. He tried to stay strong and not shed any tears but he just couldn't help himself. Why was everyone so mean to him? What was he doing wrong? The man's words reminded the child of what his father had said to him before he abandoned him.

"You are a disgrace to me, boy. And, Don't even think about coming back for if you do, I'll simply dispose of you in another way." The words echoed through his head along with the other cruel words his father had said to him before he left. Ladle looked away, tears streaming down his cheeks.

"I'm sorry! I didn't know. I..." Ladle trailed off, unable to finish his sentence. He then turned and ran away from the man, crying silently to himself as he refused to look back. The man's face softened a bit. He didn't mean to make the child cry, he was just sick of all the street kids trying to steal his produce. It happened more than one would think in such a large city.

"Hey kid! Wait a second." the man called but it was too late. Ladle had already disappeared into the alleyway from which he had come from. The little child crouched down beside the trash can he had been hiding behind before, burying his face into his knees.

"I'm sorry, daddy. I just couldn't stay strong like you would have wanted me to. I've failed you." he thought to himself. Just then, footsteps could be heard coming his way. Ladle looked up, scared of what he might find. To his surprise, it was the man from the apple stand holding an apple in his hand.

"Here. Take this." the man said, holding the apple out to Ladle. The young child edged towards the man, reaching out cautiously to take the apple. Once the apple was in his hand, Ladle took a few steps back.

"W-why are you giving this to me?" Ladle asked nervously. The man sighed.

"Look kid, I'm sorry I snapped at ya. I just can't have kids taking my produce all the time." the man explained. Ladle looked up at the man, grateful for his kind actions.

"Th-thank you! I'm sorry for the trouble I've caused." Ladle replied, looking down at his bare feet. The man gave a smile.

"Don't mention it kid. Just don't get used to it alright? Because I'm not one to constantly give away free produce." he said. Ladle looked up at the man.

"Ok." he replied with a shy smile of his own.

With that, the man gave a nod and left, leaving Ladle, once again alone in the alleyway.