gasp!!!! i'm back X3 i think i'll make this like kumo, in small chapters instead of just five ne. sound okay? hope so, cause i have so many other stories to work on, i dont have time for giant chapter books right now... sucks. so, please deal with that if you will, its not outa laziness, its cause i have like... seven other unfinished stories that i havent even neared completing. only kumo and to eat another are near their endings. so yeah. plus, i do hava life, however small it may be. so i gotta lot to do daily, and writers block and attempting to think up what happens next.

so sorry bout that ne.

aaand, heres a bit on the current AU in my story. everything is the same, but its different as well ne. we'll start with the puppets so you can get that, then the world in this. one step ata time ne?

puppets:

generaly, puppets in this, are just like ones in our world. however, they can be brought to a false life with special jewels. you need four emeralds to make their limbs work(the strength in each limb depends on the jewel placed on them) and one ruby to bring them to life. without the ruby, they cannot even move, regaurdless of weather or not a emerald is equiped to them. so, for example: luke could have just the ruby and be "alive". but he cannot have just the emeralds and not the ruby. make sense?

thats the jewels.

now, to equip those jewels, you need to have puppets with slots fit to hold the jewels, sorta like a fon slot i guess. the jewel slots are located on each finger pad, the sole of the foot, and at the base of the neck. the ruby is known as a heart jewel for this reason, as its almost directly over where a heart would be, and because it gives the puppet life. however, the jewels do not grant any sort of real life. what you get will be a zombie like minion to serve as long as it is you who puts in that jewel.

any questions?

anyways, on we go. hope i didnt confuse you to much.

(an hour before)

It was dimly lit in the workshop, illuminating a blond who hunched over a limb, a screw driver and several other tools around him. Gai had been at this for almost three hours, but he had fixed three out of four limbs so far, even getting around to re knitting the jean-like material of the puppet's clothing, and getting a maid to wash it's hair for him while he worked. He hadn't left the room for almost three hours, but he was proud of his work. Tear had told him that this was one of Van's puppets, and that was enough to inspire him to fix it.

But the actual puppet seemed to be a mystery to him, to be honest. Even as Gai repaired a foot and a wrist, he found no jewel slots, instead, he had found deep holes with latches over them. Inside the bag full of jewels, the blond had found thick plastic covers that covered these holes, and he was amazed. Van may have made a way to completely guard the jewels from ever being needed to be replaced. It was every puppet master's dream to create a method such as this, a way to keep the rare emeralds and heart rubies from wearing down and being smashed after a while. It was amazing, that the plastic slipped perfectly smoothly over the holes, as if it wasn't even there.

Certainly something no one had been able to do as of yet. Plastic itself was a relatively new material, and many found it difficult to work with. It didnt shatter like glass, but it bent either to easily or not easily enough. It was hard to make anything like plastic smooth like glass, without anything amiss. It greatly intrigued Gai.

The maid had finished washing and brushing out the now soft and damp crimson hair that had previously been so dirty it looked more brown than red. It splayed out on a towel, drying out and carefully being tended to to make it glossy as it should have been when it wasn't dirty. The puppet's head had been removed to allow washing, but Gai made sure it was encased it cloth up to the strands of blondish roots. Wood was easily destroyed if exposed to water when it was as vulnerable as it was now.

No gloss, no smooth surfaces, the head didnt need any more damage.

Once the body had been reassembled, Gai focused on putting the head back on (he had finished fixing it after it was washed) the neck. It fit snugly. With a few screws and a twist, the head sat on like a real one should. The puppet was clothed, fixed, and ready to have it's jewels put back it. The four emeralds fit snugly in the holes, and the plastic fit tightly in, holding the gems in place and guarding them. The ruby, he examined, fit in slightly differently.

After turning it sideways and then pushing the plastic slide over it, Gai sat back and waited for the doll to come to life. Its dull glass eyes suddenly lit up, inhuman, yet human. They glowed like they were real, and the wood took on a slightly more peach color. Blinking, the puppet shook his head gently, careful not to fall over before lifting a hand to his head and rubbing it gently.

"Ow... that hurt." He murmured, emotion filling his voice.

The blond man blinked, surprised at how the doll spoke on its own and without a command. Whats more, was that its voice didnt hold the empty tone it should. Interesting. As the puppet stood up, he wobbled precariously, swaying as if his joints were loose. When it seemed like the doll would fall over, Gai extended a hand and caught him as he toppled. The redheaded doll blinked, glancing at the warm hand that cradled his torso and the back of his legs curiously. He hadn't noticed Gai until now.

"Woah there, careful! I spent forever fixing you, dont go falling over like that." Gai admonished gently.

Pushing away from the hand, the puppet wobbled slightly before standing straight on his shoed feet, glaring slightly at the blond. Who the hell was he to tell him what to do? Crossing his arms, the redhead sniffed, nose in the air.

"Don't tell me what to do." He replied with a immature pout.

Gai blinked and then smiled. "Ah, sorry. My bad."

A look of surprise crossed the doll's face as he looked up at the blond man who sat in a chair just a foot or so away from him. Letting his pout subside, the doll smiled ever so slightly at the friendly apology. Maybe this guy wasn't so bad.

"Its fine. So... where am I and who are you? Wheres Master Van?" The doll asked, not wanting to be friendly with some stranger.

Gai frowned slightly, "Your in my work shop, my name is Gai, and I dont know where Van is. And you?"

The puppet raised an eyebrow, "What about me?" He asked rudely.

"Do you have a name?"

The question was innocent enough, but he knew from the few people outside of Van he had met that it was also a dangerous question. Who knew who this "Gai" was, or what this "workshop" truly was? He was wary, but then again, he didnt sense anything sinister behind the man's friendliness. The only thing he seemed to be, was curious about him. After all, he had been made special by Van, his master, so it shouldn't be too surprising.

"Luke. Master Van calls me Luke." Luke muttered.

"Thats a nice name. Hardly ever hear that one anymore." Gai responded, a hand cupping his chin thoughtfully as he scanned the redhead over.

Indeed, names like that weren't used much anymore. He hadn't heard a name like that since his next door neighbor, Florian, had died of illness. It just wasn't popular to name children in old world languages anymore. Gai smiled slightly, remembering his other neighbor, a dear friend of his that had gone missing one day about seven or eight years ago. Hadn't his name been Luke as well?

Luke now was wandering aimlessly around the table, avoiding knives and scissors and making his way to a bundle of cloth that had been used to fix his coat. He smiled slightly, feeling the silk under his fingers though he shouldn't. He may not have been a genius, but he knew that puppets, or anything that lacked life for that matter, shouldn't be able to feel things. He shouldn't be able to feel a tingle go through him when he touched blanket, or move as he did. Van had told him that the moment he was born.

"Your not like ordinary puppets. You can feel, you are alive. You are unique."

Unique. Thats what he was. He could think and remember things, he was stringless, so to say, and independent of humans to control him. He needed no one. Catching Gai's eyes on him still, Luke huffed in annoyance and glared, his green orb-like eyes flashing as the light crossed them.

"Quit staring." He ground out.

Gai snapped from his trance and laughed quietly, apologetically almost. "Ah, sorry. I've never seen such a human puppet before is all. Its startling to see wood bend like that."

Luke let his glare fall away and stared through half lidded eyes dully at the man. "Yeah. Master Van says its because I'm unique." He said the word unique as if it was a magic word.

"Its those jewels right? I've never seen emeralds and Heart Jewels such as your own. Van must have worked quite hard on you."

"I guess..."

Gai smiled, liking the puppet already. He was so human and interesting, Gai couldn't help but enjoy his company.

(two days later)

The sun poured through the glass window, a bright blanket of gold that spread like an ocean over the bed. The sheets were warm yet cool, perfect during spring, and her pillow was just fluffy enough that she didnt want to get back up. Everything was peaceful. It was too peaceful.

"GAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

Shooting up in bed, Tear's eyes were wide open as a blue fur ball charged through her door, a blur of red clinging to it tightly. The blue ball was up in her lap in no time, and was revealed as a cheagle. On it's back, was Luke, clinging to the thin fur stubbornly. The animal whimpered, and attempted to make the puppet release his fur. It was beginning to smart. Luke let go slowly, eyes spinning as he fell and let out a dizzy groan. Tear sighed, running her hand gently over the blue fur to smooth it out.

Every morning, Luke did SOMETHING to utterly ruin her sleep and thus, her early morning moods. It hadn't been forty eight hours, and Tear already despised the doll. In the two days she had known him (not counting last chapter) he had explored the ventilation systems, raided her clothing draws for something to do while she slept(thus making an embarrassing mess of her room and making her invent a new shade of red when he asked what her bra was) and now, he seemed to be attempting rodeos on her pet cheagle. She was going to kill him. She would have shredded him the moment he touched her clothing, but Gai would be in tears for days if she ruined his hard work.

In short, Tear hated Luke. He was more a nuisance than the servant he should be. The redheaded puppet sat up, rubbing his slightly loose neck joints and stood up on the soft and squishy blankets.

"Ah, sorry Mieu! Didn't mean to hurt your fur..." He said quickly, then slowed when he noticed Tear's murderous look.

Backing away slowly, Luke smiled nervously. "Erm... I think Gai just called me! Bai!!" He said before running off.

Sighing, tear pushed the blankets from herself and slowly got out of bed. It was no wonder Van had abandoned Luke, he was so annoying.

dum dumm dummm!!!!!!! chapter three finished ne bashing of teh luke i guess (winces) poor guy. well, not really, but eh.