A little girl noticed the sunset, and knew she should be returning home. Only now she was in the middle of the desert, and perhaps she was lost. She looked around, and then heard a howl of a wolf. Scared, she ran towards the bottom of a cliff and hid under it.

'I'll be safe here.' She thought. 'Tomorrow they will find me. Yes I just know it. Mom is probably worried sick, and she's trying to get help. I just know it.'

But who? Who would take their time to help her mother look for her? She was not that important after all….

The girl felt a gentle breeze fly across her face. Luckily, she was in a desert, so it was not too hot or too cold at night. The weather was just right.

After all, it was her fault. She had told her mom she would come back before evening. Her mom had let go to the chocobos stable. There was a chocobo that caught her eye, because it didn't seem to walk straight like the others. Nobody really rented it much, because it walked in a zigzag pattern. The girl thought it was unique though. The stable owner, Gurdy, let her feed it many Gyashl Greens. Every time she fed it one, it ate it all in one bite. She would then giggle.

Later, someone did rent it, without knowing the way it walked. It appeared to be an imperial. The imperial was so angry about the chocobo's gait, he repeatedly hit it as it entered the Estersand. The little girl's compassion for the chocobo forced her to follow the chocobo and imperial. When the chocobo started sprinting madly, she could not keep up. This caused her to lose her way back. She ended up in the wrong place, but not at a bad time, since it wasn't so hot at night.

'Tomorrow,' She decided, 'I will find my way home no matter what. No matter what….' She drifted to sleep under the cliff, forgetting about how much danger she could be in. She laid back with the moonlight reflecting off of her blond hair in braided pigtails. She pulled on the leg of her brown pants, trying to make herself comfortable. 'I'll be fine…'

Reks felt dizzy. He knew he did not know this woman, but she had the image of his mother. The woman screamed, and tried to break her way out of the imperial's grip. Reks saw his mother in her place, and finally lost his mind.

"Mother!" He yelled "Mother!" He started running his way towards the imperials without thinking. He ran so fast, his gray hair flew back in the opposite direction.

"Reks, where are you going?" Vaan asked. Reks ignored him. Vaan groaned, and followed after him.

The imperials turned to his direction and saw Reks charging at them. He smashed into one, hitting his heavy metal armor. Reks rubbed his forehead and looked up.

"Gah! It's that same brat that took our bread." Said the imperial as Vaan ran up to Reks's side.

"No, it the other one!" Said another, pointing at Vaan.

"Whatever, just grab them both!"

Free of them, the woman came and blocked the way to the boys. "Leave these children alone! They don't know what they are doing!" argued the woman.

"Silence! You both have already caused us enough trouble!" With that, he threw the woman to the ground.

"Leave her alone!" demanded Reks.

"Yeah!" Vaan reinforced.

The imperial walked up to the boys in anger. Luckily, a voice of a youth with the trademark Archadian accent called from behind. "Leave these people alone. Their condition suggests that they suffered enough already." A little boy walked up with two imperials by his side. His clothing suggests that he is an Archadian aristocrat. He has short dark hair. He looked like he was no more than seven or eight years old.

"Young Lord!" exclaimed one of the imperials. "These people are stubbornly resistant infidels."

"Well, they appear to be innocent people to me. So do not concern yourselves with them unless they request it." The young lord commanded. The imperials muttered then walked towards him. The young lord gave them another command. "Get back to your post." He commanded. The imperials left. The young lord walked up to the woman, Vaan, and Reks. "I apologize on behalf of the Imperial Empire of Archadia, so please forgive our reckless behavior." He told them. Reks and the woman were impressed by the young lord's precocious behavior.

"Thank you, I am very grateful for your understanding." said the woman as she bowed her head.

"My pleasure. I would be best on my way" The young lord answered, and then walked away with his two imperial guards following behind him.

"Wait!" She called after the young lord, but he was already gone.

There was a moment of silence. Reks carefully looked at the woman, and finally realized she was not his mother at all, though she did look a lot like her. Of course, his mother was already dead, but it made him more depressed. He continued to rub his head. "Are you okay?" He asked her weakly.

"Yes, I am fine. Thanks to you and…." She paused. "You boys ought to be heading home now; it's very dark. I'm sure your mother might be worried about you."

Vaan looked from the woman to Reks, waiting to see what would happen next. Finally Reks spoke first. "Our mother is….dead." He told her. Vaan's eyes grew wide.

"I'm sorry. It must be difficult for such young boys to fend for themselves" She said remorsefully, cupping her mouth with her hands.

"But you remind me very much of her." Reks confessed.

"Yes, I guess that can explain why I heard somebody yelling mother. I conclude that it was you." She said more calmly. Reks nodded. "Where are you boys going to stay?" She asked them.

"We sleep out here. Just like every night." Vaan answered. He folding both his arms in a bow position behind his head.

"Really? How do you eat?" She asked them curiously.

"Well, I steal from the imperials." Vaan answered proudly. Reks gave Vaan a piercing glare. The woman looked at them both, shocked. She sighed.

"How would both of you like to come and live with me?" She offered. Reks smiled. It would just be like living with his mom again.

"Sounds good, right Reks?" Vaan asked, stoic.

Reks thought for a moment, not wanting to inconvenience the woman, and decided it was okay. "Yeah, I guess so." He answered with a smile on his face.

The woman stood up. "Come with me." The boys followed her. "What are your names?" She asked them.

"I'm Vaan, and this is Reks." Vaan answered.

"And how old are you?" She asked the boys.

Reks started answering, "Well, I'm fourteen and Vaan is twelve."

"Really?" The woman asked looking at Vaan. "I have a daughter your age. Her name is- Oh no! I forgot! I have to go find her." She panicked. "What am I going to do? The imperials won't let me through the gate!"

"Maybe you can ask that well-dressed imperial kid. He seemed like a nice guy." suggested Vaan. Reks was just speechless.

"Yeah! That's not a bad idea, only we have to go find him now!" She said. The boys nodded in unison.

"I think we should split up. We'll all meet back at the fountain." said Reks. The woman nodded and ran off.

"See ya." Vaan said as he scrambled away.

Reks shrugged and went in a direction neither of them went. He just started looking.

After ten minutes of searching the streets of Rabanastre, Reks ended up back at the fountain. He saw Vaan and the woman from a distance. They were both speaking with the young lord and the two imperials that followed him. Reks saw the young lord nod. Reks ran up to join them.

"Don't worry," said the young lord, "I will begin my search instantly." Reks heard groans and whispered complaints from the two imperials as they followed behind the young lord.

"I really hope they will find her." said the woman.

"Well, why can't we go wait there?" asked Vaan. "The kid should let you through the gate."

"Sure then, let's go."