Gem: I am aware that there is some Mary Sueism in here but keep in mind that they're six. Six year olds don't really know the meaning of hate nor do they think people of the other sex have cooties yet. And there're two lines in here that I've just been dying to put in a story; they wrote themselves in.

"Wow, you sure are a sleepyhead aren't you?"

I wondered what time it was if I was being called a sleepyhead. I groaned and rolled away from the voice. I think it was Marcus's voice, but my mind refused to register anything. The bed sunk a bit as someone jumped up on it and then proceeded to shake my legs. My mind vaguely registered that there now was someone behind me and someone in front. I opened my eyes but saw nothing.

"He awakens!"

"Zidane, get off the bed and let 'im get up."

The first voice had belonged to Marcus. That meant that the second voice and the person on the bed was Zidane. I began to slowly sit myself up again after turning towards where I heard Marcus's voice. This time I did not get pushed back into the bed but helped towards what had to have been a bathroom. I fumbled my way through the process but realized then just how bad the need had been. I was helped back to my bed and told once more not to leave until I was told to. It was then that I smelled the food that had been brought up.

"Soup?" It smelled like soup.

"Yup. You need it."

"But I like other food." I knew I was whining but then again, I had never really been allowed to whine before.

"Boss's order. Our healer's not back and she'd have a better idea of what to do. Until then, what the Boss says goes."

I groaned but did as I was told. It felt like there was someone else in the room beside Marcus but I wasn't sure. They had arrived as soon as Marcus had finished his sentence. The same process as before happened but I dropped a little bit less food.

"What time is it?" I realized I had forgotten to ask that earlier.

"Going on one in the afternoon. You still need your sleep though."

I hadn't realized just how tired I really was. My body was struggling to heal itself and I figured that the faster I healed, the faster I could start to explore this place. I was worn out just by eating soup. As I was covered once again, I heard Marcus gently push someone either out of the room or the doorway. I listened a little bit to the conversation.

"You're back?"

"I can't stay away. Father…" I heard a sigh and then the voice continued. "Father truly wants me to follow in his footsteps."

"We're both too young for this. Later will you…?" I didn't understand the unspoken question but was now too curious to sleep.

"I did. I dunno. Tomorrow, start teaching him how to get around his room. Little bits each day."

"Isn't that early?"

"From what you told me he slept a good eighteen hours already. And if you wake him up in time for dinner, that's another four. Plus, he'll prolly go to sleep after dinner and sleep in late again. So yes, start getting him acquainted with his room tomorrow."

I had decided that the unknown voice was decidedly feminine but couldn't place it. She sounded not much older than me but sometimes voices were hard to read. I heard another sigh before the two started to move away from my door. Apparently they had decided that they were bothering me, and I found myself slipping off to dreamland once again. I was woken up a few hours later to the same leg shaking treatment as before.

"Zidane, he's awake. Go make sure the others eat especially Marcus."

I was very confused but managed to not show it. Apparently though, I had a master emotions reader with me.

"Out of all of us, Marcus has been the most worried. He wasn't like this with the others. He likes you already kid. We still need to get you a name because kid ain't cutting it."

I was fed again but this time I had to find the spoon myself. I was already sick of the stuff and I was already tired after eating this meal too. I was sick of being tired and sick of being sick. I was coaxed to sleep for the last time that day.

"Wake up sleepyhead!" and the feeling of someone shaking my legs was what woke me the next morning. "Wake up!!!!"

I reached down and swatted the nearest thing which happened to be Zidane's tail. He yelped and fell backwards off the bed. I cracked a very small smile at what I assumed where his antics and could hear two other people laughing.

"Come on. It's time to get you 'acquainted with your room' as Boss put it. To your battle stations!" yelled Marcus.

I heard laughing and some running. All three, at least I assumed three, boys were trying to cheer me up. I swung my legs out of bed in the direction of Marcus's voice but he kept eluding me. Stumbling like a child taking its first steps, I advanced with my arms raised in Marcus's general direction. I couldn't catch him until I backed him into an unexpected wall. He let me explore his face and body for a while and then turned me around.

"Head towards Zidane. He's straight ahead."

Marcus didn't tell me that there was a bed in the way. I ran into it and continued running into it until I found the end of the bed. "Stupid bed," I mumbled as I headed back up the bed some to where I thought I was across from Marcus. I headed in the same direction that I was going in before I ran into the bed. I ran into the wall before I heard a voice say somewhere over to my right "I'm over here." I turned towards the voice and found Zidane. I repeated the same thing I had done with Marcus except laughed some as Zidane's tail brushed the back of my knees. Soon after finding Cinna, the three of them began to give me different directions, sometimes simultaneously.

"Okay boys that's enough. Besides, it's dinner time."

"Food!" yelled Zidane and Cinna as they sprinted out of the room. I headed towards Boss's voice and was scooped up and carried. I could hear Marcus walking alongside.

"That was more than enough excitement for you today."

I was plopped down on a bench and something besides soup was placed in front of me. It was still all soft food though. I never thought I would take that long to heal. After dinner, I heard another commotion from the others.

"She's here! She's here!"

I was very confused as to who this she was. Soon after the yelling from the others, I felt someone sit down on the table in front of me.

"Hold still," she said.

I could feel someone, probably the girl, unwrapping bandages that I hadn't even realized where there. I was turned towards whoever sat down on the bench next to me and could feel a cloth cleaning away the rest of the blood. I could feel hands exploring the area where my eye once was. They were tiny and soft as I found out when I grabbed the hand. There was a giggle from right in front of me. I used my hands to explore the rest of the girl except for one area she swatted me away from.

"Ya'd be cuter if ya smiled!"

"Gem! Proper Gaian please."

"Sorry daddy. Anyway, I'm Gem. Pleased to meet you!"

"I want whatever she's on," Zidane muttered.

"You already have it. It's called life," Gem replied. "Anyway, what's your name?"

I didn't have one. I wasn't sure what I wanted to be called; after all, no one had bothered to name me when I was born. I wasn't prepared to tell this new person that I had no name. Except some people have no tact.

"He doesn't have one."

I really felt like smacking Zidane but I had no clue where he was. I heard a hit and then a thud and what sounded like way-too-pleased-with-themselves giggling. I only found out later that Gem and Marcus had hit Zidane at the same time for being completely and utterly tactless.

I could feel that there were now three or four people sitting on the table and one person on either side of me. The person to my right introduced himself as Locke and told me I could call him that if I wanted to. Plus they may have found a name for me. I hadn't even realized Boss and Locke had talked.

"How about Blank? It suits you just fine. And then, I'm not constantly calling you kid," explained Baku.

I smiled ever so slightly and nearly got tackled off the bench. I could hear Locke mildly scolding someone, but I was happy. I finally had a name; I was told to hold still as new bandages were wound around my head. "Don't want the scar to open up again" was offered as an explanation.

The days started to fly by. By my first week with Tantalus I could get around my room while the others shouted conflicting directions. By my second week, I was able to find the kitchen/dining room. I was still using my hands to guide myself but that died down. Sooner than I realized it, I was able to explore different areas of the hideout on my own.

"Okay boys! It's time for you to get out on your own!" was yelled very early one morning.

"Didja h-h-have to do this so early Uncle Baku?"

I had fallen out of bed at the shout and heard thuds from the rooms around me. Along with what sounded like swearing. I picked myself up and found the clothes I had discarded the night before. I heard the sounds of dressing from the other rooms before I opened my own door and nearly ran smack into Baku.

"Hey there. You're heading out with Gem and Marcus. Zidane, Cinna, you two take the Business District. Gem, Marcus, Blank, you three are heading into the Industrial District. Report back by noon."

I could hear what sounded like some sort of stamping; I figured that it might be some sort of salute. Someone moved behind me and whispered the directions in my ear. It was slightly off, but I still had some leeway.

"What all do we have to do?" I asked once we were headed towards our destination.

"Well, you and I are going to be friendly and get to know some people," said Gem. The tone was one that I couldn't readily identify; it was somewhere between happiness and a mischievous giggle. She gently pulled me off after Marcus, and we set out to look for a good target. At some point, I lost track of Marcus but apparently that was okay or so I was told.

"Hello there sir. I was wonderin' if ya could direct us to an Item Shop?" Gem asked someone.

"What do you need there? And where are your parents?" the guy asked.

"We're trying to find new healing medicine," I blurted out before I realized it. I could feel the guy and Gem both looking at me.

"Well, why didn't you say so! The Item Shop is down Forest Lane. From here go to the lady selling flowers and make a right onto Forest Lane. It's on the right three buildings down. You can't miss it."

I felt Marcus's presence briefly while the man gave us directions to a place that Gem apparently already knew. She led me off towards the Item Shop where we met up with Marcus. Far as I could tell from the two of them, it had been a success.

"You get the gist of what we're doing? Or do you need a bit more explanation?" Marcus asked.

"I think I got it. We find someone who looks rich, Gem and I distract them, and you pick their pockets?"

"Yup," Gem replied with a grin in her voice.

The whole concept didn't seem so hard. Find someone who was rich, two of us were going to distract them so the third could steal. I wouldn't be much help in picking out targets or stealing but distracting I could do. Gem dragged me off again towards someone else. Quietly into my ear she explained that the lady we were targeting was most likely a governess. The lady certainly looked snooty enough for it according to Gem.

"Excuse me madam but have you seen a man around here with bright blue eyes, a sharp jaw, and is very well built?" Gem asked.

"Do you mean Lord Arkwright, child?" She asked placing a sneer along with the noble's name as if working one's way into the noble class was likened to contracting leprosy. "You must learn the names of the nobles or you will never get anywhere in this world," she chastised as if Gem was an ill-favored pupil.

"Yes. I'm sorry; I'm bad with names."

"What would children like you need with a man like Lord Arkwright?"

"Our father's upset that we broke one of the beautiful chests he made us. Would you be able to point out which house is his please?" I asked.

I wasn't used to being polite. I also did not like the snootiness in the woman's voice. It seemed like she didn't like the two of us running around by ourselves. But she still pointed out the way to Lord Arkwright's house. Gem knocked on the door even though I was against it and when someone answered the door, they handed her something.

"He has some very talented people who make medicine for the Item Shop. And daddy's good friends with him. Drink this."

A bottle was pushed into my hands and I drank whatever it was. It tasted somewhat like apple cider, but I could feel the sensation up where my eye once was. I hoped it would heal the area better than my own attempts.

"What are you doing here child? Normally your father is somewhere around. Oh is this the child my people have been making medicine for?"

I felt a hand on top of my head and the man examining me. From the fact that Gem seemed comfortable around him, I assumed that he was to be trusted. He directed the two of us into his house and left us sitting on the couch.

"Is he okay to talk to?" I asked Gem.

"Yup. He's daddy's friend from childhood. Daddy isn't fond of many of the nobles. Uncle Baku won't steal from Uncle Anzori because of all the help he's given. Tantalus is both a theater troupe and a group of thieves. Daddy and Uncle Anzori are currently the patrons for Tantalus whenever they go and perform."

I felt someone else come into the room with us but they felt different from Gem's Uncle Anzori. I sensed Gem and the other person tense and most likely glare at each other. After I few tense minutes, I hesitantly broke the silence.

"Um, who are you?"

I felt the other person's gaze shift from Gem to me and could feel them scrutinizing me. After a moment, they walked closer and looked me more or less in the eye.

"I'm Ruby. Who might you be?"

I could tell that she was leaning over me and seemed to be taking in my appearance. Gem had leaned over and described everything this Ruby person wore so I could form my own image. I could tell that she was mad about Gem being there and mad that I wasn't answering.

"Well, what is your name?" Ruby asked again.

"Blank," I said. I wasn't used to having a name nor feeling like I had walked into a personal fight.

"Blank, hmm? Daddy said he was busy making potions for some kid down in the Theater District. That you?"

"Yes."

Frankly, I didn't like her. She seemed to have animosity towards Gem for some reason and didn't like me for who I was. Or so I thought. I wanted out of there and away from the possible fight. After a while Lord Arkwright came back in to see Gem and Ruby glaring at each other again and my slightly lost expression.

"Gem, Blank, it is best if you both go. Take this with you and remember to come get more in two weeks. It will help leave less of a scar," he said and saw us both to the door.

"Thanks Uncle Anzori. See you!"

I was gently pulled out the door. I could feel his daughter, Ruby, staring at us as we left. There was something between her and Gem, and I wasn't sure if I wanted to know what it was. As we headed back to the aircabs, Marcus met up with us. I could tell he sensed the mood Gem was in and obviously knew the source of it. Once we were back at the hideout, Gem disappeared off somewhere and I finally asked what had been bothering me the entire way back.

"Ruby and Gem fought? Gem won't admit this but she believes that Lord Arkwright's family really should not be considered nobles. He worked his way up from a factory worker to owning his own." I could hear him separating the pile of stuff we brought back. "Ruby is acting the way she believes nobles act and well, that doesn't fly with Gem. They're both in the same position. Gem doesn't like being a noble and the older noble families don't accept the entire Arkwright family or the way Gem acts. It's rough on both of them with neither being accepted."

Baku seemed slightly upset by the entire thing. There obviously was pain for everyone in this. Maybe if the two girls could manage to get along, neither would feel so cut off from their backgrounds.

"Go enjoy yourself for the rest of the day. Soon enough you'll be up on stage with the rest of the boys. One of them should be able to get you acquainted with the stage."

I actually found myself 'acquainted with the stage' in a slightly different manner than expected; I ran into it. "My head-hey!" He cried indignantly as sniggering interrupted the middle of his story. From what Blank could tell, Zidane was on the floor; Marcus, Cinna, or both were smacking the table; and Ruby was close to falling out of her seat. "Shut the hell up and let me finish!"