WHOO ANOTHER YAY! Ok, this one is actually different, 'cause it's from Ace's POV (le GASP). Again, it's a little friend-y, but can be twisted if you think about it. Kinda short too, but only because it's coupled with another drabble I don't feel like finishing 8D.

Enjoy.

It was… weird, seeing him there like that. At first I thought it was just a piece of trash that got stuck in the gutter and was shaking with the breeze. I couldn't tell ya what made me look twice (maybe I was hungry) but whatever it was, I edged closer to him. It wasn't like I've never seen a homeless guy either (I do live in a city, after all)… but he was so small. And shaky. And I'm not that much of a heartless bastard to just leave someone that small out there.

So I poked him with a spare pipe I found lying around. I mean really, what else was I supposed to do? He coulda been a crazy bastard. But all he did was curl up into a tighter ball, which made me poke him a few more times until he rolled over. Bored with that, I tossed the pipe away and watched at he cringed at the hollow metal sound. Again, I can't explain my actions all that well, but I wiped the shavings off my palm and walked over to the huddled kid. I nudged him a little with the toe of my boot, but he didn't move. So I did the smart thing (not) and leaned in close to him, trying to see if he was still breathing.

Yeah, from that point I could tell he was a he. Even past the girly hair and fugly hat he was still a dude. The body was thin and frail, and all the clothes were too big on him (did I mention the ugly-as-sin hat?). He looked like he hadn't cut his hair or seen a bath in a long time; but then again, I probably looked the same at that point. All things considered, I guess a part of me though that it was kinda cool. I had been on my own for a coupla years at that moment, so having another boy that looked to be about my age not looking at me like I was an urchin was pretty cool for a change.

That was, until he punched me in the friggen stomach. So, I was pretty much as incapacitated as a lead balloon while the crumpled little bastard started crawling away. While I was plenty pissed at him (seriously, what the hell did I do to deserve that? Sonuvabitch.), I could see how badly he was banged up. He wasn't walking, more like dragging his body by one of his stick arms deeper into the alley. Overall, he looked like he fell outta the building I found him next to. I couldn't put my finger on it (hell, I still can't figure out why) but I sucked in the breath that flew out my lungs and hauled my ass up to catch the little buggar and give him a piece of my mind.

--

What can I say, the guy got my attention. He still has it, actually. He's my best pal (as girly as that sounds) and the second in command to my Gang. I dunno how I woulda made it this far without been thrown in jail if he wasn't here. Sure, I'm as thrifty and sneaky as they come, but Snake is helluva lot smarter than I am, and can usually spot things like security cameras that I wouldn't have even thought to look for. I guess it was fate, or whateva ya wanna call it. I guess… well, I guess he captured my interests.

…But don't let him know that.

R&R and have a nice day :)