Inspired by a Tumblr prompt:
Trope of the day is forced family. They didn't find kindred souls and become a family, someone saw them and decided to just adopt them all against their will. They really had no choice but to become part of the family.
Can start with fake family and end with found family.
It began with the need to 'obtain' something from a highly secure building.
The man that owned the priceless possession was a fool - Gaat had found a small possibility he could exploit and so the search was on.
He found a scrawny half-starved kid pilfering food in a giant market in one of the larger cities in America somewhere, he wasn't sure where. The boy was pitifully thin, more skin than bones, and so Gaat took him using the threats of imprisonment and a touch of his mind-power.
The boy was reluctant even after Gaat had fed and watered him, but he played on that fear and that weakness and eventually the boy agreed to do what was asked.
They practiced the moves for a couple of weeks. Scott proved to be a fast learner and even more flexible than appearance showed. And when the day arrived the boy was flawless - much like the huge gemstone he stole.
Gaat was loathe to let the kid live, but there was a certain…usefulness in having the child around.
So he kept him. Scott was fed just enough to stay alive, but the kid was just happy for a regular feed even if he hated the work Gaat made him do.
And then one day another opportunity to rehome a precious piece presented itself. But this time the kid would need help.
Gaat once more set about watching the local marketplace, and it wasn't long before he laid eyes on a thieving duo that would suit this mission well.
The boys were all housed in the one room, each uneasy with the other. Gaat made sure that the newcomers were aware that Scott was in charge and if they wanted to eat then they would have to listen to the older boy. He was surprised that there was no fighting, no challenge, but by the end of the week they were at least working together, even if the ginger one - John he thought - never spoke once.
Gaat began to plan more audacious thefts, more complex crimes. Scott, now in his mid-teens, never lost the unhappiness of such crimes but knew better than to challenge him now, and John and Virgil, while initially so distrustful of the oldest boy, now followed him in everything.
By the time Scott reached his late teens Gaat had found two more kids to join them, the youngest being a mere two-year-old blonde with the face of an angel that melted people's hearts and left them open to being pickpocketed by the five-year-old. Meanwhile, the three oldest were now jacking cars and other larger thefts.
Scott drew the line at drugs. Nothing Gaat could do could make the boy shift his stance on this, not the beating and not the threats to the younger boys. In fact, the five of them stood firm, the other four caring for Scott until he was well enough to get back out.
And then came the last job.
Gaat couldn't resist this one. A billionaire and his wife were about to be awarded some humanitarian award and their home would be ripe for the picking. Once more the smallness of the youngest would work in their favour, and once Gordon had managed to deactivate the alarm then the eldest three would join in while he waited in the safety of the truck.
He drummed his fingers while his mind went over some of the jewels he expected to find. Gaat was not prepared for the lights to go on all over the building. He yelled for Scott to get himself, John and Virgil back in the van, but they refused to leave the youngest two to whatever fate had befallen them.
Promising Scott a terrible retribution, Gaat fled the scene as Scott knocked on the front door to find out what had become of the kids he now viewed as his own.
The fate that had befallen Gordon and Alan opened the door, and Scott blinked at the woman that stood there before him. She was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen, with ginger hair like Johnny's and brown eyes like Virgil's.
She smiled at them and held the door open.
John and Virgil, practically glued to his back by now, followed as he entered. Scott couldn't help the flinch as the door closed, but the woman smiled more widely.
'Are you looking for your…brothers?'
He nodded dumbly.
'Come this way.'
She led them to a huge kitchen where a fire was burning. A man with dark hair like his own with streaks of grey was standing beside the missing two, but there was no malice in his stance.
Scott's eyes flew wide as he took in the two youngest, each with a plate piled high with cookies and tall glasses of milk, and he couldn't help the growl his stomach released, the other two behind him joining in.
The man actually laughed out loud and gestured for them to sit, and the woman gave them all the same. Scott pretended not to see the sad looks on their faces as he and his brothers fell on the food. Gaat might feed them, but it was meagre living.
There were whispers between the two grown-ups, but they didn't interrupt them eating. By the time Scott had finished Alan looked ready to drop, and he jumped up and picked the baby up, holding him closed as they waited for everyone to finish. Alan was asleep before then, arms loose around Scott's waist and head on his chest.
'Well,' said the man. 'What are we going to do with all of you?'
'Indeed, Jeff. What are we to do?'
'I think, Lucy, we should let them bathe and get them to bed. It is far too late an hour for children of such ages to be up and about.'
'I quite agree. I'll see to the baths if you will get the guest room ready with the kingsize bed so that they can all stay together.'
She held out a hand to Gordon and the boy willingly slid down from the table and joined her.
Scott's stomach sank at the words, but there was a light tone in both voices, and they were neither talking about turning them in or splitting them up, a frequent threat Gaat had used.
For once in his miserable life Scott felt the stirring of something.
He felt hope.