(A/N: Ok, here we go, perhaps the trickiest chapter so far in adapting. I ended up taking several liberties with this chapter. Not just due to adapting it so the characters are humans, but also... Ah, I can't really say anything without spoiling it. I wanted to explore things a bit more regarding Tramp, and that meant expanding things a bit. You'll see see what I mean.)

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Chapter 6: Life On The Street

The light of dawn slowly fell over the park, and Lady stirred from her sleep as it shined through her eyelids. Letting out a groan, she shifted, her back and neck sore as a result of having fallen asleep sitting up.

Reaching up, she rubbed her eyes and took a look at her surroundings. It took her a moment to remember where she was. She was still sitting on the bench in the park over-looking the town. She was curled up into Tramp's side, his arm wrapped around her shoulder. Her stirring had begun to wake him up as well, and she began to smile, but froze when the reality of the situation hit her.

"Oh no!" she exclaimed, jumping up.

The movement served to wake-up Tramp the rest of the way, and he looked around in alarm. "What's the matter, Pidge?"

She turned back to him. "It's morning!"

He relaxed at that, giving her a smile. "Yes, and a very good morning to you."

Lady's shoulders slumped and she hugged herself. "I should have been home hours ago."

He raised an eyebrow. "Why? To get back to your mean, old aunt?"

Lady bit her bottom lip. "Well, not so much her."

"Your parents then? I thought you said they weren't coming back until late tomorrow night."

Lady sighed. "They're not, but… I just have to get home."

He frowned, looking disappointed, and then glanced away. "I should have figured. That whole rich life style. What can a guy like me offer compared to that?"

A startled look crossed Lady's face. "What? No, it's not that! It's not that at all!" She sat back down next to him and grasped his sleeve. "Look, Tramp, I really like you." She felt heat fill her cheeks, but she didn't look away from him. "A lot. More than I've ever liked someone before. But I have to go back. My family is there."

He seemed to deflate at her words. His irritation disappeared and he sighed. "It's not going to last, you know. You'll get kicked to the curb eventually."

She frowned at that and shook her head. "That's not true. My parents love me. They would never do that."

"Yeah, I thought that too, but I…"

He trailed off, instantly clamming up. He looked annoyed with himself, and Lady realized that he had let something he hadn't meant to say slip out. A look of concern crossed her face, and her grip on his sleeve tightened. "What do you mean?"

He just shook his head. "Nothing."

Getting up, he walked over to the nearby tree and leaned against it. Lady stared at him worriedly, reconsidering what she had assumed of his past. There had been pain in his voice; someone had hurt him. Maybe he wasn't simply an orphan.

Getting up, she went to his side, but he wouldn't look at her. She moved to stand in front of him, but he turned his head away. Unwilling to let him shut her out though, she gently cupped his face and turned him to face her.

"What happened?" she asked him seriously. "Don't shut me out. Tell me what's bothering you."

His eyes slowly found hers, and there was sadness and pain in them. She gave him a pleading look, silently begging him to open up to her. Finally, he sighed and reached up, taking her hand in his. He looked so vulnerable, and Lady just wanted to hug him.

"Do you remember back when we first met, what I said it would be like when your mom had a baby?" he asked. "About what I said it would be like once they had a blood-related child while you were only adopted?" At her nod, he sighed again. "I wasn't just providing an opinion. I was speaking from experience."

He let go of her hand, but she didn't let go of his, taking one of his hands in both of hers. "Tell me," she said quietly.

He was silent for a few moments before he began talking. "I never knew my birth parents, nor do I know what happened to them. I don't even remember my time at the orphanage." He shrugged, as if it didn't matter to him. "I guess I was lucky in that regard. I was adopted when I was only a few months old by this rich couple that couldn't have any kids, but needed an heir to inherit everything."

Lady nodded in understanding. She supposed his situation hadn't been too different from her own. Her parents had wanted kids as well, but it seemed as if that wouldn't happen with their chances being so low. They'd visited the doctor and found that due to complications, it would be incredibly difficult for her mother to conceive.

That was when they had decided to adopt. They'd told her before that when they went to the orphanage that the moment they saw her, it had been love at first sight, and they had both immediately knew that she was meant to be their daughter.

Puling her mind from the past, she listened as Tramp continued his story. "The first several years were great. My adoptive parents were strict, but loving. I knew I was adopted, but I always felt loved, and they never made me feel like I was anything less than their actual son."

A different kind of sadness filled his eyes then. "But then one day my mother got sick, and just never got better. I was six years old when she died."

Lady gasped. He'd lost his mother when he was only six? She couldn't comprehend losing her mother… ever. "I'm so sorry."

He gave a small shrug. "It was a long time ago. But things changed between my father and me after that. Nothing was ever the same again. And then when I was eight, he remarried. And unlike my mother, she wasn't barren." A slight edge crept into his voice at this. "I was happy to have a new mother, and was happy for my father too. He was happier than I had seen him in a long time. But…" he seemed to be searching for the right words, "I don't think his new wife cared for me that much. She never paid much attention to me. And my dad, he didn't pay much attention to me either, not since his first wife died."

Lady frowned at this. She couldn't speak for Tramp's step-mother, but she wondered about his father. Had Tramp become a reminder of the good times before his late wife's death? Did he remind him of what he had lost? Had that been the reason for his neglectful behavior, because it was too painful to look at him?

"And then my step-mother fell pregnant," Tramp went on. "It happened pretty soon after the wedding. I was excited to be having a little sibling, and my father and step-mother were excited as well. But… it only made them ignore me more. There were even days that would go by where they wouldn't say a single word to me. And when they did talk, they…"

He trailed off and looked away. Lady could see how hard this was for him, and gave his hand an encouraging squeeze. "What'd they do?"

He looked back at her. "My step-mother mostly ignored me; she would often pretend I wasn't even there. As for my father, he became cold and harsh. He had always been strict, but this was different. He always wanted me to be studying. For literally days on end, he would make me study, not letting me have any breaks, from the moment I woke up to the moment I went to bed. He said he was preparing me for the future. But it seemed that no matter what I did, no matter how hard I tried, no matter how much I succeeded, it was never good enough."

Lady's eyebrows rose. While her parents wanted her to have an education and made sure she studied, they had never done anything like that. Education was certainly important, but what his father had done was definitely going too far.

"What happened with the baby?" she asked.

Tramp sighed. "I ended up with a little brother, just like you. My father and step-mother were overjoyed, and I was happy to have a sibling, but things only got worse after that. I was barely even allowed to leave my room. Sometimes, they would even forget to bring me food."

A gasp escaped Lady at that. If what he said was true, then it wasn't just that he had been ignored, he had been severally neglected. In fact, she was pretty sure that the way he was treated could be considered child abuse.

"One night," he continued, "when I went without lunch or dinner, I snuck down to the kitchen to get something to eat while everyone was asleep. It was storming outside, and there was a loud crash of thunder. My brother woke up and started crying, but my father and step-mother kept sleeping. So I went into his room, even though I knew I wasn't supposed to, and I tried to get him to stop. I'd seen my step-mother carrying him around and sing to him, so I tried that as well. When that didn't work, I decided to take him to my parents' room so they could help."

He let out a humorless laugh. It was the kind of laugh one emitted when they were trying to cover up something painful. "Maybe I should have put him back in his crib and just gone to wake them, but bringing him to them seemed more practical, especially since I was already holding him. But as I carried him through the wall, there was this really loud crash of thunder that startled me, and I ended up dropping him."

At Lady's horrified look, he quickly added, "He was ok, but that thunder crash had woken up my parents. They came out to find my brother and me like that in the hall, and they flipped out." His hand came up to rub his cheek. "My father even struck me, and with a closed fist too, demanding to know what I had been doing."

Lady gasped again. His father had actually struck him? She had been scolded by her parents before, but neither of them had ever land a hand on her, and she knew they would be furious if they ever found out that Aunt Sarah had even threatened to use her cane on her. "Tramp…"

"They kicked me out the next day. I was only ten years old at the time. They told me never to come back. My father said that I wasn't going to ruin things now that he had a 'real' heir, and he no longer needed a 'substitute'. Those were his exact words. He claimed that he had been planning to keep me around and have me marry some rich girl from a wealthy family so we would get a nice dowry, but that I wasn't worth it and he wanted me gone. So I got as far away as I could, and I've been living on the streets ever since, going from town to town." He gave a small shrug. "And that's how I came to be known as the Tramp."

He looked at her with moisture in his eyes. Lady's eyes were wet as well, and her mouth was hanging open in shock; she hadn't even realized it had dropped open. She couldn't believe he'd actually had that happen to him. And he had only been ten years old at the time? How could anyone treat a child so cruelly?

No wonder he had said what he had said when they first met after hearing the topic of her conversation with Jacque and Trusty. After what he had been through, of course he would feel that way. But his situation was different than hers. His parents had been different from hers. He had been biased in his thinking and had projected his own pain and situation onto hers. He hadn't been trying to be mean the way her friends had thought, he had been trying to warn her of what he thought was going to happen based on his own experience.

She blinked away tears, but one still slipped past her eye lashes. "Tramp, I'm so sorry that happened to you. I can't believe they did that."

He gave her a small smile and reached up to wipe away the tear that had escaped her. "Hey, it's fine. It happened a long time ago. But that's why I said I knew what I was talking about when I heard about your situation, I've been through it."

"You shouldn't have had to," she told him. "No, one should have to go through that."

Playfully, he lightly bopped her chin. "Like I said, it was a long time ago. Besides, I think it worked out for the best. Had I stayed, I would have missed out on all the traveling I got to do. And on meeting you of course." He gave her a hopeful look. "You could come with me, you know. It'll be fun."

She could tell he was attempting to divert the conversation from a past that was still clearly painful for him even after all these years. But that was fine, it had to have been hard for him to open up like that. Tramp didn't seem like the type of person who wanted to appear vulnerable. Telling her all that couldn't have been easy for him.

"Tramp," she said gently, "I'm sorry you went through that, but my parents aren't like yours. They haven't neglected or mistreated me at all. In fact, my brother seems to have only brought us closer together. I know you were trying to warn me back then, but I know my parents would never do what yours did."

He was silent for a long time after that. Finally though, he sighed and looked away. "Yes, I guess they wouldn't. I suppose I was being biased; I shouldn't have said what I did without knowing them or your situation." He turned back to her. "But it still won't last. You're growing up, Pigeon. All birds leave the nest eventually. Soon you'll be of marrying age. Do you really want to be stuck in that social circle of rich snobs?"

She blinked in confusion. "What do you mean?"

He smiled, looking amused, and nodded behind her. "Take a look down there and tell me what you see."

Lady turned around and looked down at the town. In the dawn's light, it was a breath-taking sight that brought at smile to her face. "Well, I see nice homes with yards and fences…"

She trailed off as she heard Tramp chuckle. "Yes, there's that, but there's also so much more. Look again, Pidge, beyond all that."

She did so, looking past the town to the wide-open land beyond it, to what she hadn't even considered looking at, and what he was trying to say began to sink in. He was telling her that there was so much more to life than what she knew, than what she even considered, she had simply never looked beyond it before.

Seeing that she was catching his meaning, he smiled and hugged her from behind. Resting his chin on her shoulder, he spoke softly in her ear. "There's a whole world out there for us. No rules or regulations, no one to judge us or stop us from freely living our lives to the fullest. We can go where we want, love however we want. That's called freedom, Pidge. We can go together. What do you say?"

Lady stared at the beautiful sight before her. It would certainly make for a pretty picture, almost as pretty as the one he was painting for her of the life they could have together if she did go with him. She had to admit, she was greatly tempted, but she also knew that she couldn't just leave. As much as she cared about him, there were a lot of other people she cared about as well. Her parents, her brother, Jacque, Trusty, even Aunt Sarah and the twins, for as much as she couldn't stand them. And they cared about her as well. She couldn't just disappear from their lives.

"It sounds wonderful, really," she told him honestly. "But I can't."

She felt his arms tighten around her and heard the disappointment in his voice when he spoke next. "Why not? Didn't we have fun yesterday? It can be like that every day. If you're afraid, you don't have to be. I promise I'll take care of you, Pidge; I'll never let anything happen to you."

She sighed and turned around in his arms, hooking her own around his neck as she looked up at him. "It's not that. I just can't leave. I care about you, Tramp, I really do, but I have a lot of other people I care about too. I can't just leave them all behind."

He rested his forehead against hers. "You have to live your own life, Pidge."

She nodded. "Yes, but it's not only my life I have to think about. I have to consider how my disappearing would affect everyone else in my life. And then there's Jim Jr. to think about. He just started his life, and I want to be a part of it. I'm his big sister, and I want to be one to him."

He stared at her for a few moments, then let out a deep sigh, smiling softly in resignation. His eyes were sad and regretful, but they were also full of acceptance. "You win." He let his arms drop and took her hand. "Come on, I'll take you home."

Lady gave his hand a squeeze, silently conveying her thanks for understanding and gratitude for helping her. And yet her heart ached painfully as she was filled with regret and longing. She may have been young and inexperienced, and she may have only known Tramp for a short while, but something told her that what she was feeling between them was real. And deep down, she knew she would never feel this way for anyone else.

Be that as it may, she knew that what he had been asking for was impossible. She had a home and a family that she needed to get back to. Leaving them was not an option. And, sadly, society would never permit the two of them to be together. Her, a rich girl from a good family, and him, a homeless boy with nothing to his name. Their social classes wouldn't stand for it, no matter how much either of them wished otherwise.

That was just the way things were.

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As Tramp led her through town, Lady began to recognize some of the areas from car rides with her parents. She could tell that they were getting closer to the upper-class part of town, which meant that her time with him was coming to an end, and she didn't want it to. Which got her thinking.

"Where do you usually stay?" she asked him. At his questioning look, she said, "We fell asleep in the park last night, but where do you usually sleep and stuff."

He smiled at her. "Oh, all over the place. We street orphans tend to have a lot of different places where we sleep or hang out. In fact, there's one not too far from here. Care to see it?"

She hesitated. She was curious, but she was also thinking about her encounter with the three boys from yesterday and didn't want to run into anyone else like that. But then she remembered that Tramp was with her. She felt safe with him and knew he would protect her.

She nodded. "Ok, let's go."

He smiled and began to lead her down a different path. They eventually turned a corner, and Lady was shocked to see several kids running around and playing, or simply interacting with each other. They ran from all ages, from younger than her to older. And based on their state of dress, they were all homeless. Her heart went out to them and their misfortune, but she also couldn't help but notice that they all seemed perfectly happy.

"Are all of them… orphaned?" she asked in a whisper.

Tramp laughed. "We prefer to think if ourselves as free from society's burdens." He gave her hand a light tug. "Come on, no one will bother you while you're with me."

Lady still felt a little uneasy as they made their way down the street. Tramp was right though, none of them bothered her. Some glanced her way and a few others waved, but none of them gave her any bad vibes the way the three boys from yesterday did. These people seemed friendly enough, and several seemed to know Tramp, waving to him or calling out greetings.

But as they walked along, a whistle was suddenly heard. All the homeless kids immediately took off, running in all different directions, and Lady clung to Tramp's side.

"What's that!?" she exclaimed nervously.

Tramp's grip on her hand tightened. "That's the signal to get going! Come on!"

He took off, pulling her along. She heard more whistling and thought that it sounded like a police whistle. "What is it?"

"Cops!" he replied as they ran. "They raid our hangouts sometimes! If they catch us, we'll be sent to some orphanage or foster home, or even juvie."

A panic built up inside Lady as she struggled to keep up with him. She had heard of juvenile hall. It was supposedly a jail of sorts for children and teenagers. Would she be sent there? She had technically stolen that corset when she ran out of the store without paying for it. The thought of being sent to such a place helped spur her along.

She wasn't as fast as Tramp though, and as she tried to keep pace with him, she tripped over her own feet and went down, her hand slipping out of his. He skidded to a halt and quickly helped her up.

"Stop, you two!" a voice behind them cried out.

Both Lady and Tramp looked to see a cop charging after them. Tramp gave her a light push to get her going, and she took off. He was right be her, urging her on, and they ran side by side as the cop gave chase.

The sound of a train horn was suddenly heard, and Tramp put on a burst of speed, passing her. "I know how we can lose them. Quick, follow me."

Lady did so, but he was pulling further and further ahead. When she saw the train tracks up ahead with the incoming train approaching, she realized what he was planning.

"Tramp, this is crazy!" she shouted to him.

"Keep going!" he called back at her. "We can make it!"

No, he could make it, Lady realized, but she wasn't sure if she could. He was a lot faster than her, but she would be cutting it too close. She watched as he hopped the tracks and kept going. Even then, it had been close. Lady realized that she wasn't going to make it and skidded to a stop. The train passed by a few feet in front of her, cutting off her and Tramp as the beginning of a long line of carts began speeding by her.

A few moments later, she was grabbed by the cop.

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Tramp had done this a dozen times. He'd fled and eluded the cops more times than he could remember, practically priding himself on never getting caught. If he were honest, he almost got a thrill out of it.

After crossing the tracks, he turned down a few alleys before coming to a stop and leaning against the wall to catch his breath. "Close call, eh, Pidge?"

He turned around, expecting her to be right behind him, also out of breath and laughing with the same relief he felt. But when he saw that she wasn't there, the smile vanished from his face.

"Pidge?"

He looked around the corner, but she wasn't there either. He quickly headed back the way he came, looking down the alleys in the hopes that she had taken a wrong turn. But there was no sign of her anywhere, and she didn't respond when he called for her.

He cursed his own stupidity. He'd thought that she had been right behind him the whole time, but he should have realized that she wouldn't be able to keep up with him. She didn't do the kinds of things he did on a regular basis. Why hadn't he looked back to check on her? He should have made sure she really was right behind him instead of just assuming it. But where was she now?

A feeling of dread coiled in his gut and he quickly rushed back to the train tracks, praying he wouldn't find what he feared he might.

He only felt relief when he saw no sign of any accident before he was immediately running off again, calling her name. But it was no use, Lady was gone.

(A/N: Ok, so, as I said, I obviously had to take some liberties with this chapter since I'm working with humans instead of dogs, such as swapping out the chicken chase with Tramp showing Lady one of his hangouts that was raided by the police. I also expanded a bit on Tramp's past. While in the original, it was only implied that Tramp once had a family that abandoned him when they had a baby, this backstory was confirmed in the remake. So I ran with that, only having it revolve around Tramp being adopted and then disowned. It ended up taking a good length of his chapter, which was unintentionally, but I think worked out. And now we've reached the part reached the part where Lady was taken to the pound. Only in this case, she's been caught by the cops. So we'll see how that adapts next time.)