Around 2 decades ago.

The streets were clean, so clean in fact that it has been said that you could eat off of them without any worries. The buildings stood with authority and power, special attention had been spent on every nook and cranny. The streets were hardly ever crowded, except at the river a couple of miles away where boats brought fresh produce up from the outer walls; where merchants and shop owners attracted customers –who were servants sent by their masters to buy food— with flattery and interesting gimmicks.

When a clerk placed all their attention on a customer they would turn back around to see that something felt off. Something was unsettling. Then, it would hit them. They were missing merchandise! The men would whip around, trying to catch the perpetrator to no avail, and, grudgingly, they would go back to business as usual.

A tiny figure wearing worn clothes not misplaced in the crowd of humbly dressed servants with misshapen hair curling around the edges of their head, a pauper boy's hat shoved onto the nest of dark brown locks, could not be seen taking a stroll out of the market. The apparent boy had brilliant emerald eyes and a cheeky spark thundered through them. He looked awfully frail for a male, his raggedy clothes hanging off him like a sheet.

He bit into a pear and shouldered a bulging sack of food, not bothering to hide the stolen items, he strolled through the streets with not a care in the world. And probably for good reason. The servants and the vendors would pass over him like he wasn't there. They wouldn't give him a second glance or a disapproving stare. No, they would practically ignore his very existence. Which was to the boy's preference, it let him get by with petty crime such as the one he was committing at that very moment.

Reaching a manhole cover, the boy threw the core of the pear over his shoulder and struggled a bit before removing the metal lid. Panting, he climbed in and dragging the cover over his head, sank into the darkness of the underground.

Sewer water splashed every time he took a step, the air was dank and horrid. Up overhead was a dreary cave-like ceiling filled with stalagmites, down below little cookie cutter brick buildings with mold and other substances oozing out of them. Little makeshift tents were made on the sides of these houses, attempting to sell off useless trash to make a pretty penny. Trash littered the streets, whether it be humans or waste. All of them were rough around the edges and most would do anything for a good meal.

The boy calmly strolled through the middle of the road, humming a little. He turned a corner and something caught his eye. A teenager around the age of sixteen was staring right at him. His grey eyes digging into his soul. The boy's eyes were wide, this was the first time someone had even taken notice of him before he spoke to them.

Fearing the unfamiliar, he ran. Jumped over walls and climbed up fences, ducked into alleyways and crawled through pipes. He only stopped when he was sure the guy couldn't have followed him that far. Trying to calm his breath, he shouldered his rucksack again and entered a small house. Locking the door carefully, he sighed in relief and poured the food he had gathered on the table.

Smiling toothily at his haul, he chopped up some green apples and placed it on a chipped yellowed plate he had salvaged from behind a rich government official's house. The boy went down a narrow hallway and pushed open a rather stubborn door into a small bedroom.

A rickety old desk scattered with papers and ink, as well as a couple of blankets mixed in with table cloths and an old tapestry was the only objects that filled the empty space. The boy beamed at the sight of his big sister at the desk. Hunched over and frantically scribbling down something on parchment, the teen had barely realized that she had company.

The boy walked over to her and after placing the apples on the desk, threw his arms around his sister and made her jump.

"I'm back, ne-san!" the boy announced.

The girl smiled and hugged her little sibling, then grabbing a quill, quickly wrote something down. She held it up for him to see.

Welcome home, Charlotte.

Charlotte took off her hat and tossed it into the corner. She also stripped off her cardigan and her soiled boots. Jumping into the blankets on the floor she made a satisfied noise, stretching her poor sore limbs out.

"How's the writing coming along, ne-san," she asked her sister from the floor.

There was the scratching of the quill and Charlotte looked up to see the words: I have writer's block. :(

Charlotte chuckled. "Don't push yourself too hard. We have time."

Another pause as her sister wrote something down.

I'm sorry for burdening you like this.

"You're not burdening me," Charlotte answered casually. "It's not like the Military Police knows who's responsible for the constant stealing, even if they did they'd never catch me. I'm too awesome."

Scribble scribble scribble.

By the way, when are you going to grow your hair out? >:( You look like a boy!

"Who cares," Charlotte said. "Nobody looks at me anyway."

I look at you!

"Then look long and hard," Charlotte smirked. "Because this is my hair policy!"

Her sister rolled her eyes.

"Eat," Charlotte pointed at the slices of apple on the table. "Got them at the market, people are going crazy for the new shipment. Green apples are rare."

Her sister took a bite out of one of the servings before writing something down.

You know what's even rarer? Golden apples.

Charlotte gave her sister a look. "Meat is the rarest."

I don't want meat. I want a yellow apple.

"Considering the delicacies of food involved that's not an impractical request... but don't you think you're asking too much of me, ne-san!" Charlotte demanded.

I was just expressing my craving for a golden apple. I never asked you to get one for me.

"You implied it!"

Stingy...

"Have I spoiled you too much, sis?" Charlotte smirked.

Her sister didn't answer, rather she went back to writing her novel. Charlotte jumped to her feet and went over to read over her sister's shoulder. They promised to each other that one day they were going to live on the surface. In a clean house and with fresh air. They were going to stuff their faces with food every day and her sister would live her dream out as a writer. They were going to be content and happy.

Charlotte wrapped her arms around her sister from behind and rested her head on her shoulder.

"Ne... Lizzy..." Charlotte whispered, her eyes hooded. "When we publish your book and save a lot of money, we'll go see a doctor and pay him to cure your voice. If one doctor can't do it, we'll go see another. If they can't do it, then we'll go see another. If they need more money, I'll steal it."

Charlotte's embrace tightened. "No matter what, you'll get your voice back. Because you deserve that much.

"I love you, sis."

Lizzy's mouth spread into a small smile and she reached up and caressed the soft tangles of her little sister's hair.

One day.

Charlotte let go of her sister and headed to the door.

Definitely one day.

Charlotte gave Lizzy a toothy closed eyed smile before the door shut behind her.

I'll be able to say 'I love you' back.

A Few Months Later

The pattering of footsteps as a slim figure ran through the alleys. Panting hard and sweat accumulating around her brow, but despite this, she had an exhilarated smile on her face as well as a light in her eyes. She leaped into the air and punched the sky with a whoop of celebration before falling back to the cobblestone streets. She got a scratch on her palm but she couldn't care less.

Charlotte pulled out the large sack of money and hugged it to her chest, overcome with a fit of giggles. This was money they earned. This is the reward for hard work. Charlotte grinned from ear to ear. She never knew this feeling was so satisfying. Tucking the pouch into her rucksack again, she sprinted down the road toward her house.

Lizzy will be so happy! Her transcript got accepted and this is only a smidgeon of what money is to come!

Charlotte's pupils dilated and she kicked out. A hand deflected the blow and grabbed her ankle. She gritted her teeth and tried to rip her foot out of the large man's grasp. She saw the grisly array of teeth and the crazy gleam in the man's eyes as he looked down at her.

Shit. She had forgotten not to draw attention to herself, she'd let her emotions run haywire.

"What have you gotten there, pretty boy?" the man drawled as his friends surrounded the pair. "Mind giving us a little peek?"

Charlotte glared at the man, not bothering to answer. It was too late to conceal herself now, if they've already taken notice of her she had no choice but to fight.

"What's the matter?" the man asked.

His grip on her ankle tightened and Charlotte winced.

"Too scared to speak?"

"Let me go, scum," Charlotte growled.

This was obviously not the right move. The man's face contorted in fury and he threw her hard against a wall by her foot. Charlotte grunted at the impact and hurried to stand, but the men had already surrounded her, chuckling darkly and hostility emitted off them in waves.

"Give us the money and you won't get hurt," the skinny one said.

"Not a chance in hell," Charlotte snarled and she pounced on one of the thugs.

They cried out as she kneed him in the face and slammed his head onto the ground. She roundhouse kicked one that had been running at her from behind then, linking her hands together, used all her force to slam the side of her fist into a man's cheek. She dodged a lunge for her and using the underside of her calf, kicked the man down to collide with the stone. She tripped one man and used another as a spring board, she was making a break for it. If she could only get into the third alleyway to her right, she'd have some chance.

A hand grabbed the back and a little of the top of her head and crashed her face into the ground. She tried to throw the person off, but this guy wasn't joking around. They grabbed her arm and forced it into her back. She cried out as her shoulder dislocated and she tried desperately to free herself. They just slammed her face into the cobblestone again. Panting, she glared up at the man holding her down, her face turned to the side just enough for her to see. Her rucksack was wrenched off her back and she heard the yells of wonder and achievement reach her ears. Hatred and pain tore through her body as somebody chuckled into her ear and with one last shove, stood up and walked away with the rest of the men.

"Wait..." she muttered under her breath. "Wait..."

She took a rattling breath and pushed herself up with her working arm.

"Wait."

Blood dripped from her head and mouth as she staggered to her feet. After inhaling deeply, Charlotte zoomed forward and jumped onto one of the bastard's backs. She had her feet on his shoulder blades and her hand on his head. Time seemed to slow as he fell.

Bam!

He faceplanted into the dirt and the stone cracked at the power. Charlotte had flown off in time to spin in the air and land softly back to the earth. The man's comrades all gave her looks of loathing and she smirked.

"I said wait, didn't I?" she said coolly.

The men all tackled her. She jumped up and their heads banged together, stunning them for the moment. Charlotte descended down and punched one of them across the face. He was still flying back when Charlotte kicked another in the gut and then right on the top of their skulls. She ducked a punch and swiped her legs under the enemy to make them trip, then kicked the nape of his neck to knock him unconscious. She snapped around looking for her rucksack in the mass of bodies. When she saw it, she lit up and reached for it.

Clang!

Charlotte crumpled onto the ground with a thud, the light gone from her eyes. The man groaned and shouldered the metal pipe, tsking down at Charlotte.

"Persistent brat."

The men all groaned and some had to support each other to even stand. Giving the limp body of the boy another hateful kick as they passed and they ambled off.

"If we hadn't gotten this money today," one of the men grumbled. "Kenny would've had our heads."