A BABY'S CRY CAN BE HEARD, YET NO MOTHER COMES TO SOOTH IT. The baby is not wanted, seen as mere garbage. That is, until Click finds it, placed in a box by the garbage. 'It's mighty fortunate the garbage men haven't been yet' he thinks to himself, taking the child gently, and thus Fortune was born.

▪ ▪ ▪

          "HEY, SPARK, WAIT UP!" a young boy, no older than thirteen called out. Red dusted his pale cheeks as he followed his friend through the bustling streets.

"No way!" Spark's silvery voice could be just about be heard above all the noise. "Click said first one back has first pick of finds, remember."

"Don't tell me you really care about that." Fortune sighed, now alongside her. He'd been living with Click his whole life, just like many others, including his close friends Spark and Prophet. That rule has been in place a long time, long before Fortune had been there.

"You bet I do," Fortune could practically feel her grin, "and you always manage to find something awesome."

Fortune folded his arms, "you said that to Prophet last week when he came back with that Astroshooter Pin Ball game."

"Hey!" the dark haired girl spoke indignantly, "it's good. I've seen you having a go too."

He rolled his eyes, "I don't see why the rule is in place anyway. We all end up sharing everything." For the most extent that was true. As they were only young, Click only let them use the time-hoppers they'd been given once a month. The rest of the time was spent scavenging what they could on the streets and pickpocketing.

Spark laughed, "Speaking of finds, what did you.." Fortune pulls her sharply into a small alley. "What the hell Fortune!"

Fortune moved a finger to lips, "Police," he whispered quietly.

"What did you do?" She demanded back with a whisper, unimpressed.

Sheepishly, held up a gold pendant, he'd managed to nab from a young woman earlier on. It had been too easy.

"Oh for God's sake," she muttered. "If we get caught, I am going to kill you."

Fortune just smirked, "Do you even know me? I never get caught." He held out his hand to her, "M'lady."

Spark rolled her eyes and sighed deeply, but took his hand anyway.

They moved quickly through the alleyways, as if they were dancing a choreographed masterpiece. Fortune had knew the alleys like the back of his hand, which definitely helped if you were being chased.

Spark, however, was not yet accustomed to the intricacies of the tiny alleyways, having not been in Click's care for very long. Fortune had guessed that her parents had died, like most of the children Click adopted, making them members of The Magpies.

Once Fortune had decided it was safe, he showed Spark what he'd picked up. "It's a thaumatrope." He explained, playing with the item, "Some Victorian toy."

"Oh cool," Spark smiled, watching the toy with interest, "I bet you're guessing what I found?"

Fortune grinned, "You bet I am."

Spark reached into the pocket of her dusty red jacket. "A Walkman."

Fortune's eyes lit up, "Awesome!"

Spark nodded enthusiastically, "It sure is!" before sliding the Walkman back into her jacket pocket.

The pair ducked into another alleyway, in a more rundown part of town. The bricks were a dusty grey colour with black brick decorations. There were small windows, with cracks running through the glass. It blended in with the rest of the rundown houses, all long since abandoned.

Inside the house was pretty much the same. It was mostly run down, with basic necessities, heavily worn. A few children milled about, those who still training, looked after by Click's right hand man, Link. He helped with training and looking after the children.

Said Link looked up from his place in the small kitchen, giving the pair a friendly smile. "Guess one of you'll get first pick."

Fortune nodded mutely, whereas Spark grinned beside him, "I can't wait."

Link chuckled gently, and went back the cooking. Fortune moved towards the fading and worn couch. He lounged casually on it, his feet dangling over the other side lazily. Spark rolled her eyes, taking a seat on the floor beside him. Fortune grinned back playfully, poking out his tongue.

It wasn't too long before the rest of the young children came back; the next being Bee, a girl not much older than him with striking blue eyes and shoulder length brown hair. She was followed by Ward and Bird, blond haired twins, and Hacks, a friendly redhead. Yet still there was no Prophet.

Click himself was one of the last to arrive, which was usual. Fortune never knew where the older man, and leader of The Magpies went, but he assumed it was important.

Click grinned at the children as he greeted them all. "So who's the lucky winner this time?"

Link looked up and nodded towards the two best friends. "They both came back together, who'd you wanna pick?"

Click hummed, "They're old enough. I'm sure they'll be able to choose for themselves."

"Spark can get first pick, sir." Fortune spoke quietly, sending her a quick smile.

"That settles it then." The dark skinned man hummed, "Miss Spark will choose first. Now what did you lot find?"

The room became a buzz as everyone got out the items they had found. There were fossils, small toys, small gadgets galore. Fortune had presented his thaumatrope proudly, and he'd noticed one of the younger children, Nova, eyes light up immediately. A lot of the older children noticed this and had encouraged her to pick second.

Spark, however, had decided to choose what Maths had brought back, a Tamogotchi. It was white with black buttons, 'an original generation,' Maths had said.

Despite the pleasant sharing of gifts, Prophet had still not arrived. He hoped that maybe he was still looking for an item or something, but he was fearing the worst.

He slipped upstairs, unnoticed by the rest, and into his small bedroom. It was hardly his; he shared it with most of the other boys his age. They were lucky enough to have their own beds, Fortune even managing to have the top bunk of one of the bunk beds in the room.

Retrieving a marker pen from his pocket, he scrawled the name 'Prophet' on the wall, tying to push away the ache in his chest. Prophet's name was not the only name on the wall by far, but the loss to Fortune was far greater.

Prophet had been more than a friend. They were partners. He remembered the past few months; both of them exploring the alleyways, hand in hand; going to same time together to retrieve items; spending nights under the stars. All those moments he'd never be able to get back. Prophet was gone, and there was nothing he could do.

There wouldn't be a funeral. There never was a funeral for any of the children lost. Nobody knew what happened to them, they just knew that they didn't come back.

Click himself had eventually come to find the young boy, having finally noticed he wasn't there when he hadn't come down for dinner.

Dinner usually was whatever they could find, which was usually a porridge, sludge-like consistency. In Fortune's opinion, it was fucking awful, and he rather starve than eat it.

"You alright, kiddo?" Click asked, though Fortune suspected the man already knew the answer. He sighed, "I know two you were close." Were. God it made the loss more real.

Fortune said nothing, reached into his pocket, pulled out the pendant from earlier and offered it to the older man wordlessly.

Click took it and ruffled Fortune's hair, "Good job, kiddo," he murmured before leaving Fortune alone with his thoughts. He touched the ring he wore on his right ring finger gently. He knew Prophet wore an identical one. They were promise rings. They'd promised to never forget one another, and if they survived the mess of their childhood, they'd runaway together, and never look back. He held back sobs as silent tears rolled down his cheeks. He felt so stupid. He'd grown attached, something he shouldn't have done.

He wouldn't get attached again.

▪ ▪ ▪

A FEW YEARS LATER

FORTUNE COULD FEEL HIS HEART HAMMERING IN HIS CHEST, ADRENALINE COURSING THROUGH HIS VEINS. He was crouched behind a car in an alley. He tried to the slow his breathing down, taking deep breaths. A sound of boots pounding on the floor made him freeze, and he hoped it wasn't the not so friendly policeman he'd been running from.

"Well, well, well," an all too familiar voice hummed playfully, "Look what the cat dragged in."

A grin spread across Fortune's face, "Was gonna say the same thing 'bout you."

Spark shoved him playfully, "Cheeky sod."

The dirty blonde young man laughed, "It's great to see you, love."

"Oh, ever the charmer," she scoffed. There was a stagnant pause between the pair. "You haven't been home in ages. The kids miss you."

When Fortune had turned 18, he'd no longer stayed collecting stuff for Click, instead kicking stuff for his own pleasure. He still stayed home when he wanted, only then bringing trinkets for the younger children.

He'd seen countless losses after Prophet; the youngest were always more quicker to go, naïve, inexperienced; even some of the older members, who just weren't quick enough, looked just out of place.

He had never loved anyone as much as he loved Prophet, despite what he may have told anyone. There was still a deep part of his soul that longed for companionship, but with line of work, it just simply wasn't possible.

So he was fine with one night stands, it was almost contractual, an agreement, no strings or feelings attached. Really, he was.

"Let's go home," Spark spoke gently, in the way you'd pity someone. He hated it.

"Yeah," is all he can bring himself to muster. "Home."

          Home as usual hadn't changed. Nothing had changed. Spark had made her way to the kitchen to make dinner of sorts whilst Fortune had moved to sit on the still fraying sofa. He'd offered to help but Spark had insisted she was fine, not wanting Fortune to almost accidentally set fire to the house again.

The house was eerie, the children still out on missions, or just out on the streets. There were few younger children left, most of them now being early to late teens.

Getting up quietly, he moved upstairs towards his former bedroom. He glanced at all the names he written on the wall. He traced his fingers over 'Prophet' carefully, as if the name was sacred. It was, in its own way.

A cry from a room opposite pulled him from his thoughts. Peering into the room his heart ache to see a baby girl, no older than 6 months old, tears running down her red cheeks.

He picked the child up gently, cooing softly. He cradled the girl in his arm, rocking her gently. He was used to looking after babies; he'd spent a fair bit of his childhood doing so.

"Hey, little one," he spoke quietly. "You hungry?"

The baby squealed in what Fortune understood as agreement, so keeping a safe hold of the baby, carried her downstairs.

Spark was still working away in the kitchen area, and he carefully moved around her to look for a bottle. He'd soon found one and was getting some milk ready for her.

Spark smiled at them from where she was stood by the oven, "you look adorable."

"Why thank you."

"I was clearly talking to the baby."

"And here I thought you were being kind."

All of sudden, a thundering crash came from outside. The door flew open and Click stormed in, angrier than Fortune had ever seen. He rounded on Spark.

"You bitch! You ratted us out to the cops." Before Fortune could do anything, Click had backhanded her, sending the flying across the kitchen. The baby let out a frightened squeal.

"Don't you dare touch her," Fortune warned lowly, moving to Spark before Click could close the distance and do more damage.

Click chuckled, "you think you have a choice? You all belong to me."

Oh...oh. A sickening realisation built up in chest. He kept a straight face, slowly trying to process what Click's words exactly meant.

"What do you mean, we belong to you?!" Spark paled, a slight tremor evident in her voice, "like hell I belong to anyone."

Click just merely grinned and it reminded Fortune of a wolf: predatory, unfriendly, dangerous. "You stupid girl, no wonder why it was easy to take you."

Take her? Oh.

"You sick bastard," Fortune spat. He carefully placed the baby on the couch, not wanting the child to get caught in the crossfire.

"You think you're so smart, don't you?" Click growled, taking a step towards him. "I should've left you at the dump."

Fortune laughed bitterly, "You know what? Maybe you should've."

"Fortune.." Spark gasped quietly, her eyes full of pity.

"He's knows I'm right," Click laughed cruelly, "the best thing about taking you was that you had no one coming to look for you, they already didn't want you. You wanna know how much harder it was to get rid of some kids' parents? I mean, some parents even gave their kids willingly, for a small fee of course. But some were so desperate to keep their precious being that, they needed to be taken care of..."

"You killed them?!" A sudden sob escaped Spark, "you took me and you killed my parents?!" Her eyes were crazed with shock and horror as her body trembled, "You bastard."

It made Fortune's blood boil, as Click has explained the murder of countless parents ever so nonchalantly, as if it was normal for him — it probably was.

"You couldn't have done it alone." Fortune scoffed and folded his arms. "You had someone to help you? Link, right? He helped cover your dirty work and then played caregiver to us to keep us happy, so we wouldn't ask questions about what really happened to our parents."

Click clapped his hands slowly, "Oh, look who's turned – "

"I'm not finished," Fortune snapped. "So what? Link left, having enough of being your dog? Your slave? Or did you find out he wanted out? Did you find out and kill him because you were worried he would call the cops." There's a deadly silence before he speaks again. "No, you killed him because you wanted to. You had no use for him anymore. You wanted someone else to take his place, someone who you thought would be a better fit..." A sick realisation hits him as his eyes glance across the room.

"You chose Spark. You'd manipulated her, for the majority of her life, bending her so she believed everything you told her. Making her believe that you were saving these kid's lives instead of destroying them."

More sobs escaped Spark's body and the sound of sirens could be heard in the distance. Before Fortune could do anything, Click had pulled out a gun and had fired. Spark's body crumpled to the floor as Fortune had watched numbly. The baby burst into tears at the noise and Fortune dared to move closer to the poor child. A click of a gun alerted Fortune that Click was already considering killing him too.

"You really didn't want to do this," he warned the older man, his former mentor.

"Oh but I do," he chuckled lowly, "the police would love to know what your doing here, stealing from a respectable man in the community."

"Respectable? You've fucking murdered hundreds and you have the audacity to call yourself respectable! You fucking hurt so many kids here, forcing us to do your bidding and if one us died, you simply replaced us. You never cared."

"And you'll been replaced soon as well."

Quickly, Fortune pulled the old style revolver he'd nicked not too long ago and aimed it at the older man. The pour were locked on each other, sirens getting louder by second.

"You're not gonna shoot me boy," Click mocked, "you were always a softie, just like your friend, what was his name? Prophet?.."

"Shut up!" Fortune yelled, his cheeks flushed with anger, "Don't you dare say his name."

"You're not gonna shoot me," he teased again, "You're a coward boy. You ain't got the.."

Click didn't get to finish his sentence because Fortune had shot him dead.

With the sirens fast approaching, he needed to do something and fast. He moved quickly, pressing buttons on his time hopper before he paused. The baby was still crying and Fortune just couldn't bear to leave her there. But deep down, he knew that the baby would be better here. Safe. She'd be put into a nice home, with people that would love her. He sighed deeply his eyes full of sorrow as he whispered gently.

"Goodbye, little one."

With that, he teleported away. He was moving on. He couldn't go back. 'This is what happens when you get attached' his mind taunted. And he believed it.

𝙰 𝙽𝙾𝚃𝙴 𝙵𝚁𝙾𝙼 𝙶𝚁𝙰𝙲𝙴
So the first chapter is FINALLY here!! I should be able to update a bit more frequently now that I'm almost finishing college and that I have parts of next chapters planned out. I hope you enjoyed the first chapter and meeting Fortune. Strap yourselves in because it's gonna be a wild ride!