Sleeping with the Stars

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『I've been a vagabond for as long as I can remember, from the innocence of childhood all the way to now. But if you were to say I'm the only filthy soul your city refuses to see...heh, you'd be off...』

『...by a long shot.』

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7 Years Ago, in the Year 2158.

"Khriiiiissaaaaa!" a mature woman called out. She sighed a puff of dismay. She then cupped her hands around her red chafed cheeks, a flake of dead skin fell around her hand as she paused briefly to scratch her patch of eczema. "Khrissa! Where are you!?"

"She'll be 'ere any minute, hon," a man no more than 5 years older than she said, shaking his head and smirking pitifully as he walked to her side.

"She doesn't usually stay out this late," the woman groaned nervously, fidgeting back and forth and fiddling her fingers together.

Her nervous tick, the man thought.

"It's only five thirty-two," he laughed. "'Sides, Khrissa's a smart cookie. She gets that from her mom's side, doncha think?"

The woman sighed again, but this time it was more relief than anything else. "I suppose you're right. Still, I can't imagine...o-oh, there she is! Khrissa!" she shouted, flailing her arms frantically above her head.

"Hi, ma! Hey, dad!" Khrissa beamed brightly, her large, round eyes sparkled under the reflection of the sunset. "Look, look what I got this time! I found an old alarm clock at the dump! Do you think we can fix it, dad?"

The man whistled intriguingly, picking up the alarm clock and rotating it between his oily, sweaty hands. "Man, they don't make these anymore. I s'pose with a bit of tender loving care we c'n get it back to good shape." He turned to his daughter, who was rummaging through her bag in the search for more items. "Good find, Khris. You're gonna be quite the Lil' adventurer when you grow up!"

"Hehe," Khrissa giggled, giving him a white, toothy grin. "...I'm hungry," she murmured after hearing her slender stomach moan with a growl.

"Let's go inside, then. We made pizza for dinner," the woman smiled, leading Khrissa inside.

Just when you didn't think her face couldn't get any brighter, Khrissa gave a merry simper to match those glistening green eyes as she skipped inside gleefully, tossing her ankle boots smeared with mud next to the door. She swung the crossbody satchel she hauled on her shoulder onto a couch with hastily sewn patches, pieces of fluff diffusing from the corners of the popped seams. She plopped down on one of the cushions, which have grown noticeably filthy and flat, eagerly waiting for a slice of the savory, steamy cheese pizza.

"Here you are, sweet," her mother smiled, laying a grey paper plate with a large slice of pizza upon her lap. The woman sat between Khrissa and her father, handing him a plate as well, before dining together.

The house was so small, you couldn't fit a fridge in the corner of the room even if you wanted to. It was a 1-story house, about 1,000 square feet. If you just entered the house through the front door, the couch would be tucked away in the right-hand corner, a small, flatscreen TV directly in front of it with an antennae wire trailing from the TV to the window on the left. The "kitchen" was on the left-hand side but only consisted of a small granite-topped counter and a mini black stove stained with rust and burn marks.

Still, it was all they had. At least it was a little bit more than what others residing in Bane had. Many people who lived in the wastelands of Bane were exiled from prosperous city-states, most often Fanrong, Kintoshi, or Maynew, either from deportation or punishment for their crimes. Out of those people, many were left homeless, or--worse yet--involved with the black market. Prostitution, drug dealing, gambling, assassins for hire, and crime rings were commonplace in the deepest, darkest corners of Bane.