Written By: Armina Qi Saxton

Standard Disclaimer: See Disclaimer Page

Chapter 3: Out Of The Wreckage

The water had a calming effect on his clouded mind, allowing him to think without a seemingly familiar voice interrupting them. It gave him a few moments of peaceful silence, despite the loud talking from the streets of the island, and allowed him to just gaze silently out into the countless miles of ocean. He couldn't remember if he had done this before, or what the remains of a life used to look like as it laid behind him, but he knew he was enjoying just standing there.

Gino hadn't moved from his spot on the beach in over an hour, his back turned to the rubble that once his home. Forgotten, but still his home nonetheless. The spot he had chosen to stare out into the wide ocean held a certain comfort to it, although the mess behind him felt much more cold then the day brought. Something didn't feel right about it, not even with the assurances from his supposed father that everything was alright. His words didn't help much, just enough to keep his mind at ease for the time being.

Father and son had spent the night near the rubble, Johnny using what he could from the remains as a fire to keep both of them warm from the night and a small blanket he had managed to obtain through methods he thought he had long since abandoned. He had slept no more then two hours the night before, waking from a light sleep every time his son moved from a nightmare that he couldn't control. Even in his dreams he couldn't make sense of memories that were in a complete daze. The boy had awoken several times with seat beads pouring down his face, only to be comforted by his father. That had given him something after every nightmare: the knowledge that there was, at least, someone there to give him that comfort he desperately needed.

Johnny had brought Gino to the rubble in another attempt to bring out any memories that hid behind the fog that kept them at bay. Simple questions were asked to help with the remembrance process, as he lead Gino through the rubble. Everything was too jumbled together to give an accurate description of what everything looked like before it had been blown up, Johnny's own memories doing the best they could to place luxuries of the past. He had stopped talking several times, mostly in attempts to remember himself but to also keep his emotions in check. He was out where everyone could see him and could see just how torn he was inside.

This attempt, like the others, had been in vain; Gino still did not remember anything of his past. If he did, then he wasn't showing any signs of it. He had wandered over to the once private beach and stood in the same spot for the last hour, quietly gazing out to sea. Johnny had watched his son just stand there for almost the full hour, feeling the pain of seeing his son without his memories now more then ever. There wasn't much he could do after this, nothing less then handing Gino's life into the hands of a stranger.

Now he kicked pieces of his home around, unable to continue watching his son stare blindly into the ocean. It hurt him to know that his own son didn't remember who he was or even his home; he couldn't even remember the man that was his father. That cut Johnny deeper then anything else, to know that Gino couldn't remember him. He still would give his own life for a hint of remembrance in the boy's eyes, even if it were just for a moment. That would be enough for him, to know that he was still remembered.

As he kicked a plank of wood out of his way, a piece of torn paper caught Johnny's eyes. He stopped, reaching down to pick up the stray paper from underneath the chipped wood, unsure if it was something that was once a part of his house or something a passing Gaian had carelessly thrown into the mess. When he straightened his back, and gently brushed off the dirt from the blue flyer, his eyes moving along the lettering that had faded from the time it spent in the rubble. A second of surprise came over him, then his face set into a emotionless, harden expression, one that he usually reserved to prove his point. If his son wasn't with him then, despite his lack of interest of things that were going on around him at the moment, Johnny would have gone into more then just a swearing fit.

In fact, he himself was oblivious to the world expect what was in front of him, until Gino pulled on his arm, standing on his toes to look at the flyer that he held. His eyes looked over the first few lines of fancy lettering that looked faded from the rubble, the rest shielded from his view by his father's hands. Looking up at Johnny, he stared at the expression upon his face that held so much anger in it. Gino couldn't help but shrink back from that same look that the flyer was being given, something in his mind triggering a momentary lapse of memory on something that he barely had time to put his grasp upon. Whatever the memory was, it most likely wasn't pleasant.

"What is it? What does it say?" Gino asked, gulping down any fear that he had in him. If the man wouldn't answer with more then just a glare, then he had overstepped his questioning once again. He had done it before, just a week prior when he had asked more then he should have. There had been a small expectation of a slap across the face, but nothing had come but a few harsh words that ended the conversation right then and there. Johnny frowned, more so at the flyer then at the two questions.

"It's for the Anniversary Ball," He said quietly, looking down at his son. He took note of Gino's confused look, expecting nothing short of pieces of jumbled memories that had come from his amnesia that was still too unclear for him to understand. A smile quickly replaced the frown, this confusion something he was more then willing to lift up. "It's a party that's held every year for Gaia. It's on the day the land was created."

"How does anyone know when it was created?" The boy asked, setting his weight back down upon his full two feet. Johnny opened his mouth to answer the simple question, yet found there was no exact answer to it. He, himself, had questioned the exact date on Gaia's creation, but refrained from publicly asking the question to the current Gaian Council, as he never had any reason to. It just gave him a reason to throw another party; unfortunately, this year, there was no party to be held at his sea-side mansion---or, rather, what was left of it.

"I don't know. That's what the Council says the day is, so I suppose it's true to some extent." He frowned again, his attention focusing back upon the flyer. He had half-expected Edmund to throw the Ball this year, since he was the only one that had more then enough contacts and resources, along with more sense then the Sisters, to put together something as big as the Anniversary Ball. "But why the Von Helsons?"

"Who are they?" Gino asked, his eyes not moving from his father's face. Johnny hadn't expected Gino to know who they were, even with meeting with one of them not even a month before. In fact, he didn't even need to question as to why the sisters were throwing the party in the first place; he knew the answer to it already. If he had any gold to his name, he would have bet all of it on the notion that Anna and Marie were throwing the party in favor of support rather then for Gaia's Anniversary.

"None of your concern," Johnny said, folding the flyer neatly and placing it into one of his pockets. "Come on, lets go. It's a little too cold on the island to be standing around with old memories. Lets go some place where it is a bit warmer. We've spent enough time on the beach as it were."

Casting a longing look towards the rubble that had once been his mansion, Gino allowed himself to be pulled towards the port of the island, hardly feeling the nip in the lat January air. He didn't mind the extra chill the salt water brought, feeling more at ease when he stared out into the water. Somehow, though, it wasn't the same, as though he knew the island was special somehow but still not quite his home that he couldn't remember. Perhaps the man that called himself his father wanted it that way, keeping the forgotten past just that. Forgotten.

But there were others that did not have the luxury of forgetting old friends, as a small boy pressed his face, and both of his hands, against the glass of a store window. He watched the father and son duo move towards the port-side, hand in hand and looking cold, sad, and lost, but still more then happy. There was no understanding in his eyes how anyone could be happy, living on the streets without any place to go and with hardly any food to live on. He couldn't understand this, even when he looked up at his mother, who stood behind him with her hands upon his shoulders and her own gaze watching them disappear towards the port.

"Why doesn’t Gino stay with us?" Peyo asked innocently enough. Ruby smiled faintly at the question, wishing she could explain more then the little she had been able to do. The child was still young, still unable to fully understand why the Gambinos were on the streets, still unable to fully comprehend the events that made them without a home.

"Because he can't, Peyo. As much as I want him to, he can't," Ruby answered sadly, that answer the best that she could tell him. There was so much more that she wanted to tell him, but couldn't. Not yet. Not when he was so young.

"Is it because of his father?" Peyo asked, turning his head back towards the window and pointing out of it. A smile came upon Ruby's lips, a smile that held a brief lapse of sadness and anger in it before it became forced. She knew it was because of Gino's father, like everyone else on Gaia, yet had held her tongue in saying anything remotely bad about him in front of her son.

"In a way, yes," She said, giving her son's shoulder a squeeze. "I suppose Johnny has allowed Gino out of his sight for more then a moment or two."

Peyo stared out into the world that held itself beyond the glass window, having watched both Johnny and Gino disappear from his line of sight. It saddened him that Gino hadn't come in to see him, on the rare occasion that he had done in the past. Those few instances were the ones that he held in his memory as the ones that he would cherish in a way, the times when there was someone else that he could share secrets with and could hold another's just as well. He wanted that same person that had disappeared to come back, to be the person that he once was, with a smile that hid more then emotional scars.

Peyo's body shuddered at something, Ruby looking down at her son to see what was wrong. She couldn't see his face fully, but knew something was wrong just by the way he was staring out into the outside world. He was too quiet this early in the day, when he usually became excited at seeing so many people coming in and out of the shop. He had hardly spoken five words that morning until a few moments ago, his sad eyes moving from the window as he turned around, keeping his head down so he wouldn't look directly into the face of his mother.

"Peyo, what's wrong?" Ruby asked, kneeling in front of Peyo. Although she had an idea as to why he looked so faraway from her, she needed to ask regardless of what she thought was wrong. She had to know exactly what was wrong before she could make any assumptions. "Why do you look so sad?"

"Because Gino hasn't come to see me in a long time." Peyo hid his face upon her shoulder, wrapping his arms around her neck. "Why?"

Ruby wrapped her arms around him, desperately wanting to answer his question in full but knew that he wouldn't fully understand it. It was true that she hadn't seen Gino come into the shop since Halloween, but she knew there was a reason for the first two months of him not being around in the public's eye. Whether she knew the reason or not, or if it was a valid one to be away for so long without people knowing and seeing him, she didn't know; she couldn't explain where the boy had gone to from Halloween to Christmas or why he had. Not even his own father could tell where Gino had been before he was found without any memories. And Ruby couldn't explain Gino's amnesia to Peyo, with the knowledge that he could understand as that being the reason Gino hadn't been in the store in almost five months.

"Because he can't, honey. I'll explain it to you another time, okay?" Ruby whispered into his ear, squeezing him tight.

"But I want to know now!" Peyo whined from the embrace. Ruby pushed him away from her, placing her hands upon his shoulders and keeping him at an arm's length. The tone in which he had used wasn't something she would tolerate, not when she had already put her foot down on the matter.

"It is hard to explain right now, Peyo," She said slowly, keeping her tone level. She wasn't angry with him the slightest, hoping that the boy would know this from her own soft voice.

"I can't tell you because..." Ruby paused, unable to think of a quick reason as to why she couldn't tell him what was wrong with Gino. There were so many possibilities that she could give to someone else, but not to a young boy that didn't knew to know at the moment. "Because, Gino doesn't want me to tell you, okay? He wants to tell you himself, when he gets better."

That was the only thing she could think of that would hopefully quiet Peyo for the moment. It didn't seem to work, Peyo looking at her with the same wide-eyed stare that he used when he wanted something. Ruby bit back the urge to tell Peyo any more then she had, wishing she could block the look that he was giving her. It was an innocent look, one that she had seen so many times and had the ability to ignore the wide eyes, the pouting lip, and the stare that wanted to know so much more. It was a look that he was the master of being able to ignore, but this was a test that the master was being put through to see if she could attempt to ignore.

"O-okay," Peyo sniffed, looking thoughtful for a moment before smiling softly. "Can we have lunch now?"

"Yes, we can. What would you like?" Ruby asked with a nervous laugh, standing up as she took him by the hand. Although slightly relieved that the subject had been changed from what was wrong with Gino to lunch, she couldn't help but wonder if this was the last that she would hear about it, not just from her son but from the rest of Gaia.

That would be something she would have to worry about another time, as she lead Peyo away from the store front and towards the back room where she could hide away until the next group of Gaians came into the store.

****

The weeks before the Anniversary Ball seemed endless, almost to the point where it felt as though time had stopped completely. Many Gaians had thought it had, checking every clock they came across, to make sure that the minutes were actually going by. And, yet, the 18th of February had finally rolled in, causing more then a slight panic for those that had not gotten their last-minute items. Stores would close early on this day, despite the fact that the Ball had started hours before; those that ran the store knew they had the time to stroll into Durem and check out the party, before departing to a well-deserved rest. Only a few did not bother to open up shop, as their owners had long since left for the ball.

There was enough anticipation for the Ball as it were without the general uneasiness that some felt, perhaps because so many wanted to know the faces behind the ones that called themselves the Von Helson Sisters. Those that did not know who they were, wondered why they had never heard of them before the announcement of the Ball; the rest dreaded even looking upon the sisters again, for they remembered what they were like. There would be so very few that would not even bother to attend the Ball, in respect for those that had lost so much to two that did not deserve to be back upon Gaian soil.

And, yet, they flocked towards the Von Helson mansion, on the far corner of the city of Durem. There were already many Gaians waiting outside the large, sturdy doors of the mansion, glancing up at the clock tower for the time. It wasn't long before a large crowd had gathered, eagerly showing off their clothing that they had put together. Some were lavish, expensive to those that looked envious at those that could afford something such as those items; others were more outlandish, dressing up in things that were leftover from events prior. Regardless of who wore what, as soon as the clock tower rang the hour of the start of the Ball, the twin doors opened up, and the crowd that had gathered turned together as one in awe of the new mansion. Then they started to pour in, ready to start partying.

Up above the streets, watching the crowds of Gaians beginning to enter their mansion, Anna Von Helson stared down upon them like vultures with Marie Von Helson looking boredly through her closet. They were partially dressed, hardly looking like the lavish women who would soon make their entrance into the Grand Ballroom in a few short hours. They intended on keeping their guests waiting for as long as they wanted to, silently watching the movements of each Gaian with more then enough security and cameras to keep them safe. They knew there would be one or two nutcases that would get past the guards---and they more then expected it to happen.

"Here are the first few herds of sheep," Anna muttered, smiling at the crowd that was entering through the main entrance. "So easy to sway, some of them."

Marie looked up from pushing a red shoe back into her closet, a twitch in her eyes passing. She crossed the bedroom that she had chosen as a little girl so long ago, moving to the window that overlooked the city. Crossing her arms over her chest, she stared down at the crowd that was beginning to end, staring at the amount of people that had shown up, despite it being only several minutes past the hour in which the Ball had started. It was frightening to think that so many had shown up and the event had barely even begun.

"Look at them all. I didn't expect that there were so many in Gaia and the Ball has barely started." Marie frowned at the idea of having so many people confined to the one room that couldn't possibly fit so many people. "How are we going to keep this many confined to the Ballroom? I don't know how father could have done it before."

"We aren't," Anna said with a sly smile. "We'll allow them free reign of the house, for the time being. Any of them gets out of line, the security will handle it. That's what we are paying them for. Not much, but enough to do their job."

"Perhaps," Marie muttered, scanning the fading crowd. There were few that were moving slow, looking around at the entrance way to the mansion, as though they had never seen one before. Others wanted to get inside, to see if the rumors were true, that this mansion was more elegant then the mansion that had once stood on the island. "You would think that Gambino would have been one of the first at the doors, pounding them down before the start of it."

"Oh, he'll show eventually, don't you worry. Everyone is expecting him to come to the party, regardless of what he looks like," Anna said with a yawn. "Him and that vegetable son of his. That boy should have grown up a Von Helson."

"Ah, well. It's too late to make him one now, despite his total lack of memories for his mother." Marie shrugged, dropping her arms down to her side as she turned away from the window. She wasn't the least bit worried about the two remaining members of the Gambino family at the moment, more intent on getting ready for the Ball then who would be coming to it. "Let's finish getting ready for the Ball, then make them wait."

Marie glided over to the massive walk-in closet that she had, starting to move several pieces of clothing aside as ideas for things to wear. Anna stayed by the window a few moments more, looking down at the now nearly empty street before turning and walking in the same fashion that her sister had taken to get to the closet.

"Not too long," Anna advised sternly, the sly smile re-appearing upon her lips. "They'll think we're being rude to them."

Both sisters snickered, knowing full well that they did not care what the public thought of them at the moment, only that they were there and ready to accept the sisters as the new powerhouse in Gaia. those that did not see their vision of changing how Gaia was, from the foundation that they thought was already weak to the top of the ladder that held everything together, they would simply ignore. There was too much they had to do, with so little distractions they could take; nothing would stop them at this point, not even if it cost them their lives.

And one such distraction had started for the city only an hour before, making it's way from the outskirts of Gaia and her territories to the entrance-way of Durem itself. It paused at the archway, not even bothering to glance up to the clock tower to see what the time was, like so many other Gaians had when they entered Durem for the first time that day. No, it didn't need to know the time as it moved silently towards the mansion in the far-most corner of the city, deep purple eyes looking every which way just to see who was watching the descent to the Ball.

Johnny Gambino too his steps carefully, his son following him closely with every step like a lost puppy. He looked around more nervously at the near quietness that the streets held, scared that something was wrong somewhere, despite knowing that there was a good enough reason as to why there were so few people on the streets. The streets he remembered, when he had been taken to them before this day, had always been bustling with life. Now they seemed like they belonged to a ghost town rather then to a city that didn't seem to sleep.

"Gino, keep up," Johnny's tired voice demanded. Gino blinked, hardly aware that he even had stopped in the middle of the street. He hurriedly ran to catch up with his father, who was nearly at the steps to the mansion. The boy nearly ran into the man, who had stopped abruptly at the base of the stairs, looking up at the towering form. A gut-wrenching feeling washed over him, something that he hadn't felt since he had seen his mansion in rubble. Several Gaians walked by them, offering little more then a smile towards Gino, who was staring more at the opened doorway then at the mansion itself.

He took several careful steps around his father, towards the doorway that was a giant compared to him. Music and voices flooded from inside, cries of laughter rang above all other noise. Gino's body stiffened as two female Gaian's ran past him, giggling and wide-eyed. Only one stopped, turned around, and stared at the boy who looked straight back at her with the same shocked expression. Then she walked towards him, leaned forwards, and gave him a small kiss on the cheek. He barely had time to react before the girl dashed up the stairs and into the mansion, as though nothing had happened.

Gino put a hand on his cheek, a blush going over his face as he looked up at his father. Johnny raised an eyebrow, an amused look on his face, and a futile attempt to hold back a laugh at the look upon his son's face. Gino's face only reddened more, embarrassed more by the actions of the girl then his father's own amusement; at the moment, he wasn't so sure if he wanted to enter the mansion, now that there was a chance that he could be embarrassed even further. Even without his memories, he hated to be put in the center of attention, just wishing to stay back and allow others to. But the smile on the man's lips, the first genuine smile he had seen since Christmas, made that doubt go away.

"Lets go in," Gino muttered, still clearly blushing at the small kiss he had received as he looked away from his father. "Stop looking at me like that."

"Ah, Gino. You'll receive many more kisses like that in your lifetime," Johnny said in a loving tone, squeezing one of his son's shoulders before walking up to the mansion ahead of his son. Gino stared after him, a half-smile on his lips as he lowered his hand and walked to the doorway. If he felt as though this was the beginning of one day that would turn out more then expected to, then he was more then right.

It soon became apparent that there would be the trouble of finding his father in the crowed of people dancing, talking, and enjoying themselves, as he had lost him when both had entered the mansion. Gino found himself being pushed into the ballroom by a rather odd looking Gaian couple, creating an even bigger distance between himself and Johnny. He felt a sense of panic rise in him, looking around frantically in the overcrowded room. One could argue that it was near impossible to loose someone like Johnny Gambino in any place due to his size, but with so many people gathered in one spot, it became less hard to do.

Gino managed to squeeze past several Gaians, who took no notice of him even though they knew who he was. His panic level rose more and more, his eyes darting left and right in an attempt to find his father. Suddenly, a hand clamped down upon the boy's shoulder, causing him to yelp and gasp with surprise. A few looked in his direction as he turned around quickly, finding himself facing his father rather then an unknown stranger. He sighed as the man lowered his arm, his eyes moving around the room.

"Stay close," Johnny muttered quietly to his son. His tone had transformed from the few minutes the two had been briefly separated, from a soft, loving tone to a depressed, alone one. "I must say this place is pretty nice. If I had my mansion, I would be throwing this event myself."

He didn't know if anyone had heard his voice over the crowd that seemed to have ignored him, but there were a few that had turned their heads towards the two. They gave Johnny a smile and a nod, their eyes locking together for a brief moment before his eyes averted down to his son. Gino looked back up at him, glad that he didn't have to wander around the ballroom to find his father as they made their way from near the entrance of the room to where there was more space for them to move more freely. Johnny kept a firm hand on his shoulder, intent on not loosing his son again in the crowd. He didn't know what these Gaian's would do if they had the opportunity to

The move to a less crowded spot in the ballroom, even if he had to search for that small little spot, did him no good. Not even five minutes had gone by when Johnny found himself and Gino surrounded by a group of Gaians, who all looked at him with wide-eyes, the same expression that Gino often look at him with but with less innocence and more memory in their eyes. Johnny looked around at them, staring at their faces, not recognizing any of them, yet wondering why such a crowd had gathered around him. They began to mutter things, questions asking how he was doing and where they were going to be living next.

"How's your son?" Someone piped up from inside the small crowd, through the endless babbling on how glad they were to see him and Gino at the ball. Johnny opened his mouth to answer the question, placing his other hand upon Gino's shoulder, before he closed his mouth again. That was a question that he hadn't been asked by anyone other then those he had known best; if the crowd could see what others, like Edmund and Vanessa, could see, then he didn't need to answer the question. Yet, the question kept coming up, from the mouths of others that were beginning to gather around him, regardless if he heard the support from them or not. He had to answer the question, to stop them from coming up again.

"Gino---well, look at him. He has lost his soul, it seems. He does not even remember his own father. I don't know what to do with him anymore," Johnny said in a nearly whispering voice, nodding down to his son, perhaps to show the Gaians just how distant his son's eyes looked. The last part was true; he didn't know what else to do with his son. Gino only stayed with him because Johnny was the only person that he knew, in a sense, memories or not, and because it didn't seem like there was anyone else that could take care of up. "But, all of you. Thank you for your kind words. It really lightens my heart."

Some of the Gaian's that had gathered around beamed up at him, a fine mist of tears welling at the base of his eyes. The few that had gathered that didn't seem to care if the Gambino's were there or not, those that just wanted to see why people were gathering around in the back, grumbled rather rude things before walking away. Johnny ignored those words like he had ignored them before, moving away from the corner in order to see the reaction his presence gave to others better. Gino walked silently at his side, looking over his shoulder at the small crowd that had started to follow them. His eyes turned back forwards, a hand moving into his father's, matching the man's stride step for step. He felt scared at the group that had surrounded them, unsure as to why they had gathered there in the first place.

As he walked along the outskirts of the dancing Gaian's, his ears picked up more then what his eyes saw. There were mutters of who exactly the Von Helson Sisters were, why they were throwing the Ball instead of someone else that they knew more, and how they managed to get such a large mansion in only a few short weeks since the announcement of where the Ball was going to be held. Johnny held back his tongue for the time being until he could pass those that were giving him more then a glare and a few fleeting words, knowing full well how the sisters managed to get the mansion and the money to afford it. There were echoes of the questions that he had heard, from those that were still following him, waiting for any answers from him to confirm what he thought they already knew, along with smaller conversations amongst themselves.

"As for these Von Helson sisters---BAH!" Johnny growled out, stopping suddenly with narrowed eyes as if he had gone along with the conversations behind him the whole time he was walking. His following stopped just as suddenly to keep from running into father and son, questioning eyes looking up at him as he turned around swiftly, hardly staring at those that were waiting for him to continue. Either that, or he had jumped into the conversations quickly enough that they didn’t know how to respond to his sudden outburst. "I knew their father. Count Vladimir Von Helson was a great man. If he knew what his daughters were up to, he'd be rolling in his grave."

Whether that was true or not, the small crowd around him didn't know nor did they care. There was some truth to his words, more then what Johnny was willing to publicly say. Yes, he did know the sisters father, in a way that he wasn't about to explain to the following that was behind him. Vladimir had been a great man in his own right, having built up an empire just like Johnny had before it crumbled to the ground, but Vladimir had more things going for him then Johnny had when he had first started out. More money, more of an established background, and more contacts then he would have ever had in his lifetime.

If the late count knew what his daughters were up to, something Johnny had always thought he didn't know, then he there was no indication in his life that he had.

****

It felt like the Ball had gone on all day already even though it had only been a few hours, many Gaians leaving the mansion to get some rest so that they could come back later that day to start the cycle all over again. Some had left the mansion for good, not up to more partying until the next event came rolling along, despite this event not being for many more months. Others were just arriving, asking questions on what had happened and if they missed anything exciting since the Ball had started. Some were met with half answers by those that they passed by at the entrance to the mansion, their rounds of questions still persisting others so that they could get the full effect of what had happened by those that were unwilling to answer them fully.

There wasn't much to tell those that hadn't been there from the beginning, except that the wait for the Von Helson Sisters was still going on and that the only other person that they could really talk to that still had a remote ounce of popularity was Johnny Gambino. Oh, there was the shopkeepers from all over Gaia, from Edmund to Ian, from Ruby to Liam, but no one found them more intriguing then seeing the former most powerful man sitting in a corner with his son, who now held a blank, wandering look on his face as though he was more lost then ever. None was surprised to see that there were those that still remained loyal to him, despite everything that had happened and the undead turning of so many Gaian's.

Not even ten minutes after the first batches of new Gaian's had arrived to the mansion, nearly three hours after it had started, everything went unnaturally quiet. The music had stopped abruptly, the bits of conversation that went with it came to a halt, and the wild dancing, along with the roaming Gaian's who went from place to place, had come to a standstill. Everyone became confused, looking around if that would help clear anything up, and all but one person that frowned at the prospect that he now knew that the sisters were about to make their entrance. Johnny stood from his sitting position in his corner, his eyes moving from the center of the dancing floor to where two staircases stopped at the floor near the entrance of the ballroom. In just a few moments, he knew that Anna and Marie Von Helson would be coming down them and would be lapping up the unneeded attention. He found that he didn’t care and hoped that the sisters would not notice his presence right away.

And he was right, as the twin Von Helson sisters made their way to the top of the stairs from somewhere else inside their grand mansion, Anna taking to the left staircase and Marie to the right, as they stood at the top for a few moments, to allow their presence to be known throughout the mansion. Clamoring could be heard to get to the ballroom as the sisters started their descent to the ground level, their eyes wandering down to the group of Gaians that were staring up at them with wide eyes as they smiled rather falsely at them. Some were pushing each other out of the way, to get a better glimpse of the ones that held more then their interest. They seemed to be more willing to do things to get the sister's attention, even with the looks that both of them were giving the massive crowds that few noticed

Anna’s smile turned into a frown at the crowd, as she and Marie took the last few steps down the stairs and stood where they had finished their descent. Her eyes scanned the crowd, a disgusted feeling washing over her as though the mere thought of being in the front of so many people that weren't worth her time was a waste. She could see that more then a handful hadn't even bothered to get dressed up in expensive clothing like both had hoped, putting something together as quickly as they rushed to the ball. Regardless, and with a sideways look from her sister, Anna plastered a smile back upon her lips and tried to look as though she happy to be in front of such a large gathering when she was more then willing to go back up to her room and spend the rest of the day inside it.

"Welcome to the real party," Anna called out over the muttering crowd, her voice echoing across the ballroom. If that was the loudness of her voice, or perhaps she and her sister had microphones hidden somewhere in what little clothing they had, no one bothered to ask nor did they care. Some had finally stopped holding their breaths after holding it in for so long, their eyes shining in the presence of their hosts.

"We, the Von Helson Sisters, have arrived," Marie went on, smiling bigger then her sister was doing. The two walked to each other, the sisters joining each other in front of the large crowd that held it's attention upon them before they turned to the crowd once again. Some grumbled that, now with the sisters at the Ball and the wait for them was finally over, that the Ball needed to go on without any further introductions and delays, so that they could get back to what they were doing before. The rest didn't care, as they stared at the sisters with more then a few intentions of undressing them with their eyes alone.

Regardless of what the mixed crowd thought, the sisters continued on with their long-winded introduction, introducing each other with a flare above the other. They muttered other things, more to themselves then to the crowd, as several maids started to descend the stairs, not in the same delicate fashion that the sisters had, only because there were handfuls of hats, balloons on strings, and small boxes in their hands. The crowd's eyes moved quickly from the sisters to the maids that were gathering behind their employer's, their eyes on the ground as though they weren't allowed to look at anyone. They had little expression on their faces, their faces looking as though they would rather be doing something then serving the sisters and handing out favors.

"We're handing out some great things for you," Marie said as soon after the seemingly long introductions were over, waving a hand over her shoulder to indicate the favors that the maids held. "So, get some drinks and start having fun!"

"Lets get this party started!" The sisters shouted out together, the music starting again just as quickly as it had stopped. It took several moments for the crowd to start getting back into the swing to the Ball, many going back to what they had been doing as though they had not been interrupted by the introduction of the sisters. Anna waved to the maids behind her and Marie to start handing out the party favors to the guests, no matter how many items they had of each as the two of them stayed where they were.

"Think we got their attention?" Marie asked her sister as quietly as she could, although she knew that her voice wouldn't carry over the crowd that had become so loud once again. Anna smiled genuinely this time, knowing full well that they had gotten more then a few of the Gaian’s attention, just with how they looked alone. They soon would get everyone’s attention, and support, even if it took the rest of the day to get.

"Soon you all forget about that loser, Gambino," Anna whispered more to the crowd then to her sister, a laugh escaping her lips. No one seemed to be paying attention to Anna's cruel laughter, or the looks upon the sister's faces, as all of Gaia went on to celebrate the day of the land's birth. Whether or not it mattered to them that something would happen that day, they still found no reason to leave despite the feelings that something was going to happen. They needed a reason to not do anything but have fun and the Ball was more then a good enough excuse.