The young and newly orphaned Alfred F. Jones stood in front of the big, gray building with dusty windows and high walls surrounding it. Alfred saw old wooden doors at the front creak open and a woman with long brown hair and an orange flower clip stepped out. Behind her was another little boy with wavy blond hair and a curl on top of his head, bouncing down in front of his face, and a little, white stuffed animal hugged to his chest.

"Hello Alfred, I am Elizabeta Hèderváry, and this is were you will be staying from now on," the lady with long, brown hair smiled. "You will be sharing a room with Matthew here." Elizabeta gestured to the shy looking boy behind her.

"Ok! Thank you Ms. H!" piped Alfred.

"Don't thank me, and please just call me Elizabeta. Matthew, Alfred, please aquatint yourselves." With that, Elizabeta motioned them back inside.

The interior of the orphanage was cleaner than what one would think from the outside. There was a homey feeling to the worn, but snug, chairs in the front and the buzzing of the lightbulbs overhead. There were a few toys scattered about as well.

"Hello! I'm Alfred F. Jones! I like burgers and soda!" Alfred offered a small, friendly hand to the timid boy in front of him.

"Oh, hello. . . I'm Matthew Williams. . . Well, I guess Williams' not my name anymore."

"Why?"

"Because that's my parents' name, and they're gone, so it's not my name anymore. You too! Your parents must be gone, so you aren't Jones either!" Matthew looked away, in sadness at his own memories and somewhat in annoyance at Alfred's obliviousness to his own situation.

"My parents aren't gone! I just can't see them right now! They said they'd be back for me!"

"They probably aren't coming back, you wouldn't be here if that were true!"

"No! You lier! They will come back!"

Matthew looked at Alfred and saw small tears and sadness in his eyes. Then he realized that lying to himself is how he copes to never seeing his parents again. He sighs, maybe he too lost his parents to a demon?

Matthew grabs Alfred's hand and starts leading him down a hallway and up a flight of stairs. On the second floor of the building, he leads him into a small room. Two beds lay in opposite corners with two small dressers set against a wall. "This is our room, my bed is the one on the left, you can have the right one."

Alfred had been confused when Matthew started pulling him along, but now he understood. "Ok, thanks Mattie!"

"Mattie?"

"What? It's a nickname? Do you not like it?"

"N-No, I don't mind it."

"Good!" Alfred smiled.

"B-But that means I get to call you Alfie!"

"Ok!"

The boys looked at each other, clear blue meeting soft violet. They looked at each other for a few minutes longer then started laughing.

Alfred and Matthew jumped up onto a bed together and started talking. Somehow, the topic of parents was brought up.

"My parents and I were driving home a few years ago, when I was five I think, and it was dark. All of a sudden our car flew out of control and it flipped over, cause of the ice in the road. But it wasn't the ice's fault! A demon had summoned the ice and it tripped our car! Mommy and Daddy didn't live through it, Mommy had tried to shield me from broken glass and injuries. It was all the fault of demons that my parents died! Ever since the officers told me that, I swore that I'd become strong and make sure no one else lost their parents to the nasty demons!"

"Cool! Well, not about your parents, but about the strong thing!" Alfred got up and walked to the other bed, "Look!" He shouted and proceeded to lift up the heavy furniture. As Matthew looked on in amazement Alfred suggested, "I can help you get strong like me!"

"R-Really?"

"Uh-huh!"

And Alfred did help. They spent that day and on coming years together, learning to get stronger and stronger. It paid off too, they both became quite strong before they were out of sixth grade. They were best of friends, practically brothers. That is, until Alfred got adopted.