Johnny was led into one of the many cells at the right side of the dark hallway. The tall, grim looking guide fumbled with his keys as he stood in front of Johnny's new cell. Johnny dare not look anywhere except at the rusty bars before him. His grip tightened on the small duffel bag with all his belongings. As the guide unlocked the cell, he finally got a clear look at his new bedroom.

Johnny entered his cell to see an old, uncomfortable looking mattress thrown in the far right corner. A small, rickety wooden dresser lay by its side. The top was dusted with age, with random words, and names carved into its sides. Across the bed and drawer there appeared to be a collapsed bookcase. Johnny could not make out the names of the books as the bulb overhead swung back and forth, flickering in the darkness. A few insects circled the pathetic excuse for a light.

"Mmmm, welcome to your cell," the old man said, his grim voice slicing through the eerie silence. "I hope you'll enjoy your...mmmm, stay."

Johnny mustered up the courage to turn his head slightly to the left and face the walking skeleton beside him. He swallowed as his eyes met the faded gray eyes of the guide.

"I am Ned Morose," the man continued. "The children, mmmm, call me Mr. Morose. I am in charge of tending to the children's, mmmm, activities and chores". Johnny noticed the similarity of the word morose. As the realization hit him, chills traveled down his spine. " The headmaster will want you in his office as soon as you are done unpacking. And I suggest you hurry. He is not the type of person you want to keep waiting."

The only response Johnny could give was a meek, "Yes sir." Mr. Morose then continued to give Johnny the directions to the main hall, and the headmaster's office. Johnny watched the old man disappear from view behind a pillar of cracked concrete before turning towards his cell.

As he sat down, he overlooked his small cell again. This time he noticed the small details that weren't exactly pleasant. The cracks in the wall, and the cold atmosphere of his cell made him twitch. He looked back at his drawer and took his small bag and dumped the contents onto his mattress. He sighed as his view fell on the few pieces of clothing he had. He took a shirt from the pile and opened the drawer to his right. A groan of disgust escaped his lips as he stared inside.

The drawer contained several dead cockroaches, and an array of ants. Rat feces littered the back of the drawer. Soon, a musty ugly stench filled the room. Johnny stared at the contents, and after several minutes, slowly closed it. With blank eyes, Johnny threw his shirt on the mattress, and walked out of the cell.

>>>

Several curves down the hall, Beat sauntered slowly, enjoying the fact that he was missing morning chores to visit the creepy headmaster. Geez, was that guy scary. Nobody even knew his name. The first time he had laid eyes on him, his face went white. Now all the kids who'd been here long enough knew not to be so afraid of him. Even shy Aria didn't act so shy around him. Though, he, along with Gum and Dom, were the only teens to actually speak up to him.

He saw the turn for the headmaster's office, and lingered in the hallway. A big grin came to his face as he decided to take a "detour". He turned into another hall. He wouldn't take long…just long enough so that by the time he returned to the main hall, lunch would already be served. As he pondered about the possibilities of today's gruesome lunch, he thought he heard faint footsteps behind him. He shrugged and kept walking. The oversized headphones on his ears made hearing small sounds nearly impossible.

"What do you think you're doing?! Mmmm, You're not allowed to be here at this time of the hour!!" a voice yelled far behind him. Beat quickly turned to see the Ned Morose, the freakin' death sentencer. Beat decided he didn't feel like explaining to Mr. Morose, and broke into a run. A few turns left and right, Beat ran smack into somebody. He rubbed his aching head and cursed. He didn't expect anyone else to be near the cells this late in the morning. Whoever ruined his run away was in for it. Beat opened his eyes and looked up to see someone unfamiliar to him.

"Who the hell are you?" Beat asked the shaking kid on the floor. The boy shyly opened his eyes. When he saw the form of Beat, the boy blinked and sat up. He wore an old long-sleeved shirt, and torn shorts. Not unusual in a place like this, but he couldn't seem to place the kid's face. He had tawny, light brown hair that reached shoulder length, and hazel eyes.

"Uh…I'm Johnny. I just got here and-"

"Johnny, eh? You're new, right?"

"Ah, yeah."

"Hmmmm, you seem healthy looking. Of course that won't last long here. Well then Johnny, how old are you? Twelve? Thirteen?"

"Um, I'm only twelve."

"Yeah? You're gonna get it as lucky as it gets here. Consider it hell once you turn thirteen. You get double everything, excluding the food. And don't look so scared. I don't bite."

"Oh," was the only reply Johnny could give.

"I'm Beat," Beat piped up. "Age fourteen. Going on fifteen in July. Heh, consider me a friend."

"Are there any here?"

Beat stared at the boy, too surprised to reply, when a voice hollered around the corner.

"Boy, you still there?! If I catch you, I'm, mmmm, gonna make sure you get double chores!"

Beat cursed under his breath. He roughly grabbed the boy's arm, and with one swift move brought him to his feet. Instantly he began running in the opposite direction. They ran down a large hallway into another building. After 15 minutes, they slowed to halt. Beat never looked back. He caught his breath for several minutes before turning to the kid. Johnny gasped for breath and wiped the beads of sweat off his forehead. He was still breathing deeply as he looked up at Beat.

Beat grinned at the kid. "Barely made that one."

"What do you mean? Why did we run?" Johnny asked, uneasiness in his voice.

"Aw, don't be so untrusting. I just don't wanna tell him how I was called to do something important is all. 'Sides, he just might give me double chores for running away and causin' such a racket. Double chores just ain't my cup of tea."

Johnny smiled for the first time in weeks.

Beat leaned against the wall and took out a package of gum. He offered the kid some. Johnny shook his head and sat down, his back against the wall. Beat studied the kid, noting every detail. He seemed the quiet type. An awkward silence passed before he asked the kid a question that was itching him.

"Where were you going to when I ran into you?"

"I was heading towards the headmaster…but I got lost."

Beat stared at him with cold eyes. He stuffed a stick of gum in his mouth before sticking the pack of gum in his pocket. He jerked his head towards a dark hallway and began walking.

"C'mon, this way."

>>>

Inside the headmaster's office, Johnny's hands were soaked with sweat. The silence seemed to stretch into hours, when a reality check revealed minutes. Johnny coughed lightly, and wiped his hands on his dirty shorts. He wanted desperately to turn towards Beat, but Beat insisted that he act as if he wasn't even there. He brushed his red hair from his sunglasses and sighed casually to Johnny's right. At a quick glance, Johnny could see Beat began picking at his dirty fingernails. How could he keep calm in so much pressure?

"So Johnny," the headmaster looked up from his desk, "your last name wasn't printed on the registration form. Care to share this important piece of information needed to enroll you into this orph- ah, institute?" The man looking down on him had a slight muscular build, yet he sat up like an attentive student in a university. His hair was dark brown, with a layer of gray. His eyes were black and deepened in a pale, arrogant face.

"Johnny?" he repeated, "stop staring at me and tell me your last name."

The headmaster's tone made him sound like a complete troublemaker, but he nonetheless stuttered out a reply. "Uh, sir I don't have a last name…" Johnny's voice faded on the last words.

"Excuse me?"

"I don't have a last name sir."

"No last name? Who doesn't have a last name? Why don't you have one?"

"Well, sir, I…didn't live with my parents. I barely knew the people. They both died when I was three. I've lived with a fairly wealthy inn owner all my life. He recently died, and, my last name was lost along the years. Actually, I don't believe he ever knew my real name either." Johnny barely believed himself, the way his story sounded so far fetched.

The headmaster looked at Johnny incredulously. A long silence then followed.

"And you expect me to believe this?" retorted the headmaster.

"Of course sir, it's the truth," Johnny said, the waver in his voice unmistakable.

The headmaster scoffed. "Anyone who doesn't know their own name is obviously playing tricks, or trying to get attention. You have five minutes to tell me your last name son, or I shall pick one for you."

This was unbelievable! The man didn't even believe him! What a story to tell the stinkin' headmaster. He should've just lied. Johnny then turned towards Beat for support.

"Look at me when I speak son! This conversation is between the two of us! The mischievous teenager next to you is no concern at the moment!" the headmaster barked suddenly.

Johnny jumped in his seat and swerved his head to face the headmaster. He felt like a puppy with its tail between its legs. This guy was scaring the heck outta him.

"I have no last name. Sir, I'm being serious."

"So am I."

A familiar voice interjected. "Didn't ya hear 'im? He says he's got no last name. Give him a last name, but just hurry up. I'm dying of old age here, old man." Beat rudely rolled his eyes at the man. Then he secretly winked at Johnny and tuned back to the headmaster. At least he wasn't going to let him go down alone.

The headmaster jerked his head so fast, all Johnny saw was a blur of movement.

"What did you say boy?! Don't you dare give me any of that smart aleck tone! It might work with anyone else, but when you speak to me, you do it with respect! Two days of cleanup for you! And if that doesn't work, I can gladly extend it"

A loud groan came from Beat's slouching body. He couldn't blame him. Cleanup at the inn had been bad enough, but imagine a huge place like this! It must take hours just to get something done.

"I also want you to show him around the orphanage. You and Aria have been here long enough to travel through the orphanage with your eyes closed. I would have asked her, too, seeing as she will be working with him, but Mrs. Nettle told me she was sent to the infirmary for flu. Johnny will be placed in section 1, but I would still like an experienced guide to tour him around. And none of your mischief. You've caused enough trouble with Mr. Morose this morning. Do you understand?"

"Yeah, sure. Can we go now?"

"Don't rush me, boy. And speak with respect," the headmaster said curtly. "Johnny," the man now faced him, " since you refuse to tell me your last name, your name from now on will be...ah, let's see. Hmmm," he mumbled as he flipped through a stack of pages to his right. "No blasted names available." The headmaster then walked to a big file cabinet in the corner of the room, and searched through the top drawer. "Ah!" exclaimed the headmaster with satisfaction. "Johnny Wretched". It is the only name currently available. I think it will suit you for the time being since you have just earned yourself cleanup with Beat. Consider yourself lucky. It's Tuesday." With that, he dismissed the two teens with an arrogant wave of his hand.

>>>

Beat slammed the headmaster's door on the way out. "What a stuck-up guy. He's so preachy and full of himself, it's aggi—"

He was cut off by a loud bell ringing though the halls. Beat froze, and so did Johnny. The ringing lasted for several minutes before slowly dimming out. Moments afterward, an uncomfortable silence lay in the air. Everything was dead quiet, save for his and Johnny's breathing. As he glanced at the kid, he gave a small chuckle. Johnny had the most confused look on his face. He opened his mouth to speak, but closed it after several seconds.

"Don't worry kid, that was just the lunch bell. It gets pretty loud in large hallways like this. But still, some days it's a sweet sound, announcing an earned break from work. On other days, it's so annoying, and hell to walk all the way to the cafeteria, only to be served with…" Beat stopped babbling to look at Johnny's face. "What?" Beat asked in a slightly irritated voice. "I got somethin' on my face?"

"Oh no," Johnny replied softly. "I was just watching you talk. You kinda have this angry expression on your face when you're trying to make a point. Like I don't believe you, even though you're telling the truth."

Beat gave a small grunt, and headed towards the hallway right of the headmaster's office. "This way," he announced. "Look where I'm going at all times, or you'll get totally lost."

>>>

Johnny nodded and trotted behind Beat, noting the curves and twists of the halls. There were moment's when Beat took him back, and went ahead alone. Johnny would then have to reach into his memory of the halls to find Beat several hallways over. Taking a wrong turn meant Beat shouting the instructions so Johnny could hear them. Overall, the trip to the cafeteria was mentally, and physically exhausting. Johnny could barely remember the hallway patterns, and he was so hungry, he couldn't keep his concentration.

As Beat led Johnny into the cafeteria doors, he was stunned to see such a large number of children. There were probably hundreds! They filled all the cafeteria space, and the noise they made was so raucous Johnny covered his ear with one hand, as he held on the door with the other. A few moments later, Johnny let go of the gaudy, green colored doors and started after Beat, hands on ears. Several steps later and the doors behind him slammed shut loudly that more than half of the cafeteria turned to see Beat and Johnny standing near the entrance. The cafeteria died down to examine the newcomer, then started up in a loud rush of whispers.

Johnny instantly froze. He wasn't accustomed to have any attention drawn to him. Now it felt as if the whole cafeteria was staring at him! Johnny turned bright red. He knew they were probably talking about him, but could they be any more obvious? Sheesh. Johnny heard a low chuckle to is right and saw Beat also staring at him. With a grin he motioned Johnny to follow. Johnny swallowed, and with a deep breath managed to reach Beat several yards over.

"Don't worry," Beat explained as they continued walking, "they do this to anyone new who comes. Just consider part of the initiation into the gang."

"And by gang you mean the hundreds of kids here?" Johnny sarcastically replied. "I'm sure by their whispers they're really going to welcome me with open arms."

Beat snorted. "Consider yourself lucky. Some of the slimy kids actually take to the headmaster's side, and those are the kids that wake up with dead rats on their pillows."

Johnny turned pale. "Did you say d-dead rats?"

"Oh don't worry," he reassured, "it only happens to kids who follow to the headmaster's snap like trained puppies."

"Ah." Johnny remembered Beat sticking up for him this morning.

"Oh, um, thanks for this morning, in the headmaster's office and all. I mean, I thought he was gonna bite my head off." Johnny admitted shyly.

"No problem. That guy is always picking on people. He has no mercy."

As Beat finished his sentence they took their place in the cafeteria line, which was surprisingly short. Johnny had a puzzled look on his face as looked the line up and down.

"Where are all the people? The is the food line, isn't it?"

"Heh, yeah, it is. It's just that some prefer to starve, or they eat smuggled food from the administrative kitchen." When Beat caught hold of Johnny's look, he explained. "You'll see once you eat."

When it was Johnny's turn to take the tray from the slow moving lunch lady, he nearly gagged. She slapped a heap of green stuff on his plate, and another pile of mushy brown junk. The food landed with a sickening slap on his plate, as she gave a gruesome grin showing rotting teeth. She then added a cupful of brown gravy to his mushy brown food. He reached out and took his tray from her, thankfully covered hands, and shivered. Moments later, a carton of milk was shoved at his chest. He coughed, thanked the creepy lady, and continued after Beat.

Beat never looked behind him as he passed numerous tables covered with different kids. As Johnny followed, he felt stares drilling into the back of his head. He felt the heat creeping up his neck, but ignored the views, and with a determined look on his face, followed Beat. Beat finally stopped at a medium sized table near a window.

The table already contained several kids, and Johnny wondered how they were even going to fit. The teens sitting down saw this, and proceeded to move closer together. Johnny sat on one side, and Beat sat across from him. Beat sat beside a boy with partially long brown hair, and electric green eyes. He wore a brown, long sleeved shirt, rolled up to the elbows. Johnny could barely catch a view of his pants, and saw jeans. A black thin chocker graced his neck, and black rubber bands covered his wrists. Pretty normal, Johnny thought.

To his right, a girl with short, tussled hair flashed him a friendly smile. She had steel blue eyes, he guessed, and her hair was the darkest black he had ever seen. She wore black wristbands on both hands, and a brown messenger bag was slung across her shoulder. She kicked up her orange shoes, and Johnny noticed she had a short red dress that made him flush.

"So, what's your name?" a boy to his right asked. He had shaggy tawny hair that covered his eyes. He thought he saw a hint of hazel, but he couldn't be completely sure. The boy wore a red jacket with short sleeves, and a black shirt underneath. He wore brown old gloves on his hands, and a metal dog chain hung from his neck. His pants were black, which seemed to be a common color with these guys.

"The kid's called Johnny," Beat thankfully interjected.

"Johnny?" asked the girl with the red dress.

"Yup," Beat answered. "Guys," he motioned at the teens, "meet Johnny." A murmur of replies reached Johnny. Johnny gave a small smile. "Johnny," Beat continued, "this are the guys." Johnny shyly waved, and a friendly greeting escaped his lips.

"I like him," the boy with the brown gloves flatly said. He then continued to eat a small, chocolate candy bar with ease. The girl with the red hair nodded vigorously. The boy who wore a black chocker studied Johnny with such intensity, Johnny thought he would drill holes into his forehead.

"The boy to your right, Johnny," Beat explained, "is Sydney. The girl over here, is Gum, and beside me is my pal Dom. We're pretty much our own group. Well, we hang out with the other kids, but this is our own little gang we call family." Johnny nodded slowly. Family?

"Speaking of families, what happened to Aria? The headmaster told me she was sent to the infirmary." Beat gave a puzzled look to his friends sitting down. An uneasy glance passed between the three teens, before Sydney spoke up.

"She got sick," he said, with the same plainness.

"Actually," Gum corrected, "when I went to visit her, Mrs. Nettle told me she had a bad case of the flu. It seems strange though, that Aria, of all people, should get sick. She always seemed to be the tidier among us all."

Beat nodded, and for the first time, Johnny heard Dom speak.

"She seemed fine yesterday. It makes me wonder how anyone could possibly become sick in such a short amount of time. Though I suppose when you live in a place like this, it's normal." He motioned towards the cafeteria without averting his eyes from Beat. "But I do wonder how she got sick. She didn't work the gardens yesterday, and Section 1's aren't allowed the dirty work."

With that, Dom politely excused himself from the table, and reached over Beat. With a wave of his hand, he yelled behind his shoulder, "See ya around, new kid." Johnny was so surprised, he barely started stuttering a response when a loud bell rang through the cafeteria. It left an eerie feeling, such as the one in the halls, thirty minutes earlier.

Beat chuckled and turned towards Johnny. "Dom ain't stupid. He knew the bell was gonna ring. C'mon," he said with a sigh, "We better go join him."

Johnny nodded and stood up, gladly leaving his pile of muck on the table. Sydney finished his candy bar, and followed him. Beat and Gum both got from their seats as well. The four kids started out the cafeteria door before Johnny gently nudged Beat.

"Um, I'm still hungry. Do you think you can…" Johnny was too embarrassed to finish his sentence.

"Of course," Beat responded with a smile. "This way."

>>>

Beat and Johnny said their farewells to Gum and Sydney, and agreed to meet after chores. Beat then swiftly led Johnny through a narrow corridor, away from the rest of the children. Making sure they weren't seen, Beat moved quietly. After a few minutes, Beat motioned for Johnny to stay silent. They stood near a corner as Beat stood listening for sounds. Several seconds passed before Beat and Johnny had their backs against the wall. Johnny heard footsteps in the distance, and automatically tensed up.

Beat felt Johnny stiffen. He was just as scared of being caught. The footsteps were faint, but if any mistake was made, it probably meant a trip to the outhouse. That definitely wasn't something Beat was looking forward to. He didn't need to be cooped up like a paranoid chicken. Beat personally had never been in there before, but he had seen kids go into the outhouse, and come back out without their sanity.

The footsteps grew louder, and Beat desperately tried to find an escape. He back tracked his steps, and tuned into an empty hall. With Johnny trailing him, he found the entrance to the administrative kitchen. He warily peaked through the dirty window, and found the room empty. With one swift motion of his hand, he signaled Johnny to his side. Beat took a key from his jean pocket, and fit it into the locked knob. He unlocked the door as quietly as possible, and slowly opened the door. Luckily the door didn't creak, and Beat entered with ease.

Inside, Johnny gawked at the size of the pots containing the food on a kitchen island. From the looks of it, and the smell as well, Beat guessed the food was spaghetti and meatballs, with garlic bread. Beat hungrily eyed the pot, licked his lips, and reached for the covered pot.

Before he could open it though, voices emanated from the hallway. With panicky breaths, he and Johnny managed to slip into the lower cabinets across each other. The door opened wide, and several people entered. Beat cursed being in the cabinet, unable to see anything. He did, however, hear the familiar voices. The cabinets were extremely thick, and Beat could only make out chunks of the conversation.

"…It worked well with several students." Beat recognized Mrs. Nettles voice. "Why not just dump the stuff into all their-"

"No!" yelled the familiar voice of the headmaster. All grew still. Even Beat's beating heart sounded loud in this uneasy quiet. "They have to take it in several doses, otherwise the police will suspect something. Besides," he added curtly, "you can't have an epidemic with everyone dropping dead at the same time."

Epidemic? Beat pondered at his statement.

"Mmmm, we could have a test run. With the rats that, mmmm, run around the kitchen. Cookie catches dozens in the children's food. Why not test on them?" Ned Morose suggested. As if making a point, pots clanged in the cabinet across from Beat. He heard a grunt, and footsteps toward the rats. Suddenly, the door flung open. A young man's voice yelled through the silence.

"Mr. Headmaster, sir! There's been another death in the infirmary! A section 1, I believe. She showed symptoms of the other children who've died of the same sickness. Died in her sleep, just like the others." He hesitated. "This sickness sir, it's spreading pretty fast."

Beat heard the headmaster grunt, and footsteps lead out the room. After a few minutes, he peaked out the cabinet. Cost clear, he thought. He crossed the room, and opened various cabinets. He swung one open to see Johnny, with a metal pot on his head, and other pots scattered in the tiny space. Beat almost chuckled at Johnny's posture, but remembered his misfortune with the headmaster.

He helped Johnny up, and they made their way toward the food. With all that commotion, they weren't leaving without a decent bite to eat.

>>>

Johnny made his way into his cell. He almost coughed his brains out, before lying on his mattress. He felt extremely tired. After Johnny and Beat left the administrative kitchen the day before, they agreed to settle into their bunks. This morning, Johnny had another fitful cough, before walking toward the infirmary. The nurse explained they had too many children staying in the infirmary, and could not bed any more. She advised Johnny to get plenty of rest. Plenty of rest, my arse, Johnny thought.

Loud foots steps echoed the hallways. Johnny saw the faces of Gum and Sydney in his doorway. They looked...excited? Gum happily stood over Johnny's measly light.

"Johnny hurry! You've got to come with us! In the cafeteria…they're—"

"Giving away food," Sydney said with his same brusque tone.

"Yea!" Gum exclaimed. "Spaghetti and Meatballs!"

"With garlic bread," Sydney once again interrupted.

Johnny tiredly glanced at them both. He noticed Dom was not with them. "Where's Dom?" he asked.

"Dom is still in his cell. He refuses to eat any food they serve in that godforsaken place of a cafeteria. Not that I blame him. The food there is pretty...disgusting. We tried to tell him that this time, the food was terrific beyond all words, but he chooses to stick with his pile of flinched candy. I swear, that boy." Gum concluded by shaking her head.

Gum and Sydney then raced from Johnny's cell towards the cafeteria. I forgot to ask about Beat, Johnny thought. I hope he's doing well.

Johnny slowly felt his eyelids droop, and his body relax. His eyes fluttered as he tried vainly to keep them open. He sensed something was wrong, but couldn't quiet put his finger on it. A ring echoed in the distance. Probably the lunch bell, Johnny concluded. Johnny heard the sound grow weaker and fainter. He felt extremely tired, and managed a cough before returning to his relaxed state. A ring echoed in the distance, and Johnny feel asleep to the sway of the pathetic light flickering above him.

A/N:

XP Yes! I decided to post Johnny after...a year? Hah. This is a classic in my book. Poor Johnny, I originally envisioned a different ending, more like leaning towards a series. But, unfortunately, my procrasticating side decided to wait til the day before it was due to finish the ending. And, this is how it turned out! Enjoy, and please review.