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all the world's a stage

and the men and women merely players

Here is a story of four boys. [break][break]
Raphaël Valérien is a few months old when he's dumped on the orphanage steps. He's taken in, yes, but he has nothing of his own save his name. Even the name Valérien is not his - it is given to him by the one friend he has in the place, a girl with golden hair, a girl who loved the Valerian flowers. [break][break]
Raphaël learns from the orphanage several things: firstly, it is a dog eat dog world. Everyone for themselves. Food is scarce in the orphanage, and as the dredges of society, he must fight the others for every spare morsel he can get. He learns thieving just to get enough to fill his belly - picking pockets, shoplifting fruits or perhaps a lucky pastry from the bakery. The orphanage sisters scold him badly for this, but he quickly learns to lie, to keep secrets. His tongue becomes his best weapon, and he uses it at every opportune moment. [break][break]
Adrien Marceau is ten when he leaves the orphanage. He's earned skills enough to start striking it out on his own - or so he believes. Perhaps the real reason is because he now has no one to love or protect - a girl he loved perished of disease. If the orphanage had enough money and food, she might've survived. But the orphanage was in the slums. No one would help a dying girl. So why should Adrien stay in a place where there's nothing but pain and sorrow?[break][break]
Gangs are common in the slums. Being a top-notch thief, he soon becomes one of the leaders in the gang. He's stellar at card games, excellent in manipulating truths and lies, and his young and charming face also becomes a tool at his disposal. Who can ignore a crying child? Not the noble ladies who give him a coin that later becomes a bite to eat. Not the baker's daughter who has a crush on him and smuggles him the left over pastries. Adrien gives her his first kiss, but it's one without any love nor affection. She believes he loves her, but it's all a ruse. He later breaks her heart with his sudden disappearance. [break][break]
Being a gang leader means having enemies, both outside and within the gang. He's only in a kid's gang right now - meaning the worst that happens is bullying and beating, and the best is he remains the top of the food chain. But they're kids, not taken seriously, and their only charm being their youth. [break][break]
Émile Delacour is fourteen when he joins a larger gang. The dredges of society, rejected from the covens and some without a speckle of talent for magic. Cutthroats and dealers and spies - that's what he deals with, that's what he becomes. He learns to never show weakness within the gang, that weakness means you've already lost. Émile turns cold, bloodthirsty - he gains his first kill at sixteen, his true initiation into the gang as a full-fledged member. They christen the date as his birthday - he has none that he remembers, anyway. The gang becomes family, the members his brothers. He's excellent in the spy and dealing departments, and his budding good looks earn him many a glance from the females. He flaunts it - what better way to gain unsuspecting clientele? His schemes become elaborate - a simple pickpocketing job turns into a full on romance with the banker's daughter, the one who wears golden jewelry every day. The librarian is a shy girl, but she has access to a treasure trove of information in the forbidden section. Once in a while, a male comes into play, perhaps the son of a nobleman who wants their relationship to be secret. Émile toys with other names: André Rousseau, Gil Fauré, Jacques Bourdeaux. He enjoys the french names, the only tie he has to his past lives. The list is too long to count, but in this moment, the only name that really matters is Émile. [break][break]
But Émile no longer needs the gang - if anything, the gang is now more dangerous to him than the authorities. He flees, taking his wealth with him, after having carefully planned his escape for years. His papers are in place. His things are arranged. Ready and without regret, he leaves without another word. The gang is outraged and scours the town for him, but Émile is gone. [break][break]
Ambrose Bellamy joins a coven - something he'd not thought of doing until four years ago. He never really thought he needed a place. But he wanted to learn magic, wanted to stake it out by himself, within the safety of the law. What better place than a magical society? The silvertongues seemed the best choice - not hated, not loved, just somewhere in between. And the rogue status fits him perfectly - he can call himself the rugged rogue now, can't he? But all in all, he wants to make something out of his life, something that'll be meaningful. Who knows? Perhaps the position of coven leader isn't far from his reach.