Phedre glances nervously along the Streets. The sky was dark and she saw the shadows taking over large areas where buildings stood. Being short she was easily concealed by the shadow of a nearby building. She gathered the attention of the people around her with a whistle. She whistled a little tune before she dove into the topic she wanted to discuss.

To the general public I am curious how you think your leaders view the work you do for them? Do you go the extra mile to come up with something creative to bring a proposal that could interest your leader? Maybe a project, a competition or something simply to liven the workplace up? Or do you slack around, not bother with tributes yet expect everything handed to you? Do you think if you fall in the slacking category that there is a reason for this? Would it be your leaders silence? Perhaps your leader has nothing to show for the use of your money that you tributed before? Perhaps what the money is being used on is not made clear?

I am curious because for those that work hard, why do you do it? Is it out of habit? I know I personally will work hard. My line generally tries to have a goal in mind. You could say we are a bit goal oriented to a degree. So when choosing leaders we try to find those that fit what we would like to see for ourselves. For example, my grandmother Zephyra, she set out to be more vocal. I believe she was successful in that goal. She appeared in these very streets to speak on topics that were presented. She shared her thoughts many times. Maybe I will follow in her shoes, maybe not. My own goals are for me to decide but my goals are the reasons I work my ass off. The goals I speak of don't necessarily have to be big. They don't have to be the goal to one day run your own family, but rather to improve in a certain area that your mother, brother, sister, aunt or uncle wasn't very strong in.

Do I think my leader values my hard work? Perhaps. I can't honestly know since I have not asked. What I am trying to get at is whether or not you feel that your hard work is valued? For me it makes a difference of the amount of work I do if it is or isn't.  Does working hard for your leader even matter to you at all?

Phedre paused momentarily. She looked around to see if any of the leaders were running their errands this late. Spotting one or two she directed her attention towards them.

For leaders, do you value the hard work your members put in? The amount of effort that goes into regular donations or speeches to improve street presence? Do you acknowledge those that wish to become entrepreneurs and run their own businesses? How much value does hard work have for you?

My line has had ancestors that would work hard for the wrong types of leaders. Those that did not have any appreciation for anything but felt it was their god given right to take whatever they wanted. Is this the type of leader you are? Do you happen to use the hard earned funds for creative ideas?

I am genuinely curious what value you place on the hard working members of your families. Are they seen for the work they do or just passed over along with the inactives or non contributing members.

Phedre smiles politely.

I know that I ask questions that are none of my concern but I feel for those still trying to make their choices when they choose their families that this may be beneficial for them. Not to mention that I am curious about how leaders differ in the ways they see their members, or even if they do differ at all.

Phedre my friend.

Your topic is a hard one to answer with so many conflicting questions, but from what I believe is the main I will answer from the heart.

Im not here to debate, im not her to point finger and im not here to say what is right or wrong in our lifestyle as there is no real right or wrong answer. I think the better questions is, how do you want to live your life, and more importantly how do you want to be remembered. Nothing ever pans out 100%, you can take a walk around the block and see that every person has something to offer, or has there flaws.

Is there such thing as a perfect mobster it really depends on who you ask and what there views on this life are. I personally enjoy family, and by that being said its never sold on a single person, it takes work trust and forgiveness at times to build something solid enough to call a true home. You know, you gotta give a little to get a little.

I try to do what I can for those that appreciate my work, but on the other side of the fence there will always be those that criticize or dislike your personal preferences and this is just human nature.

Wandering down The Streets Brendan sees very little that takes his interest. Near the bottom of the Streets he sees a few speakers who, in his opinion, should be having far more attention paid to them. But with the way this world now works perhaps people are after the easy route instead of actually using their brains and contributing a opinion. Brendan decides it is time to take it upon himself to offer some support to these people.

Ever since I stepped foot into Whaternames HQ I have done everything with a view to helping the family. Which is surely the way everyone thinks? Right? Wrong. But I am not going there when Achilles put it so eloquently a few weeks back and had a $200 million hit placed on his head.

Yes. You are right. You work hard for your leader for selfish reasons at times. Perhaps you need some time away from the business, so you do a couple of extra runs round the neighborhood collecting tributes to cover the couple of days you want off. Or when your leader needs a foot rub you're down on your knees cracking on like a good 'un. Nothing wrong with kissing arse now and again.

But the real reason I work hard to to survive and prosper. Whatsername knows she doesn't need to mail me and thank me nor does she need to tell me to do anything. I work as hard as I can every single day so I know, come the hard times, the family is well prepared and in a position that it can properly function under high pressure. The last thing I want to do is be lay on my death bed thinking about those things I could have done to stop it coming to this.

So yeah. Thats probably the reason. So I can look back and not have any regrets. I will always know we were beaten by the better man. Dying in that situation I think I could deal with.

Stepping back Brendan walks don the Streets. Looking for others who deserve his time and not just to throw his words about for any kind of reward from the Gods.

Phedre smiles as she hears a familiar voice. Her eyes immediately hone in on the man speaking as she listens intently. As she listens she hears a second man speaking and turns her head.

Broly and Brendan, I am glad that you both were around to give your opinions. It seems that you both may have the same type of work ethics.

So I will give you both a question.

What if you were to join a leader that pretended one thing and then did another once you were apart of their family? Would you then be so eager to help? Or would you just join friends to your line?

Phedre pauses once more and takes a sip of her flask. Tucking it away and rubbing her hands together to warm them in the cold night air.