His messy purple hair served to shade his nervous eyes, as the boy carefully placed the mother bird back atop its nest.

?: “Bye! Thanks for talking to me today. I hope you don't strain your healed wing! Even if your kids all grew up and left that's no excuse to be reckless.”

Bird: “-*Chirp!*-”

?: “Brennan~ Brennan~ Where are you~ You've got mail~”

Brennan: “Coming!”

Taking care not to fall out of the tree he climbed, Brennan runs through the wooden forest behind his home. The tree canopies provide cover from the brilliant sun up above, allowing him to bask in the cool air surrounding.

Once he makes it to the forest edge, however...all that could protect Brennan's sensitive eyes from the sun's powerful rays was his hair. Quickly casting his gaze slightly lowered, he begins looking to his left, then immediately towards his right. Finally, his body begins to move with his turning head as he inches across the line that marks his family's backyard.

He doesn't have to search for long, because the one he insisted on finding, the very owner of that harmonious, soothing voice which called for him, is standing on the back porch waiting for his return.

Brennan: “Mother! Did the mail say who it was sent from? Was it...from the school?”

Mother: “Mmm~ yes, I believe so. This one says it's from Justice Heights Academ-Ah!”

As quick as she read out the title, Brennan snatched it from her palms. He succeeded this by tearing the envelope to shreds, and pouring his focus into every word on that letter.

Brennan: “It says: Dear valued Herotopian, We take great pleasure in your decision to submit an application to us at Justice Heights Academy. In the years that we've been standing...yeah, skip-skip all this boring stuff!

The powers selected by our school vary widely and your abilities ARE a match for some of our programs!! Unf...ortunate..ly, the output is too weak to be considered...for our hero courses.

...We suggest...trying to apply somewhere else as a....sidekick, visiting Hero Society labs to apply for...possible power enhancement?! Or just...giving up due to issues...concerning my safety?!”

Mother: “So, in short...”

Brennan: “In short, I failed. Again. I”m not good enough to get into the top ranked school, they didn't even suggest for me to reapply to their sidekick courses! They completely turned me down...

When I visited the second school for creating super-soldiers, They said my body wasn't compatible with their methods. So that too, ended up as another failed attempt.

Rejection after rejection...maybe I really am too useless for this country. I might as well be powerles-”

*Pa!*

Without warning, A tight Slap echoed in the quiet breeze surrounding their home.

Mother: “Brennan, don't you ever put yourself, or your family-inherited gift, down like that! Do you think it's useless to understand the hearts and souls of this Earth's creatures that most of humanity doesn't even believe exists?! That is a wonderful, powerful ability if you use it right! How about using it to ask birds to spy on someone running away from the police? Or what if you were to use the deer to patrol the neighboring woods in case a kidnapper tries to target a civilian out hiking? Both are great examples of security that can be done effectively ONLY with your ability to communicate to animals.”

Brennan: “Robotic creatures could probably do the same. They could probably even turn invisible too.”

Mother: “I'm sure there's going to be technology to counter any technology that can monitor people. Animals don't need such things since they're natural beings of the earth, and are practically everywhere! Hahah.”

Brennan: “I dunno, I still feel useless. Like, with my powers, can't I even save people? Am I only good for monitoring or stalking others?”

Mother: “Oh, honey...There are creative ways to use your powers, I'm sure of it! We just need to think of them together. I know...! Let's pay a visit to your grandfather, he was a genuine hero from the old days who also used the power you inherited. Surely he knows a way to become a hero?”

Brennan: “Hah, I doubt it. Grandpa came froman easier time where rules didn't limit us so much, and besides, his powers were stronger.”

Mother: “...Well..hm? Oh, look! Brennan look! There's another envelope for y-ah!”

Brennan once again snatches the letter from his mother and beginsto tear away at it before hesitating.

Brennan: “What...What if, it's another rejection letter? I don't think I can...”

Mother: “Just open the damn thing Brennan! If you don't, I will!. You never know what's going to happen until you see for yourself.”

Brennan: “...Okay. Here goes!”

.

.

.

Mother: “Well?”

Brennan: “...I...I knew it!”

He threw the papers towards the floor and took off for the woods. His mother screamed at his back to come home, but he refused to trust her words anymore.

Tired and Anxious she looked through the letter before noticing that although it DID reject him due to his powers being too minimal: it didn't say he couldn't become a sidekick. In fact, the first letter was encouraging him to reapply! Also, it seems there was a third letter inside the envelope that he threw, Did he not notice?

Mother: ”Hmmm~ let's see. It says here...This is your...Admissions ticket?! He got it!!! But...Oh! Attached to the ticket is a note...

'Don't worry about your powers. For now, come join our School as a noncombatant and we will send a specialist over there who can aid you and a few others with critically weak powers like you in attempting to strengthen the very ability that you've lost faith in. If it's successful, you are free to reapply for our sidekick courses and work your way up from there...!'

That means, I knew it! Hero Society took note of his applications and didn't abandon him!

I always heard about Power enhancement thing that they're able to do for some people, but I always thought it was a dangerous gamble...Oh well. Maybe they changed it for the better? I've gotta find him and share the good news!”

She headed of for the darkening forest. It had already been around 5:30 when she called for her son. Now that the clock struck 6, the sun, is beginning its descent.

However she would not be deterred! Even if the sky is darkening, so what? She knew her son well, ever since he was a kid, he had been running into this forest. Like a game of cat and mouse, she would look for him many times, only to find him nestled uop in 5 separate spots: those were the dens of his best friends.

She only had to search those 5 spots!

Mother: I know where you're hiding! You can't stay there forever and it's getting dark! Please don't be a burden to the animals and come home! There's some good news you failed to noti-”

*BANG!*

while busy hiding up in the canopy of his friends: the migrating flock of birds...a very loud gunshot startled everybody into taking flight. The confused and depressed boy had been listening to his mother spouting some nonsense about 'good news' up until her voice cut off by the sound.

Brennan: could it be poachers...no. Nobody'd be dumb enough to mess with the animals in father's forest.

Then, kids target practicing? Nope, that'd be dumb since there's moving target ranges all over Herotopia.

What...no.

What if...no!

Why...did mom stop yelling?”

Without caring for injuries, Brennan jumped out of the tree before doing a roll to spread the shock into the ground. After regaining feeling in his steps, he started to take off for the route that led back home.

Yes, 1 minute became 3 minutes, which further turned into 5. For 5 whole minutes he was running, all while wishing he hadn't gone this far away from his family's house.

Brennan: “Mom? Where are you! Mom?”

Mother: “DON'T COME!”

*BANG!*

He was forced to stop. What he saw upon reuniting with his mother, was her body, laying flat on the ground, bleeding.

It ran like a leak without stop, forming at first a small puddle, then a larger one.

Behind her was a man appearing well into his 40s, giving her the saddest stare in the world as he slowly lowered his gun.

?: “I'm...sorry...but they...have my children, and I..I couldn't refuse...”

Brennan: “MOM!! YOU BASTAR-”

*BANG!*

?: “I...have to report this to them...yes.

They only asked me...to shoot his wife dead, or else my kids will...they never asked...for me to kill this child. It-It's fine though....right? May-Maybe this..will be a bigger message now...my-my children will...surely thank me...hehe.”

The final bullet shot burrowed itself into his chest. As Brennan collapsed into a pool of his own blood, the man escaped.

...Or at least, that's what was supposed to happen, except the blood he collapsed in, wasn't his own.

? “...*Chirp*....”

Brennan: “What...!! No...NO!! What are you doing here?! Didn't you fly away like the others?!

Why...*Sniff* Why did you do this for me...”

Immediately before the man pointed his gun, a lone bird dove itself into the bullet's firing range, and met it's deadly demise in order to protect the boy who saved her chicks.

Mom: “Brennan...”

A small black bird zoomed out of the forest the moment Brennan came close to his mother, still cupping his hands around the dying bird.

Brennan: “Mom? Mom! Just...wait...Just wait I'll...I'll get help! Th-That's right, my powers...I can ask the animals...th-the birds to request for a hero to-”

That's when he noticed. The repeated gunshots scared away every single animal outside of the immediate range his powers could reach.

Mom “Bre...nnan..”

She painfully tried to move her hand, but it just wouldn't obey. Her son, noticing her actions, took the third and final paper from her grasp, but this time around he didn't snatch it. Softly, as if prying the worlds most fragile egg away from its nest, he brought the paper close.

Brennan read the note, but could only muster forth a sad fit of laughter, while parallel streams of never-ending tears wettened his cheeks.

Brennan: “It's...It's my fault! If I hadn't run, she wouldn't have been shot. Dad's security would have noticed the intruder the moment he stepped into the backyard.

If...If I had used my powers sooner, no...dammit! I'm too weak! I can't stop a flock of birds from flying away! My powers...If only they weren't so freaking weak!

This...This stupid letter! This..this..Hahah...

Am I supposed to feel happy that I was accepted?”

Mother: "Brennan...go..”

Brennan: “Mom! Hold on...just, just hold on please stay awake I'll run as fast as I could to go find a hero-”

Mother: “A...hero...bec-ugh..”

Blood filled her mouth as she tried her best to leave the boy she was most proud of, with her dearest, selfish wish.

Brennan: “MOM! MOM, please, I'm begging you to hold on! I'll be right back I-!”

Mother: “Become...ugh..become a fine....hero. Brennan. I...your mother...has faith in...

...you.”

---