“Bright...” Luna mumbled groggily as the sun shone directly on her. She moved an arm up in front of her face and tiredly opened one eye. Her head was still resting on Stella's lap and both of them, though mostly Luna, had been covered by a sky blue cotton blanket. “Stella?” Luna called out quietly but she was fast asleep.

“Hm...” Another dazed voice muttered. Aileen was napping on the love seat, her knees pulled up into her chest with a pink housecoat draped over her. She hung her head over the furniture's arm, breathing softly.

Bark! Luna sat up and was greeted by the ghost puppy at her feet. She reached out towards it and although her hand passed through, the small dog seemed to enjoy it nonetheless. Its tail wagged rapidly and he panted in excitement.

After several minutes spent trying to finish rousing, Luna eventually stood up. She pulled the blanket over top of Stella, careful not to wake her and shifted Aileen's housecoat to be less likely to fall off. Afterward, she wandered into the kitchen to look at the digital clock on the stove. “Three already?” She sighed. School probably would have been incredibly awkward today anyway.

Luna noticed that the red dog was following her and she smiled at it. “I'm going to go for a walk. Care to come with?”

* * *

“Humans really do have their own share of problems, don't they Chip?” Luna inquired to her spectre of a companion. The puppy, Chip, whimpered in agreement and moved with Luna's left foot, never getting more than a couple of inches away from it. While traversing the afternoon streets, they examined each person they came across in passing. Among them, they all had red aura's yet none came close to the size of Stella's. Some neared Aileen's though fell short nevertheless.

The majority of them had almost insignificant auras like all their problems were only third world or highly immature at best. Their thoughts whispered in Luna's head when she looked at them. A child complained about his mom taking away his phone because he was caught using it when he was supposed to be in bed. A man in a suit fretted to himself about how he could have gotten more money out of a deal had he twisted his words some more. A woman with makeup caked onto her face denounced internally that the man she was to see later was a slob but money was money. Luna choked back a gag and after she was sure the woman was out of earshot, she whispered to Chip, “Bite me if we pass another clown who forgot how to wash their face.” The dog barked happily in response. “Good boy.”

Luna continued her investigation, focusing on people with larger auras that at least covered half or more of their bodies. First, she saw a man wearing a stained, wrinkled and uneven collared shirt with a very loose tie. He stumbled down the sidewalk, barely able to keep in a straight line and he grumbled incomprehensibly. In his head, he was debating with himself whether his marriage failed because of him or if someone else had stepped into the picture. Further back was another man in a wife-beater and shorts, sitting on the curb. Beside him was a six-pack of beers which he downed one after another. He griped on about how he was fired because of his drinking problem and wondered how he was going to afford more alcohol later that night. “They're getting a bit more intense but none have yet erred outside the realm of being solvable.”

“It's that drunk again Denise!” Luna heard an elderly woman in hemp yell. She gazed over to the nearby park. Them again? What is she bitching about this time? Luna peered at a set of playground equipment in a pit of sand where a four-person swing set stood attached to a short, blue plastic slide. Underneath it, his muddy legs leaking out from the shade, was an old man with a grey and white beard that scratched his thighs when he sat down. A black toque kept his unkempt hair hidden from sight, green gloves with the fingers torn off revealed his blackened fingernails, his jacket and pants alike were hardly fit to be described as old rags. They were in tatters and large portions of his skin were visible underneath them.

“A veteran?” Luna asked herself as his fragmented memories appeared before her eyes. She saw a man with a half blacked-out face in uniform as somebody gave a speech about how they had successfully protected the country. The same man then appeared walking away from a plane with a nervous smile. When he entered the airport though, he was surrounded by his comrades being greeted by their loved ones, but the only people to approach him, much to his confusion, were two men in suits with white earpieces. The image faded to black, “Your daughter was kidnapped while you were deployed.” They explained. “We've only managed to find pieces of her.”

“What about my wife?” The man snapped back.

“No one has seen or heard from her since your daughter was discovered missing.”

The image faded back to the man, now with a beard, walking away from a police station. “We don't have any evidence.” A new voice stated softly. “The case has hit a wall. Regulations state that if it runs dry for as long as it has, the case has to be closed. I'm sorry.”

“You killed my daughter! What did you do to my wife?” The man screamed, the picture altering to show him pointing at a doctor. Several security guards grabbed the yelling man, attempting to drag him away.

“He's damaging my reputation and infringing upon the safe space that a hospital is supposed to be. War hero or not, I want this unruly savage to be sued for every penny his miserable existence has.”

“Children play here! He can't stay!” Luna heard the shrew continue shouting and she found herself looking through her own eyes again. She gave the elderly women a sideways glance and approached the chap in rags. The pair stopped talking and watched both curiously and in disgust. The veteran slowly looked up at Luna, expecting her to harass or ridicule him but was shocked when she sat down beside him. “That fur-wearing heathen has done something disheveled yet again Denise! Does her arrogance know no bounds?”

Luna leaned against the supports underneath the slide, her hood keeping her face out of sight. She listened to Denise and her aggravating associate bicker and protest until they stopped for a breath. When they did, Luna turned slightly towards the homeless veteran and asserted unusually loud, “Querulous anoraks, are they not?”

The two scoffed at Luna and stomped towards her. She cracked her knuckles, smiled and looked at the chatty one with a murderous glare. The women flinched and stopped in their tracks. Denise grabbed her friend's shoulder and whispered something to her. They then nodded in agreement and left the park altogether without looking back. Luna couldn't help but feel disappointed and hit the ground with her heel in frustration.

She felt a tap on her arm and a dry chunk of bread was gently pushed into her view. “Not many people would help a filthy man under a slide like that.” The veteran declared. His voice was loud, deep and it carried like a commentator at a game of football. “My mama would tan my hide for sure if I didn't at least offer my saviour, let alone my guest, a meal. This will have to suffice, much as it pains me to give you so little.”

Luna looked up at him, confusion scribbled all over her face. “You look like you need it more than I do. There's no need to thank me or anything. I just wanted a reason to spite that bitch.” I can smell it clearly. That bread is all the food he has on him.

“Reasons aside, you still came to my aid. If intentions were all it took to make someone good, Hitler would have been a saint.” He shoved the bread into Luna's stomach, refusing to give her nothing.

She sighed in response and took it in one hand. It was so stale that she felt like she was holding a rock in her palm. The man smiled at her without showing any teeth, closed his eyes and leaned back against the supports the same as her. I can hear your stomach growling and your mouth salivating from here. Luna thought to herself. While he was looking away, she drew out her claws and tore the food into two almost even hunks and hit him in the chest with the back of her hand. Startled, he looked down at the half she was giving back to him. “Nothing says I have to actually eat all of what you offer. Accepting some of it should be polite enough without stripping you of a meal.”

“You don't take no for an answer, do you?”

“You're not one to talk.”

He stared at her for a moment, grinned, and held his piece towards her. “I guess there are some good kids around these days after all. Cheers friend.”

Luna watched him blankly for a second before realizing what he was getting at. “Friend, huh?” She mumbled as she tapped his bread with hers like they were making a toast with wine glasses. He took a bite out of his first with a crunch. Luna followed suit after discretely releasing her wolf in an attempt to chew through the brick a little easier. She wondered if it hurt his teeth to bite into something comparable to stone.

“I have to ask though,” he started to say in between bites, “Don't you think your parents would be a little timid of you sharing bread with an old hobo?”

“Hard to say. They died not long after I was born. From what I know, it sounds like they always stood up for the guys at the thin end of a whip so I don't think they'd be terribly upset to see me do the same.”

“They sound like they were good people. You must have a home to go back to though, surely?”

“A home? Absolutely. It's more akin to a summer cabin though.”

“No, not a house. Do you have a home? People to go back to? Someone to welcome you back when you return or at least someone to care about?”

“I never thought of a home in such a way, but yes. After my parents passed, one of their old coworkers I guess you could say, along with her wife took me in.”

“What did your parents do for work?”

“They were mercenaries.”

The old man quickly finished the last bit of his bread and his eyes lit up. “Really? You don't hear about them often these days. Think I've only heard of a couple of groups towards the centre of the country. Even then I've heard nothing about how to join them.”

“My parents were self-employed. For a year or so it was just them. They met the woman who takes care of me now on one of their jobs. She started traveling with them and they eventually trained her and let her join their team. Similarly, she met the woman she married on a job a few years later, a doctor tending to victims of an epidemic.”

The man tensed up and scowled, “Doctors.”

Luna bit her tongue, not wanting to give away that she knew what he was talking about. “Afraid of needles or something?”

He loosened up and stuttered, “Sorry, I didn't mean for it to come out so rudely. It would be rather prestigious to be one, I'm sure. I certainly couldn't do it, I was never that smart. I just have a bad history with a local doctor is all. Big shot and very successful but his personality is as beautiful as a blobfish.”

Luna shivered, gagged and drew her knees into her chest. “That's not an image I want in my head at any point in my life.”

The old man laughed and held his hand out towards her. “I'm Leo.”

“Luna.” She stated and shook his hand.

“Not afraid of getting dirty are you?”

“Please, I touch worse filth at school on the daily. At least the grit on your hands can be washed off with soap and water.”

“I see, they're those types of people are they?”

“Yeah, they're afraid of me so I think they act the way they do as a method of hiding from that fact.” I can't very well tell him that I have a cursed eye which I believe draws out the worst in them.

“Cocksuckers like them aren't worth paying any attention too. A few years from now they'll amount to nothing but flipping burgers, barely able to afford a place to live.” He then looked down at himself and with a shrug of defeat, he sighed, “Well, I guess I'm not one to talk. That would still be better than living under playground equipment, saved from nagging cunts by a high school student.”

I guess its time to start pretending to pry. “You seem educated and charismatic enough to have gotten a job. Get caught up in the wrong place at the wrong time?”

“I guess you could say that. I was in the army until a couple of years ago. I had my reasons for leaving, including that doctor I mentioned before. Problem is, not many working opportunities for a former combat trade in the civilian world. Not to mention my reputation was dragged through the mud. Hey, your parents, what did people think of them?”

“I haven't heard a great deal about them other than a handful of their accomplishments. From what I do know, I think I can reasonably assume that they were Robin Hood types. I mean, as far as the law is concerned, they effectively kidnapped my current guardian. My father especially hated the arrogant ass holes who thought they stood above the rest of the world. Among the people they saved, I think they were regarded as heroes but it was ultimately a very small amount. The rest of the world thought they were heinous monsters.”

“It's the same everywhere huh? Back when I was active and the threat of war was brewing, people used to thank me for my service all the time. Fucking hated that. Nice sentiment but it was incredibly awkward. Not one of us knew how to respond to it, especially when people said it before we even had our first deployments. Once everything seemed peaceful again though, all of a sudden we were savages who only knew how to kill.”

“No such thing as heroes, right? There's always someone who thinks someone who kills even in defense, is nothing more than a murderer.”

“Just so.” Leo stopped talking all of a sudden. “Speaking of arrogant ass holes...” he nodded toward the street. Luna followed his gaze to see a tall blonde man in an expensive white tracksuit winking at every girl who looked financially stable but ignored any who didn't. “That work of art is the definition of vanity.”

“Eh?” She responded and eyed the blonde man curiously. He was coated by a red aura but instead of radiating out from his body, it was like it was flowing into him. Chip began to growl in his direction from beside Luna. “I think you just showed me where I can stir up trouble next.”

Leo chuckled. “I envy your energy. Be careful now though. If you need back up, I'll be here. Not like I have anything to lose anyway.”

Luna smiled at him. “I'll hold you to that.” She then turned to follow the blonde man from before.

Leo watched her run off, a tear forming in his eye. “She would have been her age... I hope her fire doesn't die like mine did.”

She didn't get far before she found herself in a rundown neighbourhood where all the housing was in shambles. Paint jobs were almost entirely chipped away, exposing splintered and in some cases rotting wood. Most of the grass in what little lawns were present was dead and full of weeds. Graffiti littered any wall in Luna's immediate view. Trash piled-up along the curb down the length of the street and any vehicle that came by went as much as double the speed limit, blasting bits of garbage up at the pedestrians wandering the sidewalk.

The blonde man strolled through the neighbourhood, not looking at anyone and avoiding its filth. If someone tried to talk to him he ignored them, particularly if they were asking for help with something. In front of him an elderly woman tripped and he walked right past her, making no effort to silence his snicker. Luna watched from a distance, waiting until someone assisted the old lady onto her feet before moving on.

The man then began to cross through someone's yard where a tattered soccer ball bounced off of his shoe. When it did, he stopped in place without looking down at it. Luna squinted at the boy and noticed that what aura covered him seemed to be flowing towards the blonde man. When the child tried to pick up the ball and apologize, the blonde man kicked him to the ground and stomped on his shoulder. “You got my shoes dirty pipsqueak!” The ass spat and pointed at his pristine white sneakers.

The child tried to apologize but the man lifted his foot and kicked again. The boy yelped in pain and everyone present stopped what they were doing to watch the exchange uncomfortably. No one rose to the kid's aid, however. Luna scowled, Classical human cowardice. She then marched silently towards the two who hadn't taken notice of her yet.

“You going to clean my shoes while you're down there?” The man snapped. Whack! “I don't think this stain will come out, I think you'll need to cough up the money to replace them.” Whack! “If you can't afford it, maybe your parents can. Finally put their money to something useful instead of a pathetic little brat like you!” Whack!

He wound up for one more kick but Luna grabbed him by the collar of his jacket and threw him into the street. Tires squealed and a horn blared as the oncoming car slammed on its brakes, narrowly stopping in time as the blonde man landed in front of it. He started to curse at Luna, “What the hell is wrong with you? You could have killed me!” He started looking around and demanding, “Someone call the police right now!”

As he ordered the bystanders around who backed away slowly, the driver exited his vehicle and stomped over to Luna. “You damn near caused an accident-” He stepped within arms reach of her and in the blink of an eye she chopped at the side of his neck. He immediately stopped talking, his body tightened and he fell face-first where Luna had just been standing.

The ass ceased giving orders and watched Luna nervously, crawling backward as she got closer to him. He blinked and started to sweat when he saw what appeared to be Luna, many times larger, standing over top of him, her visible eye glowing. He heard a set of growls and saw three grey wolves spread out across the street, all baring their teeth in his direction. He cried out in terror, jumped to his feet, tripping in the process, and sprinted down where the car had come from.

Luna sighed. All bark and no bite. Well, at least I figured out that as long as my left eye is hidden, I can still use the curse to frighten someone. She felt a tug at her sleeve and turned to see the little boy beside her. “You good?” She asked the child.

He nodded at her slowly. “Thank you for saving me.” He whispered shyly, holding the ball loosely in front of him.

Luna looked away. “I just wanted an excuse to give that prick a thrashing is all. I didn't do anything worthy of being thanked.” All around her, she noticed that most of the bystanders had either carried on with their days or were giving her looks of antipathy.

“Why would she help them? Even if that man was going too far, that family isn't worth sticking your neck out for.” A man declared aloud, unconcerned with who heard him.

Luna glared but said nothing. That's when she noticed that something small but thick and leathery had been dropped on the ground after the blonde man ran. She bent down, picked it up and inspected it. “His wallet?” She mumbled and opened it up. Inside was a wad of cash as well as a credit card, among identification items.

“Are you alright sweetheart?” A woman cried out behind Luna. Who she guessed to be the boy's mother came out of nowhere and took the kid in a tight hug.

“I can't breath...” he coughed and the woman let go, apologizing and explained that she started rushing outside as soon as she heard the yelling. The child then pointed at Luna, “She came to my rescue.”

The mother followed his finger and froze for a second as a hint of recognition shone in her eyes. “Our guardian...” She muttered.

“What was that?” Luna inquired, not sure as to what she had said.

“Oh, sorry, it was nothing. I was just thinking out loud.” The woman put one hand on her chest and bowed her head slightly in gratitude, beckoning her son to do the same. “How can we repay you?”

Luna held the man's wallet out to them. “Get yourself some better living conditions then we'll call it even.”

“We can't-”

When the mother tried to refuse, Luna pushed it into her chest. “I don't think any of these cowards are going report anything that happens to that scumbag.”

“But this is still too much.”

Luna thought for a moment. “Fine.” She said and took out a portion of the bills. “Is that sufficient?”

She still hesitated, but finally accepted. “You're just like him...” She muttered under her breath.

“I'm just like who?”

She shook her head. “It's nothing. Thank you again for helping my son.” She bowed once more and grabbed the boy's hand. They shuffled towards the house and Luna thought she saw something weird. The kid's shirt had been raised slightly, where she thought she saw a straight patch of fur coming out of the centre of his lower back. Is that a tail? She thought to herself.

“You're not very honest with yourself are you?” Someone asked her, interrupting her thoughts. “Earth to Luna.” They continued.

She then noticed that Ryan was standing right beside her. “How long have you been here?” She asked him.

“Roughly about the same time you grabbed that bastard. I saw it from my window there.” He pointed at a house across the street which looked like it could come down at any moment. “I was on my way to help out but you beat me to it.”

Luna blushed slightly and looked away. “I didn't do it to help them.”

“Right, that's why you tried to give them all the money?”

“It was just to spite that cock is all. Anyway, I didn't realize you lived in a place like this.” Luna quickly changed the subject.

Ryan smirked like he had won the exchange. “My parents split up a long time ago and my dad's got a pretty lousy job. We survive mostly off of welfare. I even have two jobs to try and make up for that drunk's laziness.”

Luna's head whipped around to him, wide-eyed. “You're that poor and you still bought coffee for me?”

“Twice in one day you didn't hide the fact that you aren't actually heartless? Who are you and what did you do with Luna?” She winced and changed to a scowl in response but Ryan only laughed. “All joking aside, I'm not as bad off as it sounds. Buying coffee for a woman and the occasional date to the movie theatre isn't going to put me in the gutter.”

Luna glared at him, slightly distracted. He doesn't have so much as a scrap of an aura despite such a horrid situation. Am I just not able to see it yet? Maybe some people have some kind of resistance to the effect? Could it simply be that he bears no hatred whatsoever?

“You all right?” Ryan asked her, breaking her train of thought again.

“Huh? Oh, yeah.” She responded, blushing again. “I should get going.”

“What's the hurry?”

“Um...”

“What's got you so flustered?” He asked mockingly.

Luna clenched her fist and angrily turned around, only to be cut off by two movie tickets in her face. “I was going to invite you today at school but you didn't show. I guessed it was because of that flower. If you're feeling up to it, a pretty good action movie starts in roughly an hour. We may even have time to grab a bite to eat and still make the previews.”

She stared at the tickets, unsure of what to do. Eventually, she relaxed her stance and smiled shyly. “Why not?” Ryan grinned ear to ear in response and held his hand out to her. She hesitated and looked away from it. He pushed it closer to her, still smiling confidently. Luna turned her back to him as her entire face turned red. “Before we go though, I want to give this money to someone who actually needs it.”

Ryan's smile remained but his eyes dropped slightly. “Still playing hard to get are you?” He then became very optimistic. “I'll win you over eventually.”