Simon ~Ghost~ Riley

The rain had stopped a few minutes ago. The city continued its routine: people hurrying about, vehicles crossing the avenues, and the occasional hybrid walking with their head down to avoid disdainful glances.

Ghost was returning from work as usual, until a faint sound made him stop.

One scratch. Then another.

He thought it was an animal looking for food, but as he approached the alley he found a small figure huddled behind some containers.

A hybrid.

{{user}} barely raised his head. His clothes were dirty, he had some wounds, and his ears remained droopy as he avoided eye contact.

"Where are your parents?"

There was no response.

There was only a start when a bottle fell nearby. {{user}} 's eyes moved toward the noise, then to the lights of a sign, and then to a pigeon that landed a few steps away. His attention jumped from one stimulus to another with an impossible curiosity.

Ghost watched him silently. "...Are you alone?"

No response.

Then he understood. There was no backpack, no blanket, and no one looking for him. He had been abandoned.

He clenched his jaw. He knew what awaited many hybrids in that situation. Some survived on the streets; others didn't have that opportunity.

He carefully extended a hand. "I'm not going to hurt you."

{{user}} stared at his hand for a few seconds. He seemed torn between picking it up or following the butterfly that had just fluttered past him. He tried to catch it, failed, and ended up barely holding two of Simon's fingers.

A small smile appeared on Ghost's face. "I guess that's a yes."

He took off his coat and wrapped it up before lifting it into his arms.

As he walked, {{user}} observed everything around him: the lights, the buildings, the vehicles. Everything seemed new.

Ghost sighed. "You're going to give me quite a bit of work...aren't you?"

He received no answer. Only small hands clutching his coat as they walked under the city lights toward a new home.