8

It’s An Old Story

 

Luna Santana was a 7 year old child living in the city of Makewell. It was much more rural compared to Everfall, with many fields of crops throughout. She lived life with a bright smile, and had an unending sense of joy. Her name back then wasn’t Luna, but she doesn’t want to recall or acknowledge her deadname.

She was familiar with many of her classmates in the second grade, but never close friends with any of them. Maybe her endless supply of energy weirded others out. 

“Attention, students!” the teacher said. “Today we have a transfer student here who’s joining our class. Would you like to introduce yourself?”

The girl had long, messy hair. Her legs shook a bit as she introduced herself in front of the class.

“Uh…hello everyone… My name is Aurora Avery. I hope we can all get along.” Aurora’s name back then was also different, but Luna had the same thoughts as before.

Luna was the only one to give a little clap afterwards. With that, the class continued like normal. Aurora sat on the opposite end of the class from Luna, but she still couldn’t help but notice how meek and reserved the kid’s mannerisms were. 

During the lunch period, Luna noticed her sitting alone at a table at a corner of the cafeteria. She figured she must be having a hard time adjusting to being at a new school, so she thought she’d approach her to help out.

“Hello! You’re my new classmate, right?”

Aurora kept her eye contact away from meeting Luna’s, “Y-yeah, I am. Is there something you want?”

“Not really! I just hope we can get along well! My name’s Luna by the way!”

Luna began to notice how rapidly Aurora’s feet were tapping, “W-what is it that you want?”

“Huh?”

“Shouldn’t you hang out with cooler boys than me?”

“Cooler boys?”

Aurora’s voice grew shakier, “Just stay away from me. You probably won’t like me, anyways.”

The bell rang for lunch to be over. As Aurora got up, she tripped over her open backpack, causing its contents to spill onto the ground.

“Ah shoot!”

She scrambled to shove everything back as quickly as possible. This is until she realized Luna also got on her knees and was helping her pick up all her loose papers and pencils. 

“I don’t have anything to gain from saying hi or helping you. I just think those are nice things to do. Whether I like you or not, that’s up for me to decide.” Luna said with a smile brimming across her face.

Aurora finally made proper eye contact with Luna, and saw this joy for herself. All doubts about Luna that she had looked as if they vanished from her mind.

“...Has anyone ever told you that you look surprisingly cute for a boy?”

“Huh?”

From then on, the girls became familiar with each other. Luna made sure to say hi to Aurora each morning, to which Aurora eventually grew used to it; she even began to say hi back. Luna would stop by where Aurora sat for lunch more often in order to talk to her. 

The conversations would mainly consist of Luna doing all the talking, while Aurora would occasionally pitch in with comments of her own. Luna would talk about anything she was interested in. Whether it be the latest cartoon episode she watched, or where and her parents went to dinner the previous weekend.

“How are you able to be girly?” Aurora asked this out of nowhere. There was nothing different about the day this question came up, but based on how sudden it was, she must’ve been thinking about it for quite some time.

“What do you mean?” Luna asked.

“You’re always so okay with voicing girl characters whenever the class reads a book, you dressed as a magical girl on Halloween, you like playing with toys for girls, and you don’t care whenever anyone makes fun of you. Why do you do it?”

Luna was a bit confused about this but she gave an honest answer. “Hehe, it’s cuz I’m making discoveries. Discoveries about love!”

“L-love!?” 

“Yeah. Is that weird?”

“Of course it is! What are you talking about!?”

“Well, my parents have always told me about how important love is. They always say, ‘loving yourself is a journey about discovery.’”

“I… don’t know what that means…”

This type of reaction wasn’t much of a surprise. From what Luna remembered, her parents were always on the more progressive side. It was either that, or maybe they thought Luna was merely going through a phase. She didn’t know.

“How about this, you know how cavemen discovered fire?”

“I guess?”

“Fire was probably weird when they discovered it, but now fire is normal! We all know what fire is, and we love how it improves our lives. That only would have been possible through discovery! That’s why I dress and do whatever I want. To find the fire that will make me happy!”

Aurora wasn’t sure how to respond. Her gaze fixated itself on Luna. Like she was a light she couldn’t help but stare at.

“You’re way too cool to be hanging out with me.”

“Do you not like hanging out with me?”

“Uh, no. I didn’t say that.”

“Then I’m gonna keep hanging out with you, and I don’t plan to stop, if that’s okay!”

The look of innocence and glee in Luna’s face caused Aurora to blush a bit. She looked away and covered her mouth with her hands. 

“Yeah… It’s okay.”

“One more thing, you said all that, but your hair’s longer than mine. If you were a girl, you’d be way cuter than me.”

Luna’s fingers carefully brushed against Aurora’s hair. It was long enough to nearly reach her shoulders, but Aurora quickly backed away before Luna could judge further. Her blush went from being a subtle pink to a hot red.

“Y-you specifically don’t get to say that!”

“Huh?”

The two became more comfortable as friends after this. While Luna still talked to and played with other kids during recess and lunch, she’d always make time to go see Aurora, who’d usually sit alone, playing games on a handheld device. As the days went on, Aurora appeared more excited to see Luna. Maybe Luna was becoming more of an entertaining presence in her life. She did begin to make people laugh more with her jokes during this time.

A year had gone by. The two kids were now eight years old. By this point, Luna and Aurora were best friends. They spent their summer vacation visiting each other’s houses to play games, watch cartoons, and draw their favorite characters together. 

Once they reached the third grade, they ended up in different classes, but that didn’t stop them from hanging out whenever they could during breaks.

“So what was your old school like?” asked Luna.

“It was…it wasn’t fun,” replied Aurora. “In my old group of friends, I’d always be the one that got pushed around. I’d do whatever dares they wanted me to do which got me in trouble a lot.”

“You never said no to any of that?”

“If I didn’t they said I wouldn’t be manly enough.”

“That sounds pretty dumb, if you ask me. What the heck do dares have to do with being a dude? Boys are something else. It’s always hard being friends with one.”

Aurora began to reflect after hearing this, “Do you think it’s hard being friends with me?”

“We’ve been friends for this long and you’re asking a silly question like that now?”

“Y-you’re right!” Despite that frantic response, Aurora quickly developed a grin on her face that she had trouble getting rid of. “That’s great to hear.”

Two more years had passed. Luna and Aurora turned ten. Luna had become more casual with Aurora. She still had loads of energy when she was with Aurora, but she wasn’t quite as forward as she was before. She saw no need for it now that the two had become inseparable. 

While Luna felt perfectly comfortable being around Aurora, she noticed how Aurora was never exactly the same. They’d still have plenty of fun together, but it seemed like something was always on Aurora’s mind. 

In fact, it was as if Aurora was testing the waters for how close she could be with Luna. When they sat next to each other during a car ride, Aurora firmly grabbed Luna’s hand. Luna simply figured Aurora must’ve been nervous about the ride itself, but that was never a conclusion she was completely confident in.

Aurora also generally became more clingy towards Luna as time went on. It’s as Aurora lost her sense of personal space, and the distance between them gradually shortened. Aurora was practically hugging her as they walked during their last day of school before winter break.

“Aurora, what’s happening right now?”

“You’re very warm.”

“Huh?”

Luna didn’t mind this. It was just a bit peculiar.

The two met up with each other a few days after Christmas at the park when nobody else was there. Luna gifted Aurora a necklace with a sun pendant.

“I looked up your name online, and did you know your name is the same as the Goddess of Sunrise!?”

Aurora held the necklace in her hands, “Oh. This is going to make my gift a bit weird.”

“What? Why?”

Luna tore through the wrapping and pried open the paper box. What she found was a necklace with a moon shaped pendant. 

“I, uh, also looked up your name, and found out your name means the moon. I-I can fix this mistake! I can buy you a new game instead-!”

“Wait! Wait! This is cool! It’s like our minds are connected or something!”

“Minds connected… that does sound kinda fun.”

“Right?!”

As the two kids laughed their hearts out, Aurora noticed something strange.

“Luna? Why are you glowing blue?”

“I’m what? What does that even-” Luna caught a glimpse of her hand and saw this for herself. There was a blue aura shining off of her from head to toe.

“Wah! What is this!?”

“What’s happening to you!?”

“How should I know!? Get this off of me!” 

Luna took a step back, but when she moved, she realized that where she originally stood was an exact copy of herself. 

“AAAAHHHHHHH!!!!” they both yelled.

“Why are there two of you, Luna!?”

“Again, how should I know!?”

The clone began to walk towards Luna.

“Eeep! Don’t hurt me!” Luna put her hands up in an attempt to shield herself, and closed her eyes in fear. Instead of attacking Luna, when the clone reached her, she high fived one of Luna’s open hands, and smiled joyfully. 

Luna’s eyes opened soon afterwards, “W-wait, are you friendly?”

The clone of Luna simply nodded before evaporating into a blue mist.

“Luna! Are you okay?” Aurora yelled as she ran up to Luna.

“T-that was…really cool!”

“What!?”

“Didn’t you see that? I made a clone of myself! Hang on, let me try it again!”

“You’re gonna what!?”

Luna let her mind solo in on this one idea. Create another version of yourself in this same world. The aura around her body appeared again. Instead of moving however, she let the clone phase out of her, and it did just that. A new version of Luna walked in front of her, and waved to Aurora.

“O-oh, hi there…” Aurora felt a bit awkward. The clone vanished right after this. “Are you controlling this version of you with your mind?”

“I’m not controlling them like a video game, but my mind feels connected to them. It’s like my intentions are moved into this version of me, and follows along with however I feel.” 

“Woaaaah, that’s deep,” Aurora said in amazement.

“I know, right? I feel so smart right now!”

“But how are you doing that?” Aurora gasped. “Are you magic?”

“Maybe I am! Either way, this is so cool!”

“Awww, but why do only you get powers? Did you get bit by a magic bug or something?”

“I don’t remember being bitten lately. I didn’t come from a different planet either… I could be a Chosen One for all I know!”

“That’s not fair! I want to be chosen too!” 

Aurora stomped her feet in playful anger. It was as if she was a toddler who didn’t get the toy she wanted. Luna thought she looked cute. 

“Hey, think of it like this, if there was anyone who had to see my powers, I’m glad it was you.”

Aurora stopped her pouting  to look at Luna. She appeared flustered from hearing this.

“T-thanks!”

Luna knew this power should be focused on, but she wanted to save thinking deeper about it for later. She was just happy to have received a gift from the friend she was closest to. Approaching her all that time ago was one of the best decisions she ever-

“Oh my Gosh, Aurora! You’re glowing too!”

“I’m what!?”

Aurora looked at her arms and realized that her body became enveloped in a red aura.

“What’s gonna happen to me!? Am I also gonna be able to clone myself too!?”

“Maybe you can! Try it!”

Aurora focused as hard as she could. She audibly grunted while tightening her muscles. After a bit, she stepped back, similar to how Luna did when she created a clone, but no such clone appeared.

“Why didn’t it work?” Aurora questioned.

“Maybe you didn’t focus hard enough?”

Aurora swung her arms in frustration, similar to when she stomped. “I focused as hard as I could-!” She froze in place, looking past Luna.

“What are you looking at-”

The two girls saw a trashcan nearby. What had once been still on the ground, was now floating up into the air. Aurora moved her right arm around, and the can’s movements corresponded with where she directed her arm.

“I have telekinesis! This is amazing!” Aurora jumped in joy over this. She became superpowered just like Luna. Luna’s reaction, however, was quite different. She had a look of curiosity, watching the trash can fly around, and then crash onto the ground.

“Aurora, can I have your hand?”

“What!? Why do you want…” Aurora didn’t know how to act from such a request.

“There’s something I want to test.”

“Sure, if that’s what you want.” With how awkwardly Aurora spoke, Luna wondered if this had been her attempt at sounding cool.

As the two held hands, the red aura surrounding Aurora became stronger. Luna’s mind felt as if it was becoming one with Aurora’s. The love she had for her was strong, and as a result, the glow from this aura grew only more powerful. She let go of Aurora’s hand after this.

“I think… I think I’m the one giving you those powers.”

“You’re what? How are you doing that?”

“It’s hard to explain, but when I’m here with you, it’s like my thoughts are activating something magical. I don’t know. It’s this unique feeling in my brain. I probably sound dumb right now…”

“No you don’t! Maybe you can test this out with some other people you know! You have other friends at school, don’t you? If you try this with them, we can see if-”

“I don’t want to do that.”

“You don’t?”

“I want this to be our thing. I don’t know what’s happening with me, but I’m sure it’s something special. I want you to be the one with me as I figure this out.”

Aurora stood silent for a few seconds. Luna wasn’t sure how she was going to respond to such a bold request, but her answer came in the form of a squeal. 

“Luna!”

Aurora ran in and hugged her tight.

“H-hey! What are you doing?”

“Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! I promise to keep this between us! You have my word!”

“What’s up with you? I’ve never seen you this excited…”

For the next two months, the kids practiced their powers in secret. They’d find small corners of the park or school to mess around without fear of being seen in public. Luna discovered that at most, she could make up to four clones of herself.  

Meanwhile, Aurora would practice lifting branches into the air and moving multiple objects around with better and better precision. A peculiar occurrence she noticed when lifting ice cubes out of a drink is that they didn’t melt at all when controlling them. Her only explanation was that her ability was simply keeping the water in place.

It dawned on the two over time that repeatedly using their powers would chip away at their stamina. It would exhaust them the same way working out would, but it varied based on how they applied their abilities. Aurora lifting up a twig would be effortless, but multiple large objects would exhaust her over time. However, Luna and Aurora slowly realized their natural stamina had dramatically increased compared to their peers, so it would still take a while for fatigue to kick in. This didn’t even account to how much they’d be able to increase their stamina through physical workout..

They kept their powers a secret from everyone else, including their parents. Superhero media had convinced them that you’re supposed to keep whatever powers you have hidden. The two developed dreams of becoming superheroes when they got older. A rather childish goal, but one expected from two ten year olds.

“Hey, Luna, I have an idea! What if I tried lifting a tree into the air?”

“You think you can do that?!”

“That’s what I want to find out! If I can do that, then that means I’m crazy strong!”

Like the foolish kids they were, they didn’t hesitate to act on this idea. The two chose a decently large tree in the park near the baseball fields. Despite what they already knew of how their powers worked, they still had yet to see the extent of what Aurora could control. 

Aurora raised both her hands at the tree. Her arms glowed red and eventually so did the tree. After a few seconds, and some shaking from the dirt, the tree lifted straight from the ground. The roots were pulled completely out. The tree remained perfectly vertical as it flew up.

“Woah, woah, woah! You did it! It’s flying straight up! You probably shouldn’t lift it too high, though.”

“Uhhh… I can’t stop.”

“You huh?”

“I can’t lower it down…! I don’t know why, but I can’t let go!”

“You can’t!?”

The tree began to spin around high in the sky. Anyone within the area could easily witness this completely bizarre occurrence.

“Let it go! We’re gonna get in trouble if someone finds us!”

“I’m trying! I don’t know how to stop it!”

Luna tried to think of a solution. She remembered how Aurora’s power was supposedly tied to their connection. If she caused that bond to waver, maybe it would affect her power. This would be a very twisted means of solving the problem, but Luna didn’t think twice if it meant getting out of this dicey situation.

“Aurora! I have something to tell you! I’m moving to a new city and school in a month!”

“You’re what!?”

The aura around her hands grew dimmer, and the tree finally stopped flying up. A shadow casted itself over Aurora’s eyes after hearing this news, but she could now gently lower the tree to the ground. It ended up falling sideways when she tried placing it back into place.

Luna sighed, “Thank goodness that lie worked! I guess that only further proves how our powers work. You okay Auro-?”

Aurora turned away from Luna. Her breathing was heavy. Like she’d lifted something incredibly heavy with her own hands. Although, mixed into her breathing were some sobs. 

“Don’t scare me like that. I thought you were serious…”

“Ahh! I’m sorry! I’m sorry! I just did what I thought would work! I’m not going anywhere! I promise! I promise!” Luna pleaded.

“O-okay. If you say so.” Aurora faced Luna with a bit of uncertainty still showing on her face. Luna couldn’t help but feel guilty over this. Maybe she shouldn’t mess with Aurora's emotions anymore. After all, the two only had each other as friends. This attachment Aurora developed was understandable. 

“We should get out of here in case that attracts any attention.”

As it turned out, multiple people had taken pictures of the flying tree quickly, and it spread around as multiple news outlets reported it. Many discussions were had on the internet about this phenomenon. Luna and Aurora decided to keep their powers more under wraps until everything cooled down. 

A week after that incident, Aurora invited Luna back to the park out of nowhere. Whatever the reason for this was would be kept as a surprise for Luna.

“What’s up, Aurora? You said you want to tell me something?”

Aurora nervously tapped away with her foot, as she had her arms behind her back. “Y-yeah, there is. Y-you know what day it is, right?”

“It’s Valentine’s Day, isn’t it? I got you a small box of chocolates to celebrate!”

She handed them to Aurora, who still kept one arm behind her. “T-thanks, but there’s something I also want to give you.”

“Oh really? What is it?”

“H-here?”

Aurora revealed what she was keeping behind her, and it was a bouquet of lilies. She firmly held them in front of Luna. 

“Woaahhh! These are pretty! I guess this is a fine substitution for chocolate!” Luna smugly declared. “I still have a few saved back home-”

“Luna! I-if it’s alright with you, will…” Aurora tried to say something, but her voice got quieter until she stopped speaking entirely.

“Will I do what?” Luna tilted her head, unable to figure out what Aurora wanted to tell her. “Are you sick? You’re sweating a lot.”

“I’m okay! I just need to be brave… I promise I can do it!”

Okay, but do what? Is there something that I should be doing?

Before Luna could come to any definitive answers, she noticed different tree branches and leaves around them were floating. Aurora’s powers must’ve activated unconsciously during this moment. Whatever she wanted to tell Luna must’ve been creating some strong emotions in her.

“Aurora, maybe you should lower everything that’s- ”

“ALL UNITS! MOVE IN!”

A voice a few feet away could be heard by both Luna and Aurora. Before either of them could react, they were both pinned to ground by fully grown men in combat uniforms. A total of five soldiers appeared. They all towered over the small kids. The pressure applied to Luna’s body was immense. She could hardly move a muscle.

“W-what’s happening!? Who are you people!?” cried Luna!

“What do you want with us!?” yelled Aurora.

The soldiers completely ignored Luna and Aurora’s voices. They only cared about discussing amongst each other.

“These two girls appear to be the source of the telekinetic phenomenon previously observed. Only one has shown apparent supernatural powers, but the other could have also awakened abilities. We’ll be taking both into custody.”

The girls were raised up and held by the arms, as if they were being arrested. Electronic collars were placed around their necks that made it for them to breathe.

“Ack-Aurora! Let go of her, you jerks!”

Luna did her best to struggle out of the soldier’s arms. She wrestled around as hard as she could but she simply didn’t have the strength at her age to fight back at all. She couldn’t activate any clones either while being so restricted.

“Settle down, girls.”

Another man in a uniform appeared. His face was completely obscured by his helmet, but based on his conviction, it could be guessed he was the leader.

“I’m going to verify which one is the Starlight Child. I’ll start with the dark haired girl.”

Aurora’s eyes widened. She resisted as much as she could, but the soldier didn’t let her move an inch. He was just about ready to place his hand on her head.

“STOP!”

Luna’s shout paused his movements. He turned to look at Luna.

“I’m the one that gave her those powers. It’s me you want, right? Now keep your hands off her!”

“Luna…”

Without a moment of hesitation, the man shook his head. “I guess that works for me.”

The man already approached Luna before they could process what was about to happen. He grabbed Luna by the head without a shred of delicacy. Luna’s vision became distorted. Imagery of clocks rewinding formed around her. Luna’s face became blank. So much information that she could not process was being thrusted into her mind.

Aurora yelled out for Luna, but it was pointless.All Luna could do was yell, as the pain coursing through her head became excruciating.

“S-stop! What's happening to me!? G-get out of my head!” 

Tears leaked out from her eyes, but she was unable to close them.

 

***

 

The sight of Luna like this caused even more stress to hit Aurora. Only she wasn’t crying. Her eyes stared in shock seeing the one she cared about now bear a face of utter fear and pain. Within her heart, grew a fiery passion. A pure, unfiltered, rage.

“Let… go of… Luna!” Aurora’s entire body began to glow a strong red. 

“H-hey! She’s trying to activate her powers! Restrain her down! She can’t disrupt my preservation!”

Every soldier besides that one holding Luna pinned Aurora to the ground. They figured restraining her further would restrict her powers like how it did to Luna. This didn’t change anything.

“Let… Luna… go!”

Aurora’s voice grew louder. Not only was her entire body enveloped in an all consuming red aura, but so was the ground surrounding her. It grew brighter and brighter. Whether she realized it or not, her powers were becoming stronger than she ever could’ve imagined. 

“Knock her out if you have to! If she stops this now…!”

Her heart beat faster and faster. As if it was responding to what was about to occur. As the ground glowed a pure white, Aurora let out one more cry.

“LET LUNA GO!”

 

***

 

An explosion occurred, as the last thing Luna could see was a blinding light. The ground shook as if it was struck by lightning. Dust flew all across the area. Saying a bomb went off wouldn’t have been inaccurate.

Luna woke up on the ground a few minutes later. Her head felt weirdly staticy. The last thing she remembered were memories completely unfamiliar to her. Sights and sounds her life had never gone through. 

It was utterly bizarre and unnerving, but that couldn’t prepare her for what she witnessed next.

“Luna…I…I…” Aurora stood there with a face of pure disbelief. Her eyes were wide and hollow. Her clothes, torn and tattered. But striking of all, smears of blood stained her face.

The ground around them had been completely sliced apart into sharp chunks. The collars around Luna and Aurora were sliced off and laid on the ground. 

Luna looked around for the soldiers, only to see them all lying on the ground mixed in with the debris. She walked closer to their bodies to get a better look at them, only to fall back in horror. It was only for a moment, but the sight of their sliced apart bodies was an image burned in Luna’s mind.

“They’re all… they’re all…!” Luna didn’t have the strength to get the words out. She covered her mouth in absolute terror. The innocence these young girls held shattered into pieces as the darkness of their new reality took hold.

“Did…did I just do that…!” Aurora mumbled. “They wanted to hurt us, so I just… Will more come after us? ”

She was losing control of her breath. Her mind would continue to deteriorate the more that she processed what happened. 

During this, Luna was going through her own thought process. Her mind would take every turn it needed to in order to rationalize all this. They’d been attacked by dangerous people. They were attacked because of their magical abilities. 

Her powers activated… and hurt everyone but me. The powers that I gave her.

The sound of a loud bump interrupted her thoughts. Aurora had fallen to her knees, and started to cry her heart out. Maybe it’s because Luna couldn’t think straight, but she continued thinking about all this.

 Those bad guys wanted me. They called me the “Starlight Child.” I’m the one they want, but Aurora got dragged into this. It’s all because of the things I told her. This power I wanted to learn more about. The discoveries we’d share together…!

“I’m so scared. I don’t want to be hunted.”

Stop. Don’t say that. You’re going to be okay! I’ll do whatever it takes!

If there really were people who wanted Luna because of what she could do, she wouldn’t let Aurora get dragged into it. Her friend deserved a normal life. One free of any hatred or scrutiny for her existence.

“Aurora, you didn’t do anything wrong!” 

“Wha-what? B-b-but-” sobbed Aurora.

“I gave you these powers! If it wasn’t for me… this wouldn’t have happened!”

Please, Aurora. You need to understand that you had nothing to do with this!

“Luna, what are you talking about?”

“Your powers only activated because you cared about me! If I wasn’t here, none of this would’ve happened in the first place. Not the floating tree, not us getting attacked by those bad guys, not you hurting… yeah… I’m the problem…”

“W-what!?”

“I-if I just wasn’t here…everything would be okay. It’s because of this curse that we ended up like this…”

“C-curse…?”

“Just forget about me. Maybe your Curse will eventually go away, and you can go back to living normally. Whatever happens to me doesn’t matter. Live your life as safely as you can. Promise me that.”

Luna’s mind was warping itself whether she realized it or not. The terror of this situation was causing her to develop dangerous thoughts. Ones that would linger on, even today. As her mind finally settled on these ideas… there was no turning back.

“L-Luna. I don’t know… what you’re.., talking about…”

As Aurora spoke, her eyes slowly closed without her control. She almost fell on the ground if not for Luna catching her. Aurora appeared utterly exhausted. That massive blast created by her Curse must’ve drained so much energy out of her.

Luna turned back to where her collar had fallen. Unlike Aurora's, there was still a light on it, indicating it was still functional. With a plan in mind, she carried Aurora away from the area. Laying her on a bench in the far off corner of the park, far enough to avoid any suspicion of being connected to what happened in the park, Luna wiped the blood off her face.

Aurora looked so peaceful while asleep, but the heartbreak she’d endure once she awakened would be immense. Luna didn’t want to be here when that happened. She was already spending too much time as it was. She needed to leave Makewell.

“I’m sorry, Aurora.”

This was the initial farewell to the girl that Luna had cursed.

Luna made it to the outskirts of her town, now standing in a grassy field. She dropped the collar she held onto on the ground. By the time anyone would come find it, she was long gone. She took several bus rides, going from city to city with no clear destination in mind. All she knew was that she needed to get as far away as possible, before ending up in the city of Everfall. 

Here, she lived as a pickpocket. Using whatever tricks she could with her Curse to steal whatever she could. As long as she was smart about it, her powers wouldn’t have the same presence as Aurora’s, meaning she could get away with using them as she needed in order to get by.

This was all until she tried to steal from a skilled thief simply walking down the street. When she was caught, the thief questioned her, before ultimately deciding that she’d be her guardian.

Luna developed a fascination with her profession. It was a life where she could both make something of the ability she’d been cursed with while being able to live a life that involved nobody else. 

Her education became completely online, and as a result, many formative years of her life were spent with only herself, and the thief that supported her. It was lonely, but she believed it was right for someone like her. Whenever she yearned for anything more, the memory of Aurora’s pain and fear blasted their way in front of her mind. 

Know your place. This is what you want.

It’d been around when she turned 14 that Luna decided to transition. Her mind during this whole period was a blur. She can’t remember why or how this ended up happening. Just that she recalled being way more depressed than usual during that time. Either way, it made her feel more comfortable in her skin, and that was all that mattered. Any deeper thought about being trans never came to be. Maybe she was afraid of doing so.

As the years rolled by, Luna’s original past with Aurora became ever so distant. She thought that if she ever looked back to that point of her life, it would be nothing more than an old story.