The hooded figure watched the busy townspeople from the shadows. He released a quiet sigh as the people ran their errands and briskly walked from shop to shop. This spirit, of course, knew everything about these people. What their jobs were, what their inner motives were, and especially when and how they would die. The Christmas season, because of this, wasn't as cheerful to him as it was for the other spirits. Past was always able to rely on nostalgia and mostly pleasant memories. Present didn't have to focus on the past or future, giving him the benefit of being carefree.
Future, on the other hand, wasn't as fortunate. Things had drastically changed since 1843, and not for the better either. Greed, pride, and ignorance stood out more to him than they ever had before. It was even rarer to find a genuine heart whenever he wandered the streets on Christmas Eve.
The Spirit of Christmas Future wandered over to where a homeless man was standing and watching the passers-by. With a once-over glance, he could see that the man was 32. He went by Dave, but was formally known as David Scott. Through the darkness of Future's hood, he examined him more closely in hopes of seeing some sort of good news; searching for anything that would show a change in the man's situation.
Dismay soon replaced curiosity as he saw the man's fate. If his circumstances didn't change, then the man would die within four years. Cause of death: either the cold or a drive by shooting. Death gave a frustrated huff as he stared at the people who walked by David without a single glance. It amazed him how contradicting the humans could be. Sure, everyone wanted to be good. Hell, a good lot of them were convinced that they were. But Future was able to see through this façade. He saw the selfishness, the greed, the hate, among countless other things.
The spirit turned his attention back to the man and sympathetically brushed his cheek before moving on.
Within that same moment, something caught him off guard. He stopped suddenly as he felt the air change. Tilting his head, he concentrated on the familiar feeling. It started out as something small but then grew. Someone or something had just changed the future, and this fact caused him to look over his shoulder to see what it was.
Beside David was now a man in a suit standing in front of him. Future drifted over to get a closer look to see what was happening.
"A-are you sure?" David asked, clearly more than surprised. The kind face in front of him smiled.
"I'm more than sure. I can even offer you a job if you want. I could use some extra help in the office." The man in the suit asked as he held out his hand.
"Thank you so much! Words cannot describe how much this means to me!" The two men shook hands and then began walking away. The sight, while it didn't make Future smile (it would take a miracle to do that), it did give him hope. If one man was willing to do a kind deed, then surely there were thousands more of his kind elsewhere. There just had to be.