Once upon a time, in a battered city born of glass and steel, there lived a monster who was very, very, lonely.
Every day, when the sun climbed the horizon, the monster would run through the alleys. Running and running, trying to do good. To prove to everyone that he was just as human as the rest of the city folk were, and just as good.
But no matter how hard he tried, everything would always end in tragedy, leaving the monster more sad and broken as he failed again and again, inadvertently harming those that he tried to save, and shunned by the horrified few that survived.
He looked for compassion, and found only fear. He sought understanding, but met only cruel words and malicious intent.
Again and again, the monster was battered with hate. His bleeding heart soaking in poison from their words and driven home by their eyes.
The monster kept trying, oh how he tried. Day after day, through the rain, through the sun, through the harsh frigid hold of winter, the monster continued to try.
But in the end, time took its toll.
The monster's heart slowly grew cold as stone, and with it, his dreams. Shattered like fallen angels and broken diamonds.
He no longer saw the good in others, and gone was his empathy. The world around him turned black and grey, and he no longer tried.
How foolish it seemed to him, as he looked back at his foolish attempts to change himself. He was a monster, and nothing he did could change who he was.
But yet.
Once upon a time...
A boy looked silently over the rainy horizon of Zaun, fingers clasped tentatively over the rusted railing which squeaked with protest. He ignored it. Knowing full well that
should it break from its foundation, it would send them both plummeting down through the air before ultimately breaking his body against the unyielding pavement below, or drowning within the icy waters that hugged the ports of Zaun. He had no recollection of how he got here, save for a few vague memories, before finding himself high up within a cliff dwelling. The place was rather sparse, a naked mattress was propped up against a wall and a old wooden table dominated the center of the room, with two barrels serving as a makeshift seat. A heavy looking cabinet was placed near the right wall, and strangely enough, a piano accompanied the meager decor, standing shy of the entrance of the cliff hole.
The wind howled once again, and the boy brushed the long white strands of hair away from his eyes. Wet bangs clinging to his cheeks.
"About time you woke up." A deep voice rumbled behind him.
The boy turned and found himself staring at a pair of red eyes, the figure crouched against the inner corners of the room, hidden within the gloom.
"I was beginning to think that perhaps I've accidentally killed you after all back there. Although it would certainly make the situation at hand much easier."
The voice was heavy and guttural, with a note of predatory apprehension tinting the edges.
"And yet you didn't." The boy said, clutching his arms around himself in a meager attempt to warm his frozen body against the chilling gale. "But you may be right. Perhaps my death really would benefit the two of us."
Silence.
"Well aren't you a little ray of sunshine." The voice finally spoke again after a moment's pause.
The boy simply looked back at him, face expressionless and eyes empty. Saying nothing else as the rain continued to dash itself against the floor.
"You were about to get beaten in by those thugs in the back alley, why didn't you run?"
The boy still said nothing. Fingers closed and water dripping from his hair like silent tears, still as a statue.
The figure in the shadows sighed heavily.
"At least give me your name, if you're going to stay here for the time being."
Lips parted and met again twice before the word "Sirius" was finally released from his mouth.
"Then get in here... Sirius." The red eyes narrowed slightly. "You'll freeze to death from the rain, and i'd really rather not have to dispose of another body again tonight. "
Releasing his hold on the railing, Sirius padded inside toward the mattress and flipped it over. He then dragged it closer toward the figure crouched hidden in the corner, stopping where the light embraced the dark, jagged edges of the shadows concealing the stranger.
Oblivious to the startled movements of the figure, Sirius layed down on his side and closed his eyes. Arms held against himself.
The figure said nothing, but continued to silently watch him sleep.
Outside, the rain continued to sing.