Prompt 048: Shine
Character: Edward
Edward sat on the park bench, watching the people as they walked about. Edward wasn't a big fan of the sunshine, but the festivities didn't continue into the night so he'd just have to deal with it. The entire festival was filled with chatter, laughter, and the sound of game booths. The paths of the park were packed with people and it generated even more heat in the already hot day. Edward didn't understand the attraction of events like this, they were so crowded and there were so many strangers around. It made Edward feel on-guard; there were just too many people around to effectively protect yourself from attacks. He supposed most of the festival goers probably never thought about that, but Edward knew the truth. Danger was always around you.
Security was surprisingly low, though maybe that was because of all the military families around. Some may see that as being protected, but Edward saw it as being vulnerable. At home was when soldiers were most likely to drop their guard, particularly on Reach - making events like this a rebel's dream. A quick look around at the crowd showed that none of them were armed, a tactical mistake. He supposed, though, that it was their own fault if something happened and none of them were ready. It might have been a sign of a bigger issue with the continued fighting. People just weren't aware of what was going on further out in the colonies; though logic would indicate that at least some of these people would know what was really happening. Then again, maybe they were allowing themselves to live in ignorant bliss before having to return to harsh reality.
Still, that sort of attitude invited mistakes and tragedy. He had been researching into the rebellions in the outer colonies since talking to the ODST. If you really wanted to find it the information wasn't that hard to get. They didn't talk about it much on the news, but there were still reports about the number of troops being moved to outer colonies, the militia programs trying to ease the strain on the UNSC, and the continuing attacks that seemed to be impossible to predict. Edward was sure the soldiers in the crowd knew, but the civilians might have just ignored it, not wanting (or able) to face the truth.
Edward's attention was drawn to a young girl as she ran past him, giggling happily as her mother chased after her. The young child stayed out of reach of her follower, enjoying her imposed game. Her mother looked haggard and nearly fed up with her daughter's actions; Edward could see the bags under her eyes, and noticed that her movements were sluggish. A man chuckled as he passed Edward, moving at a more leisurely pace, watching the mother and daughter.
The man pulled something out of his pocket, something black, and Edward tensed for a moment. "Ash!" The man called to the little girl, holding up a small, stuffed black dragon. The little girl wheeled around and looked to the man, eyes wide as she spotted the toy. She ran past her mother and to the man, reaching for the stuffed animal. She took it and the man scooped her up into his arms. "That's my girl."
The woman moved over to join them, a relieved smile on her face. "I don't know how you do that." The man put his arm around her waist and started to move toward the festival.
"Bribery - it always works," the man joked as he led his family away. Edward watched them, annoyed by the unidentifiable emotion he was experiencing at that moment. Did he feel sorry for the family, knowing how much danger they were in? Did he hate them because they were so happy? Or did he envy their bonds, the sort of bonds he'd always avoided? The fact that he didn't know what he was feeling aggravated Edward, and it wasn't new. He'd felt like this before, but he still didn't know what it was or what would make it go away.
Edward's gaze went back to the crowd and he scolded himself for loosing focus. He scanned the crowd, making sure to look at every face. He couldn't believe he'd been distracted like that, only giving him more reason to want to be rid of it. His eyes fell on a man and he recognized him from the pictures he'd been given. The man looked around, shifted the backpack on his shoulder, and walked down the line of people. Edward calmly stood from the bench and casually made his way into the crowd, trailing the man.