Long story short, when I started to look the part of the bad guy, rumors flew that I was a threat to our town. It wasn't long before I was exiled for a nonexistent crime. Everyone believed the judge; after all, his power was seeing the past, so he 'saw' me 'do' it. I was led out of town by super strength guards, so there was no way I could escape. After I was left alone, I traveled from town to town, being shut out every time, often just for the news of me coming form other towns. In time I learned to cover myself with a cape, and this is now how I do all my business. I finally settled in a cave on the side of a mountain rumored to house evil spirits. I am yet to encounter any such thing, but rats, spiders, bats and other vermin live here in abundance. I think of the rats as family, as they always get a share of my food and in return, I have trained them to find spare coins on the street and bring them to me. This is my main source of income. On occasion, I do an odd job at a haunted house, or something. I live in isolation. My main contact with other people is when I go to town to buy a few luxuries. Everything I have is, technically, a luxury, as I need nothing to live. I can, however, be hungry, and I buy a lot of food. Books are also always on my list, as I get bored easily. But, of course, not much of that description fits me these days; if it did, this would be an extremely boring story. My life changed on some day in fall. That is as specific as I can get, as I never got around to buying a calendar.
On that unspecified date, for the first time since I moved in, a human form filled the cave entrance. I looked up from my book, startled.
"Hello? Are you in there?" He called.
"Um... No?" I was to surprised to come up with a good answer.
Without another word, he walked in. I covered myself with a cape, because if he saw me, who knows what could happen!
"Who... Who are you?" I tried to sound brave, but fear crept into my voice.
"You don't sound evil." He commented. "My name is James. But as far as hero work goes, I'm snapshot."
"Why are you here? How did you find me?"
"I Prize myself on my detective work. I was looking through a few court cases for a school project, and I found yours. It seemed strange; there were no witnesses, no jury. Nothing but the judge claiming you were guilty. Using a map of our island, I traced your path, discovering it by asking people in towns I thought you may have visited. Then the trail went cold. I knew, obviously, that you hadn't just died, so I searched around the towns near where you had disappeared. I heard of this cave, and thought it would be a perfect place for a person like you to hide. And so here I am."
I only had one question. "Why are you called snapshot?"
"Oh! You see, my mind works like a camera. Everything I see, I can reproduce in the form of a video or picture. It makes me perfect for a detective. I hoped... I mean I thought... I could see you. And record your story. And show it to everyone else."
Something accorded to me. "Just how old are you?"
a pause, then quietly "Only 13."
"Do your parents know your here?"
"Not unless they are watching from heaven." He replied matter-of-factly.
He was an orphan! I considered his proposal. "You can see me. But I'll tell you my story over two days. I don't want to overwhelm you."
"Okay."
And I reviled myself.
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