"Your father hands out the vaguest missions, doesn't he, Kid?" Liz Thompson sighed heavily, looking up at the overcast sky. "I mean, find the goddess among immortals? Bring back a dog? What does that mean?"
"Puppies!" Patty Thompson, Liz's sister, exclaimed. "Arf arf arf arf!"
Death the Kid exhaled, his breath curling up in small mists. "The last thing my father wants is a pet," he said.
"What does he want then?" Liz asked. "What's he talking about?"
"My father is talking about the Canis Clan, a clan made up of people raised from the dead waters of the River Styx by the moon and are given a second chance in life or something," he replied.
He narrowed his eyes towards the mountains surrounding the village. "The Canis Clan is one of the most reclusive supernatural branches in the world, besides the Leon Clan," he added. "It might take some time to find this goddess, but we've got to finish Dad's mission."
Kid looked around.
The mist and the overcast sky gave a dull look to the significantly lively small riverside town of Moonstone Creek. No one looked remotely doggish or supernatural, or goddesslike. They just looked like average Joes going about their daily work.
"I suppose the first thing we should do is ask about where they are," Liz suggested. "I mean, Lord Death did say that this town was closest to their territory."
~~TIME SKIP TO TWO HOURS LATER~~
"No luck," Patty reported, poking the top of her pancakes and pouting.
"No luck here," Liz added, looking a little dismayed. She stirred her coffee absentmindedly, staring at the glossy surface of the table.
Kid sighed in frustration, his fingers drumming the table rhythmically. "Damn, both of you too?" he muttered. "Our mission's looking pretty bleak right now."
The trio sat in a full diner, taking a well-deserved break from asking multiple townsfolk about the Canis Clan.
Some of them were captured into long-winded tales about how the clan saved them, as well as naming one member named 'Luna Canis,' but any question about where they lived had no absolute answer.
Disappointed, Kid looked out of the window, his gaze falling in the snow-capped peaks of the mountains that surrounded the town. The sky still looked the same but the mist was gone, at least. He blinked his golden eyes blearily.
Maybe there isn't such a thing as the Canis Clan, he thought pessimistically. Maybe all these townspeople are in this huge prank and we get Punk'd at the end of this. This mission is a wreck.
The sudden chime of the doorbell, signifying another customer's entrance, rang through the steady buzz of the diner. Kid looked around from his booth to take a look at the new patron.
The customer was short, with medium-length black hair, dark brown eyes, and a rushed stride in her step. She carried two large paper bags in either hand, the tips of paintbrushes peeking out of the top. The sleeves of her hoodie were edged with various colors and he could faintly detect a small blue paint stain on her left cheek. Just who was this, anyway?
"Hey, Mira," she greeted the waitress tending to the customers sitting at the counter.
"Hello, Luna," the waitress replied, smiling at her. "The usual today?" she asked as the girl struggled to clamber up onto a stool.
"Yes, please. It's an easy day today with Mom," the girl answered, swinging her legs to and fro. She slid a ten-dollar bill across the counter to the waitress, who took it and wrote down her order.
Kid stared at the girl's back calculatingly. Luna.
Is this the infamous Luna Canis mentioned amongst townspeople? Kid wondered.
"Hey, Kid, what's up?" Liz called his attention. "Is something wrong?"
Kid snapped out of his thoughts and turned around to face his weapons. "I may or may not have found this Luna Canis everyone keeps talking about," he answered, his mood brightening a bit. Maybe this mission wasn't so hopeless after all.
~~~~
"Well, I'm off," Luna grinned, dabbing her mouth with the edge of her napkin. "I need to work on the painting now. Thanks for the meal, Mira." She jumped off the stool and picked up the two bags, pushing open the door.
"You're welcome, sweetie. Good luck with the mural," Mira grinned.
Kid stood up from his seat. "Hold on. I need to ask a few questions," he told Liz and Patty.
He walked across the diner, approaching Mira. "Excuse me, ma'am. Would it be alright if I asked you a few questions?" he asked her.
"Sure, newcomer," Mira grinned. "What's up?"
Kid scowled inwardly at being called a newcomer but he continued anyway. "That girl. Luna was her name? Who is she exactly?" Kid asked.
Mira nodded. "Luna Canis. Heiress of this great old clan nearby is what I hear from her relatives that come over occasionally. Came here two years ago but she's doing even better than those of us who've lived here longer. She holds up that responsibility of getting groceries and running errands and such. She's a busy girl," Mira babbled admiringly, serving a plate of bacon and eggs to a weary construction worker.
"She's a proficient singer, really good writer, dances pretty well too. Luna's also an artist in the making. Sketching and digital art and whatnot. The town commissioned her to paint a grand old painting celebrating our founding and history and such and she offered to do it for free. No charge whatsoever," Mira added, taking payment from a couple who was just leaving.
"She has a few eccentricities like being just a tad bit clumsy but all in all, she's got a lot going for her," Mira finished proudly.
"Anything else? Like where she lives or where she is currently at?" Kid continued.
Mira tapped her chin thoughtfully. "Town center, mayhaps. Find a closed-off area with a large wooden backdrop surrounded by tarps and wires and paint splatters. You might find her there," she finally replied. "Why the questions, newcomer? You got a crush on little Ms. Heiress?"
Kid could feel his face flare up involuntarily. "No. I just need to talk to her, that's all," he answered, trying not to stutter.
Mira smirked. "Alright then. Carry on, lover boy," she waved him off. He nodded, walking back to Liz and Patty.
His arrival made them sit up and give him questioning looks. "Did you get what you asked for?" Liz asked.
Kid nodded, a small, triumphant smile on his face. "We've got a lead."
A/N: Aaawww yiiisss. Contrary to the title of this chapter, I'd say this story is getting off to a great start!
