Mind Over Mask

8. The Howler

As I made my way down the street, I passed a boy whose eyes were fixed on me, his mouth held wide open.

I walked towards him, and smiled upon seeing his getup. He was wearing a Talon shirt and a baseball cap with my logo on it — a wolf's silhouette against a full moon, with electric blue eyes.

"I like the hat," I said, crouching down so I matched his height. "The shirt's a little controversial now, don't you think?"

His face flushed. "I believe in him," he whispered shyly.

"HEY! Stay away from my son!"

I turned my head to see a furious redhead, quickly approaching the boy on the bench. "It's cool lady. I'm The Howler!" I flashed her my signature smile.

"I know who you are," she snapped. "I also know what your... colleagues have been doing. Come on Nico," she said pulling at his arm. He squeezed his eyes shut for a moment, and reluctantly jumped off the bench.

"Listen," my eyes narrowed. "I don't know what's going on with the other supers, but I'm working on it." I didn't want to divulge too much to this random stranger, but I couldn't afford the city turning against me. Mostly because it would jeopardize the investigation, but also because my main source of revenue was my merch. That would be so bad for business.

"Trust me," was all I could muster. She gave me a curt nod, and darted away with her son in tow. I walked in the opposite direction so she wouldn't think I was following them, even though I wanted to give the boy a signed mug.

I stopped upon seeing a familiar, flickering sign, and peered into the shop's window. I saw a curvy girl with tight, blonde curls and another girl wearing a tight-fitting suit and what looked to be a masquerade mask. A mask? A new super?

I walked into the shop, making sure to conceal my suspicion. Not going to lie, the place gave me the creeps. Tiny gargoyles and ceramic hands practically littered the place.

"Hey, we're matching!" I pointed to the girl's suit and my own, both of which were black and blue. "That must mean we're destined to be a duo."

She didn't say anything — only looked at me curiously.

"Well, I'm the Howler, obviously," I added with a grin. "What's your name?"

"Huh? Didn't we already..?" the blonde girl behind her touched her hand, and she let out an "oh!"

"I, uhh, my name is Windstorm. Yeah, Windstorm."

Windstorm? I had to keep myself from snorting. Lame.

"Cool name," I said.