Sin and Sanctum

To Luna's shock, she was yanked from the table with surprising strength. Sunny's grip on her wrist was firm but not painful, her determination evident in every step.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Luna dug her heels into the ground, her sneakers squeaking against the tile as she struggled to resist. "I still have so many questions!"

Sunny turned, still pulling her forward, a mischievous smile on her face. "Like what? Come on, I can explain on the way!"

As Luna was dragged along, she stammered, "W-well, how did you heal me? Are you some s-sort of c-cleric or something!?" She tried to resist Sunny's pull, but it was no use—Sunny's strength was relentless.

Sunny chuckled and glanced back. "Okay, okay, it's simple. I used a healing spell on you when I found you lying on the street in the snow. Then, I reinforced it with this talisman!" She reached into her pocket and pulled out a piece of paper covered in intricate Kanji symbols.

"O-okay... magic paper, got it..." Luna muttered, her eyes darting around nervously. "W-wait, so is this like your house or something?"

Sunny's pace quickened, her voice turning slightly evasive. "Y-yeah, uh, about that... This isn't my place. B-but don't worry!" She turned to flash Luna a confident thumbs up. "I know the person, and I'm pretty sure they're fine with me using it!"

"W-wait, w-what?!" Luna stammered, her shock growing as a horrible realization dawned on her. She now believed they had broken into someone's house—and even worse, that she could be an accomplice. "O-oh, l-lovely. You know, we might have potentially broken into a house. Lovely..."

Her shoulders slumped as her thoughts spiraled. Luna stopped resisting Sunny altogether, allowing herself to be dragged into a bedroom.

Once inside, Sunny immediately began rummaging through a pile of belongings with focused determination. After a few frantic moments, she pulled out what looked like a briefcase. Opening it, she revealed a jumbled mess of vials, books, and various trinkets.

While sifting through the briefcase, Sunny tilted her head. "Okay, now if I remember correctly, I had to go through a bunch of boring lessons on how to use willpower, then magic, psychic abilities, and all that jazz."

She spun around dramatically before grabbing a strange-looking book and tossing it to Luna.

"Read that! Those are my teacher's old notes on the basics of all this stuff. Granted, reading and doing are two different things, so keep that in mind, got it?" She gave Luna a thumbs up. "Oh, and one more thing—I don't know if you realize this, but you are totally brimming with mana! That's the stuff that fuels your magic, by the way!"

"W-wait, wh-what?" Luna raised an eyebrow, a light blush spreading across her cheeks at the compliment.

"Yeah! You totally do, though it's unrefined," Sunny replied with a grin. "And before you ask how I know this—it's my Willpower technique: the Eye of Talent." She pointed to her right eye, and as Luna watched, the iris shifted from purple to a glowing gold. Luna's eyes widened slightly at the sight, her curiosity piqued by the unexpected transformation.

"W-w-what? Does it show you how talented someone is?" Luna tilted her head, her confusion evident.

"Yes," Sunny confirmed with a nod. "With this eye of mine, I can see someone's talents. For example, I can gauge their mana pool, psychic potential, and more. It doesn't tell me everything, but it's super handy for assessing someone's threat level."

Luna, without wasting any more time, opened the book and began flipping through page after page. It didn't take long for her to come to a realization—there was a lot. "Umm, Sunny, these notes and all this writing seem a bit, uhmm, overwhelming to say the least..."

Sunny let out a nervous laugh, scratching the back of her head. "Yeah, my teacher wasn't exactly the best when it came to organizing things. He kinda just threw all of his theories and teachings into several books and called it a day."

Luna let out a sigh. "Alright, I guess I'll start from page one and go from there..."

Sunny gave her a pat on the back, grinning. "Atta girl! You'll pick it all up in no time. Oh, and by the way—your license says you were born in '84 and that you're from Austin, Texas. So what the hell are you doing all the way out here in Aspen, Colorado? Family vacation or something?"

Luna's expression turned somber as she walked over to the bed and sat down. "Umm, I kind of got kicked out three years ago after an argument with my dad..." Her gaze dropped to the floor, her shoulders slumping. She let out another sigh. "I've, umm, been traveling and couch-surfing since then, but, uh, for the last few months, I've been... you know, kinda homeless..."

Sunny sat down next to Luna, placing a comforting hand on her shoulder. "Well, I mean, I didn't have the best relationship with my old man, and things were even worse with my mom... that bitch." A flicker of anger flashed in Sunny's eyes, but her expression softened as she continued. "So, I know how it feels to not have anywhere to call your own. But don't worry—I won't abandon you. Besides, you're my hunter partner, and my first partner ever!" She flashed Luna a reassuring thumbs up, her smile brimming with determination.

Luna offered a gentle smile. "S-so we have a similar issue, huh?"

Sunny let out a laugh. "Yeah! I guess we do, huh?"

Luna's chest warmed with a comforting thought: Maybe she and I aren't so different after all. The realization left her feeling happy, a faint bubbly sensation growing inside her. "S-so, umm, partner," she began, her voice timid but curious, "what exactly is my job as a hunter?"

Flipping through a few pages of the book Sunny had given her, Luna's eyes scanned the aged, handwritten notes. She ran her fingers over the cracked leather cover, noticing how worn and ancient the book looked. "This thing feels like it's been around forever," she murmured, marveling at the artifact in her hands.

"Uhh, well, first we have to get you a Hunter's license, actually."

Luna tilted her head at that response. "How do we go about that?"

Sunny let out an annoyed sigh, her expression growing sour. "We have to find a damn Hunter Sanctum, and you'll most likely have to take some kind of test. It's super annoying, so we'll need to train you up first!"

Luna let out an equally annoyed sigh at the mention of taking a test. After leaving school, she thought she was finally free from the tyranny of exams, yet here she was. "Ok, let's get to it, I guess," she muttered reluctantly.

Sunny, jumping off the bed with enthusiasm, grinned. "Alrighty! Well, we can't train here, so follow me!"

Luna followed Sunny to who-knows-where until they stepped outside. Sunny made her way to what looked like an RV. "Alright, hop in! We've got a bit of driving to do!"

Luna gingerly climbed into the vehicle, and to her surprise, it was a bit roomier than she expected—though not the best-maintained, with a few loose items and clutter scattered around.

"S-so why didn't you just put me in here when you helped me?" Luna asked, raising an eyebrow in confusion.

Sunny scratched the back of her head with a sheepish grin. "Yeah, about that... The battery on my baby here died, so I had to swing by this house to fix her up!"

Luna walked over to the couch in the RV, moving aside boxes filled with papers, various trinkets, and knick-knacks—some of which looked amusing, while others gave off a sinister vibe. As Luna sat down, her gaze landed on a creepy doll staring back at her with a chilling smile. She let out a sharp gasp, only to see the cat from earlier hop into the RV and knock the doll onto the floor.

"O-oh h-hey kitty" the cat walks over and sits in Lunas lap the cat lets out a yawn before falling asleep "Oh heh y-your tired huh well I guess while im stuck here I guess I'll start reading this book..." though as Luna begins reading the book some time has passed and the RV is already on the road driving.

Luna, in a relaxed state with the cat sound asleep beside her, suddenly heard the voice from last night. "Hey, idiot, how did you forget about that doll? It's not there anymore."

Luna's eyes widened in alarm as she sat upright. She froze until she saw a woman who looked just like her floating next to her.

"W-who a-are y-you?" Luna stammered, fear evident in her eyes.

"Sup. For now, you can call me Alter," the woman replied casually. "However, you should know—that doll? It's not there anymore."

Luna's eyes darted around, terrified, scanning for the creepy doll. Her heart raced until she saw it in front of her, holding a knife with a wicked grin on its face!