Habits Die Hard

What others have may not be what we need. MIchelle Liew

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Harold had a unique talent---he mimicked traits to perfection. An eyelift, a glance, twitch of the eyebrow--once he did so, the habit was his to keep.

At first, they were just harmless party tricks. He got his thrills from a musician's singing ability, an artist's hand, a mathematician's logic. He didn't take anything of apparent value, just qualities that made people what they were.

Then, he thought---what if he reshaped himself? The possibilities were endless. He got greedy. His next victim was a locksmith who could fashion any key.

No one cared at first---he took only invisible things. One night, he imitated a woman's stutter.

With it came the teasing behind his back. The hidden laughter. The slow diminishing of confidence.

Some traits exist to rein in something else.

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This work is entirely original. Any AI tags is coincidental.