Children of Chaos

Chapter 5: In Which Dust Is Very Confused (New)

"How ba-a-a-ad can I be?
I'm just doing what comes naturally
How ba-a-a-ad can I be?
I'm just following my-"

The song abruptly cut off as his earbuds fell out. He cursed. 'Skeleton-friendly design' his foot. As he walked past an alleyway, fumbling to pause the song, untangle his earbuds, and call them enough names to fill a phonebook at the same time, he heard the unmistakable sound of bones rattling.

He froze.

Glancing around, he found nothing but himself and the dark alley in sight.

He peered in cautiously, but couldn't see what was making that sound- or whether they were friend or foe. Was it some kind of trap?

Snow crunched under his shoes as he stepped into the shadows. "This is such a terrible idea," he muttered, knowing his brother would agree. He almost backed out. He could keep walking home, and no one would know this ever happened.

The rattling continued, seeming to louden as the wind picked up. If there really was a skeleton there, alone in the cold...

For a moment, the snow clinging to his hands became a different powder.

He took a deep breath as he brushed the silvery flakes off, eyelights sparking with determination.

He had to find out.

He crept forward with a hand on his knife, shoving the mp3 player and his treacherous earbuds in his pocket. They would only get more tangled, but he had bigger things to worry about right now.

...Like the two unconscious children in the back of the alley, holding each other tightly as the snow piled around them.

One of them was clearly the source of the noise, shivering violently in nothing but a t-shirt and thin-looking pants. Next to them was a pile of dark, ragged clothing. The skeleton wearing it, barely visible in the shadows, was as still as the grave. Despite their shorts and torn jacket, they seemed unaffected by the weather... or so close to death that they no longer felt it.

He thought about what he knew of hypothermia, and sped up.

The first thing he did was take off his jacket and drape it over them. It almost completely covered both kids, only their skulls and shoes poking out, and the sight made them look even smaller. He was patting his pockets to find his phone when he noticed movement. One of them was stirring, and it wasn't the one he had expected.

He hesitated for a moment, not sure whether speaking would startle or reassure them, but a moment was enough. Their sockets flew open and they jumped to their feet, swaying a little as they took a defensive stance. Their body glitched like it was trying to tear itself apart.

"$t4y BaCk-Ck-Ck!" Their eyelights were large and unfocused, but he felt like they knew exactly where he was. He had the sudden urge to run, like the tiny skeleton in front of him had been replaced by a snarling tiger.

He shook the feeling away.

"I'm not going to hurt you," he promised, holding out his empty hands. The kid jolted, seeming to finally see him.

"Du$t?"

The pure confusion and hope in their tone, like they hadn't thought they would see him but really wanted to, almost startled him more than knowing his name did.

Then their eyelights met his face, and the joy shining through them died as the kid seemed to remember something. They tore their gaze away, looking suddenly like they were about to cry.