Demi-God and Dry heat

How it began

“I’m so sorry I’ll get it back-” 

“This is the fourth time it’s happened! Either you control that weird strength of yours, or don’t play with us anymore!” The lanky boy shouted. The freckled boy flinched at the demands but climbed after the frisbee. One foot after the other, he methodically planned jumps and climbs, his hands getting splinters and scrapes. As he was reaching for the frisbee, Melody heard a cracking noise, noticing one of the branches higher was on the verge of breaking. Without much inner thought, Melody shouted a warning to the boys.

“Look out!” Melody noticed as the other three boys were bolting out, the fourth boy stood still, mouth agape at the carnage that was about to befall them. Melody pushed him out of the way, her small legs bolting fast to get to him in time. She watched the branch fall, closing her eyes as she waited for the pain of her legs getting crushed underneath the tree branch.

But that pain never came. Melody opened her eyes to see a pile of bright green leaves around her. She heard a shifting in the trees and stared up. It was as if the branch had stopped mid-fall, floating detached from the tree. Upon closer inspection she could see the same boy that was grabbing the frisbee, gripping onto the branch for dear life. She got a good look at him, staring at the strange frailness of his arms and the absolute balance it took to keep himself still perched on that tree. Melody couldn’t help wonder if he might be a God or something. It was unreal how he was staying like that, almost impossible. As the fluffy red-haired boy finally shimmied down the tree, he approach Melody with timidity. He tried touching her shoulder, though she shied away.

“Are you okay? You’re not hurt, are you?” His voice was nervous, almost as timid as she looked. He  “I appreciated that you had saved me really. But you shouldn't have done that you could’ve gotten hurt-” 

“Did you just grab that branch with your bare hands?” Melody questioned him. He blinked at her. 

“Well yeah, I… I did,” 

“That was so cool!” her eyes sparkled in amazement. His face flushed brightly, smiling back. 

“Y-you really think so? D-Don’t you think it’s weird?” He felt his palms sweat and tremble. He isn’t used to seeing girls often. He would try to introduce himself fruitlessly. It didn't help that he was very shy. Melody was pretty, with her long black hair and big sea-green eyes, which made his anxiety worse. 

“Are you kidding me? That’s something I wish I had! Do you know how many heavy things a girl like me wants?” She gloated excitedly, getting closer and closer by the second. His face burnt a brighter shade of pink as she got closer to him. “What’s your name? I’m Melody!” she held her tiny pink hand out to him, still smiling. He stared at her hand for a moment before shaking it as gently as he could. 

“My name is Hercules.”

“That’s a pretty cool name! You do have the strength of a Greek god.” She could tell he was self-conscious about it, so she continued to praise him. 

“Thank you. You’re probably the first person who doesn’t mind my weird strength.” Hercules finished his sentence and saw her golden seashell necklace that had her name etched into it. Melody watched his eyes, clasping her hands over it. It was precious to her, and she always found people trying to steal it as a practical joke.   

Hercules noticed her hesitation and backed away a little. “I didn’t mean to stare, I’ve just never seen a necklace like that. Is it like a hermit crab?” He had seen gold jewelry, but it was strange to see it in any shape other than a heart or cross. Melody released her hands, smiling. 

“It’s actually a nautilus shell. They’re like hermit crab-squid thingies. My family is into the ocean and big things of water, and my dad knows I like collecting shells, so he got me a necklace like this!” She smiled, recalling her first memory on the beach. She was barely able to walk, and yet she toddled all along the beach, picking up every shell she found. Her father had noticed her doing it every time they went, so he got it made the next day. It was like a right of passage, all her sisters had one for their quirks and hobbies.