Bones and All

Rotten Luck

Far away she saw a boy, unlike any she'd seen before, dancing in a field, singing a sweet lullaby to a dark-skinned boy that stood a few inches taller. They swayed with the flowers, sunbeams shining down on them and the ocean waves crashing against the sandy shore not so far away. A delicate moment: the type you'd wish you could live in forever.

The singing boy had brown skin, a tall muscular build, and blond hair. His amber eyes glowed gold. He resembled a surfer and carried the charismatic charm of one as well. There was no denying that he was the most handsome man anyone would lay their eyes on.

The two boys in the field were an odd match. The other man's features contrasted the surfers. His beauty allured his companion. His hair is brunette and his features are like stone: ragged and sharp. Scrawny with a toned physique. His eyes are a silvery purple that you'd only see at night upon the moon's glow.

As the melody of the song faded away, a boisterous laugh took its place. A laugh that lights up a room. Warmth radiating from it. James couldn't help but feel like she was being wrapped in a hug by someone dear to her.

Rested on a rock laid a discus. The brunette picked up the heavy, metal disk and handed it to the blond.

"Teach me how to play, will ya?"

"I guess I could squeeze in a lesson for my number one fan,"

With a lazy grin adoring his face, the blond threw the discus like it was nothing. They went back and forth, throwing the disk to each other and laughing at failed attempts.

It was the amber eyed boys turn to throw. As the discus glided through the air, the wind began to pick up. Faster and faster the disk moved as it headed straight for the other boy's head.

Crack.

The laughter was long gone. The sunlight dulled, clouds covered its shine. The flowers stopped their dancing and began to wilt. And the calming sound of the waves crashing ran still.

The brunette boy fell to the ground, a pool of blood trickling out of his temple.

With a horrified scream, the blond ran over to the boy. He wailed over the crumpled body, desperately shaking his friend in search for signs of life.

James looked away, mortified at what she had just witnessed. How can a happy moment be tainted with despair just like that? It made James feel sick to her stomach. Within seconds everything went downhill.

Looking back at the scene she saw that something stood in the crimson pool. A green stem with a cluster of purple flowers had bloomed.

A hyacinth.

       James bolted up from her bed with a strangled gasp. Beads of sweat falling from her forehead. Her night terror had felt foreign yet so familiar. As if it was her memory and she had experienced the tragedy. It was just a dream, she reminded herself.

Brushing off her uneasiness, she clambered out of bed. By the looks of it the 30 minute nap she took after lunch had turned into 5 hours of rest. None of her siblings were in the Apollo cabin (which is a rare sight).

The cabin was truly beautiful.

Yellow flowers from the island of Delos grew around the cabins perimeter and in the flower pots on the window ceils. Young Will Solace's bookshelf was filled to the brim with all sorts of books on medicine, poems, and such.

As James approached the dinner pavilion she couldn't help but let the brunette and blonde boy overtake her mind.

Who were they? What was their relationship? Were they supposed to mean something to her? Was the hyacinth supposed to be some metaphorical way of saying beauty lies in the midst of chaos?