Melody, who was ‘seven and three-quarters’ she so boldly liked to proclaim, was walking with her father and sisters in a nearby park. Wearing a blue blouse with an orange skirt, she was excited to go play on the swings or at least climb the low hanging trees. She loved to go on adventures and would pretend to find treasures, collecting some interesting objects on the way. Like the time she found a rock that looked like a shell or even when she found an ancient-looking key.
Melody wasn’t afraid to be messy when it comes to finding things. Her sisters would scowl at her or whine about her clothes getting muddy and gross. Though her father would always be interested, glad Melody was still a child, rather than his other daughters who wanted to grow up so bad. But of course, they had a talk with her about being careful of the mud to make sure what she finds doesn’t get her sick.
She was an odd child, considering the rest of her sisters were into makeup and feminine things. Though she wasn’t alone all the time since Ariel was the one who got her into collecting things. Like hairpins or bottle caps and corks. But Ariel was changing bit by bit, she was getting more interested in boys, much like her sisters. So now Melody was on her own aside from the watchful eye of her father.
The odd child hardly had any friends due to her being an odd one out, too rich to make friends, and too strange for anyone outside of her family to care. Her father forbade any of her siblings to be near boys since he knew what they were capable of. Melody almost believed what he taught them.
Most of the boys at school would bully Melody for her eccentricities and strange aloofness to other people. Girls were no better, with her being much more of a tomboy than a traditional girl her age. She always found bugs much more fun to play with than dolls. Most of the time she spent in her youth was with her sisters since they were the only ones protecting her.
Once they got to the park, the girls didn’t waste any time as they began playing, all while their father tried to remind them of the outside rules and playing . He clutched Melody’s hand tightly, scared to let go, as it was her first full outing.
“Just promise me you won’t stray too far or climb up any high trees.” he fidgeted with her tiny digits in his overpowering palms.
“And don’t go near any boys.” she finished. Trident nodded and patted her head.
“Good. Now go play.”
“Yes, papa.” She wandered away, as fast as her tiny legs could take her. There were many children on the grounds even though most of her sisters were in groups with each other and small groups of female friends.
As Ariel’s friends started playing hide and seek, Melody joined in. So, young Melody went to hide in some trees that weren’t far from the park. Waiting to be found or win, she heard something from the distance, something like the trampling of grass. She tried hard not to focus on it, trying to fit in and win a game for once. Then she heard an unfamiliar voice coming towards her.
Melody saw a high flying frisbee slamming against the tree she sat beneath, watching it get stuck in the branches. It was far too high to grab, especially for a child her size and stature. She turned to see some boys, causing her to skitter to another tree close by, peeking out as slow as possible.
Four prepubescent boys came groaning towards the tree that the frisbee got stuck in. One of them even tried to climb the tree but couldn’t, since there weren't enough branches that were low hanging. Being flustered, one of them called out towards the play structure.
“Nice going, Jerkulse! The frisbee got stuck again!”
Melody saw a gingery young boy, he seemed to be around the same age as her, running towards the small group of boys. He didn’t look familiar to her. He panted holding his knees a bit before speaking.
“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.
“That's a nice way to encourage your kids,” Hercules commented. Melody was about to speak but she heard someone calling her name. Knowing she shouldn’t be near a boy she tried to run back. She stopped herself before she left, hugging him as thanks for saving her. The young boy jumped from the affection but hugged her back. Melody then pulled back smiling at him.
“I gotta go before my sisters or my dad see you. I can’t be alone with boys, but I might see you around!” After that, she bolted out of sight to her sister.
Hercules was staring off in the direction she ran towards, her words still processing in his mind. It felt strange to have someone admire his quirks, but a mushy, bubbly weird. A good weird. He hoped he would see her again soon.
“Melody… What a pretty name,” he smiled to himself.
'''''''''''''''''''
After meeting him, Melody wondered where she would meet him again. She wanted another chance to talk to him, to get to know him and be his friend. 'He probably goes to a different school,' she thought to herself. There weren’t that many schools in the city, were there? She pondered on the possibilities that he might even be an alien. She sat her backpack down beside her desk and tried to settle her thoughts. The classroom settled down while everyone began pulling out last night’s homework, but today seemed different. The teacher rapped her knuckles against her desk, smiling at the second graders.
“We have a new student joining our class today,” she announced as bubbly as ever, motioning towards the open door for the new student to come in.
The familiar boy stood in the doorframe, though after a couple of seconds of ushering, he walked in and his eyes scanned the room for anyone he might know. And he found them almost immediately.
“Introduce yourself, please.” The tall teacher smiled at the young pupil. He gulped, feeling his throat dry up almost immediately. He wet his lips and began.
“My name is Hercules. I moved here with my family. I hope we can all be friends.” he could hear one of the boys snickering, hearing “Jerkules” whispered to their buddies. He tried to ignore them as he continued speaking. Melody glared at the boys for being so rude. Hercules was assigned the empty desk in front of Melody. She was surprised but didn’t complain. As for him, he didn’t mind being able to turn towards her, smiling .
“Hey, your name is Melody, right?” he asked her, just to make sure he wasn’t mistaken. She smiled, excitedly nodding.
“And you’re Hercules. The one who caught the falling branch.” Melody still smiled when Hercules looked embarrassed.
“I’m just glad no one got hurt.” he turned as soon as the teacher began speaking.
“Eh I suppose, I wondered if I should remind those butts how they sound like girls when they ran.” Hercules scoffed, trying to stop himself from laughing. She was very sassy despite her feminine appearance.
''''''''''''''
During school, they talked more with each other and hung out during their recess. “So your dad taught you not to be friends with boys?” Hercules felt confused, unsure why a dad would get worried about someone like him. They were only seven, and that seemed weird. Nonetheless not let your kids play with other kids. Melody mumbled a displeased ‘yes,’ knowing her dad would hate to see her with a boy. It wouldn’t help with the fact that Hercules was only a few inches away from her desk.
“He’s way too protective of me and my sisters, so you might want to be careful around him,” She told him.
“Yeah, thanks for the warning. I’ll be sure to keep that in mind.” he laughed, not wanting to know what her father would do if he saw them together.
"So, how are you liking it so far?" Melody asked her new friend. She was not used to talking to a lot of kids her age, it was only her sisters and their friends. Hercules thought for a moment before speaking.
"It's good so far I guess I mean… I've only been around a little with my mom and went to the park, and well, you know how it went." he rubbed the back of his neck, still remembering how he wanted to try to be normal.
"Well, when you get the chance you should go to the beach! It's pretty and fun and not that far from here." She suggested, smiling as wide as possible. He did remember her talking about going to the beach a lot.
"Okay, I'll ask my mom when I get home." he smiles back at her. "You must really like the ocean, huh?" Melody nodded happily.
"Uh-huh, I love to swim! In my family, all of my sisters and I swim really well. We’re taught from birth! We’re called ‘the Siren Sisters’!" Melody exclaimed, her hands wiggling behind his back. He wrinkled an eyebrow.
"You mean like mermaids?"
"No, sirens." Melody corrected him proudly.
"Aren’t those the bad mermaids that kill sailors?"
"We do sing, but it’s not gonna kill anyone. My dad might though." She laughed.
"I hope you're joking." Hercules recoiled a bit in fear.
"I never joke about my dad." Melody lowered her voice a bit, still giggling.
"Well, I guess I’m never gonna hang out with you or your dad."
"Meanie!"
~~~~~~~~~~~
When school was finally over Melody said goodbye to Hercules quickly before her dad came to pick her up. "See you tomorrow!" she waved at him before she went away.
"See you." he waved back, waiting for his parents to pick him up. He sat on the curb, watching his mom pull up. Getting into the car and buckling his seat, he smiled at his mom brightly.
"How was school, baby? Was it as scary as you thought?" His mom turned around in her seat as his dad started the car, both already knew the answer to her question.
"School was really fun. I met a new friend." he felt his face warm up, remembering how it was nice to speak to someone.
"That's great! What's his name?" his dad asked, smiling as he glanced in the rearview mirror. Hercules paused as his dad continued to drive.
"She’s a girl! Named Melody,"
"Oh, isn’t that nice. Wait, what?" His dad felt confused, but his mother continued to smile.
"Aww, is she your new girlfriend?"
"That’s gross! She’s a girl, and girls are yucky!" He growled at them, though his parents kept up the act.
"My boy… he's growing up so fast." Zeus started to fake cry, as Hera gently patted his back.
"Oh, soon they’re gonna get married and-"
"We're just friends!" Hercules cut his mother off, groaning loudly. His parents laughed.
~~~~~~~
Melody was humming to herself as she brushed her hair, almost ready for bed. Her sisters whispered amongst themselves, realizing how differently she was acting. Ariel stood behind her, finally speaking up.
"You seem happy today,".
"I made a friend!" Melody answered, curt.
"Really? What's her name?" Ariel asked, smiling at her baby sister. The older sisters peeked in through the crack of her door. Melody just stuck her tongue out at Ariel.
“It’s a secret!” Melody said proudly. Her sisters internally groaned.
"Can I please know? I won’t tell dad!" Ariel tried begging.
"Nope, I'm going to bed," Melody said, ushering everyone out as she fell asleep, excited to see Hercules again.
~~~~~~~
As days went by the two odd children got closer and closer. Of course, Melody had to be careful when her sisters were around, so her dad wouldn’t hear any of them slip up. None of her sisters seemed to be as good at lying as she was. The biggest problem they faced was seeing each other outside of school, but going to the park at the same time was easy enough. They had managed to elude Melody’s father for about a year of their friendship.
“Hey, Melody?” Hercules asked, laying on the cool park grass, looking at the sky. Melody was sitting upright beside him, adjusting their collection of treasures. Melody wiped the dirt on her hands on her clothes as she looked over at him.
“Yeah?” She smiled widely, having just lost one of her bottom teeth, she couldn’t help but smile whenever she could.
“You’re my best friend,” He sat up and smiled back, nervously fumbling his fingers. He wanted to say more but his throat dried with the possibility
“You’re my best friend too!” She sat up and looked at him better. He still sat on the ground looking up at her.
“You’re the first friend I have that hasn’t made me feel bad about myself,” Hercules continued, swallowing a nervous lump in his throat. It felt weird to say that, to say it to a girl no less, but a good weird.
“Dude, we’ve been friends for forever, did you think I would want to stop?” Melody joked, giggling a bit. Hercules relaxed a bit more when he looked at her. Hercules swallowed and shrugged.“Well, we both have one thing in common,”
“What’s that?” Hercules perked up, laying back down.
“We’re aliens from another dimension, too cool to be anyone’s friend but each other!” Both of them laughed, snorting and giggling, with tears forming in the cracks of their eyes.
“We’re more like superheroes!” He continued the joke.
“You’re so strong, like a greek god! You’re greek right? Are you related to Zeus?” Melody smiled wider, pushing his shoulder.
“Now you're just making stuff up.”
“I’m serious!”
“Fine, then if I’m a god then you’re a mermaid since you can hold your breath longer.”
“Oh, I wish! That way, I could swim with the fishes and maybe drown those bullies.” Melody held her fists up, jokingly punching the air.
“Sometimes I wonder if you’re good or evil.” Melody hit his shoulder playfully.
“Watch it, buddy, I can kick your butt!” He laughs at her, admiring her determination.
“Okay, sure, short-stack.” They both laid back down and continued giggling and sorting through their treasures.
Melody was at the park again, this time completely on her own. She decided to play on the ship fashioned out of wood in the playground. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see a couple of kids arguing over something.
“Give the ball back, it’s mine!” A short-haired blonde screamed, trying to tug back a bright red kickball from some of the boys in her class.
“Not our fault that you lost it!” The skinny brunet hollered back, his friends chanting for him to win.
“We didn’t lose it! The ball flew too high from the game of kickball!” Melody watched from the edge of the bow of the ship as two more children began running towards the blonde. A boy with a small ponytail and an undercut was trying to help his friend. Another blonde girl was begging both parties to stop fighting.
“You heard Jane, give it back! Before I give you a knuckle sandwich!” The brown-haired boy yelled while a thin ginger held their hands together. Melody couldn't tell if they were a boy or a girl.
“I’m so scared,” the taller kid mocked as he pushed the red-head to the ground with quite a loud thud.
“Peter!” The girl named Jane helped aid her friend to see any injury.
“That’s it!” Ponytail yelled, starting to lurch for the taller boy. He couldn’t get far though, as the blonde squeezed around his waist, preventing him from going any further. “Let go of me, Sam!” he struggled with the young girl, trying to scratch and pry her hands off of him, without much outcome.
“We can play something else, Jim!” The ginger calls out, brushing the dirt off his pants.
“But your brother gave it to you!” Jim protested, his hands tired from scratching and pulling. Melody had watched long enough. She sprinted off the ship and lunged head-on into the kid with the ball, pushing him straight to the ground. She managed to yank the ball from his hands with ease.
“This doesn’t belong to you.” Melody ran to the top of the pirate’s ship, baring her teeth at them. Both groups of kids stared at her.
“That’s not yours! It’s mine!”
"No, it’s not! It’s theirs! What are you gonna do? Call your mommy?" Melody teased. The boy flushed a bright shade of pink before stomping off.
"I didn’t want to play with it anyway! Let’s play somewhere else" he leaves while his fellow friends follow.
"Still a scaredy-cat, I see." Melody commented as she lept down, handing the ball to the ginger. "I’m sorry you had to deal with them."
"Thanks!" Peter threw the ball up and down in the air. "What's your name?"
"Melody," she said and he smiled.
"That’s a cool name! I’m Peter, the ponytail is Jimmy, the blondie is Sam, and the squeaker is Jane!" Sam let go of Jim, smiling as she waved. Jim coughed and heaved at the sudden burst of oxygen in his lungs.
"Jim would’ve gotten killed if it wasn’t thanks to you!" Jane explained with her gentle posh accent, looking over at him.
"Hey, he pushed my friend!" Jim tried to defend himself, though Sam tugged his shirt to get his attention again. Sam whispered something to his ear and he sighed.
"I guess you're right." Jim was about to speak more, but Sam whispered to him once again. He groaned but continued. "And Sam said you look cool," He grunted, his eyes lingering away from Melody
"Thanks!" Melody smiled at Sam.
"Wanna play with us?" Peter asked, holding up the kickball.
"Sure!" Over time, it became their routine to play and hangout together. She was lucky to have Jane and Sam, since her dad could say yes to them playing together. Melody felt she finally had friends who loved her. Especially Hercules. Both of them had told each other secrets much more as any friends do.
Those early years were the best. The most they ever had to worry about was getting caught playing together after dark. Everyone was so young and jovial, and there was little care in the world. They were always eager to encourage each other to do better and to practice what they loved. Though as puberty gained on them, so did strange new emotions. Everyone started becoming confused about how they felt for one another. It was strange to them. And then Melody had to leave for boarding school, and their downfall began.