Author's Note: Greetings, everyone! As I mentioned at the end of We Will Burn the Sky, I will, off and on, write a few short story pieces, where we take a trip 'back in time'. In this case, I am taking Dil back to shortly after his 14th birthday. One thing that I noticed, as I re-read portions of Always Somewhere and We Will Burn the Sky is that I made a few mistakes here and there between the stories. Most readers probably would not even notice. I didn't, but I did make one major blunder, but I think I'll leave it to my readers to catch it. Anyway, here is a short piece with Dylan Pickles.

Dil Pickles: A Journey to Metal

Mid-August 2004: Dil Pickles was in the restroom at his junior high school. A new school year had begun in Missouri, California, but for Dil, this school year was different. Dil had entered the eighth grade; yet, he was all alone. Those he had grown up with (his brother, Tommy; cousin, Angelica; and childhood friends: Phil, Lil, Chuckie, Susie, and Kimi) were all in high school. Yet despite being on his own in the eighth grade, Dil did have some experience that many of his peers did not. Over the summer, Dil had worked his first real job—a dishwasher at a local restaurant. It was only a part-time job, due to his age, but the experience certainly had an impact on the now 14 year-old Dylan Prescott Pickles. Not only had Dil gained some insight into the American workforce, but he also discovered a new form of music.

In the bathroom, Dil observed his features through the mirror—particularly his red hair. Yesterday, at the insistence of his mother, Didi, Dil cut his hair. Dil had been growing it out, but his mother made him cut it. Yet, as he looked in the mirror, Dil imagined himself with long fiery hair. "Yesterday is the last time that I'll cut my hair."

As Dil left the restroom, he heard the voice of a teenage girl say, "Bye, Daddy." Dil watched the girl leave. She appeared to be about a year younger than Dil with auburn hair and brown eyes. Dil, however, had never seen her before. "Damn, she's gorgeous!" thought Dil. "I don't know who she is, but she's pretty. She did say 'Bye, Daddy', but I don't know who that is in reference to. I saw Pangborn nearby, but I also saw Mr. Marsh. Maybe she's a new student? If so, I guess that I'll get to know her."

At five in the evening, Dil walked into Chester's—or 'the Café', as locals called it. Behind the checkout counter stood a man in his early 30s with a goatee and long dark hair in a ponytail. "Dil!" the man said. "You cut your hair."

Dil smirked. "Yes, Mr. Gipson, I did."

The man laughed. "I don't see my dad anywhere around, so what made you cut your hair?"

"A nagging mom, Rod."

Rod chuckled. "And when did you get it cut?"

"Yesterday."

Rod smirked. "You won't be looking like Bruce Dickinson anytime soon."

"No, I won't. But then again, Bruce has short hair, and his is blonde."

"Or like Sammy Hagar's then."

"I see myself much different than Sammy Hagar."

"Obviously, one has long red hair; the other has short red hair."

Dil smirked. "But yesterday is the last time that she's going to make me cut me hair."

Rod smiled, while he removed an envelope from an opening in the counter. "Here's your check, Dil. But it might be the last paycheck you receive for a while, with school starting up again. But there's a little extra gift in that check from what I understand."

Dil opened the envelope. Inside was a note that read 'Happy Birthday!' with some additional money. Dil's 14th birthday was a few days ago. "Thanks, Rod!"

"Don't thank me. Thank the boss."

Dil smiled. "I will the next time I see him."

Rod returned the smile. "So how has school been so far?"

"Not too bad, but it's felt kind of odd."

"Why's that?"

"Well, I'm kind of by myself. Everyone that I grew up with is now in high school, and I'm basically all alone."

"Is this the first time that you've been alone?"

Dil shook his head. "Not really, when I was in the third grade, I was alone from everyone, but that just seems like so long ago."

Rod smiled. "Think of it from a positive perspective. For at least a year, you'll get to rule the school. Your friends, who are starting high school, have to deal with the 'harassment' of being a 'freshman'. It's a stupid thing, but some people will do that kind of bullshit."

Dil smirked. "I hadn't thought about that."

Again, Rod smiled. "Anyway, did you meet any metal heads with that shirt?" Rod gestured to Dil's shirt. As a birthday present, Rod had given Dil his Iron Maiden Virtual XI shirt. The summer of 2004 had changed Dil. His interest in aliens and the paranormal had slowly faded away. In their place was an interest in hard rock and heavy metal music. Rod, in many respects, was the catalyst for this change in demeanor from Dil. As the man in charge of the kitchen, Rod chose the music that would be played, and what Rod chose was various heavy metal bands. During Dil's shifts in the kitchen with Rod, he was exposed to the music of Iron Maiden, Black Sabbath, DIO, Iced Earth, Judas Priest, and others.

Dil smiled. "Yeah, a few kids that are younger than me commented on it. I told them that the Virtual XI album had my favorite cover art for Iron Maiden, but that, ultimately, it was my least liked album from Iron Maiden."

Once again, Rod smiled. "Yeah, same here…Oh! I almost forgot something."

"What's that?"

"Let me show you." Rod left for the kitchen and returned with a flyer. "Check this out! Dio's going to be playing in LA right before Halloween."

"Really!" Dil said, while he observed the flyer. "Kick ass! I'd love to go see him."

"Well, what's stopping you?"

"My mom and dad would never let me go to LA."

"It's only a little over an hour by plane."

Dil sighed. "I know that, but they'd never let me."

Rod smiled. "Tell you what, Dil, why don't you ask them? You can go with me. Therefore, you won't have to go by yourself. What's in that check can certainly buy you a concert ticket and a round-trip flight."

"...Well, I guess that I can give it a shot."

Once again, Rod smiled. "Good. Let me know soon, so I can make arrangements. And, Dil?"

"Yeah, Rod?"

"If your mom isn't going to make you cut your hair anymore, how can she stop you from seeing DIO?"

Dil laughed. "True."

Shortly after six that evening, Dil returned home. When Dil walked into the kitchen, his mother placed the last of the evening meal on the table. At the dinner table were Dil's older brother, Tommy, and Dil's father, Stu.

"Well, look who just arrived?" Stu said with a smirk.

"I would have liked to have seen you back here a bit earlier," added Didi.

"Well, I made it on time, didn't I?" said Dil.

"Lighten up a bit on him, Mom," said Tommy. "He was probably just having an extra bit of fun."

Dil smiled. "Thanks, Tommy."

Tommy returned the smile. "See any aliens, D.?" Tommy asked, before he took a bite of mashed potatoes.

Dil grinned. "Something much better than aliens, T."

"And what's that?"

"This!" responded Dil, while he placed the concert flyer on his parents' kitchen table.

Stu, Didi, and Tommy observed the flyer, but it was Stu, who picked it up. "Dio? Ronnie James Dio?"

Dil nodded.

"Isn't he the guy that replaced Ozzy Osbourne in Black Sabbath?"

Again, Dil nodded. "That would be him, but I would think that you would be more familiar with his music. He was playing music, when you guys were teenagers."

"Well, yes," began Didi, "but I never cared for his music. I never cared for heavy metal in general."

Dil smirked, and in his thoughts, he added, "Why am I not a bit surprised?"

"I think Drew might have had some of his stuff," said Stu. "I just don't remember."

Dil smiled. "Anyway, there is a reason why I showed you this flyer."

"And why is that?" asked Stu.

"…I want to go see Dio."

Stu and Didi gasped, while Tommy continued to eat a plate of mashed potatoes.

"Dil, the concert's in LA," said Stu.

"Yeah, I know," Dil said with a smile.

"That's hours away from here."

Dil chuckled. "Yes, Dad, I know, but it's only a little over an hour away by plane."

Stu chuckled. "Well, yes, that's true."

"All by yourself?!" added Didi. "Dil, I just don't know."

"I won't be going by myself. I'll be going with Rod, the cook at the Café."

Didi sighed, and turned to her husband. "Stu, I just don't know."

"Come on, Mom," interjected Tommy. "If he could survive being hours away from you, when we were on that RV thing to New York, how bad could seeing a heavy metal show in LA be?"

Stu and Didi paused.

Finally, Didi sighed. "All right, Dil, you can go."

"Woohoo!" exclaimed Dil, while both his hands flashed the headbanger gesture. He was so excited at receiving his mom's permission that dinner was the last thing on his mind. He prepared to leave the kitchen.

Didi, however, thought otherwise. "Dil, you are either going to eat something, or you are not going to go to that concert."

"Oh, all right," Dil said, before he took a small spoonful of mashed potatoes. He ate them and said, "There you go, Mom." After he did so, Dil placed his spoon on his barely used plate and left the kitchen.

Didi glared. "You'll get nothing later, young man!"

Stu and Tommy laughed.

"He got you on that one, Mom," said Tommy.

"That he did," added Stu. "You were the one who said that he had to eat something."

"Hmph!" grumbled Didi.

Stu chuckled. "Oh, don't be like that, Di'd. He's just excited."

Didi sighed. "I suppose you're right."

An hour later, the telephone rang at the Pickles residence. "Hello?" answered Didi.

On the other side was Betty DeVille, the Pickles' next door neighbor. "Di'd, you've got a concert going outside your home."

"A concert?"

"Yep, your son is up in the tree house singing away."

"…Is it Dil?"

Betty chuckled. "Sure is, and he's not a bad singer, but he's a little loud."

"Well, I'll pull the plug on him."

Again, Betty chuckled. "Thanks, Di'd, but don't be too hard on him."

When Didi approached the back patio door, she could certainly hear the music. Dil had placed his battery powered boom box in a duffel bag, and carried it with him into the tree house. From there, he took Rainbow's Rising CD, and began to sing with the music.

Didi was certainly impressed—her youngest son certainly had some 'power' in his voice. Dil's singing brought back thoughts and memories for Didi. "I remember that when he was a baby, I always told people that he had 'lungs like an opera singer', whenever he cried," thought Didi. "It certainly shows here." But when the memories ended, Didi remembered that she had a 'motherly duty' to perform. "Dil, tone it down!"

Dil, however, could not hear his mother. He was too occupied with the music, as 'Stargazer' blasted over his neighborhood. "'I see a rainbow rising!'" Dil sang, while he extended his arms to make a double headbanger gesture over his hometown, while the Sun began to set.