It was still dark when a lone figure crossed into the graveyard. Nobody noticed. It might have been a shadow or the stray cat. In his hands were a small bouquet of white daisies that clashed with his pitch black clothes and hair. It was like the only thing that was living. His footsteps were silent as he walked over to an empty plot of land.
Empty. Except for a small ring of grass surrounding a single daisy. It was her favourite flower. He could still remember the day he got one for her.
A small pair of hands reached out for the little flower. It was his sister's birthday and he did not know what to get for her. So he resulted in scrounging an abandoned garden for something she might like. It was futile until he saw it. Just a small, white flower standing in the middle of a patch of grass. He couldn't remember the name, but he knew that she liked it.
"Nico!" a voice came from behind the shrubbery. It sounded panicked. Anxious. He whirled around, face to face with an older girl, hair messed up and clothes dirty. "What did you think you were doing?" she demanded.
Nico was still clutching the flower. "Your birthday," he mumbled, lifting it up. The image of the flower stood out in her eyes – a white speck in a sea of black. All her worry seemed to evaporate as she took it. Then, he remembered the name. A daisy. Somehow, Bianca said that it meant something to her. She just didn't know what it was. She couldn't remember.
Daisies just meant something special to her.
Digging a shallow hole for the daisies felt like another burial. Not that Bianca ever had one, anyway. It hurt more than he realised. Tears fell onto the soft earth, watering the flowers.
"Nico." The voice was soft, soothing. For a moment, he was reminded of Bianca. Then he turned around and their eyes met.
"Will," he replied. There was no need to explain, or try to smile. Will understood. He always did. With a sad smile on his face, he made his way over to him and wrapped him in a hug.
"Daisies represent hope," he whispered. Nico could only nod.
Daisies meant something to him, too.
*o*o*o*
She is two, and her mother is expecting a new child. That meant a little brother for her. Or sister. It didn't really matter either way. She needed some company. She really can't wait for February to come around. Or January. It didn't really matter. In her eyes, the world was only so large. The sooner something happened, the better.
She is three, and her brother is turning one. Her mother says he is intelligent. She agrees. He can say four more words than the other toddler in the neighbourhood. It is a good time for them all. With their blissful ignorance and innocent minds, the world is getting bigger, with new places to explore and much more things to do.
She is four and her little brother can run around, giggling. They enjoy playing with their skeletal dog and colouring. If she were to make a list of the things she liked to do, these two would be on top. As long as her little brother was there. To her, the world was big enough. She had everything she needed.
She is five and she just had the first taste of bullying. Being pushed to the corner of the playset and having her lunch snatched away from her. She decides that she doesn't really like school too much because her dog and her brother can't come with her. The world is getting bigger and she doesn't really want to see what's out there after the bullying. Especially after the bullying.
She is six and she just found a flower growing at the edge of her garden. Surprisingly, she has never seen it before. Her mother says that it's a daisy. It's pretty, and small, and pure. Her mother says that she's just like a daisy. She believes it, and tries to act like one.
She is seven, and they have moved to Washington D.C. It's loud and noisy and busy. Not like their little village back in Italy. With little flowers growing in the gardens and the brown cobblestones that make up the street. Everything is different. The world is larger than she thought.
She is eight and she finds herself in a large building called the Lotus Casino. Her little brother is with her, but she cannot remember anything. How she got here, who she was. Everything. They told her their names were Bianca and Nico. She believed them. Time flies by as they stay in a land full of complex devices she had never seen before. Time is frozen. And so is the world. In her eyes, at least.
She is still eight when a well-dressed man who calls himself a lawyer walked in and took them out. She doesn't know him, but she still follows, anyway. He takes them off to a new life. With school and normal things children do. Something seemed different, though. It was as if the world wasn't getting bigger or smaller. Rather, it was like it had changed entirely.
She is nine and for three years, she has been taking care of her brother with no adult to watch over them. It's a change. And little Nico has mastered the art of being the annoying and yet sweet brother. Sometimes she got tired of watching him. Like the time where he spent the entire day squealing and jumping around excitedly because he was chosen as the tree for a play. A freaking tree. Other times, she just felt a surge of protectiveness for him. Like when a large, buff kid decided to pick on Nico just because he was small and was what people called a 'nerd'. She had beaten the boy up and yelled at him for bullying. Bianca was quite fond of him, really. On the inside at least.
She is twelve when her vice principal decided to attack her, a bunch of kids barge into her school and rescue her, then meet a goddess and become part of her immortal maiden club. Fun. The only thing she regretted so badly was seeing Nico look at her with his innocent eyes and then turn away, half sadly, half angrily. The hurt and betrayal in his eyes carried with her for the rest of her life.
He was the reason that she ignored Percy and ran straight to her death. Guilt. She wanted so badly to turn back time and reject the offer. So that she would be with him in camp. Training, protecting him from evil bus drivers and crazy old ladies. If only she did that. It hurt to watch him stand next to a small patch of daisies and cry over what was left of her. It hurt to watch him talk about her like she was gone. She wasn't.
But this only happened because of one wrong decision. It was all her fault, and she wouldn't be there to repair the damage that she had caused.
hi! i actually managed to hit 1000 this time! (yeah i know it's not a lot but...) please review and tell me what you think. and also, thanks for reading!
Yours in demigodishness and all that,
Peace out.
-tomatohunter
