A/N: *sobs* I'm really sorry…
Siren's POV
"Dad."
He sits in his study, flipping through sheet music.
"Dad."
He has a Bluetooth in his ear, "Yeah, I know." He listens, "I always knew Molly would be-"
I grab him by the shoulder, yanking him out of his chair, "Dad!"
"Speaking of kids-"
I finally give up, "DAD!" I grab him by the shirt and stare into his dull green eyes. "Your gun is GONE."
He loosens my grip on his shirt, eyes full of fear, "I'll call you back, Tanner-"
"It's Tenor," I growl at him, "Your son Tenor is somewhere with your gun!"
He looks even more alarmed than before, "Tenor?"
"Yes, you idiot, TENOR!" I scream at him. I would never be allowed to talk like this, but today is serious.
My Dad suddenly snaps to life, "Kids! Kids!
Apollo and Harmony come running down the stairs, Harmony with a huge grin plastered on her face, "Yes sir!"
"This is serious, you guys, Tenor's missing with a gun… We have to find him, we have to!" His eyes fill with tears, "Call your mother."
"I'm on it," I say, pulling out my cell phone as we run.
I don't cry until I hear my mom's voice on the other end, "Siren, honey, I'm really busy right now-"
"MOM!" I scream in the phone, "LISTEN TO ME!"
I blink a tear out of my eye.
"Siren, are you-"
"TENOR'S GONE!"
"What?" she sounds alarmed now, too.
"Tenor ran away," I sob, "And he took a gun with him!"
"Siren, calm yourself down," she says quickly, "I'm checking out of work right now-"
Our conversation is interrupted by a loud BANG!
I scream. Apollo immediately comforts me and I bury my head in his shoulder and wail.
"You don't know, Siren… You don't know…" But his voice catches with tears.
Dad runs down the street, and Apollo helps me along.
"Theo!" Tanner is there, and he carries my brother. My brother. My 16-year-old brother.
Tenor drops the gun and it hits the pavement with a clatter.
I run to them as fast as I can, "TENOR!" Apollo and Harmony run after me.
And Dad takes off running just then with Tenor in his arms. We all know that he's trying to find some kind of medical help to keep my brother alive. We also know, though, that it's terribly in vain.
I shout after him, just wishing that my baby brother is conscious enough to hear my last words to him, "We all love you, Tenor!"
Then I collapse into Ben's open arms.
"Sssssssssssssshhhh…. Ssssssssssssssssssssshhhh," he whispers to me, running his fingers through my hair, "Siren… Siren. Listen to me."
I can only make quiet whimpering noises.
"It's going to be Ok. You're going to be Ok. I promise you'll be Ok…. Sssssshhhh…" He hugs me tight and rocks me side-to-side. I wail into his shoulder and end up running out of breath.
I let go of Ben and wipe a tear from my eyes just as Tanner greets me with a hug so tight the air is squeezed out of me.
I've failed as a sister. All these years I spend with him, I always thought I was protecting him.
I…I always thought he was just a dorky boy who was just silly and could always laugh at himself.
I was obviously wrong.
I thought my brother was a socially awkward mythology genius who spent all the time up in his room reading myths and playing the saxophone all the time. I thought he buried his head in books all the time and simply had no desire in the world to make friends.
I honestly never would've guessed.
Tenor was so happy, or at least, he seemed.
Every day, he'd come home from school with a smile on. Every time something didn't go his way, he just laughed. Every time Harmony would say something about his clumsiness, or Apollo about his dorkiness, or even me about his naturally awkward nature, he'd just laugh and say, "I guess that's true, isn't it?" Then he'd pat Harmony's head or grin at Apollo or laugh at me.
He seemed like such an open book with us… But now I know that he tricked us. All of us. Now I know that for absolute positively sure.
Harmony still has a look of pure shock on her face.
Apollo and I exchange a glance, tears dripping down his cheeks and magnifying his freckles.
"He tricked us," I whisper, voice barely audible from the cries, "He tricked all of us…"
He meets me in a hug and I bury my head in my other baby brother's shoulder.
"He was a tricky one, Siren. It's not our faults, he was tricky."
I wail, "Yes it is, Apollo! How did we not see?"
I bury my face.
Harmony is confused, teal eyes blinking back tears, "Wh… What's going on?"
"Tenor is gone!" I sob, and Tanner picks up my baby sister, whispering to her softly.
My last statement echoes in my head, Tenor is gone!
Tenor's gone!
GONE.
Gone.
Gone….
I hate the word. Hate it, hate it, HATE IT!
When I hug my mom, I close my eyes and think about yesterday, when I ruffled Tenor's shaggy hair and told him, "ou're such a dork," as his swampy puppy dog eyes filled with laughter.
I always loved his adorable puppy-pound-dog eyes. I always thought that looking into them gave me a piece of my brother. I think of how they looked… Almost conflicting… Yesterday.
That just makes me feel even worse.
Because I never ever would've thought that would be that last time.
An excerpt from Tenor Campbell's final manuscript, an author-insert Greek mythology Epic:
XVI. FINALE
And the great hero Tenor and his crew have been welcomed by the natives of Crete onto their island. The adventurers have searched long and hard to find the magical saxophone of Theodorus, an ancient hero who created the saxophone to bring peace to the world. The saxophone had been lost until that day, when Tenor and his crew discovered the treasure in a remote cave off in the rainforest.
Weary and hungry, the heroes rejoiced upon finding their treasure, at last. The golden saxophone, dull with grime and muck it acquired over a thousand years or so, was in the depths of a dark, moist cave, behind a thick wall of sediment. And now, in the light, the hero Tenor holds it out to the sun. And Apollo, the Sun God who assisted in the creation of such a heavenly instrument, drove his sun chariot above to island.
The instrument shone with a glint that made Tenor and his crew look away. He wearily put the reed in his mouth and gently put air through the instrument.
And the purest sound came out, practically singing as the young hero played it.
But the world was still not in the peaceful state promised by the hero Theodorus. And it was decreed from the heavens that, for the success of the well-being of all mankind, there must be a human sacrifice.
And, the great hero Tenor stepped forward to the plate and proclaimed, "I shall die tonight…. And the prophecy of the great hero Theodorus shall be completed."
And his whole crew gasps in shock as Tenor unsheathes his sword.
"And so, my crew, I fare thee well. And I beg of you… To use this precious gift of my sacrifice for good, and only good."
His heart pounded in his chest, but the young hero knew that his death would only better the lives of others.
And Tenor gave his crew a nod goodbye, wandering deep into the depths of the cave.
All they could hear was the saxophone wailing, echoes bouncing off the walls like a flock of doves.
And with the last wail of the saxophone came silence. A dead silence, which marked the death of the great hero Tenor of Athens.
And, with the sacrifice complete, the crew exchanges looks of victory and happiness. They board their ship and travel on a flawless journey home, leaving Tenor and the treasure on that remote island.
Upon reaching Athens, the people hosted a celebration; a party. The most royal kind of party a crew could ask for, and the name Tenor was never spoken again.
It happened as the prophecy said,
The damn old hero Tenor is dead,
They never again spoke the name,
That made the sacrifice for their gain.
They danced and laughed and said three cheers,
Except for the sacrifice receiving their jeers.
They mark the final Vict'ry day,
When the damn old Tenor burns away,
They're buried somewhere in the stone,
Where they will stay, for time to drone,
He forever suffers in the depths of hell,
And all have forgotten his final farewell.
It ended as the prophecy said,
With the misgiven glory and the damn bastard dead.
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Ok. If you've taken the time to read this whole damn thing, I pity you, because you have way too much time on your hands to be wasting on the likes of bastards like me. Consider this to be my last goodbye… To the world, to all of mankind… I challenge you to read the poem again and remember it, because it's the only thing I'm leaving for you. I wish I could tell you it hurts to say goodbye, but that would be a fucking lie, and, though I may be a lost, dorky, clumsy, socially awkward runt… Well, I'm not a dirty liar. And I'll let that sink in because it's true.
I can't wait any longer to die. I don't care who takes what of my stuff, but I'm dying with my reed in my back pocket and you better not touch it or ELSE.
And with that, well, it's time to say goodbye.
It happened as the prophecy said,
The damn old bastard Tenor is dead.