the Adonis

This is just a little after our last encounter. All you've missed, really, is Dakota mourning. You get the picture. They decide to push forward and search for the others. The first place they come to is a little farm house tucked away against the woods. When they get there, they hear shouts coming from behind the house. Then, strange things start happening in the sky.

It had been nearly noon, the sun hanging high in the middle of the sky. Suddenly, it was setting. I blinked hard, unsure of what was happening. But there it was, burning in the west, hovering over the horizon. The sky was dimmer, orange where the clouds reflected the sinking sun. The moon was rising quickly, racing up into the sky. Another shout. This one female. I took a step into the field. I shivered to be unprotected by the trees. The air moved as Marc grabbed for me, missing by an inch. I almost smiled. I was going to be brave. I would prove myself to him, if nothing else. I could just make out their voices, pulsing in the air.
“Anna! They're here! Knock it off!” This was the man's voice.
“Stay here!” the female grunted.
“Let me go!” More sounds of struggling. The sun pushed higher again, straining toward noon. The moon kept climbing.
“You can't know that they won't hurt us!” the girl's voice squeaked.
“Anna!” he whined. “That's exactly what I can do!” I took another step forward.
“Hello?” I called. My voice was high and strong. I was almost proud. The girl gasped.
“Adam, please. It's a trap. Don't go!” The sun was almost directly over head, a breath away from the round moon.
“We won't hurt you,” Peter called. His gruff voice didn't exactly sound reassuring as he stepped out beside me. His palms were facing out in front of him. I pushed them down.
“Come on, Anna!” the boy said.
The sun covered the moon above our heads. For a moment, there was just this strange soft of eclipse, then a blinding light exploded from behind the house. I threw my hands up to shield my eyes. A bright white light, rounding out higher than the house, blazed in the distance. It moved out into the open. The center was almost impossible to look directly at, the brightest point of the light. Two figures stood in the middle, hand in hand. The light moved toward us across the field, burning brighter as it came. They stopped a few yards off, still clasping hands.
“Hello, friends!” the cheerful male voice called.
“Can you cut that light, kid!” Peter shouted. Haylee was shielding her eyes behind her brother's back.
“Oh. Sorry, Peter.” The light vanished.
Two young figures stood in front of us. I took them in while little black dots floated along each blink. They were still holding hands, the boy smiling cheerfully and the girl looking pained. I had thought that Haylee and Peter looked similar; it was nothing compared to these two. They were the exact same height, with the same build. The girl had a slight curve to her hips, and the differences ended there. They were both wearing all white, their identical gray eyes curious. Their light blond hair was the same color and texture, his buzzed close to his head and hers falling to her chin. They couldn't have been more than eighteen, if that. I couldn't remember having ever seen two people who were so much the same.
“I'm so glad you're here!” the boy called, smiling widely. Adam, had the girl said? He looked up at the sky, the sun still covering the moon. “Anna,” he whispered, nudging the girl. She looked up too. With a sigh, the moon fell slowly to slip beneath the horizon.
“Wow,” Haylee breathed.
“Thanks, Haylee,” the boy called. “We think it's cool too.” Haylee's eyebrows rose up her forehead.
I hadn't taken my eye off of the girl. Her face was terrified, her eyes filled with tears. She was gripping the boys hand roughly, her breathing rapid. I felt the air around them, taking them in. The air around the boy was hard to place. His breath seemed to... sing. That was the only way to describe it. It fell around him like music notes, soft and easy. There was no fear. The girl was different. Her quick breath shot out like arrows, fast and steady. She was afraid, tears leaking from her gray eyes.
“You know who we are?” Marc interrupted.
“I do,” the boy answered, smiling proudly.
“How?” Peter asked.
“I can-”
“Guess,” the girl cut him off, her eyes darting around. “He guessed.” The boy looked at her warmly.
“It's ok, Anna. They're friends.” He looked back at us. “I can see the future.” He smiled.
“Well that's useful,” Peter exhaled happily.
“Apollo,” Marc breathed. Adam looked surprised.
“That's right,” he said. His shoulders were squared proudly.
“The god of prophecy,” Marc said. “We were great friends once.”
“Maybe again. I can't see that yet.” The boy smiled warmly.
“That must make you...” Haylee began, looking at the girl.
“Artemis,” she whispered.
“Would you like to come inside?” the boy asked. The pair turned and made their way toward the house. Peter shrugged and we followed.
The big sitting room was about the last thing I had expected. Trophy heads hung on every spare surface: boars, bear, deer, even something that looked like it might have been a lion. A huge glass case sat in the corner, long rifles and shot guns glimmered in the sun. The pair sat on the couch, still hand in hand, looking expectantly at us. We stood in a tight line across from them, taking in the slightly terrifying surroundings.

So there were six. The twins try to be as hospitable as they can, despite their house of horrors. So Anna does what she does best: hunt.

We filed outside slowly, our eyes scanning in rotation. Adam stopped on the grass and we stood beside him. Anna was a few yards ahead, lowering herself down on one knee. The field stretched out for miles, coming to connect again with the forest a long way off. The line of trees was just a blur of green from this distance. Anna lifted her rifle quickly, peering over the barrel with one eye closed. A shot rang out. Haylee jumped. Anna slung the gun over her shoulder again and walked off toward the forest.
“What was it, Anna?” her brother called.
“A deer,” she answered cheerfully.
“She couldn't... she didn't actually hit something,” Marc choked.
“Of course. She's the goddess of the hunt,” her brother answered.

All things considered, they spend their afternoon pretty comfortably in each other's company. Marc won't look at Dakota, of course, but she tries to put on a smile for their newest additions. Anna and Adam happily agree to join them on their search for the others, as soon as they've enjoyed Anna's meal. But Peter has to get a little fun in first.

Haylee and I were across the room, looking out the window at Adam in the yard. “That is disgusting,” I gagged. Though, it was impressive, I had to admit.
Adam sliced through the deer's skin with quick, delicate movements. He had lifted the fur off in a matter of minutes, and had moved on to extracting the insides. He had splattered blood over his clean white shirt and removed it, the warm sun now shining off of his pale skin. I surveyed his strong arms, slick with blood up to the elbow. I gagged again. Haylee leaned closer to me. “He's, like,” she whispered, searching for the words, “ripped, isn't he?”
Haylee had a point. Adam's young age did not distract from the appearance of his shirtless form. His chest and stomach were perfectly chiseled, his arms thick and sculpted. The shape of his back was flawless, the muscles pulling and flexing tightly. His perfect boyish face was furrowed in concentration, sweat dripping down his neck. I shrugged.
“Oh, it's so wrong,” Haylee groaned, closing her eyes. “He's too young, I can't watch.”
“He's not that much younger than you, Haylee,” I whispered back.
“I'm a nasty old cougar,” she wailed under her breath.
“What are we talking about?” Peter whispered, putting his head between mine and Haylee's to look out the window. He glanced at Adam hunched over the deer. “Oh,” he said, nodding. “Shame on you two.” Haylee whimpered softly.
“Leave me out of this,” I said.
“No offense, but I think I might have a better chance than either of you,” Peter said, still watching the bloodied youth. Haylee gasped at her brother.
“No way,” she breathed.
“Oh ho, yes,” Peter chuckled.
“You are out of your mind,” Haylee said. He turned his eyes on her, challenged.
“You think I'm wrong?” he asked, raising his eyebrows.
“There's no way,” Haylee said, folding her arms.
“Watch carefully,” Peter said, straightening up.
Peter pulled his shirt off as he walked toward the back door. I covered my mouth to hide my laughter, Haylee gasped, and Anna didn't look up from her gun. She lifted one hand silently to shield her eyes from Peter's form. He slipped through the back door. Haylee and I turned eagerly toward the window. Peter came into view outside. He was not in bad shape himself, if we were being fair. A little less carved than the youth perhaps, but more muscular. The sun was warm against his tan skin, his thick arms flexed as he stretched in the light. He made his way to the little pond.
Adam glanced up at Peter from his work. He looked back at the meat again. “Ah ha!” Haylee cheered. Adam's head snapped back toward Peter. “Oh no,” she breathed. It was a clear double take. Adam's eyes widened, his neck flushed. He sat back a little, stunned. Peter walked past without looking, a tiny grin on his face. Adam's eyes raked over Peter's chest, scanning him from head to foot as he paraded by. He was holding his breath. Peter kicked his shoes off and slid gracefully into the water. Adam took a deep breath, shaking his head slowly. He bent over his work again, peaking up at every few seconds Peter as he swam.
“Is Peter flirting with the Adonis?” Marc asked, bending over to watch too.
“No,” Haylee sighed, defeated. “He's proving a point.”