Sacred Animals

The Crash

It was dark. The only light, the moon, glowed slightly under the blanket of clouds in the sky. Jackson felt a whirlwind of emotions as he made his way through the forest. He heard the sound of rushing water, and made his way towards the water. A large waterfall was flowing over the rocks and into the pool below his feet. He smiled and stepped into the water, his body shivering from the chilly sensation. He closed his eyes, trying to let his worries and thoughts wash away in the water. His thoughts were interrupted by a loud beeping noise. He turned and saw a bird, who was the source of the beeping. He cocked his head in confusion. How in the world would a bird make that...

He blinked, and the oasis faded away. His alarm clock was blaring loudly, screaming at him to get up. Jackson groaned and turned his clock off. He rubbed the sleep out of his eyes and sat up, beginning to get ready for the day. That was the fourth time this week he had that dream. In every dream, he was in his little paradise, and in every dream, his alarm clock interrupted it.

Jackson looked in his mirror and yawned. Staring back at him, was a brown haired, brown eyed, sleepy-looking kid. He picked up his comb and began to comb his hair. When he decided his hair was good enough, he put it down and walked to his closet. He pulled out a blue shirt, some shorts, and pulled his shoes on. He walked over to his television and yawned. "What day is it..?" He asked sleepily to his small TV.

The TV flickered on, and a pixilated face appeared on the screen. "The date is: August, 15th, 2345. Happy Birthday Jackson Fickle."

Birthday...

12th birthday...

Jackson sighed as he headed downstairs. He was twelve now. Meaning, in a couple hours, he would be sent off to a boarding school, like his older brother had. David had explained to Jackson, before he left what to expect of the boarding school. "It's supposed to get you to act like adults, and to forget about what adults did to you before you got there." He had told him, before a pained look appeared on his face. "Just... Don't expect me to be... me, when I get back..."

He hadn't been the same person. David had lost his sense of humor, his personality, and everything that had made him, well.. him. Jackson missed his brother, but his parents seemed to like what the school had done to his brother. His parents had yet another reason to like their oldest child, better then the other two. David had blonde hair and green eyes, looking very similar to their father, while Jackson had brown hair and brown eyes, looking nearly the same to his mother's father, who had shunned the ideas of the government and had been executed.

Jackson sat at the kitchen table and yawned, rubbing his eyes. His younger sister, Emily, came downstairs and plopped herself on the chair next to him. Emily was a eight year old girl, pretty tall for her age, with dark brown hair and green eyes. "Morning Jack!" She greeted him with her usual, cheerful smile. She had a small, wrapped gift in her hands. "I got you something.. Y'know... Before you get on the train..."

"Thank you Emily.." Jackson said, taking the present from her. He undid the ribbon, and pulled the paper off. There was a small necklace inside the paper, along with a small music box.

"David and I bought the necklace... Before he left.." Emily said, her smile fading from her face. "The music box is from me.. It's Grandpa's favorite song." Jackson began turning the handle on the side of the box, a soft tune playing. It was the lullaby that their grandmother said that he had used to sing to their mother, before he had been executed.

"This means a lot to me..." Jackson said, smiling at his sister, pulling her into a hug. "Thank you.." Emily smiled and hugged him back.

Their mother came in the room, carrying two plates of pancakes. "Happy Birthday Jackson!" She said cheerfully, setting the plates in front of Emily and Jackson. Their father came down the stairs, dressed in a grey pinstripe suit with a red tie. His smile was so big, it almost seemed unnatural. "Where's the birthday boy?" He brought Jackson into his arms and rubbed his knuckles on his head. Jackson squirmed out of his grip and fixed his hair, taking a bite of his pancakes. 'Yea.. Happy Birthday to me.'