Late Spring Late Summer

Summer should have already be here

I waited in my favorite meadow plucking flowers and holding them in the air. The soft pink petals were like velvet between the pads of my fingers.

A soft rustle pulled my attention behind me and from the ring of trees the prince of summer staggered out, blood staining his t-shirt.

"Thought I might find you here, Maia."

I rolled my eyes as I sat up, "Theros," his golden-brown eyes illuminating like their own tiny suns even from a few feet away. "You're late for your season."

He pressed his hand into his side and winced. "I got sidetracked." he held up a crown intertwined with branches and flowers both budding and blossomed and dowsed in pale gold.

"Why do you have my crown?" I asked.

"I thought–" he winced, "I thought you might be missing it."

I sighed, pushing myself to my feet and sauntering over to him. He glanced behind him, blood slipping between his fingers. "I was actually enjoying human high school."

"What happened to the human you chased after?" he asked the left side of his mouth turning down into a grimace.

I shrugged. "I didn't like him as much as I thought I did. I think I like the idea of being in love but I didn't feel anything." I reach for my crown. "Now what trouble–"

An arrow pierced through the branches of the crown and pinned it to the ground. I pursed my lips and let out a breath as I glanced at Theros. "How bad is this?" I dropped my eyes to his side, his hand still pressed tight to the wound.

"You definitely needed your crown." He and I met each other's eyes as the fog lifted from the ground and crawled toward us. We both bolted, I ran ahead aiming for the crown trapped on the meadow floor amongst the fresh blossoms.

A sickly air rushed through knocking both of us off our feet. I rolled passed my crown just barely missing it.

"Theros!" a thunderous voice clapped like thunder, the sound of hooves pounding into the ground carried through the fog

Darkness sprouted up around it as the poised arrow burned through the crown.

Theros drew his sword and glanced back at me. "Get your crown." he charged forward, still clutching his side. I scrambled over to my crown the dark cloud swiping at me when I reached to pull the arrow free. Pain seared across my wrist. I reached again and this time a black vine wrapped around my wrist barbs cutting into my skin. The vine flinched when it touched my blood. I searched the fog for Theros but the giant figure looming through was Prince of Autumn, Chard. He raised his bow and aimed his arrow at me. With my crown, I was the most powerful among the seasons. Each of us played our roles well and did our jobs perfectly but spring brought life, meaning, I decided what got to live... and what didn't.

The arrow aimed at my heart would be nothing if I had my crown. The giant trees of hundreds-year-old forests answered to me. The roots of fields came to my voice but without the crown linking me I was almost as bad as any mortal.

Chard smiled as he aimed a steady point at me, he never missed. "Don't worry, Maia. I'll be a fair Prince of Spring."

My mind scrambled for a plan but everything it reached for hung on my needing my crown. I lifted my chin and held my hands up. "You're such a coward you'd fight a mortal?"

He chuckled. "I'm not stupid, Maia, I know you can beat me." he shook his head, lowering his arrow half an inch. "But this is really your fault, I mean. A season's spirit chasing after a mortal? Abandoning everything to live as one of them." his nose wrinkled.