Like memories.
"Dad! Why do we all go to the sky?" A little boy’s voice came from my left, and there was a floating piece of paper with a little boy with green hair. Like the previous piece of paper, it turned into ash, but the glittering specks left behind created an outlined image of the very little boy as his glowing body raced around me as he awaited his father's reply.
"Well, the sky is where peace is." The deep voice from the past immediately reminded me of Finnick's father. The sound hit a few individuals in the crowd as they put their hands on their chests at the reminder of his existence.
"Then why can't we just go there, like an astronaut!" The little boy jumped while putting his hands up high, tiny pieces of sticky note paper gliding through the air and fading into fireworks that shot further into the sky and burst into colorful confetti.
"Because the sky is so high that even mages can never reach the final golden gates."
"Then how do we get there, Dad?"
"Well, you have to live a good life and eventually say goodbye to be at peace."
The little boy came to a stop next to me and grabbed my dress as he looked up in my direction. I couldn't help but look down to meet his hopeful eyes - the image reminding me of Finnick but as a child with so many hopes and dreams.
"Would Mommy come with me?" the boy asked while he stared up at me.
"Well, she may be there before you. So will I, but that means we'll be able to greet you when you arrive."
The boy frowned just a little as he reached out with his other hand with the hopes I'd press mine against his. I did the deed, even if it was just a magic trick, but it triggered a spark of ripped papers that changed into raining cherry blossom petals that rained down upon us.
"I'd miss Mom," the boy declared. "And you, Dad."
"Whenever you miss us, think of all those you currently love in real-time and spoil them with cherry blossoms."
"Cherry blossoms!" The boy took a step back and clapped his hands again. More cherry blossoms rained down upon me. The action made me tear up as the little boy ran around the circle.
"I'm going to draw a load of cherry blossoms for everyone."
"You can," the man encouraged. "But remember that not everyone will accept them."
The words seemed to echo as the scene around us began to change - the little boy beginning to fly around me while he grew older until it seemed like he was a teen. He danced around me like we were now in ballet, and before long the silhouette creation had my hands, and we spun within the circle that seemed to light all around us with sparks of orange and gold.
A painting of red and black appeared to our left as we began to slow in the spinning movement. The attention moved to the very piece of work as it hung in the air like it was hanging on a solid wall.
The piece of work was a simple black rose, but its petals were tipped with blood. The teen began to walk towards it until he reached out to touch it. The spark made the painting seem to come to life, the rose becoming an array of roses that multiplied as he spun in happiness before he gestured at the roses to flow to the crowd.
Everyone seemed to have a rose in their possession, and I was shocked because it appeared so real. The boy was then before me as he bowed with a bouquet of the black roses, leaving me no choice but to accept them as a smile formed on my face.
"Thank you," I whispered, and it seemed to trigger the next shift in the story because the boy danced and grew even older until he held a glowing umbrella.
More floating canvases appeared around us, displaying the images of people in coats and hats, and holding umbrellas. The boy began to walk around the squared walls that carried these various pieces; the mere breeze that passed lit them up and brought them to life.
I was beginning to understand what Finnick had done - a chain reaction or domino effect that made one drop of magic spread through all his creations from the single source.
"I'm going to be a good man!" the older teen declared as his umbrella shifted to teal and lit up. "I'll spread kindness and happiness everywhere I go, and I'll give love to everyone I know.
The roses in our possessions began to glow to a vivid red until they were now red roses and not black. Everyone seemed to be amazed, trying to figure out how all of this was happening. If he'd used outside magic the alarm would have gone off to prove it, but it remained silent while the story continued around us.
The boy tried to walk happily through the crowd, but as he got further through they seemed to cluster to try and slow him down. He tried and tried, but they squished him like he was in a can of sardines, and the colliding pressure of their umbrellas against his made his escape his grasp before it flew upward with the gust of wind.
"My love!" he cried out as he tried to reach for it, but it was long gone as its light fluttered off. I swallowed the lump in my throat as the boy was pushed and shoved by everyone until he was left on the spot before me. We began to descend back to the stage.
I'd landed right in the center of the circle, and the boy wiped away his tears before he slowly got up.
"It's okay! I have more love to give!" The image clapped his hands and an older, taller figure appeared next to him. They began to play around like they were fake fighting - a common activity between brothers, as a large landscape image appeared to my right.
Everyone's gaze followed as the boy and his older brother walked to the very image. The boy touched the canvas and it came to life as it showed an acrylic painting of a convenience store that turned into a glowing masterpiece of serene colors.
"Let's go share our love! We'll receive love in return!" he declared as he reached for the glowing door, but we watched as shots of arrows came right out and into the older silhouette. The boy gasped, as did many in the crowd, who were so engrossed in the story.
We watched as the boy reached out to the crowd, and the roses he'd delivered began to float his way until he had a bunch. He laid them upon his brother to try and soak up the black flow of liquid from his glowing green body.
No matter how many roses fell upon him, the older male raised his hand up to the sky - and was gone the next second as the red roses dipped in black all turned to black once more, littering the stage with their broken petals.
"Why?" The teen rose up as he stared at the petals. "I gave all my love. Why didn't it heal my brother?"
I blinked back my tears at the vulnerability in the audible voice. The music box melody in the background only made me more emotional. I surely wasn't alone as many in the crowd fought hard against their tears as the silhouette teen walked over to where I stood and reached to hold my dress once more.
My dress began to glow, and I watched a silhouette of white poof onto the other side - a woman with short, pink, glowing hair. Her silhouette body danced and moved the outlined dress with her steps.
The teen beamed as he moved to dance with the woman, and we watched them spin across the stage until an image appeared behind me - another white canvas. The teen reached for the art piece, and it revealed a detailed drawing of rain clouds.
It began to rain then. All of us watched as the droplets that fell from the sky glowed a vivid blue. When they touched our bodies, they did nothing to us, but as the teen attempted to create an umbrella, the white silhouette's light began to flicker.