Hello readers ~

Here is a short one shot of Hector pre-movie during he time in the Land of the Dead. I plan to do more one-shots and I hope you enjoy this one. Also, I am not Hispanic so there will probably be less Spanish in my stories but I will try in the future.

Discoloration

He didn't know when it began. When the color of his bones started to grow tan and yellow.

It started with little specks then patches that grew larger as time passed. The magical connections between his bones started to feel looser until one day one of his fingers popped off when opening the door of his apartment.

He couldn't stop it. His neighbors started noticing, whispering while throwing pitying glances in his direction when he walked by.

He knew what was happening to him.

He saw the way some skeletons stood out in the sea of white out in the streets as their yellow bones glinting in the sun. It was as if they were dirtier than the others around them. Then it is only a matter of time when that patch disappears, never to be seen again.

No one knows what happens after the final death but one thing is for certain, the person is forgotten.

The time of final death depends on those in the living world, if you are the last person that remembers, you disappear in an instant but in Hector's case, he was slowly being forgotten as time passes as people he knew died or forgot. Year after year, day after day, hour, minute, every second.

If you're lucky you start to be forgotten after a long while along with your family or have friends there with you when you pass. Yet there are still those souls who trudge along the streets toward the place where the forgotten go, with no ofrenda or family to speak of.

For the first few years he had hope, that maybe his Imelda would mourn and put his photo on an ofrenda. That his best friend would tell his family that he tried to go home and that he loved them so much. But year after year of being rejected at the check in he tried to not think of the implications that these signs entailed. But the yellowing bones only confirmed his darkest fears.

When he heard a knock on his door and saw his land lord he knew what was going to happen.

He witnessed another person from a different complex forcibly taken out of the building as they violently resisted and denied that they were disappearing, that they were being forgotten. Hector was angered at the treatment of the fellow soul but he knew he could do nothing. They saw no need to cater to someone who was going to disappear. He watched as the person was thrown out and after a few minutes of anger sank on their knees and cried.

His land lord gave him a kind smile and they both sat down on the chair within his small apartment. The man was an old soul with a gentle nature and a family that helped run the complex. He looked at Hector with a guilty and pitying gaze. Hector only smiled sadly and asked if he wanted anything. The man shook his head and averted his gaze from Hector's. The musician only looked at him numbly as his land lord asked him to leave. He started listing reasons but Hector stopped listening, he already knew why.

Once the man stopped talking Hector stared at him for a few moments, let out a deep sigh, and nodded. The man only apologized sadly, got up and left the apartment, shutting the door behind him.

Hector sat there for what seemed like an eternity as dark thought seeped into his mind. He quickly shoved those thoughts to the back of his mind, then stood and packed his measly belongings in a small suit case he was able to buy and cleaned his space.

He checked one final time to see if he forgotten anything then exited the apartment, closing the door behind him. He continued to walk down the hall, ignoring the stares and whispers of his neighbors.

When he finally reached the reception desk he nodded to the woman at the front, the land lord's daughter. She gave him a bittersweet smile. Sad that such a polite and charming man had to leave because of a fate he couldn't control. He smiled reassuringly in return and handed in his key making a comment that made her chuckle.

When Hector stepped out of the house it suddenly felt cold as he looked out at the night. He only sighed and walked out into the city with only a few lamps illuminating the pitch black streets.

He walked down the street as the dark thoughts he pushed back consumed his mind.

He wandered aimlessly yet he knew where he was going. To a place where many souls went to be forgotten. Hector's body rattled as he walked, the suitcase trailing behind him.

The lights glinted off his yellow bones as he trudged and disappeared into the darkness.

Well that's the end. Hope you enjoyed and there will be more to come (Hopefully).