Silver Lining - The Host fanfiction

Chapter 19 The Backpackers

“Ask me no questions and I’ll tell you no lies.”
                                               - proverb

Burns

 

I keep my eyes on the road as we leave the town behind. We’ve been driving for a while now and I still haven’t figured it out. Why would Emma want to visit Scales all of a sudden? Not that I mind. It would be nice if she could meet my friends, but it makes me wonder what exactly they talked about on the phone. He did sound amused when I called him back. Maybe she likes him. My hands grip the wheel tighter.
In the passenger seat, Emma is staring out of the window, watching the scenery. I can’t really tell what she’s thinking. She has a distant look in her eyes and I don’t want to disturb her.
My hand finds the radio and I switch it on. A pleasant voice is broadcasting the news.

“Red Coral from Phoenix has given directions to three tourists today. They had never been in the city and were very glad he pointed them in the right direction.
And a Soul named Cloud Spinner has taken in another Soul in a female human body called Petals Open to the Moon. Welcome Pet, we wish you a lovely lifespan on Earth.”

Emma turns her head towards the radio and looks at it as if she has never seen one before.
The woman on the radio continues the broadcast.

“Last night’s basketball game ended in a draw. Both teams scored points in turn until the final second. Everyone congratulated each other and all won first prize. Isn’t it exciting?”

“That is ridiculous,” Emma says.
“Hm?” I glance at her briefly before focusing on the road again.
“The game,” she clarifies, “why have a match if you’re going to take turns scoring?”
“So everyone wins,” I say. Isn’t it obvious? “It wouldn’t be fair if only one team won.”
“But that is the whole point of the game!”
“I thought it was about having fun,” I answer, “how can you have fun if someone loses?”
“Of course both teams want to win, but that makes the players work harder. It’s why they train. That’s the whole point. And it’s what makes it exciting to watch. Because you don’t know in advance who will win.”
I shake my head at that silly statement. That’s exactly where all the violence came from. People wanting to win.
“Are you hungry yet?” I ask as I spot a sign that point to a drive-through.
Emma nods. “Sure. Why not?”
I cut off the highway and wait behind the three cars that are already forming a line. “What would you like?”
“Whatever you are having is fine with me,” Emma says.
I nod and determine she is not angry with me, just back to using little words. She seems nervous somehow, but I can’t put my finger on it. Perhaps she’s just nervous about meeting Scales. That is something I can understand, but she doesn’t have to worry. I’m sure he will accept her. And maybe he will figure out a few things about humanity that I’m overlooking.
I drive up to the intercom to give our order. “Two medium fries, two hamburgers and two Cokes.” I turn to Emma. “Would you like ice cream too?” She gives a faint smile. “And two vanilla ice creams please.”
The girl repeat s my order and I confirm it. “Okay thank you for your order. Please continue to the second window. Have a nice day!”
“You too. Thank you.” I drive to the next window to pick up our food.
“Is there something you would like to see?” I ask as I park the car so we can eat, “we’re in no hurry and we still have a long way to go.”
Emma shakes her head. “No, that’s okay. We can just stop on the way when we see something nice.” She hesitates. “We wouldn’t’ happen to come cross a forest or anything, would we?”
“I’m not sure,” I tell her, “why?”
She shrugs. “It would be nice to have a look at a park or something. Somewhere with not too many people.”
I nod in understanding. “I’ll watch for road signs for that.”
“Thanks,” she says and takes another bite from her burger.
We eat in silence for a while, but the silence isn’t tense. “Where do you want to stop for the night?” I ask.
“I don’t know,” Emma answers, “we can drive until we find a motel. We’re not in a hurry, are we?” A faint smile crosses her face as she repeats my earlier words.
“That’s right,” I smile back as I turn back onto the highway.
“Tell me more about Scales,” she says after a while.
“Okay,” I nod, “what do you want to know?”
She thinks for a while. “Tell me how you met.”
“It was about a year ago,” I tell her, “I was doing research at Yellowstone Park and Scales was there too, making landscapes. I watched him paint for a while and asked if he could do some drawings to go along with my notes. We got along real well and we’ve been friends ever since.”
“Don’t all Souls get along though?” Emma states.
“All Souls are naturally kind and helpful towards each other,” I explain to her, “so yes, they get along, but we lean towards others that have similar interests. Don’t humans do the same thing?”
“I suppose,” Emma agrees reluctantly. Her voice sounds a bit stiff. Then she seems to realize something else. “A year ago? Just how long has your kind been here? You said… you said you’d never met a human before, but I haven’t been running that long. There must have been humans still when you came here.”
I shake my head. “Not where I lived.”
Emma looks a bit shaken at my statement and there is confusion in her eyes. I can’t help it though. It’s true. We didn’t assimilate all of Earth at the same time. Some parts of the planet were taken completely before we moved to the next. We were careful because they were with so many and some seemed to know. Not that anyone believed them. At least not at first.
“C-can we stop here?” Emma asks a bit shaky. She looks a bit pale. “I need some fresh air.”
I nod and take the first exit, parking a little away from the highway.
Emma climbs out of the car and leans against it. I can see her take a few deep breaths. Did my words upset her that much? But why? What would it matter how long we have been on this planet?
It takes a while before Emma shifts back into the car.
“You okay?” I ask and she nods.
“Yeah. Can we stop at the next motel? I’m tired.”
I nod, even though I’m sure she’s not telling me the truth. I don’t mind stopping early. Maybe I get the chance to figure out what exactly is going through her mind. I want to understand her. I know she’s strong, because she managed to stay under the radar for so long, but she looks strangely vulnerable. And I feel a strange need to make her feel safe.
“I’ll be Silver Song,” Emma suddenly says.
I blink at her. “What?”
“I’ll need a Soul name if we’re going to stay at a motel,” she clarifies, “you said that would be my name if I were a Soul.”

I nod slowly. “Yes, but there are plenty of Souls that keep the name of their host. Emma will be just fine.”
“I like Silver better.” It’s soft but I still hear it. It makes me smile.
“Silver it is then,” I tell her, “but you don’t have to talk to anyone. I could book the room for us while you stay in the car. I’ll just pick up the key and then we’ll go to the room.”
“Yeah,” she says slowly, “that might work too.”
I can’t help but laugh then. “You didn’t think about that?”
She grits her teeth and her cheeks turn a darker color. “Don’t laugh at me.”
“I’m sorry,” I chuckle, “I’m not laughing at you. Really. You just like making things complicated, don’t you?”
Emma sighs. “That’s easy enough for you to say. You never had to hide what you are.”
She’s right. When I came to Earth, most of it was already settled and the place where I lived had no more humans. “You don’t have to hide now,” I say as I follow the signs towards the motel, “and you won’t have to hide with Scales either. I’m certain he’ll be excited about meeting a human. He wants to meet you, you know. You made him curious when you talked on the phone.”
The smile she gives me doesn’t reach her eyes and it makes me wonder again why she wants to meet him so badly.
A thought strikes me then. Why did I not think about it before? Perhaps she knows him already. Maybe she recognized his voice when he spoke to her. What if she knew Scales in his human life? Perhaps they were together.
Something tightens in my chest, something I don’t understand. And suddenly I’m not so certain that I want the two to meet.