Hey, when I read "The Host" it annoyed me that there was very little background about characters. This is what I thought up, sorry if people don't think it links into the story well. Also, I hate my little brother 90% of the time. I guess this is my apology :)
The confusion grew as I fought against it like some sick monster, feeding on my energy. After only a minute I gave up, falling back onto the pillows I let out a groan that was saturated with frustration. Not even my determined attitude would win the fight this time, "What was the reason behind that nightmare?", but I refused to be pulled back into the labyrinth that held the answers. Angrily I snatched my phone and realised the time, then repeated the first groan; 5Am. In a few hours the house would be alive to the sounds of my darling siblings and I would only just be losing my awareness. The 'all-nighters' were never planned but it made sense that shorter days were easier. I would be prepared for Mum's irritation and Dad shouting at me.
But. They wouldn't.
Not this time. Or anytime after that.
Both Mum and Dad were gone and not coming back.
The room where I lay would have been beautifully furnished if it weren't plunged in darkness. That was another thing that made life harder to get through, my adoptive parets were wealthy beyond belief and my brothers ate it up. I was the middle child, thus already messed up before they...died? Were taken ? Even a month later it was hard to put it into words. The invasion had happened so quickly. Mother left when the first ship landed, she wasn't mentally stable beforehand and the chaos that ensued meant the Police didn't even attempt to search for her. Daddy stayed around for another few months but one night he came home late.
Jamie and I were alone. Chris, my elder brother, had gone to the pub with some mates. School had been shut early due to the decrease and numbers and I was already paranoid enough without being alone in the house. Well ok, I wasn't alone but Jamie wasn't really helping my angst; he pottered about in the kitchen, obviously making as much noise as he possibly could. The hours passed very slowly. Too slowly. Eventually there was a knock at the door and I jumped. This couldn't be Dad because he would have his key, why would he knock? Suddenly someone burst through my bedroom door, it was Jamie. One look at his terror-stricken face and I knew that I had to be the grown up. My reaction how ever, was very different; I burst into tears. We sat on my bed for at least five minutes, just holding each other, trying to give comfort where it could never be given.
I leaned over to the window, Dad was there! I was about to shriek but Jamie clapped a hand over my mouth. With a silent motion he pointed towards the bushes in the park, directly across the street from our house. There were men in dark jackets, they could have been mistaken for MI6 men; in modern days I guess they were, but they weren't human. Exactly at this moment one of my instincts kicked in; whether it was for basic survival or from deeper motherly tendencies didn't matter now. In one short second the entire situation was on it's head and I refused to be involved in a game of cat and mouse.
My parents room had a view of the entire street and from there I could see all my neighbours being driven like cattle into white transit vans, my numerous plans for escape were dropping like flies. Getting out of the house would be the hardest part. If we climbed or jumped from the top floor survival would depend more on fate and our ability to land than on the mercy of the Souls. I could see this would be even harder than I had previously guessed at.
"Ok. What to do? Easiest way ou?" My pointless ramblings should have had me sent to an asylum. By this point Jamie was under my bed, his face covered in sweat; this combined with his wide-eyed gaze made me feel utterly helpless again. No, I wouldn't abandon Jamie, not only would my parents turn in their graves but I had a feeling that I needed him to give me purpose.
I grabbed his arm and used new strength to drag him downstairs We ran past the back door which would have been way too obvious, and into the all houses on our street the cellar had a small window leading to the garden; Chris used to sneak out through it so I was sure we could both fit. Jamie was a quivering wreck beside me, I couldn't bear to look at him and quickly hoisted myself onto the window ledge; I'd seen Chris do this hundreds of times and I guess that helped calm me.
With another quick glance I rolled out of the narrow gap and into a bush that clung to the wall of the house, I hurried to get in complete cover before signalling to Jamie to come with me. His pale white face stared at me blankly. Then he disappeared.
Sometimes these nightmares scare the hell out of me, other times they reminded me of how crappy life had been compared to it was now. I put on my plush dressing gown and wandered into the hall, flinching away from the cold laminate flooring. There was a silence apart from my padding bare feet as I wandered into the kitchen that I was still unfamiliar with. The cupboards were all the same and I had to go through at least half a dozen until I found the cereal. As I hopped onto the bar stool my mind returned to that night,
Jamie disappeared from view and before I took the time to make a noise I slid back inside. It was dark and I only just realised that I could have been trapped. Carefully, I made my way to the door and had almost climbed the stairs when I heard my name. I span, nearly falling over, and from the corner of my eye saw my brother, my baby brother, sobbing in the corner. Another piece of my heart broke, I had lost so much, the same wouldn't happen to him.That night was fateful. That night changed me. That night changed Jamie. That night allied some enemies.