Summary: No one had told me it would start with the end.
Characters: Melanie, Jared, Ian
Disclaimer: I own the fingers and the keyboard.
A/N: This is going to be my first multi-chaptered fic, so I hope you guys enjoy. The idea just came to me when I was rereading The Host recently, and I decided to write it. Reviewers are loved. Enjoy!
No one had told me that it would start with the end.
The familiar scene enveloped me, and I remembered it like it had happened yesterday. For all I'd known at the time, it had. The months I had spent trapped inside my body, the months that it had been Wanderer's body, were gone. I remembered only the desperate flee from the Seekers and the plunge down the elevator shaft. The remembering was quick.
The memory ended, and I became aware of my surroundings. The very fact that I was alive confused me. The fall down the elevator shaft had not killed me, but I had not expected to wake up again. I had certainly not expected to retain control of my body, as I clearly did. I could hear the sound of another person nearby. I kept my eyes closed, pretended I was still unconscious. I didn't know why I was still here, still myself, but I wasn't going to complain, and I wasn't going to draw attention to myself.
I didn't understand, however. The Seekers had caught me, hadn't they? By some impossible miracle, was it possible that they had left me to die at the bottom of the elevator shaft? I could not imagine the worms being so careless. Not after the way they had pursued me, tried to stop me from making the not-quite-suicidal plunge to what I had hoped would be my death. Too bad it wasn't.
A voice interrupted my thoughts, a voice I knew, a voice that shattered my awareness. I had never heard the voice in my life, but I remembered it.
"Melanie?"
Memories flooded through my head with the voice, overwhelming me. The Seekers had caught me. But that had been months and months ago. I forced my eyes open, elation spreading from my fingertips to my toes. I had opened my eyes. As I sat up and looked around me, I was the one who was moving my limbs. Me. Not Wanderer.
Pain lanced through me as I thought of her. Gritting my teeth, I pushed away the grief, not ready to deal with it yet. There would be time enough later.
The owner of the voice came into my line of sight as he leaned closer, his hand descending to rest upon my shoulder. There was a note of worry in his kind voice as he spoke cautioningly to me.
"Take it easy. I'm not sure you should move about just yet."
I looked at him briefly, and it was disconcerting to see him with my own eyes, without the filter of Wanda's eyes and thoughts. The novelty only occupied me for a second, however, because I was suddenly aware of the other occupant of the room.
The familiar figure stepped out the shadow, almost hesitant. I didn't need to hear his voice or see his face to know who it was. I would know him anywhere.
"Mel?" Jared's voice was hesitant, like his manner, and full of wonder.
Disregarding Doc's warning completely, I bolted off the cot, launching myself into his arms. "Jared!" His arms crushed my body against his, and his mouth covered mine, exactly the way I remembered it had. The moment was only slightly marred by the abrupt memory of the last time he had kissed this body, when it had still been Wanderer. He'd kissed her, kissed her like he loved her. The brief sting of bitterness was lost as my body caught on fire again. His hands were everywhere, marveling, rejoicing, claiming. I didn't know where my hands were, only that I couldn't get close enough to him, couldn't get enough of him. His lips against mine were torture, and I was burning.
Only one thing could have doused the flame that was consuming me, brought me back to reason and reality. And he walked into the room at that very moment.
"Wanda?" The voice was horrorstruck, choked, strangled almost beyond the point of recognition, but at the sound of that voice, my happiness shattered. The voice awoke a vague, deep ache inside me. It's very existence shocked me, and the intensity of it took my breath away.
I tore myself away from Jared, and that was painful too. My eyes lifted to Ian's tortured gaze, and I swallowed. Our eyes met, and he looked as if he'd been slapped. Before I could open my mouth to speak, to explain that Wanda had gone, he spoke. His voice was unsettlingly soft, as if he didn't have the strength to raise his voice.
"No." Ian looked away from me, looked right at Jared. "What have you done?" His voice was full of all the horror that I knew he must be feeling. His hands clenched into fists, his denial overcome by anger, by pain that fueled the anger.
"Ian-" Jared started, but Ian interrupted him.
"Shut up." Ian's voice was dangerously soft, deceptively calm. He was close to breaking. Jared fell silent, his arm sliding around my waist and pulling me closer to him. My body burned, but for once, it was easily ignored.
For a moment, there was silence. No one moved. Then there was a blur of movement, a lurch, and the sound of flesh impacting flesh. Jared groaned, clutching his jaw. Ian stood for a moment, looking at us both, then turned on his heel and ran.
"Jared!" My alarm colored my tone as I reached for his face.
"I'm fine," he said, touching my face tenderly. "I probably deserved it."
I shook my head, alarm fading as he removed his hand from his jaw and I was able to ascertain with my own eyes that he was truly okay. There would be an ugly bruise, but the skin was unbroken and there was no blood. "Wanda made her own choice," I said firmly, my heart aching for the brave, amazing soul who'd given her life for me. "She was brave, and she deserved this body far more than I do." My voice broke, shaking. My eyes stung with tears that I did not try to hold back.
Jared's arms went around me as I cried, pulling me into his warm chest. He pressed his lips against my hair, shushing me gently as he wiped at my tears with his hand. "Don't cry," he murmured, pulling my chin up to look me in the face. His eyes traced my features hungrily. "It's not as bad as you think."
I blinked, pulling in a shaking breath. "What do you mean?"
Jared released me from his arms, taking my hand and pulling me over to the corner of the room, where the cryotanks were stacked neatly. One of them had been pulled away from the group. The light was glowing a steady, unwavering red.
This cryotank contained a hibernating soul.
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