Chapter 10
The sound of my alarm woke me up. I sat up in my bed and stretched before shutting it off. I smacked my lips twice and smiled. If I had any dreams last night they certainly weren't nightmares. I reached for my phone and immediately messaged Manny about it, and told him I was going to the movie theater today. He said he was happy to hear my outing was successful, and okayed my trip to the movie theater. Then he reminded me that there was only so much time left on my vacation and that he would start scheduling things for me on Monday. I suppose it had to come to an end eventually, but I still had some time before then. Maybe going back to work wouldn't be so bad now, with 11-7 by my side. Speaking of which, as I messaged my manager I smelled something simultaneously kinda good and burnt, but distinctly eggy.
I threw on some clothes and made my way into the kitchen. It was somewhat of a mess. There were ingredients all over my island countertop, I saw milk substitute, a carton of liquid egg proteins, flour, and some other things. 11-7 was coiled up and had put her head down on the island on top of her crossed arms. As I approached the mess, she lifted her head up slightly and peered at me from her arms.
I smelled the air again. "Smells kinda good in here, what are you making?"
Upon hearing my question she rose out of her slump. I noticed she was wearing my apron and it had some yellow stains on it. She straightened herself out and proudly gestured to the oven. "I am making a Qui-chee. An advanced dish, from a recipe on the cooking show." She pointed at the tv with a clawed finger.
"You mean a quiche? - What exactly is that? I've heard the name before, but I've never really thought about what it was."
She smiled. "The cooking woman referred to it as egg pie."
I raised an eyebrow. "That doesn't sound very good."
"I assure you it will be, go - sit. It will be ready soon."
I walked into the livingroom, past the dining room set I never used, and sat on the couch. I looked over at her from the couch. "I didn't realize I'd be getting a personal chef, when you were hired on." I chuckled after saying that.
She looked back at me. "I didn't realize I would enjoy making food this much until I started."
"Why do you like it so much?"
"It is an enjoyable activity that I get to eat the results of."
I shrugged my shoulders. "Can't argue with that."
Not long after I heard a buzzing sound and 11-7 struggled to get some oven mitts on. They didn't fit on her hands well because her fingers are so long, but she managed to take out her - quiche and set it on the counter. She prepared two plates, one she placed a sizable piece on and on the other she placed the rest of the quiche.
She brought it into the living room, and handed me my plate. It looked pretty good, and smelled nice, but I noticed something was missing. "Could you get me a fork?"
She cocked her head. "A fork, why?"
"So I can eat it."
"You need one to eat? Why haven't you used one before?"
"Well, I don't need one to eat this, I'd prefer to have one, so I don't get my hands dirty."
She nodded. "I understand." She set her plate on the coffee table and slithered into the kitchen, returning with a fork.
She handed it to me and I took a bite of her quiche. It wasn't bad, but the crust was a little burnt. I've never had it before, so I couldn't compare it to anything. "Not bad, course I'd eat almost anything if someone else made it."
As I looked over at her I noticed she hadn't touched her plate yet and was watching me intently. I was impressed she was staving off her hunger like this. "I am pleased to hear you are enjoying it. What do you think of the crust?"
I didn't exactly feel like being a harsh critic this morning. "The crust, uhhh. It's - good"
She put her hands together and smiled. "This is excellent." She puffed out her chest as she spoke. "It took me only four tries to get the crust right."
That got a chuckle out of me. "Wow, only four?"
"Impressive, I am aware. Now I will try it."
As she went to swallow three quarters of this egg pie, I remembered something from my dream yesterday: her swallowing smaller bites of food instead of swallowing the whole thing at once. I stopped her. "Hey, you should swallow smaller pieces."
She froze and pulled the quiche away from her face, slowly closing that inhuman mouth of hers. As much as I had seen her eat, it was still unsettling to see how wide she could open her mouth. "Like how you eat?"
"Yeah, you'd probably be able to taste it better."
She used one of her claws to cut off a smaller chunk of the quiche and she swallowed it. She did that a few more times before snorting. "Too slow." Then she swallowed the rest. "The taste was more, but I am hungry."
I shrugged my shoulders and continued to eat my piece. "Whatever works for you."
"You seem much happier now, did you sleep well?"
I nodded. "I did actually, I slept great last night."
She looked away from me for a few moments. I saw uncertainty on her face, and the tip of her tail curled up tightly. After that she turned to me looking quite resolute. As I was eating she asked me a question I was not prepared for. "Are you alright, has anything been troubling you lately?"
I almost choked on what I was chewing. She's observant, as always. "You noticed that did you?" She crossed her arms and snorted in response. I had hoped she would let it be, but I should really know better by now. I took a moment to swallow it down with some water before responding. "Some things were troubling me before, - they weren't things you could have helped with... But, I'm all better now. The A.R.C was just what I needed." She started to say something, but I cut her off. "Ahee! I've got something fun planned for today. We don't need to talk about this now."
She seemed upset that I cut her off, but me mentioning the thing I had planned successfully diverted her attention. "What sort of an activity do you have planned?"
I stretched and pretended to be disinterested. "Well, I was planning on going to the movie theater today. Would you like to come along?"
"The movie theater?" She paused for a few moments. "I know what it is. I have seen it in some of the programs on the television." She looked proud of herself for knowing that. Then she looked confused. "Why do you ask me to come? I am required to escort you at all times outside the neighborhood, you know this."
"Well, I'm always dragging you around with me, so I figured I'd invite you to come along this time."
She took a few moments to process what I said, and a grin spread across her face. "I appreciate the gesture Lucas."
I chuckled. "Yeah, an activity we'd be doing - together, - outside the house, should be a good time."
She squinted her eyes and studied my face. Then she looked away for a few moments before responding. "I'm not sure I am understanding what you are saying."
"Oh nothing, I just think it's an activity we'll both enjoy, you know - together, at the same time." She still wasn't getting the hint. I just gave up. "So, did you want to come? I didn't hear a yes."
She still looked confused, but then I saw a flash of understanding on her face. "I would love to go to the movie theater with you, Lucas Hickey. Is that what you wanted to hear, a complete sentence?"
"Eh, - yeah. Ron should be here later to take us to the late showing. What did you want to do in the meantime?"
"Let us play more of the Halo 2 game, we are making much progress."
"Yeah, sure let me finish my quiche first. You know we're almost to the part where we get to play as one of the aliens."
Her eyes lit up as I said that. "That is exciting."
0-
Some time later I got the message from Ron that he was almost here, so I told 11-7 to go get ready. Soon enough we were in the car and being driven to the theater.
11-7 poked my arm to get my attention because I was staring out the window. "What exactly is the movie theater like?"
"Oh it's great, there's snacks, and the screen you watch the movie on is humongous."
11-7 nodded excitedly. "Yes, that is what I saw in the programs I watched."
Ron piped up from the front. "I haven't been to the theater in a long time. Don't have much interest in the garbage they put out these days. Nope, I'll stick with the classics."
"Yeah, you got quite the movie collection don't you Ron?"
He looked at me through the rearview mirror and spoke. "I wouldn't brag about it or nothin. I got a few though." He slowed down at a red light and turned around to look at 11-7. "All Advent approved, just so ya know." He turned back to face the front.
11-7 waved a hand dismissively. "I'm certain you are in compliance with Advent policy. It is not my duty to police your collections."
I saw Ron shoot her a confused look through the rearview mirror as he pulled forward through the green light. "That's kind of ya to say. - It's funny how some things went forwards, and others went backwards."
I raised an eyebrow at that. "What do you mean?"
He shrugged. "Back in my day I thought theaters were gonna go outta business. Everybody was streaming movies and shows through the internet, but once Advent came in they got rid of all the infrastructure for that. Now people go to the theater, or buy physical disks like how it was before streaming. I think it's funny we got all these rayguns and shit, but people are still watching blu-rays n' DVD's."
I chuckled. "Yeah, that's kinda funny. You'd think we'd have something better than disks by now."
"Hey if it ain't broke, why fix it. I ain't complainin. Made some nice cash lending my movies to those businesses that produce copies of em."
"Always the profeteer, eh."
"Gotta make whatcha can, especially these days. Three minutes early. Ain't I the best driver er what?" He pulled into a parking lot in front of the theater.
"Damn that was quick."
He turned around to look at us in the back seat. "It don't take too long to get to commercial district C from your neighborhood." He looked at 11-7 and he looked like he wanted to say something, then he looked at me. "I should probably tell you this, cuz I know your manager didn't, but aliens aren't too appreciated inside the recreational type commercial buildings."
11-7 squinted her eyes and frowned slightly. A tinge of anger in her voice. "What do you mean?"
"Well I... I mean that. Unless there is a problem inside those kinds of buildings, most folks don't appreciate bein around the uh non-human types."
She scoffed. "I'd like to see one bold enough to ask me to leave."
He put his hands up non-threateningly. "I'm sure no one will cause ya too much trouble. I'm just letting ya know because Lucas here hasn't been there in a while, and he never went in with a snake."
"I'm sure we'll be fine. Come on 11-7. Let's go before the movie starts."
Ron didn't say anything, he just nodded once. We left the car and made our way to the front of the movie theater. The building itself wasn't anything to boast about. It was large, square, and had a brown stone look to it. It did have a large neon sign that spelled out Galaxy 32 vertically in red lettering above the entrance, and some glass cases ro the side that had posters for the movies they were showing. There weren't a lot of people outside the theater, so I figured now would be a good time to ask 11-7.
I hung a right at the entrance and looked at some of those movie posters they had posted behind glass cases. 11-7 looked at me strangely from the entrance. I waved her over, and once she was next to me I waved my arm, gesturing to all of the posters. "See any you like?"
She cocked her head and looked at me. After a few moments she understood what I was saying. "I couldn't possibly pick, you are funding this outing. I would hate to choose wrong."
I smiled. "Well, it's your first time, I want you to choose. - Not to mention Ron was right, I haven't really gone to the theater in a while, so I wouldn't know what to pick either."
She didn't think it over very long. "If you are insisting that I do, I will pick." She dropped her plasma rifle to her side and began examining the posters. After about a minute she turned to look at me. "How would you pick? Should I pick the one with the best poster?"
That gave me a chuckle. "No, usually I read the descriptions. Here let me pull up the theater's website on my phone, and you can ask me about the ones that interest you."
She pointed to one of the posters. It depicts a dark scene on a highway with a teenager running from a bunch of people that are just standing in the street and staring at him. The word Them is listed at the bottom in bold print. "What's this one?"
I looked it up on the theaters website and skimmed through the description. "It's about alien parasites taking over peoples minds, and only the younger generation can notice who's affected. That kid on the poster tries to do something about it. I heard some of the reviews of this one, it's decent."
She frowned. "Doesn't interest me." She pointed to another one. "What about this one?"
The poster depicted a man in helmetless Advent armor with a ruined city as the background and an Advent flag waving behind him. The text at the bottom of the screen read Sector 993 Halton's Revenge. "It's just your standard pro Advent war movie, nothing special, and this one's a sequel which means It'll probably be worse than the original. Sector 993 wasn't even that great to begin with."
She cocked her head. "Are sequels always bad?"
"Not always, - just most of the time."
She scratched her face with her free hand for a few moments. "The one called E - T. What is that about?"
"ET?" I looked at the posters and saw the one she was talking about. It was blue and depicted the silhouette of a boy on a bike with something on the handlebars flying in front of the moon above a forest. "I think I know this one, I might have seen it when I was younger. It's an old movie about an alien that gets stranded on earth, and a boy tries to get him back home."
Her eyes widened, and I noticed her tongue was flicking out slower. "How old is this movie?"
I shrugged. "Pretty old. I know it was made well before Advent got here."
She looked at the ground for a few moments in thought, and looked back up at me. "A movie about a human helping an alien, made before Advent's arrival. I did not know the existence of something like that."
"Well sure, there's been plenty of movies made before Advent arrived that are like that."
"From my experience, I had thought most pre Advent movies portrayed aliens as enemies."
I nodded. "Some did and some didn't, I couldn't tell you exactly how many. But, believe it or not some of us had hope that you'd come in peace. Course, humanity isn't exactly of one mind. We never have been, and we never will be."
She observed me as I spoke, and seemed fascinated by what I was saying. After I finished she took her time to process what I said before speaking. "Interesting. - I have made my selection, I pick the ET movie. Let us go now." She began slithering towards the entrance.
I suppose we've wasted enough time standing around. I jogged to catch up with her and we entered the theater. The interior was brightly lit and had a real 80's aesthetic to it, or at least that's what I was told by one of the workers when I asked about it before. The 80's was before my time. The color scheme was teal, white, and pink. The carpeting reflected that with floral patterns and geometric shapes. There were velvet ropes that led up to the ticket counter, luckily there wasn't a line so we moved right up to it. As I walked up, I noticed the girl working the ticket counter seemed nervous, and she had this uncomfortable looking fake smile plastered on her face. She was wearing a black polo and black pants, and there was white text on the right side of her shirt that said Cinestar. The counter itself had a greish top, with a fake wood look on the bottom.
The girl's eyes darted from 11-7 to me. She seemed unsure of who to address, eventually she decided on me. "Is there a problem sir?"
I shook my head and put my hands up. "Oh, no." I pointed at 11-7 with my thumb. "She's just my bodyguard. I'm here to see a movie."
She relaxed slightly, but still seemed on edge. I noticed as I spoke to her she occasionally looked at 11-7. "What would you like to see?"
"Uh yeah, gimme..." I looked back at 11-7 for a few moments, and then looked back at the cashier. "6 adults for ET."
As I said that she got all tense again, but she held onto that smile. "6? Is there more coming in?"
"No, I just figured since she's gonna take up more seats I should buy more tickets."
Her eyes darted from 11-7 to me again. "That's not necessary sir. You can just pay for two tickets."
That's cool of her to do. "Really? Thanks. Say, what's your name?"
"Em, - eh - Katie." She barely squeaked out her name.
"Katie, well you're doing a banged-up job, ring me up for two tickets. I'm Lucus by the way, Lucas HIckey. Maybe you've heard of me?"
She shook her head and quickly typed on her console. "I can't say I have."
I waved my phone in front of the register to pay for the tickets. "Aw well, it's not important. Have a good night."
I heard her say "you too" as she handed my two tickets and I walked up to the concession stand.
There were a few lines up to the counter, so we had to pick one and wait. The concession area looked like how you would expect. Grey counter with candy under some glass displays in the counter. There were popcorn and drink machines in the back. I could hear the popcorn popping, as several workers tended to customers. I noticed that under 11-7's "on-duty" disposition she was taking in all the sights and smells. Her tongue flicked out, but she would pull it back in soon after, like she was resisting the urge to smell the food. I chuckled to myself, it was cute and something I doubt anyone else would pick up on. I started to think about what I should get for us as I looked around at the other people in line. None of them seemed to pay us any mind. In fact, it seemed like people were trying to not look at us. I looked at 11-7 and saw her now focused on something. Tongue flicking out slowly and her eyes were squinted. I followed her gaze over to some guy in a Jacket and jeans. His hair was short, and he had a goatee. I don't think he could've been older than 30. There was a younger looking woman next to him that was holding onto his arm. He was whispering something to her when I looked over. He must have been upset because he turned to face me and 11-7, and I guess seeing us both staring at him set him off.
His voice sounded angry, but he wasn't yelling. He spoke at a volume just above what my mom would call your inside voice. "Alright, if nobody else is gonna say somethin I'm gonna say somethin!" Most of the people in line turned their heads to look at the guy. He gestured at 11-7. "What is that thing doing here?"
Of course something like this had to happen the first time I take her out. She tensed up, and I remembered how she dealt with people in the past. She doesn't have any people skills, and would probably end up hitting this guy with the butt of her rifle if he pushed her enough. Which would reflect badly on me. It was a difficult decision, I didn't usually like to get involved in conflict like this, but I came here today mostly for her, so I should at least try to back her up, right? I decided to take the initiative and attempt to de-escalate the situation before she damaged my reputation, or her's.
I took a half step forward and put my shoulder in front of her, so she would understand what I was doing. I glanced at her, her eyes widened slightly at my move. She didn't say anything, just refocused on the guy and furrowed her brow, voicing her annoyance with a snort. I guess that meant she was letting me take the lead. I returned my attention to the guy. "What do you mean? I didn't see a sign out front that she couldn't come in."
The guy gestured to her plasma rifle. "I mean that it's a soldier. You know, most people come in here to get away from having a gun waved in their face at all hours of the day. Most of the damn things I see walking on my way to work could kill me without a gun." I heard some murmurs of approval coming from other people in line.
I wasn't sure what this guy was going to start spouting off, but that was surprisingly reasonable. I raised my hands up nonthreateningly. "And you know what, that's fair. I'm not unsympathetic to that, but she's my bodyguard. I need to have her around for my safety."
The guy furrowed his brow and looked me over. Probably trying to figure out who I was. "Yeah, uh huh. - Who are you?"
If this ended up going south I didn't want it to reflect badly on me, you never know who is recording these things. So, I decided to not indulge him. "It doesn't matter who I am. She's not gonna bother you unless you're a threat to me or others."
He gestured to her. "She is already bothering me, by being a heavily armed giant snake. I don't think I could sit in the same room with it without feeling uncomfortable."
After he said that the woman holding his arm tugged on it, and I heard her quietly say "Please stop, we'll get in trouble."
The guy looked at her and whispered. "I know, but this isn't just about us." He looked back at me with renewed fervor. "And, I'm willin to bet everyone here would agree with me!" Again I heard some murmurs of approval, although there were less than the first time.
I couldn't believe I was about to do this, but I was not about to be forced out of the theater. I didn't care how this guy, or anyone else, felt. This night was about 11-7, not them. "Listen buddy, are you really saying that you have a problem with a servant of Advent? Because If you are that sounds kinda Anti-Advent." I crossed my arms. "Should I notify them that you will be putting in a formal complaint about the presence of their personnel?" I said that with as much venom as I could muster. Ugh, I felt so dirty pulling the Advent card, especially after it has been used on me so many times. We weren't allowed to discuss, or question Advent, and it was the easiest way to shut down any discussion. You were either Pro-Advent or Anti-Advent, there was no in between, and I was playing right into their hands by using it. Honestly, it made me no better than my manager.
As soon as I said that the murmurs disappeared and any support this guy had died. He looked down at the ground, and all that fervor was replaced with panic. "I - uhh, No! I'm sorry, I didn't mean it that way. - I - I've always supported Advent, I don't have any anti-Advent sentiment. I even have some friends that are Advent." He looked back up at me, and spoke a little quieter. "I was only askin if she really had to be here."
I cleared my throat. "Well, she does need to be here. So, let's just agree to disagree, and be done with it."
I heard the guy mumble "Okay." He still seemed upset, but as long as he kept it to himself I didn't care what he thought. He stayed in line for a little bit longer, but after some whispers between him and his girl they walked off down the hall to their movie without snacks. Soon after that we were at the counter to get the snacks. I didn't really have much time to think about what to get, so I just got a hotdog, popcorn, and two sodas.
As we were walking down the hallway I felt 11-7 poke me, so I handed her the hotdog. I heard her suck it down enthusiastically, and then she spoke. "You handled that well."
I just responded with "Huh?" I wasn't really paying attention and was focused on the signs above the theater rooms.
"When the angry man was yelling at you, you did a good job. Not using violence is admirable, it is more difficult, but striking him would have been more efficient."
She knows how to maintain a professional image, but not a positive one. Strange, I wonder if Advent trained her at all on interacting with humans. "Thanks, I guess." I suddenly got the idea to use this as a learning opportunity. "You should keep in mind people's opinions of you, and the consequences that those opinions can have. Think about the impression you would have made on the bystanders if you did that, and how what those people would have seen could change the opinions of people who didn't even see it in person."
I glanced back at her, and she shrugged. "Even if I attempted to quell the man as you did, the result would have been the same: him shutting up and leaving. I do not care for what they think, it is not my duty to appear a certain way."
She really just doesn't care what anyone thinks. I stopped and turned to look at her, no one was in the hallway which probably explained why she was talking to me. "Surely you serve them, just as much as you serve Advent?"
She squinted her eyes and looked away for a few moments. She adjusted her grip on her rifle and started to speak, but she sounded uncertain. " - That man is right, I am a soldier. Personnel similar to the peacekeepers serve the Advent and the public good, but I serve - you and Advent."
Interesting, I doubt she's had any training from Advent on human interaction then, maybe I should ask her about it later. "Oh, I see. - Uh, this is a weird discussion to have at the theater, let's keep moving before the movie starts."
She turned back to me. I still saw some uncertainty in her reptilian eyes, but she nodded in agreement.
I found the right room easy enough and we walked in, the ads were still playing. The room itself is what you would expect. Large with high ceilings and a big screen for the projector to project the movie onto. The seating was black pleather cushioned stadium seats complete with retractable armrests that had cup holders. There weren't too many people in here, but once 11-7 came in they started looking our way. I whispered to her. "So, where do you want to sit?"
She slithered past me and up the stairs, luckily they were large enough that she didn't have any trouble moving up them. I followed her up to a spot in the corner, far away from everyone else. She sat down on a chair. Using her body, she sequentially lifted armrests, lowered seats, and ended up draping her body across 5 seats. There was a man and a woman sitting near the spot she picked. They promptly got up and moved away from her once she got comfortable. She didn't seem to notice and started patting the open seat next to her.
I walked up and sat down on that seat, and handed her a soda. "Why'd you pick this spot? You can see the movie better if we sit more towards the middle."
She stopped stucking in her soda. "Strategic advantage. If someone is looking for us, they will have to walk out of that entrance alley to see us."
I chuckled. "I suppose it's a good thing one of us is paying attention, besides this location is a little more - private than anywhere else in the theater."
She nodded. "Yes, I can speak freely here, no one is likely to hear." Again perhaps missing what I meant. She looked at my bag of popcorn and flicked her tongue out a few times. "This popcorn, is it any good?"
I nodded. "Well, I like it, but you can't chew, so I'm not sure..."
Before I could finish she grabbed a sizable handful and put it in her mouth. I heard the popcorn crackle as she shut her jaws, but then she started coughing and a bunch of it flew out of her mouth and stuck to the back of the har in front of us.
I don't know how to do the heimlich maneuver, so I pointed at her soda. "Take a drink to wash it down."
Her eyes darted to her cup, and she tore the lid off and drank half of it.
I smiled and shook my head. "Jeez, you can't just hork down everything." She held up a finger to signify she needed a minute.
She took a few deep breaths and looked at me. "I understand that now. I will eat it slower." She glanced at the chair and chuckled as she wiped off her saliva and popcorn off of it with a swipe of her tail.
"Are you ok?"
She nodded. "I am fine." She grabbed a smaller handful and took her time eating it. After she swallowed, she asked a question. "It tastes of salt and butter. Is that all it is?"
"Yeah, why do you not like it?"
She shook her head. "It is not my favorite, but is still good. - You do not have to worry about me eating all of it." She smiled after saying that.
I chuckled. "That's fine with me. - You're not hungry are you? We could go get more hotdogs."
She laid her rifle on one of the chairs her body was occupying. "It is not your duty to feed me Lucas, that hotdog was much overpriced. I'll not be having you go bankrupt in an attempt to make me full."
"It's fine I can..."
She put her hand in my face. "Ahhe! You specified we were here to have fun, not to have dinner." I can't believe she pulled that on me now.
I backed off with my insistence. "Alright, if you say so. It's just I never thought I'd see the day you'd so adamantly refuse free food."
She wagged her finger at me. "Free for me, but not for you."
The previews started and ended our discussion. While we watched some of them my mind went back to the guy I argued with, not to anything broad, I just remembered that he called her a snake. That reminded me of, well me. The first time I met her I called her a snake, Ron calls her a snake all the time, I've seen other people call her a snake, and sometimes I do it as a joke. I wonder if it really bothers her, maybe I should ask.
"Hey, are you bothered by how much people call you a snake?" She snapped her head in my direction and cocked her head, but did not say anything. "That guy by the concession stand called you a snake, just thought about it now."
She snorted and slouched her neck a little. "What do you think?" She continued before I could answer, and gestured to the air as spoke. "It annoys me, I am aware of some of your species - mythology. I know that being called a snake is an insult, and that snakes in general are not favored much by your society."
"Yeah, I could see how that would be annoying. I'm sorry for, uh calling you a snake, I think I've done it to tease you before."
"Tease, - what is a tease?"
"It's when you say or do something to provoke a reaction from someone, playfully. You know, not like maliciously."
She thought for a few moments. "I have done that to you before, but I did not understand that insults could be - teasing. I accept your apology, but now I must apologize."
I chuckled. "For what?"
She looked away from me and played with her hands. "When I called you names I meant it because I thought you meant your words."
I waved a hand dismissively. "Don't sweat it, I've been called worse things than a smelly ape."
She nodded. "That is good, - not good that you have been insulted worse. Good that you - have accepted my apology."
I chuckled. "It's cool, I know what you meant." I took a sip from my soda. "You know, snakes aren't seen exclusively in a bad light, I think medical symbols had snakes on them."
She swallowed some popcorn she was munching on. "That is one of the exceptions I found, and some of your more ancient cultures saw them in a positive light, don't mistake me for a historian. But, your modern cultures do not see them that way. The term snake means to be - untrustworthy, - vicious, - evil." she took her time listing those adjectives, and she sighed after she was finished. "You do not need to make it seem more pleasant than it is, I know how humans view snakes. It doesn't matter that I am not one to them." She didn't seem sad as she said that, her voice had an edge to it, like she was annoyed that that's how things were.
"Hey now, don't you get mopey on me, none of those things describe you at all." I blurted out without thinking for a second.
What I said caught her attention. She squinted her eyes and flicked her tongue out slowly. "What do you mean?"
"I know I've said this before, but I think you're trustworthy. You may be a little aggressive, but you're not vicious. And evil doesn't describe you at all. You've been good to me - despite how I acted initially, and that's more than I can say for most people."
She made an expression I'd never seen before and froze. I don't think she's ever received a compliment in her life, and I may have short circuited her. She shook her head quickly and looked at me with interest. "So many words, do you mean them?"
"Of course I do." Finally, maybe she was starting to take the hint. Now, to go in for the kill. "You should try looking at it a different way. I actually kinda like snakes, I think they look cool." I said as nonchalantly as I could.
She chuckled loudly, almost like she was trying to force it. "Ah yes, flattery. - You are attempting to be friendly." Her eyes darted about the room for a few moments then she returned her attention to me. I saw something in her eyes, but I couldn't put it into words, desperation maybe. "Cool, yes I know that, fashionable, hip. - Are you attempting to compare me in a polite way that means you - think - I am cool looking?"
That was a lot to process. "Uh, yeah, - I think."
"What about me do you find cool?"
Oh shit, she was putting me on the spot. I didn't exactly have anything poetic prepared, but I had to say something, so she didn't think I was lying. Maybe I should have thought of this stuff beforehand. "Well, uh - I uh, Like your pattern."
She turned her head and observed the pattern on her tail. "My pattern?"
"Yeah, your body. Em- I mean, I like the colors on it. Orange and yellow go so well together, and the diamond shapes look nice." God I'm so terrible at this, I barely have any skills hitting on regular girls at the bar, much less alien girls.
She looked confused. "It is the same pattern that every Viper has?"
"That's true, but it looks good on you, you really pull it off. " I should really move on from this. "I, uh, like your face too." Why am I dissecting her anatomically with words, I should have just kept it simple and said she was beautiful.
That caught her interest. "My face, you like? It does not scare you?" She leaned her head forward and brought it closer to me. Her face was probably not much bigger than mine, but with her long neck and hood it made her head look huge. Her expression seemed more inquisitive now than anything, as she examined me.
"It doesn't scare me."
"What do you like about it?"
I clasped my hands together. "Well, uh- where to begin. It's sleek, - shaped well..." I had made my bed at this point, I was already talking about specific things, I couldn't just say I liked her overall look now. I swallowed. I was running out of ideas. "You have a large hood." I don't know why I said that, I thought it would be something she'd like to hear but I have no clue.
She raised an eyebrow. "My hood? I didn't know humans cared for such things?"
"It's very shapely, and uhh..."
As I was scanning her face for something I could talk about I realized I was skipping over the most obvious thing, her eyes. We made eye contact with each other. The color was always so striking, I loved that shade of red, and those sharp pupils, like obsidian daggers bisecting pools of blood. I may have been staring too long, because I saw she was starting to get confused. But, I had my inspiration now. "Your eyes are..."
Just as I was about to redeem myself, the lights started to dim. Instantly 11-7's disposition changed. She stood up, slithered in front of me and started pointing her rifle around the room wildly. Luckily, she didn't start yelling, that would have drawn a lot of attention.
I whispered to her. "Calm down, It's ok 11-7. The lights dimming means the movie is starting."
She turned her head to look at me. "You're certain this is normal?" She seemed very serious and on edge.
"Yeah, - it makes it easier to see the movie being projected."
She paused, and looked around the room once more. "I - understand." She relaxed and sat back down.
She slouched in her chair and sighed. I patted her on the shoulder. "It's alright, not that big of a deal. I don't think anyone even noticed."
She shook her head and snorted. "I mock you in the past for being so jumpy, and I prepared to vaporize someone because the lights darkened." She crossed her arms and sunk into her seat. "You may laugh if you want, I would not argue if you did."
"You must think I'm an idiot. The last thing I'd want to do is make fun of you for trying to protect me."
She smiled. "Yes, I forget sometimes you are not an idiot." She chuckled after that and sat up in her chair. "You are showing me excessive kindness today."
I smirked and leaned back in my chair. "What can I say, guess I'm feeling generous."
"I hope you keep feeling - generous. I like it."
We both got comfortable and immersed ourselves in the movie. I didn't remember ET too well, since I had seen it years ago, but it started the same as I remembered, well the plot was the same anyway. It was a remake, so it had different actors, and was in a different setting. There was a first person view of the alien running away from the FBI and into a shed. Boys playing DnD at a party, and the younger brother goes outside to get something from the shed. The part where I got confused was when it showed the alien in the shed, it wasn't the brown scrotum alien I remembered, but instead it was one of those small grey pre-invasion sectoids, the ones with the bulbous heads. Why would they change it like that? I guess it was an improvement, the original alien was fugly anyway. They're always doing that in remakes, changing little details. Makes you even wonder why they bother telling the same story again.
Whatever the case, while the movie kept playing I tried to get closer to 11-7. Partway through I tried to hold her hand. We had both been enjoying it so far and it was at one of the scenes where the boy and his sister were trying to hide the alien from their mom. I had let her take the armrest in preparation for this.
I gently sat my arm on top of hers and tried to get my hand under hers, but the moment our arms touched, her head jerked in my direction and I lost some of my nerve. So now my arm was just laying on top of hers. "Did you want to use the armrest?" She looked confused as to what the hell I was doing.
"I, uh. - We could share it."
She eyed me suspiciously. "Okay." She made no attempt to move my arm off of her arm, so I guess I kinda succeeded. I expected that to be it, but then she spoke again. "Your arm is - warm..." She sounded like she was gonna say something else, but trailed off.
I wasn't sure what she meant by that. "Oh, sorry. I can move it if you want."
She looked at me with a serious expression and blurted out "No." Then she relaxed and chuckled, like she was trying to play it off as a joke. "I - appreciate - warm things."
This was getting a little weird, but in a good way. "It's a good thing I'm warm then, heh."
She nodded. "It is." Then she returned her attention to the movie. Unfortunately I couldn't try to lace my fingers with hers because her forearm was much longer than mine. All well, it was a start.
The movie kept playing, I think we were halfway through it, and I couldn't hold it in anymore.
I hated to have to lift up my arm, but I did. "Hey, I gotta take a piss." I had sucked down my soda shortly after the previews ended, and now I was paying the price. "Do you want to escort me?"
11-7 cocked her head. "Pei - sss. What is that, and why are you taking it?"
"It meant I have to go to the bathroom."
She nodded. "I understand. Yes, I should escort."
We left the theater room and went to the nearest bathroom. I went in and did my business. As I was washing my hands another person came into the bathroom. He was wearing a grey hoodie, and some jeans. He had the hood pulled up so I couldn't see his face. As I went to leave the bathroom, he bumped into me quite hard. I spun around to tell him to watch where he was going, but he darted into a stall. Guess I couldn't blame him, if he had to go that bad. I let it slide and we went back to the theater room.
I set my arm back on top of hers while we watched the movie. There wasn't much that happened as we watched the movie. She thought it was funny when the sectoid drank some beer, and remembered what drunk was, in her words. The part where the sectoid was dying made her sad, but there was a happy ending, where the Elders made an appearance and took the sectoid home. All in all, it wasn't a bad movie, and I had a great time, 11-7 seemed to enjoy it too. I had thought about making more moves while the movie was playing, but I didn't want to push things too hard. I mean, touching her arm got a strong reaction, I don't want to scare her off.
As we were leaving the room, I noticed something strange. Once the credits started rolling I saw the words "Based on a True Story" appear on screen. I thought about mentioning it to 11-7, but there were too many people around as we left, so I kept it to myself, but that was just a blatant lie. Is it possible something like that happened, maybe, but why call it ET, in reference to the original movie then? Whatever, it was just another movie with some pro-Advent themes, nothing to get up in arms about, but sometimes they lay it on just a little too thick.
We climbed into the car with Ron. 11-7 and I gleefully discussed the movie the whole ride home. Ron didn't seem interested in joining the discussion. I didn't bug him about it since it was getting late now, and he was probably tired, I know I was. We made it home, I said goodbye and goodnight to Ron, and we went inside.
As I walked into the kitchen I was laughing and still chatting with 11-7. I reached into my pocket to grab the ticket from the movie to throw it away, but I felt something else. Something - glossy? I pulled it out and looked at it. What I saw made me feel lightheaded, I almost didn't believe what I was holding was real. I blinked my eyes a few times, but It was still in my hand. I slowly walked over to the couch and sat down, staring at the photo the whole time.
It was an innocent enough photo. There were two boys that were in overalls outdoors next to an oak tree. One was sitting on a tire swing attached to the tree, and the other was standing next to him. Both were wearing big toothy grins. I flipped the photo over and read the words "Swinging into summer 2016 Randy and Lucas." written with a black permanent marker.
I heard 11-7 say something, and shook myself from my thoughts. "Lucas, what's wrong?" She snaked her head over by mine to see the photo I was looking at. "Why do those two boys look the same? - Is one of them you?"
I swallowed, not really looking at her. "Oh, that's me and one of my brothers, - my twin brother, we're - uh - Identical twins..."
"I didn't know you had a twin brother, he wasn't in your file. - Is he living on the farm?" She sounded interested.
I sighed. "No, he's - dead, and according to Advent records, he doesn't exist."
She pulled her head back slightly and looked concerned. "Doesn't exist? I - understand... How did he die?"
I had spent so many years trying to move on, and this night was going so well. I wasn't going to lie to her about it anymore, there'd be no point now. I leaned forward on the couch and rested my elbows on my knees. I didn't look at her, I just looked at the photo as I spoke. "You remember when I said that I lived in a two bedroom apartment by myself, and all those times I said I came to this city by myself." I didn't wait for her to respond. "I lied. When I came to this city, me and my brother moved up here together." I chuckled. "You know it's funny, I was the one who convinced him to come up here with me..."
I felt her sit down next to me on the couch, she sat right next to me, close enough that I felt her rub against the side of my body. "What happened?" She spoke so softly, so sweetly, I almost didn't hear it. I don't know why I continued, I guess she managed to tease it out of me.
"After we got processed into the Advent Civilian Labor pool, we were assigned jobs working in a small arms factory. We worked that job for months and months, but nothing ever came of it. It was clear we wouldn't get anywhere if we worked there for our entire lives. We realized that this city wasn't everything we'd hoped it would be, but we couldn't leave. Partially because Advent made it difficult to leave once you were processed, but also because we'd have to crawl back to our parents and admit they were right."
She spoke again in an undertone. "Too stubborn?" I felt something in those words, like maybe she understood, or had done something similar.
"Yeah, everything they told us would happen, did happen." I sighed. "But we were determined to prove them wrong, so we started to look for other opportunities to move up in this city."
"Opportunities? What are you meaning?" I think she moved closer and put her arm around me. I felt her touch, but didn't acknowledge it. I was seeing everything play out again, like an old movie you couldn't forget.
"Things that were not legal, - smuggling mostly. It's not like we had much to lose at that point. We did a few jobs, always small things that would fit in your pocket, easy stuff. One day, the guy giving us jobs told my brother about a meeting that was happening, and that we were invited to go. We were already criminals, so we decided to go. When we got there I realized that we were getting in over our heads. It was a terrorist recruitment meeting."
"What happened at the meeting?"
"I think they were called the Human Liberation Army, or something, I don't remember exactly. But, their leader was there and he gave this big talk about the things Advent was doing and about the oppression of humanity. I didn't trust anyone, much less some guy I didn't know trying to convince me to fight a superior military force. I acted enthusiastic, so I wouldn't draw attention to myself, but my brother was entranced by what that guy said. While he was talking to people I started memorizing names, and I got the time and place for the next meeting."
"I am starting to understand now."
"When we got back home I wrote down everything I learned on a piece of paper, and pretended to be sick the next day. I was in a precarious situation. I knew I had two choices, I could either throw my lot in with the terrorists, or side with Advent. There was no inbetween, if the terrorists found out I wasn't completely on board they would have killed me, just the same as Advent would have if they found out I was keeping info from them. I knew which was the better option, so while my brother was at work I tipped off Advent to the meeting."
"You didn't speak to him about it?"
"No... but sometimes I wish I did. I didn't explain how much he ate up what that guy said, but for the first time in my life I wasn't sure whether my brother would have my back or not. I was worried that if I showed him the list I made and explained my plan, he would have tried to kill me on the spot, or lied and tipped off the rebels. If he had just not gone to that meeting, I'm certain I could have convinced him that this is what was best for the both of us. But, he had already made up his mind, he went to that meeting. Advent killed him and everyone else that was there. The rest, you already know." I let out a sigh of relief, and felt a slight satisfaction having finished my story.
She let go of me and gestured wildly as she spoke. "None of what you are saying was in your file. It mentioned that you infiltrated the rebel meeting, but was not specific. Why would Advent not tell me this?" She seemed agitated, and sounded like she didn't believe me.
I looked at her and shook my head. "Isn't it obvious. They don't want anyone to find out one of their VIP's had a shady past, and it gave them more control over me since they wiped my record clean."
She frowned in response to what I said and I saw uncertainty in her slitted pupils.
I set the photo on my wooden coffee table. "I never blamed Advent for what happened that day, I was the one who made it happen after all. - And I've still never regretted that decision either, - it was the only one I could make. I just wish the outcome had been different..."
She looked the saddest I had ever seen her. Her hood was almost tucked in, and the features on her face had softened. "Lucas, I - I'm sorry."
I sighed. "Don't be, - it happened a long time ago."
I stood up and she stood up with me. I heard concern in her voice as she spoke. "Where are you going?"
I noticed that she had been wearing her armor this whole time. I guess she didn't have time to change out of it yet. "I'm - going to bed."
I started walking away, but I was stopped in my tracks by something grabbing my arm. Her fingers were tightly wrapped around my wrist. I looked at her face, I saw determination in her sharp eyes. "Are - you - alright, Lucas."
She may not have worded that eloquently, but she was giving me an out, trying to help, to get me to open up. Some part of me really wanted to believe that she could help, but people feed on that weakness and then use it against you. She was the first person or alien I had ever told that story to, and I already had told her way more than I was comfortable with. "I'm fine, I don't even know why I told you all of that." I ripped my arm from her grasp and walked into my room. She didn't try to stop me.
I laid on my back sprawled out in bed and stared at the ceiling. Whatever that machine did was gone now, guess it wasn't a permanent solution, seems like nothing ever is. I felt terrible again. This was all because of that damn photo, where the fuck did it come from? I had washed these pants not that long ago, and a photo would not have survived that. I sorted through the day's events, eventually stopping on when that guy bumped into me in the bathroom. I thought back, and I might have felt him put his hand in my pocket, but I didn't realize it at the time because I had nothing to steal... I am so fucked. Some of them must have gotten away and found out. They know me, they remember what I did. They want revenge for who died, - they want revenge for my brother. But, why didn't that guy try to kill me? It doesn't matter, they're probably just toying with me before they do...
I curled up in the fetal position, and laid on my side. I hadn't felt despair like this since the night before I decided to side with Advent. I didn't know what to do, so I just closed my eyes and hoped that sleep would come.
0-
But sleep did not come. All I saw was my brother's name below the picture from his ID scrolling across the tv screen while the news reporter listed the names of the terrorists that died during the Advent raid. I saw the guy in the bathroom planting the photo, and I saw my death at the hands of those rebels. I don't know how long I laid there, but I opened my eyes and sat up in bed. Maybe I should get some water.
I went out into the kitchen and saw a familiar viper on the couch. She had changed out of her armor and was wearing a white t-shirt. She looked tense, and nothing was playing on the tv. When she noticed my presence her eyes darted in my direction. She looked like she wanted to say something, but she didn't. So I went and drank a glass of water, savoring the coolness as it coated my throat. As I walked back to the living room, I noticed 11-7 was coiled up in the hallway, blocking the path to my room.
We stared at each other for a bit, neither of us saying anything. The tip of her tail occasionally flicked in a random direction which caught my attention every time. Then I guess she decided what she was gonna say. "Lucas, I know something is wrong." I saw that same determination in her eyes again.
I sighed, and waved a hand dismissively. "It's my burden to bear, I don't need anyone else. Just move out of the way, so I can try to sleep."
She spoke at a normal volume, but there was a softness to her voice. "I see it written all over your face, I've seen it on you every morning. It's not a good look, I won't force you to share, but I am not your enemy Lucas."
I shook my head. "Is this a part of what you think your duty is?" Maybe I didn't mean that, but it had to be addressed.
She crossed her arms. "If I was doing my duty I would coil around you and restrained you until you were taken to a clinic." She sounded angry, but softened her voice on the next sentence. "I - wish to help you."
I think I believed her, some part of me did anyway. I told her what I realized about where the photo came from, and how fucked I was.
She sounded determined. "We'll tell Advent about it and fix this. They can look at security footage and track down that person..."
Her ignorance annoyed me, and I cut her off. "Don't you get it? It's not just one person, I was attacked by a group of them before you were hired. If they've held on to this grudge that long, they'll never leave me alone." I felt my blood boil as I ranted. " I gave up everything that I possibly could, 11-7. My family, my hometown, my brother, my privacy, my freedom, everything I ever knew. And for what? A moderately comfortable life and some fame. And I think I was fine with that, but now I can't even relax in my own fucking house. They were able to find me at the movie theater. If they could find me there, they could just as easily find me here, and they might even know my schedule. It's just a matter of time before they get to me, and there's nothing you or Advent can do about that..."
She looked sad, but didn't say anything. I felt bad about yelling at her. "I'm not mad at you, and I'm not looking for your pity. I've just been so stressed lately, and now I can't even sleep at all. And I'm just bombarded with these bad dreams every - single - night. It's like I don't feel..."
"Safe?" She offered.
I nodded. "Yeah - safe."
She looked away in thought for a few moments, and then leaned forward and put her hand on my shoulder. "Would it help if I - staying in your room, while you slept?"
That caught me off guard. "What?" This is what I wanted in a way, but not the right circumstances. I thought about it for a few moments and sighed. "It's worth a try."
She smiled and let go of my shoulder, moving aside, so I could pass. She followed me to the door of my room. When I looked back I saw she had her plasma rifle with her. I walked into my room and stood by my bed. She moved past me, bringing her 15 ft long body in. Using the tip of her tail to grab the door knob and shut the door.
My room wasn't small, but seeing her in here, all stretched out, put into perspective how large she really was. She coiled up on the ground next to my bed, and leaned her plasma rifle against the wall. I laid down on my bed and faced her. I could see her eyes well, they almost glowed in the dark. Guess she has night vision.
Neither of us said anything, we just stared at each other for a while. She decided to break that silence. I saw her smirk in the dim light. "You are not as talkative as the last time I was here." I think she was trying to lighten the mood, but I wasn't feeling it.
"Yeah, I was drunk then. I kinda wish I was drunk now."
Her smile disappeared. "Would that help?" She sounded curious.
"Maybe in the short term." I chuckled and turned away from her, laying on my other side. I didn't really care what I told her anymore, I was fully committed at this point. What was she gonna do, tell Advent I was sad and lonely. If they didn't already know that, they were terrible at their jobs. "It's ironic..."
I heard her say "What?" quietly.
"- How I play all these strong characters in movies and tv shows, and here I am hiding in my room like a child. - I can't protect myself from those terrorists, I can't even bear to be alone right now..."
I stopped talking because I heard movement, but she didn't say anything, so I kept going. "I thought losing my brother was the only consequence of my decision, but my choices are finally catching up with me."
My bed groaned, and I felt the weight of it shift towards where 11-7 was sitting. I tried to ignore it, but once I felt a four fingered hand caress my bicep I had to say - something. "What are you doing?"
She sounded surprised. "I am comforting you, making you feel - safe. - Do you want me to stop?" The way she spoke made it seem like she didn't really know what she was doing.
I thought about it. God, it had been a long time since anyone had even hugged me. Whatever she was going to do I wanted it. "No."
My heart skipped a beat as I felt her lithe body press into mine from behind. She wrapped her long arms around me, minding her claws as she pulled me close. My head rested comfortably against her long neck, in the crevice of her hood. I felt a little embarrassed as her sizable venom glands squished against my back. She was warmer than I imagined, guess she really wasn't completely cold blooded. Her head laid on my pillow, slightly above mine, and I felt her jaw rest on the top of my head.
I had some nightmares of this exact scenario, but I wasn't scared now. Hell, this was a dream come true, it felt good to be held. But, I couldn't understand why she cared enough to do this for me. "Why are you doing this?"
I heard her chortle above me, and felt her mouth ruffle my hair as she spoke. "You comforted me before for no reason. Do I need one?"
"No, I guess not." I chuckled.
She curled her tail around my legs, starting at my waist and working her way down to my feet. Her scales were smooth and soft, each one like a thin piece of warm flexible glass. When she reached my feet she coiled the tip of her tail around one of my ankles and gave it a squeeze before loosening up. She held tightly to me, but not so tight that I couldn't move around somewhat. I felt the strength her body contained, the muscle under the thin layer of surface fat, as her tail rubbed against my bare legs. She probably could break every bone in my body if she was so inclined, but here she was wrapping me up so gently and holding me in her arms. She was embracing me completely with her whole body. I never knew I even wanted this, but it has been so long... Did I deserve this? My eyes started to water, this was probably the closest I had come to crying in a long time, but I didn't want to ruin the moment, so I blinked it away.
11-7 hummed a quiet tune and gently rubbed her head against mine. "Are you comfortable?" She asked, still humming.
I wanted to tell her so much right now, words fail me. "Definitely." Was all I could spit out.
Some air escaped her nose. "- Your body is even warmer than your arm, more than I assumed..." She moved her whole body and softly rubbed against me a little.
"I, uh - was thinking the same thing about you earlier actually."
She chuckled and stopped humming. "So, we are both warm then, good. You're no heat pad, but with the blanket neither of us will be cold tonight."
"Could you keep doing that thing."
"What thing?"
"The - humming thing."
"Hmm, you like it?" She started humming a different tune.
"Yeah, is that a song you know?"
"Not a human one, one of my sisters taught me how to do it."
"Oh, it sounds nice."
"I am happy you enjoy it too." She didn't speak for a while and we laid together like this. Bodies intertwined, sharing in each other's warmth. Her body occasionally moving to adjust her position, and rubbing against mine. "Do you feel comforted now?"
More than she could possibly know. "I do."
"Good, do yourself a favor and get some sleep. I'll worry about the rebels for you tonight."
My eyes drifted shut and I said, "Thank you."
Maybe the solution to my problems was right in front of me this whole time. It was the safest I had ever felt in my life. I wanted to turn around and kiss her maybe, or do something to show her how much this meant to me, but I wasn't sure what this was. That would be a question for tomorrow. I didn't know what the future had in store for me, but maybe I wasn't alone anymore, and at least for this one night I could allow myself to let go of my worries completely. After a short time, sleep finally came to me.