Hey everybody! I was finally able to upload the third chapter! Hurray! Sorry it took so long, but this one is pretty long, so hopefully that will make up for it. Enjoy, and please review!

Chapter three

The next morning, I woke early as usual. I still felt Ian's arms around me, warm and comforting, but then I noticed that it was silent. It was never silent in our room when Kyle was there. He was always talking, or if he was sleeping, snoring. But now there was a strange, unbroken silence in the room.

I lifted Ian's arms gently off me, and crawled over to Kyle's mattress. He wasn't there. This worried me, because Kyle never got up early. Back when we had gone to school, my mother had always had to shake him, and sometimes yell at him a bit, before he woke up. He was a deep sleeper. Once, he didn't wake up until three in the afternoon.

So, if Kyle was up early, something important must be happening. I wondered what it could be. I gulped. They wouldn't be killing it, would they? No, I decided, Ian would have told me. All the same, I was getting more and more anxious.

My worries were erased when I entered the main hall, though. Standing in the middle of the hall were Andy, Brandt, Jared, Kyle, and a few other men. They were leaving for a raid.

"Have you come to see your brother off?" Kyle asked me as I approached. He had been in a much better mood since I had unwillingly agreed to stay away from it.

"Yep. Bring back some good food, okay?" I said cheerfully.

Kyle grinned. "I'll do my best sis. But really," he continued, struggling to look serious,"Don't you want to tell me to be careful or something? You're not worried about me?"

"Oh, please," I scoffed. "You'll be fine."

Jared joined in the game now, too. "Don't worry, Lex, I'll protect Kyle from the mean aliens."

That was the too much for us. We all burst out laughing, as Ian came striding down the hall.

"Did I miss something?" He asked, raising his eyebrows.

"Nothing," Jared, Kyle, and I replied in unison, while trying not to laugh.

Ian just laughed. "Have fun Kyle," He said. Then, turning to me, "C'mon Lex, it's our turn to water."

With a final wave to Jared, and a hug for Kyle, I followed Ian to the garden. We watered the carrots for about an hour, and then went to the kitchen with the others who had been working with us. We drank some water and talked for a while, and then Jamie came to join us.

After a while, it was time for Jamie and me to go to school. It was more like a class, actually. Sharon taught us Math, and Science, and English. Jamie, of course, always found a way to get into trouble. He thought Sharon's classes were boring, and although I usually agreed, I tried to listen and be good. Besides, Sharon had an awful temper, and while I hated to admit it, she scared me sometimes when she was mad.

Today we were learning about the universe and the planets. This was one of the few interesting lessons, the ones that captivated even Jamie. Jamie asked a lot of questions when he was really interested in something. It wasn't a bad thing, but after he had interrupted Sharon three times in a row, she lost her temper and gave him a detention.

I stayed after class with Jamie during his detention, and while I was waiting, I asked Sharon more about the planets. She was more patient with me, I guess because I tried harder than Jamie to cooperate.

"So the planets were all named after Roman gods and goddesses?" I asked.

"Yes," said Sharon. "There's Pluto, he was the god of the underworld, and Venus, the goddess of love…"

We were interrupted by Jamie.

"Hey Sharon! It's been a half an hour. Can I go now?"

"Fine," Sharon said. "If you ever want to know more, Lex, you can always come talk to me later."

I nodded and thanked her, and then Jamie and I left.

"Man, I'm starving!" Jamie exclaimed as we walked down the hall.

"Me too," I agreed. "I wonder if they've baked some more bread yet," I wondered. We headed towards the kitchen, Jamie chattering happily to me as we walked.

When we arrived, I saw Ian at the back of the room. Sharon, Maggie, and Doc were already there.

"Hey, you two hungry?" Lily called.

We nodded eagerly and she tossed us some rolls. I intercepted Jamie's and he punched me playfully on the arm before I gave it back to him. Jamie swallowed his in two bites, while I chewed mine slowly, still thinking about the Science lesson.

Suddenly, the room went silent. I looked up to see Jeb leading it through the kitchen. I swallowed my bread, and looked around. Everyone was staring at it, and Sharon and Maggie were glaring maliciously at Jeb.

"Everybody full so quick?" Jeb asked loudly and sarcastically.

"Lost our appetites," Maggie muttered.

"How 'bout you," Jeb said, turning to it. "You hungry?"

It shook its head frantically as a quiet groan emerged from the others.

"Well I am," Jeb grumbled. He walked down the aisle between the counters, but it didn't follow. It probably wants to stay as far away from us as possible, I thought.

"Well, let's just keep on movin'," Jeb suggested as he chewed a mouthful of bread. "Nobody seems able to concentrate on their lunch. Easily distracted, this set."

Suddenly I felt Jamie stand up beside me. I looked up at him and he pulled me up.

"Jamie," I whispered, "I really don't think this is a good idea."

He ignored me and examined it through narrow eyes as he followed Jeb, towing me along. I felt the others' gazes shift back and forth between us and it.

"Whatcha need, kids?" Jeb asked without looking at us.

"Just wondering what you're doing," Jamie answered, trying to sound nonchalant, but failing.

Jeb stopped when he got to it, and turned to look at me and Jamie. "Takin' her for a tour of the place. Just like I do for any newcomer. Remember your tour, Lex?"

I nodded, remembering how strange it was the first time I saw this place. Back then it had seemed like a sanctuary to me, after being on the run for so long.

"Can we come?" I asked suddenly. I had no idea what made me ask. Maybe it was that I remembered what it had felt like to be new, in a strange place. Jamie had been the one to show me around then, and he made it his personal duty to make sure I was comfortable. I guess I thought it was my turn to do the same for someone else, even if that someone wasn't human.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Sharon shake her head feverishly, her expression outraged, and slightly anxious.

"Doesn't bother me…if you can mind your manners."

I shrugged. "No problem."

Jamie nodded. "I'll be good, don't worry Jeb."

"Let's go," Jeb said. He took us back out the way he had come. Jeb walked on one side of it, Jamie on the other, and I walked beside Jamie. Jamie kept looking at it, and it kept looking at Jamie, but whenever their eyes met, they looked away quickly. I was puzzled, but I didn't give it much thought.

We were halfway down the hall when I heard footsteps behind us. I was about to turn when it skittered to one side of the tunnel, sweeping me and Jamie along with one arm so that it was between whatever was coming. Apparently it had heard the footsteps too.

"Hey!" Jamie protested, but he didn't knock its arm away.

Jeb was just as quick as it in reacting. He raised the gun so fast I didn't see it leave its strap.

Ian and Doc both raised their hands above their heads.

"We can mind our manners, too," Doc said. I looked at Ian, silently asking him why he was here. Later, he replied, in the same silent language. I shrugged and turned back to Jeb, who was squinting at Ian, the barrel of the gun shifting to follow his gaze.

"I don't mean any trouble, Jeb. I'll be just as mannerly as Doc."

"Fine," Jeb said curtly, stowing his gun. "Just don't test me. I haven't shot anybody in a real long time, and I sort of miss the thrill of it."

It gasped, and we all turned to see its horrified expression. Doc was the first to laugh, and then we all joined in.

"It's a joke," Jamie whispered to it. I watched as his hand strayed from his side, almost as if he was reaching for its, but he quickly shoved it into his pocket. It dropped its arm too, which was still stretched protectively in front of us.

"Well, the day's wasting," Jeb said, still a little surly. "You'll all have to keep up, 'cause I'm not waiting on you." He stalked forward before he was done speaking.

"Sir, yes sir," I replied, saluting him. This made Jamie laugh, and I smiled before following Jeb. This time it kept close to Jeb in front, Jamie and I walked in the middle, and Ian and Doc took up the rear.

Ian and Doc, not surprisingly, were true to their word. They followed behind quietly, sometimes talking quietly to each other every now and then. I tried to understand what they were saying, but they could have been speaking German for all I could understand. So I gave up trying to figure out what they were saying, and paid attention to Jamie. He was silent, looking every now and then at it, and then back down at the floor. I wanted to speak to him, to break the silence somehow, but I didn't know what to say.

As a result, we walked in silence, Jeb chattering away to it, although it didn't seem to be paying much attention. Finally we arrived in the south wing.

"This here is the southernmost spur of the tube system," Jeb explained to it. "Not super convenient, but it gets good light all day long. That's why we made it the hospital wing. This is where Doc does his thing."

The moment Jeb announced where we were, it stopped dead in its tracks. Its eyes bulged with terror, and flickered between Jeb's face and Doc's. What is it worried about? I wondered. Then I realized. It must think we brought it here so Doc can…I shook my head. It thinks we're going to kill it.

The others stared back at it, expressionless, and Doc looked surprised. I reached out to touch it, placing my hand gently on its arm. It started to cringe away, but then it saw me. I looked at it with kind eyes, and murmured, "No, it's okay, really."

Jamie joined in, saying softly, "Don't worry, it's okay. Right Uncle Jeb?"

"Sure it is." Jeb's blue eyes were calm and clear now. "Just showing you my place, kid, that's all."

"What are you talking about?" Ian grumbled from behind us, sounding annoyed that he didn't understand.

My response was automatic, "Oh, don't be such a sourpuss, Ian."

It burst out laughing, and then, realizing we were staring at it, stopped abruptly. Suddenly I laughed too, and soon we were all laughing, though no one was sure why. Then, once we had all quieted, Jamie asked it, "Did you think we brought you here on purpose, for Doc? Because we wouldn't do that. We promised Jared." It didn't seem to be convinced, though.

"Oh!" Ian said as he understood, and then he laughed. "That wasn't a bad plan. I'm surprised I didn't think of it."

I scowled darkly at him, and patted its arm before removing my hand. "Don't be scared," I said.

Jeb took up where he'd left off, acting as though nothing had happened. "So this big room here is fitted up with a few cots in case anyone gets sick or hurt. We've been pretty lucky on that count. Doc doesn't…" I stopped listening there, and let my mind wander for a while. Doc caught my attention by asking, "What do you know about alien medicine?" He cocked his head to the side, and watched its face with expectant curiosity.

It stared at him silently.

"Oh, you can talk to Doc," Jeb encouraged it. "He's a pretty decent guy, all things considered."

It shook its head once.

"She's not giving away any trade secrets," Ian said sourly. "Are you, sweetheart?"

"Manners, Ian," Jeb barked. I made a mental note to thank Jeb later.

"Is it a secret?" Jamie asked.

It shook its head again. We stared at it confusedly, and Doc shook his head in bafflement.

It took a deep breath, and then whispered, "I'm not a Healer. I don't now how they – the medications – work. Only thatthey do work – they heal, rather than merely treating the symptoms. No trial and error. Of course the human medicines were discarded." I stared at it blankly. How, though? They had been here for less time than we had, and yet they had found a cure for all our diseases? How?

"Your kind didn't change too much of what we left behind, "Jeb said thoughtfully after a moment. "Just the medical stuff, and the spaceships instead of planes. Other than that, life seems to go on just the same as ever…on the surface."

"We come to experience, not to change," it whispered. "Health takes priority over philosophy, though." it shut its mouth suddenly, though I didn't know why.

Jeb nodded slowly, then ushered us ahead. We were quiet the rest of the way, and I thought about what it had said. "We come to experience, not change." They came to experience, so they had to get rid of us first? The thought angered me. They were visitors, and this was how they treated their hosts? Their hosts. I shuddered at the word. That was exactly what we were to them, hosts, bodies to live in, nothing more. They were parasites. But, I reasoned with myself, it isn't bad. You said yourself, and so did Jamie, and Ian. It's…different. But what does that mean, I argued. It could be better, or worse, than the others. Maybe it really is lying. My thoughts were interrupted by a gruff remark by Jeb.

"Go do something useful, "He said to Ian and Doc.

Ian rolled his eyes at Doc, but they left. I turned to go with them, but Jamie hesitated, so I waited.

"You two come with me," Jeb said, more friendly now. "I've got a job for you two."

"Okay," Jamie said, and I shrugged. Life in the caves was good, but it could be boring. I could use a little excitement.

Jamie and I walked on either side of it. I was surprised when we reached Jamie and Jared's room. Jamie pulled the screen aside for it, but stayed in the hall.

"You okay to sit tight for a while?" Jeb asked it.

It nodded, and ducked through the door.

"I got things to do, kids," Jeb said to Jamie and I. "Food ain't gonna fix itself, you know. You up to guard duty?"

We nodded in unison. I saw its eyes widen in disbelief as Jeb gave Jamie the rifle. I laughed silently at its expression.

"Are you crazy?" it shouted. I jumped slightly. I had never heard it yell before. It reached for the weapon, but stopped suddenly. I stood, frozen, watching it in awe. Next, it turned on Jeb.

"What are you thinking? Giving the weapon to two children! They could kill themselves!"

"Jamie's been through enough to be called a man, I think," Jeb replied calmly." He knows how to handle himself around a gun. And Lexi," he said, turning to me, "Well, Lex, is tough, and I reckon she's been through a lot more than almost anyone here." His eyes were sad as they watched me, and I smiled warmly at him. Jeb had become like a grandfather for me, these past few months, even if he did seem pretty crazy sometimes.

"What if they come for me with them here? Do you think of what could happen? This isn't a joke! They'll hurt them to get to me!"

I felt a jolt of compassion for it. It was worried about us? It didn't make sense. Unless…unless it really was different.

"Don't think there'll be any trouble today. I'd bet on it."

"Well, I wouldn't!" it yelled. "If you're so sure, then leave me here alone. Let what happens happen. But don't put them in danger!"

"Is it them you're worried about, or are you just afraid that he'll turn the gun on you?" Jeb asked.

It blinked, obviously not expecting this reaction. Neither was I, and as I glanced sideways at Jamie, I saw that he was just as surprised.

Jeb looked as though he were trying to solve a puzzle.

"Give the gun to Ian, or any of the other. I don't care," it said, its voice slow and even. "Just leave them out of this."

Jeb grinned like the Cheshire cat. "It's my house, kid, and I'll do what I want. I always do." Then Jeb turned his back and walked down the hall, whistling as he went.

"I'm not a child," Jamie muttered, his chin jutting out, "Now you should…you should go in your room."

It entered the room obediently, glancing sadly at Jamie.

I sat down, and watched Jamie pace for a while. Finally, he sat beside me, the gun settling on his folded legs. He sighed after a while, obviously bored. I could have said something, but then again so could he. Besides, my head was too full of thoughts to think of something to say.

After about an hour, I turned to see it watching Jamie, fascinated and wistful. I turned back to Jamie and said, "I'm going to talk to it." He shrugged, and I crawled through the hole into the room.

It moved out of the way for me, and I sat down beside it.

"Hi," I said, awkwardly. It stayed silent, watching me. "Um…listen, I just wanted to say, Jamie and I are fine, like Jeb said, we've both dealt with harder things than this. You don't need to worry." It simply nodded, still watching me.

"I…I don't think you're bad, you know," I said more quietly. "I think you're different, in a good way."

"Thank you," it replied, quietly, and although it said nothing more, its eyes showed its gratitude.

Jamie joined in the conversation now, "That planet you were coming from before you were in Melanie, what was it like there? Was it like here?" He turned to face us as he spoke.

"No," it said, "No, it was very different."

"Will you tell us what it was like?" he asked, cocking his head to one side, the way he did when he was really interested in something.

It told us all about the See Weeds, the name of the inhabitants of the planet it had been on last. Their planet had two suns and an elliptical orbit. It was a waterlogged planet, it said, and its waters were gray. They had permanent roots, and a thousand eyes. It told us about endless conversations of a million soundless voices that all could hear. It was the most interesting thing I had heard about since Sharon's lesson the other day. Even more interesting, maybe.

"Is that the only other place?" I asked when it fell silent. "Are the See Weeds," Jamie and I laughed at the pun, "the only other aliens?"

It laughed, too. "Hardly. No more than I'm the only alien on this world."

"Tell us." Jamie demanded.

So it told us about the Bats on the Singing World. I would love to live there, I thought, as it described what it was like to live in musical blindness, and to fly. Except for being blind, I reflected. I would hate to see nothing but darkness, no matter how great it was to fly.

After that, it told us about the Mists Planet. On this planet, they had thick white fur and four hearts. It told us how to give the claw beasts a wide berth, because they were dangerous.

Then it told us about the Planet of Flowers, and the color and light of the planet. I interrupted her, asking, "What about the little green guys with the triangle heads and the black eyes? The ones who crashed in Roswell and all that. Was that you guys?"

"Nope, not us."

"Was it all fake?" Jamie wondered.

"I don't know – maybe, maybe not. It's a big universe, and there's a lot of company out there."

"How did you come here, then – if you weren't the little green guys, who were you?" I asked curiously. "You had to have bodies to move and stuff, right?"

"Right," it agreed, looking surprised that I had realized this complication. "We used our Spider selves in the very beginning, to get things started."

"Spiders?" Jamie asked. I thought of the spiders we knew, with their beady eyes and furry legs. I remembered being bitten by a spider once, when I was five. I had cried and ran to Kyle, and he had held me tight. Then, he had told me that the spider had only bitten me because he was scared of me.

"Why would he be scared of me though?" I had asked.

"Because you're so big and strong. He thought that you were going to kill him if he didn't bite you." Kyle had replied, smiling slightly. I had laughed, thinking the idea was ridiculous.

"But I wouldn't! I wouldn't have hurt him!"

"Well, he didn't know that. He was just trying to protect himself. He probably has a family back at home, and think of what they would do without him? They would die. So maybe you should apologize to him for scaring him, and then he'll apologize to you for biting you."

My five-year old self had gasped at this. "I didn't think of that," I said solemnly. Then I had thanked Kyle, and jumped down from his arms. I sprinted to where the spider had been, and to my relief he was still there. Then, I had knelt down and whispered quietly, "I didn't mean to hurt you, I'm sorry." The spider said nothing, much to my surprise. But then, as if trying to show me he forgave me, he climbed gently onto my hand, which was resting on the ground. I had kept my hand very still, and when he was safely on my hand, I turned to see Kyle standing outside, watching. He grinned at me, and said, "I think he forgives you. But you should let him go now, so he can go back home." So I had knelt down again, after kissing the spider gently on the head, and let him go.

I was never afraid of spiders after that. They were friends, not enemies. I saw that particular spider many times afterward, and Kyle and Ian and I made up stories about his family and his adventures, and I named him Herbert. Herbert became one of my best friends over the years, and when he died, we had held a funeral for him, and all the neighbours had come, and it had been a beautiful ceremony.

That was one of my best memories of Kyle. It reminded me that he could be impulsive and even idiotic at times, but he still cared for me, and he would make sure nothing hurt me.

I smiled again at the memory of Herbert, then shook my head slightly and came back to the present.

It was telling Jamie about Spiders, and I turned my attention to t. Spiders, it said, were brilliant, and each Spider had three brains, one in each section of their bodies. It said that there was no problem, so far, that they couldn't solve. The Spiders had welcomed the parasites' occupation the most. They barely noticed the difference, it said, and when they did, they seemed to appreciate the direction they provided. The few souls, as it called its kind, that had been on the Spiders' planet before the implantation told the others it was cold and gray. Spiders saw only in black and white and had a limited sense of temperature. The Spiders lived short lives, but children knew everything their parent had, so no knowledge was lost.

The soul had lived one life term there, and then left, having no desire to return. The soul said that it had missed emotion and color, no matter how great the clarity of its thought and easy answers was. It wondered how any soul could be happy there, but apparently the planet had been self-sufficient for thousands of years. It was only still open for settling because Spiders reproduced so quickly.

It started to tell us how the offensive had been launched here. The Spiders, their best engineers, had made ships that moved quickly and undetectably through the stars. The Spiders had four long legs to each segment and twelve-fingered hands on each leg. The six-jointed fingers were slender, and as strong as steel threads. They were capable of the most delicate procedures. The Spiders had about the mass of a cow, but they were short and lean. They had no trouble with the first insertions. They were stronger and smarter than humans, and they had been prepared, which we had not been.

It stopped suddenly, and I turned to see a tear rolling down Jamie's cheek. I reached for his hand and he took it willingly, squeezing it hard. I wanted to hug him, but I knew he wouldn't let me. He was always trying to be so strong; I wished he would see that it was okay to cry. Not all the time, of course, but sometimes it was good for you.

"Jamie," the soul murmured. Its voice was thick, and I felt another jab of compassion for it. "Jamie, I'm so sorry. I wasn't thinking."

Jamie just shook his head. "'S okay. I asked. I wanted to know how it happened."

Suddenly, the soul reached out to wipe the tear away from his cheek. I watched, motionless, as I saw the love in its eyes. Even after it had wiped away the tear, it left its hand there, cradling Jamie's face. Jamie tried to ignore it at first, but then he rolled towards the soul, dragging me with him. He curled into the soul's side, and put his cheek against the hollow of its shoulder, where he sobbed for a few moments.

I felt a pang of jealousy, watching him so close to the soul. It could tell Jamie it was okay to cry without saying a word, and yet he wouldn't listen to me? I knew I shouldn't feel this way, but I still a ripple of pain pass through me. Jamie, seeming to feel my pain, withdrew from the soul suddenly, and put one arm around me, drawing me in. Then he put his cheek back against the hollow of its shoulder, and the soul put its other arm around me.

Suddenly, I was crying too, not as much, or as loudly, but all the same I was crying. The soul reminded me of my mother, with her kind eyes and soft voice. For a moment I thought it really was my mother holding me, but then I remembered where I was and I cried harder than I had in eight years.

"I'm sorry," it said again and again, both to me and to Jamie it seemed.

It didn't drop its arms once we had quieted. I had shifted so that my cheek was on the soul's other shoulder, and Jamie was on the other side, although he had never let go of my hand.

"I know I've taught you better than that, kids."

We jumped apart, me and Jamie lurching to our feet, and the soul cringing into the wall.

Jeb leaned down and picked up the gun we'd all forgotten about. "You've got to mind a gun better than this, Jamie. And you should've been paying attention Lex." His words were criticizing, but his tone was gentle. He reached out to tousle Jamie's hair.

Jamie ducked under Jeb's hand, his face mirroring mine, scarlet with mortification.

"Sorry," I muttered, and turned, as if to make my escape, with Jamie walking slightly ahead of me. Suddenly I stopped and turned to look at the soul. "I don't know your name," I said.

"They call me Wanderer," the soul whispered.

"Wanderer?" I repeated.

The soul nodded, and then I turned and hurried after Jamie. We had a lot to talk about.

So there you go. I also wanted to say that if you have any ideas for the story or ideas about how certain characters should behave, please tell me! I can take criticisim, I promise!