“Silence speaks louder than words.”

Burns

I wasn’t snooping. Honestly. I just tripped over her bag. I would never go through someone’s belongings without permission, but the notebook just fell out, so I picked it up. It’s not even her notebook. It’s mine. The one I gave her yesterday so she could make notes for me. I’m allowed to flip through it. I’m curious what she wrote down.
I smile when I see the little drawings in the margins. Perhaps I should get her a new sketchbook since her old one is ruined. Her doodles are quite accurate. Almost as good as Scales draws them.
When I flip the page my eyes grow large. The next page contains a picture of me. And I mean me. Not the human body I wear. At least, it’s supposed to be me. I recognize the description I gave her of what a Soul looks like, but I suppose her human brain comes up with this.
A sound behind me makes me turn around. Emma is standing on the stairs, dry toweling her hair. Her eyes move to the notebook in my hands and I feel caught, like I’m doing something forbidden.
“It fell out,” I excuse myself.

She takes a step closer. The towel dangles from her finger tips. “It’s your notebook,” she says softly.
I notice how she avoids meeting my eyes. Is she embarrassed? “Is this what you think I look like?” I ask her and hold up the picture.
“It’s what you told me you looked like,” she answers. Her eyes flicker to my face uncertain. Is she afraid of offending me?
“Yeah,” I say, “I know… but…”
“But it’s not what you look like, is it?” she finishes for me.
I stare at her for a moment to think about my words so I don’t confuse her. “Well I do,” I say, “but I don’t.” Oh yes Burns, very smooth. Not confusing at all. But she surprises me.

“It’s not that easy, is it? Understanding something you don’t know.”
A relieved sigh escapes my mouth. “No,” I say, “it isn’t.”
We stare at each other for a while, but it isn’t uncomfortable.
“What would you say if we go shopping today?”
She raises an eyebrow at me. “Souls shop?”
“Of course we do. We need things too. I just thought perhaps you like some new clothes.”
That silences her, but only for a few seconds. “I can’t accept that.”
“Why not?” I ask confused, “all it takes is a drive to town. I need to go to town anyway. I want to take some more pictures.”

She shakes her head slightly. “I’m not used to everything being for free yet. I keep thinking about how expensive clothes used to be.”
That was her objection? That it might cost me something? Even so, It wouldn’t have mattered. I would have given her whatever she would need. That is how we are.
“Is that a yes then?” I ask.
She looks at the floor. “I don’t know.”
“Okay,” I nod, though I am slightly disappointed, “then we’ll stay here.”
“Huh?” Emma’s head snaps up and she stares at me confused. “I thought you said you had to go to town.”
“I’ll just go some other time. It’s fine. It can wait.”
“You don’t have to stay here because of me.” Her eyes are wide.
“I don’t mind,” I laugh, “besides it’s no fun going alone. I like to have company.”
“But you’re alone when you go out to do your research,” she comments.
I shrug at that. “Not necessarily. Sometimes I invite Scales to come along or I go visit Core and Ocean and do research where they live. And I often meet new people on my travels.” I laugh at her. “Kind of how I met you.”
She manages a wry smile. “Sorry for ruining that for you.”
“You’re not. I like having you around.”
“Even though I keep you from doing the things you want to do?” she asks.
I shake my head at her amused. “Emma, I am doing the things I want to do. And didn’t you go with me into the mountains yesterday? We had fun, didn’t we?”
“I suppose,” she says, “but we didn’t run into other people yesterday.”
“So if we don’t run into other people, you’ll come?”
She lets out a soft laugh. “We’re going shopping. We’re bound to run into other people.”
It’s my turn to laugh now. “It’s not like I’m going to stop and talk with everyone on the streets. The store personal maybe. Or I might say hi to a random stranger.” I tilt my head. “Good enough?”
Emma sighs in defeat and I suddenly feel guilty. It’s a strange thing to feel when you haven’t done anything wrong. I smile at her reassuringly. “Forget what I said. I won’t push you.”
“No,” she tells me, “it’s fine. I’ll come with you.”
“You don’t have to say yes just to please me.”
“Do you want me to come or not?” she suddenly seems annoyed.

“Yes,” I answer, “but I want it to be your decision. Not mine.”
“Well I’ve decided,” she growls.
Okay, what did I do wrong? It’s not you, it’s girls in general, my brain tells me and I have a vague memory that human girls get like that sometimes when it’s the time of the month. I also remember not to say that out loud, though I’m not sure why. But since she seems angry already, I think it’s best not to ask about it.
“Let’s go then,” I say instead, “we can get something to eat on the way. Is that okay with you?”
“It’s fine,” she answers and her voice sounds strangely tired.
Leaving the towel over the back of a chair, she moves to get her coat and shoes and I wonder if this counts as an argument or not.
Humans are the strangest creatures I’ve ever met.

***

From the corner of my eye I see Emma stare out of the window, watching the scenery flash by. She’s back to her silent self, but something has changed. I can’t put my finger on it, but she seems more relaxed than before. Maybe we can be friends after all.
“Where are we going?” Emma looks at me questioningly as we leave the city behind.
“We’re going shopping. Like I said.”
“But…” She stares out of the window confused and then turns back to me.

“I didn’t say we were staying in town. We’re going over to the next city.”
“…oh…,”she says and bites her lip.

I find that she does that a lot when she wants to say something but isn’t sure how. So I’ll start the conversation then. “So your father was a Scientist, yes? And your mother a Healer?”
“Doctor,” she corrects me, reminding me that Healer is a Soul word.
“What was your Calling going to be?” I ask curiously. There’s a mysterious smile around her lips.
“I wanted to go to art school.”
I nod. I’m not surprised. “I’ve seen your drawings. You’re quite good.”
“My parents didn’t like it much,” she says, “they didn’t think it was appropriate for someone from our family.”
“What do you mean?”
She sighs. “My mother was a doctor,” she says, “her father was a lawyer. His father a bank investor. My father’s father was a scientist like mine and his mother taught etiquettes or something. Her father was some famous composer while my grandfather’s father was a professor, but that was back in Europe. I think. I didn’t pay much attention when they explained it all to me. In any case, they had great expectations.”
I blink confused at her complicated explanation. “But wouldn’t they rather have you study something you like?”
“Heh,” she laughs, “not my parents. They wanted me to do something useful. I was smart enough, so they wanted me to go to an Ivy-League university.”
“I’m sure they wanted you to be happy. They were your parents. They loved you.”
Her eyes sadden. “Oh yes. They loved me so very much.” She sighs. “You don’t understand.”
“I’m trying to,” I say honestly.
She glances at me. “It’s like they had some make-believe child that wasn’t me. They always decided everything for me, as if I didn’t have an opinion of my own. They didn’t even listen to what I liked and wanted. It was as if someone else was in charge of my body and I didn’t have a say in the matter.” A gasp escapes her lips and she eyes me nervously. “I’m sorry,” she says, “I didn’t mean it like that.”
“It’s fine,” I assure her, “I’m not offended.”
Her smile doesn’t reach her eyes. “Good,” she says. She leans her head against the window. “I miss them,” she whispers.
There’s a lump in my throat. “Emma…”
She gives me a watery smile. “It’s not your fault.”
But I feel like it is. I don’t want to see her sad. My hand is itching to reach out to her, but I don’t have the courage. She won’t want me to touch her.
When we reach the center of town we both sit up straighter and I notice Emma wipe at her eyes. That is the moment I make a promise to myself. I will do whatever it takes to get her back where she belongs. With humans. I’ll make sure she is happy.

We park close to the mall, but I don’t plan on going there. Too many people. I think Emma would appreciate it more if we went to a quieter part of town. I can already see the fear in her eyes. “It will be fine,” I  say.
She looks at me and gives a curt nod. Then she takes a deep breath and gets out of the car.
Clothes for Emma will be our first stop. I wonder if she realizes she’s edging closer to me with every step she takes. “Don’t look so scared,” I whisper while leaning towards her.
Her jaw tenses and her eyes show she’s not comfortable. I gently take her hand and even though she tenses for a moment, she doesn’t pull away. “Remember when I found you?” I ask and wait for her confirming nod. I smile. “You had me believe you were one of us. You can do that again. You did it before. You told me that yourself.”
She lets her breath escape. Her grip on my hand tightens before she lets go.

She’s still nervous, but manages to hold herself better now. She stands in the fitting room while I hand her clothes through the curtain. It is a quiet store. One girl behind the counter that smiles at me. She even comes up to us to ask if we need any help. Blossom is her name. A Flower.

Emma opens the curtain and steps out in her own clothes. In her hands are some jeans and shirts. “Ready?” I ask.
She gives me a tentative smile and nods. “Yeah.”
The stack she is holding is not very big. “Are you sure that is enough?”
“I don’t need that many clothes,” she says.
Blossom appears at our side and I’m the only one to notice the tiny jolt that moves through Emma’s body.
“Have you decided?” Blossom asks.
“Yes, these please,” I say and take the clothes from Emma’s arms.
Blossom nods enthusiastically. “These look so good on you.” She turns and plucks something from the rack behind her. “You’ll want this shawl too. It goes well with that jacket. Isn’t it pretty?”
“That’s not nece….” Emma starts, but I cut her off.
“Very,” I agree with Blossom, “we’ll take it. Right Emma?”
Another nervous smile. “Sure.” I’m certain she would like to drag me out of the store as soon as possible, so I decide not to linger here. As soon as Blossom is done bagging the clothes we leave the shop.
“So, shoes next?” I ask and pointedly look at her sneakers that are worn down and have a hole in one of them.
“I suppose I could do with a new pair,” she sighs.
“There’s a shop down the road,” I point, “and maybe we can grab something to…”
Emma’s not next to me anymore. Confused, I look back and notice her staring at a window of a store we just passed. My eyes follow her gaze and land on a guitar. “You play?” I ask.
Her eyes move to my face. “A little,” she says, “my parents made me play the piano, but I preferred the guitar.” She casts me a quick smile and continues towards the shoe store, but I make a mental note of what she just said before going after her.

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Thanks for reading. Please leave a comment in the little box. (Sorry, been watching Labyrinth too much :P)
Trouble is just around the corner XD