An Unlikely Ally

Chapter 16 - Planning for Winter

Arty was fast asleep on the floor just a ways off from John who had just awoken from the silent alarm on his watch. He sat there watching Arty who was motionless and whose face places were slightly splayed, only the minute rise and fall of their chest showed that they were even alive.

"I wonder if he is asleep, there is very little telling me such. He might be watching me right now and I wont know it, but what I am noticing is that when he is awake normally, his plates are fixed open or closed, and angle themselves to where he is 'looking' occasionally. Right now they are resting against the floor, so my guess is he is actually sleeping, the benefit to those plates being relaxed and wide open when asleep means he can hear anything making noise. Which, also means I am trapped until either I wake him or he wakes up himself." John noted to himself before shifting positions as he reached to his notebook by his backpack to his right and snatched it quietly, alongside his pen.

He flicked through the pages quietly until he landed on the small list he made earlier for stuff he needed for winter.

"Wool socks or equivalent, thick pants such as jeans, wool undershirt or something that is breathable while still insulating for my first layer of shirt, second layer needs to absorb sweat and finally third layer needs to be a pretty beefy jacket. No cotton whatsoever, terrible insulation when damp, or so I was told by dad." He mouthed to himself reading off the list, he then went to the list below that one and started reading again.

"Heating, bare minimum I can turn the ovens and stoves on to heat the kitchen but that isn't sustainable, I don't know how much gas is in the tanks outside of which I am lucky there is any and that it isn't plumbed in. However, I want something purpose made, a gas heater, propane. Find one that comes with a couple bottles, then I am good. I will use that for quickly heating up or short term use, ideally I want a small fire pit and use coal and or wood. But that will be quite difficult to achieve, however Arty has a fireplace at his home and that can be a last resort." John nodded to himself before approaching the last point.

"Weapons, I have knives here but that is much better for self defence rather than hunting. I need a bow or better yet, a crossbow. Guns are well out of the question as that would attract much-unwanted attention, very much unwanted. Other than that, nothing comes to mind." John nodded closed the book gently and placed it to his side before sliding further under the duvet and rolling to his right side to watch the alien across the room.

"It's surreal to think that I am the first human to be sleeping in the vicinity of an alien, like an alien alien. I was never one for telescopes or astronomy as a kid, but I always had my interests in the unknown and I always wondered 'what-if' there was life. I John McArthor am sleeping next to a 7-foot alien, not only did I receive a kind gift of freshly butchered deer the day before, but also taught them how to brush their teeth, and even how to pronounce some English words and characters." John mused over this fact, smiling a bit as he saw Arty's lower face plate, the one covering his mouth twitch. He could also see the white wires running into his earbuds, with one sitting wedged between a plate close to his face and the other dangling, the CD player in his hands was off but John guessed the battery must have run flat on them.

"He is a talking, breathing and walking alien. I don't want to presume anything, but I think we are friends too." He added finally before checking his watch and setting a timer for forty-five minutes, he didn't want to sleep too long but he didn't want to wake his alien friend just yet just to give him time to wake on his own.

Click, click, click. John mumbled quietly and pulled himself further under the blankets.

Click, click, click. Came the noise again and John mumbled incoherently as he jostled, still in a delirious half-sleep.