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Shae loathed gossip, but when the news took a break from reporting on the growing pollution to theorize who would be brought to Silvercott Island this year, she couldn’t bring herself to change the channel. Without knowing what kind of skills the country’s archdame was looking for, everyone had something to say.
See, Dr. Silvercott followed a pattern. She alternated between arranging apprenticeships with the biggest scientists and psychologists around the globe—set to have the apprentice immigrate to Silvercott after five years—and bringing in particularly skilled laborers, be they construction workers, gardeners, or plumbers. Once every ten years, however, she looked for someone with an unusual skill or knowledge base, hoping to bring that knowledge to her island. There were plenty of countries that did not allow Dr. Silvercott access to their people, of course, but many allowed it on principle of wanting their influence over Silvercott’s streaming service, SilkEye, which was popular across the globe. Besides, for the year after sending a person over, trade with Silvercott oh so coincidentally became much cheaper.
Shae let the sound of hypothesizing wash over her. One reporter was adamant Dr. Silvercott would be looking for a master of an obscure martial art to expand SilkEye’s “Combat Court,” while another thought she’d be looking for someone more mundane, like a chef who knew cooking traditions yet to be tried on the island. They wouldn’t guess what Dr. Silvercott wanted no matter how hard they tried, Shae knew. No one ever got it right. Idly, Shae wondered if Dr. Silvercott watched these debates and intentionally avoided inviting people who fit in those categories, or if she was genuinely just that unpredictable.
When she heard a knock on her door—unusual, Shae didn’t have anyone who would want to visit her—and peered through the peephole to find the archdame herself on her doorstep, Shae firmly accepted the latter explanation.
She opened the door.
Dr. Silvercott’s smile, a smile that Shae now realized had been nervous before she opened the door, brightened considerably, the crinkles by her eyes turning a bit more genuine. “Shae Vogan, right? May I come in? I have a proposition for you.”
Dr. Silvercott’s stance was confident—shoulders back, feet apart, arms open at her sides. Her smile was easy, and though Shae privately thought that everything must be rehearsed, it didn’t feel that way.
She beckoned her in.
“Wonderful! Before I forget, I brought a gift,” she said—voice calm, tone warm. She pulled a small package out of her interior vest pocket. “You’re welcome to open it now or later. Regardless, I’m sure you can guess why I’m here. Where shall we have this conversation?”
Shae took the package and set it on the counter, leading Dr. Silvercott into the rest of the apartment. “We can sit on the couch if you’d like. Can I grab you anything to drink?”
“Oh, no thank you. I’m quite alright.” Dr. Silvercott followed Shae’s movements with her eyes until Shae sat down, then took a seat herself. “So, you’re quite the floriographer, aren’t you?”
“I—you’re interested in the meanings of flowers?”
“Of course! I’m looking to expand my country's cryptological capabilities, and I must admit I am quite fond of flowers,” she said, a quirk to her lip and clear excitement in her voice, “I think it would be a wonderful addition to our competitions. Unfortunately, we don’t have anyone on the island with that kind of passion or knowledge-base. Fortunately, we are more than capable of covering all monetary expenses that would come with making the move to Silvercott Island. Would you be interested?”
Shae was going to fall off of the couch. Was she interested? Theoretically, yes. She didn’t really get to use her knowledge all that much, and the idea of having an impact on Silvercott’s competitions —they were viewed worldwide! It was just… “Am I really most qualified for this?”
“There are others that may know more than you, sure, but you have the passion for it and I believe you’d fit in our community well. Have you watched much on SilkEye? Other than the competitions, of course.”
“Admittedly, not much, but I think I can guess what you mean,” Shae responded, thinking over her gleeful shock at seeing a polyamorous triad on a popular streaming service. She wasn’t sure how Dr. Silvercott knew about her relationship beliefs, but the idea of a culture where polyamory was normalized rather than a spectacle was appealing, to say the least.
“There are other candidates I’m considering, but I believe you would have more… fun in our environment than they would. There are other things that led me to reaching out to you first, but those are confidential.” Dr. Silvercott rolled her eyes, tilting her head a little.
Right.
As if remembering herself, Dr. Silvercott straightened back up. “Do you have any questions?”
Do I have any questions indeed. “Yes, what exactly would the job entail?”
Dr. Silvercott leaned forward, a hopeful glint in her eye. “First, you would be paired with an experienced teacher who would help you teach a small class all that you know. The size of the class will be flexible, but I expect it will include between four and twelve people. You and your students will work with some of our other experts to construct events that focus on covert communication. After you feel that job is complete, or during your spare time if you’d like, there are plenty of plants on the island that don’t grow anywhere else, so I would be happy for you to assign meanings to them. Ultimately, after passing on your knowledge, what you do will be pretty much up to you.” Though the words were spoken without pause, their inflection was so filled with an excited reverence that they were quite easy to follow.
It sounded good—fantastic even. Just to be sure, though, Shae clarified, “I assume I’ll have to remain in Silvercott even after my job is done.”
Her smile dimmed. “Yes, that will most likely be the case.”
“I also assume I won’t be allowed to bring anyone with me to the island.” Shae didn’t have anyone in particular in mind—her relationship with her family was nonexistent at best, and she didn’t have anyone who would miss her, or whom she’d miss. Isolation came easily to her, though she wished it didn’t.
Dr. Silvercott shook her head. “I’m sorry, but I am very picky about who I allow into my country.”
Shae thought for a moment. That kind of selection could either be very good or very bad. “What do you mean by that, exactly?”
“I bring in people who have demonstrated a stance against bigotry in its many forms. I bring in people who have demonstrated an aptitude for kindness. As I’m sure you know, I bring in people with particular skills, which makes for interesting conversation, but also keeps the island running. If you’re worried about whether you’ll get along with them, I can assure you that you will fit right in.”
That wasn’t necessarily what Shae was most concerned about, but she’d be lying if she said it wasn’t on her mind. Her life here was lonely. Nobody she knew really shared in her interests, nor would anyone really indulge in listening to her. The only time she got to share a part of herself was during college, when she arranged and sold meaningful bouquets, but even then, she was disconnected. Though she was preoccupied with her thoughts, Shae didn’t miss the searching, empathetic look that Dr. Silvercott gave her. As though finding what she was looking for, she continued:
“I’ve been where you are right now, and I’ve helped hundreds of people out of that isolation. There are others on the island who will understand—who will have been in your place more recently than I.” Dr. Silvercott lifted her hand, telegraphing her movement as she placed it on Shae’s shoulder. The touch was light but reassuring. “I’m sure you’ll find your place, whatever you choose, but there is a place that is utterly perfect for you in Silvercott. I sincerely hope that you choose it.” With a little squeeze, she retracted her hand, and, though it was only there for a few moments, Shae couldn’t help but feel its loss. She tried to focus once more, wrangling in her emotions.
It would be her dream job. She would get to teach others about her passion, and then work with them to put it to use. She would, theoretically, be surrounded by people who understood her. She wasn’t sure what Dr. Silvercott had been through, and she wouldn’t ask.
After several moments of quiet, Dr. Silvercott spoke softly, “Is there anything else?”
Was there?
Obviously there were other concerns—what would her salary be like if she moved, for one—but none that she didn’t know an answer that satisfied her. Shae didn’t need to know that actual number on how much she would be making—Silvercott was widely regarded as the country that overcompensated its workers, so she knew she would be alright there. There wasn’t really anyone she saw regularly that she would miss. Wait.
“How expensive are international calls or messages?” She talked to her cousin over the phone twice a year—on her birthday, and on his.
Dr. Silvercott’s expression grew apologetic. “We don’t allow live calls to be made internationally. Text, audio, and video communication is allowed, but it will be monitored, and there will be some delay before outgoing messages are received to make sure that they don’t contain any confidential information. Intra national communication doesn’t have those kinds of restrictions, though.”
What?
“What?”
“There won’t be a fee on our side for overseas communication. The only way we would charge you for that is if you attempted to reveal national secrets, which is a crime.”
“No live calls are allowed?”
Dr. Silvercott looked Shae in the eye. “Only between citizens of Silvercott. If there is ever a situation that involves a citizen overseas, then live calls may be allowed between that citizen and people still within Silvercott’s borders. That isn’t exactly common, however, unless someone needs to communicate with me while I’m away. Otherwise, anyone with confidential information has their communication monitored and restricted. You would have knowledge of confidential information.”
Oh, right. I’ll be building a secret code using their wildlife.
Okay, well. The price for her dream job would be restricted communication. It was only strictly restricted when it came to talking to people outside of Silvercott though, so that wouldn’t really be too bad. She’d still be able to send video messages to her cousin twice a year, and it wasn’t like her current government didn’t already monitor her internet usage.
“I don’t know how I feel about the publicity.”
Dr. Silvercott’s shoulders relaxed a tad, as though in relief to move on. “We are fantastic at filtering what the press gets their hands on, so if there’s anything of your past you want kept hidden, it won’t be publicized.” She paused briefly to bump her knee against Shae’s, smiling reassuringly. The familiarity of it was disorienting, but not unpleasant. “Thus far, only approved information has been released to the public. Not a single unwanted detail has been discovered.
“If you’re worried about being thrust into the center of attention, I can assure you that you’ll only have to deal with that for a few days. We wouldn’t announce your immigration more than a week before we head to the island, and once you’re there, you won’t need to worry about it. You’ll be known, as all newcomers are, but you won’t be scrutinized the way you would be here. Besides, you won’t need to be in contact with anyone outside the island unless you choose to. What the press of other countries publishes won’t affect you.”
She supposed… she really wouldn’t have to deal with any judgements. She would be going somewhere she didn’t already have a reputation of being fanciful and impractical. Hell, she’d be going somewhere that revered those qualities—somewhere she was wanted . She was wanted enough to be singled out, to be Dr. Silvercott’s first pick.
She would be wanted, and she would have her dream job, and she would be allowed to be herself. She could take the knowledge that other countries would be talking about her for a while, especially if she didn’t actually have to see it. She could handle restricted communication. The only thing that stopped her from making the impulse decision to say yes that moment was the knowledge that it would be a permanent move. None who immigrated ever returned to their home country.
“Can I sleep on it?”
“Of course! Here, I’ll leave my contact information,” Dr. Silvercott pulled a decorated index card out of her vest and placed it carefully on the coffee table. Surrounded by doodles was a phone number. “I can stay here if you’d like, or you can just send any questions to the number on the card and I will depart. I’ll be back with lunch tomorrow if you’d like me to leave tonight.”
“Yes, that would be great—uh, the latter. Thank you.” Shae showed her to the door. Dr. Silvercott paused just outside, her eyes soft.
“I would love it if you decided to come back with me to the island, but I understand that it is quite the change. Whatever decision you make, just be happy with it.” Shae nodded. “I look forward to meeting you once again tomorrow. Sleep well.”
“You too, thank you.”
Shae watched as Dr. Silvercott retreated down the steps, then shut the door softly. It took her a few moments before she removed her hand from the wood of her door frame and straightened, snatching up the small gift from earlier on her way back to the sofa. She stared at it, and back at the index card that had clearly been created in anticipation of Shae’s choice to put things off for a bit, but late enough down the line that Dr. Silvercott hadn’t simply printed out a business card for the job. Perhaps that was just Dr. Silverott’s style, though. Regardless, the card felt much more personal than any Shae’d received in the past.
Finally, Shae focused back on the gift, and moved to unwrap the shimmery grey wrapping paper. It—wait, did Dr. Silvercott wrap her presents in silver paper? That was… Shae let out an amused breath. When she pulled the paper away, she revealed a pair of long, mostly silver gloves. Upon closer inspection, they were fingerless, with a weaving design of Silvercott’s colors—dark teal and mulberry—separating each finger. There was intricate lacing overlaying the fabric that would cover the forearms, and a diamond of missing material where, presumably, the elbow would poke through. At the very top of the gloves, which clearly reached the top of the shoulder, were some well-concealed loops on the inside that could connect with straps on other pieces of clothing.
They were soft. Shae couldn’t resist putting them on, and they fit her arms perfectly. When she looked at herself in the mirror, she couldn’t help but feel right , even though the gloves were far too fancy for her ratty tank top and sweatpants. Looking at her shoulders, she noticed for the first time the unique tree that signified Silvercott. For the first time, she wondered if the crest was based on a real tree, and realized that, should she accept, she could see it firsthand.
Giving her reflection one last smile, she carefully removed the gloves and folded them reverently on her nightstand, letting her thoughts take over as she performed her nightly routine on autopilot.
———
“So?” Dr. Silvercott sing-songed when Shae opened the door once more. The scent of citrus and cranberries overwhelmed her senses when Dr. Silvercott held a wicker picnic basket up. “Have you decided?”
Shae stopped fighting her smile, letting it overtake her face and demonstrate her excitement. She gave a nod. “I think I’d like to take you up on your offer, Dr. Silvercott.”
“Wonderful! And please, Shae, you may call me Emryn. We’ll soon be seeing a lot more of each other, I expect.”
If Dr. Silv— Emryn’s ecstatic expression wasn’t the most infectious thing in the world, Shae had no idea what was.