` ` A Scavenger's Heart ` `

"Hey Half-Pint, cmere. Look up! You see all those stars? Do you know why there are so many?"

"Hmm, no. Why are there so many papa?"

"Well, each and every star is someone who has passed on from this life. The people we have lost, those who came before. They shine at night to let us know they are watching over us!"

"No way. Stars are people? Papa, you are funny! How can a star be a person?"

"Gasp! Are you calling your old man a liar? How horrible!"

The scene painted in the words that played like a record was of a young girl, a mess of tangled up auburn hair falling over her freckled face while she sat on a sandy hill, under the moon. Next to her was a larger figure with tanned skin, and dark curls. The girl watched as the older male next to her flopped onto his back from where he sat dramatically and clutched at his chest, making a huge theatrical performance out of his movements.

"My own daughter thinks I am crazy! How do I go on? Ahhhhh!"

"Papa... you are so weird..."

The girl couldn't hold back a laugh as she moved to flop on top of him in a one-person dog pile. Of course, this just sealed her fate of becoming trapped in one of his big bear hugs, soft chuckles leaving his throat as he cradled her close.

The scene of the two faded into the night sky, while my eyes stared up into a vast display of stars.

"You know, I hope you know that I still think people being stars is a crazy concept, but if it is true, I hope you truly are watching over me. Ugh, what am I saying, I am starting to sound like you. Crazy old man..." My hand slapped the sand next to me, as I pushed myself up into a sitting position. Grains fell from my hair and clothes as my hands reached up to brush off as much as possible, knowing fully well that no matter how hard I tried, there would still be sand practically everywhere later. A sigh left my lips, as a cool breeze blew across my cheek calling my attention to the night aesthetic of the surrounding desert. Pulling myself to my feet, I turned on my heel and made my way back to my camp.

The "camp" in question was an old bus I had found abandoned a while ago. After quite a bit of renovating and work, I had torn out all the seats and fixed up the inside to be at least somewhat homey. The outside was lit up with some rounded bulbs, strung lightly around the exterior, which I had painted a mixture of browns and greens. Surrounding the bus were multiple large metal creations. Each was made of a mixture of random items and scraps that were formed into the resemblance of some of the creatures that lived near the area. Inside the bus was a cozy, and large array of what most people would call junk. I, as a scavenger and a collector, would rather call the objects my valuables instead. There was something whimsical about how everything was set up though, as I had an aesthetic to uphold in my living quarters. It was a bit small, but with the right amount of setup and organization, I managed to make a livable home out of the bus. A bed sat at the rear, the mattress a bit sunken in the middle, but who was paying that close attention to it? The kitchen was less of a kitchen and more of a couple of recycled cabinets I found scavenging, and a small one-burner portable stove. Of course one of the cabinets was missing the door, and my mostly empty food supply was just a bunch of canned goods and some spices. The shower was a curtain I had managed to hang from the side of the bus on the outside, but the water was from a water can that I would have to take into town to refill, so not really the most reliable source of hygiene.

Living out here in the middle of nowhere all by myself would of course be boring so in the corner of the room sat a small, squared-out robot that I call Beans. Beans is small, and quite run down, so when it came to tech, theirs was very outdated, like, before my time outdated.

"Hey, bud. Miss me?" I found myself walking over to the side of the room the small robot sat in, kneeling next to them. Beside me, they were only barely high enough to sit at knee level, which meant they were super small, which made it quite a bit more convenient to share the bus living space with them. My hand reached out to sit on top of their mossy-colored head, which I had painted myself to give them more of a unique look. Beans responded with a series of small, almost animal-like, beeps and squeaks, showing they were fond of my head pat that I was delivering to them. "Yeah? Well, I missed you too Buddy."

I flopped my bottom onto the floor, and let my legs lay in front of me in a V-shape while my back leaned against the wall. My spot on the wall was not really the most comfortable in the world but It was apparently enough for my body to relax and go slack. Before I knew it the world around me went dark, fading with the night.

The sound of frantic beeping pulled me from my slumber, my body slumped over on the floor with the sandy, green colored rug. The lack of light from the window indicated it was not yet morning, so why was Beans waking me?

I got my answer practically right away when the loud sound of multiple vehicles against the sandy surface, caught my ear.

"Shit... Why now. I didn't even get my full night of sleep. Ughhhh." I stood from my spot on the floor quickly and went to the window, catching a glimpse of at enough headlights for... five.. No six vehicles. "I'm too tired for this." I sighed and walked to a chest by my bed, slipped my guitar over my shoulder by the strap, and walked out the door of my bus to face the coming crowd.