Initially a gift of friendship from Alan to David, the silver button plays a part in the novel’s rising action and comes to symbolize David’s progress into adulthood and the role that Alan plays in his development. The skirmish in the roundhouse, where David and Alan fight off the Covenant’s crew, marks David’s first steps from adolescence into adulthood. It is the first time David openly rebels against his captors, taking up arms alongside Alan. After the melee, Alan cuts the button from his soldier’s coat (a symbol of Alan’s adulthood) and gives it to David with the promise that whenever he presents it, Alan’s friends will rally to his aid.

Alan’s promise proves true during David’s trek across the Highlands, as the button opens doors that even money won’t. At each dead end, David needs only to show the button to learn where he should go next to find his friend. In those early days when he is venturing alone across the Highlands, the button becomes part of his identity, with those who recognize it greeting him as “the lad with the silver button” (79, 86). With the help of the button, David gradually finds his way to Alan, who continues to guide the young man on his journey into adulthood.