It takes time, but eventually Dan is more willing to meet Phil's eyes when they're talking. It starts with little things, like him making eye contact for a full two seconds before looking away, and gradually grows to a point where if they're having a conversation, they can casually make eye contact and Dan won't freak out. He still starts to fidget and squirm if he talks to much, but at least he can look at Phil directly for the short amount of time they talk.

One morning, when the leaves are falling from the trees and the wind carries with it the cool omen of an approaching winter, Phil digs through his cabinets and takes inventory of their supplies. They'll probably need to go to the nearby town for a bit of it, and Phil honestly isn't sure how well Dan will handle an entire village of people. He exhales and glances out the window, the morning sun shining down on the autumn-kissed forest.

Dan wanders into the room, Moon trailing behind him. He yawns and turns the shirt in his hands right-side out, blinking sleepily. Phil glances over and nearly chokes on his own breath, eyes wandering over Dan's bare chest. A few small scars from his crash mar his skin, but it doesn't take away from how beautiful Phil thinks he is.

Dan looks up and Phil averts his gaze, turning back to his list of items and supplies. Dan wanders over and reads the list over Phil's shoulder, eyebrows furrowing.

"We need to head into town," Phil explains before Dan can even ask. "Winter is rapidly approaching, and being stuck without supplies isn't fun."

Dan nods and reaches down, scratching Moon's head.

Eventually, they leave the cottage and head towards the village. They walk side by side, travelling cloaks swishing out behind them and feet thumping rhythmically against the forest floor. Moon walks beside Dan, tail wagging slowly and tongue hanging out of her mouth. Dan watches the trees as they go, his hands fidgeting at his sides and his gaze flickering anxiously between his surroundings and Phil. The guardian looks over and reaches out, taking Dan's hand.

"Hey, are you okay?" Phil asks.

Dan shrugs and squeezes Phil's fingers. "Uh, I don't... I'm just..."

"Nervous?"

Dan nods and pulls his cloak a little tighter with his free hand. "Yeah."

"About the village?"

"Yeah."

Phil smiles gently and nudges Dan. "You're going to be just fine, okay? I'll stay right beside you the entire time. I won't let anything happen."

"Thank you." Dan squeezes his hand again and walks a little closer. After a moment, he speaks again. "Is the village nice?"

Phil shrugs. "It's alright. I prefer the forest."

"Do you like being alone?"

"I thought I did. I don't like it very much anymore."

"What changed?"

"You showed up."

Dan meets Phil's gaze, his cheeks flushing. Phil blushes as well, chewing his bottom lip as he looks to his messenger bag instead of Dan's face.

Eventually, Dan and Phil step onto a dirt road and walk towards the town. The trees fall away and houses replace them, lining the street and guiding the two of them to the centre of the village. People hurry past Dan and Phil, watching them warily. Phil avoids their gazes, and Dan glances between Phil and the villagers.

"Why do they look at you like that?" Dan asks.

"I don't have the best reputation," Phil replies under his breath. "I've... stolen things before. When I don't have the money to buy them myself. Only necessities, though."

Dan nods and reaches down, scratching Moon's ears. "I see."

"I don't want to steal, but... I can't always trade and I can't be around people too long."

"Why?"

"Because I'm not entirely human," Phil replies. "You aren't either, and there's something about being only half human that puts people on edge. It's dangerous for us to stick around for a long time."

Dan frowns and holds his cloak closed, letting Phil lead the way. The guardian rummages in his pocket and reveals the few gold coins he has in his possession, counting them before tucking them away again.

"What do we need?" Dan asks, his voice soft in Phil's ear.

"Some fabric for clothing," Phil replies. "And salt.  And maybe a few other things from the general store.  That's it."

Dan gestures to Phil's pocket. "Do you have enough?"

"Gold? For the fabric, yes."

Dan nods, and a moment later the two of them are walking into a fabric shop. Moon follows them in, and as Phil is talking with the woman behind the counter Dan walks along the rows of fabrics and feels their textures with his fingertips. The fabrics on Scara are similar to these ones, although Earth has different patterns. It's comforting, seeing something so familiar in a place far from home. Moon sniffs at the racks of cloth, her tail wagging slowly.

Phil rounds the corner, a roll of fabric filling his messenger bag. He smiles at Dan, and Moon wags her tail harder and hurries over to sniff him.

"Let's go, okay?" he says, petting Moon's soft head. "I want to be home soon."

Dan lets his hand fall away from the fabrics and follows Phil out of the shop. They hurry down the street towards the general store, Phil's steps quick and anxious. Dan tails him, stomach twisting.

"Dan, wait out here with Moon. I'll be out in a second, and if I'm running you'd better run too," Phil says.

"Okay," Dan replies.

Phil nods and turns on his heel, entering the shop and letting the door swing shut behind him. Dan stays outside, scratching Moon behind the ears and whispering to her the secrets he won't tell anyone else.

A minute or so later, Phil comes racing out of the store with a red-faced man on his tail. He shouts and waves his fists, and Dan stares for a moment before racing after Phil. Moon barks and runs after them, her tongue hanging out of her mouth.

"I'll call the guard, you filthy witch!" the man yells. "Someone, stop that thief!"

Townspeople stare as Dan and Phil run back towards the forest, a full-grown wolf accompanying them. Guards leave their stations and join the pursuit, along with angry villagers armed with pitchforks, kitchen knives, and fists.

"Hurry!" Phil calls as he runs.

Dan runs as fast as he can, keeping up surprisingly well considering the fact that Phil is a guardian. They reach the edge of town and keep going, sprinting until they're deeper into the woods. They come across a patch of thick shrubbery and Phil grabs Dan's wrist, dragging him behind the bushes and crouching on the forest floor. Moon hops behind the shrubs and lies down beside Dan, panting.

"Did you see where they went?" one man asks.

"They disappeared!" another man exclaims.

"Stupid witches think they can steal from us! No more!" a woman snaps.

"We'll get them next time," an authoritative voice states. "Come, let's get back to the village.  If we go too far, we could get lost."

The villagers grumble to one another, turning back to the town and making their way out of the forest. Silence hovers in the air between Dan and Phil, their chests rising and falling with heaving breaths, and the moment they're gone Phil starts laughing.

"What's so funny?" Dan asks, turning to him.

"I don't know," Phil replies, unable to hold back his grin. "I just... can't believe we got away. What a rush!"

The space boy stares at him for a moment before a smile tugs at his lips. "Yeah..."

Then, they're both laughing. Nothing is particularly funny, but between the relief at getting away and the adrenaline left over from fear, the only reaction they can manage is laughter. Dan flops back onto the grass and looks up at the canopy of leaves overhead, brown eyes shimmering, and their laughter slowly falls away. Phil watches Dan, his heart pounding in his ears, and when the space boy looks back and meets his gaze, he can't help himself.

Phil leans down and presses a kiss to Dan's lips, pulse racing. Dan freezes, his fist clenching around a handful of the back of Phil's shirt, before he slowly relaxes, his eyes falling shut and a soft sigh escaping through his nose. When they break apart, Dan takes a deep breath.

"Is that how people show love on Earth?" he asks in his usual, soft tone.

Phil nearly laughs. "Yeah, it is."

"I like it."

Phil flushes and Dan reaches up, gently pulling him back down into another kiss. Beside him, Moon barks and sniffs Phil's ear, making the guardian jump. Dan laughs and reaches over, ruffling her fur.

"Let's go home," Dan says.

"Good idea," Phil replies.

Phil pulls himself to his feet and helps Dan up off the ground. Together, they head back to the cabin, where they start a fire and make tea with dried berries from the garden. And, with hot cups of tea in hand, they go outside and sit in the front yard, looking at the stars above. Phil's hand rests on Dan's and they don't say a word, content with their mutual, comfortable silence.

Phil would never want it any other way. 

A/N: Hi there.

So, I don't usually like putting long author's notes at the end of chapters because I find them obnoxious, but I feel like this one is needed.

Many of you have probably noticed that before today, I hadn't updated this book since October 27th.  There's a reason for this.

For those of you who don't read my "Random updates book", you won't know that for the month of November, I did a writing project called "NaNoWriMo", where essentially you try to write a 50 000 word book in a month.  I spent every single day working on my book for that, so there was absolutely no time to work on anything else.  This book fell to the wayside, and I'm sorry about that.

Since the end of November, I've had some really bad writer's block.  I tried to write this chapter for about twelve-ish days, and I finally managed to finish it.  I'm sorry if it was lacklustre or disappointing in any way.

Hopefully, now that I can put my whole focus into this book, updates will become more frequent and the quality will be better.  Thank you all so much for your patience if you decided to stick around :) 

Peace!

-Annalise