Page 64 of Eclipse Bound
"Normal people just say good morning," she told him, finally opening her eyes to take in his twilight form. In private, he never bothered with the human disguise. Here, he could simply be himself, a swirling galaxy of purple-blue energy that somehow managed to look at her with more adoration than any human ever had.
"Good morning," he conceded, his essence rippling with amusement. "Poppy has already departed for her supply run."
Rowan nodded, stretching as she sat up. Their little cabin, tucked away in a remote corner of the Coconino National Forest, had become their sanctuary. Technically, it was an old ranger outpost, but Pete knew a guy who knew a gal and hooked them up with it. Far from Duskrock and Milano's search parties, they'd created something resembling a normal life, if normal included hiding an alien diplomat and helping another alien's heartbroken girlfriend monitor deep space frequencies for messages.
"Did she sleep at all?" Rowan asked, concerned about their housemate. Poppy spent most nights at the makeshift communications array she'd built, listening for any signal that might be from Lunar.
"Two hours, forty-three minutes," Eclipse reported. "An improvement over previous nights."
Rowan sighed, swinging her legs over the side of the bed. "She's going to make herself sick."
"Her dedication is admirable," Eclipse noted, "if physiologically inadvisable."
"Says the alien who doesn't need sleep," Rowan teased, pulling on a robe and heading toward the bathroom.
When she emerged, Eclipse had assumed his more humanoid form, though still composed entirely of twilight energy. They'd discovered he could maintain this shape with minimal effort, allowing him to interact with objects in the human world more easily without the restrictions of the skin-suit.
Rowan made coffee while Eclipse prepared a simple breakfast. It had taken some trial and error to teach him human cooking. His first attempt at toast had ended with a minor kitchen fire when he'd tried to calculate the optimal molecular vibration frequency—or some such nonsense—instead of using the toaster… but he'd proven to be a quick study.
"The Milano search patterns have shifted again," Eclipse informed her as they ate. "Their primary focus appears to have returned to Duskrock."
Rowan nodded, processing this information. They monitored Milano's movements through careful checks of online news sources and the encrypted communications channel Pete occasionally used to update them.
"Do you think they've given up looking for us?" she asked.
"Not entirely," Eclipse replied thoughtfully. "But their resources are finite. They cannot maintain high-intensity pursuit indefinitely. They should eventually conclude that we all went home."
Rowan sipped her coffee, watching Eclipse's twilight form shimmer in the morning sunlight streaming through the kitchen window. Sometimes it still struck her as surreal, sitting in a cabin kitchen having breakfast with an alien from another world who had chosen her over his home planet.
"Any regrets?" she asked suddenly, the question escaping before she could reconsider.
Eclipse's form stilled, his starlit eyes focusing on her with that intensity that always made her heart skip. "About choosing Earth? About choosing you?"
Rowan nodded, trying to keep her expression neutral despite the flutter of uncertainty in her chest.
"None," he stated simply. His twilight essence expanded slightly, reaching across the table to envelop her free hand in warmth. "The council would not have listened to me any more closely than Solar or Lunar. They would have assigned me to another diplomatic post where I would once again serve as mediator between forces with no desire for reconciliation."
He paused, his essence shifting into patterns she'd come to recognize as deep contemplation.
"Here, I have purpose beyond function. I have connection beyond duty." His form brightened as he added, "I have you."
The simple declaration melted away her momentary insecurity. Rowan smiled, turning her hand to intertwine her fingers with his twilight essence. The familiar harmonic resonance hummed between them, creating that perfect sense of belonging she'd never experienced before meeting him.
"Besides," Eclipse continued, a hint of amusement in his energy patterns, "I am not entirely without function here. Helping Poppy construct her communication array has allowed me to apply considerable theoretical knowledge."
Rowan laughed. "You're such a nerd. An alien diplomat nerd."
"I am unfamiliar with this nerd designation," Eclipse replied, though his essence rippled in what she recognized as his version of laughter.
The sound of tires on gravel announced Poppy's return. Moments later, the cabin door opened, and Poppy entered carrying several bags of supplies. Her appearance had improved since those first difficult weeks after Lunar's departure. The dark circles under her eyes had faded somewhat, and her movements had regained some of their former vitality. Rowan wasn't fooled, though. Poppy was struggling without Lunar.
"Morning," Poppy called, setting the bags on the counter. "The general store had actual fresh vegetables today. I nearly wept."
Rowan rose to help unpack. "Any news from town?"
Poppy's expression brightened slightly. "Actually, yes. I ran into Pete. "
"Oh?" Rowan asked, surprised.
