Having solved the crisis in the Volunteer headquarters, Liam hurried back to the upper levels of the Embassy, fully intending to at least try to talk Da'an out of what seemed like a risky idea. Even though throughout the past seven years the North American Companion had spent most of his time on Earth, he had always been protected from those darker aspects of the human world by the Companion security services – and that included a large team of people who scheduled his public appearances, planned security details and had every place double-checked before the intended visit. Although he had saved Da'an's life on many occasions, Liam had no illusions. He could not ensure the diplomat's safety in a frail, human form while walking the city streets with a crowd of strangers.

'Da'an?' his call was bordering on an urgent whisper, but he did not wish to draw more attention than was absolutely necessary. Unfortunately, as could have been expected, the Companion was nowhere to be seen. Of course. The Taelons were far more intelligent than humans, but somehow the 'stay right here' never seemed to work with Da'an. Liam cursed under his breath. He bolted into the audience chamber only to find that it was empty.

Damn. He couldn't just raise the alarm and tell security to start searching for a miraculously resurrected woman. Just as he was about to call Street, however, he spotted something with the corner of his eye. Through the glimmering particles of the virtual glass he saw a slim silhouette standing in the snow by the half-frozen fountain.

Without thinking much, he hurried down the ramp and soon found himself in the Embassy garden. Da'an was leaning over the fountain, her eyes riveted on that small fragment where the crystal-clear water had not yet frozen. Of course – Liam concluded – she was studying her own reflection. Even though he knew her appearance was misleading and in no way depicted her true nature, the childlike curiosity reflected in her wide-open eyes as her slim hand brushed against her cheek almost made him regret that he had to disturb her. Still, the moment a fine layer of snow crunched under his boots, she instantly took a step back, and the spell was broken.

'Liam,' she acknowledged his presence, but the carefree expression on her face was chased away by his frown.

'Why have you left the Embassy?' the young hybrid demanded. 'Humans can't walk in the cold without a jacket!'

'I merely wished to… experience snow the way humans experience it,' she said softly, and before she could even protest, Liam had already put his own jacket around her small shoulders.

'You scared the hell out of me,' he said, pushing her back towards the Embassy. 'This whole experiment has been a misguided idea from the very beginning.'

'I assume I do not muster sufficient respect in this form,' Da'an's voice gained a threatening undertone. 'Yet I remind you, Major, that despite your vigorous opposition, you are expected to follow my orders.'

'Yeah – yeah – yeah,' Liam could not help a smile, pushing her forward with even greater force. 'I promise I'll let you freeze next time.'

The moment the door closed behind them, Da'an pushed his jacket away with all the strength her frail form managed to muster. From the very expression on her face, the man could tell she was going to lash out at him – well, the usual Taelon style, with cold pride and semantically complex sentences – but as she was about to begin her monologue, her mouth parted in what looked like growing disbelief.

'What?' Liam raised an eyebrow.

Da'an's grey eyes grew wide in apparent horror.

'Da'an?' the man felt his blood run cold. 'What's wrong?!'

'I – I –,' two failed attempts to communicate her distress were quickly followed by a loud achoo, which she could in no way hold back. The moment she sneezed, she instantly buried her face in her hands as if expecting some tragedy had befallen her.

Liam did his best not to burst out laughing, although a suppressed chuckle nevertheless escaped his throat as he rolled his eyes. 'You just sneezed. It's okay, that's completely normal for a human.'

Da'an did not seem convinced as she peeked from between her fingers. 'I… I could not control it.'

'I know the feeling,' her Protector grinned. 'Trust me, when you're a human, just too many things remain beyond your control. You'll get used to it.'

Reassured by the explanation, Da'an let her hands drop to her sides and raised her head, trying to regain whatever dignity she had left in this dreadful, defiant form. But before she even managed to begin her moralizing speech about obedience and loyalty in Companion services, Liam expressed his capitulation with a sigh.

'I will give you a tour around the city,' he said, 'if you scrupulously follow all safety precautions; and no more disappearing on me.'

Da'an's eyes narrowed. Her Protector was in no position to set conditions, but on the other hand, at the moment he was the only person she could trust with her secret. 'Very well. One condition, though,' she said after a moment of consideration.

'What is it?'

'You shall not disclose my true identity to anyone.'

'Agreed,' he said simply.

'Including Companion security.'

Liam grimaced, having realized this meant keeping the diplomat away from his… her… own security personnel. How the hell would he explain the presence of an unauthorized person in a heavily guarded Taelon building? With noticeable reluctance, he nodded, silently praying Sandoval had finally taken holiday vacation this year, then watched Da'an slowly turn away from him.

'I will, however, require some time to procure a coat.'

Quickly concluding that she was going to secretly rummage through the Volunteer headquarters again, the man instantly blocked her way. 'No way! If somebody here needs to st… procure… a coat, I'm the one going.'

The diplomat only tilted her head.

Glad that he encountered no opposition this time, Liam ran a hand through his ruffled hair, mentally searching the list of female Volunteers to pinpoint those who were closest to Da'an's size. Jessica Humpton seemed like the perfect match, but the entire squad knew she had been taking kickboxing classes for several years now; if she caught him stealing her stuff, she would tan his hide. At the very thought of her fury, Liam felt shivers going down his spine. Hell, this certainly lay far beyond the duties of a Companion Protector… and it was just one day left until Christmas, which he was supposed to celebrate at Renee's family house in the outskirts of Washington. Now he was stuck with an alien entity imprisoned in a human form, incidentally wreaking havoc all around. Whoever had put the idea into Da'an's head, should be damned for all eternity!

'Listen, I'm going to get that coat, and you're going to stay right here,' he emphasized. He looked into Da'an's wide-open grey eyes to make sure she understood his request this time, but her only reaction manifested itself in a silent nod. Having tilted her head again, she watched him leave with undisguised curiosity as to the outcome of his procurement services.


About half an hour later Liam appeared in the Embassy with a beige toggle coat hung over his am. The expression on his face clearly indicated that despite the successful outcome of his mission, hardly anything had gone as planned. Da'an's lips parted slightly at the sight of a large bruise just beneath his Protector's left eye.

'What has happened?' she asked, visibly concerned, but Liam just shook his head.

'It's enough to say that now I'm considered a womanizer and a perv, and –' he paused, all of a sudden realizing that the diplomat's human appearance had once more deceived him. Now she was staring at him with her typical, childlike curiosity. Since a quick change of the topic was his last chance to avoid having to explain the meaning of the word 'perv' to his employer, he hastily led her towards the exit. 'We still need to figure out where to go,' he threw Da'an a red herring and by the small smile on her face he could tell the term was no longer being analysed. Thank God!

'My attire feels… uncomfortable,' she said.

'Yeah, that's because it's at least two sizes too big, Da'an,' Liam stated the obvious, and regretted it instantly.

'Do you believe you are capable of procuring more adequate garments?'

'Pro- ' Liam winced. 'I'm definitely NOT going to steal clothes again!'

The Companion was clearly disappointed.

'We can go shopping if you'd like to,' his Protector offered instead, although the awareness that he was probably going to go bankrupt was not particularly soothing.

Da'an's light-grey, human eyes enthusiastically flashed with alien energy. 'Yes,' she said. 'Your suggestion seems appropriate.'

Just remember to add the bills to my severance payment once Sandoval eventually gets me fired for this, Liam thought grimly.

With a dark premonition that the Taelon's secret experiment would indeed bring about the end of his career in Companion security services, Liam somewhat reluctantly helped Da'an with the coat. Making sure she would not lose her balance, he demonstrated how to button up. As a Taelon she was a quick learner and managed to deal with the final two buttons on her own. This done, she straightened before him, visibly satisfied with herself.

'Ready?' he asked, deep in his heart hoping Da'an would change his… her… mind, but his question remained ignored as the diplomat slowly walked up to the automatic door.

It parted before her, letting in the cold, winter air. Liam watched her take a deep breath and gaze in the distance at the municipal buildings decorated with golden lights. The moment they passed the garden gate, the enthusiasm with which Da'an beheld their snow-covered surroundings, unfurled in its full glory – to Liam's utter despair. The more enthralled she was, the less attention did she pay to the safety precautions he had asked her to take. He thanked God she eventually stopped by a street lamp ornamented with holly, giving him some time to catch his breath.

'What is this?' she inquired.

Liam craned his neck to see what she was referring to and could not help a chuckle. He would expect her to ask about anything else than… well…

'It's a municipal trash can, Da'an.'

The answer awakened her curiosity even more as she turned her gaze towards the fine pile of garbage. Slowly, she picked a banana peel and an empty pack of cigarettes from the contents of the container, drawing the rather disgusted gazes of several passer-bys.

Liam observed her, dumbstruck. 'Da'an, that's just rubbish, you can't tell me you've never seen…' he paused, seeing her glance at him in an uneasy manner. 'Oh,' he muttered. 'So you've never seen… Right.'

Now that he thought of it, it made sense. An alien dignitary was typically presented with the finest achievements of mankind. All of the less reputable items were either passed over in silence or – as absurd as it sounded – covered with billboards during Da'an's official visits to avoid unnecessary questions about the more shameful aspects of human life. The downside was, explaining all this mess had become his duty now.

'This pile here contains discarded everyday items,' he began, hoping that a scientific perspective would make the matter a little less repulsive. 'Out-of-date foodstuffs, empty packages, and things you don't want to know about. Once a day they're collected and transported to a processing site.'

'And this item?'

Liam flinched when the stench reached his nostrils. 'That's a banana peel.' A dreadfully old banana peel.

Da'an blinked. 'I have not yet had the opportunity to discover certain… basics of human life.'

I'm honestly hoping we can avoid explaining other basics, though, the young hybrid noted to himself.

With the corner of his eye, he noticed Da'an was still holding the banana peel. 'Do you think we could… um… get rid of this?' he suggested, realizing that with that kind of compulsive garbage hoarding, by the end of the night they would both smell like dead cats.

'Oh, certainly,' she said and nonchalantly threw the peel behind her.

As if the Universe were plotting against them, some guy who was walking behind stepped on it and slipped. Da'an jerked when the thud reached her ears.

'You damn prankster!' a low male voice – clearly infuriated – was all Liam needed to know Da'an had done it again. Hoping the Christmas atmosphere would soothe the guy's nerves, he turned around to apologize for the unfortunate incident only to find he was facing the broad chest of a two-metre high walking mountain of muscles.

'Oh, hell,' he winced, silently cursing what had every potential to become the longest – and the worst – night in his life.

The man leaned forward to look him in the eye. 'Your last words before you die?'

'My apologies?' Liam mustered a forced smile.

'Apologies is what I'll take from your girlfriend; with you I'm going to solve the problem like man to man.'

And before Liam could talk his way out of it, a massive punch sent him flying to the adjacent wall. Da'an froze. The stranger simply shrugged and walked away, followed by the diplomat's disbelieving gaze. Several minutes passed before Liam rather clumsily regained his footing, but continued to cover his nose with the sleeve of his jacket.

'Liam?' the Companion intoned with audible concern. 'Are you alright?'

'Do I look alright?!' sounded the hoarse reply.

Clearly, as a Taelon Da'an was still struggling with the notion of irony and rhetorical questions. 'You would have to lower your arm,' she said honestly. 'At the moment I see no difference.'