The dinner was nearing its logical conclusion and the two friends moved back to the living room and right next to the fireplace, enjoying its soothing warmth. Martha stayed back to wash the dishes, but Billy couldn't help following the reptiles, eager to satiate his boundless curiosity. He knew his father would often sit by the fireplace in the mornings and right before he was about to go outside, the reason having something to do with temperature and other things he did not understand. He didn't dare to ask his father about it further, but it seemed plausible to assume it boiled down to the fact he simply didn't like cold.

"So… Did you like it here?" Billy sat next to the Dinosaur man who moved his tail to the other side, inviting the boy to stay nearby.

"Yesss, it wasss lovely" he hissed. "Sssorry if I wasss trouble. Sssometimesss I may be a little clumsssy, with the way I am..."

"Oh, it was nothing" said Billy easily, curiously examining the reptile's orange scales as he sat right next to him, almost touching. "Do you live far away?"

"Only a few busss stopsss" Stegron growled. "I'll walk"

"All the way in this snow?!" Billy looked concerned. "Isn't it too cold? I mean... Will you be alright? I could ask Mom to give you a lift!"

"Thank you, but no need for that" declined the saurian "I can manage myssself jussst fine. Sssay, Billy, do you like dinosssaursss? Want to asssissst me in my next exxxperiment?"

"Woah, woah, wait jusst a ssecond there!" The Lizard instantly lifted his head from the coach, alerted. "What iss the ssudden idea?!"

"It isss perfectly sssafe" the Doctor assured with absolute self-confidence, gently wrapping his tail around the little mammal. "He will be only watching, mossst of the time"

"That'ss what you told me when you sstarted working on your fossilss too, wassn't it? How can a fossil possibly harm anyone?"

"I know, right? I wasss sssurprisssed too! Who could have thought the genome would fracture in jussst the right place to be compatible with my DNA by pure coincccidenccce! The chacesss of that! I'd call that Fate"

"No, Billy, don't go with him. Thiss guy doessn't know what he iss ssaying. And he doessn't follow the ssafety proceduress" his father said firmly, but Billy was already laughing. For a second there he almost wondered what it would be like to be a reptile if something like that happened to him as well, but quickly tossed the idea. It was just too weird. Then again, these two didn't look like they changed all that much in the end. Perhaps, in small ways that were harder to notice, but they were clearly good friends.

"May be when I am older" Billy replied finally with a mischievous smile. "I wouldn't want to grow a tail before I finish school"

[+]

Soon after, Stegron made his way back to the door, putting his poor excuse of a disguise back on and throwing the purple trench coat over the dorsal plates to hide them the best he could, likely more for conserving his heat than for actual disguise. Thanks to those plates, even the baggy coat was a tight fit on his chest. The leg-paws and tail were also a dead giveaway for anyone with at least half a decent eyesight. The Doctor stopped midway to the exit to give his farewell to the family, especially to the young Billy who came closer this time to see him out. Stegron knelt down to him again, still towering over the little boy as he ruffled his hair with a massive paw.

"Will Dr Stegron come to visit us again?" Billy asked his father in high hopes, when the door closed behind the guest.

"Perhapss" replied Connors with some uneasiness. "But, hopefully, not too often" he continued with a wry smile. "He can be a bit of pain, right?"

"No, not really" Billy beamed back. "I think he was great!"

[+]

Stegron stumbled into the doorway, his clawed feet taking him up the stairs into the flat while his mind was elsewhere. A concerned gaze of the old lady who lived a floor below followed his hulking figure, but she said nothing, minding her own business as was the rule here, and Stegron paid her no attention either. He couldn't help feeling down, thinking about the dinner and how warm and comfortable the Lizard's flat had been, how welcoming and nice his family was, and how much they cared for Connors. Vincent, on the other hand…

The saurian pushed the door looking in silence at the unkempt apartment. The rugs on the floor lay at random, most were old and dirty, with obvious claw marks of fluff missing. The sofa was creaky, starring plenty of holes in it even before the resident Doctor started adding a few more. The walls were painted with cheap paint and had no wallpaper. There were a few cracks here and there, and the ceiling was leaking when there was heavy rain. A tin bucket under the spot was the unfortunate reminder of that. The lamps were only for show and the only real source of light had been the giant window, where Stegron spent most of his time, reading and doing workouts.

Truth be told, he didn't need much these days and his current hideout was more of a shelter for him than an actual home, but after having been to his friend's house, he simply couldn't help grieving at the vast contrast and picturing the comfort that could have been. At the time it was the only place he could get. The landlord proudly declared over the phone that she didn't care if an alligator lived here as long as it paid the rent, and he took her up on that promise. For the time he also didn't think he minded the occasional inconvenience that much, but right now for some reason was the first time he felt truly miserable.

Stegron made his way in and threw the hat and the coat on a nearby chair, leaving himself completely naked as he did so, save for the bracers, for now, and walked to the window. He always disliked the feeling of clothes on his scales and even in chilly winter he would only tolerate a disguise for so long.

With a sigh he made his way to the coach and dropped face down on it, the furniture squeaking in plea for mercy under his weight, but expectedly ignored. It was a long day and one that gave him more food for thought than he welcomed. He thought that he had long since fully accepted his dinosaur self, that he'd stopped regretting and dwelling on what has become of him, but for some reason in this moment he felt so truly and utterly alone and he couldn't explain why…