The star's curious gaze shifted to one of cautious intrigue as he continued to peer at the man holding him. It was then that Kilo snapped out of his trance. He was quick to recover and answer, "Kilo."

"Hm?" Castyr lifted a brow when he heard the angel's response. "Kilo? Your name is Kilo?" The angel nodded in confirmation before Castyr asked, "Kilo who?"

"I am the angel assigned to you," Kilo explained shortly, to which Castyr replied, "But, I've never seen you before." The star furrowed his brows as he sifted through his memories in search of an angel named Kilo. Have we met before? I don't think we have...

"I guard your residence. I seldom entered." Kilo was quick to explain why the star had not seen him when he noticed how hard Castyr was thinking about the whole situation. The star nodded in understanding upon hearing Kilo's response. Castyr had been made aware that he had a guardian angel assigned to him, and he had been ordered to not seek out the angel unless told otherwise. Castyr had always wondered why he had been given such orders, and he now realized that Kilo likely was under the same rules.

Kilo loosened his hold around the star and sat up in the bed when he realized just how closely he had been holding Castyr. The star sat up as well when Kilo pulled his arms back from around him and leaned against the wall that the bed was pushed up against. Memories of the angel rescuing him from the smugglers resurfaced in Castyr's mind, and he was quick to thank the angel for his efforts. "Thank you for saving me... I shouldn't have followed the man." Castyr turned his gaze downward in shame. If he had not been so foolish, he and Kilo would not have fallen from the heavens and gotten stranded on a Rank-20 planet.

Kilo's gaze softened when he saw the guilt that was painted on Castyr's face. Reaching out, Kilo ruffled the star's silver hair in an effort to reassure him. "You didn't know he was a smuggler." Castyr hung his head and nodded remorsefully. "From now on, follow me," Kilo said when he noticed the star's dejected state. The angel's words seemed to make the star happy as Castyr looked up at Kilo and smiled.

Nodding in agreement, the star made his own condition. "From now on, don't watch me from a distance. Stay next to me," he told Kilo in return, much to the angel's surprise. Castyr did not find his request strange; rather, he was happy that he finally had someone to talk to, and he wanted to spend many years with Kilo. He could tell the angel was not there to harm him, and he felt extremely safe while with him, so Castyr thought he would act on his feelings and ask the angel to stay by his side.

While he did not deem his request strange, Castyr still felt anxious as he awaited the angel's response. What if he doesn't want to be with me? What if he thinks I'm a nuisance and hates me for being the reason we fell from the Heavens? But, when Kilo said, "Deal," Castyr's heart surged with happiness. Castyr's gaze shot up to the angel's purple eyes as Kilo looked down at the small star fondly. Castyr's cheeks heated as he gazed into the angel's eyes, and he could not help the smile that came to his lips. I'm finally not alone...

However, the star's warm, thankful smile faded the moment he noticed the bloodstained bandage that was wrapped around the angel's waist. Eyes widening, Castyr immediately gasped, "You're hurt!" It was not until Castyr hurriedly looked around the room for medical supplies that he noticed the many bloodied strips of cloth that covered the table stationed toward the room's door.

Kilo's brows furrowed as he sat up straight and touched his fingertips to the area where the wound was. When he had re-bandaged it before slipping into the bed to warm the star, his wound had still been bleeding. But, now that I think about it, it didn't hurt to sit up. Kilo wondered why he was not feeling any pain as he began unwrapping the cloth from around his abdomen.

"Oh?" Castyr exclaimed in cute confusion as he reached out and touched the healed skin. "But there's blood on the bandage."

Kilo's expression relaxed when he saw the smooth skin where the wound had once been, and he said, "It's because of you," as the star continued to gaze at his healed skin in confusion.

"Huh?" Castyr sounded as he looked up at Kilo.

"You healed me in your sleep. It's because I absorbed your light," Kilo explained as he waded up the strip of cloth and tossed it toward the table where it landed atop the pile of bloodied bandages.

Castyr's eyes widened when he heard Kilo's words. "I did this?" Castyr asked as he pointed to Kilo's abdomen. Kilo nodded in confirmation and then asked, "Do you not know of your abilities?" when he realized Castyr had no clue he could heal others.

The star shook his head.

"They didn't tell you?"

"They said I was too young," Castyr explained. It was his caretaker's duty to school Castyr in his abilities and responsibilities, but the star's caretaker had stopped visiting him when he reached fifty years of existence.

Kilo blinked his eyes as he tried to understand why no one had told Castyr of his abilities as a star. "Well, you need to know now," the angel said as he raised his hands to rest behind his head, providing a cushion for him as he leaned against the wall. Castyr immediately looked up at the angel with curious eyes, waiting to learn something new.

"Stars' light is healing and energizing. The more light a person absorbs, the stronger they become. You can also become a glow stick in dark places," Kilo began explaining as he schooled the young star. "Your glow will change with your mood and health. You will have to learn how to control it to avoid attention."

"How do I do that?" Castyr inquired.

"Control your temper and breathing and consciously dampen the glow."

"How do I do that?"

"With your mind. Just try it." Kilo was confident Castyr could quickly learn to control his glow. He just needed to get a feel for it.

"Okay." The young star shut his eyes and took long, deep breaths as he focused on controlling his glow. Kilo watched with intrigue as the star's glow began to pulse. He caught on pretty quickly. The angel watched with pride as the pulses slowly became smaller and dimmer until the glow was gone.

After a few moments of his glow being completely gone, Castyr opened one eye and looked around. "Did it work?"

Kilo nodded in confirmation and smiled at the star softly. "You did it."

"Whew! That was harder than I thought it'd be!" The small star smiled in accomplishment as he fully opened both eyes upon checking to make sure he had succeeded in suppressing the portrayal of his celestial abilities. Kilo smiled at the star's cuteness and ruffled Castyr's hair before getting out of the bed.

"Where're we going?" Castyr asked as Kilo motioned for him to get out of the bed as well.

"To find out where we fell. I am not familiar with this planet, and I lost my coms with Heaven," Kilo answered as he checked the knife hidden in his boot and the gun strapped to his thigh. He then reached into his pant pocket and retrieved the small pouch he had used to try to pay the farmer for the ride into town. 

Castyr stuck close to Kilo as he followed the angel out of the room and down the stairs into the tavern. In contrast to the townsfolk who had filled the inn the night before, it was now travelers from across the galaxy who sat and whispered around the giant fire as waitresses delivered drink and food to their hungry guests. Kilo slanted his eyes as he looked around the bustling tavern. Odd. Why is there a sudden influx of travelers?

The angel and star followed a waitress to an empty table nestled into one of the tavern's back corners. "How can I help you, sirs?" The waitress asked sweetly as she readied her quill and piece of paper.

"Two meals," Kilo answered shortly as he extracted a few lorne from his pant pocket. The waitress jotted down a few notes as she observed the dashing angel. "Anything else?" She then asked. "We offer a variety of services."

Kilo immediately leaned back when he caught the woman's drift. "No, just the meals, please."

The woman raised a brow at the angel's decline of her offer, but she did not push any further. It was clear the angel was uninterested. "Okay, then, two meals coming up." The waitress then turned and walked back to the service area of the inn after giving Kilo one last look up and down.

Not understanding the nuisances of the exchange between the angel and the waitress, Castyr smiled at the waitress in thanks before leaning close to Kilo and whispering, "How do we find out where we are without grabbing attention?"

Kilo was silent as he moved his eyes around the busy tavern. He then quietly answered with one word. "Listen."

Castyr squinted his brows for a moment as he processed the angel's response, his eyes widening when he understood what Kilo meant. "You can hear what they're saying?" When Kilo nodded in response and closed his eyes, Castyr quietly exclaimed to himself, "Angels have advanced hearing? Woah..."

While Castyr marveled to himself about Kilo's heightened senses, Kilo focused his hearing on two men's conversation at the table next to them. One man began, "That waitress over there looks-"

Quickly determining he would not be able to glean any information of importance from that conversation, Kilo quickly moved on to a group of lady travelers a few tables down. Upon hearing, "Jon proposed!", Kilo quickly moved on once again. The angel surfed the conversations in the tavern until a young voice caught his ear.

"When can we leave Megran? I wanna go home." It was a boy pouting to his father. The father's voice was laced with exhaustion as he answered his son, "After we sell the rest of the goods."

Finally gleaning something useful, Kilo withdrew from the tavern's many conversations. He opened his eyes to see a curious Castyr observing him closely, his face but a few inches from the angel. Sighing shortly, Kilo pressed his finger against Castyr's head to gently move him away.

"Find anything?" Castyr asked as he backed away from the angel.

"We're on Megran," the angel answered as he looked around the tavern to see if anyone knew had entered.

"Megran?" Castyr sounded with curiousity. He had never heard of such a place. Noticing that Castyr had yet to learn of Megran, Kilo explained, "It's a Rank-20 planet located eight planets to the left of Earth. Earth is our destination."

"Why do we need to get to Earth?"

"Earth has one of the only ways to enter Heaven that is not by the wings of angels. Ambassadors and esteemed visitors are those who mostly use it."

Castyr scrunched his brows as he asked, "Why can't you fly us to Heaven?"

"My wings haven't come in yet," Kilo answered. "I'm still young."

"Ah," Castyr sounded in understanding. "So, you can't heal yet?" When Kilo nodded in confirmation, Castyr then asked, "And no teleportation, either?" As Kilo nodded once more, Castyr determined, "Okay. So, let's get to Earth."

Kilo smiled at the star's cuteness. Castyr had balled his fist to express his determination, but it was only a moment later that he asked, "How do we get to Earth?"

"We have to catch a flight to Megran's neighboring planet, Borum, from the closest space station," Kilo explained. He was going to describe the trip further, but a conversation from the middle area of the tavern caught his attention. All the while he had been talking to Castyr, Kilo had also been scouting the tavern for more information.

"Where's the-"

Kilo covered Castyr's mouth with his hand as he closed his eyes. Something at the table of lady travelers had caught his attention. Kilo listened intently when he heard, "Did you hear a star went missing?"

"Really?!" A second voice sounded following one of the lady's announcement. "Aren't they super valuable?"

"Very! They're the defense system of Heaven. Every bounty hunter and trader is looking for the star," the first voice described before adding, "Apparently, his angel went missing, too."

"Think how much money we'd get if we caught both an angel and a star!"

"But I heard his angel is really strong, so we need to be careful," a third voice spoke up in warning.

"Yeah, but it'd be so worth it. Think of where Jon and I could go for our honeym-"

Realizing the danger of their situation, Kilo immediately pulled himself from the lady hunters' conversation. Opening his eyes, Kilo quickly grabbed Castyr's wrist and pulled the star from his seat. We need to get out of here.