Hunter Of The Night (Phan AU)

Fourteen

Dan POV
"So do you guys, like, celebrate holidays?" I asked, chewing on a celery stick. I'd been wondering this for a while, seeing as Halloween was right around the corner. Phil turned around with an amused expression.

"Well, some of them," Phil said wiping his brow of sweat. He was helping Joe build the beds in the new rooms, and this particular one was mine.

I felt kind of weird about moving out of Phil's bedroom and into my own on a whole separate floor, but Phil needed his space. He was probably glad to get rid of me and have his bed back to himself, but I was dreading it. I liked the warmth of Phil's body next to mine, and waking up to his sleeping face or his piercing blue eyes.

"If it's Halloween you're wondering about, no we don't," Joe answered my question more specifically.

"Why not?" I quirked my eyebrows, tilting my head to the side. Phil stared at me for a second, his eyes blank, before he answered.

"We think it's a bit foolish," he said with a smirk. "And slightly ridiculing, with the atrocious vampire costumes."

I took another bite of my celery stick. I forgot that people actually dressed up like vampires for Halloween. They look nothing like these vampires, of course. Phil and the others look extraordinary human, not like what I imagined before actually meeting a vampire.

"We celebrate thanksgiving, but not in the way that humans do," Joe said matter-of-factly.

"What do you do?" I asked, curious.

"Well, it's not really a holiday celebration, it's more like a tradition," Phil said hesitantly.

"We all go out hunting together," Joe said, confusing me for a second. Hunting? Some people do go hunting for game and deer, but vampires?

Oh. For food, to eat.

"Oh," I said out loud, my stomach churning. I've yet to accompany Phil on one of his trips out to get himself actual food, which usually consists of wild rabbit blood or the random coyote. He refuses to let me, thinking that I would be too sensitive for it. I've been living here for almost a month now and I've yet to see any of the vampires actually eat.

"It's okay, I'm going to stay home this year," Phil said, smiling soothingly at me. Both Joe and I looked up at him quickly.

"What do you mean? You can't skip thanksgiving," Joe dropped the hammer in his hand to turn all of his attention on Phil.

"Well, I thought that I would take Dan to see his parents or something, he must miss them," Phil answered, averting his eyes. I stared at him with my mouth agape.

"Phil, that's not necessary," I mumbled.

"Of course it is, Dan," he said, shifting his eyes up to mine. "It's no problem for me, if that's what you're worried about. I was going to plan to be one of your friends from the clan or something."

"No, Phil, really, it's okay," I said. I didn't want to tell him my parents were dead, and that my only guardian I have is abusive and that I'd rather be dead than see her again.

Phil narrowed his eyes at me, twisting his mouth up like he was thinking of something. Joe stood up suddenly, making the both of us jump. "Well," he muttered, "I'm gonna go get water."

Joe left, leaving me and Phil alone. "Dan, why don't you want to go home?" He asked quietly.

I sighed and bowed my head. "It's a long story, and my only home before this was the clan."

Phil crawled over to me on his knees and sat down in front of me, his blue eyes staring into my full brown ones. "Fine, you don't have to tell me. But I'm still not going with the others, I'm going to do something with you," he said, smiling at me.