I Am Not Your Master; I Am Your Partner: A (Neko) Dan and (Human) Phil Series

The World Through His Eyes

Phil noticed that Dan had the insatiable urge to play. Whether it was a board game, a video game, or a lighthearted pillow fight, Dan was always moving. It seemed that he was forever hopping around, touching something, or pacing. Unless he was observing something or sleeping, Dan was somewhat restless. Even when cuddling on the sofa, Dan's hands wandered (though Phil certainly made no complaints).

The more time he spent with Phil, the more Dan felt free to reclaim the Neko instincts returning to him. These, of course, included curiosity.

Never having had the opportunity to attend school, and having Phil's full support, Dan would spend his days reading and learning as much as he possibly could. Phil was constantly having books delivered to the flat for Dan. He would finish novels in two days or less, and he already read everything that Phil owned. If he wasn't reading, he was tying a new recipe.

One day, When Phil was taking a break, he found Dan sitting at the dining room table carefully examining the toaster oven, of all things. Phil watched from afar as Dan rotated it, his eyes widening when he made some sort of interesting discovery. He ears twisted and turned, and his tail quivered with excitement. Phil thought that he looked positively adorable, and he wanted to watch Dan as long as possible without being noticed.

Dan dropped his upper body so that his eyes were even with the surface of the table. They darted back and forth as if he were trying to learn some secret.

Phil felt as though his heart could explode. His baby was absolutely precious.

"Hello Sweetheart." Phil smiled and walked to Dan, who was chewing on his plump lower lip in concentration.

Dan looked up to see his beautiful daddy smiling down on him. He loved it when Phil took his breaks. Dan was always happy to see Phil, though he disliked interrupting his work. So he would occupy himself until Phil was finished.

"Daddy," Dan smiled, showing Phil the dimples that he so loved. Dan resisted the urge to climb on him, shifting in his chair. For some reason, the idea of pouncing on him, tackling him to the ground, and covering him with kisses at his very moment sounded really appealing. Dan knew that it would be distracting; Phil still had work ahead of him.

Phil walked to the table and leaned down to place a sweet kiss on Dan's cheek. "What are you up to baby boy?"

Dan blushed slightly. "I want to know how this works." He turned the machine a quarter turn and fingered the dial. "I mean, what triggers the heating element?" Dan was answering Phil but looking at the inside of the contraption as he spoke.

Phil giggled. Of course he was curious. Why shouldn't he be? No one ever explained the fundamentals of electricity to him before, or anything else for that matter. Dan was incredibly bright and Phil thought that he ought to explore it on his own. He knew that Dan learned best by using his hands.

"Dan, why don't you take it apart and see for yourself?" Phil rested his hands on Dan's lean shoulders and massaged them gently.

"Really? Take it apart?" Dan wasn't sure that he had heard him correctly. He turned his head to see Phil's face.

"Sure, why not?" Phil smiled. He walked to the kitchen and opened a drawer containing random household items. He brought Dan two screwdrivers, a small wrench, and some pliers.

Dan laughed nervously. Phil was serious.

"Go for it Sweetheart." Phil kissed his forehead. "I trust you. You will figure it out." Phil scratched his ears and placed another kiss between them.

Dan felt so warm and tingly just then. Phil was constantly surprising him. Everyday, it seemed, Dan learned a little more about the myriad of ways that he could love another person.

Dan giggled and squirmed in his seat.

"I love you Phil." The words seemingly came out of nowhere, but Phil knew exactly what Dan meant when he said them.

Dan felt loved in every possible way. Phil encouraged him and never made him feel foolish. He let Dan explore to his heart's content, and never tried to hold him back.

"I love you too Dan...so much." Phil wrapped his arms around his shoulders and pressed his lips to Dan's neck. "Don't hurt yourself Baby. Have fun." Phil winked and returned to his study. The sooner that he finished his article, the sooner he could be with Dan.

* * *
Dan loved to be outside. He and Phil would go for walks often, usually in the evenings. It was important that Dan be outside in the fresh air where he could connect with nature. It both invigorated him and relaxed him. Being a Neko, Dan very much felt a part of the circle.

Phil knew that keeping Dan healthy meant keeping an open connection to nature. Though he wasn't an inherently outdoorsy person himself, Phil discovered his own love and appreciation of nature through Dan.

Dan would hold his hand and yank him in different directions without any warning at all. Dan would spot a tiny hedgehog or an English Robin. He would finger the bark of trees and run his hands through blades of grass, pressing his face to lush carpets of moss.

Phil watched him and couldn't help but to fall in love with the world through Dan's eyes. It occurred to Phil that Dan was truly seeing the it for the first time - only having read about it as a young boy. As a child he was allowed to play outdoors, climbing trees and digging into the Earth, but all of that came to an abrupt end at the age of 12. Everything that Dan was experiencing now, at 19, was a combination of better days and excitement for the future.

It was times like this that Phil would look at Dan and wonder how his mother had ever given him up. Surely she hadn't held him, because to hold him was to fall in love with him.

Dad rarely discussed his family. He claimed that Phil was the only family that he needed, but Phil, who knew the unconditional love of his own, wondered.

Dan was full of wonder, and he was extremely intelligent. Phil struggled to understand the origins of the idea that Nekos should not be bothered with an education. Service and obedience - these were taught and little else. So many Nekos had just accepted their fate, never questioning its sensibility. Phil ached for those who fell into submission, either by acceptance or by defeat.

Dan was a beautiful creature indeed, though it was his spirit that Phil loved the most. Dan required more, and Phil found him to be supremely brave and inspiring. Dan did not accept his fate. He could have died escaping it, and he nearly did.

Dan said that he was an Earth Angel sent to him in the hour of his need, though Phil wondered if it was Dan who was sent to him.

Phil's life was too quiet and too comfortable to be satisfying. He felt unsure of his purpose, never knowing when it would make itself known. He was happy enough, though there was an unnamed void in his life. Looking back, Phil realized that he was exactly where he needed to be to be able to receive Dan.

They had enriched each other's lives in too many ways to count. Phil wondered where their relationship might take them; it was still new, less than a year old. Still, he knew, in no uncertain terms, that Dan was his future.

One day, he was going to marry Dan. Yes, the one who showed him his own capacity for love and strength would one day be his husband.

Phil wondered if Dan knew it too.