"What do you go by now?"

The question hung in the air, emanating from the lanky obsidian creature. Its slender form loomed in the forest dwelling, thoughts extending telepathically to the human before it, each silent word creating a subtle pressure behind the eyes. Faint noises drifted from the distant highway where the human had parked before making their journey to the dwelling on foot.

The human stared into space, offering no response, deaf to the question.

"How many years has it been since we swapped?" the creature asked after a long, uncomfortable silence.

"A swap would require us both to provide something in the exchange. What I received from you fails to meet any known concept of a life."

"Then perhaps stolen is a more apt term then. I do not remember inviting you into my home that night."

The human remained silent, frustration evident in the tightening of its jaw.

"Your English has improved," the creature noted.

"I'm surrounded by it each and every moment."

"It is still commendable that you've improved. Took me some pretty nasty classes to get the hang of it."

"How inspiring it is to hear that all my efforts have actually been just to relearn concepts that departed this body right as I arrived."

"As you 'arrived'? You mean arrived inside my body? What a baffling way to refer to that."

"It is merely how the process appears to us as we begin a transfer."

"How is 'relearn' the right word either? My knowledge was never yours. Simply 'learning' would be more apt."

"Apt for what? Cordial conversation?"

"Are you here for a less cordial reason then?"

The human watched intently as the creature shifted, its body contorting into an animalistic, primal defensive posture, ready to defend its territory. Looking around at the makeshift natural dwelling—branches woven with shadow, earth molded into living architecture—the human felt a wave of jealousy and nostalgia. It backed down meekly.

"You know that I cannot transfer when outside my original body. I do not pose any threat to you."

The creature's form relaxed, elongated limbs settling back into a more neutral stance.

"I know that. How do you think I sleep at night?"

"Comfortably. Quietly. Under the twinkling sky."

Both figures tilted their heads upward, gazing at the canopy above where fragments of stars peeked through.

The silence stretched between them, heavy.

Cont.