I don't own Taurus and I am quoting the first lines from The Minotaur Takes a Cigarette Break.
Pizza, Popcorn, and CSI
"The Minotaur sits on an empty pickle bucket blowing smoke through bullish nostrils. He sits near the dumpster on the dock of the kitchen at Grub's Rib, smoking and watching Joe Joe, the dishwasher, dance on the thin strip of crumbling asphalt that begins three steps down at the base of the dock, runs the length of the building's backside and stops abruptly at the overgrown back, thick with jimson weed, honeysuckle, and scraggly pine, leading down the interstate. It's hot, and through the haze and the treetops the Minotaur can just make out a piece of the billboard advertising the restaurant; Next Exit. The Minotaur doesn't like to smoke, but smokes anyway, smokes menthol because he likes them even less…"
Taurus sat on his couch, one hoofed foot propped up on his coffee table, his other arm hanging behind the couch. He read the book one handed, since it was small in New Olympian standards, just a little bigger than his hand. He held the book open with his thumb, supporting its spine with his other two fingers. He had already read it twice, but was reading through it a third time; just to take it all in. The magazines proved to be nothing more than papers filled with the trivial pursuits of humans and advertisements. Though he did mildly enjoy a few of the columns, mostly in amusement about human society and the high price the humans pay for status, fashion, and boyfriends. Taurus enjoyed several belly laughs, the first he enjoyed in a long time. They hurt.
It was quiet in his apartment. Most New Olympians apartments were sound proof, with the exception of the slum apartments hidden in the shadows of the larger, grander buildings, keeping the racket from noisy neighbors in their apartments and the noise pollution of the streets outside. But it was too quiet for Taurus's like, especially since he was use to the hustle and bustle of the security precinct. He did not like reading in peace and quiet, even though it could do him some good.
He had tried turning the plasma screen, a large massive thing that took up the middle third of one wall. It was bought mostly for looks. Taurus was not particularly one for home decoration, in fact he scoffed at the council to-do list and the "repaint your apartment" bit, currently that list is resting at the bottom of Taurus's recycling bin, but he knew what made a home a home, and a screenless blank wall did not make a home a home. Maybe it was there as well for him to show off, he was sure to whom, but it was just there. Not only was Taurus not one for home improvement, he was not one for some of the shows. Lengthy dramas with love triangles that resembled octagons or maybe N-gons, left him confused and bored. He rarely ever watched the screen, and when he did, it was at night, mostly news broadcasts. These feminine dramas, shown mostly in the morning, were always in the middle of some huge ordeal that to understand one needed to watch previous episodes. In both the real life and the surreal life, he never could deeply involve himself into romance. Sellers on the screen were mildly amusing. Taurus could read the faces of the sellers, see through their fake overexcitement and fervent enthusiasm.
A few years ago someone (perhaps Boreas, or maybe it was former date) suggested that Taurus get a pet. They suggested getting a bird, a pretty little birdy (yes, it was a former date) that would sing in the morning when he woke up and sing when he came home at night. Taurus bought Achelous, a golden, rusty, ivory koi instead of a pretty little birdy. Not only was the upkeep on the fish simple, it could go days with out feed, which with Achelous's behavior, one could not tell, and it didn't sing. Now, as Taurus read his book in complete silence, he wished he had something that would make a little constant noise. Achelous blubbed in his tank and watched Taurus with hungry interest.
"You just ate," Taurus said. "Don't look at me like that. I should have got a bird."
Taurus had tried to turn his wavecatcher (a radio) on, but it was set to police broadcasts. He immediately turned it off and settled on opening the window so that sound could leak in.
It had taken in a full hour before he was comfortable enough to reread the book again. In fact, he was so comfortable that the thing called a cigarette sounded excellent right now to soothe his agitation, since M the Minotaur in the novel seemed to like smoke them, the menthol kind (whatever menthol was, it contained the root word menthe, which was related to mint, which might mean the cigarettes tasted good) when he was stressed. From his deduction, Taurus guessed a cigarette was similar to the pipes that some New Olympians, like his father, smoked.
Fifteen minutes later and nine pages in, there was a knock on the door.
"Door's unlocked," Taurus stated, still reading the book.
The door slowly creaked open. First a wave of blue hair poured from the opening, and then a small face, with a pearlish sheen to the skin and eyes as large as scallop shells with pupils the color of lagoon water. Taurus could imagine the white grains of sand beneath the blue vastness of the eyes. A naiad maiden, one he'd never seen before.
"Hi," a voice chirped in a forced tininess. It sounded like a little mouse, or better yet, a small ocean bird, trying to whisper into a sea cavern. "Hi, um, Chief Taurus. I just moved in three days ago."
It sounded as if the voice was on the edge of an hysterical, screeching breakdown.
"Ah, you moved into Tityus's old apartment. I saw the crates out there earlier in the week. And please call me Taurus, I'm off duty and you don't work for me for me either," Taurus laughed. He noticed the naiad wince, despite the fact he barely saw all of her. "Come on in. And who might you be?"
"I am Calypso Cestus, Taurus" she said, blushing navy blue in the cheeks.
"Calypso Cestus? Why does that name sound familiar?" Taurus said, scratching his chin. He slid the book between the seat cushion of his couch when he noticed the naiad lower her head. "Wait a minute, weren't you suppose to be one the interns? One of the six Helios lost?"
There was a gurgle from the veil of blue hair. "Yes."
"Why the Hades did you quit?" Taurus asked. "I read in your paperwork you were doing great. Great aim and great abilities, though just a little slow using them."
"I saw the prisoners; they said mean things to me. They kept saying 'NICE ASS NICE ASS' to me," Calypso murmured. Taurus's ears lowered.
"Calypso, some of those men have been locked in there cells for almost fifty years. None of them have seen a female for years. And besides, they say the same thing to me too, all the time," Taurus said.
"I'm guessing that guy Rion didn't get the job, he was the last guy remaining," Calypso said. "I heard everybody else quit."
"Nope, from what Helios was saying Rion got into a dispute with Helios and quit," Taurus said. "A real shame, any of you would have done great. You should see the ding-a-ling of an intern that is there now. Got there by default because there were not other interns to choose from."
"I'm trying again soon," Calypso spoke up. "I'm working on my self defense at the Amazon Gymnasium. Just let those prisoners try and cop a feel."
"The prisoners are in special cells, they can't reach out and touch you. Just try wax ear plugs next time. They work like an evil eye charm," Taurus said. "Or tell them too bad they can't kiss it since they're locked up. Reminding them of where they are and what they can't do is a pretty good way of putting them in their place."
Calypso held her tiny hand up to her mouth to smother a girlish giggle. "Everyone tells me you're a real hardass. I guess they were wrong."
Taurus could smack himself in the head. He wondered who was included in this everyone
"How bout you sit down? I'll get us something to drink. You like freshly made pomegranate juice?" Taurus asked getting up. Calypso fell back startled as Taurus stood up. He had a good two and half feet on her, and she was mostly like in the one hundred pound weight region, barely a fifth of his weight. She did not look in fear at his towering form, but in awe, marveling perhaps?
"I like pomegranate juice," she said hypnotically, just staring at his shoulders, then working her eyes down his back and focusing on another, well shaped, well defined part of his anatomy. Among other things she thought. He really did earn that nickname.
As Taurus headed to his eating area, Calypso plopped down on his couch, between the two cushions. She crossed her legs and rested her tiny hands on her lap. She took in Taurus's apartment, as well as the heat emanating from where he sat.
"You like the color beige?"
"Yeah," Taurus answered as he sliced a pomegranate in half, exposing its bloody, red "seeds". The pomegranate was one of the few fruits that have not been genetically altered to become a completely new fruit, fruit that could flourish on the island and support its population. It was still genetically altered however, made to thrive in rocky soil, on little water, and in little space. The one Taurus was juicing was huge, probably the size of a melon, and "seedless". In place of the small white seeds of ancient pomegranates, there were just red, solid juicy jewels.
"Beige is nice. You know, it's just like the sand in the ocean. It's a nice base for all sorts of colors."
"Uh-huh," Taurus responded, crushing the fruit.
"All the pretty fish and colorful coral form on the sand, adding color too it. You know, if you put a few colorful toss pillows on your couch, added a nice floor rug, and put a fringe on your curtains, your apartment would look great. I mean it looks nice now, but it would look even nicer with a tinge of color. All the colors go with beige," Calypso said.
"Uh-huh," Taurus said, pouring the juice into glasses. He was not irked because he was not listening to the naiad. He went to his freezer unit to remove some ice and took some candied lemon peel from the cupboard. He added these to the glasses and brought them over to the living room. He handed a glass to Calypso.
"Thank you," she said, daintily taking a sip.
Taurus sat down in a chair nearby. He sipped contentedly.
"Aren't you supposed to be at work?" Calypso asked. "Not to be rude Chief, I mean, Taurus, just Taurus."
"I'm on vacation," Taurus answered. He finished the remnants of his glass in one gulp.
"Really?" Calypso asked, fiddling with the half-full glass between her fingers. "How long?"
"Two months."
"Two months. Why would you want to take a vacation that long?" Calypso asked.
"Who said I 'wanted to'?" Taurus said.
"You were forced to?" Calypso asked.
"You can say that. It's the price you pay for protecting the city of New Olympus," said Taurus. He leaned back in his chair, propping his feet up on the chair.
"Oh," Calypso said. It was silent for a moment as Taurus reflected and Calypso thought, looking down at the sand colored floor. Suddenly, she jerked up and shook in her seat. "Ow, what's this?"
Taurus pricked awake as Calypso removed his book from the seat cushions.
"You lost a book here." she said, looking at the cover. "What's a cigarette?"
"Nothing you should worry about," Taurus said, snatching the book out of her hands. "A friend loaned it to me."
"Really? I've never seen a book like that before. It's not made like our books. Is it some new style?" she asked.
"Yes, it's some new style," Taurus said.
"Really? What's cigarette?" Calypso asked, suspiciously. "And who's this friend? Because my old roommate was a book dealer, and I know a thing or too about books, and that is not a New Olympian book."
Calypso did not appear to one interested in books, let alone know a thing about books and where they originate. She definitely would not have made a great intern, a great officer perhaps, but not a great intern. She was too smart and too damn perceptive to be an intern.
"I borrowed it, okay?" Taurus said, shielding the book cover.
"Was it from that Elisa woman?" Calypso asked. She did not sneer when she said "Elisa", in fact, she just said woman, not human. Taurus felt slightly at ease. She was curious, not downright hostile, to the origin of the book.
"No," Taurus answered. "I came across it, during a certain situation and ended up with it. I was not even going to take it, but I felt I could learn something from it."
"So, what's a cigarette?" Calypso asked.
"Not sure," Taurus said. "I think it's like a disposable pipe. You smoke it and toss out the 'butts', that's all I could comprehend."
"Smoking is gross," Calypso said, wrinkling her tiny nose. "How could you read a book and not be able to understand it?"
"Some things I did not understand at first, but I think I got them farther on into the book. Some things I simply do not get. But the story line, if you could ignore the human terminology, was pretty understandable. It was a good read," Taurus said.
"Oh, I don't like reading. I had to listen to my old roommate go on and on about his books and how to tell how much they were worth. It killed me to listen to him drone," Calypso said.
"I have to return this to the human lands. You mustn't tell ANYONE that I have this or had anything human made in my possession. Do I make that clear?" Taurus said. He reached out and put his hand on Calypso's shoulder. His massive hand engulfed her shoulder. He could have easily crushed her shoulder, but the move was not meant to scare her, which it didn't. It was more meant to represent the secret between them, something they shared.
"Very clear, Sir," she said, looking up.
"Good."
Taurus took his hand off her shoulder and set the book down on a table.
"So when are you going to return it?" Calypso asked.
"Soon, I think I will be leaving tomorrow," Taurus said. He appeared to be searching for something. "I don't know how long I will be gone."
"Are the human lands dangerous?"
"They can be," Taurus answered. "If you get rid of the dirt and grime and change the denizens, their city, New York, is not so different from New Olympus."
"New York? So there was and Old York, just like there was Mount Olympus?" Calypso asked. "So they had to leave their lands for some reason right, since they made a new place? Just like we did."
"You ask too many questions and jump to too many conclusions," Taurus said. He scratched his chin. "I'm not sure, really, I'm not. In fact, New York is on a land I never seen before, a completely new land."
"Oooh," Calypso said. "I wish I could go. Just to see it."
"That may become a reality," Taurus said, digging through some papers. "Not soon, but in a few years. But don't count on it. Ah!"
Taurus pulled out the spa tickets. He held the tickets a few inches from Calypso's face.
"I will be gone for a few days, and I need someone to take care of Achelous over there in his tank, until I return. As well as keep my little trip secret, all right?" Taurus said.
"Of course. I can do it," Calypso said.
"Good." Taurus handed the tickets to her. "These are membership to some spa. They're yours; consider them payment, because I'm never going to use them."
Calypso tucked the tickets into her shirt. "Dinner would have been better."
Taurus chuckled. This Calypso may not have been into books, but she definitely read like one. "Want to go get lunch? Consider it an apartment warming gift."
"Let me get my cloak," she said, and was off, quicker than Artemis's arrows.
Achelous splashed around in his tank excitedly.
"Not you, you fool," Taurus said, crossing his arms.
&&&
The next day…
Gently Taurus packed the books, plus a few other necessities into a satchel. Early, Taurus chewed over whether wearing his uniform or not. Finally and boldly, he changed into a brown harness and kilt with a gold border. It was close enough to his uniform to make him comfortable, but different enough so that Taurus could mingle in with his fellow Olympians without them stepping aside. Unfortunately, Taurus thought, staring at the mirror in his sleeping quarters, his reputation outranked his uniform. He would have to change bodies before clothing before people would finally stop taking him so seriously.
As he prepared to leave his apartment, he tapped on the tank of Achelous's tank. The fish immediately appeared, mouth flapping, from the plants on the side.
"Good fish," he said, with that he spread a fat pinch of food across the surface.
Taurus was leaving later than planned. It took him two hours before he finally found his extra apartment key to give to Calypso. He never had anyone look after his apartment before, and he completely lost track of where the key went. She appeared almost immediately, the same exact speed in which Achelous appeared, at her door when Taurus knocked, and in a sea green nightgown, one strap hanging downing, exposing a pale shoulder speckled with blue freckles. Taurus gave her the key, thanked her, and left. She looked mad when he headed down the hallway back to his room.
Taurus head went down the elevator eight flights to the lobby. Hekate was not there, but he could hear her voice outside near the entrance. In typical pompous gorgon fashion, she was overseeing someone, advising them where to place something.
"Now put that shrub over there, Andromedios," she said.
"My name's not Andromedios, it's Orion, Rion for short," someone argued back. By the stress in his voice, he appeared to be lifting something. "That's my stage name, and I don't work there anymore!"
"Look, for the incredible amount I am paying you, you settle with what I am calling you. For some extra gold, you could do that lovely little number involving the collar," Hekate cooed. "I'm not stingy with my money."
There was a mumble. Taurus could see another minotaur, smaller and brown, carrying a large, flowering olive on one shoulder. The minotaur was wearing the muddy blue garb of a gardener or park worker. He looked mad through his long brown, pampered bangs. His eyes drooped in defeat, but the pupils held the spark of defiance.
"Old bag, this is what I get for going back to school, and quitting two good paying jobs," the other minotaur mumbled, settling the olive into a freshly dug hole. This Rion may have been the Rion Calypso was talking about.
As the minotaur, Rion, bent over to plant the shrub, Hekate, slid money between Rion's jacket and his baggy working pants, right into his undergarments. Rion jumped up as if he was stung by a bee. Hekate sniggered like a female one twentieth her age.
"STOP DOING THAT!" he exclaimed. "I'll take one lump sum at the end of this, thank you. No small down payments, okay."
Taurus laughed the whole way to his hovercraft. So there were people who were in worse situations because of their reputations.
In fact, he didn't stop laughing until New Olympus was long gone on the radar from the dashboard of his hovercraft.
&&&
It was not a particularly good day for Rachel Wesley. In fact, it was not a particularly good month for Rachel Wesley. The incident in the alleyway behind the store was nothing more than an irritating memory, and she would have simply brushed it off as if it was nothing, like New York City brushes off every little dispute that happens on its streets, except whenever she was peeved this month, all she could think about was what made her angry, and that would come up. Sometimes it was the first thing, sometimes it was the last thing, and a few times it came up in the middle of her train of thought. The only thing that remained constant, she became more miffed when she thought of it.
The note was mulled over as some mysterious letter from some tall, dark stranger, not in a romantic way tall dark stranger, for the first day, before finally it was tossed out. The name Taurus could only make her more irked. It was some joke, some little code name for some, little inside, intricate game some people like to play on the majority people. All she could think of was "the Zodiac Book Stealer".
She had gone down to the comic book store across the street two days after her books were taken. Confusedly and bemusedly the clerks at the store looked at her as she told them about the incident. Finally, after getting through to them, they took her to a back room allowing her to see their whole stock of costumes. Star Wars, Star Trek, Lord of the Rings, and numerous other movie and television series outfits, filled the room, a room even larger than the comic book store. Rachel felt pathetically small.
"I'm looking for something with horns," Rachel said, chewing on her thumbnail. The Lord of the Rings trilogy was the only movies she had ever seen in their entirety, and she was only moderately knowledgeable with Star Wars. "Big horns."
"We've got Viking outfits, do you think the guy who jumped was dressed like Eric the Red?" one guy joked.
"No, he had a laser gun, and horns," Rachel snapped. Among other things. But she said nothing else, since she already knew they were holding in their laughter.
"Dude, is anything that has horns and carries a laser gun?" the one clerk asked the other.
"No, I don't think so. You sure this even happen?" the other clerk asked.
"Yes, I'm sure. Some creep in a costume jumped me in an alley way," Rachel stated.
"Well, what makes you think it was us?" the one clerk exclaimed.
"I don't know, maybe it was because last year for Halloween when three of your employees pranced into our store dressed up as King Arthur, Patsy, and the Black Knight and had a huge sword fight, knocking over book shelves? This sounds like a prank people like you pull. You're lucky we didn't call the cops," Rachel said.
"Look we can't help you. Why didn't you call the cops in the first place anyway instead coming here? Or did you miss us?" the one clerk asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Oh just forget it," Rachel said, brushing them off. She stormed out of the door.
She had just returned back to her apartment when work called earlier, two cashiers called off and Lisa needed her to come in. Earlier that day Rachel received her anatomy exam back. To her dismay, she failed it by three points. The damn professor would not bump her up to a D, which would greatly help her. Biology was not looking any better. She was barely making a C there. She did not even think she was going to be able to make a 2.5 this semester. Some moron on her chewed her out on her on campus job. Something about his transcripts request, meanwhile she was working in the meal plan office. She could not get it through to him that this was the cafeteria, she dealt with food. She hung up twice on the guy, who repeatedly called back, and did not answer the phone which resulted in her manager chewing her out as well. Work at the book store was not any better. She had a veterinary chemistry to study for next week, and wanted to get a head start. If she made a B in that class, she might be able to make the grade and avoid academic probation. The book store was ridiculously busy. One of the cashiers who called off walked passed the store window with her boyfriend, and Rachel was ready to flip. There were several calls for the new Harry Potter book which does not come out for another month, someone tried to return a book from another bookstore, and another person spilled cappuccino all over the map section. Rachel had no time to study.
Here I am, a junior in college barely making the grades in my seventh semester, working two jobs and dealing all day with idiots and now I'm off to my apartment to a senile old lady and her yapping rat-dogs. All I need is another phone call at three in the morning to come change a light bulb and this day would be the spokesperson for shitty days everywhere Rachel thought as she stumbled out of the back of the store. In one arm she carried her dinner, cold with the bag leaking grease, and in the other arm she carried a plastic bag with her college book, folders with the pockets filled to brimming with notes, work books, and notepads.
Her head and feet were thumping. At least she had no classes tomorrow. She was looking forward to spring break. She was not lucky like her fellow class mates who could afford (finicially and academically) to go down to Cancun, but she had a week off, which was better than nothing. She might be able to improve her class standing in Animal Anatomy and get that huge term paper finished on her thesis about the therapeutic effects of massage on animals. Her mother told her that bad streaks always come to an end if you let them come to an end. Rachel was hoping to end this especially nasty streak next week.
She could not wait to go home, to the apartment above a garage. It was one of the few things she was thankful to receive this city. The studio apartment was on the property of an elderly lady named Mrs. Brigleston whose late husband earned a healthy sum of money in the fifties and sixties in the stock market. Since she already had money, or was completely unaware of what an apartment costs in New York City, Mrs. Brigleston charged a cheap price for the apartment, nestled above a large, empty garage that once held the half dozen or so of her husband's classic cars, now sold. Mrs. Brigleston's grandson used to "crash" at the apartment until he moved down to Miami, so the apartment was already furnished. When Mrs. Brigleston found out that Rachel was majoring in veterinary care, Rachel immediately became the sole protector of Mrs. Brigleston's five purebred Pomeranians and cockatiel, Coco, which thus lowered her bills. Rachel did not have the heart to tell the elderly lady that she was majoring in the care and treatment of large animals like horses and zoo animals. Rachel just had to pay for her internet and her own groceries with the occasional payment for electricity. Unfortunately there was a catch, as well as being Mrs. Brigleston's personal vet, she was also her personal maid, delivery girl, and chauffer. But it was a small price to pay.
Rachel stepped down the one step onto the street. She groaned as her head was bombarded by the sounds of New York. On cue her plastic bag burst in mid groan. Papers scattered, books hit the mud.
"Dammit!" Rachel exclaimed. She kneeled down to gather her materials. Her notes began to soak up the mud, turning tan. She grimaced holding up a heavy book, dripping in slime. She was not going to get any money back when she returned this. Just perfect. Just freaking perfect.
"Here," a voice, deep and extremely masculine said from above her. She was startled, but not frightened. It was weird, but she was not intimidated by the voice. If a guardian spirit sounded like anything, it would have sounded like that. "These are yours."
A hand held a stack of books, holding them at a tilt just a few inches away from Rachel's face. One of her notebooks was on top.
"Thank yoOOO! OH MY GOD," she exclaimed, starting out graciously and quickly turning horrified.
Rachel reached up to take the stack of books, but then she realized on the spines of the books read The Minotaur Takes a Cigarette Break and the thick stacks of books were being held in place by a large, gray three fingers, lit up by the light above her. She could just make out the tip of a muzzle and two grey eyes set in heavy, curving brows. She could barely discern what appeared to be the beginning of a black Mohawk, set between two long, wicked looking horns tipped in gold.
Rachel jumped up quickly. She pointed a finger at the figure, half hidden in the shadows. "You're the bastard who stole my books! Well let me tell you buddy, this is one very sick little joke you're playing on me! And I don't find it amusing one bit what so ever! I'll advising getting lost before I call the cops on your sorry pathetic ass!"
"I didn't 'steal' your books. I made it evidently clear in my note that I meant to borrow your books for further my personal research, Miss Rachel Wesley," the figure said straightly, spitting her name out, it ran off his tongue as if he was trying sputter out a sour tasting piece of food. He just sounded a bit peeved, more so at her accusations than at her reaction.
"How do you know my name?" Rachel spat and jumped back.
"I found it on your ID card," the figure stated. He crossed his brawny arms, her books still tightly held in his hands.
"My ID card? Wait a minute, you went through my purse! Why the hell did you go through my purse? And who and what the hell are you?" Rachel screamed, pointing a figure.
There was a stomp, a click akin almost to a horse hoof hitting the bricks. A booted foot, too domed to be human and proportionately small compared to the body of the figure, appeared in the light. The figure shifted as he moved into light, allowing her to give a fully lit view of himself underneath the sickly yellow light.
There was two feet of space between Rachel and a seven and a half foot behemoth. She barely came to the center of his chest. Rachel looked up at two angry, round eyes and lowered brows. She was nose to snout tip to a minotaur. Unlike her book, where the minotaur was an unwieldy combination of man and beast, this minotaur was a perfect, well molded mixture of both. Short grey furcovered his body, a blatantly obvious muscular, powerful, and effective body. He stood straightly and powerfully, not one part of him was disproportionate to another part, everything was fitted perfectly together. He was not bent over because his head was too heavy, nor did he stare at her with completely black eyes, dull with stupidity. Despite the stoicism seen in cattle, the lack of expression in their placid faces, this minotaur was obviously P-I-S-S-E-D. There was a snort, a mist flew into Rachel's face.
"That's not a costume," she managed to get out before she fell forward into a dead faint.
&&&
Taurus managed to catch Rachel before she fell face forward into the alleyway. She only managed to get her knees dirty as her legs dragged uselessly underneath her body. Rachel's head and arms draped like wilted plants in Taurus's arms. He dropped her books and she dropped hers when she fell.
"Dammit," he said, trying to hold onto the human which was really hard to hold onto. It was like trying to get your hands on dead eels to butcher. They were dead and not moving, but their slimy skin and rubbery bodies provided little to hold onto. Taurus wrapped his one arm around Rachel's waist, holding onto her as he tried to gather the fallen books. He was just picking up the final page when the door opened. "Dammit!"
He darted into the shadows again. He leaned back behind a dumpster, his hand cupped over Rachel's mouth.
"Rachel? Are you still out here?" Lisa called, stepping down onto the street. Her heels clicked loudly on the stone. "Rachel? I thought I heard something."
There was a click and the door was locked. The clack of Lisa's heels echoed in the distance.
Damn.
Rachel was out. Taurus tried shaking the woman awake, but it failed, she was out cold. It did not look like she had the keys either. That other woman locked the door, so Taurus could not leave her into the store like he did earlier. He could not exactly leave her in the alleyway.
Damn.
Taurus growled.
He slung Rachel's limp form over his broad shoulder and carried her books under his one arm to his hidden hovercraft.
&&&
Rachel came to about fifteen minutes later. She could feel wind, cool, strong, and burning through her hair and against her face. There was a strong leather smell and there was a feeling of leather between her cheek and fingertips. At first she thought she was in her grandfather's leather cushion convertible, driving through the country side with the top down and she had just fallen asleep. But then she realized the leather seats of her grandfather's car were not this pliable, or warm, or this furry—
"PUT ME DOWN!" Rachel exclaimed. She banged her fists against the minotaur's back. It was just as effective as punching her grandfather's seat cushions, only a little more painful, for her. "Put me down now!"
"Can you survive a five hundred foot drop?" came a straightforward question. The voice was so straightforward and bland, Rachel did not know if the minotaur was being serious or deathly sarcastic.
Rachel stopped thrashing She realized she was hanging on the minotaur's shoulder, slung over as it as she was some princess getting carried off by a brutish ogre. Underneath her she could see the River and the lights of office buildings and cars. The honking horns and shouts of people were muffled. Rachel's limbs stiffened in fear then slackened in realization. The limbs that fought to free herself from her beastly captor, soon found themselves wrapped around his head and upper body. There was a muffled sound from his mouth; her arm was round his muzzle, the bend of her elbow was practically gagging him. Her other hand was wrapped around his one horn, pulling his head to one side. The strange vehicle they were riding on, it looked like a wave rider, tilted.
"Don't drop me, don't drop me! I didn't mean anything I said! Don't drop me!" she cried out.
A large hand peeled her arm from his mouth. The vehicle straightened. "I don't mean any harm to you human. This whole entire I meant to cause you no harm. You either passed out or verbally attacked me. I should have left you in the alleyway for the rats, not just the rodent kind either. Either straightened up, or I will drop you."
"Where are you taking me?" Rachel squawked, loosening her terrified grasp on the minotaur's head, but not much.
"To your home, it's this way, isn't it?" he asked.
"No, my house is in the other direction. And how the hell do you know where my home is?" Rachel exclaimed.
"It was on your ID," the minotaur stated. "But unfortunately I am not well acquainted with your city. Do you wish to direct me in the proper direction of your dwelling?"
"Why can't you just outright say 'I don't have a clue where I'm going, I've haven't been in this city a lot'?" Rachel snarled.
"Some of us prefer to speak with civility," the minotaur answered.
"Civility? You pulled a gun on me earlier, scared the living hell out of me, stole my books, scared the living hell out of me again, and are currently taking me on a five hundred foot in the sky joyride with me thrown over your shoulder like a sack, threatened to drop me, and you're accusing me of being uncivil?" Rachel exclaimed. "You need to reread the definition of civility buddy!"
"My name is not buddy, it is Taurus, and I blatantly stated it on my note. You humans should try to recall names, Rachel Wesley," Taurus stated. "And I returned you books, in good condition might I add, not a page folded or ripped or a spine worn. You damaged them yourself when you fell."
"Well, excuse me, Mister Taurus for being so uncivil before you almighty, better-than-thou presence!" Rachel snapped back. "I tend to forget my station when I'm suspending five hundred feet in the air on a wave rider on the shoulder of a side of beef!"
"You know what, Miss Rachel Wesley, I think I like this end better," Taurus stated. He rolled his shoulder, shifting Rachel's butt. "A lot quieter."
"So you do have a sense of humor," Rachel said.
"That wasn't in good humor, Miss Rachel Wesley," Taurus answered dryly. Rachel managed to suppress a laugh, but she was still mildly baffled whether that was in serious or not. With his tone of voice, she could not tell.
"The same goes for you too," Rachel said, looking down. "At least this side doesn't try to offend my intelligence. And please, don't call me Miss Rachel Wesley. Rachel is just fine. So what exactly is your full name, Mister Taurus?"
"It's not important," Taurus answered, turning the hovercraft around.
"Well obviously it is since you've been making such a big deal out of it," Rachel said. "What, are you some type of agent or something since you can't tell me your full name?"
"I'm Chief of Security, I protect and serve."
"A police officer then, huh?" Rachel said. "I'm guessing not for the NYPD. You're a police officer for a hidden race of monsters? A race of monsters that hate humans and hide themselves and keep humans away from their highly evolved city."
Taurus nearly dropped her. "How in Hades did you know all that?"
"You don't get out much do you? I kind of figured it out. Is it this strange contraption we're riding, or the fact you're a minotaur, or the fact that you seem to make a huge deal that I'm human that lead to that conclusion. Trust me, I've seen it in all sorts of movies and books and comics and sitcoms and cartoons. It's so obvious it's cliche," Rachel said.
Taurus snorted. "Am I going in the right direction?"
"Yes," Rachel answered. "So, how were my books?"
Taurus mulled over his answer. "They were…interesting."
"Interesting, so did you like them?"
"The one, The Minotaur Takes a Cigarette Break," Taurus said. "It was very…deep. Mildly confusing, but the poetry was quite well written. But the Minotaur, he was never like that. He wasn't that pathetic."
"Everything's pretty pathetic once you realize it," Rachel said. "But it's also pretty powerful too. The Minotaur was pathetic, but he was a loving guy, he just wanted a family, a person to love him and for him to love in return, so he wasn't all that pathetic. Compare him to some of his cohorts, and he's more human than them."
"Human is a bad term for my people," Taurus stated. "Remember, we don't like humans? So humans are inhuman to us while we're human, in your terminology."
"Humane then," Rachel said. "He was more humane than them."
"Better," Taurus said. Did she just notice he smiled? Maybe it was just the flashing lights from the bridge as they passed it playing a trick on her eyes.
"I'm guessing there's a different version to the Theseus and the Minotaur myth for your people," Rachel said.
"In our version, the Minotaur was held captive in the labyrinth because of his own beastliness. He was beaten and starved till he was almost dead then Theseus came along, broke his back in one stomp and took his head. Then he was proclaimed a hero for defeating a starving creature who hadn't done a thing to anyone other than frighten a few people because of his appearance," Taurus stated. "The Cretans used the Minotaur as a threat to Athens to get whatever they wanted from them. The fourteen virgin maids and boys became concubines, lovers, and servants to royalty while the treasure of Athens decorated the homes of the Cretans. The minotaur got nothing more than a few bones tossed into his enclosure, if they remembered to feed him."
"You know what's sad," Rachel said.
"What?"
"That's sound even more truthful than our legend," Rachel said. "It makes our legend, something fake, sound true."
Taurus nodded.
&&&
"That's my house," Rachel said, pointing downward to a dark roof. "You should be able to land on the roof. The landlady's hippy grandson had the roof fortified so that he could have huge 'stargazing' parties up here. I heard there could be as many as twenty or thirty people up here. It should be safe enough for you to land this."
Halfway to her home, Rachel switched positions from Taurus's shoulder to sitting directly behind him. She nearly fell off, but Taurus kept a steady grasp on her, and she didn't plummet to her death. It was like riding an aerial motorcycle, now that she was not so perilously balanced on the minotaur's shoulder. She was actually enjoying it. The only thing she did not enjoy was Taurus's lengthy ponytail continually hitting her in the face.
Taurus landed the hovercraft on the roof. He stayed on the hovercraft while Rachel dismounted. Taurus dismounted shortly afterwards. From a compartment in the back of the hovercraft, he removed her books and papers and handed them too her. He was prepared to mount his hovercraft when she stopped him.
"You sure you don't want to come in? To get a drink or something? I mean, I feel bad for flipping out on you," Rachel said, holding the books close to her chest. "Are you sure you'll be okay traveling at night to wherever you live? Don't you need a place to crash for the night?"
Taurus lowered his foot, which was on the side o the hovercraft. "I'll be fine."
"I have more books if you want to borrow them. Don't you have to go to the bathroom? You have a long trip ahead of you, don't you?" Rachel asked sheepishly.
Taurus had to turn in this change of behavior to face the young woman. At first she appeared defiant and spicy, a perfect example of the dangers of the human race, but then she changed, but not into an honorable, brave figure like Elisa Maza, but instead into a shy, young female with a regrettable expression on her pale face. If Elisa was an animal, she would be a fox, powerful, clever, and brave with a sleek, muscular, colorful body and clever, bright eyes. If Rachel was an animal, she'd be a mouse, or maybe a rabbit, small, shy, lightly colored with a round, soft body with large, but equally bright eyes. The eyes said everything, in a way, they were just like Elisa's.
"I guess," Taurus said. He clicked on the controller in his hand, setting the hovercraft into camouflage mode.
&&&
Taurus followed Rachel down the ladder that led down to her balcony. He dropped the last ten feet, landing with a thud behind Rachel. He never thought a human could jump so high. He gave her a small smile, half embarrassed half smug.
Rachel slid the balcony doors open and walked into her kitchen. Rachel flicked on a switch to her apartment. Taurus and Rachel were in her walk-in kitchen which opened up into a living room/library/study/ dining room. In one corner of the expansive room was her computer desk and a book shelf, at the wall across from them was a sofa and a television set, on the other side of the room was a table and chairs. There was a door that led into a spare bedroom, a bedroom with a water bed, which Rachel was not too fond of. Two doors beside the computer opened up into Rachel's own small bedroom and a bathroom.
"Make yourself at home," Rachel said, taking off her coat. She hung it on a coat rack. She watched in awe as Taurus wiped his booted feet on the door mat and took his boots off. He neatly placed the boots by the door. "The bathroom is over there."
Taurus's hoofed feet clicked on the hardwood floor as he headed over to the bathroom. He shut the door gently. It was silent as Rachel dug through her fridge, pulling out bottles of cola and juice. The toilet flushed. There was the sound of running water as Taurus washed his hands and the ripping of paper as he dried them.
"Thank you," he said graciously to Rachel upon leaving the bathroom.
"Coke or Pepsi?" Rachel asked, holding up two two-liter bottles. Taurus examined the bottles curiously.
"What are they?" Taurus asked, scratching his chin.
"They're human drinks; soda, cola, pop, tonic. We drink a lot of them. Especially college students like me," she said.
"Hmm, the blue one," Taurus said, pointing to the Pepsi bottle. He personally did not care.
"Pepsi," she said.
"Pepsi," Taurus stated, tasting the word on his tongue.
"Make yourself at home," Rachel restated. She began to pour the Pepsi into to glasses, one bigger than the other. "There's a television there."
Rachel indicated the large blocky screen sitting on a squat pedestal. It looked similar enough to the screen in Taurus's own apartment. Taurus found an equally blocky remote sitting on a side table. He picked it up, it was too small for his massive hands, so channels bounced around crazily as large fingers tried to press the small rubbery buttons. He never succeeded in pressing just one, he pressed two or three at a time. In the back of his mind he could hear his mother joke about his father and his "fat minotaur fingers".
"You know, your note said you'll be here later than this," Rachel said, opening a box of something.
"So you did read it," Taurus said. He held the remote in one hand and came down on the buttons with one finger. "I'm sorry about that. It was not of my intentions to come early. Unfortunately things did not turn out as I had planned. I hope this does not infer on your plans."
"It doesn't," Rachel said, opening up cupboards.
Taurus gave up trying to use the remote and settled on whatever channel the boxlike screen happened to be on. A grey haired human with glasses stared down at the body of blonde woman, her corpse marred by small cuts. He flashed his light down on her. A younger looking human appeared behind him.
"You know what's worse than finding one body at the scene of a crime?" the older man asked the younger man.
"No, what Grishom?" the man asked.
"Finding two," the man shown his light into a pipe, revealing the body of another woman, dressed in black with dark hair, lying lifeless in the pipe.
The scene quickly cut off and turned into flashing images of people and words set off in some loud music. Wont get fooled again. No no! won't get fooled again!
There was an explosion of sound behind Taurus. Taurus jumped and turned around, ducking behind the couch. The top of his head and the large curving horns were only visible. The tip of the laser gun became visible.
"It's just popcorn," Rachel said, over the racket. She smiled, recalling earlier.
"Popcorn?" Taurus asked, his head rising above the back of the couch. There was a click as the laser found its way back into his belt. He was thankful and unthankful for Boreas allowing him to keep his laser.
"Snack food," Rachel said as the racket died down. She drizzled a golden liquid onto a mass of white fluffy "flowers". She added some spices and tossed the popcorn in the air, thoroughly coating the pieces.
She brought the popcorn and Pepsi over to Taurus. She handed him a large glass of fizzing, brown liquid to Taurus. She sat the bowl between her and Taurus. Rachel took a gulp of the Pepsi and grabbed a handful of popcorn. Taurus stared down at the glass, his snout tip on the rim. He took a small sip. He snorted and reared his head back as bubbles flew up his nose. Rachel looked at him. Taurus tentatively took a large sip. The liquid burned and it was bubbly. Taurus nearly spit it out. Instead, the liquid flew up his throat, burning his sinuses and the long expanse of his nostrils.
"Oh Zeus!" Taurus exclaimed as the liquid, no longer fizzy, dripped out his nose. Tears poured from his eyes. "What the Hades is this awful stuff?"
"It's carbonated water with artificial flavor," Rachel said matter-of-factly, her face burning as she suppressed a laugh.
"It's disgusting, that's what," Taurus said, his voice some what distorted.
"I'll get you water," Rachel said, getting up. She took Taurus's glass and dumped it in the sink.
As Rachel poured a glass of water for Taurus, Taurus tasted the popcorn, which he found very much to his liking. The white flowers were chewy and crunchy, very light and fluffy. He never quite had anything like it before. The experience was very rewarding. One hand full followed another. When Rachel came back with a sweating glass of ice water, the bowl was empty. Was she that slow at getting a glass of water or was Taurus that fast of an eater she wondered.
"I guess you were hungry," Rachel said picking up the empty bowl. "I'll make us another bowl."
"Thank you," Taurus said nodding his head, "it was quite delicious. What exactly is popcorn?"
"It's corn kernels. When they are heated up they 'pop', turning into fluffy popcorn," Rachel said.
"I see," Taurus said. He turned back to the program on television. "What is this program, Rachel?"
"It's CSI, Crime Scene Investigators," Rachel answered, pouring small yellow corn kernels into a strange looking appliance. She set the bowl underneath it.
"What's it about?" Taurus said, his ears homing in on Rachel, his eyes focusing on the show. A group of people stood around the body of the blond woman who was discovered early. A man, ever older than the human seen earlier, held up the woman's slit, bloody wrist. Nearby the body of the brunette woman lay on a steel table, a white sheet covering her from the chest down.
"When someone is killed, the CSI try to figure out how they die and who killed them," Rachel answered, removing a stick of butter from the fridge.
"Ah," Taurus responded. There was not a peep from him as Rachel made another, bigger bowl of popcorn. She sat it down beside him. He did not even notice.
Taurus watched the show intently, occasionally reaching for popcorn. He did not talk until the last twenty minutes of the show.
"It has to be that guy, the former prisoner," Taurus said. "He killed the one girl, but not the other. It said the blond girl was killed by accident when she walked through a glass door. I think the brunette, her sister, was going to do something, and he killed her to keep her from talking and blaming him for the accident."
Taurus's hypothesis was true.
"How did you figure that out?" Rachel asked.
"It was easy, just add the facts up and then look at how the prisoner behaved. Years of police work help as well," Taurus said, polishing off the last of the popcorn.
"How many years?" Rachel asked.
"Many," Taurus answered. He yawned. "Many."
"I have a water bed if you want to sleep on it," Rachel said, getting up. She pointed to the spare bedroom.
"I'm quite fine here," Taurus said. "But thank you."
Taurus slumped down on the couch. His horned head rested on the arm rest, his arms across his chest and his feet hanging over the other arm rest. His eyelids closed over his eyes.
"Are you comfortable?" Rachel asked.
"Quite," was the short answered.
Rachel barely had the door shut to her own bedroom when Taurus started snoring.
&&&
It was not the bright morning light that woke Taurus up, who some how ended up on the floor underneath a pile of sofa cushions, but it was the smell and sizzle of food. Rachel was standing at her oven, her back to him. A steaming tower of thin, golden cakes rested beside her. It had to be two feet high, and it smelt delicious. Taurus scratched the back of his head, at his ebony hair, mussed from the night's sleep.
"How did I end up on the floor?" he grumbled, his eyes narrowed with sleep. He looked outside through the glass doors of the balcony. It looked to be around ten. He had never slept like that before.
"I think you rolled over and took all the cushions with you. I heard a thump in the middle of the night," Rachel said, adding another limp cake to the tower.
"What are those?" Taurus asked walking up to the kitchen.
"Pancakes," Rachel answered rather cheerfully.
"Pancakes," Taurus said. He walked up beside her and peeled a hot pancake from the tower. He rolled it up and ate it. "Mmmmm."
"You don't eat them like that," Rachel said, adding the last bit of batter to the skillet. "You eat them with syrup and butter, sometimes jam, or poached fruit."
"Do you have anything I could wash my mouth with?" Taurus asked. His voice sounded too serious to be joking.
"I thought you liked the pancakes. You sounded like you did anyway" Rachel said, hurt.
"No, no, I didn't mean it like that," Taurus said. "I mean, something that would clean my mouth. Damn. Do you have something that washes mouths, mouth wash or something like that. Something that gets rid of morning breath."
"Oh," Rachel said. "There's a bottle of it in the bathroom. It's blue."
"Thank you," Taurus said. He peeled another pancake off of the pile and ate it as he headed to the bathroom. "Would it be okay if I borrowed your sink for a few moments too?"
"Sure," Rachel said, adding the last pancake to the pile.
Taurus was gone for about ten minutes. Rachel had the table set. She took a jar of strawberry jam out of the fridge and a jar of marmalade and set on them table so that Taurus could try eating his pancakes with other things. She did not know how to make poached fruit, but she figured Taurus would be satisfied with syrup and jam. He seemed pretty content eating the pancakes plain. She poured a glass of milk and a glass of orange juice for both of them.
Rachel just sat down at the table and began to eat her pancakes when Taurus returned from her bathroom. He had a towel wrapped around his head. a few soaking wet strands of black hair fell free from it.
"I am sorry," Taurus said, pulling the towel free and cleaning out the inside of his ears. "I needed to wash my hair. I made a slight mess, but it is cleaned up. I fixed your dripping shower too. I plan on leaving later tonight under the cover of darkness."
Rachel noticed the smell of mangos and peaches in the air. "You used my shampoo."
"It smelt good," Taurus confessed, brushing some white foam out from behind his ear. He sat down at the table, the chair groaned, but held. He did not tell that he tasted it too, and discovered that the burning mouthwash was more palatable than the shampoo. He ended washing his mouth twice with the mouthwash before the taste was out of his mouth. He thought it was all natural, like the bottle said. Damn Herbal Essence, apparently natural was only an essence. He could still taste the shampoo in the back of his throat. "So what do I put on the pancakes?"
"That bottle there, that's syrup," Rachel said, pointing to a bottle of golden brown liquid. "Be careful, it's sticky. I also have some marmalade and jam there if you want to try them."
Taurus squeezed the syrup onto a pile of pancakes. He was quite startled at the obnoxious sound the bottle made. The thin, fluffy pancakes plumped up with the syrup, soaking it up like little sponges. He tried a large forkful of pancakes.
"Hades, these are good, I mean, downright delicious!" he exclaimed. So simple to the taste buds, so delicious to the taste buds. There was a food orgy on his tongue. Taurus ate contentedly loud. He finished off the pancakes, did not even bothering to try them with the jam and marmalade.
Taurus drank both the orange juice and milk. The milk was something almost new to Taurus, and he greatly enjoyed it, just like he enjoyed the popcorn the night before, but not as much as the pancakes. He knew what milk was, but it was a rare thing on New Olympus. The island was too small for cattle and the last of the goats died centuries ago. The 'milk' that he and most New Olympians drank was a synthetic combination of fats, oils, and minerals. It was thicker than water and just a little more tasteful, and that was it. This milk was rich, thicker and more tasteful than the synthetic milk. The only time when New Olympians could obtain such milk was when they were just babies and were breastfed by their mothers. It was years since Taurus last had milk this good.
"Got milk?" Rachel said jokingly to a satisfied Taurus, who sported a milk moustache across his muzzle.
"Huh?" Taurus asked, wiping his muzzle clean.
"Nothing," Rachel said gather up the dishes.
"Here, allow me," Taurus said, practically pushing her aside. He gathered up all the dishes and took them to the sink. "You are quite the hostess, Miss Rachel. I am gracious with your service and hospitality. At least allow me to wash the dishes."
"It's not worth arguing with you," Rachel said, handing him the glasses. Taurus smiled. "You seem to be very good at getting your way."
Taurus washed the dishes as Rachel put them away.
"Rachel, what goes into those pancakes?" he asked, washing the bowl that held the pancake batter. "I'm interested in obtaining the recipe for use at my home."
"It comes from a box," Rachel answered.
"A box?"
"Yes, a box of pancake mix. It's pre-made so all you have to do is add milk, eggs, and oil," Rachel said, removing a box from the cupboard above her head. Taurus took the box in soapy hands.
"Pre-made. Strange," Taurus said.
It was strange to the minotaur. All Olympian food was made from fresh ingredients, there was nothing pre-made or dried, waiting for a few wet ingredients to be added. There were numerous specialized stores along the streets that sold only a particular food item. There were stores that sold only meal and grain for making bread and other related food, unfortunately pancakes weren't included among them. Some stores sold only fresh fruit, other sold only fresh vegetables. Others sold only herbs and some sold only spices. Even the fish market, which is where most of the meat came from with the exception of a few poultry farms, was specialized. There were vendors who sold only mollusks, other who dealt with crab and shrimps, and others who sold fish, some small and whole and others, like tuna, in large steaks. The idea of a whole meal coming from a box was almost preposterous to a minotaur who came from a completely electronic city. It was quite amazing, Taurus thought as he tipped the box, examining it.
He returned the box to Rachel.
"I have an extra box, would you like it?" Rachel asked, setting the almost empty box in the cupboard and removing another box. "You can have it, as a gift."
"Thank you," Taurus said taking the box. Rachel also handed him a full bottle of Mrs. Butterworth syrup.
"You'll need that also," Rachel said.
"Seriously, Rachel, you don't need to give me all this," Taurus said. "Breakfast was enough."
"Oh don't worry," Rachel said, closing the cupboards. "It's a gift. From me to you."
"Miss Wesley, you have given me quite a lot, honestly," Taurus said, startled.
"Don't worry," Rachel said. "Your thanks is enough to me."
Rachel left him in the kitchen. She went to her bedroom and came back with the muddy books. "So what were you doing in New York the first time?"
"Personal business," Taurus said.
"It looked like you were looking for something—or someone," Rachel said. "You said you were a police officer, did a prisoner escape to here or is there some crime ring here?"
Taurus gave her a dirty look.
"What?" Rachel said, flipping through her notes. "What?"
"Nothing," Taurus stated. "It was just business, that's all."
A side of him wanted to tell Rachel about Proteus, about Proteus killing his father, as he did with any person who was willing to listen. But a side of him didn't. He did trust the human. It was strange. He did not trust Elisa Maza at first until she nearly died saving New Olympus. He trusted Rachel immediately. He trusted her enough that he ate food without fear of getting poisoned and slept without the fear of her calling the police or turning him in. Even if he did trust her with his life, he did not trust enough with his personal life, unlike Elisa who he immediately told about Proteus slaying his father. Perhaps, it was because she said they had more in common than he thought.
Rachel kept quiet for a few minutes while Taurus stood in the kitchen reading the back of the pancake mix box.
"What are you doing?" he asked.
"Studying for an exam," she said.
He came over to the table and pulled a seat out. "You are a college student, you said last night before I drank that Pepsi. What are you going to school for?"
There were colleges in New Olympus. Greece was one of the first countries to create colleges, and the New Olympians still carried on that tradition. The majority of colleges of New Olympus were mostly mathematically and philosophically based. There was one science college, where students would learn about genetics, electricity, and botany. These students would become the backbone of New Olympus, the ones who would deal with breeding and health, the energy usage of the buildings, and the food consumption of the city. There were two architectural and mechanical colleges, and one theatrical and art college. The art college was the oldest building and college in New Olympus. The college, originally a theatre, was built as soon as ancestors of the new Olympians came to the island. Taurus had never been to any of these sorts of colleges. It was not required of him, by the city and his superiors. Most New Olympians had on the job training, preparing them immediately for work. Taurus took several years of training at the gymnasium, as well as classes in law.
"The veterinary care of large animals," Rachel said, focusing on the detailed photograph of a horse. Arrows pointed to various parts of its anatomy. "I'm studying for a chemistry test. I have to figure out how many milligrams and what kind of medicine a horse needs to take."
Other than the centaur and a few anthropomorphic horselike creatures, the New Olympians never seen a horse in its true, all natural form. Taurus was amused by this. All that remained of horses on New Olympus were a few millennia old, crude sketches of them. Those sketches did not do the horses justice. Taurus thought the picture was beautiful. He was viewing this picture the same way the human probably view a centaur. It made him smirk. It was quite a change for him.
"Something wrong?" Rachel asked, noticing Taurus looking over her shoulder.
"It's a horse," Taurus stated.
"Yes, a horse. What, don't you have them?" Rachel asked.
"Only centaurs," Taurus answered. "They are very beautiful."
"What, the centaurs?"
"No, the horses."
"Oh yeah," Rachel said, looking at the photo. "They are. You should see a herd of them run through a field. It's breathtaking."
"I would love to see that," Taurus stated. "You've seen them before?"
"My grandfather owned a farm. He had horses, chickens, and cattle," Rachel said.
"Is that why you want to be a veterinary?" Taurus asked.
"Part of it. I love animals," Rachel said. "Do you have a lot of animals where you live?"
"Not a lot. We have a lot of birds, some small mammals like a small dogs, cats, and rabbits. But nothing bigger than that. We do not have a lot of space," Taurus said.
"You're on an island?" Rachel asked. She was very perceptive.
"Yes," Taurus said.
"Is it nice there?"
"It is very nice," Taurus said. "Despite a few flaws, but it is a nice place."
"Please tell me about it," Rachel asked.
"Tell me more about the farm, and I will oblige you," Taurus answered.
&&&
They talked for about two hours. It was an experience for both of them. Rachel asked a lot of questions, while Taurus just listened to her recollect. She even went to her bedroom and returned with pictures of her, much younger, riding horses and feeding ponies. Taurus flipped through the pictures as Rachel rattled off the names of each horse, each animal.
Then Rachel had to return to studying. She read her notes for another hour, worked on some problems for yet another hour. Taurus tried to watch television again, but the shows were not as intriguing as they were earlier. He flipped through the channels for an hour. Finally, Taurus stopped on a channel and leaned forward with interest. Okay, the shows did catch his attention, but only because they were so bright and loud. A mass of blue fur and goggle eyes appeared on screen. In its hand it held some kind of biscuit with black spots.
C is for cookie, good enough for me.
He switched the channel.
F is for friends who do stuff together.
U is for you and me.
N is for any where and anytime at all,
Down here in the deep blue sea!
"What in Hades?" Taurus blanched as a yellowish square thing flipped across the screen, "is this?"
"Spongebob Squarepants," Rachel answered as her pencil scribbled across a piece of paper. "It's a cartoon, basically a moving picture."
"I figured that out. But what exactly is it? I mean, what the Hades?" Taurus exclaimed.
"My reaction exactly," Rachel said. "Taurus, would you like to quiz me?"
"I'll try my best, but I am not sure what I can do," Taurus said.
"Just read me the questions from the book," Rachel said handing him the book. "I do better when someone's talking."
Taurus tried to help Rachel study. Taurus quizzed her on her notes and on questions found in the back of her books. She answered less than half right. The table was covered in papers with scratched out math equations and the sketches of chemical components. Rachel was disappointed.
"Damn, I need to study more," she said sinking into her arms.
"You did better than I would have, but I don't think that that is really reassuring," Taurus said, looking down at the book. He scratched at his ear. "It is all Abyssinian to me."
"Abyssinian?" Rachel asked.
"I can't understand it," Taurus said. "It's a completely different language to me, all these mathematic problems."
"Oh," Rachel said, looking down at her text book. "Let's try this again."
&&&
Two hours later…
"You hungry?" Rachel asked Taurus, who was slumped over the table half asleep.
They had eaten breakfast late and completely skipped over lunch in her fury to study. Taurus was a surprisingly good sport. He was probably hungry along with being incredibly bored.
"A little," Taurus said, then was cut off by his growling stomach.
Rachel did not know what to make for dinner, something that the minotaur would like, and there would have to be plenty of it. Taurus had proven he was not a very picky eater. Anything he was offered he had eaten, and liked. Then again, Rachel was very meticulous in what she offered him, nothing too flavorful and powerful.
"Would you like to try pizza?" Rachel offered. "It's bread with sauce and cheese and toppings of your choice."
"Hmmm," Taurus thought. "Miss Wesley, you don't have to do this. I'll be fine."
"No, Taurus, it's nothing, it isn't," Rachel said. She had a phone in her hand.
"Rachel, I should be the one buying you dinner," Taurus said. "Honestly."
"I'll consider it later," Rachel said.
Rachel looked down at some pizza ads near the phone. Formaini's Pizza always had great deals. Rachel dug for the ad. Ah, two small one topping pizzas for ten dollars, plus tax and a dollar fifty for every extra topping. The sale ends today. Rachel had a hundred and twenty something dollars in cash on her, leftover from her paycheck. It was a good thing she did buy groceries earlier that week.
Rachel put into consideration what to order. She was not exactly sure what Taurus liked, but she wanted him to be surprised with the pizza toppings. He seemed utterly delighted with the food she offered him, and she wanted him to be equally delighted with the pizza. Unfortunately, Rachel could not honestly tell if Taurus was a vegetarian or not. Rachel decided it was best to order toppings she knew she would like and sounded good. She did not want to be stuck with a bunch of pizzas that he and she did not want to eat in her fridge.
Rachel ordered three extra cheese pizzas, two pepperonis, one olive, one pineapple, a meat lover's pizza (for herself), one supreme, one green pepper, one sausage, and one mushroom. The man on the phone was nice enough throw in an order of breadsticks and one of the extra cheese pizzas in for free. Rachel also asked for anchovies, not on the pizzas, but set off to the side as well. She always wanted to try them and decided now was the time. If she didn't like them, she did not want to be picking them off of the pizza.
The pizza took forty-five minutes to deliver. Taurus hid in the extra bedroom as Rachel paid for and tipped the delivery boy for the pizzas. It took all her money. She set the tower on the counter.
"Here you go Taurus, pizza," Rachel said. She opened a box. Taurus looked over her shoulder. "I ordered different toppings so that you can find one you like."
"It smells good," he said, looking down at the bubbling cheese. "What is it?"
"Extra cheese," Rachel said, opening another box, the meat lovers.
Taurus easily picked up a pizza, its cheese stretching, and gulped it down. He chewed on the slice for a moment, licking the grease from his lips. He swallowed it. He leaned over and took another slice. "Delicious."
"I'm glad you liked it," Rachel said, taking a few more slices. She headed back to the table to study.
Taurus tried a slice from every box of pizza. The only ones he did not like were the green pepper and mushroom ones. He ate one whole pepperoni pizza himself and one half of the other one. He commented on good the meat was on the pepperoni pizzas, showing his carnivore side. He gobbled down the black olive pizza too, along with the anchovies Rachel ordered. He ate half of the meat lover's pizza, two slices of the sausage pizza, and three slices of the supreme pizza. Taurus's downright favorite was the pineapple pizza. He loudly commented and enjoyed this pizza. Rachel, who never had pineapple pizza, did not even get a slice.
In the end, with all the pieces put together, there were two and half pizzas left. Taurus was content.
"Those were delicious Miss Wesley," he said, licking his chops. "Thank you graciously. They were the most enjoyable things I had all day."
"You're welcome Taurus," Rachel said. She looked into a dictionary and then at a sheet of paper. She wrote down a few words. "I'm glad you enjoyed them."
It was silent as Taurus looked out the balcony. It was getting dark outside. "Rachel, I must be heading out soon, back to my home."
"Oh, okay," Rachel said.
Suddenly Taurus kneeled down before her. He took her much smaller hand in his larger ones. "I thank you for your hospitality. The food was delicious, your floor was cozy, and your books and programs were interesting. Thank you."
He stood up. "I have one request to ask of you. You must never, ever tell anyone you met me and what you know. Ever."
He held a finger up. His eyes glared angrily. "Ever."
He was deathly serious.
"I promise, who is going to believe me if I did say anything?" she said. "But I'm not, I promise it. Promise you won't tell anyone I bought you dinner, okay?"
Taurus chuckled. "Promise."
"You're not coming back, are you?" Rachel asked.
"I am not," Taurus said. "Just being here could expose my people. I took a huge chance staying here for the night. I can not come back. I returned your books to you, that is what I came here to do, and it is done. You must not tell anyone, anyone at all."
"Okay," Rachel said softly. "So I guess this is good—"
There was a knock at the door. Both she and Taurus startled.
"Rachel! Rachel!" Mrs. Brigleston shouted, banging her bony fist against the door. "I saw the pizza boy come around here early with boxes of pizzas. Are you having a party up here?"
"No," Rachel answered.
"Open the door!" the elderly lady exclaimed. "You better no be having a party. You know how parties damage property and scare my dogs!"
Taurus grabbed his satchel from the table. Rachel had put in the box of pancake mix, the syrup, and a few Ziploc bags filled with popcorn in the satchel earlier. He gathered a few other things Rachel had given to him as Rachel stood by the door talking through it to the elderly lady. He quickly darted out onto the balcony and up the ladder.
Rachel opened the door for the elderly lady. She walked in strictly, a small rusty Pomeranian in her arms. The Pomeranian, Mr. Wiggles, panted and twisted his head wildly and stupidly in the elderly lady's arms.
"I had a friend over early for dinner. He left not to long ago, you must have missed him," Rachel said.
"All these pizzas for one friend?" Mrs. Brigleston asked, pointing to the boxes of pizzas.
"He's a foreigner. I ordered a variety so that he could find one he liked," Rachel answered.
"It looks like he found a few he liked," the woman said, noting the several empty boxes.
"In deed he did," Rachel stated. "He liked the pineapple the best."
"So what country is he from?"
"He's Grecian," Rachel answered. "We were studying for our chemistry tests."
"Oh," she said, looking down at all the notes scattered across the table. Everything spoke for Rachel. The woman began to leave. "Fine. Sorry to bother you."
Rachel wiped the sweat from her forehead and then went out onto the balcony. "Taurus? Taurus?"
No answer. Rachel crawled up ladder onto the roof. She did not see the hovercraft or the minotaur. At first she thought they were both camouflaged. "Taurus, it's all right, she's gone."
Nothing.
Rachel walked over to the spot where Taurus had parked his vehicle.
There was nothing. He had just left, without saying goodbye. She was not going to see him ever again. It was kind of depressing, despite the fact she only knew him barely a day. He was the most interesting person she had met, an interesting person in a city of interesting people. She had not had so much fun in a while. Her bad streak was ending!
Sadly Rachel descended down the ladder onto her balcony and walked into her kitchen. She sat down at her table, trying to recall the events of the pass day and night.
"Maybe I should just study, just to forget everything," she murmured. She reached for her dictionary. It was gone. "What the?"
On her list of words, there was a note.
Dear Miss Rachel Wesley,
Thank you again for your amazing hospitality. I enjoyed myself, and I hope you too enjoyed yourself. I am sorry for leaving so suddenly, but I do not want to risk being discovered. I am borrowing your (there was huge space here as if he was mulling over something) dictionary. It looks like an interesting read and will further serve me on my research. It will be returned to you in a week's time.
Thank you graciously,
Taurus
Rachel laughed.
