Disclaimer: I do not own Daily Life With Monster Girls.

The interviews: #1 the lamia

Sula slithered out the back door of her temporary home. She spotted agent Smythe and that young man she assisted earlier both sitting at a wooden table. Smythe raised a hand and waved her over. Sula waved back and proceeded forward.

The sky was unclouded and the summer sun shone brightly over the soft grass. Sula half closed her eyes, spread her arms and enjoyed the warmth of the ground and the air.

"Sula."

Smythe's voice was so close that it snapped her out of her little happy moment. She refocused her eyes and noticed that she had reached the table without even knowing it. A half second more and she might have bumped into it.

"Oh my." She stated. "Sorry, the sun is so clear today and the grass is so warm, I couldn't quite help myself." The young man looked at her oddly for a second then nodded. "I understand. Lamia's are cold-blooded."

"We prefer the term poikilothermic." She informed him. The young man nodded again. "Noted."

Smythe stood up and the young man followed suit. "Sula, this is Jack. Jack, Sula." The young man offered his hand over the table. "A pleasure." Sula grasped his hand, being careful not to scratch him with her claws, and shook it. "Likewise."

"Jack is going to be your host." Smythe continued. Jack eyed the agent. "Potential host." He stressed the first word "I haven't agreed to anything yet." Sula stifled a giggle at his reaction.

"Well I should get back to work. You two get acquainted with each other." Smythe walked around the table and back toward the office building. The young man blinked in response. "You're not staying?" Sula looked up at Smythe quizzically as well. Her tail curled around herself on reflex. The thought of being left alone with a stranger disquieted her.

"You'll be fine." Smythe waved them off and continued walking.

Jack glared at him for a second more then grimaced and sat back down. "Alright lets do this." He said softly to himself. Then he scooped up the folder the agent had left behind. Sula recognized it as a personnel file. Probably hers.

"Before we start..." Sula spoke up. Jack looked up at her face. "May I ask what you were bringing to the Exchange today?"

Jack tilted his head slightly. "Oh, that was just some paperwork Smythe asked me to drop off today."

Sula narrowed her eyes slightly and frowned. "What kind of paperwork?" Jack blinked a few times but didn't say anything. "I mean, If you weren't applying to be a host when you walked in why did Smythe set up this meeting as if you had."

"Oh. I uh..." Jack looked sideways and up slightly. "I made a donation and he needed me to hand over some documentation."

Sula titled her head down and thought hard. She blinked a few times and looked back up at Jack. "What kind of donation did you make that needed to be personally delivered. Wouldn't an email or a letter be sufficient?"

"It was kind of a... valuable donation." Jack answered hesitantly. Sula tried to read this 'Jack'. Why was he being so coy about this?Was she prying into some human custom she didn't understand yet?

"Valuable? Are you a wealthy human?" Jack laughed good-naturedly and waved a hand. "Definitely not. I just had something the Exchange could use better than I."

Sula was still not satisfied. "I'm sorry but...the only people that come through those doors are agents, hosts and other Extra species. So if you aren't actually a host..." She raised a hand. 'Then what am I doing here', she didn't say.

"I... gave the Exchange something kinda personal. The documents were needed to legally transfer ownership of the...item." Jack's hesitancy was getting on Sula's nerves. Her tail coiled around the legs of the table. "Personal and valuable, that you couldn't use..." She mused annoyed. She looked back at Jack's face and was about to ask a more direct question. But she stopped. There was a raw pain behind his eyes. He was practically pleading her to stop. "Oh...I'm sorry."

Jack was quiet for few moments. Sula felt embarrassed. She didn't mean to bring up something that hurt him. Whatever it was. She probably should have stopped when he mentioned it was personal. But she didn't. And now she probably just blew her chance to get a host finally. Damn it. Her tail relaxed and lay still on the ground around them.

Jack cleared his throat. "Its alright, Sula." She blinked in surprise. "It's a legitimate question." He continued. "I'd still rather not talk about it, but I understand your curiosity."

He took a heavy breath. "Let me be clear about my current situation." He paused. "Smythe thinks that I would be a good host for you...and five other homestays."

Sula raised an eyebrow. "Five more."

"Yeah. So as a concession, he's allowed me to interview each of the girls he wants me to host."

"Girls...six girls. For one guy?" Her eyes widened at the ridiculous idea. Her tail arched and she brought the sensitive tip back toward herself. She expected Jack to say something stupid like 'just kidding' or 'hahaha not really' but he didn't.

"You're serious." She said. Her tail twitched.

"He is."

Sula scrutinized Jack for a beat and a half . "And you agreed to this?"

Jack held up a hand. "I haven't agreed to anything. I'm just exploring the option."

"No I mean, you agreed to even consider it. You didn't just slither er, walk out." She made a gesture with her arm. Jack looked down at the table. Then looked back up and locked eyes with her. "He made a compelling argument."

Sula crossed her arms and narrowed her eyes. "You're going to have to explain that."

"I...have you.. I mean." Jack flustered trying to say something. He stopped suddenly. He closed his eyes and formed fists with his hands. His arms trembled and rattled the table slightly. Sula worried that the young man across from her might be violently unstable.

Right before she was about back away and call for Smythe, Jack relaxed his hands.

"Have you ever had an opportunity to change your life. To leave everything you know behind. Not knowing what would happen the next day until you got there? And even though it was scary and there were no guarantees that anything would work, you took it anyway." Jack opened his eyes and gazed right at her.

"Because the alternative is to stay and not move. To just be. To just...survive."

Sula didn't speak. She just stared back.

Then she extended her arm and lightly touched his hand. "I already have."

Jack looked down where their hands met. Then he chuckled and shook his head. "Of course. You've traveled a long way from home haven't you?"

"Yes."

He chuckled some more. Sula tilted her head curiously. Jack raised his other hand and composed himself. "I'm sorry, but I really wanted to ask... but." He giggled. "You're from Snake Island? Really?"

Sula closed her eyes and grinned. "It is kinda on the nose." She motioned the tip of her tail toward him, acknowledging a point.

"Ya think." Jack ribbed. "I mean, that's like me saying I'm from 'mammal land'." Sula opened her eyes and gave him an 'Oh really' expression. "There is an Isle of Man."

"Ha, touche" He pointed back at her, mimicking the gesture her tail made. "So, if you don't mind, tell me about it." Jack asked as he withdrew his hand from hers.

Sula smirked. "Well, the Isle of Man is a self-governed Crown dependency located in the Irish Sea between Ireland and-"

Jack held up both hands and interrupted, "No. I mean. Tell me about your island. Snake Island." Sula held her smirk. Jack rolled his eyes. "Smart ass."

Sula relaxed her face and went back into lecture mode. "Well technically there are several 'Snake Islands' around the world. But most of those are named as such, due to their general shape. Mine is nicknamed the same because of the high concentration of lamias there."

"What's its actual name?" Jack asked.

"The locals call it 'Ilha da Queimada Grande.'" She replied.

"Grande..." Jack repeated. "Is that Spanish?"

"Portuguese." She corrected. "It's off the coast of Sao Paulo."

"Ah, in Brazil then." Jack acknowledged. "You don't have much of an accent."

"Lamias speak many languages." She explained. "My tribe in particular prides itself on learning and teaching as many languages as possible to our children. Speaking them as close to a native as we can helps us to...well..." She glanced downward.

"To get a husband." Jack finished after a pause.

She grimaced. "Its more than that, but yes." So he knew. But that's expected these days. Her tail sort of deflated and lay in her lap.

"Lamias need a human male to procreate. So if you don't mind if I ask...?" Jack queried. "If I'm here to trick or abduct you into joining my little tribe?" She finished sardonically. "No actually. I've already fulfilled my obligation to them before I left."

Jack looked to the side then back to Sula. "You...already took a husband?"

Sula's eyes widened and she raised both hands to assure her sincerity. "No, no I mean. I already provided children to the tribe."

"Oh, you're a mother?" Jack asked incredulous.

"Yes." Sula saw the look of almost horror on Jack's face. "What?"

"You...left your children behind?"

Sula's golden eyes hardened at Jack's accusation. She gripped her tail in her lap, perhaps to restrain herself from slapping the ignorant fool across from her. "It's not like your limited nuclear families. Lamia tribes are their own families. I have several mothers and sisters and daughters. But none of them belong to me." She emphasized the last three words. "We belong to the tribe. Just because I physically carried and gave birth to three daughters does not make those three mine exclusively. The tribe is responsible for raising and feeding and teaching the next generation."

"Oh, okay...that's, hmm." Jack's ponderous expression helped alleviate her annoyance at his ignorance. It also gave her an idea. She reached into her jacket pocket and retrieved her smart phone. "Goddess, you guys have good coverage here." She commented. She ignored Jack's inquisitive expression while she tapped her phone a few times. She waited a few seconds while the call connected, then a small lamia child's face dominated her screen.

"Mama Sula! Its good to see you. How's America? Have you found out if hot dogs are actually made of dogs? And do they really have cheese in cans?" Sula couldn't help but smile at the child's enthusiasm. "No Lissa, hot dogs are not made of dogs and yes there are cheese like substances that are stored in cans."

"Weeeird."

Sula nodded in agreement. "There are many fascinating and wonderful and very odd things in America." She noticed Jack blinking and looking a bit uncomfortable. "Lissa dear, I have a guest." She turned the phone towards Jack so he could see. "Say hello."

"Hello sir. My name is Lissa. I'm from Brazil. May I ask your name?"

Jack stared at the phone disconcertingly. He looked like he wanted to say something but couldn't for some reason. What the hell was wrong with this man?

"Uh...I don't.." He held up a hand like he was trying to placate someone halfheartedly. "I don't speak um...Portuguese...?"

Sula's eyes widened in surprise. Had she really switched languages without even knowing she had? And poor Lissa followed along cause she had started in Portuguese.

"Oh my goddess, I'm so sorry." She turned the phone back to 'face' Lissa. Making a mental effort to speak the correct words, she asked. "English please, Lissa. I forgot to mention that my guest speaks English."

"Oooohh. That's good. I thought something was wrong with him." The child replied. "No dear, just some miscommunication on my end." She turned the phone toward Jack. "Lets try that again."

Lissa repeated her greeting in English, much to Jack's obvious relief. "Hello Lissa. My name is Jack." From the way his shoulders relaxed, Sula could tell that any tension he had slipped away

Sula inclined her head. "Ask her who her mother is." Jack looked back at her briefly with an odd expression then back at her phone. "Um, Lissa can you tell me who your mother is?"

"Mama Sula of course!" Jack looked briefly back at her then back to the phone. "Well there's also Mama Kasumi, and Mama Tamara, and Mama Mary, and Mama Niki, and Mama..."

Sula smirked as Jack's face went slack. She could just see the comprehension finally dawning on the young man while Lissa recited half the tribes' roster. Satisfied that the child had made her point Sula turned her phone's screen back at herself. "Lissa dear." She said slightly louder to get the girl's attention.

"Oh, Mama Sula. Sorry I didn't notice you were back."

"It's quite alright child, Thank you very much. I'm going to disconnect now, but I'll talk with you and your sisters later, okay?" The child looked a bit disappointed then brightened back up at her promise.

"Okay Mama." Sula was about to tap the red button when she noticed Jack raise his hand toward the phone.

"Oh Lissa! You still there?"

"Hmm, what's that mama?" The image on the screen whirled from a sandy beach back to Lissa's face.

"I think Jack has another question for you." She turned her phone back toward him.

"Um Lissa, who is your father?" Jack asked.

"Well there's Papa Yatsudo. And Papa John, and Papa John. We call them Papa Johns. Hehe" Jack blinked and snorted. "Papa Viktor, and Papa Matthew and Papa..."

Jack leaned back nodding his head silently.

"Okay, Lissa that's enough." Sula turned the camera back on herself. The girl stopped and pouted. "You didn't let me finish last time either." She accused. Sula grinned sheepishly. "Perhaps another time I'll listen to a full list."

"Fine." The girl harrumphed.

"Thank you very much Lissa, I promise to call again soon."

"Okay Mama, love you." The screen then darkened and a disconnect message popped up. Sula replaced her phone to her pocket.

Sula looked back up at Jack. She couldn't read his face but his unfocused eyes clearly indicated that he was thinking. She waited half a minute before asking him a question. "Think you understand now?"

Jack nodded. "I believe so." After a moment he continued. "I'm just trying to reconcile what I saw," he waved a hand at her jacket pocket. "with what admittedly little information about lamia culture that I'd been told."

Sula smirked and waggled the tip of her tail in front of her chest. "Well you have a real, live lamia right here. Perhaps she could be of assistance?"

Jack snorted."Okay um, I have about a thousand or so questions. But I think what I really want to know is..." He refocused his gaze on her face. "Why did you join the Cultural Exchange?"

Sula closed her eyes. She knew it would come down to this. She opened her eyes back up and stated as clearly and unambiguously as possible "I want to see the world."

Jack smiled and nodded in acceptance. "Cool."

"That's... all you have to say?" She was expecting something a bit... more.

"That's all I need, for now." he replied. Sula blinked a few times at his comfortable acceptance of her aspiration.

Jack flipped open the folder containing her file. He frowned slightly. "Actually there is one more thing I'd like to discuss." Sula swallowed and anticipated his next inquiry. "Of course."

"You're an Echidna lamia right?" Sula glanced down at the file and nodded. "How strong is it? The venom?" Sula closed her eyes and breathed out slowly. "The strongest known among Echidnas."

She could sense that Jack had gone stiff. "Several Echidna species' venom are dangerous but if treated quickly won't permanently damage a victim. My tribe's venom causes severe tissue damage almost immediately and can kill a healthy man in a matter of hours." She expounded.

Sula opened her eyes but looked to the side. She didn't want to watch his reaction yet. "Honestly I don't know why evolution or goddess or whatever gave us such a deadly substance. Its not like my kind had trouble catching and killing prey quickly without it." She made a slashing motion with the claws on one of her hands, accompanied by her tail coiling around an imaginary victim just to her side.

"So these days with imported beef, chicken farms, meat packing et cetera, this is more of a curse than a hunting tool." She pointed at one of her fangs. "I mean, yeah, no one fucks with an Echidna unless they are completely stupid or something... but its not much fun when everyone just thinks your going to bite them and leave them to die in agony."

She laid her arm down on the table and stared off to the side. She couldn't look at him directly yet. She'd seen the horror on plenty of 'potential' hosts' faces before. She didn't need to see it again.

They sat in silence. For several seconds, Sula was only aware of her own breathing.

Then Jack slowly extended his arm toward her own and lightly touched her hand. "I don't think you are a monster, Sula. I don't think you'll bite me and leave me to die."

She looked down at the contact between them, then up at his face. "That's sweet of you to say Jack. But we just met today and..." She was cut off when Jack firmly took her hand.

"You need a host. I can provide." Sula just stared at the man across the table from her. She stared hard, trying to read his eyes. "You mean it." She concluded.

"Yes." He answered and gave a firm squeeze. Then he let go. Sula couldn't help it. She smiled. She just... smiled.

Finally.

"Whats that?" Jack asked.

Sula blinked. "Oh sorry... I'm just happy I finally got a host."

Jack gave her a curious look. "Finally?"

"Yeah I...have not had much luck getting a host to accept me. Even for a day."

Jack blinked and looked to the side then back at her. "I feel it's prudent to ask why, but I'm fairly certain I already know the answer."

Sula nodded and looked downcast. "Yeah the whole 'venom that can kill humans painfully' aspect tends to make even folk who claim to be lamia lovers skittish." After a moment she continued. "Honestly I don't blame them for their fears. I'm well aware of the fragility of the human form."

Jack leaned back. "Sorry, but that sounds like a personal experience I should know about."

Sula shook her head. "Not personal. But there have been ...accidents with the husbands." Jack nodded slowly but didn't comment. "Lamias are a very passionate race and Echidnas are arguably one of the most aggressive subspecies. So we have to take extra care when interacting with humans on any physical activity."

As children we are taught to approach the fathers with the lightest touch possible. We practice with dolls and mannequins before we are even allowed to be in the same room without a mother or matriarch." She flexed her clawed fingers. "Something as simple as holding hands can draw blood if we're clumsy."

Jack closed his eyes and lightly shook his head. "I can't even imagine what that's like. Not being able to hug my mom or dad as a kid without hurting them. That's just...damn." Jack kept his eyes closed for a few moments longer than she expected. When he did open them up she noticed an echo of that pain she saw earlier.

"But you have, well... had intimate relations with a man before sooo..." Jack pointed out.

Sula smirked and half closed her eyes suggestively. "Yes I am quite accomplished at intimate relations with a man." She couldn't resist rubbing her tail against his leg under the table. When he looked down and pulled his leg away Sula also withdrew her tail. "But like I said earlier. I'm looking for a host, not a husband."

Jack held his lips firm and took a deep breathe. "Right, that's good, that's good." Sula noticed a bit of sweat near his temples before he wiped it away with his sleeve.

Sula smiled sheepishly. "Sorry, you were just asking if I had ever hurt a human." Jack wanly smiled back "Yeah uh, I just figured that, well..."

"You just figured that in the throes of wild sex an echidna would injure, envenom or kill their partner." Sula bluntly finished. "It can happen, especially the injure part. But I'm proud to say that my tribe hasn't had a fatal accident for at least two decades. And I only injured my partner once."

Jack blinked and nodded a few times. "Okay. And envenomations...?"

"Are dealt with harshly." Sula's voice darkened. She folded her arms and closed her eyes. "After all the training and practice we go through, any echidna from my tribe that can't control their own venom is considered a traitor. We only use our venom for self defense or to protect someone else from attack. All other occurrences are automatically considered treason."

"Treason...that's sounds, extreme." Jack said.

Sula opened her eyes but looked down at the table. "It can't be helped. Our venom is the most dangerous among my kind. If my tribe gets lax about its use, we truly would be monsters. And our enemies would have all the justification they need to convince a human government that my kind should be destroyed." She looked back up at Jack. "Therefore any member of my tribe that gives our enemies a legitimate excuse to eliminate us has committed treason."

"Enemies..." Jack mused.

Sula rolled her eyes. "Bigots and hate groups. Most are just a bunch of idiots that reject anything that's not like themselves."

"Oh. Yeah we got those here too." He admitted and looked down at the table.

"So what happens if a member of your tribe is accused of treason?" Jack asked after a few seconds. "She is presented to the matriarchs and senior fathers for judgment." Sula stated.

"Senior fathers?" Jack tilted his head. "Your tribe has humans in positions of authority?"

"Of course." Sula stated. "Just because humans are physically weak compared to us does not mean they don't have good ideas or wise judgment." She pulled out her smart phone again. "You think a lamia invented this? Or taught me how to use it?"

Jack stared at the phone and considered her words carefully. "Huh yeah. I was given the impression that lamia tribes were kinda, well, not that advanced."

Her eyes narrowed. "Given by whom? Some other human?"

"Uh no actually." Jack answered. "By a co-worker of mine. A werewolf." Sula's eyes blinked in bewilderment. "A werewolf?"

"Yeah, big guy named Talbot." Jack elaborated. "Nice guy. Real strong. Always helps out. He and I share a lunch break together and we'd swap questions and stories about human and liminal culture, social cues and such. He's been real informative." Jack focused back on Sula's expression. "Or at least I thought he had."

Sula just stared at Jack in puzzlement trying to figure out how a werewolf knew anything about lamias. Jack apparently took her silence as an invitation to continue. "At first I thought he was some big Kobold, but he corrected me of that notion fairly quickly." He chuckled.

Sula recovered and nodded in agreement. "If he was a Kobold he wouldn't be working a day job."

"Yeah that's what he told me." Jack affirmed. "They own some mine in Africa that produces a rare metal right?"

"Several mines and other business enterprises around the world actually." She explained. "But I'm still having trouble figuring out how a werewolf would know anything about lamia culture."

Jack shrugged. "He said he did. I told him about American history and pop culture. He told me about liminal species and cultures. Much more in-depth than those Exchange brochures."

"Well your 'friend' seems to have misinformed you about my culture." Sula straightened and posed confidently. "I'll have to correct your erroneous impressions personally." Jack chuckled and nodded. "Yes ma'am. I look forward to the lessons."

"Good. Then I believe I will inform Agent Smythe that he has finally found me an acceptable host."

Jack extended his hand. "It was good to meet you miss..." He faltered. "I didn't get your last name." Sula extended her own arm and shook Jack's. "Peri. Sula Peri." Jack nodded. "Keysman. Jack Keysman."


Jack couldn't stop grinning.

As Miss Peri slithered away toward the office, Jack's excitement threatened to spill out in some embarrassing display so he gripped the table like a vice. "Okay, this is cool, be cool ,this is cool. One more to go today remember. Just one more." He watched the tip her tail disappear into the building and the door close. He couldn't stop grinning. "Liminals are so cool."

He turned to the side and let out a 'squee'. "Yeah this is gonna be fun." He said to himself. He noticed Agent Smythe walking out the door Ms. Peri had entered. He was carrying another folder.

Jack took a deep breath and composed himself. "Okay. who's next?"

A/N

Thanks again for reading. And thank you for the positive reviews, favorites and follows. It's appreciated.

So I wanted to go a different route with the Lamia character. Sula's species is based directly on a pit viper native to the island she calls home. The really cool thing is that the Brazilian government has banned travel to the island, save for highly trained research groups. So it's a logical place for a very dangerous echidna tribe to be located in the Monmusu world.

At any rate: Please comment and review.