Chapter 3: Fur and Scales
Juno was surprised when her host happens to be a black swan. Ebony feather shone through the airport's harsh light while her red beak resembled one wearing lipstick. When she greeted the grey wolf, she took her paw in her wing delicately. "Welcome to Heather's Row, Juno. My name is Arabelle and I'm a fellow Selkie."
Her voice was what one might expect from a truly elegant bird: soft, sugary like butter cookies and full of grace.
At that instant, Juno hoped she could be like her host but with a little grit of most carnivores.
The cob behind Arabelle gave Juno a warm smile. "Must be tiring to be on a direct flight. My daughter told me that her school assigned her the task of showing the new exchange student for a month."
Tail wagging slightly, Juno lowered herself to be at the same level. "Thank you, sir."
"Oh please," he chuckled, shaking Juno's paw. "Please call me Janus. I can tell that you are a good girl and hope you enjoy Selkie's School for Gifted Girls just as much as my Arabelle. Now, I know you are tired, so we decided to take a drive home so that you could see the scenery."
They just met for a day, but Juno was starting to warm up to the family of swans. She wondered where was Arabelle's mother and does she have any siblings?
The three of them exited the airport, not without Juno waving goodbye to Pina, who was accompanied by a family of snakes. She involuntarily shuddered, thinking about how Pina would handle them since they reminded her of worms but then again, one of the snakes happened to be Sameer.
Can't blame her since she had not seen many snakes until she landed at Heather's Row. Besides those limbless reptiles, Juno noticed a few indoor waterways for fishes and other marine animals to travel through. Never would she thought that this country would integrate the life below waters.
Which meant that Juno will have to bring up her Zoozle Translate if she ever encountered these weird creatures. Whatever it was, at least they weren't bugs.
The car that the swan family had was a silver-coloured Mercedes Benz with tyres that blend right with the roads. Juno wondered if every avian animal at least have a vehicle to bring their flightless friends around? Does Aoba have one back home? Or Dom?
"Come sit with me at the back, Juno," Arabelle gestured to the maroon-coloured backseats of the car. Thankfully, the young she-wolf fitted right at the back without feeling cramped. Her tail wagged slightly at the sights and sounds but her eyes struggled to stay awake.
Carefully, she entered the car and watched the airport getting smaller and smaller as they crossed the bridge. She was thankful for Arabelle not being a chatterbox at the moment because Juno wanted to take in the new world.
"Don't fret, girls," Janus assured them. "I'll be driving slowly for today. It is a Bloody Sunday and it ought to stay that way. Tomorrow, we'll be shopping for your school supplies and don't worry about the bill. It's all taken care of."
Juno doesn't know whether to feel relieved or guilty about this.
...
Pina on the other hand, marvelled at the whole new world he saw. Since snakes do not have limbs, they have hired a cab that took him to the heart of the city. From the magnificent bridge that opens up whenever a ship was coming, to the ringing clock tower that was iconic.
He couldn't believe that he was here.
"Once you have settled in school in the following weeks," Sameer began, peering over his shoulders to view the city. "I might take you to some of the museums here. They are free unless you want to buy the guided map or souvenirs."
Pina swore he heard the golden Egyptian cobra hissing how much he had to save up to buy a new book. The Dall sheep shakes his head in amusement. It was no wonder that Sameer's podcast was very popular amongst Cherryton students at night.
His voice was crisp and perfect to narrate something scary. Plus, his explanation about history made Pina's heart flutter. How careful and almost poet-like Sameer strings his words together so even someone with no interest in history or horror would hang on to every word. He wondered if he would get a chance to listen to him narrating?
When they arrived at Sameer's house, Pina's nose caught a scent of cinnamon and some other unknown spice. It was comforting yet it caused his stomach to rumble. He had not eaten anything on the plane since the food was only a bag of peanuts and water. Sameer's mother noticed this and smiled.
"I believe someone is hungry," she teased, patting Pina on the hand with the base of her tail. "I still have some leftover palak paneer left with naan. Sameer, be a dear and heat those up for him while I show him to his room."
"So what's pa- something that I'm eating?" asked Pina, hoping he had not offended the cobras. It was funny since he couldn't care less about carnivores but something about Sameer and his family made him bleat a different tune. But Sameer assured him with a smile that almost made the Dall sheep starstruck.
He looked so much like a prince even in his cardigan sweater. Will he get the same sweater too?
"Palak paneer is a spinach dish with cubes of special cottage cheese. You can either eat it with naan, a type of flat bread or rice. We do eat rice as well, Pina."
Pina giggled, wanting to playfully tap Sameer on the snout but refrained from doing so since his mother was present. Entering the house, Pina involuntarily closed his eyes at the warmth and scent of spices. While Sameer slithered to the kitchen, Mumtaz lead him upstairs to a room he was not expecting:
It was light pink and white with a few newspaper clippings on the wall. Turning his attention to Mumtaz, the older cobra explained, "This used to be my eldest daughter's room. Talia moved out after she got her degree in journalism and is now somewhere in the world. My husband and other daughter, Yasmin are out at the moment."
Pina politely nodded and excused himself to freshen up before heading downstairs for his meal. When the door was closed with a click, the Dall sheep plopped himself onto the bed. A part of him was excited about the school programme but now he wanted to know more about Sameer and his family.
He hoped the golden Egyptian cobra felt the same way.
Now I'm craving for palak paneer with some garlic butter naan...maybe with a bit of chai or mango lassi