-2- Bringing Home A Stray, As Told By Manny.



I guess the worst part of being mugged is obvious: it hurts like hell.

I groaned and slowly raised my hand to my forehead. Touching it brought a dull pain. I think that biker headbutted me.

An almost angelic voice came from somewhere nearby.

"Von da-le tchika?"

I wondered if it might really be an angel; I felt like that asshole could have hit me hard enough to knock my soul free. Soon the voice was above me, and I felt someone pressing on my chest. I opened my eyes.

"Von da-le tchika?"

I'd never seen a face like hers. I could tell immediately that it was exotic. It was similar only to a few immigrants' I had seen in the more culturally diverse places further east, like Linalool or Tartaroyal, except her nose was somewhat different. She sounded like those people, too; how they speak to each other behind closed doors.

"A-le da-le tatska?"

I tried to get up. That brought the rising sun over the roof of a house across the street, momentarily blinding me. I raised a hand to block it, and she took that as an invitation to lift me up.

"A-le da-le tatsko!"

For a little thing, she sure was strong, yanking me up and getting me on my feet before I realized I'd left the ground. I thanked her and started checking my inventory. No missing parts, no open wounds, keys still in my pocket, but wallet was A.W.O.L. I started looking around for it.

"Lape da-le hiloka?"

"What? Oh, some guy beat the hell out of me and took my wallet. Sometimes they grab the cash and toss the—"

"Dolo da-le itago zolo?"

She started molesting me somewhat, so I backed up a bit. "—the rest. Hey! Look, uh. Thank you for helping me up, but I've really got to T.C.B., you know?" I looked around some more and caught a glimpse of my wallet beneath some nearby bushes. Thankfully, I was right: only the cash was gone. He didn't even take the plastic, so I could hit a machine and at least buy breakfast. "Okay, thank you again, miss, foreign-lady. Uh, see you around, I guess."

"Von-o-kono a-le ies!"



I found my way to Shelia's house, but neither she nor her pokemon had seen Maggie. I headed into town, withdrew some money, and went to a place I like for breakfast. When I got there, I met the strange woman again. She sat alone at the outdoor seating, looking rather bored. She didn't have anything to eat or drink on her table.

Glancing my way and making eye contact, I felt like I had to say something. "Are you waiting for somebody?"

She nodded yes. When I touched the restaurant's side entry door, she spoke up.

"Faxe ako movi ies t'sok."

"You can't speak my language, can you?" I asked.

She shook her head.

"But you do understand what I'm saying?"

She nodded gently and held her hands flat and near together, I guessed that gesture meant "a little," though she never seemed confused. I sat at her table, and she smiled gently.

"Okay, I'll admit I'm intrigued. You're someplace where you can't talk to anyone—"

"Von ase tutako."

"—in anything we can understand. You don't seem to be a tourist, and there certainly isn't anything to tour around here. You're waiting for someone—"

"Von lega mabaj."

"—that too, and you take time out to check on people who get rolled between hedge rows in parks."

"Dlol toma genzsby sedu sxnem."

As curious as I had become, her answers were wasted on me, so I saw no point in asking any more questions. Besides, aside from breakfast, my priority was to find Maggie, not to chat-up strange strangers. "Uh-huh. Well, I hope your friend shows up soon. Goodbye."

As I went inside the restaurant I heard her say something else. I didn't really care what it meant; I didn't want to be rude, but I was getting annoyed by our one-way conversation. After my breakfast, she was gone from the patio. I figured whoever she was waiting for showed up.



I found a print shop and ran off some fliers using a photo from my wallet. It wasn't a very good shot, since Caleb took up most of the view and there wasn't much detail left after blowing up the image, but it was all I had to work with. I called-in to work and got my shift switched with a co-worker's so I wouldn't have to rush home, change, and come back to post fliers later in the day. I've heard that the first hours are the most important when someone goes missing. Of course, I went to the pokecenter and asked around there once I found out where it was. Mid-day by then, it got so hot that I took a little siesta in the center's lounge. I wasn't alone. I had some good conversations but none had seen a dinner-plate slinging mienshao on the lam.

I called home around the time that the mail would be delivered; Paul would have to brave the sunlight to collect it. I asked him if Maggie had come back, but he said there was no sign of her there.

Late afternoon, I finished walking pretty much every square foot of Fenchone Plantation. Not a single mienshao to be seen. Hell, most of the people outside of big cities had never seen one except on T.V. since they weren't native to Ocimene. I returned to the restaurant on the way back to get something to go. There, I found another not-native to Ocimene. She was sitting at the same empty table, head resting on her folded arms. As much as I didn't want to hear a bunch of her von-vaga-babble, at least her voice was pretty when she spoke it, and it was only fair; this morning I was the one who had suffered a blow and needed help getting up again. I entered through the other side so when she would see me approaching her table, I would be bringing food for us both.

When she looked up at me, she had the strangest expression on her face. I'll never forget it, and I'll never be able to explain it.

We ate silently. There was a conversation going on, but it was sublime. It was in the way we glanced at each other and passed the salt. It was like we had an automatic connection. A conflicted feeling came upon me. One part of me said, "hey, this is going to be the one, I can feel it. None of those other harlots would've helped you out. They would've taken your plastic after the biker took your cash." The other part of me only worried, "haven't you looked at your track record, Manny? They're always too good to be true, and this is the most too-good one yet." The sound of her straw slurping up the last of her drink snapped me out of it.

"I guess it's time to go."

She nodded slowly and glanced to her side, but she didn't leave her seat.

"You don't have anywhere to go, do you?"

"Von-o-kono a-le ies."

"I remember you said that when I left this morning; wait, were you telling me then that—hold on, I thought you were waiting for someone."

She nodded.

"But if that vono-cono-alley-eyes thing means you're—can you somehow tell me, in a way I can understand, who you've been waiting for?"

She perked up immediately. "Von kono," she took my left hand with her right, placed it on her left palm, and trapped it beneath the other, "a-le-le," she looked up at me, "ies."

I don't know why I walked her to my car, put her inside it, and took her home. It felt like I was under a spell. You don't bring strange women you've only known for a few hours home with you. Well, if you would, there are motels for that. I opened the door to my car for her and guided her in, trying to be as gentlemanly as I could. That I had failed to find Maggie, and that this young woman had made me forget about her, came back to the forefront of my mind. It was when I touched the robe she wore—the fabric was rich and soft, just like my mienshao's fur. I even thought I smelled a trace of her fruity shampoo, but I was sure that was merely an associated memory or a wisp of residue from times Maggie's ridden in the passenger seat.



Paul was long gone when we arrived. I started to give her an orientation, and realized we had not even exchanged names yet. I invited her to sit on my couch. She sat delicately, being careful to draw out the dangling length of her robe's belt, as though she was concerned about sitting on it. It was a funny thing; sometimes it seemed to twitch and wiggle on its own.

"Since you're, well, here, I guess we should get properly acquainted. My name is Manny. Uh, can you say that?"

Her eyes narrowed and I shifted uncomfortably. Somehow I knew that look.

"Von lega katalo Mahni eneb."

I felt like I had just been scolded. "Okay, good, I heard it in there. Now, what's your name?"

She seemed to be the uncomfortable one now and did not respond. I fell into an embarrassing imitation of all "exchanging names with a foreigner" scenes I'd seen in movies and on television. After a little bit, though, I became certain that she understood, but that she didn't want to say her name. Or maybe, she couldn't remember it. It was possible I wasn't the only one that biker knocked senseless last night. She didn't seem hurt at all, though; the way she yanked me off of the ground, that biker may have been on the losing end.

"Von kono atebi sedu lilif."

"Lilith?"

I felt better now that we had at least established names, but that was about as far as I figured we could get for now. I glanced down at the table and saw the remaining fliers. I offered Lilith use of the bathroom and kitchen, warned her to stay away from Paul's room, and set out to hang the rest of the fliers around town or maybe find Maggie out there myself.

When I got back, it was rather late. Carthamus isn't big in population, but it's very spread out. Even with wheels, it took a while to find good places to post fliers. A few steps inside, I sniffed the air and noticed that Lilith got into Maggie's shampoo; now I'll know I'm smelling it on her. I looked around the house and didn't find her until I checked my own bedroom. She was lying on my bed, watching my small T.V. at low volume.

"Lilith?" She had not noticed when I opened the door, and jumped with surprise when I spoke. "I was kinda thinking the fold-out couch bed might be a little more appropriate." She gazed at me with an incredulous smirk for a moment, then she looked back to the T.V. and drew the covers up and over her body. "You want to sleep in a strange man's bed?" I couldn't help but play with this situation. "You aren't afraid of what might happen?"

She looked squarely at me and squinted crookedly. "Von lega uidafoy sedu."

Then she licked her smiling lips, turned off the T.V. with its clicker, and pointed at the light above. I flicked the switch off, and darkness conquered our surroundings. As I stepped fully inside and closed the door behind me, light from the hall behind that flashed inside her eyes like they were those of a nocturnal predator. Indeed, that is exactly what she was. If the moon were full instead of half, I would've feared she might transform into an animal, like a werewolf, and tear me apart. Perhaps that would've been for the best.

I don't know what came over us, over me. I didn't for a second feel any sense of inhibition. We made passionate love that night, and it was the best I had ever had. It had been a long while since my last time, but it didn't feel like I was seizing an opportunity or adding a notch to my bedpost. It felt like the wheels were already in motion and what we were doing was so absolutely natural that not to proceed would seem absurd. I don't think I was alone with that feeling. Lilith's enthusiasm was impossible to match and it was like she knew exactly what I enjoyed most. The only strange thing about it was that she absolutely refused to remove her robe, or even let me feel beneath it. I wore protection for obvious reasons, but I still expected that she would be worried about, you know, her fluids getting on her clothing. After all, the clothes on her back seemed to be all she had to her name. But when I voiced my concerns, she merely shushed me and rolled her hips forward with greater strength.



When I awoke the next morning, I awoke alone to a buzzing sound. That must be the washing machine, I thought; the clothes I'd taken off in the night were nowhere to be seen. I guessed "doing it" dressed gave her a thrill, and she planned to use the washer come morning, anyway. I didn't really have time to think about it, as I realized when I looked at the alarm clock I had been too distracted to set, and saw I was already doomed to be late and getting later with every second. I had a double in front of me since I needed to pick up the hours I traded the day before and work my usual time, too. I threw on what was handy and rocketed through the living room, bidding farewell to Paul, who responded with a yawn since the sun was about to rise on him, and to Lilith, who seemed quite at home drinking coffee from Maggie's usual mug.

It wasn't until I pulled into my parking spot that I began to consider: if she was doing our laundry, how was Lilith wearing her robe when I left? Did she hand-wash it separately, or didn't at all? I walked into my work wondering what the hell I'd gotten myself into with this woman.

A long day's hours later, I came home feeling totally beat. It made me wonder if those rumors about sex before a game ruining an athlete's performance were true. I spoke Maggie's name, but she was still gone from my life. I then looked for Lilith, but she was absent, too. I went into my bedroom and found the whole thing had been tidied-up. In fact, it was so inviting I couldn't help myself but to strip down, climb into bed, and set my alarm clock for three hours hence to recover my senses with a nap. I buried my face in my pillow; it smelled slightly fruity.

The scent was stronger when I awoke not an hour later. Lilith had slipped into bed with me and nestled close. I ran my hand along her body. I could swear that her robe had to have been made from mienshao fur. Not common or popular among the majority, but not illegal, either. I had never felt anything like it, except for the genuine article. It and the loose-fitting pants she wore beneath it were even accented with a mienshao's shade of lavender. I brushed my hand along the left sibling of the short twin braids that normally dangled down just in front of her ears. Her cheek twitched and she smiled and shifted. The way she dressed herself, it was almost as if she wanted to be a mienshao. I thought of Maggie, and realized that I couldn't blame Lilith for admiring the species, but I did wonder what happened to her to make her want to somehow change. I wondered who she really was on the inside beneath her disguise as I fell asleep again.



When I awoke the next morning—she must have turned off my alarm—the room was still. A new box of condoms stood on the nightstand next to a small dish holding a sprinkle of fruity potpourri. A not-at-all subtle sign that she enjoyed herself, and that she went shopping at some point, too. Obviously she found my cash stash while tidying the bedroom, or got into my wallet... Wait a second. Before I got hit, I thought I caught a glimpse of Maggie in the park and I followed her into the hedge rows. Then I got hit by that biker. I woke up with no money and Lilith standing over me. Then I met her in town waiting for someone who doesn't show up. I give her a place to stay, she immediately jumps my bones, makes me late for work, and then while I'm gone she goes through all my stuff and leaves it looking like she did me a favor of cleaning up to make me think she's being nice. Dammit!

I knew what happened. I wanted to find Maggie so badly that when I saw Lilith, looking like a mienshao because of how she dresses, I mistook one for the other and I walked right into a trap. Then, her accomplice, the biker, beat me up and knocked me out. They took my money, he went off on a shopping spree while she kept me distracted after I woke up so I won't think to immediately call the cops—God, I'm stupid!—but then either he stood her up and she's letting me think it's love at first sight because I'm a fucking fool and she needs someone to rely on, or this is still part of their con and next time I wake up I'll be tied to the bed, she'll have a gun to my head, and that biker dude will be walking out with all my stuff. Unless they wake Paul up; he could go full-out vampire on them or something for touching his coffin.

I threw off my sheets and paced out of my room. I had to find out what was going on. I didn't see her in the living room and was about to step outside, ready to shout in futile anger, when I heard a cabinet door close. When I got to the kitchen, my heart skipped a beat.

"Maggie?"

She looked at me with a startled expression and dropped the bowl of cereal she held. I rushed forward and took her in a great hug, lifting her off of the floor for a moment, away from scattered bits of breakfast flakes. I was so happy my eyes teared up a little.

She seemed stunned for some reason. It was like she didn't think I would be happy to see her. I brought her to the living room and stepped away to get her cards so I could ask her to tell me everything that happened. Her answers were vague and terse. That she didn't want to talk about it at all worried me deeply. I started a process of elimination, but she soon interrupted it. She patted the seat beside her and when I sat there, she twisted to face me and raised her arms.

I drew her near for another hug and I enjoyed feeling her body finally relax. I was still worried about what she went through, but I was happy for her that she was okay and happy that she came back home. I think she picked up on that because she became more affectionate, licking my neck and kissing my cheek as she often wanted to and as I occasionally permitted. She got a little reckless though, and almost kissed me on my lips. I warned her that she was letting her emotions get the best of her.

I took her in my arms again and held her close with her head on my left shoulder. She started to sob gently; I knew whatever happened while she was gone, it was still bothering her. We sat there for a little while, but soon I had to get ready to leave for work. I stroked her fur along the right side of her head and neck and told her again how happy I was to know she was back, safe at home.

When I walked out the door I heard her make a strange sound. It was...wistful.



When I came home from work that afternoon, Maggie was not there. Lilith wasn't either; I wasn't sure how to feel about that. I decided to sit down, relax, and think things through. Maggie left me confused. She left in a huff, showed up again like nothing had happened, and ran off again. I had hoped to find out the whats, whys, and hows of her absence, and instead I got no answers, a couple hugs, and an empty home to return to. I guessed Lilith did about the same, leaving me with an empty home, too. Well, not empty in the sense I had imagined: her accomplice stealing my things. What Lilith left behind for me was confusion. She came to me like a guardian angel with a punctuality problem, waited all day for me to work my way around her language barrier, made herself at home without the slightest hint of awkwardness in unfamiliar surroundings, and made love to me like she was designed for that purpose, somehow.

Something about that didn't sit right with me. I returned to my bedroom and checked the night stand to see if it was still there.

My suspicions just didn't add up. Even if she was scamming me, lulling me into a false sense of security, or whatever, surely she wasn't planning to keep this up for a month before making the big grab and cutting out. The box was a pack of thirty-six; that seemed like a serious investment in me, to me. Even if it was my own money she spent to buy them.

In the kitchen, I swept up cereal from the floor and tended to a few dishes. That was the one chore that Maggie absolutely refused. No matter how careful she tried to be, those lengths of fur always got wet and made a mess. I washed her mug and set it in its usual place, before remembering that Lilith used it the day before. If Maggie caught Lilith using her cup, she would at least draw blood and probably break a bone. I hid it away behind the other glassware to be safe.

Paul got up as the sun went down and followed his usual twilight ritual. I asked a few things to see if he knew anything about Lilith's departure; they did share a moment that morning, and who knows, maybe he can understand her. I know he has a couple paperback novels written in an alphabet using extra letters I've never seen anywhere else. Whatever the case may be, he acted like he had no idea what I was talking about at first, but he settled on stating that he did not know where my mystery woman was.

I sat about for a while longer, but felt like I needed to go and do something to clear my head. I decided to ask Paul for the favor of a couple hours of his time before he left for work, to which he agreed. Then I hopped into my car and went for a drive. I thought about maybe buying something for each of the girls, but while I knew of things Maggie would like, I didn't know if she would be at home to enjoy them, and I had no idea of anything Lilith would like, or if she would be home to enjoy them, either. Or, if I should welcome her back at all.

With every mile I traveled, I changed my mind between wanting to trust Lilith with absolute faith, and wanting to accuse her of being a crook who helped set me up for at least one robbery. I drove a lot further than I planned, following an unfamiliar road and hoping I would eventually figure out where it was leading me.