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Town Hall
Mayor Ben Hawthorne sat at his desk reviewing brochures from various “ destination vacations”, including one from Jessup when Sheriff Mike walked into his office.
“ You wanted to see me?” asked Sheriff Mike.
“ Yes, I was just reviewing this expense report you put in from a visit to Jessup last week, what was that all about?” asked Mayor Hawthorne.
“ Official police business,” said Sheriff Mike in his ‘ official police business’ voice,” I was consulting with my counterpart in Jessup on some evidence related to the still missing persons from New Jersey and the recent murder of Tanner Corrington.”
“Really?” asked the Mayor,” because I was wondering why there was a bill from the most expensive restaurant in Jessup.”
“ Well now, I had to make a good impression, didn’t I?” said Sheriff Mike, “ You don’t want to look cheap in front of the Mayor and Police force of Jessup do you?”
At even the mention of the Mayor of Jessup, Ben could feel his jaw clench, “ No, no of course not. But could you please, next time, maybe impress them a little less?”
Sheriff Mike perused the various brochures on Mayor Ben’s desk,” What’s all this,” he asked, indicating the brochures.
Mayor Ben picked up one of the brochures, to show to Sheriff Mike,” I am doing research.”
“ On what,” asked the Sheriff.
“ I want to make Patience a ‘destination’,” said Mayor Ben,” looking at these brochures, I think we have all it takes; great hiking, sailing , skiing, mountain biking, scenery, we are quaint, picturesque, charming, and friendly. I think we need to beef up the parking, add a few more restaurants and some hotel capacity, and we are there.”
“I think you’re right! I think we got a lot going for our town, but maybe you want to add some entertainment for those who do not engage in outdoor sports, like maybe a Casino!” said Sheriff Mike enthusiastically.
“ Well.. well now, I will certainly take that under advisement,” said the mayor with his ‘campaign’ smile plastered on his face, the one that means, ‘no, but I’m going to say that to your face’.
“ I want Patience to be not just a local destination, but a national, nay…international destination,” said the Mayor.
“ Why settle for international… let's go for Universal destination!” joked Sheriff Mike.
Joe’s Diner
Harry walked into the diner and settled at the counter in his usual spot.
“ Morning Harry, what can I get you today?” asked Dan.
“ Good morning… Dan. I will have the usual,” said Harry in his oddly stilted way.
“ Pie, oatmeal with extra milk and coffee it is” Dan smiled.
Harry had grown to like Dan. Dan made him feel comfortable.
Dan placed a slice of pie in front of Harry, his usual bowl of milky oatmeal, and a steaming cup of coffee.
Harry dug in. But with the first mouthful, he froze. His eyes glazed over,
and a look of pure pleasure spread across his face that was almost obscene.
“ What… IS… this!?” Harry asked in wonder.
“ Like it?” Dan asked. “ It is from my new supplier.”
“ It is.. wonderful!” Harry’s face still reflected his awe.
“ Remember the bakery down the street, well it has a new owner,” said Dan.
Harry made up his mind to visit as soon as he finished. But he did not wish to rush this experience. He continued to eat slowly and savor each mouthful.
When Harry was finished, he paid, and took a walk down the street to the new bakery.
The new owner had made some changes. For one thing, she had moved one of the work spaces to the front window. Customers passing by could see the baker rolling dough, or forming cookies and pastries, or making pie, though the bulk of the work was still done in the back room.
There were a few examples of her products displayed tantalizingly in the window as a tease. Customers would have to come into the shop to see all the offerings, which meant they were more likely to leave with something. “ Smart,” Harry thought.
Harry watched as the baker was bent over her task. She wore a long apron with the ties wrapped around her very slim waist and tied in front. She had a head scarf which covered her hair. Her thin hands and arms moved with such strength and grace! He was fascinated by the process. Suddenly her rolling pin stopped moving, Harry realized she was watching him watch her. He followed her hands to her arms and up to her face, and froze.
Harry was smitten. She was the most exquisite thing he had ever seen…on any planet. Her eyes were a steely gray. Her face was long and thin with a long thin nose that looked like the beak of a bird… a bird! A small wisp of hair stuck out from her head scarf, it was blue!! She ran her tongue over her upper lip to catch the perspiration that beaded there. Her tongue! Her tongue was long and pointy like … a bird’s!!
Harry could feel his heart racing as he looked into her eyes. He could not tear his glance away. He began to become aware of something pushing against his jacket, trying to get out. With horror, he realized it was one of his special, normally internal, reproductive arms. He had become so aroused by her he had forgotten himself. Harry clutched his arms over his chest and quickly moved off into a nearby alley blushing up to his ears.
“What just happened to me? I have not felt like that since….since my prior mate,” he thought. Oddly, It had not been his human reproductive organ that had become aroused, but his alien ones. When he had been with Isabelle, and even with Darcy, it had been his human reproductive organ which had responded to the situation. He had been functional as a human male, and found the activity pleasant, but human love/lust did not have the same intensity as he had felt for his now deceased mate. When his kind mated, it was powerfully intense. It had to be in order to keep the mate-e from killing the mate-or . With his mate, however, there was never a threat of death, they had been very close, which was highly unusual for his kind. But to have that reaction for a human?! He would need to take care to keep his distance and avoid further contact. “Luckily,” he thought, “this should be easy since her shop was not too close to the clinic.” He hurried back toward the clinic.
“ Hey Harry, what took you so long?” asked Asta, “ We have quite a lot of patients waiting for you.”
“MMM,” acknowledged Harry. He put on his white coat, accepted his stethoscope from Asta and allowed her to guide him to an exam room.
The day had been very busy and Harry had been very quiet. Asta had attributed it to being busy and possibly distracted about how to save the earth. When they finished, Darcy stopped by to invite them to grab some dinner. Harry politely declined.
“ What’s with him?” asked Darcy.
“ I don’t know, he’s been very quiet since he got back from lunch,” replied Asta.
“ Did something happen?” asked Darcy.
“ Not as far as I know,” replied Asta.
Harry was getting ready to leave, as he was taking off his white coat after hanging up his stethoscope, Ellen yelled down the hallway, “ Hey, we got an urgent one in room 4, a burn, looks kind of bad.”
Harry sighed, and put his white coat back on and headed for room 4 with Asta in tow.
Harry pulled back the curtain, and there SHE was, the one from the bakery! Harry’s jaw dropped. His heart began to race. After a moment he had the presence of mind to close his mouth.
“ I have to stay calm. Focus! Control,” he commanded himself. He was so focused and in control that he could not move from his spot by the curtain.
“ Uh Harry, wanna go in?” suggested Asta.
Harry could feel the flush rising in his face and the pressure in his chest. “ Focus, control,focus, control,” he chanted to himself.
Asta pushed him into the room toward Bird woman. To Asta the woman definitely looked like a bird, skinny face, beak-like nose, blue frickin hair… weirdly graceful though.
Bird woman had her hand stretched out to Harry. Harry deliberately avoided taking it. He looked at her hand from a distance. “ It looks like a, um, second degree burn…what happened?” asked Harry, still keeping his distance.
“ I touched the oven when I was pulling out a pan,” chirped Bird woman.
“ Examine it,” Asta hissed in a forced whisper, facing away from Bird woman as she left the room to get the burn dressing supplies.
Harry tried to keep his face impassive as he reached for Bird woman’s hand.
His hands began to tremble ever so slightly, he began to sweat. He was using every ounce of his self control to keep his reproductive organs in check.
He put out his hand and she reached hers to him. He avoided looking at her face, into her eyes. Their hands touched. It was lucky Harry was wearing several layers of clothing. He could feel his reproductive arm trying to find its way out of his clothing. He looked down and noted the growing tenting of his lab coat.
“ It will be fine !” Harry blurted, ” Use this cream and change the dressing daily, you will need a tetanus shot,” his voice cracking as he turned and bolted from the room holding his arms tightly over his lab coat.
Harry bolted past Asta and Darcy to his office and slammed the door shut.
He made it to his office in time to push the errant limb back where it belonged.
“ What the hell?” he thought to himself.
Asta looked at Darcy who just shrugged.
Asta knocked, “ Harry, you ok in there?”
“ I don’t feel well,” Harry responded back to her.
Asta finished taking care of Bird woman, sent her on her way, and went to check on Harry, who was sitting at his desk, still clutching his arms over his lab coat.
“What happened in there? ” asked Asta.
Harry did not know quite how to phrase it.
“ I had the equivalent of what humans would call a ‘hard on’ ,” Harry matter-of-factly reported.
Asta was not sure she heard correctly, “ A WHAT?!”
“ That woman, I was very attracted to her…sexually,” Harry said simply.
Asta was not quite sure how to address that confession. Bird woman was certainly not a beauty by any earthly standards, but maybe by alien standards…
“ I have never felt that way toward a human before,” said Harry.
“ Ohh-Kaay, “ said Asta. “So what is the big deal?”
“ She did not attract me as one human to another human, but rather she attracted me as an alien. My penis did not become erect, my alien organs had the equivalent of an erection,” said Harry.
“ So what does that mean,” asked a still confused Asta.
“ Asta, you have never seen my alien reproductive organs,” said Harry.
Asta’s eyebrows climbed almost to her scalp, “ Nor do I ever hope to!”
Harry looked slightly offended, but continued,” My people have 2 more limbs which are internal, in the area where you inserted your hand that time you had to clear my breathing tube.”
“What?!! EEEWWWW!” said Asta as she made a face of disgust.
Again Harry looked offended, but continued,” I was having difficulty controlling them.”
“ Sounds like a typical guy thing,” said Asta with a smirk, ” So you're telling me you were hot for her?”
“ Yes,” stated Harry, “ but as an ALIEN!”
“ Ok, so why is that a bad thing?” asked Asta, still uncertain where this was going.
“ I cannot mate with a human with alien reproductive organs!” exclaimed Harry.
“ Uh, let’s make this clear, you cannot ‘mate’ with her even with human reproductive organs,” said Asta, disapproval evident in her tone.
Harry was unsure of the implication, but continued, “ Asta, you are missing the point, I should not have been attracted to her as an alien, unless she is also an alien!” explained Harry.
“You think the new baker is an alien? A Gray!?” asked Asta, flabbergasted.
“ Not a Gray,a Blue Avian,” explained Harry,” but I do not understand why a Blue Avian would be here, nor how it was able to adopt human form.”
“ Are you sure about this,” asked Asta, skeptically.
“ I am fairly certain that she is an alien. I do not know what she is doing here,” said Harry,” I suppose I could just go ask her.”
“ You can’t do that!” said Asta, “ What if you are wrong? She will think you are some kind of a nut.”
Harry thought for a moment,” I have a plan if you will come with me.”
The Bakery
Harry and Asta walked into the bakery together. Harry could already feel the attraction building inside him. Bird woman smiled at them and for just a second Harry was lost in that smile. Asta nudged him and cleared her throat. Harry snapped out of it.
“ Good afternoon, what can I get for you today,” chirped Bird woman.
“ I would like a loaf of that bread there,” said Asta. Harry said nothing and continued to stare at Bird woman.
Bird woman smiled at him as her pointy tongue licked at her upper lip, almost causing Harry to lose control of himself.
Bird woman turned to the bread rack and reached for the multigrain loaf of bread, as she was reaching , Harry chirped , “ not that one, the one next to it” in the language of the Blue Avians.
Bird woman turned to grab the indicated loaf but caught herself as she reached for it. She spun around on Harry and Asta with a look of fear and anger on her face.
“ Do not be alarmed,” said Harry, “ we are not here to hurt you. “
“ Then what do you want?” demanded Bird woman.
“ I want to know what you are doing here, on this planet,” asked Harry, “ and I want to know your name.”
“ My name is Lark,” said Bird woman,” I’m here because it is a very nice town, quite a destination spot.”
“ You haven’t come to destroy the earth, or take it over, or save it?” asked Asta. suspiciously.
“ Heaven’s, no!” Lark exclaimed,” I was scoping out a location for my shop when I found Patience. This is a nice quiet, quaint, friendly town, plus you really do not have any good bakery, so not a lot of competition,” chirped Lark, “You know I am not the only one who feels that way. ”
“ What do you mean,” asked Harry and Asta in unison.
“ Quite a few of us have had our eyes on this place,” said Lark.
“This town is known across the universe as a quirky little hideaway. A little hard to get to but definitely worth the trip!” chirped Lark enthusiastically.
“ So are there other extraterrestrials here?” asked Harry.
“ Oh yes!” chirped Lark.
“ Who are they ?” asked Asta.
“ Burt down at the gas station, Lenny at the hardware store, Reverend Fletcher, and Mrs Fletcher, “ chirped Lark,” Oh, and Mitch, he started here, but moved over to Jessup and became the Mayor there.”
“ Are they all Blue Avians?” asked Harry.
“ Oh no, there are a variety of different races represented,” chirped a smiling Lark.
“ How did you find out about Patience ?” asked Asta
“ Mayor Mitch,” chirped Lark,” he has been sending out brochures on this place for years.”
Harry and Asta exchanged glances.
“ How did you manage to adopt human form,” asked Harry,” there are only a few races that can adopt human form.”
“ There is a device offered at some of the outer rim planets,now, black market stuff,” chirped Lark,” It allows the wearer to create the illusion of different forms for a period of time as long as it is worn. It has to be recharged every year. Once it is recharged the wearer cannot change back and forth, they have to stay in whatever form it is programmed for. ”
“ Ah,” said Harry, he knew of that technology. It was implanted under the skin and allowed a temporary illusion of transformation, it was still experimental last he had heard, but it must have been perfected.
“ We will leave you now,” said Harry as they headed for the shop door.
“ Wait,” chirped Lark. She came around the counter and handed Asta a bag, “ On the house, my special worm cracker bread.” As she handed the bag to Asta, she made sure to get into Harry’s personal space. Asta politely accepted the bag, offering an equally polite “ thank you”.
At the same time Harry backed into the door trying to get Lark out of his personal space. Unfortunately for Harry, the door was a “ pull”, not a “push”. He was trapped between the door and Lark. She leaned into him and chirped in her native tongue with a very wicked smile, “ Stop over again, but without the human, we can have dinner and ….dessert.”
Harry was rapidly becoming undone. One hand clutching his jacket tightly, the other reaching behind him trying to find the door knob. Once he found it, he wheeled around to try to get the door open. He was able to get it open just enough to slip through. Once outside he retreated down the street toward the clinic as fast as he could, not waiting for Asta.
Asta and Lark exchanged amused glances as Asta left the shop.
“ Life in Patience is about to get much more interesting ,” Lark chirped gleefully to herself.
Mayor Ben Hawthorne was in a snit when he called Sheriff MIke Thompson to come to the sign that advertised the entrance to Patience.
“ I want these vandals found and arrested!” fumed the mayor as he indicated the flying saucers spray painted all over the sign.
End