Unfinished Muse (33 page)

The space beneath the porch was skirted in
flimsy latticework, and one corner on the right hung loose. I
assumed it was where the exterminator had gone in the last time. I
tested it and found the decorative barrier came off without any
resistance, so I set it aside and took off my glasses to peer into
the darkness under the house.

Something moved in the shadows. I tapped a
flashlight app on my phone and used the light to get a better
look.

Two tiny eyes like liquid tar stared back.
Silky black feathers glistened, and the creature snapped its beak
open and closed several times. It shook its crimson rooster wattle
at me and scraped its clawed, poison-spurred feet in the dirt, then
ruffled two dark wings.

“Don’t be silly.” I kneeled in the dead
grass and ducked my head inside. “I’m here to help you.” I crawled
inside on all fours, hoping the dirt wouldn’t ruin my skirt.

The rooster bobbed its head up and down,
then it stretched its neck toward me, beak clacking in warning. But
the front half of the basilisk was a distraction. Aside from the
venomous spurs, the rooster portion was no more harmful than its
barnyard cousins. The problem was the back half. It slithered next
to me in silence, fangs dripping with the same poison that had
killed the grass outside.

My hand touched something wet and stiff, and
I shone the light at it. A dead rat lay curled in on itself, as if
it had died in agony. I wiped my hand on my skirt. I’d probably
have to toss it after this anyway.

I turned and addressed the snake as it crept
closer. “Look. I really don’t want to hurt you. Give me a second.”
I sat up and removed the stolen sneakers so the basilisk could see
my true form. “See?” My snakes coiled and uncoiled, the movements
making my scalp itch.

The snake end of the basilisk pulled back,
its eyes wide in surprise. The rooster stepped toward me, head
turned to the side to examine me with one piercing eye, and the
snake’s tongue flicked to taste my arm.

I smiled and held still while the creature
judged me. I must have passed the test. A moment later, my lap was
filled with scales and feathers. The rooster end buried its head
under my arm, and the snake end climbed my body to commune with my
headsnakes.

“There you go.” I cuddled the rooster with
one hand and rested my other hand against the snake’s skin.
“Everything’s going to be okay, sweet boy. I know. This was scary.
I don’t know how you got out here, but I’ll get you someplace
safe.”

We sat like that for a while, until the
basilisk was ready to go.

If I’d had a choice, I’d have taken him back
to my dorm room. But I doubted my roommates would appreciate him
the way I did. As it was, they already didn’t like having my Daphne
there in her tank. Besides—basilisks weren’t pets, and certainly
not indoor pets. I’d already thought it through, though. I knew
exactly where to take him.

“Now, I have to change how I look before I
we can go. Don’t be alarmed, okay? It’s still me.”

The basilisk’s rooster head bobbed a few
times, and the two ends climbed from my lap and waited while I put
the sneakers back on. Once I’d tied the shoes, the snake portion
drew closer and flicked my cheek with its tongue to verify it was
still me.

The rooster portion of the basilisk followed
me out from under the house with the snake riding patiently on its
back. The gods were a strange bunch, making such awkward
creatures.

The sky had turned dark, so no one saw us
emerge. I scooped the basilisk into my arms, replaced the lattice
work over the hole, and flew into the sky.

The only way back to Mount Olympus from the
human world I knew of was through the front door to the main
building, right past my desk in the atrium. Despite my earlier
expedition to steal shoes from the courier department, I felt
pretty ballsy walking into the empty building with a basilisk
tucked under my arm. Still, I strode through the door and across
the atrium like I owned the place, then exited through the opposite
door out into the rest of Mount Olympus.

Five minutes of flight later, I was in a
clearing in the wilds of the land of the gods.

“This is it.” I gave the basilisk an
affectionate squeeze and set him on the ground. “You’ll do a whole
lot better here. I promise.”

The basilisk nudged me with both its heads
and gave me a sorrowful look from four eyes.

I hunkered down so I could get closer. “Now,
don’t be like that. I’ll come visit when I can. I promise.”

The bushes across the clearing shook, and
clicks and hisses came from within it.

Another basilisk stepped into the clearing,
this one with a purple rooster wattle and green tips on its wings.
It hesitated, then stepped forward. My creature met it in the
center of the clearing, and they eyed each other, circling and
ruffling their feathers.

The two snakes slithered toward each other,
tongues flicking.

After a moment, the two roosters crowed, the
snakes twisted together, and the two creatures settled in a patch
of grass to doze.

My heart gave a little tug, but I left,
satisfied that I’d done a good thing.

That satisfaction carried me all the way
back to the atrium and up to the seventh floor.

“No exterminators today,” I whispered, as I
hung the magic shoes back on their peg in the courier office.

~*~

The next day, I sat at my desk feeling
particularly smug as I stamped unnecessary paperwork and directed
people the long way to their appointments.

I’d totally gotten away with it. I’d broken
several huge rules, stolen the shoes of a god, and robbed some
exterminator out of a job. Not too shabby for a shy girl who’d
never even driven over the speed limit in her previous life.

A lot more had changed than my skin color
and a head full of snakes. I had a lot of catching up to do. I
barely knew who I was yet. But I had plenty of time to find
out.

“Next!” I bent my head and glared at the
nervous man standing at my counter. “Can I help you?”

“I need a supernatural pool cleaner.” He
glanced past me, then at my desk, at his hands, the
ceiling—anywhere but my eyes. “Or something.”

I crooked an eyebrow, and the snake hanging
over my left eye hissed at him. “What seems to be the problem?”

He bit his lip and looked at my hairsnakes.
“I have a hydra in my pool, and it won’t come out.”

My heart sped up in excitement. “Did you ask
it nicely?”

“Yes, but then it tried to bite me. My son
threatened it with a knife, you know, to scare it off. He
accidentally cut off one of the serpent heads and two more grew
back. I don’t know what else to do. Please. My mother-in-law is
coming to visit next week. She doesn’t know anything about this
stuff.”

I smiled and pushed a form toward him.
“Don’t you worry, sir. I think I can help you.”

Relief spread across his face. “You
can?”

“Sure. I think I might be able to get
someone out there tonight.” I checked my watch. Two more hours till
everybody went home.

Maybe my job wasn’t so bad after all.

“Undercover Gorgon” was first published in a
short story collection from Bottle Cap Publishing. Find out more
about
Transmonstrified
on the author’s website.

About R.L. Naquin

Rachel writes stories that drop average people into
magical situations filled with heart and quirky humor.

She believes in pixie dust, the power of
love, good cheese, lucky socks, and putting things off until the
last minute. Her home is Disneyland, despite her current location
in Kansas. Rachel has one husband, two grown kids, and a
crazy-catlady starter kit.

Hang out with her online:

Web:
www.rlnaquin.com

Facebook:
www.facebook.com/rlnaquin

Twitter:
www.twitter.com/rlnaquin

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Other Works by R.L. Naquin

Published by Bottle Cap
Publishing:

Transmonstrified
(short story collection)

The Mount Olympus Employment Agency
Series
Unfinished Muse
, Book 1
Unamused Muse
, Book 2 (October 2015)
Uninspired Muse
, Book 3 (December 2015)

Published by Carina
Press:

The Monster Haven Series
Monster in
My Closet
, Book 1
Pooka in My Pantry
, Book 2
Fairies in My Fireplace
, Book 3
Golem in My Glovebox
, Book 4
Demons in My Driveway
, Book 5
Phoenix in My Fortune
, Book 6