RED SOX: Believe
FEEDBACK: is appreciated at p.phair@comcast.net
Animal was transfixed. Her meal sat on her lap barely touched. If anyone looked closely enough they would have noted a bit of drool forming at the corner of her mouth.
Mounted to the wall before her was a forty two inch monitor. The crystal clear picture displayed a crackling fire in a well built fireplace. Its satisfying burn never actually consumed the logs feeding what appeared to be an eternal flame. Obviously, it would continue to blaze for as long as the monitor remained on and the DVD loop played.
For all practical purposes, Animal was hypnotized by the program. It appeared she would remain so for as long as the monitor remained on and the DVD loop played.
Sunny was exceedingly grateful for the respite. Animal was, indeed, a handful. During their shopping excursion, Sunny ended up hold the young woman by the hand to keep her from following people passing them with lit cigarettes. In one heart stopping moment, a fire truck raced down the street and Animal began to run after it. Sunny was very happy she chose track and field in high school otherwise she might not have been able to tackle the younger woman after a two block dash.
The entire shopping spree, at times, barely felt worth the effort. In fact, had she not been so desperate to get Animal dressed properly then Sunny would have abandoned the whole idea in favor of getting to her lunch while there was still hope of having it hot. For one brief second, Sunny seriously considered abandoning Animal but a three count cooled her emotions.
"Getting the clothes does make cold, fried plantains palatable," Sunny thought to herself when she looked over the top of her reading glasses to see Animal still sitting across from her desk.
An oblivious Animal was dressed in a light pink, long sleeved tee shirt with faded blue denim bib overalls. Her feet were clad in heavy duty light brown work boots. The entire ensemble was functional for blowing up buildings yet presentable enough to be a uniform. In fact, Sunny was going to recommend the outfit as Wreckers new daily work wear.
"Pink really plays nicely against the rough and tumble image of a deconstruction company," Sunny justified to herself.
"Sunny," a deep male voice spoke after a light rap on the office door, "I have the preliminary MSDS binder for Wreckers."
"Excellent Millicent, please put it over on my completed work table," Sunny said and turned to her lap top's hot task list to cross off another accomplished line item.
As Millicent entered the room, Animal's eyes wandered from the monitor screen for the first time all afternoon. Her jaw dropped slightly at the sight. Millicent was about six feet, five inches tall with broad shoulders and thick, hairy forearms. However, Millicent was wearing a black with white swirl Laura Ashley knock off and rather large black pumps. The top of Millicent's head was bald but the hair growing from ear to ear around the back was long and combed forward. Lipstick, eye liner, and earrings were understated and tasteful.
"Um, Millicent," Sunny spoke with a nervous edge to her voice. "Could you ask Oran to come into see me ASAP?"
"Of course," Millicent replied and quickly left the office.
Sunny got up from her desk and strode across the room. She was very angry. Several counts to three had not managed to calm her by the time she reached Animal.
"Ms. Animal, staring is rude and unprofessional," Sunny whispered.
Animal was craning her neck to look around Sunny. "Was that guy wearing a dress? Seriously, a dress?"
Sunny stepped into Animal's line of vision before answering. "Millicent is a pre-surgical transsexual."
"He likes to dress up like girls?"
"Ms. Animal, Millicent is not a he. At the moment, we are using ze and hir as our pronouns of choice. Millicent is still in the very early stages of gender reassignment and not entirely sure how far ze will proceed. All the Bright Day Management Service staff is supportive of Millicent and we are prepared to facilitate a respectful work environment for hir during this process." Sunny took a small breath before adding, "As required by law in the commonwealth."
Animal asked, "So, he's a girl?"
"Are you even listening to me?"
"Sure. I just don't understand a lot of the bigger words like 'resignment.'"
Sunny counted to three before clarifying. "Reassignment, the word is reassignment. It means, Millicent has always felt like a woman trapped in a man's body. Ze is going to change hir body to reflect outside how ze feels inside."
Animal's mouth opened in a silent O. "He's getting his shhlong sliced off? Ye-ouch! That's gonna hurt. Do you think pissing will make him pass out or scream or something afterwards?"
Sunny was silent. She stared at Animal while she tried to figure out if the statements were an act or indications of limited cultural exposure. Sunny decided to believe the later until she had more evidence of the former.
"How about this, Ms. Animal? You will only refer to Millicent as Millicent. You will not say anything to hir except, hello, goodbye, and thank you. You will not stare at hir anymore. Okay? Do you think you can do that?"
"Oh sure. No problem. Just like not swearing. No problem. I can do it," Animal stated with certainty. "Can you do something for me?"
Sunny arched an eyebrow waiting for the request.
"Can you put my show in hold? I really got to pee and I don't want to miss anything."
Sunny looked at the screen with the fire place. She looked back to Animal who was staring up at her expectantly. Sunny found herself bewildered by the request.
"It's a loop. It never changes. The fire just keeps burning," Sunny tried to explain the concept of the DVD.
"I know! Isn't it great? Do you think they have other shows like this one? Maybe a house burning or a school? Oh, a tire fire with all that thick smoke would be great."
Sunny didn't answer. She grabbed the remote from the completed work table and pressed the pause button. Animal grinned at her before hurrying off to the office bathroom.
"You wanted me, Sunny?" Oran asked as he knocked and entered the office.
"I need Nevada Smithe on the phone immediately. She's got to Animal sit tonight. Book the usual room at the Back Bay Inn." Sunny clarified, "Be sure it's a non-smoking room."
Oran was already speed dialing his blue tooth. "Ms. Smithe? This is Oran at Bright Day Management Services. Please hold for Ms Bright-Day."
Sunny sat slouched in the comfort of her soft sofa with her eyes closed. For the first time all day, she felt at ease. Her feet were high heel free and elevated. Her body luxuriated in the soft cotton tee shirt and shorts. Her belly was full from a wonderful supper of collard soup, fried yams, candied sweet potatoes, and fried corn. Of course, two glasses of wine had not hurt her efforts to relax.
The living room was dimly lit. Salty smells from burning incense wafted through the air. Sunny was content to let the moment just be. She had spilled the day's trials and tribulations to Song Bird, a professional Intuitive. The woman instructed Sunny to meditate and try to find her center while she thought about the situation.
"Who did you leave Animal with tonight?" Song Bird asked.
Sunny answered without opening her eyes. "Nevada Smithe. She's an independent Private Security Consultant."
"Like a private detective?"
"Sort of," Sunny hedged. "Nevada provides some distinct advantages over local private detectives due to her citizenship in an indigenous nation within the United States which is not subject to state or federal jurisdictions."
"She's a hired gun who runs back to a reservation to hide out until the heat lets up?" Song Bird asked.
Sunny opened her eyes with a heavy sigh. "She's more like a hired leg breaker but the rest of your guess is pretty accurate. I figured she'd be more than capable of restraining Animal if it becomes necessary."
Sunny watched Song Bird for a reaction. It was not forthcoming. The woman just sat there staring back at Sunny.
The intuitive was slightly older than middle age. Her frizzy hair at one time might have been auburn but dying had reduced it to an unnatural orange. She wore huge round eye glasses which were popular for a month or so in the early 1970's. Mercifully, good taste prevailed and the rest of the population ditched the ugly spectacles for more understated eye wear. Song Bird's long flowing dress, which was pooled around her as she sat on the floor, was more of a throwback to the 1960's with its obnoxious bright colors and sickening spinning designs.
"What do you want me to say? It's wrong of me to employ somebody like Nevada. It's wrong that I even know somebody like Nevada. I left Animal in a dangerous situation."
"There's potential you left Nevada in a dangerous situation," Song Bird interjected.
"You can say that again."
"As for what is wrong, I'd ask you what is the nature of wrong?"
"Huh?"
"Sunny only you can define your right and wrong for yourself. Is it right to earn a good living by working smart?"
Sunny nodded.
"Is it wrong to leave cash on the table because some required actions might slightly cross the arbitrary lines of man made rules and regulations?"
"I…I…don't know," Sunny was not expecting this line of logic.
"I'd say it was more wrong to leave that poor, confused girl living under a trailer. And, of course, not helping a company flourish in this starved economy is unconscionable. Success on such a venture has many levels. This could be a huge leap for your own company, Sunny. The potential financial gains for Bright Day far out weight the miniscule risk of getting caught doing something which may or may not be entirely legal."
"Do you think?"
"Absolutely! Why with the amount of revenue Wreckers would bring in, you could significantly expand. You could add staff. Not just associates but resource staff like on site massage therapy, yoga instruction, intuitive services, florist…your company could become the model of post recession business; financial, physical, and emotional wellbeing in the workplace."
"Bright Day a model for modern corporations? I hadn't thought of it that way."
"That's why you invite me over once a week, dear. I help you think above, below, and beside the box. However, it is getting late and I do need to run. If you could just write me a check…,"
"Oh, sure," Sunny said and sat up to grab her check book.
While she wrote, Song Bird stood with a few joints popping. "Sunny, this Nevada woman. She sounds a bit…tough."
"I'll say," Sunny laughed. She handed the check to Song Bird and explained, "She's six one or six two and about a hundred and seventy pounds. All of it muscle, I think. Her hands are like baseball mitts. When she talks it sounds like a freight train whistle."
"She'll be a negative influence on Animal."
"You think?" Sunny was surprised by Song Bird's pronouncement.
"No, I feel it. You must protect Animal at all costs. Get over there first thing in the morning and take Animal with you. You mustn't let the gold goose out of your sight. Both companies are depending on her skills."
Song Bird turned with a flourish and headed for the front door. Sunny trailed after her. The cat jumped from the book case to land directly in front of Song Bird blocking the woman's exit. The cat reared up and hissed long and hard before fleeing to the safety of Sunny's bedroom.
"I wonder why Ichabod hasn't warmed up to you yet," Sunny said.
Song Bird bit her lip trying to hold her temper. "As I've said before, Sunshine, cats and dogs are negative energy beings. They drain from most humans but they are unable to penetrate my aura. Hence, the cat's continued anger at me. You really should get rid of the creature. A bird or a fish would be much more beneficial to your spiritual path."
Sunny felt tears forming. "Please don’t ask me to do that. I love Ichabod. He's been with me since I started Bright Day. He was the only one who believed in me at the beginning."
Song Bird stood at the front door and shrugged. "Cats only believe in cats. But, if you want to invite trouble then keep him. I won't say another word about it." She thought a moment. "However, if you are going to keep him then I'm going to need to raise my fee for house visits to four hundred an hour."
Sunny nodded in relief. "Four hundred it is. At least, that way I get to keep both of you."
"Suit yourself." Song Bird shook her head as she left.
If Sunny hadn't shut the door so quickly then she might have heard Song Bird mutter, "Idiot."