"Food Reasons"

by ‘G

10-15-00 to 11-8-00

Stealing was wrong. Coalition made that quite clear.

A second vehicle went by and she waited.

Stealing was wrong but she’d been so far unable to get food after two nights in this dimension. There were no animals to catch, as she’d been trained to do, within the vast city of humans. Only birds—a rarity where she came from—and small animals that humans kept close by their sides. There were also no gargoyles around to ask about food-gathering. And even if she disguised herself to look like a human, they appeared to acquire food, and other items, only with currency. That practice had been abandoned centuries earlier in her dimension.

Seeing a break, ‘G dashed across the street. Her quarry was in sight.

Toward the end of the second night, she’d discovered the difficulty in finding food here. Oh, it was everywhere, the exotic smells exciting her empty stomach. She’d come to the conclusion that stealing, at least for now, was necessary; for the sole fact that humans here obviously did not know gargoyles existed.

Easier said than done. She’d never stolen anything in her life. Humans here weren’t as strict in security but there were many more of them. And food was rarely left unattended. Night half over, she’d been devoting it to learning the patterns of the places that contained food. One in particular kept her attention.

The glowing sign said "Michaelson Meats". She could smell the aroma of raw and cooked meats from the bottom-story structure. Some type of clothing establishment sat on top of it. It had a back door, like many buildings. ‘G stood in the alley to that back door.

Her current cover was made of the clothing of whoever she’d switched with wore, plus a long coat a man had dropped upon seeing her. The hood of it was handy in covering her head and she only had to duck to hide her face.

The pattern of the place was to prepare meat on request, bundle it, and exchange it for currency. ‘G was waiting for the back door. Probably a fruitless venture but—

The door opened. A huge man stepped out wearing a bloody apron. She ducked her head low but kept all attention on his feet.

But he approached her quickly. "Go on. You can’t be back here."

He was waving at her to move!

Not comprehending but unable to question the command, ‘G stood quickly and hurried out of the alley.

Why had she been asked to leave? Her disguise was sound, and she looked like one of the many humans seen laying in such alleys at night. It made no sense to her hungered brain. The gargoyle continued down the street walkway.

Many signs of food taunted her. Smells, humans who ate quite slow and open and she was very tempted to snatch some in the open. But she would be too open. All of her instincts screamed against that. And then there were the signs.

Lit by some form of electricity, colorful signs lined the sides and fronts of buildings. She could read all of the words presented but many were foreign. ‘Texaco’? A name of a business, maybe, as it was capitalized. But the one ahead. ‘Sandwiches of the World’. It had people emerging with food but she had no idea what a ‘sandwich’ was. Or a ‘pastry’ or a ‘Chocolate Boutique’. These all taunted her on the increasingly busy streetwalk.

The gargoyle felt too clustered and slipped into the alley between two food places, glancing in the window of the ‘sandwich’ one. Whatever they were made of, humans seemed to enjoy them. Humans enjoyed all of the food here.

Squatting in the empty alley, she considered the tree across the street. It wasn’t very nourishing and was rather unpleasant to the digestive system but anything to take the stomach cramps away would be welcome. She’d gone without food before in her dimension but so had all those around her, and it was getting past the amount of time they’d had to wait all those twelve years ago. Two nights was really stretching her limits, for the fact that she needed to learn how to survive here and move on to a less-crowded portion of…

Her thoughts paused at approaching footsteps. The gargoyle’s body tensed as a woman came very near.

But a hand was extended, and in that hand was food.

"Here. You look like you need a better start. Too many new faces these days, but I do what I can."

‘G stared dumbly at the offering, then reached eagerly for it.

Too eagerly, as her taloned hands had little covering.

"I…oh-…" The woman backed away slowly, then turned and ran back into the store.

Well, at least that one didn’t scream. Eh. She placed most of her attention on the food. Deprived of sustenance, the starving gargoyle inhaled the half-sandwich.

With every large bite, a smile grew from around it. This food… The tastes were so… so vibrant! So fresh! So… There was no way to truly express it, for such tastes didn’t exist in her dimension. But it was gone too quickly. She barely suppressed a whimper. There wasn’t any more… But there was. She rose, her tail flicking anxiously at the prospect and becoming visible beneath her long disguising coat. But she hadn’t a thought towards that. There was food in there. The woman would give her more. Still grinning like a fool, ‘G stepped up to the door.

It wouldn’t turn, locked, but that didn’t stop the madly determined gargoyle. A little well-placed jerk popped the entire handle mechanism loose. She pulled and the door opened. ‘G stepped right in and up to the closest gawking human.

They could easily tell she wasn’t human, parading around as she was with no caution, tail tip and feet claws and face and talons very visible.

"I wish to have some food, please." she stated, thought the man was frozen stiff.

The woman behind him, the same as had given her food first, looked terrified but after a moment of hesitation as she collected her wits, she hurriedly complied. She placed all manner of things in a bag and the gargoyles mouth watered. The woman was crying in fright by the time the bag was set on the floor but held herself well enough to pull at the man before making a mad dash out the front of the store.

‘G blinked but headed straight for the bag.

"Get it, get it!!"

was what reached her ears, giving only three seconds to come up with a good dodge, counter, and quick grab for the food. The speaking man had warned her in plenty of time that his companion would leap toward her with a sharp weapon. Food clutched in-talon at the end of her dodge-and-turn, she leaped for the side door, then the alley wall, then climbed to the roof to pause to eat…

Grinning again, she’d just brought a red bulbous plant-product to her lips when shouting was heard. Yells of a monster being on top of that building almost made ‘G choke on air. Whah… What had she done?! Oh no…

Only now realizing the damage she’d done, ‘G picked up immediately and took to the air.

She hadn’t realized. The common sense of it never registered. Humans here are unaware of gargoyles. Don’t be seen! How could she have done that without thinking?

…Could this be the variable side effect they’d warned her about? Dimension-hopping was often reported to leave the surviving returners with a little physical or mental quirk. Or was it something in the food itself? Some chemical that she was reacting to. This wasn’t natural…

She couldn’t stay in the air long. Hunger was still with her and the food cravings were uncontrollable and unbearable. She had it and she had to eat it now.

A sleepy sigh of pleasure escaped her as she licked food packaging and talons clean. Dawn was soon. At least reason was still with her for that.

Where to sleep this morning… She surveyed the horizon. The tall building again. It had broken-open windows at its peak and a few old bird nests inside. No humans. And tomorrow night, she would leave this human city and begin exploring this world further abroad. And perhaps find wild things to eat. Those would tell her if this… food lust… was a food chemical or an effect of dimension-hopping…

‘G headed for her morning roost, trying not to think on either possibility. Both provided a great weakness to her otherwise sound body…

__End__