Selected Assistant

by Robin Roseau

  “They can always come back. There are always interesting women to meet. Or do you think they both prefer males?”

  “I haven’t any idea at all. You don’t seem upset.”

  “I had a nice night. I learned more about them. I spent several hours talking to two space aliens. Jasmine, I’m fine, completely fine. When may I have my visor back?”

  “Let’s get through the weekend,” she said. “Monday, after your appointment with Dr. Depths.”

  “Do you really observe weekends here?”

  She laughed. “No. Good night, Taisha.”

  “Good night, Jasmine.”

  * * * *

  When the jumper dropped me off, I didn’t head straight for the bungalow. Instead, I took another walk along the beach, carrying my sandals and walking where my feet could get wet. I wasn’t sure what to do with myself. For as long as I could remember, I’d been a workaholic. It had been school, working to get top grades while holding down a typical high school job. Then it was college, where I worked even harder. Then a doctoral program. After arriving at Hunt Robotics, I’d worked to prove myself.

  Having actual time to myself was an unusual experience for me. Oh, I could handle an evening here and there, but not several in a row. And now the implication of Jasmine’s words was that they expected me to continue to relax for an entire weekend? Seriously?

  I wasn’t sure I knew how.

  But it could start with a walk on the beach, and that wasn’t bad.

  I wasn’t the only one about. I saw a couple strolling along the path, hand-in-hand. And there were some teenagers in chairs under one of the cabanas. I recognized Nellie and walked over. They saw me approaching. Nellie recognized me and jumped up. “Taisha,” she said. “Is Jasmine here?”

  “She decided I’m healed enough I’m allowed to go for a walk alone,” I replied. “How was the safari?”

  “Oh. Em. Gee!” she said. “It was totally amazing.”

  “I bet. Did you help one of the ETs?”

  “Yeah. They assigned me to a Komodo, like the dragons.”

  “Is her name Carolina?”

  “How did you know?”

  “We’ve met,” I replied. “She seemed very nice.”

  “She was amazing,” Nellie replied. “She didn’t know anything about any of the animals.”

  “Did you help her?”

  “Yeah. I tried, anyway.” She pulled out her phone. “I got so many photos.” She shifted to my side and began browsing the photos. I saw a few animals, but at least half of the photos were of Carolina or sometimes the other aliens. I saw Melissa with Forever Twilight and Winona with a male Luxan I didn’t recognize. “Don’t worry. I asked if I could take photos of them. They said that was okay.”

  “Good,” I said.

  “If I hadn’t asked why you were in the wheelchair, we wouldn’t have gone.”

  “Sometimes that’s called the butterfly effect,” I said. “A butterfly flaps its wings, causing a very, very slight breeze, but that interacts with something else, and the effect grows. A hundred miles away, it rains.”

  “Oh,” she said. “That’s cool.”

  “Yeah. I had an accident, and then Jasmine took me for a roll on the beach. You saw and were brave enough to approach. Do you see?”

  “Butterfly effect.”

  “Which animals were your favorites?”

  “The giraffes.”

  “Yeah, I like giraffes, too.”

  “So you’ve been?”

  “Actually, you’re one up on me. I’ve seen them in zoos.”

  “It’s not the same.”

  “I bet it’s not,” I agreed. “Did your mom and aunt have a good time?”

  “I think so.” She laughed. “We saw some mongooses.”

  “Did you?”

  “I asked them if they were the ones who bit your head off, but they denied it. I think they were telling the truth.”

  “You might be right,” I replied with a grin. “Did you really?”

  “Yeah, actually. It was just a joke.”

  “Did Carolina overhear you?”

  “She wanted to know what I was talking about, so I told her the story. She thought it was funny. Is that okay?”

  “Yeah. I was just being funny. Did you like the mongooses? Mongeese? Mongoosi? Um.”

  She laughed. “Mongooses, and yeah. They were really cute.”

  “I bet. Well, I’m going to let you get back to your friends. I’m glad you had a good time.”

  “The best,” she said. “Good night, Taisha.” She smiled broadly. “That’s a cool name.”

  “Thanks,” I said.

  Real Dates

  For the next several days, we made no real progress with Muriel’s avatar. Our attempts to reproduce the failure went nowhere. Away from work, Jasmine continued to expose me to increasing levels of exercise, and in the evenings, I had dinner with a different extraterrestrial each night.

  Friday night, I presented myself to the restaurant at Beginnings. Carolina Komodo was waiting, and I was immediately as entranced as I was the day she captured me. I stared at her for a minute before stepping forward. We brushed cheeks, and I whispered, “You look stunning.”

  And she did. She was dressed in what some of the women were calling, “Catseye friendly,” which was a style Felicia and I had both been taking to as well. We both wore wrap dresses. I wore mine off the shoulder. She wore hers like a halter top with her arms and nearly entire back exposed, and she pulled up one side so it draped asymmetrically, down to just below her knee on the right and with a curve up nearly to her hip on the left.

  The result was to expose her scales, which were deeply colorful, and I found her strikingly beautiful.

  We separated, and she took my hands. But then instead of leading me into the restaurant, we turned, stepping outside. “Where are we going?”

  “I made a special plan,” she said. “Do you mind?”

  “No.” And I didn’t let go of her hand, either.

  Together we walked to a waiting jumper. She got us both settled, and then, seemingly on its own, the jumper closed up, lifted in the air, then turned and flew out over the cove. We did a circle, and I watched before looking over at her. “Did you plan that for me?”

  “Yes.”

  “Thank you.”

  “You’re welcome.”

  Then we turned south, following the coast about a half mile out over the Atlantic Ocean. We reached another cove, this one small, surrounded by hills. The jumper came to a stop, hovering in the air just off the beach, about the same height as the surrounding hills. The sun had just set, but there was enough lingering light to see.

  “What’s going on?”

  “This is where Violet Beamer is thinking of creating a new village.”

  “It’s beautiful,” I said. “I can’t believe how beautiful it is.”

  “Violet asked for my opinion,” Carolina said. “I’d like us to see it together. I have everything for a picnic on the beach, but we could go back to the restaurant.”

  “I’d love a picnic, Carolina,” I said. “That’s very sweet.”

  We took one more little tour then set down on the sand, high above the water. Carolina had an anti-gravity sled to carry our things, which was pretty impressive, and we set up a table and chairs near the water, finding a portion of the beach that was level. She had me sit then pulled a variety of food out. We had a lovely meal, talking about easy topics. I found myself staring at her.

  “Does my appearance shock you?”

  “That’s not the word I would use, Carolina. You are deeply colorful. It’s quite beautiful.”

  “There aren’t very many of us in human space,” she replied.

  “I’m surprised you live on the station.”

  “Maybe we won’t have to much longer.”

  “Do you enjoy swimming in our water?”

  “The waters of Earth taste strange to me,” she said. “But it has been deeply liberating.”


  “Bad strange?”

  “Just strange,” she said. “I thought about catching our dinner, but I wasn’t sure if you would appreciate that.”

  “I would when we have more time,” I said.

  “Do you like sushi?”

  “I do,” I said. “Is that how you would serve?”

  “Typically,” she replied.

  “There’s no seafood tonight.”

  “I can eat other cooked foods, but I dislike cooked seafood. As your fish and that of my home world are quite different, I imagine it’s more the idea than the actual flavor.” She paused. “It could just be the texture.”

  We talked about the food we were eating, my job, and her job. We talked mostly about little things, but then the meal was complete. I helped her pack everything and return it to the jumper. Then she turned to me. “Will you swim with me? I have everything you need. I want to explore the cove.”

  “At night?”

  “I have lights,” she said. “It’s entirely safe, Taisha. I’ll take care of you.”

  I actually wasn’t comfortable swimming, but I could see this was important to her. I smiled. It was forced, but I didn’t think a space alien would be able to tell. “I think I’d like that.”

  Her colors shifted. I didn’t know what that meant, but right before me, her colors shifted, becoming even brighter. I didn’t ask about it. Instead, Carolina showed me a stretchy one-piece suit she had for me, and beach shoes. Then she turned her back and began undressing.

  I changed into the suit, my back also turned. When I turned around, she wasn’t wearing a suit but was entirely naked. And she’d been watching me.

  Again, I said nothing. But she was openly admiring me, and so I did the same. “Your entire body is so colorful.”

  “If you were Komodo, you could read my emotions.”

  “Tell me.”

  “Pleasure. Excitement. Nervous.”

  “Nervous?”

  “Aren’t you nervous?”

  “Yes, but why are you?”

  “Why shouldn’t I be?” she asked. “This is as new for me as it is for you.”

  “You’re not talking about swimming.”

  “No, Taisha. I’m not.”

  I stepped to her. She held her ground, which was exactly perfect. I came to a stop, touching, one hand on her hip, the other on her shoulder. “You’re very beautiful,” I said, my voice husky. “I want to ask you something.”

  “Of course.”

  “I’m going to ask my way. I hope I don’t offend you.” And then I brought us together, kissing her.

  She didn’t kiss back, and after a moment, I froze and pulled away. “Oh,” I said. I started to turn away, but she caught me.

  “I’d like to teach you the Komodo way.”

  “Oh,” I said again. “I’m an idiot.”

  “No, you’re not,” she said. “That was a human kiss. This will be unusual for you. Will you let me?”

  “Yes.”

  “When we come together, open for me and try to relax.” She didn’t hesitate, but we came together, and when we did, I opened.

  She slipped her tongue into me, her long, clever tongue. It danced around inside my mouth, playing with my own tongue, and hers was far more capable. I felt it wrap around, and then she withdrew, my tongue a captive of hers. She pulled me into her mouth, and she played with me.

  And I became entirely lost to it. I think I moaned. I know I clutched myself to her.

  She teased me for a while, pulling me into her, then partially releasing me, but only partially. But eventually she withdrew, and we separated, but only so far. I opened my eyes, fluttering for a moment, then looked into hers. “Wow,” I whispered. “Um.”

  “I enjoyed that,” she said. “I didn’t know if I would. With another Komodo, that can become a battle.”

  “Your tongue…”

  “Is quite different from yours.”

  “Show me.”

  She paused, then nodded. She opened her mouth. She had teeth, very sharp teeth, and I thought they were well prepared for cutting and tearing. But then she extended her tongue.

  It was long and slender, round more than flat, and very long, extending nearly six inches from her mouth. I stared at it.

  And the tip was…well, it split into four opposing pieces, and as I watched, she wriggled them at me before bringing her tongue back into her mouth. I stared at it. “Are you repulsed?”

  “No,” I said. I brushed her cheek. “Overwhelmed, but not repulsed.”

  “Should I take you home?”

  “Absolutely not,” I said. “You promised to take me swimming.”

  “I didn’t want to take you back,” she said. “Taisha, I don’t know what I’m doing. I’m playing with ideas. I don’t know if I’m going to act on them.”

  I brushed her cheek again. “I don’t want to rush, and I don’t know what I want, anyway. But I know this. I enjoy your company, and I want to share more of it.”

  “I’d like that, too.”

  “You may not be interested in a human mate,” I continued. “You may prefer a male.” She made a face. I smiled. “You may prefer someone else, perhaps someone at a different point in her life. I don’t know. But I’d like to give us time to decide. It may be that we come out of this as friends. No matter what, can we make sure that happens? Is that possible?”

  “That’s definitely possible.”

  “I think I wouldn’t mind if we were lovers, even if it’s only for a while.”

  She actually stepped away, and it was as if I had slapped her. She turned away, and I stared at her. “Carolina? I don’t understand why that offends you.”

  She held a hand up. It felt dismissive, and I didn’t appreciate it, but I waited. Finally, without turning around. “That’s a cultural difference.” She turned to me. “Do human lovers become mated?”

  I couldn’t help it. I laughed. Her colors changed. “I’m sorry,” I said. “But that’s the most normal way.”

  “I don’t understand.”

  “Traditionally, which basically is a bunch of bullshit, a woman would arrive to her husband’s bed a virgin. That is still how it works in some parts of the world, but it is no longer the norm in America, and, of course, it has never been the norm for two women.” I paused. “Have I offended you?”

  She turned. “What I heard you say, before I realized there was a cultural difference, was that you specifically did not want to consider me as a potential mate.”

  “Oh,” I said simply.

  “Komodo can enjoy sex casually, but it is very unusual for sex to lead to becoming mated. Sex complicates the mating process for us, making it difficult to form the long-term bonds of a mated pair. Does this mean we are not compatible?”

  “No,” I said. “Neither of us know what we want, though. But no, if I have not offended you, then no, this does not mean we are incompatible. Thank you for explaining.” I paused. “I think we should kiss again, to put the mood back.”

  She brightened again, and we came back together. Our second kiss, if that’s the right word, was just as weirdly wonderful as our first, and I relaxed with it, letting her do what she wanted with me. She played with me for a minute or two, and then we both hugged tightly. “I have never kissed a human before.”

  “I have never had my tongue played with like that before,” I replied.

  “You seem to enjoy it, even if it is literally quite alien to you.”

  “I do,” I said.

  “Good. I’d like to swim now.”

  “That would be nice.”

  * * * *

  We held hands for the walk to the water. She had the breathing device with her, but it wasn’t until we stood with the water to our knees that she handed it to me. She wrapped a weight belt around my waist, then made sure I knew how to release it if I needed to. “This will make it easier. Humans tend to float.”

  “Carolina, I won’t be able to swim long.”

  “The breathing device has a fresh
charge.”

  “Yes, but I’ll begin to get cold.”

  “Do you know how long that will take?”

  “No. We just need a signal. If I point to the surface, it means it’s time to head back.”

  “What happens to a human who gets too cold?”

  “That’s a complicated question,” I replied. “I’ll get cold. I’m not sure I understand the question.”

  “Perhaps I should explain what happens to a Komodo. That may help you understand my question. A Komodo does not get cold in water this temperature. It would need to be much colder, but then it is a shock to our system, and we very quickly shut down.”

  “And die?”

  “If someone doesn’t rescue us, yes.”

  “Oh. That can happen to a human, too, but we’re talking about water that is literally freezing.” I gestured. “I won’t shut down like that. I’ll get cold, and it can take a long time to warm up again. That would make the rest of our date difficult, as I’d be begging you to take me somewhere I can warm up, like a hot bath.” I paused. “I’ve never thought about this. I think it’s when my core temperature begins to drop. Don’t worry; I’ll warn you when I’m starting to get cold, and once I’m dressed again, as warm as it is up here, I’ll be fine.”

  “In this, we are very different,” she said. “I was worried…”

  “That I would turn unresponsive and not be able to tell you?”

  “Yes.”

  “That won’t happen. Trust me. I’ll be more than able to tell you.”

  “Good. Ready?”

  “Ready.”

  “We’ll enter the water together, then I’ll wrap around you and swim for both of us. Try to relax.”

  “That has to be difficult for you.”

  “If we were going long distances, yes, but we’re not going far. Just a little tour of the cove. I might come back tomorrow to be more thorough. I want my first impressions with you.”

  “I’m glad you’re bringing me.”

  At that, we turned. Holding hands, we walked into the water. When it was deep enough, I inserted the breathing device. She gave me two large lights, making sure the safety straps were around my wrists. And then together we dived under the water. We swam a short distance before it was deep enough she could wrap her arms around me. And then, while it was difficult, I tried to relax.