I'm Not A Snake Monster!: Chapter 9

Summary: Willow, an enormous snake-like monster with a heart of gold, has never seen anyone like her. She runs away from home in pursuit of the truth.

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UPDATE (2020-10-07): I added a little extra to the end of this chapter to better lead into the next chapter. Please look forward to it! 

CHAPTER 9

As Winston showed Willow the ropes, Tara was left to her own devices back in her study. She tried her best to distract herself. There was still a living, breathing demihuman in her mansion. Tara had so many questions, they were rattling in her brain something fierce. There was so much to do, and all she could do was fuss about her study. 

She was furiously at work on a memo to herself. This was the most excitement she felt in a long time. Years of study leading to hopeless dead ends, once after another. Years of ridicule at the feet of esteemed researchers. A profound lack of decisive evidence, only assertions, suggestions, implications, so many presumably falsified fossils. 

She set about sketching and theorizing Willow's internal anatomy, with books on other reptilian cryptids not far from reach. Willow was an anomaly that, even through the lenses of conspiratorial paranormal research, Tara was at a bit of a loss. And it wasn't like she was going to ask to dissect Willow or anything, it'd be the height of barbarism... and Tara didn't do well about all the blood and guts and junk. 

Tara could hardly sit still, and the way she worked at her desk was largely indicative of busywork. She was distracting herself from the true marvel slithering through her hallways. It wasn't fair, but... at the very least, Tara was happy that Willow was sticking around. There would be great strides in her research, as soon as she decided how to approach it. 

...Tara was in such a state of excitement that she paid little mind to the book that Willow delivered to her. What was the point of looking through a stuff old book when she had the genuine article? The book didn't have anything to say on Willow's species. Perhaps the author overlooked some threads...

"...Ack, I can't take it anymore!" Tara slammed her quill back in the inkwell and shot up from her desk, a determined glint in her eyes. "I'm not going to learn anything from these stuffy old books! I got a special case here! It's time for field study!"

Tara concluded, slamming her fist with determination into her palm, marching out into the foyer. She had to track down Willow. But Tara was a resourceful woman; she reached for the phone on the wall, with intent to call her most reliable servant. 

She waited. And waited. Before long, there was an affirmative click on the other end. 

"...Yes, m'lady?" A familiar droll voice muttered in response.

"Winston you were training Willow, yes? I-I want to... I need to see her!"

"Of course you would. I showed her the ropes as you instructed. She was keen to get to work, so I let her out in the garden. She wanted to take a look at that hole she left in the hedge." Winston explained.

"The hedge?" Tara grimaced. Would someone see Willow? Tara had a moral imperative to investigate! 

"Thank you, Winston, you can... go about your business."

"All well and good. For a second there, I had more than enough time to get all the chores done." Winston replied, somewhat sarcastically, before clicking the receiver.

Tara blinked, before hanging up in response. She hurried to the gardens, gripping the hem of her dress...

...She was in such a hurry she slid and tripped over herself when she tried to make a sharp right, collapsing to her knees.

"Oop-!" She cried, slumping to the ground. Undeterred, she staggered to her feet as she hurried along. A bit more carefully. 

---

The terrace of the Pandey estate was remarkable. Potted plants flanked the tile walkways, their leaves intimately trimmed and pruned. The exotic flowers that drifted gently in the breeze were all cool, gentle shades of cobalt, lavender, fuschia. There was a pristine, orderly quality to the grounds, like everything was just where it needed to be, and everything was placed perfectly. Tara liked coming out here for air. But she had a mission. 

Tara slowed her anxious pace as she breached the great outdoors, quickly spotting Willow next to one of the flower beds. Willow was humming a quiet little melody to herself. Tara's breath caught in her throat, her eyes trailing Willow's enormous tail; remarkably, it stuck to the trails, and the fragile flowers remained standing and uncrushed. 

Several of her hair snakes had swivelled in her direction while Willow had her back turned to Tara. The mousey woman puffed out her chest, and got ready to introduce her presence.

"Tara? Izzat you??"

But before Tara could get a word in, Willow noticed her presence, rearing up and turning to her. Her eyes were wide and curious, and her smile as inviting and disarming as ever. Tara backed up a pace reflectively—it was hard to get over Willow's stature, and how she could essentially leer over Tara at any moment. 

Tara's eyes lowered to Willow's outfit—a maid skirt that billowed gently in the wind. A slight blush rose to Tara's cheeks.

"H... Hello. I see... I see Winston helped you pick out a uniform?" Tara tried to make small talk. She was so ready to talk to Willow, until she wasn't. 

"Ah, yeah! Gotta look the part, right? And it fits great!" Willow giggled, raising her dress in a small curtsy, before she laughed more enthusiastically, swaying from side to side.

Tara didn't laugh along. She stared, transfixed. Willow had a different... air about her in that uniform. A long, awkward silence followed as her jaw went slightly agape. Willow went silent in turn, before rearing up with a sharp gasp!

"...Omigosh, Tara!? Are you okay?? You, you're bleeding!" Willow was on the verge of panic; she'd never seen such a thing!

"...Huh?" Tara robotically raised a hand to her face. She felt a tiny trickle of blood coming from her nose. Her face went pale, hopping in surprise. 

"O-Oh, goodness, that... I..." With a trembling hand, Tara reached into her pocket for a handkerchief, dabbing herself off quickly. The bleeding quickly subsided; she sniffed harshly.

"I-It's fine! It's fine, let's not... dwell on it." Tara forced a grimace, pocketing the slightly bloodied handkerchief. 

"Y'sure?" Willow tilted her head to the side. "It's hard not to worry, you seem kinda... fragile."

Tara grimaced. She remembered fainting during her first two encounters with Willow; the concern was founded. Tara smiled back earnestly.

"I'm quite sure. I... see you're settling into the work nicely." Tara tilted her head, looking over to the patch Willow started on. 

"Oh! Yeah, I'm just weeding the flower beds." Willow nodded. "It's a nice day! And I felt like getting a liiittle more sunshine on my scales before moving indoors~" 

"Ah, yes, the weather is... quite fair today." Tara looked up to the sky above; sunset wasn't far away, and the sky was starting to tinge towards a warm, orange pigment, but there was still plenty of daylight. Tara seemed to be distracted by the pretty view momentarily.

"...Did you need something from me?" Willow cocked her head to the side. "Terry thought you might've been on the war path, so... did I do something wrong?"

"No! No no, you're doing great!" Tara looked around. "I'm just... surprised that you can work so carefully. The flower beds are all in great shape."

"Ah, yeah." Willow nodded. "Well I'm... bigger than most folk, so I figured out how to get around without breaking things. You should see my house, it's tiiiiny compared to this mansion."

Willow commented good-naturedly with a chuckle, flourishing a small shovel. 

"...Though... I saw some other houses in the neighbourhood getting here, and even those were bigger than back home." Willow muttered. 

"Oh my," Tara covered her mouth. Willow looked somewhat despondent talking about this sort of thing. "...I never asked where you came from. You have a home?"

"Mmhm. Grew up in the woods my whole life. We all live together, me and my folks." Willow nodded.

"Oh yes, you mentioned your mother a few times." Tara nodded. 

"Umm... mothers. Plural." Willow smiled. "I have two moms."

"Oh?" Tara tilted her head. She paused to consider it, her eyes drifting to the side. "...Well, there's a societal barrier, so perhaps these cultural distinctions are more commonplace elsewhere..." Tara muttered to herself as if taking mental notes. 

"Eh? Did I say something funny?" Willow frowned slightly.

"N-no, that... I just found that interesting, that's all." Tara waved her hands to reassure Willow. "You're the... the first sort of your species I've seen in person. To think there's a family of your kind out there, in the woods of all places??"

Tara's took a deep breath, trying to rein in her enthusiasm. It was hard not to get excited. She couldn't mask the sight of her eyes lighting up so excitedly. 

"Did you all... come out here together? As a family??" Tara was already getting in a tizzy over the prospect over discovering more of Willow's kind...

...But the way Willow's eyes simply drifted to the side indicated to Tara that something was off. Tara's enthusiasm wavered. 

"Naaah, it's... we got in a fight, before I left." Willow explained, rubbing her shoulder. 

"...A fight?" Tara tilted her head empathetically. 

"O-Oh, you don't gotta worry about it, really!" Willow reassuringly flourished her scaly palms. "Families... get into fights sometimes, i-it's no big deal."

"Oh no, it, it's okay Willow, I... I won't pry into your personal affairs." Tara smiled softly. "You came out here alone, then?"

"Mmhm. You caught me returning a buncha library books, whiiiich... is pretty much what I set out to do! I was gonna head back before they got too worried, but I'm really excited to be working for you!"

Willow's voice rang truthfully, and Tara could tell that her enthusiasm was genuine. Tara found Willow's brand of heartfelt earnesty. In fact...

"...hm... mhmhmhm~" Tara covered her mouth with the back of her palm, chuckling gingerly. She tried to stifle her gentle laughter, but it didn't escape Willow.

"Eh? I wasn't joking." Willow's mouth flattened. "What's so funny?"

"I-it's not funny! It's not, it's just... ehehe, my apologies, Willow." Tara lowered her hands, taking a soft breath to collect herself. "I just never really thought of such a... hands-on vocation to be particularly desirable."

"Oh, it's great! Your grounds are so spaaaaacious, I can really stretch and cut loose!"

As if to demonstrate, Willow reared up several feet in the air, her torso twistingly jubilantly; Tara's eyes widened imperceptibly, her eyes glancing towards the top of the hedges that Willow could now easily peer over. 

"Y-yes, I'm... glad you're settling in well." Tara chuckled nervously. Would someone see Willow?? She was getting increasingly nervous.

Tara's eyes widened. An idea struck her!

"B-but, Willow, um... y-you know, servants of a household of our stature must... must maintain a low profile, yes?" Tara encouraged Willow. "And that entails being.... discreet."

"OH! Discreet! Gotcha!~" Willow relaxed, lowering herself back down to her usual height... which still had the impression of Willow looming over Tara by a foot or so. Her hair snakes seemed to follow suit, bowing their heads respectfully.

"I'm just really excited to be outside of my comfort zone and, and really show what I can do, y'know? Being stuck in the same place all the time is draining and your place is just all kinds of amazing!" Willow beamed. 

"Ah... i-it's nothing special, really..." Tara blushed. "It's mostly where I keep all my books, and... oh."

Tara blinked. A thought crossed her mind. 

"Willow, you... like books, don't you?"

"Eh? 'Course I do! So many cool worlds to explore, so many far away places! When you're cooped up in a shed, you gotta exercise your imagination a lil." Willow wrapped a finger around one of her hair snakes. 

"W-Well... if you're curious, I could... entreaty you with some of my personal selection." Tara grinned bashfully. "There's more than enough reading material and-"

"Omigosh WE COULD START A BOOK CLUB!" Willow's eyes widened.

"B-book club??" Tara blinked.

"Yeah!! And compare our feelings every night! I dunno, I get this smart, scholarly vibe from you, a-and I can sense this... this bubbling passion inside of you, just waitin to pop out!" 

Willow nodded, clasping her hands in front of her.

"It'll be the first step to us being best friends!~" Willow beamed her usual toothy smile. If it wasn't for the tone in her voice and the enthusiastic, playful body language her swaying body had, Tara might've mistaken that grin for murderous intent. But Willow seemed far too genuine; she wore her emotions on her sleeve.

Still, her enthusiasm was rubbing off on Tara. "B... best friends?"

"Yeah! I've never had a best friend! Or a friend really."

One of the hairsnakes hissed indignantly. 

"Family doesn't count, Larry!" Willow cocked her chin up, seemingly to correct her hairsnakes. Tara's hands fidgeted on her own as she witnessed the curious display. 

"W-Well, um... yes. Yes. I think we... we can be friends, um..." Tara was tripping over her words quite fretfully now.

"...Wait, Willow. There's something I think I want to show you. It's... I haven't really had the courage to show it to anyone, but... I feel I can trust you."

Tara looked up. Her timid voice leveled out in volume as she carried on.

"And it... it's illustrative of my, my... scientific curiosity of your kind."

"My kind...?" Willow paused. She scratched the back of her neck. "What's that got to do with anything?"

"A-ah, I... I think it'd be easier to show you. I... I think you'd get a kick out of it." Tara nodded, more enthusiastically. 

"W-Well, I dunno anything about 'my kind', but... sure! Can't hurt." Willow glanced to the garden. "Um... you want me to finish what I'm doing over here, or-"

"Ahhh, leave it, leave it, Winston can tidy everything up later." Tara was visibly getting excited, tuttuting Willow as she gently ushered her away from the garden. "You're going to love this, I promise!"

"Ah, well... gosh, yeah, I'm getting excited and I don't even know what it is, yet!" Willow smiled.

Such was the flexibility of Willow that she could drop everything in pursuit of the next new discovery in her life. Strangely, the meek Tara shared her enthusiasm...

...Though upon further consideration, Tara's excited expression dropped slightly. She tilted her head, looking over Willow pensively. 

"Ah... but how to get there..." Tara muttered to herself. 

"Eh? Where're we going?" Willow cocked her head to the side. 

"W-Well, it's... not on my estate, you could say. It's a few blocks down, but that is, and you are, well... hm..." Tara looked over Willow with a pang of concern. "Willow? How did you get here anyway?"

"I... I slithered!" Willow chirped in response. "I don't have any money to take the tram, soooo..."

"That's not what I meant, I... I wonder how you got here, without anyone seeing you." Tara grimaced. "A w-woman of your size would... it would draw quite a crowd."

"Mm, you think so?" Willow swayed from side to side, looking over herself. "Is that bad? Winston did mention that servants should remain unseen and... OH! Idea! Idea!"

Willow clapped her hands together, bouncing excitedly. Tara tilted her head. 

"Yes? What... what's your idea?" Tara blinked. 

"Watch, watch carefully! If you blink for a second, I might just... disappear!~"

As Willow cheered playfully, her scales shimmered iridescently, their green hues ebbing away into a myriad of colours. It wasn't long until they harmonized, and...

"...ah!?"

Tara gasped, covering her mouth. Willow disappeared! She was gone! How could Tara lose track of someone so huge!? She blinked, rubbing herself in disbelief.

...Her beating heart calmed itself upon a revelation. Willow's maid outfit, her accessories, all continued to billow in the gentle breeze, swaying back and forth. Tara took a moment to process what had just happened. 

"...Is... is that camouflage?" Tara gasped, wonder in her voice. "Y-you can change your patterns at will!?"

"Mmhm! Like a chameleon!~" Willow cheered, her voice as steady and pleasant as ever. "Sometimes I accessorize my look, a bit, but-"

"This is PERFECT!" Tara clapped her hands, eyes alight as endless possibilities occurred to her. "I can take you around town with no one any the wiser! I just need to..." 

Tara eyeballed the maid outfit billowing, hovering a good ten feet in the air on its own. And all of the accessories to go with it. Tara had one idea occur to her. If Willow were to remove the garment, she would be completely imperceptible... but then...

...Her cheeks went scarlet red at the very thought of it. A squeaky sound creaked out from her throat.

"Did you thinka something, Tara??" An unseeable Willow leaned closer... the maid uniform shifted in turn as well, a little closer to the ground.

"No. Absolutely not. O-out of the question." Tara whispered to herself. She reflexively reached for a fan to cool herself off, her eyes rising to the outfit again. The hem was within reach now.

Tara had another idea. A more sound idea. One that wouldn't render her cheeks scarlet at the very thought of it. 

"I actually have... one idea. C-Can you bring your body down just... just a little bit lower?"

"Mm? Sure, okay."

Tara watched as the maid uniform descended closer to the ground. Tara could now grab it by the shoulder, and then by the back of the neck; her hand cautiously hovered around, tensing as she felt hard scales. Writhing tendrils. Her mouth flattened as an unseen snake coiled around her wrist. 

"Don't worry about Terry! He's just a little flirt!~" Willow commented aloud. Tara returned a beleaguered smile. At least she assumed Willow was smiling; she often did.

Tara relaxed her hand around the neck of the dress. The dress moved strangely with Willow's breathing, but it almost looked like Tara was carrying the dress.

"...I think this'll work. C-can you remove your headpiece for me? And your other accessories?" 

Tara had a plan worked out about how to take Willow across town. Now all that was left was execution. 

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