Reach Out and Touch Faith (The Cassandra Project)
There was lots of hugging going on when Joshua came back to the suite.
“I'm leaving,” Nike said to him with tears in her eyes. “I had a lot of fun. Please take care of Cassandra.”
He hugged her tight. “I'll miss you.”
She smiled. “You'll see me again.” She kissed his cheek and went to stand beside Athena.
“'Back to the beginning'?” Athena was saying half to herself. “Cassie, are you sure that's what the oracle said?”
“Yeah. Joshua has it on tape.” Cassie shook her head. “I've made it a point to record soothsayers. Mostly because they can never remember what they said.”
Athena hugged Cassie once more. “Take care, sister.”
“You also.” Cassie squeezed her tight. “And don't let that little hellraiser you call your companion cause trouble.”
“HEY!” Nike laughed.
Athena took Nike's hand. “A pleasure, truly.” They left the suite without looking back.
Cassie sighed. “They are in so much trouble.”
“Why?” Joshua laid on the couch and covered his eyes with a throw pillow.
“For helping me.” She walked to the French doors and stared unseeing out at the street. “Athena thinks we should go to Greece. After all, that's the beginning.”
“But the temples and all the buildings have become parts of tours, the ones that aren't just bits of buildings and temples.” He sat up, eyes wide. “Why didn't I think of this before?”
Cassie didn't move, continued to stare. “Hm?”
“The museum is having some big Greek-Roman-Troy thingy. Lots of frescos and pictures and artifacts. That's more in line with your time rather than the current Greece.” He paused, thinking fast. “I think there's a preview party next weekend. You have to donate so much money to the museum but it's free drinks and you get to see the exhibit before the masses can put their sticky hands on the cases.”
“It's worth a look.” Cassie said slowly. “Right now, I'm hungry. You?”
“Always.” He threw the pillow and sat up. “Any place you have in mind?”
“Of course. And we really should hurry.”
The morning was bright, cheery which was a stark contrast to the debris left behind by the revelers. Teams of garbage men bagged trash and sprayed the sidewalks off with high-pressure hoses. A few stragglers, still hooting and drinking from plastic cups, weaved down the neutral ground holding onto each other for dear life.
The Red Streetcar was a diner that looked exactly like the streetcars rumbling past on St. Charles. Inside was cozy, a counter ran from one end to the other and a few cramped booths seemed an afterthought against the front windows. Cassie was greeted with more enthusiasm than Joshua suspected other guests get, coffee waiting for her at the counter.
They settled into seats and the waitress, practically glowing, bounced up to serve them. “Good morning, Miss Cassie! What can I get for you today?”
She pointed at the menu and frowned. “Could you look at this?”
The waitress frowned and bent down to look.
Cassie grabbed her hand and whispered roughly, “Tonight, don't take out the trash. Park your car in the front of the building and go straight home. Do as I say, I will not send flowers.” She let go and smiled. “Does that say blueberry or boysenberry?”
“B-blueberry, ma'am...” The waitress seemed a bit shaken. “Do you need a minute or are you ready?”
“Um, I'm ready.” She looked at Joshua. “You?”
“Yeah, pancakes.” He tried not to gape at Cassie.
“Then I'll have strawberry waffles.”
The waitress scribbled briefly then moved as fast as was polite to the back.
“What was that?!” Joshua hissed.
“What was what?” Cassie asked, hands busy fixing her coffee.
“You know!” He growled.
She blinked. “I don't. Truly.”
He let his head fall on his arms. “You told our waitress not to take out the trash, to park in the front. Said you weren't sending flowers.”
“Sounds ominous.” Cassie took a sipped, made a face and added more cream. “Anyway, you were saying about the museum?”
He sighed. “Change the subject. Okay. For a donation, we can go. Formal event, though. You'd actually have to wash your hair.”
She smiled as the waitress set down their plates. “Make it happen. Did you enjoy yourself last night?”
“The party was a blast, what I remember of it.” He poured syrup on his pancakes. “Maggie's someone I won't soon forget.”
Her smile faded. “You should be careful. She's not human, remember that. They have their own set of rules when it comes to interacting with humans. She breaks one for you, it could cost her dearly.” Cassie attacked her waffles.
“All of you keep talking about rules,” he said around his mouthful. “What are they?”
She swallowed before answering. “If we told you, they wouldn't make sense. Also, it's more of a feeling than actual words written or spoken.”
“Thank you, Our Lady of Obscure.”
“It's true.” She pointed a forkful of strawberry at him. “It's more of a gut feeling that says 'Uh, NO.' Humans have it but they tend to ignore it. Very few listen.” She stuck her fork in her mouth.
“Discussion called on account of my pancakes getting colder by the minute.”
“Now who's changing the subject?” she mumbled around her bite.
“I was serious.” Joshua glared at her. “I'm going to eat my breakfast without having a discussion about guts, feeling and you avoiding a direct question. Bad for the digestion.”
“Wah-ef-fer,” she muttered and giggled until she nearly choked.