Eileen Off-Duty!

[grimoireofkenji]

The sun sank low behind the skyscrapers as Bay City’s nightlife slowly took over, street-by-street. Lights in brownstone windows and high-rise glass apartments flicked on in unison, illuminating the dark sky and forming uncanny patterns from afar, like glowing runes on a monolithic structure. Businesspeople, uncaring of those around them, strolled down the streets, suitcases by their sides, and suit jackets draped over shoulders to take in the pleasant spring evening breeze.

From the streets, a strained motor could be heard, zooming by the crowds of people filling the sidewalks. The sound quieted down as the beaten police scooter came to a stop at the top of a steep hill. From here, the petite Monoeye in the bike helmet could see straight to the bay and far out to the sea. She kept her eyes locked on the horizon as the sun sank behind the ocean. Slowly, her wings unfurled from their normal resting position on her back and stretched out. As small as they were, she was practically flightless. That didn’t stop her from imagining she was flying out on the bay. 

“Hey! Outta the way, Policegirl!” Came a sharp voice from behind Eileen. She jumped suddenly, her wings snapping closed in embarrassment. She turned around, red-faced. Behind her were several rush-hour drivers. The light had turned green a minute ago, and was turning yellow again. 

“S-sorry! I’m so sorry!” She called out. turning back from the angry line of drivers. She pushed the visor down on her helmet as her cheeks heated up enough to steam glass. A few passers-by on the sidewalk had stopped to inspect the commotion. When at first, Eileen was content to deal with one more cycle of the lights in her shame, the amount of people staring had simply become unbearable. She turned on her scooter’s siren and zoomed out into the intersection, the aged engine straining for a moment, then quieting down as she shot down the hill, her lights strobing. As she passed through a business district, the neon lights of businesses open all night mixed into bright blurs. Normally, going this fast on a scooter would trouble a human, But Eileen’s eye was tightened in focus, picking up everything in its range of vision. Her wings instinctively spread open again. They weren’t as long or large as her mother’s, but whenever the wind hit the Monoeye’s body in the right way, they opened to pick up wind currents like hers. She hit her brakes, finally losing speed as she approached the end of the long concourse. She had shut her sirens off, not wanting to attract any attention at the light. She had told herself not to abuse her authority at all, and trying to escape rush-hour drivers definitely counted against that.

“Just a block or two away, Eileen. Don’t worry about it!” She said to herself, as traffic ahead of her moved. She took it slowly for the next block, which was brightly illuminated with busy passers-by and expensive banners with LEDs that hung across the adjacent streetlights like luminescent ivy. The preparations for the Bay City festival were well underway, and it made 4th Avenue look like a nighttime parade from a distance. Eileen couldn’t even see the moon when she looked straight up. Funnily enough, a number of Lycanthrope citizens of Bay City had actually complained to the Police and Zoning departments about the light show that went on every night. She recalled that Mr. Neuenmeller, a rather belligerent immigrant Werewolf, had tried to convince her that his “Howling-Week” was coming up, and living a block off of 14th Avenue, it was nearly impossible to tell when he was staring at the moon or down the block. He probably wouldn’t have even known what to say to the German man if her superior, Gretchen, hadn’t stomped in and scared him half to death, since he already wasn’t making sense.

Shaking those thoughts free along with her matted hair, she removed her scooter helmet. She flapped her wings a few times, weakly, pollen and other particles that clung to her flying off gently. She eagerly approached her destination after turning on her scooter. Through a small walkway and into a large, square alley. She spotted it. A small, traditional ramen stand, with paper lanterns adorning the outside. Her eye widened as she walked toward it, briskly, her mouth practically watering. 

“Chef! I’m here!” She piped up, not even needing to duck to get under the banner. She sat on a stool, her tiny frame barely taking up the entirety of it. The chef, an older monoeye woman, blue hair tied in a ponytail, appeared in front of Eileen in a heartbeat, her small hat leaning against her large horns. The steam rising from the boiling noodles and the smell of the broth distracted the police girl, who had actually begun drooling, and she didn’t notice her aunt, whom she called Chef, was standing directly in front of her.

“A-Ah!” Eileen exclaimed. She fixed her hair, and looked attentively at her aunt.

“Eileen? Spicy pork and soba, right?”

“Yeah! The usual, please.” Eileen pulled out her cellphone, looking down at it. “12 new text messages…” She muttered.

“Are they all from Ramona?” Her aunt called out, grabbing a bowl.

“Looks like it. They’re all asking me to stop here and get her some food.”

“Tell that brat I don’t do delivery!”

“Aunti-”

“But since you’re the one doing the delivering, let her know she’s got a tab open.” She smiled, flashing her sharp teeth at Eileen. Eileen smiled back nervously. She didn’t inherit those from her mother. “I’ll give you some to bring to her when you’re all done here.”

“Thanks a bunch!” Eileen squeaked, her voice cracking. She looked away in embarrassment.

“Don’t sweat it, Eileen. You’re just a late bloomer.” Chef replied, noticing her discomfort. An orc man sat next to Eileen, flashing her a friendly smile, his tusks protruding as he stared straight at the menu behind Chef.

“Ah, are you the flightless one from the winged monoeyes?” The Orc asked curiously, looking down at Eileen. The policegirl felt like curling into a ball. “Chef has told me lots about you, It’s a pleasure to meet y-”

“HEY! Hector, watch what you say to my niece! What if I called you “The Orc who got his tribal markings laser-removed!?”, huh? Chef piped up. The orc’s green face suddenly turned a little redder, and he adjusted his tie. He was almost double Eileen’s height, and he even had to hunch while he was sitting. “Yeah, that was probably a little insensitive of me… Sorry, Little One.” His huge hand encompassed all of Eileen’s head as he attempted to give her a comforting pat on the head. It was all the jumpy cop could do not to puff up her cheeks and threaten to arrest him for a parking ticket or something impulsive. She knew she’d regret it if she did, though.

“Ahaha, It’s okay, Mr. Hector. Don’t worry!” Eileen replied instead, flashing him the grin that had won her “Brightest Smile” at the precinct this year. The Orc blushed a little.

Eileen looked around the stand. She decided to bail quickly.

“Actually, Auntie, can I just have both orders to go?”

“Yeah, sure, sweetpea! Just gimme a moment.”

After grabbing her orders, she headed off, waving goodbye to Chef, and listening to the sounds of her scolding Hector in her motherly voice.

“Bastard! You scare off my niece again, I’ll be serving Spicy ORC Soba!”

“Y-yes, Chef. Won’t happen again…” Hector stuttered out a response, nervously

Her aunt wasn’t very imposing, barely standing at 5’3, but her aura was something else. She had heard from her mother that she used to be a cop as well. She carried herself like one, for sure. 

“Hey, Eileen?” Her aunt called to her as she exited the alleyway. She turned quickly.

“Yes?”

“Be careful out there, okay?

“Of course!” Eileen replied, hurrying away, careful not to drop the containers of food. 

She was actually in high spirits, despite being horribly humiliated by a man double her size. She went to start her scooter. 

It didn’t turn over. A few people stared at her as her scooter attempted weakly to start, letting out a death cough. Nothing doing.

Eileen was in high spirits.

Half an hour later, Eileen was also on a train car, trying not to make her day worse by falling asleep on the guy next to her, a rather annoyed looking human. The skyline zoomed on by as Eileen used her normal technique to make sure she didn't nod off like a tired salarywoman.

As usual, it didn’t work. Within fifteen minutes, the monoeye was leaning on the man’s shoulder, a dumb smile on her face. “Soba…” she muttered in her dreams. She had begun to drool, but her grip on the food containers remained as solid as steel.