Legendary Creatures Chapter 2

Chapter 2

A man sits in his cubicle doing the same boring job as he's done every day for the last seven years. He looks away from his computer screen at a photo of his wife and two sons and smiles. Looking at that photo always improved his mood enough to finish out the day on a positive note. He looked back at his computer and started finish his final report of the day. He longed to be home with his family to enjoy the little things that always made him smile with every thought of them.

At 5:30, it was finally time to clock out for the day. Just before he stood up to gather his things to go home his boss walked up behind him in his work space. "John, could you possibly come in a half hour early tomorrow? We have some expense reports that desperately need to be done first thing, and you're the only man I can think of that can get them done fast enough."

John slumped his head down. As he lifted it back up he turned to face his boss, James. "Sure, James. Whatever helps out," he smiled.

"Great!" James exclaimed. "We'll see you bright and early tomorrow." He pats John on the shoulder and heads back to his office. John, relieved that he finally left, eagerly grabs his jacket to go home for the day. He can't wait to see the smiling faces of his family when he walks in the door. When he gets into his car he notices a short, heavyset gentleman wearing glasses with very thick lenses staring in his direction. As John looked back towards the man, he started walking away. "Odd," he thought. But put his car in gear and drove home.

It was nearly dusk by the time he pulled into his driveway. A long day, and a long drive home. But he was finally home. He walked up the curving walkway to his front door and inserted his key into the keyhole with a relieving click. As he walked into the doorway, two little bodies slammed into his thighs. "Hey, boys, how was your day?"

The youngest, Zachary, who was four said, "I had a fun day at school today." Zach was in pre-school and loved every minute of it. "I colored a picture for you, daddy." He gave John a picture of a house with four people in front with a shining yellow sun.

"That looks great, Zach. Very colorful. Thank you!" he exclaimed. He took the picture to the fridge and put it up with a magnet. "What about you, Marshall?"

"I had a horrible day. The girl I like likes someone else!" Marshall said. Marshall was ten and getting to that age when he was very interested in girls. "I don't know what to do, dad. I don't know why she doesn't like me."

"Well, Marshall, there's going to be some girls that do like you and some that don't. I'm sorry she doesn't have an interest in you. You're a great boy. Don't let it get you down," John said, trying to sound as reassuring as possible. Marshall just shrugged and walked back to his room. John was a lot like Marshall when he was that age. Always liked the girls that had no interest in him. It wasn't until high school that you found the love of his life, Lorraine, whom he was now happily married to.

"How was your day, honey?" Lorraine asked. She smiled and gave him a peck on his cheek.

"It was ok, I guess. James asked me to come in early tomorrow and I told him I would. I don't know why I can't say no to these people. I'm not getting anywhere taking extra hours and I hate my job. Why do I continue to do this?" John through his hands up in the air with a big sigh. With a defeated look on his face he turned away knowing it would upset her to see him this way. She walked in front of him and kissed him on the lips.

"You do it to provide for your family. And you do it because you know that you're the best at what you do. So don't fret and don't feel so negatively about it. You are the love of my life and I see in you the greatness you don't see in yourself," she said wrapping her arms around his neck, standing on her tiptoes to do so. John was at least a foot taller than she was.

"You're amazing! How do you do that?" he asked.

"What's that?"

"You always know what to say to make me feel better," he smiled.

"It's a gift," she said coyly. "Come on let's have some dinner and enjoy our evening." They walked to the table and sat down and she called for the boys to join them. Lorraine was an excellent cook and dinner was probably one of the best parts of John's day. They ate and John helped her clean the table off and wash dishes. He helped out as much as he could because he knew Lorraine worked her butt off to not only keep a good home and cook, but also worked full time as a sales rep for a huge pharmaceutical company and research center.

After everything was tidied up, they grab a glass of wine and went to sit and watch some of their favorite shows before going to bed. John sat next to Lorraine with his arm around her waist and reveled in the happiness he felt being with his family. After a couple hours it was time for bed. John lay next to Lorraine admiring her beautiful face before he drifted off to sleep.

Achilles awoke with a start. He was very agitated by the dream he had just had and starting lashing about in his cell. What did it mean? Why was he dreaming about a human's life?