Most returned to their morning routine, some whispered and others glared. The figure walked up to the counter. He looked over the goods and selected a muffin. He placed it on the counter and pulled out his wallet. The man behind the register didn't look up as he asked, "Will that be all?"
"Yeah." The figure replied. The two exchanged money and the cashier handed the figure the receipt. The figure found a table to himself in the corner and slowly began to pick parts of the muffin off. He slowly pulled down his hood when no one was watching and nibbled on the pieces.
"You should go." Came a voice from behind him. The figure jumped at the way the voice emphasized the final word. He turned in his chair to see a large man standing behind him. This guy looked like he meant business.
"Please sir." The figure said from beneath his hood, "I'm hungry just wanna eat my something."
"That's too bad." The man said pulling off the figures hood and knocking off his sunglasses.
There were gasps around the bakery. "I knew it!" The man cried as he grabbed the boy by his sweater and lifted him off the ground, "You're a god-damned Gogh!" The man threw the boy towards the door as three uniformed officers walked in.
They all wore silver badges with the letters G.P.S. The one in white picked up the boy and looked at the man with his good eye. "Is there a problem here Mick?" He asked. The man called Mick looked to the shop owner who had seen the whole thing. The shopkeeper cleared his throat to get the officer's attention.
"Yes officer." He said calmly, "This little urchin was refused service and began to attack me. That's when Mick here, came to my rescue."
The officer looked at the boy, "Is that what happened?" The boy presented the officer with the receipt of his purchase. The officer looked at it and then looked back at the shopkeeper.
The shopkeeper panicked, "He stole that!" he lied.
"He stole a receipt?" A officer was not convinced. "Okay." He said as he walked up to the counter. "There are two choices you can make here." he whispered to the man behind the register. "Either be arrested for obstructing justice by lying to the law, or tell me what really happened so I can take Mickey in on charges for a hate crime." Within minutes Mick was thrown in the back of a police car and taken away by the two other officers. The officer that spoke with the shopkeeper decided to go for a walk with the boy. "Sorry I didn't pick you up at the docks." He smirked and put his hand on the boys shoulder as the boy put his hood and shades on again.
"Yeah?" The boy sounded quite upset, "Well mom said you would probably be busy. She said, 'That Toby is the best on the force, he'll probably be serving justice when you get there.'"
"Well your mom does know me pretty well. How is aunt Maggie?"
"She's fine."
"It's good to have you here Rookie." Toby patted the boy. Rook smirked under his hood as his cousin put his arm around him and the two continued off to the station.
When they got there three identical boys in their twenties came out. They were accompanied by a small yellow otter.
Toby smirked and said as he passed the three, "Sparky, Lightning, and Thunder. Who bailed you three out this time?"
"Eat me death breathe." The one with the otter mumbled. The otter chattered angrily at Toby from the shoulder of the leader as they walked off. Rook was stunned by the sight of the creature.
"Was that a lightning otter?" He asked Toby.
"Yeah," Toby replied, "And the troublesome triplets were Goghs." Toby looked at Rook very seriously, "Something you have to understand is that not all Goghs are fine with the G.P.S. taking care of the discrimination here. Those three are an example of Goghs who take matters into their own hands. The Static brothers." Rook looked back at the three before following his cousin into the station. "Welcome to the Gogh Protection Service." Toby said. "Now you're going to have to get a visitor's pass and do me a favor and hang out here while I go takke care of some things." Toby looked around and saw the female officer he was with before. "Erica! Can you get my cousin a visitor's pass while I fill out the papers on mick?"
The girl smiled and her bestial eyes glinted as she looked at Rook. "Sure thing." Toby nodded at Rook and went to a back room as Erica said, "Come with me and we'll get you settled in." Rook followed her to a desk where she sat down and took off her hat. Two fox ears sat on her head. Rook was shocked. She loosened her belt and a long flowing tail popped out.
Erica looked up. She smiled. "It's okay to be who you are here." She put her hand on his and continued. "This is a safe place." Rook smiled and took off his hood and shades. "Well," Erica smiled bigger, "You're almost as cute as your cousin." She giggled. Rook couldn't help but blush.
"Almost as ugly is more like it." Came a voice. The other officer from earlier was standing in the door way.
"Damnit Jericho! Why do you have to be such a jerk?" Erica yelled.
"Cuz." He shrugged. Jericho walked over to the desk and looked at Rook, "So what's your deal kid?"
"What do you mean?" Rook asked.
"Your abilities?" Jericho saw a look of confusion on Rook's face still. "What can you do? Your face doesn't look like the an alligators backside for no reason."
"Oh!" Rook finally understood. He ignored the insult and said, "Well..." He looked down and said quietly, "I don't breathe."
The two officers were taken aback. Erica looked him up and down and finally said, "Come again?"
"What I mean is," Rook thought of the easiest way to explain his gift, "I don't need to breathe. Not air at least. I can survive in toxic areas like by a volcano where there's to much sulfur in the air."
Jericho slowly smirked and took off his hat and goggles. He looked Rook square in the face and asked, "Does it work under water?" Rook nodded. Jericho clapped his hands together and left the office.
Once Erica and Rook were alone again Erica pulled a yellow badge, with the word "visitor" on it, out of her desk.
"So what's your name?" She asked as she found a pen.
"Rookery." He replied.
"Rookery? That's an unusual name."
"Everyone calls me Rook. Like the chess piece."
"That's cool." She walked around her desk after writing his name and clipped it on his jacket as she asked, "How old are you Rook?"
"Thirteen." He replied. "So what exactly do you do here?"
Erica stood up and took Rook by the hand. "Come on." She led him out of her office and down a hallway, "G.P.S. stands for Gogh Protection Service. We protect the people of Gogh Island by holding up the rights and laws against discriminators and other anti-Gogh groups. Sometimes we deal with other, more dangerous, things but that's where your cousin comes in. Not only is he the chief of the G.P.S. but he also leads black op missions." That's when Jericho ran out of Toby's office.
"I was just suggesting," Jericho said with panic in his voice.
