{"sf1_id":1373783,"sf2_id":"214BAMmo","title":"Workplace Harrassment","author":"ArrowQuivershaft","words":1741,"posted_at":"2018-10-06T21:43:00.000Z","tags":["Gryphon","Transformation","superhero"],"url":"https://fse.anthro.fr/stories/1373783-workplace-harrassment","original_url":"https://sofurry.com/s/214BAMmo","image_url":"https://cdn.sofurryfiles.com/submissions/thumbnails/1f/23/1f231dc5-dc9e-4391-91d4-ba90196d9830","description":"David has some issues with how Kristine treats him at work...\nA long overdue Christmas exchange story for an extremely patient person.","content":"\u0026nbsp;David knocked on the door, rapping sharply on it and pulling in his breath  \nas he stood there.\u0026nbsp; After a few moments, the door was answered by an  \noccupant; Kristine stood there, hair down to her shoulders.  \n  \n\"David?\u0026nbsp; What are you doing here?\"\u0026nbsp; She said, tone indicating clear  \nsurprise.\u0026nbsp; \"We can't be seen together!\"  \n  \n\"That's what this is about, Kristine.\u0026nbsp; May I come in?\" He started in  \nwithout waiting for an answer, which got more surprise from her, but she  \ndidn't stop him.  \n  \nWalking into the main room, David eyed the police scanner sitting on the  \ncoffee table, on but at low volume.\u0026nbsp; He briefly considered kicking it to  \nthe floor, but decided against it. Heading over to the couch, he looked at  \nKristine, who was shocked at his audacity.\u0026nbsp; \"May I sit?\" he asked, pointing.  \n  \n\"...go ahead.\" she said, after a moment.\u0026nbsp; She didn't seem to expect this  \nbehavior from him.\u0026nbsp; She walked over to her own easy chair and sat down.  \n\u0026nbsp;\"What brings you over, David?\" she asked, trying to be pleasant.  \n  \n\"Kristine, you know what brings me over.\"  \n  \n\"No, I don't.\"  \n  \n\n\u0026nbsp;\"OK, well, you SHOULD.\"  \n  \n\"...\"\u0026nbsp; Kristine thought for a moment.\u0026nbsp; \"I really don't, David. Or should I  \ncall you, Swiftstrike?\" she said, glancing at him.  \n  \nDavid winced as she played that card.\u0026nbsp; He knew she would, but not this  \nearly...he continued.\u0026nbsp; \"Cut the crap, Kristine. You need to stop wasting my  \ntime.\"  \n  \n\"Swiftstrike, I have no idea what you're talking about.\"  \n  \nDavid sighed, facepalming for a moment.\u0026nbsp; After looking back up, he gave her  \na level gaze.\u0026nbsp; \"Really, Kristine? You don't know how you could possibly be  \nwasting my time?\u0026nbsp; How about interrupting me at school? Or at work? Or other  \ntimes when I'm doing things or have plans?\"  \n  \n\"Swiftstrike, when you joined me...you knew there were going to sacrifices  \nand inconveniences.\"  \n  \n\"That's not what I'm talking about.\u0026nbsp; I understood that, but  \nlately...lately, I think you've gotten overzealous in your quest.\"  \n  \n\"How DARE you, David!\" she yelled.\u0026nbsp; \"I suppose you'd rather people get  \nhurt!\"  \n  \n\"THat's not what I said, Kristine!\u0026nbsp; Calm down!\"  \n  \nShe relaxed after a moment, then stared at him.\u0026nbsp; \"What do you mean, then?\"  \n  \n\n\u0026nbsp;\"Well, two days ago, you called me while I was on the phone.\u0026nbsp; With my  \nmother. My SICK mother.\" he emphasized. \"And four days before that, I was  \ntaking an exam at school.\u0026nbsp; And a week ago, it was when I was about to go  \nout on a date. She dumped me, because that's the fifth time I've stood her  \nup.\"  \n  \n\"David, there were CRIMES happening.\u0026nbsp; It's my job, and yours, to stop them!\"  \n  \n\"Crimes are relative, Kristine.\u0026nbsp; Really. I think you're abusing your  \nprivileges.\"  \n  \n\"I swore to stop crime, David.\u0026nbsp; You agreed to help.\"  \n  \n\"Yeah, that...look, I don't mind getting inconvenienced by stopping a  \nmurder, or a mugging, or a bank robbery.\u0026nbsp; Hell, even a gas station knock  \nover. But lately...Kristine, that hasn't been it.\"  \n  \n\"David...\"  \n  \n\"Seriously, do Swiftstrike and the Gryphon Countess have to show up at  \nevery crime?\"  \n  \n\"YES!\"  \n  \n\"No.\u0026nbsp; They don't.\u0026nbsp; Look...you know why I mentioned those incidents,  \nKristine?\u0026nbsp; Those aren't the only times I've been inconvenienced, but they  \nwere some of the worst.\"  \n  \n\"What do you mean?\"  \n  \n\"Well, the phone call, you called me out to rescue a cat.\u0026nbsp; From a tree.\"  \n  \n\n\u0026nbsp;\"...it was stuck.\"  \n  \n\"Yeah, but you don't need to be a superheroine to free a cat from a tree!  \nAnd you definitely don't need your sidekick!\"  \n  \nKristine brushed her hair back, looking nervous.\u0026nbsp; \"And the others?\"  \n  \n\"When I was taking an exam, that was was an old lady.\u0026nbsp; You summoned me to  \nhelp her cross the street.\"  \n  \n\"It's a public service!\u0026nbsp; And a week ago, there was a theft in progress we  \nstopped!\"  \n  \n\"VENDING MACHINE FRAUD IS NOT THEFT!\" David exploded.\u0026nbsp; \"You're summoning me  \nwhen I'm not needed and you KNOW IT.\u0026nbsp; And frankly, I'm getting utterly sick  \nof it. I can't live a normal life like this, and there's no benefit for me  \nin being your assistance if you're going to abuse the power like that.\"  \n  \n\"You should've thought of that before you joined!\u0026nbsp; I can't work without a  \nsidekick, and you volunteered!\u0026nbsp; It doesn't work that way, you can't just  \nquit on me!  \n  \n\"What, that you were going to totally abuse my trust I placed in you, for  \nyour own glory?\u0026nbsp; I should've thought of that? Goddammit, Kristine! This was  \nsupposed to be a meeting of equals, not a boss/servant relationship!\"  \n  \n\n\u0026nbsp;Kristine frowned a bit.\u0026nbsp; \"It's not my fault that you didn't consider how  \nhard it is to do this.\u0026nbsp; Still...maaaaaaaaaaybe you have a point...I'll have  \nto...\"  \n  \nSuddenly, the police scanner kicked in, interrupting Kristine.  \n  \n\"Robbery in progress...suspect armed and dangerous...corner of fifteenth  \nand Pine, at the gas station.\u0026nbsp; All units. Civilians, do not attempt to  \nintervene...\"  \n  \n\"YES!\" Kristine shouted.\u0026nbsp; \"ANOTHER CRIME!\" She jumped up excitedly.\u0026nbsp; \"COME  \nON, SWIFTSTRIKE!\"  \n  \n\"Oh, no!\u0026nbsp; Not this time!\" David said, but he was already feeling the  \nvertigo wash over him.\u0026nbsp; He staggered backwards, trying to stay on his feet.  \nHe was not very successful, falling over onto all fours in short order.  \nHis hands metamorphosed into large aquiline talons, a beak grew out of his  \nface, his legs turned into paws and hindlegs...he tried to protest, but his  \nspeech came out as irritated squawks.  \n  \nHe looked back over himself in irritation, and indeed, just like every  \nother time Kristine did this to him, he was a large, quadrupedal gryphon.  \nLarge enough to serve as a steed for a human, a role Kristine would soon be  \nfilling, as soon as she finished getting changed. He turned back to look at  \nher, and didn't see her.\u0026nbsp; But he felt her, as she jumped onto his back,  \nlanding right behind his wings and grabbing onto his fur. \"Let's go,  \nSwiftstrike!\" she said, urging him forward. David moaned internally, but  \nobeyed, starting for the door and pushing out, making sure to close it  \nbehind him, hearing the lock click shut.  \n  \n\n\u0026nbsp;As they moved out into the streets, he flapped his wings, taking off from  \nground level up to the sky.\u0026nbsp; He looked down, laser vision focusing in as he  \ntried to see the street signs. He knew where it was from the ground, but  \nthings were a bit different up here.\u0026nbsp; But it didn't take too long for him  \nto get his bearings and tack over towards the gas station, coming down fast  \ntowards the roof in a dive. He flared his wings as he came down, braking to  \na stop, and landing on the roof with a thump, clearly announcing their  \narrival to whatever robbers were inside.  \n  \n  \nKristine jumped off his back, landing easily on the roof and materializing  \na large spear in her hand as she walked towards the edge of the roof.\u0026nbsp; She  \njumped down and across to the gas station's overhang above the pumps,  \ntrying to get a view of the inside. David moved around the back, looking  \nfor an entrance as he hopped down to the ground, and found a service door.  \nHe figured it'd be audible, so he braced, and then smashed through it into  \nthe station's back end, making a lot of racket.  \n  \n\n\u0026nbsp;The noise distracted the robbers, and Kristine jumped down towards the  \nfront bay window, and jumped through that as well, shattering the glass  \ninto a thousand pieces.\u0026nbsp; A gunshot went off, but there was no scream, so  \nDavid moved around into the main area for a pincer with Kristine. THere  \nwere two of them, but only one gun between them, so David charged at that  \none first.\u0026nbsp; Another gunshot, but it was wide. David slammed into the robber  \nand bowled him over, and the gun went flying away, skittering under a  \ncabinet. He grabbed the man with a foretalon and held him down, slamming  \nhim against the ground once to make sure it was clear he meant  \nbusiness...and demonstrate how strong he was.  \n  \nMeanwhile Kristine closed on the other thief, trying to hold him up at  \nspeartip.\u0026nbsp; \"You won't get me, Valkyrie\" he sneered, and with a sudden  \nmovement, brought around a stungun and hit Kristine's metal spearhaft with  \nit.\u0026nbsp; The pulse traveled up, and made her lose her grip on the entire spear,  \nas it clattered to the floor. Suddenly, the man was on top of her, jumping  \nin and taking full advantage of the stungun.  \n  \n\n\u0026nbsp;Kristine screamed incoherently for help, and David heard.\u0026nbsp; Conflicted for a  \nmoment...but he knew he had to. He slammed his crook down against the  \nground one more time, hoping that he'd knocked him out, or failing that,  \nthat he understood he would be less than pleased if he tried anything.  \nDavid pounced off him and over the counter, landing on top of the pile of  \nKristine, the thug, and himself. WIth 14 limbs and over 700 pounds of  \ncreature between the three of them, the stungun skittered off. Kristine  \npanted, trying to catch her breath, and moaning in pain at an injury.  \nDavid grabbed the thug and slammed his head against the counter, and then  \nhe collapsed.  \n  \nAnd it was over. The robbery foiled, two thugs soon to be in custody, and  \nSwiftstrike had done it all.\u0026nbsp; Kristine shakily stood up, and David looked  \nover.  \n  \n\"Ohgod...I think I broke something...come on, Swiftstrike, the public can't  \nsee me like this.\"  \n  \nLeave?\u0026nbsp; Now? They could get away, and regardless, he EARNED this.\u0026nbsp; He shook  \nhis head. Kristine opened her mouth to argue, but the sound of approaching  \nsirens indicated there wasn't time for it.\u0026nbsp; She grabbed her spear, ran out  \nthe front door and started limping to the ambulance arriving.  \n  \n\n\u0026nbsp;David meanwhile grabbed the two crooks and pulled them together into one  \nspot, holding them down with a talon each for when the cops arrived.\u0026nbsp; He  \ndidn't have to wait long.  \n  \n\"Swiftstrike!\u0026nbsp; Did you do this?\"  \n  \nDavid nodded, looking proud, something that gryphons are very good at.  \n  \n\"You really saved the day, Swiftstrike.\u0026nbsp; Maybe you should go into this  \nbusiness solo!\"  \n  \nDavid laughed inwardly at that.\u0026nbsp; But maybe someday...  \n  \n\\*\\*\\*  \n  \nThe next day, the papers blared, \"Valkyrie injured in battle; Swiftstrike a  \nhero!\", as David smugly sipped coffee in the morning.\u0026nbsp; He hadn't heard from  \nKristine yet today...and he wasn't sure he was going to. It would be a  \nwelcome relief at least. Then again...he'd got to spend the rest of the day  \ntaking photos, and playing with children who ADORED him, overwatched by  \nnervous parents.\u0026nbsp; Maybe it wasn't ALL bad, being the underestimated  \nsidekick...  \n  \n\n"}