"You came along at the perfect time." Said your new boss "Our elephant handler has retired to a more...isolated lifestyle, so we are badly in need of a replacement."
"Elephant handler?" You ponder aloud, "Does that mean shoveling their dung all day?"
"In any other circus, probably. However, our first handler trained them well. All our elephants make business in a pit we had dug out, making disposal much simpler. You duties are mainly ensuring they're cleaned up before the show, keeping them fed and keeping them company."
The third prerequisite sounds a little weird. "Keep them company?"
"When you start work, that will make sense. On a related note, I recommend you take this drink." He said, pulling out a bottle of grey liquid. "It should allow you to remain more comfortable with all your duties."
Curious, but eager to find out more, you take the bottle and drink. It has a savoury flavour, and it settles heavily in your stomach.
And so you see the elephants for the first time. You have been in a few elephant houses in zoos in the past, and remember the strong smell, even when the keeper had cleaned them well. However, the smell is greatly reduced, and not nearly as offensive to your nose. "So that's what the drink does."
"Well, it has other effects." Says a deep voice.
Your boss having left you to it, you look for the source of the voice.
"Over here."
But there's nothing there except...the elephant?!
"You can talk?!"
"I can always talk. Humans don't usually have the capability to understand our language, but that drink the circus leader developed lets them understand us."
"Wow, this is pretty cool."
"I usually get that. It also makes our scent more tolerable to your nose, so those unfamiliar with our smell can adapt to it quicker. It's not permanent, however. He'll give you another bottle every day."
"I guess this is how you were trained to use the toilet."
"Well, training's a lot easier when you can talk to each other." The elephant's mouth shifts slightly, and you instinctively know he's smiling.
Your work over the next few weeks is pretty simple: You make sure the elephants are cleaned and dressed before the show. You arrange deliveries of hay and carry it into the cages. You also tend to the first elephant after he twisted one of his ankles and had to rest for a few days. All the while you get to know them well and enjoy listening to their stories. Eager to maintain these friendships, you drink what the circus owner gives you every day. You also find it grows on you, and doesn't settle so heavily in your stomach, like your body is adapting to it.
Of course, this lifestyle will have a price...