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Subject: {ASSM} Starshadow and Friends 2/2 (All Finished and Unfinished, some zoo/best, mostly furry, caution) TBD
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Date: Fri, 06 Apr 2012 12:10:05 -0400
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Starshadow & Friends 2/2
----

For about twelve years, all I've had in the hopper was the title, and
I knew I wanted to describe how the second wolf pack was created.

Sometimes, simplicity takes awhile.

This is the lead for two more works that I'm working on, that involve
this new pack and their humans.
===

The Founding: People of The Knife
Thadeus, Lisa and the Pack
---

Thad settled, then Lisa settled on his right side, while Ridgeback and
Saddle sat on Thad's left. Together, the four of them watched a group
of eleven wolves and their humans find places on the grass, before
they sat or lay so they could focus on the wolves next to Thad.

Ridgeback dipped his head slightly, then turned to Thad. "As
Starshadow speaks for all wolves, we wish for you to speak for the
wolves you see before you."

"I need a reason, Ridgeback."

"We wish to form a new pack, one made of the wolves you have taught.
The main pack has grown, and is too large."

"Your ears speak when your voice does not, Ridgeback. You are unsure
of something."

"Yes. You and your mate are responsible for the security of all of us.
We desire that we be allowed to join you in that responsibility."

"You already help, so I don't see any problems related to that, here."

Ridgeback sneezed his disgust with something. "Anticipated. We have
all taken the classes police dogs and their humans must take, and
passed them. We are allowed to be seen in public, as long as there is
a human with us. These humans have agreed to those terms. They know
who will be in charge."

Thad thought about it for a few minutes, used his eyes to consult with
Lisa, and after she nodded, he faced Ridgeback. "Lisa and I will speak
for you, when you need us to. I accept your help, and will work you
into the duty roster."

"Thank you, Thadeus."

"You're welcome. Do you have a name for this new pack?"

"We do. After much discussion, one was discovered that is suitable,
and honors our heritage."

"May I hear it, so I may enter it in the official records?"

"We are 'The People of The Knife'."
---

End 'The Founding: People of The Knife'
====

Author's note:  'The People of The Knife' is a reference to the
'surgical knife' and other techniques used to give the wolves speech. 
Sorry, folks.  Nothing sinister about it, just an author's way of
hinting at the personalities of the wolves.
======

Job: Security
The People of The Knife
---

I smiled at the 'bear' and he grinned back.  "So, Thad.  What's it
like to live with someone who loves you for yourself?"

I didn't wait for an answer but kept on with my exercises.  When I
nodded in her direction, Althea joined me and we wove an intricate
dance while we practiced our martial arts skills.

Thad, instead of answering right away, joined his pack and they
created their own harmonies while they honed their skills.  After they
finished, he settled to watch Althea and me while we continued with
our practice.  "It's wonderful." 

He hugged the female cat who joined him.  "I still feel like I don't
deserve Lisa, but she's working on that problem."

She looked at him and grinned.  "And there will be another lesson as
soon as Star and Althea quit and leave some of the clearing for us."
She glanced at the resting wolves.  "Everyone satisfied?  Any
problems?"

"Problems we will have, and soon.  The ones who monitor Kalelupus and
Koretina reek of betrayal."  

Ridgeback's words created a silence so intense I could *feel* the
anger of the wolves.  I settled myself and studied him.  He twitched
an ear in Thad's direction to remind me that I was only an interested
observer--so I turned to watch Thad and Lisa.  Thad had an intense
look that I recognized.  Well, it made sense he'd be especially
sensitive to the results of being betrayed by someone you trust.  I
glanced at Althea and she nodded slightly.  I gestured...  "Ridgeback
and Saddle are the Alpha pair of the 'People', Thad.  You and Lisa
handle the security for all of the transforms."  I smiled wryly.
"Silky, Althea and I are administrators and therapists.  We don't have
the skills needed.  Guess who gets to deal with this situation?"

He relaxed and looked at Lisa.  When she nodded he sighed and turned
to Ridgeback.  "Are your people ready?"

"We are."

Thad had a grin on his face when he turned and looked directly at me.
"Star?  When Kale and Kore moved away from the institute, we
anticipated various ways their security could be bypassed.  This
situation was one of the obvious ones.  We'd hoped for something more
subtle, from outsiders."  

His shoulders slumped and Lisa moved to hug him before she spoke
sadly.  "Kale and Kore anticipated that they would eventually have to
go public about many aspects of their private lives.  Specifically,
they knew that someday they would have to tell the world about their
sex lives.  I hope they're ready."  

She glanced around at each of the people in the clearing.  "We humans
should probably cover our ears..." 

When she looked at me I shrugged.  "I've heard wolves howl before."

She smiled.  "Not like this, I imagine."

She let go of Thad and covered her ears.  

When I realized everyone else had covered theirs, I glanced at Althea
and she nodded slightly in a private signal.  I covered my ears.

What happened next made me glad I had.  Ridgeback settled on his
haunches and started making the call to gather that included all of
the modified wolves and their partners.  Just when I thought he'd
finished, he stood up and turned up the volume.  Saddle joined him and
then the other pack members joined in.   One by one the absent members
arrived and melded their voices with the others to create harmonies
I'd never heard before.  The song went on for almost an hour and then
without warning, it ended.  I was watching Thad and when he removed
his hands from his ears I lowered mine too.

"What was *that*?  I've never heard a wolfsong that rich."

He laughed.  "That was a full security briefing.  They've never done
it in public before.  Impressive, wasn't it?"

"A *full* briefing?  How?  What I heard didn't sound that complex."

He grinned at me.  "That's because you listened to the wolfsong. We've
been working on a battle language that uses the harmonies created by
multiple singers.  The actual message is carried in the chording and
also depends on who is singing which tone.  Complicated, but we like
it that way.  We figure it will be almost impossible for anyone to
interpret it soon enough to react effectively during emergencies."

I finally shook my head and grinned.  "Well, as director of the
transform program, it looks like I'm going to have to bend ears and
set some new goals."

"Oh?"

"Yes.  Mostly, we need to start looking for better ways to measure
lupine intelligence.  It's a lot more...  Diverse, than we suspected.
Don't worry about it, unless you and Lisa want to get in the middle of
helping figure out what should be looked for."

"We'd better stay on the sidelines.  From a pragmatic point, we'd like
it more, if you held off on those studies.  Right now, we all enjoy
being underestimated.  It makes our jobs a lot easier."

"You'd be happier, if I seal the records and let the research teams
get there on their own?"

"Definitely.  At the least, I'd like time to talk it over with the
pack, after we deal with Kale and Kore."

"Done. Can we know the basic plan, so we don't get surprised?"

"Pretty simple, for now.  We'll call them in for a routine debrief.
Sam and Catherine will know what's going on, so they can hand the
monitors off to us at some point.  Unless someone gets suspicious,
we'll use the entry vestibule to isolate them.  After that, I'll be a
hardcase, so they're more receptive to what Kale and Kore came up
with."

"Kore's got a twisted sense of humor, so it must be good, since Lisa
just jammed her fist in her mouth, and you and about half the pack are
grinning."

"Yeah.  We thought they were crazy, but...  It's a good way to turn
the tables."

"That isn't telling me what it is."

"Going to give them a choice.  Full prosecution, or some time in the
Fish Tank, at Mom's, as live performers with Kale and Kore, before
they get tossed out on the streets to go job hunting, *after* they've
been blacklisted."

"You going to give them a security element, or make them sign non
disclosure agreements?"

"No, and no.  Just the usual severance agreement."

Something tried to surface and I must have frowned or tensed, because
suddenly everyone was watching me intently.

Ridgeback broke the silence.  "You are...  Concerned, for some
reason."

"I am.  There's something I heard recently, but I can't remember what
it was."

"From the streets, or in the news?"

"Streets, Ridgeback.  That much I'm sure of."

Althea sneezed.  "Danger from anyone, but especially those who lurk in
the shadows."

"Shadows!  That's it.  Someone is playing with rumors, and hinting
that the people need to take things into their own hands.  Always been
there, but recently it's become more open.  Definitely started
sometime after Kale and Kore moved out and found regular jobs.  You
folks able to do anything with that?"

Ridge sneezed his disgust.  "Scouts, to range around the den, until
Kore and Kale are somewhere safe.  Anticipated."

His head moved slightly as he pointed his nose at four wolves.  "Go.
Watch, unless there is need to protect."

They left at a run.

We watched them until they were out of sight, then it was Lisa's turn
to frown.  She reached and touched Thad, then spoke softly when she
had his attention.  "We'd better put a full crew on standby, so they
can safe the house."

Thad winced, then looked as us and sighed.  "We've been keeping
something to ourselves, until we knew if it was random, or
deliberate."

"Is it something I need to know?"

"It's not a problem for the humans, so far, but I'll let you make the
decision about letting the staff know what's been happening.  The
wolves have been finding poisoned meat on the grounds.  Not very
often, so far."

I sighed.  "Lethal?"

"About half the time."

"I'll quietly pass the word, and start having our food shipments
checked.  I'll let you folks handle things at Kore and Kale's.  I
strongly suggest you redo the background checks on everyone who spends
time here, including staff and the walk in traffic."

"No way to do that and be low key enough people won't figure out we're
worried."

"That's what we have a pr department for.  Give them a heads up, so
they can figure out how to spin things when the increased security
gets noticed."

He sighed.  "Well, we knew it was likely to happen, someday."

He stood and stretched, then offered a hand to Lisa and pulled her up
when she grabbed it.  "Star, you and your people might as well go back
to doing your usual stuff.  We'll get set up, then call Kale and Kore
in."

I nodded.  "Tell them it's a special conference, and I need them
here."

"Thanks.  Oh, have a new set of monitors ready."

"No problem.  I'll give them ours, and we can break in one of the new
pairs, until we get things sorted out."

"That should work."

He turned his head and looked at Ridgeback.  "I'll get the humans in
position, so we can confront them in the entry vestibule.  The rest is
up to you and your pack."

Ridgeback nodded.  "I'll get word out that nobody is to go for a blood
bite or make contact unless it can't be avoided."

Thad laughed.  "Tell them to snarl louder than usual."

Ridgeback perked his ears, then grinned.  "I'll tell everyone to
exaggerate.  A lot."

Thad and Lisa's eyebrows went up quite a bit, then both of them
grinned and Lisa spoke as calmly as she could.  "Should work, as long
as the people they confront don't know wolves that well."

"We are not wolves, and those who understand us, would not do what has
been done.  Therefore, nobody we confront will know we aren't as angry
as we act."

My eyebrows went up, but I managed to keep quiet.  The implications of
Ridgeback's assessment were going to keep me busy for quite awhile.

After everyone else left Althea sneezed her amusement.  "Ridgeback
spoke truth, as you knew when you met me for the first time."

"True, Love.  It was his was his calm assurance that he and the pack
could 'exaggerate', that I'm worried about.  He just admitted that the
enhanced wolves are capable of lying, and consciously controlling
their body language to make those lies believable to people who know
normal wolves and dogs."

"You worry too much."

"True.  I have to, so the rest of the transforms don't have to worry
about a lot of it."

"Too many words.  You are Alpha of us all.  That is enough."

I grinned at her.  "Humans like to exaggerate when they speak."

She sneezed her disgust before she stood and stretched.  "Humans, yes.
You are no longer one of them."

I winced and stood up.  "True.  Let's go find an empty conference
room, so we can set the stage for the others."
---

End: 'Job: Security'
====

codes:  furry MF caution
(the caution is due to the furry characters having canine shaped
external genitals.  No bestiality takes place.)
---

"What if?"

In this story, I continue to explore some of the individual and social
implications that arise when 'surgical furrys' are possible.

The story that follows is one chapter in the series/serial 'Starshadow
and Friends'.  Because of that heritage it depends heavily on the
works that are already finished.  In the following introduction, I'll
try to give you the missing essentials that will help you during your
reading of this chapter.

In this world,  'cosmetic biosculpting' is a common practice.
Essentially it is a cosmetic changing of a person's body by adding
non-human parts.  An unstated number of years before this story,
'therapeutic sculpting' had started to be used as part of the
treatment programs that involved people who were more comfortable when
they thought of themselves as an animal in human form.   In
therapeutic sculpting the parts are not only added, they are
integrated into the person's nervous system. 

Koretina and Kalelupus are members of the second group of people who
have undergone the next logical step.  Through surgical and hormonal
intervention they have become 'surgical anthrowolves'.  The project is
called 'Project Transform' and the people who choose to endure it,
'transforms'.   The goal of the project is:  "to make the outer form
match the inner vision of self'.

At the time of this story, they are the only transforms who are living
away from the Institute.

The entire process takes years to complete.  

Because of the research aspects, each person who goes through the
process is assigned a 'monitor'.  These people, for now, are normal
humans who carry cameras and audio recorders.  Everything except the
most intimate moments are recorded.  Even those are recorded if the
transforms choose to allow it.  Monitors aren't expected to stay
objective.   Often, monitors become close friends with those they
monitor.  One thing seldom mentioned, indeed, it is only known to the
monitors and the other people involved in the project--is that while
the cameras and audio systems are live feeds to the Institute, the
monitors can receive live audio from special consoles at the
Institute.

The speech capable wolves are from a different project.  About seventy
years ago, someone decided to give wolves the capability of speech.
Ridgeback and Saddle are from the first successful batch.  Sam and
Catherine are from a later batch.   There are two packs of wolves. One
pack is composed of the wolves who are involved in the administrative
aspects of working for the Institute.  The other pack was formed by
the wolves who are involved in the security aspects. The ones involved
in security decided to call themselves 'The People of The Knife'
because of the surgical intervention involved in giving them speech.
Any humans partnered with a wolf are considered to be members of that
wolf's pack.

Thad and Lisa are from the first group of people processed.  Thad's
chosen form is a bear while Lisa's is based on a Siamese cat. Because
of his size, pre-transform experience and the fact he is a martial
arts master, Thad wound up getting involved in security. Lisa, his
first student, who is now a master in her own right, decided to stay
with Thad as his mate.  
-

Kalelupus Nightwraith - male, surgical anthrowolf  (Kale is pronounced
'Caylee')
Koretina Nightwraith - female, Kalelupus' wife, surgical anthrowolf
(Kore is pronounced 'Cory')
---

The Fish Tank
Starshadow and Friends - The Nightwraiths
---

"Here, let me help you with that."  I chuckled as I worked my wife's
tail through her dress.  Once I smoothed her dress out I carefully
fluffed her tail back to its normal appearance.

She turned and hugged me.  "Thanks.  Someday I'm going to have to
remember to ask Silky how she does it."

I started putting on my pants.  "Maybe I should switch to wearing a
kilt."

"Kale, a kilt would never work.  You'd have more trouble than I have
with my dresses."  Kore turned me around and worked my tail through
the opening below my belt.

I flicked my tail from side to side to free up the caught hair and
then sighed.  "I'm starting to understand everyone else's conversion
to nudity.  Covering my butt and leaving my sheath exposed is absurd."

Koretina, always the practical one, shrugged slightly.  "It's raining.
Do you want to drip for hours after going somewhere?"

"No."  I put my long-sleeved shirt on.  "There has to be a better
way."

"Well, if there is, nobody in the first batch, or ours, has figured it
out."  She tossed me my raincoat and then put hers on.  "Now let's go,
I want to get there before all the seats are taken and we wind up
standing--again."

My lips twisted into an almost snarl.  "My legs still hurt when I
think about last time."

Kore's ears twitched in agreement.  Without any more conversation we
left our apartment.

Kore and I exchanged grimaces as our bodyguards and monitors joined us
for the short walk to the institute.  "Do any of you know what this
meeting is about?"

Surprisingly, Catherine, the wolfess who guarded Kore, glanced up at
me before resuming her constant scanning for danger.  "Thad and Lisa
issued a 'call to gather'."

I stopped, stared at her in surprise and then turned to the wolf who
was my bodyguard.  "Sam?"

He managed a shrug.  "Lisa said it's because of you and Koretina.  I'm
getting soaked.  Let's go."

We resumed our interrupted walk.

Kore asked the question that was bothering me as well.  I guess she
couldn't wait until the gathering. "I thought only the alphas could
issue a call."

There was a long silence before Catherine answered.  "This isn't a
pack problem..."  Sam snarled softly and she stopped her explanation.
I didn't know much wolf but I did recognize the unmistakable 'shut up'
he uttered to her.  She continued softly.   "Thad and Lisa are the
pack elders.  They seldom use their special authority."

Kore and I glanced at each other and used our silent language to
communicate our unease about the situation.  Sam and Catherine were
extremely edgy about something.  We decided to trust their feelings.

Lisa and Saddle were settled on an outside bench when we arrived at
the Institute.  "Getting some fresh air while we waited for you."  She
looked relaxed but as we walked past I could smell her tension.    

When the main doors opened, Thad and Ridgeback greeted us and waved us
through. 

What was going on?  Thad and Lisa were joint heads of Institute
security.  Ridgeback and Saddle were the alpha wolves of the pack that
called itself 'The People of the Knife'.   We no longer spent much
time at the institute but in the time we had, I had learned that these
four no longer had the free time to perform routine duties, such as
casually greeting people who walked through the doors.

I flinched when Kore lightly touched my arm as we walked across the
lobby.  "Kale?  Something's not right."

I reached across and gripped her hand.  "Look at Sam and Catherine.
I've never seen them so edgy." 

 We were halfway across the lobby when I heard Thad calmly say "Sam,
Catherine, isolate and guard."

I nearly fell as Sam suddenly leaned into my legs and forced me out of
the center of the lobby.  I shivered when two wolves snarled.

When Sam stopped shoving me at the wall, I turned around and was
surprised to see that our monitors had been stopped just after they
got though the first set of doors.  Saddle and Lisa were blocking the
outside doors while Thad and Ridgeback were standing in front of the
two trembling monitors and blocking them from leaving the entry
vestibule.  Ridgeback had his hackles raised and was frozen in a
menacing crouch.

"Whatever it is, leave it in your pocket."  Thad was deceptively calm.
"And don't think you can gas us and get away.  Backup teams are
waiting at all the exits.  Now, just relax and wait for the police to
arrive--then we'll sort this out."

I looked down.  "Sam?"

Instead of answering me he queried Thad.  "Safe?"

"Wait for the new monitors, then it's OK."

A few minutes later our new monitors arrived and we were escorted to
the conference room.

Kore settled and then demanded answers from Catherine.  "What
happened?"

"They've been making dvds, editing them, and then selling them as
adult movies."

Catherine sounded slightly amused.  Kore and I looked at each other
and I shrugged.  "It's been extremely likely ever since Silky retired
from making movies for the public."

Koretina sighed.  "Our monitors.  People we trusted.  Wonderful."  She
sounded bitter.

I agreed but I also accepted there was nothing we could do about it. I
turned and held out my hand to my new monitor.  "Hi.  I'm Kalelupus
Nightwraith and this is my wife Koretina."

The woman hesitated and then smiled wryly.  "Hello Kalelupus,
Koretina.  I'm Kate and he's Mark.  Starshadow asked us to take over
for now.  He and Silky felt that you'd want some people that have
proven their trustworthiness.  They agreed to break in two new
monitors.  As far as anyone knows, only one badly edited dvd has made
it to the streets as a market test.  Four others were intercepted
before they were duplicated."

"I thought you looked familiar.  How did you find out what they were
doing?"

Mark chuckled.  "Stupidity.  They sent their main set of dvds to the
adult film division of the company that does all of our outside video
editing and distribution.   When they realized what had been sent to
them, they contacted us.  It wasn't difficult to figure out who the
'stars' were."

Kate sighed softly.  "And that brings us to some of the problems.
We're looking at our screening and training programs to see if there
was some way we could have prevented this.  Personally, I agree with
you.  It was going to happen sooner or later.  Folks are curious about
all the transforms' sex lives.  You and Koretina aren't staff members
and you live away from the Institute.  That meant you were the obvious
first choice for anyone spying on the transforms' private lives."

She chuckled.  "The wolves have caught people trying to sneak onto our
grounds.  So far, all it has taken is a warning to keep them from
trying it again.  Still, we intercept several new 'spies' every week.
'The People' are wondering when they'll be able to relax from the
constant patrols."

I sighed and leaned against the wall.  After considering possibilities
I turned and queried Kore for her thoughts.  After another one of our
silent discussions, I forced myself upright and nodded.

When we turned back to Kate and Mark, they were watching us
expectantly.

"It's up to us, isn't it?  I mean about what happens from here."

They nodded.

I turned away from Kate and grinned at my wife.  "You feel  up to a
foursome?"

Kore thought about it briefly and finally laughed.  "Of course. "  She
swished her tail back and forth seductively.   "I told you I could
smell their interest."

I turned back to Kate and Mark.  "Let's go have a little talk with our
former monitors."

Kore shook her head slightly.  "Not until we get out of these wet
clothes and dry off."

* * *

Kore and I strode into the holding cell.  Kore  motioned for me to
follow her as she settled in one of the chairs opposite Devan and
Zakia.  "Sam, Catherine,  shield positions."  They studied Kore,
glanced over at Thad, then waited for me to settle in the chair next
to Kore before they placed themselves in the open space in front of
our chairs.

We'd long ago decided that *if* we took this step, Kore would be in
charge.  I leaned back and made a show of making myself comfortable as
she let the silence lengthen.

It was Devan who finally broke.  "There's a dvd out there already. You
caught us but there's no way you can stop people from seeing it." His
posture was belligerent and he reeked of aggressiveness.  

I guess Sam got tired of the smell because he curled his lips back and
rumbled deep in his chest before warning Devan:  "Done is done.
Trust--betrayed.  Payment to Koretina and Kalelupus needed."

Devan slumped and everybody relaxed slightly.  "OK.  We took the
chance and missed.  What now?"

Kore shrugged.  "The two of you are going to get blacklisted from the
high security list."  She held up a hand to stop them from saying
anything.  "Nobody can do anything about that.  However,  Kale and I
won't  press charges, if."  It hung there enticingly while she and I
grinned--and waited.

Zakia glared at Kore.  "Koretina Nightwraith, I've seen that grin
before.  What's the catch?"

Kore laughed.  "Nothing much.  You and Devan work the Fish Tank at
Mom's with Kale and I for four weeks, six days a week--for free.
Anything you *would* have made gets turned over to Mom's Place."  When
Zakia started to smile in relief, Kore set the hook.  "You'll be in
front of the cameras--with Kale and I."

"What!"

Kore shrugged at Devan's outburst.  "The two of you have reeked of
sexual readiness every time Kale and I have gone to our bedroom and
closed the door on the two of you.  Did you forget that the transform
included an enhanced sense of smell?  Anyway, you have a choice. Mom's
and nothing said about what has happened--or invasion of privacy
charges in addition to the blacklisting you can't avoid."

Zakia glared at her.  "That's blackmail."

My wife smiled nastily.  "No, Zakia, it's called 'negotiating an out
of court settlement'.  We won't do a thing about any money you choose
to make after the four weeks in the Fish Tank.  We're already
famous--and rich.  When we get done with you, you'll be famous."

I chose that moment to shift slightly.  The motion wasn't much but I
knew from experience that the movement would cause my sheath to
contract slightly, which would expose the tip of my penis.  Zakia
didn't move her head but I saw her eyes focus on my crotch.  She
blushed and when she looked at my face again, I smirked.   "I know
what your answer is going to be.  Don't I, Zakia?"

She nodded jerkily.

"Kale.  Enough.  In spite of what they've done to us, they're still
our friends."

I held Zakia's eyes with mine and then shrugged and held out my hand.
"Still friends.  If not you two, somebody else would have done it.  We
knew the risks when we decided to live on our own."

I glanced down at Sam.  "You want to move?"

He snorted.  "Not really, but you four reek of sex, so I think
Catherine and I can relax for a few minutes.  Besides, Thad and Ridge
are still here.  I know you'll behave while we're gone."   He and
Catherine left to go do whatever it is they do when they relax.

Zakia and I stood and embraced each other.  I felt her relax as the
tension left her.  Once I was satisfied that Zakia understood that I
didn't harbor any resentment about what had happened, I looked over at
my wife and Devan.

Devan is about six inches taller than Kore and at least 100 pounds
heavier.  He was slumped against her and crying into her fur.   From
the ripples in her leg fur I could tell that she was supporting most
of his weight and keeping them from falling over.   I felt a light
touch on my side.  "How long can she keep from falling over?"

I couldn't stop my laughter.  "Obviously, you and Devan missed some of
our more athletic sex when you were filming us in secret.  Our
enhanced musculature is good for more than long distance running. It's
not unusual for her to hold me for thirty minutes while we do a
standing 69.  She won't have any problems supporting Devan."

She nodded, than sighed.  "At least, if we get athletic, I don't have
to worry about you tiring right away, or dropping me."

"Nope.  Just to get it on the record, are you willing to repay us, by
taking part in any non-damaging, consensual sexual activities in The
Fish Tank?"

"Yes, Kale.  I've been dreaming about what it is like for...  A long
time."

"Figured you had been.  I'm also assuming you probably don't want our
first few times to be public?"

"Not if I can avoid it."

"You can.  We're not...  Vindictive about it.  What we're hoping, is
that people will get the message that caught curiousity means they
will have to go public with their sexual interests.  Most folks aren't
as open as they think they are."

"You sound like you're telling me a policy that was already agreed
on."

"It's not Institute policy, just ours.  Kore and I have had years to
think about this and refine our possible responses.  We never expected
the first people caught would be you folks.  Mind telling me how you
got involved in such a breach of contract, and invading our privacy?
On the record, if we talk about it here.  At home, in the bedroom, we
can keep it to the six of us."

"Six?  Oh.  Catherine and Sam.  I keep forgetting that you folks don't
see any significant differences amongst the four of you."

"That's not quite true.  Sam and Catherine don't have the tech based
mindset Kore and I have.  Other than that, the only major difference
is that they can still out run us over extremely long distances, and
of course, they can kill their prey with their teeth."

"Sorry.  I should have remembered all that.  Can we...  Go home?  Is
it ok if I still think of your place as my home?"

"Sure.  Home it is, as soon as I can get Sam to collect us."

* * *

While we waited for Sam and Catherine to come back, I mamaged to get
Kore's attention, and we spent a few minutes privately discussing what
our immediate plans would be.  I'd already agreed to take Zakia home,
and after she thought about things, she decided to take Devan to the
staff cafeteria for a long break, then she'd get dressed and head
home.

Buried in all that was a joker, that would probably put Devan on the
spot, because she was upset enough she'd decided to stop at Mom's
Place, so the two of them could do their first show in the Fish Tank.

I coulndn't stop my glance at Devan, and my resulting smile, and she
grinned back at me before she nodded slightly and used her ears to
point me at the door.

"Right, Love.  I'll head home with Zakia, after I get dressed again,
and I'll see one or both of you when you get home."

We hugged, then I let go and focused on Zakia.  "I need to get
dressed, so if you want to join me, you can, or I'll meet you and Sam
here, on the way out."

"I might as well join you."  She sighed and looked at Kate.  "Feels
strange, to be on this side of the camera."

I shrugged.  "Believe me, you get used to it pretty fast."

"I suppose.  Shall we?"

"Yeah.  Mark?  Relay to Sam, that if he doesn't catch up with us in
the dressing room, we'll wait for him in the lobby.  And..  If the
decision hasn't been made yet, I'm making a formal request that two
teams of wolves be assigned to Zakia and Devan, or a rotaing
arrangement be made so they have the same coverage Kore and I have. If
they can't do anything for both of them, give Devan's security
priority for now.  Consider that a *strong* suggestion, based on
inside knowledge."

Mark spoke into his microphone, then spoke easily.  "Done.  Going to
be rotating coverage until things settle.  Got some new wolves coming
out of training in a few days, then they'll decide what to do for
permanent coverage.  Be a lot simpler if you folks used your rooms
here."

I frowned.  "How strong a suggestion is that?  There would still have
to be coverage of our house."

He laughed.  "Just an observation, made to make sure you folks looked
at all the possibilities."

"Thanks.  Zakia wants to go home, and so do I and Kore.  Familiar
surroundings, and...  In spite of what happened, I feel we can still
get some privacy once we're there."

His eyebrows went up, then he smiled slightly.  "The People have
already analyzed the angles of all the scenes and had a crew with a
couple of pulsers on standby.  They were supposed to focus on locating
the plants, frying their electronics, then they were going to do what
they could to check out the rest of your house, and deal with whatever
they found, without frying any of your personal stuff.

"Got it.  Did anyone think to plan on rekeying all our locks?"

"Yes.  You'll get the new codes and keys when you get home"

"Good.  Let's go, so I can get dressed for the weather, then we'll
parade back home.  Hopefully, people won't get nosey when they realize
Devan isn't behind the camera."

We left, and for me, Mark became just another part of the scenery,
that I ignored.

* * *

We were less than a block from home when two wolves came in fast and
knocked Zakia and I apart.  Once we were down, the one who had hit me
shifted his attention to Zakia and grabbed one arm while the other one
grabbed her other arm, then they backed apart until she was spread out
on her back.

My phone rang, and I answwered it.  "Hello?"

"Thad here.  Forensics found a surprise.  Someone has been feeding the
two of you the first part of a two part agent.  Lethal."

"The second part?"

"In Zakia's finger nail polish."

"Confirmed lethal?"

"Yes."

"What about Kore?"

"She's fine, and the neutralizer has been injected.  Twenty fours and
it will be like it was never there."

"Glad to hear it."

"Figured you would be."

He hung up, so I hung up and moved so I could look down at Zakia.
"Why?"

"People we work for wanted to make sure they'd have the only videos."

I moved and knelt so I was able to hold her head between my hands,
then I spoke coldly.  "I'm a wolf, Zakia, and you were going to kill
my mate."

She screamed, of course, and as soon as I knew she understood what was
going to happen, I spoke again.  "Enhanced muscles, Zakia.  Let me
demonstrate just how enhanced they are.  Be very, very glad, because
your belated honesty has me feeling merciful, and I'm in a hurry to
get back to my wife."

I twisted her head, fast, and didn't stop until I'd rotated it so it
was facing the sidewalk.

Once her body stopped moving, the wolves let go and I released my grip
on her head and stood up.  "Somebody get a cleanup crew here, so I can
go back to my wife."

The crew showed up, body bagged her and cleaned up the unavoidable
mess while their boss took my statement, and that was it.

After we started back I sighed and glanced at Mark, and he shrugged.
"Everyone knows you did her a favor.  Folks like that don't leave
loose ends."

"Yeah.  Call it a warning from me."

"Warning?"

"Sure.  We didn't mind the videos, too much.  But, do something
stupid, like try to kill us, and if one of us survives, we'll find
away to make it clear, how we feel, and we're not humans, we're
wolves, and we're not afraid to do what has to be done."

"Brutal, but...  Worry about it if someone decides to be stupid."

"See?  You think just like them."

I saw his wince, so I shrugged.  "Forget it, Mark.  The transforms are
aliens in hostile territory.  We're benevolent, unless you decide to
fuck us over.  Was going to happen eventually.  Kore and I... Decided
we had the strength to be the ones to be ourselves so you folks could
get used to our ways."

"You think we'll ever understand you?"

"Don't have a clue."

"Thanks, anyway.  You ok?"

"I will be, as soon as I see my wife."

* * *

We were met by protesters.  Majority were on our side, but a few were
against us.  Kids, mostly, and still too young to think for themselves

I studied them and singled out the girl who seemed to be the leader.
"You have anyone you love with all your heart, that you'd be willing
to die for?"

"Of course, you...  Animal!"

"See?  That's where you and I are different.  I know Kore loves me so
much,  I want to make sure I live for her.  Quit being selfish, and
think about what your death would do to that person you love."

I shugged.  "It's a damn hard world.  She tried to kill me, and didn't
quite make it.  She knew what could happen. Now, I have more important
things to do, like making sure my wife really is ok.  You have a nice
day."

After the doors closed behind us.  Kore and I hugged, then we held
each other off and smiled wryly before I stroked her muzzle.  "How far
did you get, before Devan did something stupid, again?"

"All the way to The Fish Tank."

"You ok?"

"I'm fine, and you know it."

"Asking for the cameras.  Devan?"

"Alive, in the hospital, and under guard, so nobody tries to kill
him."

"Alive?"

"He tried to rape me.  I asked him if he wanted his balls with, or
without.  He opted for without."

"Without?"

"His penis, raw."

"Ok."

I thought about it, and looked around.  "Someone set up a monitor, and
show that girl and her friends what happened to Kore, then ask her if
she wants to live in a world where she has to worry about that
happening to her."

Kore touched my arm.  "Cafeteria,  after you get the neutralizer?"

"Sure."

* * *

We were enjoying dessert when a policewoman showed up, and she had the
girl with her.

She stood there and studied us, then she sighed.  "Candice thinks
she's safer, with me here.  I tried to explain it, but..."

She shrugged.  "Not the reason I'm here.  Both of you can relax. Zakia
had already activated the toxin, and it's one originally developed by
terrorists, because the death is a lingering, and very painful one."

"So you folks are going to play my execution as a mercy killing?"

"No.  Turf war between rival gangs.  As long as it stays between you,
and doesn't affect anyone else, we're going to ignore it."

Kore was the one who nodded, then she studied Candice.  "Pragmatic.
Thanks.  That doesn't explain Candice."

Candice sighed.  "Dad raised me to always find out both sides, before
I made my mind up.  All the news showed, was Kale twisting her head
and talking in that real calm voice.  I'd like to hear your side,
that's all. All I can do is promise an open mind, not that I'll change
it."

"How do you feel about what my wife did to the man who tried to rape
her?"

"Asshole deserved it."

"So...  It sounds like mostly, I wasn't supposed to be so cold blooded
about what I did?  After all, if all Devan had done is rape Kore, he
wasn't doing anything more than using a renewable resource, and Kore
would have been able to recover and get on with her life.  Zakia, on
the other hand, admitted that she was a killer, and had already
started that killing by making sure we both had the first part of the
toxin in our bodies.  I imagine the toxin is also in the wolves who
guard us, so potentially, she could have killed four people and at
least six wolves who are as sentient as we are.  Should I then, have
allowed her, or someone else, a chance to finish what she started?"

"She didn't kill anyone.  Yeah, ok, she was a suicide, and you helped
that, but you couldn't have known it, right?"

"Wrong."

"Wrong?"

I tapped my muzzle lightly.  "Didn't do your homework, or you forgot
something important in all the emotions.  The transform included
olfactory enhancements.  Since our muzzles are bigger than a normal
wolf's, our sense of smell is better than theirs, too.  I know what
death smells like, and Zakia reeked of it.  I assumed she screamed
because she realized I was going to kill her, not because she was in
pain.  If it makes you feel any better, I wouldn't have stopped and
let her suffer.  She'd been a friend, and she deserved a clean death
at my hands, more than a lingering one at the hands of those who used
her."

Candice finally turned to the policewoman.  "Gangs?"

She glanced at our cameras and sighed before she gestured at the mixed
assemblage of humans, furrys, and wolves.  "Gangs.  If shape doesn't
define what it is to be a human, it shouldn't be used to define what
it is, to be an animal.  Humans vs Animals, and to be honest about it,
I want the Humans to win, even if they have to cull some of the
Animals, to improve the breed.  Are you going to be a Human, or an
Animal, Candice?"

Before Candice could answer, Kore spoke softly.  "I gave Devan a final
chance to return to being a Human.  He refused, so I did what had to
be done, to keep him from passing on his bad genes."

She gunsighted the officer.  "Take her to the rape ward.  Let her talk
to the men and women there.  We're done talking with her.  If you
don't have the time, ask for Silky to escort her."

She suddenly inhaled though her nose, then turned her head slightly.
"Silky!  Busy?"

A white shepherd furry came over and smiled.  "On call 24/7, and you
know it."

She focused on the two.  "Hello, Helen.  If you two have the time,
there are a couple survivors who would benefit from being able to open
up to a recognizable authority figure, and a concerned citizen."

"We have the time.  As long as Candice and I are in here, I don't have
to worry about a loud, but fairly sensible crowd, flashing over into a
riot, which is where they were headed, if I'd let her keep talking
about things she doesn't fully understand.  Riots are...  Messy to
deal with, and people, good people, usually get hurt, or killed,
before they're over."

"You didn't say anything about a riot!"

"It hasn't happened, so there was no need for me to mention the
possibility.  Your followers agreed to calm down while you came in
here to learn the truth.  Do we keep discovering what it is, or do you
want to remain ignorant and one sided, while you go back out there and
do whatever you feel is right?"

Candice sighed.  "Hang on."

She got her phone out and made a call.

"Hey, Candy.  Whats up?"

"You guys chill for now.  If you gotta yell at someone, go find out
why someone didn't give us the full story about that furry guy killing
that woman.  All I know is that she was on some sort of suicide
mission, and she got caught.   Gang stuff, ya know?  Anyway.there's a
bigger picture and I don't have all of it, yet.  Going to take me
awhile to get it.  Oh, if you want to be pissed at someone, go find
out why that reporter and her bosses were out there making news,
instead of reporting it.  We caught them slanting it, that much I can
promise you.  Might be able to get them for attempting to incite a
riot, but that's not a sure thing, so...  Sorry.  Chill on that for
now."

"You going to be ok in there?"

"I'll be fine.  No matter what they look like, they're human, right?"

"Yeah, they are, and they do have a rep for keeping their word."

"Yeah, they do, and if anything happens to me now, they're gonna be
screwed, and we all know it."

"True.  Anything else, before I go find something to keep us busy?"

"Yeah.  If we're gonna insist on not using what someone looks like, to
tell if they are human, or not, shouldn't we do it the other way, too,
so we aren't hypocrits?"

"I don't get it."

"If we can't tell if someone is human or not, by using their body, it
makes sense to not use their body to decide if they are animals, or
not, right?"

"Oh, wow...  That's some real serious shit."

"I know, and I'm taking a refresher course in decency, so I can get my
head around it.  Those gangs?  Humans against the Animals, and the guy
who did the killing belongs to the Humans.  She was a member of the
Animals.  Cops have officially made it gang stuff, so as long as it
doesn't spill over, they're going to ignore what happened.  Guess
what?  No brainer, that if we incite a riot, we've announced to the
world that we've joined the Animals."

"Back off with the hammer, Candy.  We heard you the first time.  I'm
gonna run that past the other folks here and see if they want to help
us find out if the news crew that fucked up that report are Humans, or
Animals."

"No violence.  Talk, ok?"

"Yeah...  Like you said.  No brainer.  We'll get that policy shift
started."

"Thanks.  Later."

She hung up and studied Silky.  "Let's go talk to those survivors you
mentioned."

We watched the three of them leave, then Kore sneezed her amusement
before she went back to eating her dessert.

After we both finished, she leaned back and shook her head slightly.
"Wasn't that an interesting phone call?"

"Very.  Let's hope her mind stays changed."

"She has pretty solid control.  I think we were her wake up call,
so...  There's a good chance her conversion is real and she won't let
her emotions make her change it."

It was my turn to sneeze my amusement.  "As long as we don't do
something that makes us 'Animals'."

"I didn't torture Devan.  I improvised a tournequette before I ripped
his scrotum open and castrated him.  Making him eat his own balls was
more of a warning to others, than it was emphasizing my irritation
with him.  Glad we were able to warn you in time."

"Thanks.  That stuff is fast acting, if Zakia didn't activate it until
the wolves hit her.  Mostly, I wanted to let her know she wasn't going
to escape justice, by killing herself."

"I assumed it was something like that.  Devan talked, so people are
going to see if they can catch any of his cotacts."

I sighed.  "I wish them luck."

She matched my sigh.  "I agree.  Kale?  I value our freedom, but I
think our lives are worth giving it up for awhile."

"They going to be able to sanitize our home?"

"I haven't heard anything about that.  Only thing I was told for
certain, is that we can expect it to be awhile before we can have
anything back."

"Ok.  You ready to go reopen our quarters?"

"Yes.  I've also called in and told our employer that we're nervous
enough about our safety and that of the people around us, that we're
not going to be in until that's reassessed."

"We going to have jobs?"

"Don't know.  They agreed to revisit that, when our leave time is
almost up."

"So we have about a month.  Screw it.  We never needed the jobs. Let's
call it quits and go to work here again, until we know more about how
safe it will be to go back out there."

"Worry about it in a few days, after we get this mostly out of our
systems.  I need a cuddle."

"Deal.  You can hold on while I shake.  A lot."

We stopped in at Medical, and they checked us to make sure the shots
were working.  They were, so we all headed for our rooms.

Before I entered the access code I looked at Sam and Catherine.  "Ok,
guys.  You ready to get rid of some of that aggression?"

Catherine sneezed her amusement.  "We were wondering if you remembered
us."

I laughed,  "We did, and since we're feeling vulnerable, we figured it
was time for you two to earn your pay for a change."

"Unlock the door and get out of our way."

I entered the code, then we humans moved to one side and waited.

Caterine braced herself with a foot on the wall, then grabbed the
lever and carefully twisted until the door unlatched. 

Sam pushed until he could get the tip of his nose into the room, then
he inhaled several times.  "Cleaning crew has been here recently.
Going to take awhile, just in case someone used the cleaning stuff to
hide something."

I sighed.  "We have all the time you need.  Want us to stick around,
or should we find something else to do?"

He removed his nose from the crack, then Catherine pulled the door
closed before she settled on her haunches and sighed.  "Let's go do
something else while we wait for a full team to check things.  I don't
like sudden efficiency."

Kore studied her, then matched her sigh.  "Kale?  You open to a
suggestion?"

"Of course."

"Lets go add ourselves to the duty roster, then we can track down
Candice, if she's still here.  Be nice to know how that problem is
doing."

"Good enough.  Let's go."

* * *

We checked in, then called our old employer and let him know we'd
decided to quit for now.   We signed back onto the duty roster, got
our updated staff badges, then used the monitors to find our quarry
before we went to go see how she was doing.

Helen was settled in a chair and reading a magazine when we arrived.
After she recognized us she smiled.  "What brings you here?"

I settled in a chair across from her and let Kore handle it.

She settled, then shrugged.  "Candice, mostly.  That, and we have some
time to kill while we wauit for our rooms to be checked out."

"Problems?"

"Paranoid bodyguards, and we agree with them.  Someone on the cleaning
crew is too efficient.  Smelled like our rooms were just cleaned.
Strong enough the odors could be hiding something else."

Helen sighed.  "Bertter safe, than sorry."

"Right.  How's Candice?"

"Suffering from a severe case of shifted reality, right now.  Silky
kept me out here, so I wouldn't be a distraction."

"You're upset about something."

"Teenage girl who was raped while she was still wearing a fursuit when
she left a convention."

Kore sighed.  "Some folks are kinkier than others."

"True.  Plenty of folks who would have volunteered, and everyone, even
the rapist, knew it."

"So...  We've been out of touch."

Kore touched her badge and sighed.  "We enjoy freedom, but we do have
a preference for living to enjoy what we can get of it.  Sounded like
you and Silky know each other, so I don't have to explain things if I
tell you Kale and I quit our jobs and went back to being staff,
right?"

"Someone robbed the girl, and she called the cops.  Cop delegated to
take her home, decided he wanted to find out what fucking a fursuiter
was like."

"Shit.  What happened to him?"

"His in car audio captured it all, so there was a plea bargain.  She's
a lot richer, and he's on the streets without a job.  That's it."

Kore froze, then slumped.  "So, once again, it looks like the cops get
special treatment."

Helen nodded.  "I know.  Happened a few weeks ago, so it's still
sinking in.  Amongst us, I'm hoping Candice manages to keep calm, and
finds a way to get some laws and internal proceedures changed, so
this...  Travesty, doesn't happen again."

"Wouldn't mean anything if you went in there and admitted that, so I
understand the reasons Silky asked you to stay out of sight.  You
think Candice respects you enough she could make that girl believe it,
if she said you're as upset as everyone else, even though you're a
cop, and tainted?"

"You believe me?"

"We have damn good noses, Helen, and they are attached to minds that
are pretty good at reading people.  We believe you."

"Thanks."

After awhile Candice came out and settled so she could look at all of
us.  "Checking up on me?"

Kore nodded.  "Of course.  Nothing better to do, while we wait for our
rooms to be checked for surprises.  If it means anything, we quit our
jobs and went back to being staff."

"Silky talked about that, a little.  Something odd.  She said staff
picks their own jobs.  That doesn't make sense."

"It works for us."

"Obviouly.  Mind if I change the subject?"

"Not a bit."

"Thanks.  Helen, if I admit I've broken the law, are you going to have
to do something about it?"

"Depends.  Most of the time, yes, I'd have to arrest you, or decide to
give you a warning, and let you go."

"I see.  Ok.  When I was younger, me and some friends would go
cruising.  The usual stuff happened a lot, but it was usually in the
back seat.  Anyway, I know what a guy sounds like when someone is
giving him a good blowjob while he's driving.  What about either of
you?"

Helen smiled.  "No.  I was always in the back seat, and the people in
the front were patient enough to wait.  Later...  No.  I've seen what
can happen when the driver orgasms at the wrong time.  Sometimes
they're lucky, sometimes they aren't, so I've never felt the need to
do something that dangerous."

Candice nodded.  "Ok.  Kore?"

"Same thing.  No experience.  City girl, and we never had a car."

"What about Taxis?"

"Yes, but...  Even when we were asked to pay in trade, I refused."

"Guess that's being smart.  Well, there's a difference between a
moving blowjob, and a parked one.  I think it's important."

Kore nodded.  "Important to who?"

Candice sighed.  "That cop."

"Oh?"

"I got to read the transcript before I heard her story."

"Silky can do that, if she wants to."

"Yeah.  The transcript says rape.  Thing is...  I got to hear the
audio, too.  I think there's something missing, because I'd be willing
to swear in court, that the cop sounded like he was parked and getting
a blowjob, instead of raping that girl.  His breathing is all wrong,
for fucking and talking at the same time."

Helen sat up.  "He pleaded guilty to rape, and she was swabbed and it
tested positive for his semen."

"Sounds like his defense attorney was incompetent, which is no
surprise to the people on the streets, ya know?"

Helen winced.  "Which way should I hear that?"

"Both.  Cops don't need good attorneys, and a lot of the court
appointed public defenders have better things to do, than spend a lot
of their *valuable* time doing what they should, if they aren't
getting paid to do it."

"Angry?"

"Yes, I am, because I'm pretty sure that cop was set up, and she did
it, then called it rape, because folks quit thinking as soon as they
hear 'cop', 'teenager' and 'rape' in the same sentence."

"Got an explanation for the positive?"

"Two.  He really did fuck her, but it was someplace smart, and not in
his cruiser.  Or, if he didn't fuck her, it was dark in there, and he
was busy, so she could have used her fingers to transfer stuff while
she claimed she was fingering herself off.  Be easy to work some of it
deep enough the swab would find it later, and the mess on her thighs
would look good, too.  Just more proof that he was stupid and thinking
with his prick.  And that makes me ask a real hard question.  What was
she doing in the front seat?  Never did see a good explanation for
that.  More of that internal stuff you guys don't talk about?"

Helen winced.  "Way I heard it, he raped her in the front seat, then
dumped her in back and dropped her off near her home."

"Huh.  Maybe.  Someone have a good explanation for not finding any of
his semen *on* the fursuit, since the whole crappy mess supposedly
happened because he wanted to know what it was like, to fuck a
fursuiter?"

Helen lost it and stared at her.  "None?!"

"None, according to the official report Silky showed me, and the girl
said was accurate."

"Have you mentioned this to Silky or the girl?"

"Not yet.  I haven't decided if I want to go public, after I see if I
can get a copy of the report legally, or just hand it over to you and
see what you do with it."

"If I do nothing, you'll go public?"

"I'd like to keep thinking we're both Humans, Helen."

"I...  See, I think.  No matter what you do, once this gets out, two
lives are going to be screwed up worse than they are already."

"Look, I got no sympathy for a dumb cop who got caught screwing some
kid while he was on duty.  Thing is, if he's gotta get fucked over, at
least it should be for the right reasons, not because some kid got
away with setting him up for reasons of her own.  I quit believing in
innocent street kids long before I started bleeding, and with that
home address, she can't be some sweet girl next door, who didn't know
what a prick is for, or what kind of a mess there can be when you
don't use a condom."

She looked at me and Kore, then sighed.  "I guess Silky didn't get the
full nose job?  Any wolves been in the same room with that girl, yet?
Maybe you guys should think about getting certified so you can be
there when people are being questioned, so you can keep them a little
more honest."

Kore twitched an ear at me, so I sighed.  "We got enough problems
already, so we'd have to be pretty stupid to get in the middle of
something like that.  Maybe, when more years have gone by, and we and
the enhanced wolves aren't such a touchy issue."

"Oh.  Yeah.  Sorry.  Anyway, someone better find that cop and get the
rest of the story.  I'm not going to tell whoever, how they should do
their job, unless they fuck it up again.  Sucks, to find myself on the
cop's side, but I think he's the clear victim in this, so... Everyone
has a right to be stupid, but I wish he'd done it on his own time.  I
also think she would have kept trying until she got one to think with
his dick, so...  You need our help, you have it."

"I'll keep that in mind."

Before we could do anything more, Thad and Lisa showed up.  Thad
studied us, then sighed.  "Helen?  Candice?  We'd appreciate it, if
the two of you join the rest of us for a conference."

I frowned.  "Anyone else be there?"

"Other than Silky, the monitors and our bodyguards, no."

"Crowded."

"Yep.  Main conference room."

"What about Star?"

"Busy."

I perked my ears at him, and he nodded slightly, so I let it go and
faced Candice.  "We'd like your company, since you're the one who
triggered the meeting."

"I did?"

"Sure.  All this has been recorded.  You forget that unless Kore and I
are in our bedroom or bathroom, we have company?"

"I didn't forget.  I thought that stuff was for internal records."

"It is.  It's a live feed, and since it's available, security keeps an
eye on everything that goes on.  Thad and Lisa are joint heads of the
humans who run that for us."

"Obvious stuff, again.  Dad's gonna have a lot to say to me when he
finds out.  He will find out eventually, right?  News and all that?"

"Let's go find out from the people who make those decisions."

She sighed.  "This is starting to feel like a day I should have rolled
over and gone back to sleep."

She stood.  "I'm ready, I think."

Thad nodded.  "Helen?  We'd appreciate having someone official in on
this from the beginning."

"Hot potato?"

"Scalding."

"I'm in.  At least this way, we might be able to keep it low key,
until we have our facts in hand, before we let go."

Lisa laughed a little sourly.  "At least, for once, our primary focus
isn't on our own people and their problems."

* * *

After we all settled and the door was secured, Thad clenched his hands
and set them on he table carefully.  "I said Star is busy.  He's taken
a senior team with him, and gone looking for a cop, so he can issue a
non negotiable invitation.  The reason will be that we need him to
confirm what's in the records, so we can plan the next stage of
Esther's therapy."

Silky perked her ears at him, sighed deeply, then spoke carefully.
"I'll discuss his impulsiveness with him after I have a chance to find
out how he justified it."

I had the impression Thad deliberately turned his head so he wasn't
facing her.  "His control is better than mine, and we want the man
alive.  He's also...  Able to control his intensity so he isn't as
intimidating as I am."

"The choice was between the two of you?"

"Yes."

She finally nodded and relaxed.  "People are used to him being in
public with a team, so there is less likey to be unwanted attention.
I'll assume there were compelling reasons to not go through channels,
so you can quit acting like a young man caught with his fist in the
cookie jar."

"We don't want to warn the man that we suspect there's a much bigger
picture than him acting to protect a young girl."

"Candice was on to something?"

"Yes.  Right now, we have too many possibilities, so we're being
careful, because there's a possibility the two cases are related to
each other."

I sighed.  "Thad?  Are you saying the link could be more than the
institute being involved as providing her therapy?"

"Yes.  We're hoping it's nothing more than the same people providing
the drugs used in both cases."

"Drugs?"

"It's a real possibility, but we want to get the man here, so we can
do some tests before we go further with our speculations."

He studied Candice briefly, then nodded at her.  "You have a good ear,
but we think the reason his breathing was wrong, isn't because he was
getting a blowjob.  You can thank the wolves for having good ears,
because the ones who have now listened to that recording think there
was at least one other person there, and that person was feeding him
his lines.  We'd like to find out if he was doing it voluntarily, or
had been drugged into being receptive.  A third person would also help
explain the lapse in video coverage."

"Sounds like a pretty sohisticated drug, and I'm wondering why it
wasn't noticed in the blood tests."

"No reason to look for anything, because as far as anyone knew, he was
caught, and confessed immediately.  The DNA test did show that it was
his semen, so the real question now, is 'how did it get deposited
without leaving any traces on the fursuit?' "

She sighed.  "Don't forget to ask how that detail was missed during
the investigation.  Good defense attorney should have seen that."

"I have a better question.  She was wearing the fursuit until she took
it off for the exam, if the report is right.  Should have been some
seepage by then, because she wasn't wearing anything under it. If
nothing else, a simple exam using UV should have noticed something, on
it, or her.  That should have been routine, but there's no mention
that UV was used."

"Could the swab have been faked somehow?"

"Always possible, and I imagine Helen is going to have that looked
into, after she decides who should know about this."

"If it happened that way, someone might panic and destroy evidence.
Cops protecting cops, if nothing else."

Helen winced, but stayed silent.

Candice noticed, because she turned slightly.  "Code of silence,
Helen.  It's a fact of life, to the people on the streets.  Cops never
get the justice they've earned, and you have to know it."

Helen bent her head and sighed.  "I do. Some good cops wish it was
otherwise, but...  We're handcuffed and working in a system that
favors the corrupt.  Plus, the criminals are always going to have the
advantage, because they can start stuff while we have to wait and
react to what they do.  Preventing crime isn't in fashion any more,
because there's just too damn much of it, and too few of us, so we
have to spend all our time catching criminals, instead of doing the
stuff that might keep them from becoming criminals.  Crime is
profitable for too many people, so...  There's an unspoken vested
interest in maintaining the status quo, on both sides."

She finally looked up and smiled bitterly.  "You folks interested in
hiring an ex cop?  By the time this is over, I'll probably be looking
for a new job."

Silky shook her head slightly.  "Don't burn that bridge yet.  Maybe
you can use your honesty to get promoted into a position that lets you
feel like you can make a difference."

Helen shrugged.  "Is that feel good stuff, or do you think it's
possible?"

"Both.  In case you've forgotten, Star and I are both from the
streets, and an ex street tough who's a killer, and an ex whore, are
folks who don't have many illusions left."

Helen winced, but stayed silent while Candice jerked her head sideways
and stared at Silky, who perked her ears at her, then nodded.  "Lot of
things you don't know, young woman.  Get used to it."

"I..."

"Relax.  We're trying to help, because you have the charisma to get
riots started, or keep them from happening.  We've rather they didn't
start, especially at our front door, but if they have to happen, let's
make sure they happen for the right reasons."

"You saying you *want* a riot to happen?"

"No.  I'm saying that *if* a riot happens, I want it to happen for a
better reason than misunderstood justifiable homicide."

Candice winced again, then nodded.
====


This one needs modification to reflect changes in the main story line.
It was done before all but starshadow01 were written

note:  I have consulted on this one but any errors in characterization
are my own.  That said, I hope this story makes you pause and wonder a
bit about how we tend to misrepresent so many things in life.

Some background:  Star and Silky are comfortably paired.  They have
young children now.  Althea died recently from old age.  The scuplting
didn't lengthen her lifespan, a situation she and Star were aware of.
Their children knew Althea for about 5 years.  As 'original
transforms', Silky and Star are called upon for speaking engagements.
This is the first time they feel the children are old enough to be
left in someone else's care.  Usually, one of them stays home while
the other travels.

Silky, because of her past, has nobody she would trust with her kids.
Star on the other hand, does have some friends he is willing to trust.
---

Hyena
---

We are laying together in bed.  In that timeless time before fading
into sleep, I have told Silky who I would like to leave the kids with
while we travel.  

"Damnit Star!

"They are Hyenas!"

Silky's outburst is filled with loathing and rage.

"Love, they are *people*.  People like us.

"People who have been misunderstood all their lives and are fighting
for changes.

"People I am willing to trust our children with.

"As I once, long ago, trusted them with my life."

"Your life?"  Silky is suddenly quiet.  "You never mentioned that.

"I thought I knew you.  How could you stand to be around people who
are so...  One dimensional?"

Then her playful 'punch' is harder than usual and she smiles
reluctantly.  "OK...  I'll let you change the subject for now.  But
this decision isn't made yet.  I still don't think leaving the kids
with them while we are gone will be right."
---

My voice goes soft and a bit musing as I dredge up memories of a past
I'd prefer to mostly forget.  At long last, to explain my rather
unusual friendship and trust, I need to remember - and tell -  part of
the story of the time before StarShadow.

"You already know part of my beginnings.  Bits and pieces of the life
of a young boy called 'Johnny' or 'John Kelly'.

"What very few other than those who were there know about, is that for
a few years in my late teens, before the therapy that led to me
chosing the name 'StarShadow', I was a street tough called 'LoneWolf'.

"The gang I belonged to was rather unusual.  It was run by the women.
As you might have guessed by now, the women and men had chosen to
adopt many of the ways of the hyena.

"That I was allowed to be a 'wolf' rather than adopt a name more
suitable was, frankly, due to the fact I could beat the hell out of
any of the other gang members.  The young boy that everyone had picked
on had quietly learned how to fight and enforce his wishes to be
undisturbed.

"Yes, I took classes in self-defense.  By the time I speak of, I was
good enough that should I be asked, I was obligated to teach.

"Anyway, I wasn't a full member, more of an honorary member who was
allowed to be part of things.

"Without a doubt though, I belonged.

"For the most part, we weren't a traditional gang.  We never warred
with others and only 'defended' the few places where we had quietly
made our 'dens'.  The other gangs usually respected our apartness.
Besides, there wasn't any profit in raiding places filled with books
and quiet people who mostly studied and took care of their younger
members.

"We had money to live on.  Unlike the other gangs, we earned ours
honestly.  We didn't sell drugs.  We didn't extort protection money.
We didn't steal.

"No, any money earned, was done by a most unusual means.  We ran
community day care places where people could leave their children and
feel they would not be mistreated.

"You see, like hyenas, we were highly protective of children.  For the
most part, the women were ones who had lost kids to the gangs or other
accidents and decided that while they couldn't prevent what had
already happened, they could work to prevent it from happening to
others.

"The men, all loners because of being 'outcasts' for some reason, by
acting as protectors, had discovered a  sense of purpose.

"A 'raid' made by a new gang trying to move in left 35 people dead on
both sides.  Most of our adults were killed or seriously injured.  We
killed every one of the raiding gang members. 

"I was one of the seriously injured.  When the few healthy adults left
realized they couldn't provide the care required for the injured to
survive, they pooled what money they had, asked for contributions from
people they had helped in the past..."

The tears start flowing as I remember the emotions from so long ago.

"Then gathered all the surviving members and with no dissenting votes,
we decided to dissolve the gang and turn ourselves in.

"Everyone we had ever helped or cared for joined us for that march to
justice.

"We were loners and tough.

"But we had one thing we felt raised us above the ordinary.

"We did our best to be ethical."

There is a long, shaking time as I gather myself.  Because I have
seldom talked of this time, the memories are still fresh.  They
overpower me with their intensity.  I can hear the screams, smell the
smells of death.  I feel the life leaving those I killed myself.

"I want to give my children a chance to learn from people who live
their ideals rather than mouth them."

(hyenas would lean to combat sports as 'play)
====

End: Starshadow and Friends 2/2

End Starshadow & Friends

-- 
Pursuant to the Berne Convention, this work is copyright with all rights
reserved by its author unless explicitly indicated.
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