Beauties and Beasts

Chapter 32: brought to you by fuzzy rides!

Intro to the bunnies, the fertility ceremony, and the start of deviation away from the comic. (Lowefantasy: dude, we're already deviated.) Also, has anyone noticed how much wish-fulfillment this has? Because... that's the point :D

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Neara ran to catch up to Ryan and Shay heading towards the pavilion. Winston and Orson kept stride with no issues.

"Would you like to be carried like that?" Winston gestured to Shay perched atop Ryan, her long hair cascading down her back and catching in the breeze.

She shuddered. "No, thanks; I'm fine walking."

Winston said nothing and continued holding her hand. Orson's fingers felt loose in hers, but she didn't want to let go. There were too many females walking around today and, although she leaned monogamous, it felt nice to cultivate this feeling for more than one male, even if they couldn't return her affection.

The Ape King held his hands out to silence the crowd. Beastmen filled the courtyard in front of his palace, some with females riding their beast forms similar to Rosa and Shay. "Thank you for coming to the fertility ritual." He coughed slightly and pounded his chest. "It pleases me to see so many females here; the City of Beasts now boasts over five hundred females!"

The crowd roared in approval and Neara covered her ears. "Everything is so loud." She frowned and looked at Orson. He stood behind her and pressed his hands over hers, muffling the sound more effectively. His chest mumbled as he spoke, but Neara couldn't hear anything. When the sounds of their cheering died down, he removed his hands.

"If the females would approach the stage, we can get the ritual started." He smiled down at them, paying particular attention, Neara thought, to Winston and Orson. Wolf beastmen stood on the edges of the raised stage, woven baskets in hand overflowing with leaves.

"We can leave, if you like." Winston rumbled. "Since you do not have a mate."

She thought about Shay, about that odd smile and how she held herself. She remembered Rosa and how dejected Winston had looked after her harassment. "No, it's ok. Maybe I'll get a mate this winter." She walked towards the Ape King, her heart in her throat. The crowd parted around her, letting her pass through with her billowing cloak. It gave her a sense of security, although she wished she wore something more modest than the skirt and tube top. She'd thought about sewing her own from leather, or asking Orson, but it was good enough... and she had a mountain of cotton to pick through in the meantime. She could experiment with cotton thread.

Shay moved next to her and held her hand as they stood near the back of the line. Females jostled each other to be near the front; some resorted to physical shoving.

"So... was it Curtis or Ryan?"

"What?" Blood filled Shay's face and she looked down. Her blue eyes focused on the cobblestones under her bare feet.

"Like sex. You're walking funny today and Curtis seems... extra protective." Neara tried to phrase it delicately.

"Don't talk about it like that," she whispered, "Ok, fine, yes, but you can't say anything."

"To who? Ugh, this is so weird. You're married and had sex..."

"It's weirder that you keep talking about it!"

"...and now you're probably going to get pregnant with baby snakes and I won't be able to come over..."

"Why wouldn't you come over?" Shay interrupted.

"Because it doesn't matter how small they are, a snake is a snake and I'll be fighting every instinct in my body to kill it."

"You'd kill my babies?" Shay felt mildly outraged, even though she understood where her friend was coming from.