WARNING: This story may contain content of an adult nature. If you are easily offended or are under the legal age to view adult content in your area, please exit now. This text is intended for adults only and may include scenes of sexual content or graphic violence. Reader discretion is advised.
Zavarka
by IndigoNeko, Cormenthor, and TaintedThylacine
Chapter 9
Saturday, December 19th, 2015
Raenne finished the mystery novel that she’d been reading and set it down on the end table next to the couch, then scratched an itch under the russet and black striped fur on her forearm with a pair of sharp claws. She picked up the mug of tea next to the book and took a sip, then frowned; luke-warm tea wasn’t nearly as satisfying on a cold winter day. While considering refilling the mug from the samovar over the cast-iron stove that was keeping the house from freezing, the tigress turned and looked out the massive floor-to-ceiling windows that made up the front of their new house and watched the falling snow. With her daughter visiting hir friend in Oregon and her husband out shopping in Prairie Flats, the house was eerily silent.
Spending the last four months as a stay-at-home mom without an actual job to keep her active was slowly driving her stir-crazy. There was only so much reading, cleaning, and shopping she could do, and she didn’t really like watching television or movies alone. The tigress stood up, wincing slightly at the stiffness in her hips and carefully leaned backwards, thrusting her oversized belly out. Being pregnant was a pain in the tail, especially with twins. Worse, she had at least another month to go.
Deciding to do something about the stiffness, she quickly checked the bowl of cat food on the side patio that her husband had been leaving outside for the stray feral cat, then headed towards the back of the house to her bedroom and changed into some gym clothes before making her way down to the garage where they had all the exercise equipment.
The tigress spent a solid half hour performing yoga stretches and poses, then went on to spend another half hour going through all the Shotokan kata, albeit much slower than normal. This late in a pregnancy, doing any kind of exercise with rapid movements wasn’t recommended. As she finished the last of the kata, she stood in the center of the gym mat, staring around at the concrete walls and bare ceiling joists. She missed the kanji painted walls, oriental scrolls and tapestries, and assorted asian weaponry that they’d hung on the walls of their old basement. All of that was currently packed in plastic storage totes in the back of the garage storage area, where she’d stashed it while working up the motivation to sell it.
The lack of a proper gym or dojo was a constant nagging irritation, like a hangnail or a papercut that wouldn’t heal. There were none in Winter Creek and only a few in Prairie Flats: generic taekwondo and karate dojos run by “black belts” who weren't part of any national or international organizations. As far as Raenne was concerned, the instructors had ordered their belts on Amazon. There was one halfway decent MMA training gym, but they didn't give a damn for tradition or discipline; just the ability to beat the shit out of someone.
The solution? Start her own dojo. One that would make her high school gym teacher, Mr. Kelley proud. If only he were still alive to see it.
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That evening, Raenne waited until her husband had his mouth full of soup before she dropped the bombshell on him. He was going to object; she knew him too well to think otherwise. At least she’d get the satisfaction of seeing him either choke it down or spit it out. Hopefully not the latter. She took a breath and said “I’ve been thinking of starting a dojo here in town.”
The white tiger sitting across the table looked up from his bowl, raising his eyebrows, but didn’t say anything. To Raenne’s surprise, he calmly raised his spoon again and took another sip of the tom yum she had fixed. After swallowing, David calmly asked “When? You’re going to be pretty busy with the twins. Even with me and Alex helping, caring for two cubs is a full time job. At least for the first few years, until they’re in school or we can find a daycare for them. And daycare is getting shockingly expensive...”
“I was thinking that I could teach evening classes, when you and Alex are both home. I can go to sleep early and then take care of the cubs during the day. They should get into a regular sleep schedule a few months after they’re born if they’re anything like Alex was...” Raenne said, having already thought about it a bit. Her tail twitched anxiously as she waited for her husband to start objecting. “So maybe this summer, depending on how the cubs are doing.”
“Have you started looking for a location yet?” David asked, more curious than critical. “I haven’t seen any empty business buildings here that we could rent. Definitely not along the main street where the diner and arcade are...” the white tiger added, reaching up with one paw to scratch the thick ruff of fur along the underside of his cheek. When his wife didn’t answer immediately, he continued “I could help you look if you want. But what if we don’t find a place we can rent? Did you want to buy some land and build a gym on it?”
Raenne’s tail went still, more than a bit surprised at how supportive her husband was being. The thought of building her own dojo hadn’t occurred to her. A vision of the Toshodai-ji kondo in Nara, Japan flashed through her mind. Something like that would be impossibly expensive to build. Then again, with modern building materials... she frowned in thought and took another spoonful of soup.
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Monday, Dec. 21st, 2015
David winced as loose paper and curses filled the air. His wife was becoming more and more frustrated, and understandably so. All three architecture firms in the Winter Creek and Prairie Flats area had declined their unusual request, stating that it was something that they were ‘unequipped to handle’. The dozen or so private architects they'd called up had said pretty much the same, if they answered their phones at all. That was expected though, as most of them were probably on vacation right now. The only hint of assistance they'd gotten so far was from the one firm actually in Winter Creek, which had sent them a list of the required design factors and items required for the building plan review, which was more than they’d been able to find online.
Unfortunately, neither of the two tigers had any clue what the listed design factors meant. Seismic Zone, exposure, roof snow load, wind load, frost depth, ground snow load... the list seemed to go on and on. Looking some of it up online had enlightened them as to the basics, but the real meat of the calculations were... complicated. They were going to have to either spend a few months reading textbooks on architectural engineering, or hire someone from out of town, maybe even out of state, to do it for them.
“Love, are you absolutely sure that it has to be a Japanese style building?” David asked hesitantly. He'd already asked twice now, and wasn't sure if asking a third time was going to put him in the proverbial dog house, but at this point he couldn't see any chance of this project happening. “I mean, we already looked at that empty shop downtown, and it wouldn't be that-”
“Shut. Up,” came the angry response from the dining room. Raenne's black and orange striped tail twitched behind her like an angry snake. For a moment, the house was silent, with neither of the two tigers wanting to make the situation worse with an argument.
Raenne curled her paws into tight fists, barely noticing as her claw-tips dug into her palms. After a moment she pushed her chair back from the dining room table and stood up. She stretched a moment, bemoaning her all-too-obvious pregnancy, and decided to take out some of her frustrations in a more constructive fashion than throwing paper around.
Anyone except her husband would probably have said she was irritated, watching her stalk across the living room and pulling open the door that led down to the garage. David, however, knew from over a decade of marriage that his wife was absolutely furious. She'd been making calls for two days now, trying to find anyone that could help them.
David knew that funding would be an issue; a japanese style building would probably be expensive. The money that they had in their money market account wouldn’t go very far towards financing a custom built dojo, so he fully expected they would need a business loan. That they had any money in savings at all was all due to the settlement they’d won, and having turned enough profit on their old home to buy the new one outright.
A few moments later he heard several loud thumps coming from the garage; the sound of his wife beating the hell out of the punching bag they'd hung from the support beams in the garage. He chewed on his lower lip, wondering if there was anything he could do that might help calm his wife down. Alex would have, except that shi was currently two thousand miles away, visiting hir best friend back in Tualatin now that it was winter break.
Frowning, the monochrome tiger picked up the book sitting on the dining table in front of him, one he'd found in the local hardware store on their self-help shelf. It was almost as old as he was, but the mathematics of structural and mechanical engineering didn't exactly change. It couldn't be that hard to write a computer program that would calculate wind load and roof snow load, once he figured out the equations.
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An hour later, Raenne found herself wandering through downtown Winter Creek. How she'd gotten there was kind of a haze, but at least she'd had the sense of mind to throw on a coat, gloves, and hiking boots over her usual flannel shirt and khakis. That was definitely a good thing since the sidewalks were starting to become slippery. The bad thing was that she’d had an anger-induced blackout and didn’t even know if she’d driven or walked here. She made a mental note to find a therapist.
The reason for slippery sidewalks was obvious: snow. Just enough to dust everything in white. The cold didn't bother her, but the snow and ice could be bad. It would probably be best if she headed home now, before it became downright dangerous. She didn’t want to risk even a sprained ankle, and slipping and falling while in her third trimester could potentially be much, much worse.
The downtown strip that she had found herself on was a riot of colorful store-fronts, all of them flush against the sidewalk and barely an inch of space between them. Some were single-story, some two-story, but none any taller. If she had to guess, there was probably some stupid local ordinance limiting the height of buildings. Some towns in Oregon had such laws. Corvallis, for example, prohibited buildings taller than the courthouse in the downtown area.
The storefronts were about as colorful as you could imagine. White and pink, yellow and teal, red and yellow, olive and beige, brown and brick, and more. Everywhere she looked was some other combination. Video arcade, hardware store, florist, diner... all of them had the same style of building but wildly different color schemes.
That was when she spotted a store-front with the sign ‘Aunt Alice's Sweets and Treats’. The shop looked like some kind of bakery, and now that she was thinking about it, smelled like one too. Hmm. Going home could wait a few more minutes. Actually, maybe if they had someplace to sit inside she could simply call her husband and have him come pick her up. If they didn't, well... it wasn't that cold. Not for someone whose ancestors came from northern Russia. But right now, she could kill for a decent pastry. Well, not literally. Probably.
Being careful not to slip on the snow, the tall tigress walked over to the front door of the bakery, turned the doorknob, and pushed it open. A bell hanging above the inside of the door jingled slightly, and the mustelid behind the register looked up as she stepped in. Raenne didn’t meet her gaze; she was too busy ogling the incredible variety of baked goods concealed in the tiny store.
The shop had that small-town mom and pop store feel, with a couple of tables and chairs on one side, and a glass display that ran the length of the store on the other. There were so many different baked goods on display that she couldn't name more than a quarter of them, and the smell, dear Lord, the smell... if she didn't know better she'd have thought she'd died and gone to heaven.
Practically salivating, she walked along the display, stunned at how many varieties of baked goods they had. The combinations of shapes and sizes, frostings and toppings, were incredible. Spotting something that looked interesting, a piece of pastry that looked like it had been braided, glazed, and topped with powdered sugar, she looked up, only to see the cashier had been following her progress with a smile and was right there in front of her.
“Good afternoon, and welcome,” the pine marten greeted the tigress as she approached the register. “Anything in particular you're looking for? Or would you prefer to browse a bit more first?”
“No, I was just browsing. This thing right here looks good though,” Raenne said, pointing at the twist. “Does it have any filling in it, or is it just glazed?” the tigress asked, glancing up and spotting the woman’s name tag that read ‘Allison’.
“Both, actually,” Allison replied with a smile. “We make them with several fruit fillings as well as plain glazed, chocolate filled and Bavarian cream filled.”
“What kind of fruit fillings? Any interesting flavors?” Raenne asked cautiously. Right now she was craving something fruity. At least she hadn't reached the point of begging her husband for pickles with shrimp-flavored ice cream or something bizarre like that. Yet.
Allison chuckled slightly, her smile growing a bit wider. “Yes, we do. Ever since the private high school down in Prairie Flats started that weird sex-ed class we've been getting some... odd requests. In fact my girls should be just about finished with a batch of, well, less traditional fruit filling combinations.”
The tigress blinked at the mention of high school sexual education, then narrowed her eyes. “What exactly do you mean by ‘weird’ sex-ed classes?" she asked. “And do you happen to have anything with mango or papaya?”
"Well... unconventional, I should have said. Like any other class of that type they cover the usual topics. But to me having barely teenage girls going around in those... " she said trailing off.
"Sim-suits, mom," a younger-looking pine marten said as she emerged from the back of the shop with a large tray of the twists in her paws, wearing a name tag that read ‘Michelle’. “They're called simulation suits. Seriously mother,” the teenaged girl said, rolling her eyes. “It's not that crazy of an idea for a girl to experience what can happen if she's not careful.”
“Maybe not, but the whole idea of pairing them up with a pretend mate for a year, and those robotic infants... tell me you don't think that's way off the wall?” the older marten asked.
“Not to me it isn't,” said another young pine marten with the name tag ‘Malinda’, emerging from the back as well. This one was practically a mirror image of the first girl. “Michelle thinks it's a little strange, but honestly if they had done this class two years ago, maybe Candy and Teresa wouldn't be in the mess they are now. Here's the last batch of the twists: persimmon, mango, passion fruit, and pineapple.”
Raenne was guessing the sim-suits were some crazy way to simulate pregnancy. It was probably a good idea for high schoolers, actually. Right now though... she hadn't had persimmon since going to Japan for her 4th-dan belt test. “Is that Japanese or American persimmon? Actually, it doesn't matter,” the tigress said, waving her hand. “I'll take one.”
“Yes ma'am,” Malinda said, sliding the tray of sweets into the display case before picking up a pair of tongs, plucking one of the confections from the tray, and placing it on a small stoneware plate. “Mom, I know you and a lot of the other parents think having the kids paired up like that is strange,” the younger marten said as she placed the order on the counter, “But look at it this way: is it better for them to find out now at least some of what it means to be a couple, and parents? Or is it better to just have it slap them in the muzzle when they mess up?”
Looking over at the tigress and rolling her eyes Allison asked, “Will there be anything else today, ma'am?”
“No, that's it. Thank you,” Raenne said, pulling a wallet out of her small purse. “I’m curious though... How do they handle children who are intersex or LGBT?”
Malinda looked back at the tigress. “Actually, that's one of the cool things about the class. If two kids in school are already dating or whatever, they can pair up. If not, then they find someone in their class to pair up with.”
“Herms or ‘non-standard’ types,” the other twin chimed in, throwing up air quotes for emphasis, “can pair up with whoever they want. Prairie Flats Prep does well where gender is concerned.”
“Interesting. My oldest won't be in high school for a couple more years,” Raenne said, handing over a ten dollar bill. “Oh, and by the way... Do you happen to know anyone in town that might be able to help with unusual building designs and construction? I've called practically every architect and firm in the phone directory and they're all unwilling or unable to help.”
Allison paused for a moment to enter the order details in the register before answering. “Sebastian Mendelssohn. If anyone here can handle unusual architecture, it’s him. He designed that spaceship house, over near Golden,” she explained. “He's a regular customer, always bugging me about a new design for the shop too. The town council would never approve a giant cupcake in the middle of downtown, though.”
Raenne blinked again. It was almost as if she'd been drawn here by fate. She hadn't seen his name in the phone directory, and she would have remembered it; she loved classical music. “Thank you very, very much. But... What was that about a town council? I thought you just submit a copy of the building plans to the city and if it’s up to code, you get a permit.”
“Generally speaking it should be that simple. But someone on the council has an asinine idea about what is and isn't acceptable in downtown. Folks around town say it’s because whoever it is with a feather up their butt doesn't want downtown looking tourist-trappy. I bet it's just one of the three old farts on the council that want the town to look like it did sixty years ago,” the pine marten replied while retrieving the correct change from the till and printing out a receipt, then quickly scribbling some contact information on the back.
If Raenne were even remotely inclined to believe in providence, fate, or destiny; she'd have taken this as a sign from God. As it was, she took it as incredibly good luck. She took out an extra twenty and dropped it and the change in the tip jar, keeping the slip of paper with Sebastian's information. “Do you think he'll be available this time of day?” the tigress asked, picking up the plate and pastry.
“If he's not passed out in a food-coma,” one of the twin martens piped up as they walked back towards the kitchen area of the bakery.
With a snicker Allison added, “He should be. The last project that he finished was over a year ago. He doesn't take on many projects these days. Most people aren't open to his ideas, or his ways of doing things. Just tell him Alli sent you. If what you have in mind gets him going, he'll help make it happen.”
“Thank you very much,” Raenne said once again, taking the pastry and walking over to one of the small tables. She snagged a couple of napkins from the dispenser in the middle of the table and sat down, then picked up the twist to take a bite. Normally she didn’t have much of a sweet-tooth, but the honey and cinnamon hints in the persimmon jam filling tasted absolutely divine. Hopefully her taste buds would return to normal after her own twins were no longer living rent-free in her belly. Last night she'd eaten three hot dogs covered in sweet relish... and she normally hated sweet relish.
“My God. So good,” Raenne muttered to herself, taking yet another bite. It was just what she'd been wanting. Or rather, one of the things she'd been wanting. The other thing was written down on the back of the slip of paper sitting on the table. She read his information, which included a phone number along with his name and address, and quickly pulled out her phone and dialed it.
Sebastian Mendelssohn was just pouring himself a cup of Earl Grey tea when the phone began to ring. With a slight frown at the interruption he set down the teapot and retrieved the handset, saying, “Mendelssohn residence. To whom do I have the displeasure of forgoing my tea to speak with?”
“Uh... My name is Raenne Andreyev. My apologies for interrupting your tea, Mr. Mendolssohn. If this is a bad time I can call you back later,” the tigress said, not wanting to make a bad first impression.
“Quite the contrary madame. However, if you would indulge an old mink for a moment whilst I retrieve my cup, you may bend my ear for as long as you see fit.” Without waiting for a response he laid the phone handset on the kitchen counter and walked across the room, returning a moment later with a cup of tea in hand. Taking the receiver in his paw and bringing it to his ear again, he spoke. “Now, Miss Andreyev, to what do I owe the pleasure of hearing such a wonderful voice?”
Taken aback by the formal tone, Raenne paused for a second before answering. “I was given your contact information by a kind lady named Alli, here at the bakery in Winter Creek. Me and my husband moved here this summer, and I’ve had no luck finding a place to teach martial arts. There's one empty shop here that could be remodeled, but I’d like something larger and less... ummm... tacky. I was hoping to build a Japanese dojo, but none of the architects or firms here are willing to help.”
After listening quietly as the woman explained the situation Sebastian raised an eyebrow and took a shallow breath. “A dojo in Winter Creek? An interesting proposition, unless you are speaking of yet another of those appalling excuses for a martial arts academy that seem to spring up in Prairie Flats like weeds.” He fell silent for a moment, pondering the challenge the woman was posing. “Now something more traditional and in keeping with the heritage of the arts, that would be something far more interesting.”
“I was thinking of something like the Toshodai-ji kondo, but on a smaller scale,” Raenne said, casually dropping the name of the UNESCO World Heritage Site, one of the ancient Buddhist temples built during the Nara period in Japan. “Now that I think about it, that may be why the other people we've called have declined. Alli here said something about the council refusing to grant permits for buildings that didn't match the rest of the town's... um... ‘decor’,” she said. Suggesting that the 1960s era buildings even had an architectural style was being generous.
“That may indeed be part of their reason,” the older mink agreed. “Though I would imagine an equally large part lies in the fact that the idiots can’t begin to fathom how they are going to make a design like that meet building code requirements. The traditional Japanese designs are suited for their relatively mild climate, but here in the Rocky Mountains, the higher wind speeds, wind shear forces, and added stress of higher snowfall would be too much for a structure with rice paper walls or a roof made of ceramic tiles.”
“I... uh... actually, my husband was starting to look into that when we realized that nobody else was willing to help. The wind load and snow load stuff, I mean,” the tigress said, forgetting the pastry on her plate as she focused on the conversation. “After I realized how windy it gets around here, I started to wonder if the rice paper walls were even possible. I was thinking of plexiglass with a film over it...”
“An interesting idea, though I have another alternative in mind,” Sebastian replied accompanied by the sound of creaking leather as he sat at his desk. “Tyvek. It's used for many consumer products and packaging. In the housing industry it is used as insulation. Fortunately, I know of a manufacturer that will supply the material without the usual printed markings, and may be able to change the finishing process to mimic rice paper.”
“Isn’t that the material used for hazmat suits?” the tigress asked curiously. “I remember hearing about it when I was in the army. I thought it was always bright white.”
“Yes, it is. The bright white is the standard color, to make damage or cuts more visible, but it can be dyed or printed with any pattern and even textured.” The old mink tapped a pencil on his desk while thinking. “The roof... I’ll have to look into a few things, but I believe that encased steel beams as load bearing members would take care of the weight and wind stress problems.”
“You mean using H-beams for support and putting wood paneling around them?” Raenne asked, skeptically. “I was hoping for log beams, but I suppose given seismic and load bearing requirements...”
“‘Yes’ to using steel beams, but ‘no’ to simply paneling them. There is a local artisan, James... something. His last name escapes me at the moment but I do have his contact info. He's figured out a way to insert steel beams into wooden beams or pillars. What you end up with is the traditional rough-hewn log look, with the increased load and stress bearing capabilities of a steel beam.”
“I've never heard of such a thing,” Raenne muttered. “It’s going to need a basement under the main hall for storage, a changing room, and bathroom. Maybe more. What about kawara? The roofing tiles, I mean,” the tigress asked.
“That I will have to look into a bit further,” the mink replied. “Modern building codes are written for shingles instead of clay or cement tiles, but with sufficient roof support, that it won’t matter. Now, within the downtown Winter Creek area this would be impossible to get past the council, but if your dojo were outside that area... we would have enough leeway to build it with a traditional Japanese design.”
“At first I just wanted it closer to downtown for accessibility. But now that I think about it, being less accessible might be better, but we’ll need a parking lot. If we could find a large enough flat spot, we could include a flagstone courtyard to train outdoors in the summer, surrounded by Japanese cherry trees...” the tigress said wistfully, remembering the place where she’d taken a belt test in Hokkaido.
“That would definitely take some of the pressure off. Current building codes will still need to be met, but being off the main street would eliminate the council's interference. North, or northwest would be a likely area. The slopes are more gentle and there are several nearly flat parcels that may suit your needs,” Sebastian said, a more cheerful tone to his voice.
“Yes, that would probably work...” Raenne mused, before catching herself. “Wait, here I am talking as if this was a done deal. My apologies. It sounds as if you're interested in the project. Would you be willing to take this commission?”
“Interested?” Sebastian asked incredulously, his eyebrows climbing his forehead. “Most definitely, Mrs. Andreyev. But as of yet I have no idea what kind of a budget you would be working with.”
“Half a million,” Raenne said without hesitation. “More if I can get a business loan or convince my husband to help with the finances.”
“Excellent. Give me a day or two to work out some of the details before we meet in the fur and discuss things. That will also give me time to... persuade a few old acquaintances that owe me favors to be more amenable to such a project,” Sebastian said, what almost sounded like a chuckle in his voice. “What is a good number to call you on?”
After giving her cell phone number, Raenne waited a second, then asked the major question that had been on her mind. “Do you think it's possible to build a real dojo out here, on such limited funds?” the tigress asked.
A quiet chuckle escaped Sebastian’s lips before he answered. “One thing you should know, Mrs. Andreyev, is that the better class of architects and building contractors are far more concerned with their reputations than they are with financial gain. I have learned in my time in this area to put some faith in whatever the locals say. They say that the cosmos will provide what we seek, if we're attentive enough to see the opportunities when they come. I have had the good fortune to be witness to that on several occasions.”
“Huh. That sounds like something some of the kids my daughter has been hanging out with might say, or the man who sold us our house. About the cosmos providing what we seek, I mean,” Raenne said, nibbling her lower lip. “If you think it's possible then I shall put my faith in you,” she said. After a few moments she added “Thank you and... Merry Christmas, Mr. Mendelssohn.”
“You are very welcome, and glad tidings for a joyous Yule to you as well. It has been far too long since a project has tickled that part of me that loves a challenge. Believe in your dreams, and we will do our best to make them reality,” After a short pause the mink added, “Good afternoon, Mrs. Andreyev.”
“You as well, Mr. Mendelssohn,” Raenne said, waiting for a moment before hanging up. The mink had sounded both eccentric and professional. She had the feeling that if anyone would manage to make this project a reality, it would be him. The tigress glanced down at the rest of the pastry on the plate in front of her and smiled, picking it up and taking one last delicious bite of her glazed persimmon twist.
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Raenne kicked the snow off her boots and stepped through the side patio entrance into the house, quickly shucking her coat and hanging it on the coat rack behind the door. David followed her inside and joined her in removing their boots.
The white tiger hadn’t said much in the car after picking her up from outside one of the stores downtown, worried that his wife was still angry over his earlier comment. Her tail wasn’t twitching at all, but she was hard to read and he didn’t want to make a bad situation worse. He stayed sitting on the bench near the door for a moment after she stood up and walked over to the dining room table where they’d been researching architecture firms and looking for buildings to rent.
“David... There’s something that I need to tell you. This won’t make sense if I don’t,” the tigress said, sitting down at the table and looking over at her husband. “Other than what happened over spring break, you’ve been a faithful husband and a good father, so... I need to know if you’re going to stay with me for the rest of our lives. Until death do us part,” Raenne said, waiting for a few moments to let that sink in. “Are you?”
David’s mouth hung slack for a moment, remembering the last time she’d told him one of her secrets. The story she’d told him about her childhood earlier that year had changed how he saw her. She wasn’t just a karate teacher and an army veteran; she’d been raised by ruthless criminals, sexually abused by her own family, and murdered people when she’d taken revenge, however justified it may have been. What the hell was she going to say this time?
Figuring he’d better be sitting down for whatever it was, he quickly joined her at the table and reached over to clasp her paws with his. “Raenne... I love you and Alex more than anything else on earth. I would never leave you for anything. I will stay with you for as long as you’ll have me; until death... and whatever lies beyond,” he said, then swallowed before adding, “But whatever it is you need to tell me... That stuff you sprung on me about your childhood... I don’t know if I can handle another surprise like that.”
Reassured, Raenne sat quietly for a moment, wondering just how to tell him about the ‘nest egg’. Actually, his mention of her childhood was probably the best place to start. “Remember that I said I’d wiped the slate clean between my father and me? This is part of that. You know how I pay cash for almost everything, and how I do all our federal and state taxes? Well, I own an LLC that I started long before we met as a way to deposit cash in the bank that would otherwise get me investigated by the IRS or FBI. See, a small business can deposit about half their revenue in cash before it becomes suspicious. So I deposit most checks I receive to the LLC account along with a roughly equal amount of cash and report it all as taxable revenue. It’s a form of money laundering. And I have a lot of cash that needs to be laundered.”
David swallowed, feeling sweat seep from the pores under his fur. His heart began to pound. “Where... where are you getting the cash? How much?” he asked, his mouth suddenly bone dry.
“I’ve had it all along. It’s drug money that I stole from my father, after I got out of the army,” Raenne answered, ears flat against her head and staring down at the table. “I... I don’t know how much there is. I never bothered counting, since it’s mostly worthless until it’s laundered. Over the past twelve years I’ve deposited around three thousand of it a month. The rest is in the gun cases under our bed, hidden under the foam padding.”
David felt his stomach flip. He quickly stood up and darted over to the kitchen sink before heaving his guts up. The white tiger flipped on the water and hosed the sulfurous stinking mess down the disposal, then cupped his hands under the faucet and spent a minute lapping up water until he’d washed the taste out of his mouth. He turned around to look at his wife who was still sitting at the kitchen table. She looked... sad.
“I’m sorry, love. I know it’s a shock. There’s more to the story, but... that’s the gist of it,” Raenne apologized when it appeared that her husband had gotten himself back under control. “I wouldn’t have told you, except that I managed to find an architect, Sebastian Mendelssohn, who’s willing to try building a dojo. A real one, like the ancient Buddhist temples in Japan, made with log beams, ceramic roof tiles, rice paper walls, and a flagstone courtyard surrounded by cherry trees. It’s probably going to be... expensive. I’ll be paying for it using the LLC account.”
David walked back over to the table and sat down. He felt exhausted and shaky, like he’d just finished a half-marathon. He also felt numb, discovering he’d literally been sleeping on a pile of stolen drug money for over a decade. “Does your father know that you stole it?”
Raenne shook her head. “I don’t think so. It was only a small part of the loose cash in the sorting room. I’ve talked to him and mother once or twice a year using burner phones and he’s never mentioned it.”
The white tiger sat in silence and stared out the huge glass windows in the front of the house behind his wife, watching the snow fall. Perhaps a minute later he said “A Japanese temple, complete with cherry trees, in the mountains of Colorado.” He snorted at the absurdity of it, then smiled and met his wife’s gaze. “It sounds beautiful.”
__________________________________________________
David shut the lock on the gun case sitting on the bed, still reeling over the sight of literally tens of thousands of dollars in loose cash, all crudely bundled with rubber bands. “You mentioned teaching evening classes, while Alex and I are home to take care of the twins. Maybe... would it be better if we were there too?” the tiger asked as he set the gun case on the floor and shoved it back under the bed. “You know, to help as instructors? Alex would make for a good sparring partner for younger students and I could work with larger students, like equines. We’d need a place for the cubs that’s soundproofed though. A lounge or something...”
Raenne paused for a moment, tugging off her flannel overshirt before peeling off the tank-top she wore under it. “If you want to help out, then I’m certainly not going to say no, but instructing is a job, and I’m not going to force Alex to do a job shi doesn’t want. Helping to take care of the cubs is a family thing, so sure, but-”
“No, you’re absolutely right,” David interrupted as he peeled off the turtleneck he was wearing, tossed it in the hamper, and began taking his pants off. “But shi’s been asking about getting an actual allowance ever since we moved out here.”
Raenne undid the velcro on the waist of her khaki maternity pants and let them drop to the floor, then looked at her husband with a calculating expression. “That’s... a really good idea. Teaching hir the value of money at an early age...”
David nodded as he paused at the side of the bed, dropping his boxers and picking them up with his toes before flinging them into the hamper near the door. He pulled down the coverlet and slid into the bed, watching as his wife took off the panties she was wearing and did the same. She was still the most beautiful woman he’d ever seen, even carrying twins in her third trimester. If anything, it made her that much more beautiful. He felt his length harden and glanced down at his waist for a second before looking back up at his wife as she slid into bed next to him. “Think you’re up for some shenanigans? Tomfoolery? Maybe even horseplay? Or... monkey business?”
“Nerd,” Raenne snerked. “Yes. Just be gentle; It’s forty minutes to the nearest hospital, so if you break my water...” she warned him.
“I’ll be extra careful, love. I don’t want that any more than you do,” the white tiger said, rolling over and planting a kiss on his wife’s cheek, then rolled back over to pull a jar of coconut oil out of the nightstand drawer. He twisted the lid off and scraped a half teaspoon or so out using a claw, then set the jar back while waiting for it to melt in his paw before slathering it over his rapidly hardening penis. Then glanced over at his wife. Usually she’d have rolled over by now. “What... oh. Is it the babies? I didn’t even think about that. It’s gotta be uncomfortable to lay face-down while pregnant.”
“Kinda,” the tigress replied, snagging another pillow and setting it against the headboard before pushing herself up a bit.
“Do you want-” David started to ask, pausing as his wife held her hand up.
“Why don’t you try the front?” Raenne asked, wanting to see if her efforts to prepare for the twin’s birth were making any difference. It would probably still be uncomfortable given that her husband had by far the biggest dick of any pure-blood feline she’d ever seen.
“Are you sure?” the white tiger asked, raising an eyebrow. His penis sagged a bit; he didn’t want to risk hurting his wife, and she was even smaller down there than their daughter.
“Yeah. Just don’t go very deep. Same as you would for Alex,” Raenne confirmed, spreading her legs and gently running one finger-pad around the damp lips of her vulva. Having feral feline anatomy down there was frustrating, but she was pretty sure the stretching was helping.
“If you’re sure,” David said, swallowing. “Just... tell me if it hurts at all and I’ll stop. Okay?”
Raenne rolled her eyes; it wasn’t like she was made of porcelain. “Yes, I’m sure.”
David climbed over his wife, kneeling between her legs, then cautiously ran the tip of his penis up and down over his wife’s damp pussy. Ever since she’d become pregnant, she’d been surprisingly willing to have sex, and even initiated it a few times. He hoped it persisted after their birth.
The pointed tip of his dick slid into her with hardly any effort; it was the rest of his dick that was problematic. He gently swirled his hips while applying steady pressure, gradually sliding further and further into her, shocked at how easy it was this time. The warm pressure around his length was absolutely heavenly. “Huh. Those dildos you’re using are making a difference.”
The tigress grinned, showing fangs. “I was hoping they would,” she said, using her hands to gently massage her tender breasts and gently tug the nipples. They were even more swollen now than they had been at the end of her first pregnancy. After a few moments a tiny dribble of milk damped her fingertips.
David continued to swirl his hips, his length sliding further into his wife. It was easier this time than he’d ever remembered it being before, but she was still tight enough that he was glad he’d used a generous amount of lube. After he was about three inches deep, he changed his technique to the more traditional thrusting motion, and leaned forward slightly, laying his palms on his wife’s belly. The twins were typically most active when she was lying still, but calmed down if there was gentle motion like walking... or when they were having sex.
Another minute later, both of them were panting and David had about two thirds of his length buried in his wife; as deep as he’d ever gotten except for a few accidents that he never wanted to repeat. He stopped when he felt his tip hit something that didn’t slide to the side and pulled back a bit. “Sorry.”
Raenne didn’t reply, but she looked up at him with her mouth open as she panted and gave him a slow blink, then closed her eyes as she focused on massaging her tits, which had grown quite damp.
“At least it looks like we won’t need formula,” David muttered, glancing down at his wife’s breasts. He started to pick up the pace and switched to longer strokes, relishing how much easier this was now that his wife had started preparing for the upcoming birth. “How are you doing? Feel okay?”
“More than okay,” Raenne said, panting. “I wish I’d done this ten years ago. It’s uncomfortable, ‘cause you’ve got a goddamn tree trunk for a dick, but it doesn’t hurt. Thank God, cause I don’t like anal.”
“You don’t?” David asked, raising an eyebrow. “I-”
“Hell no, I don’t,” she spat. “It’s just more tolerable than vaginal ‘cause I’m as small as a feral down there,” she said, then grinned again. “Actually, I really like having sex with Alex since shi’s not hung like a horse... yet,” she added ruefully. Then she pursed her lips. “But if I continue with the stretching stuff, it should become just as good with you.”
“Sorry,” David said bashfully, then resumed thrusting, careful not to go too deep. He moved one paw down between them and gently ran his thumb over the top of his wife’s vulva where her clit would have been if not for the heritage trait that made her more ‘feline’ down there than most. The nerve endings were still there, just buried a bit deeper inside.
“Oh, that’s perfect. Keep doing that,” Raenne said as she continued to massage her tits, and wrapped her legs around her husband’s waist.
Several minutes passed with the sounds of pants and squelching filling the room, David maintaining a slow and steady pace while gently massaging her with the pad on his thumb. His wife came first with a growl, her pussy clamping down tight around his length. He continued for a few more seconds before his own orgasm hit and he pushed himself forward, holding still as his penis twitched within her, spraying streams of cum. A few moments later he pulled back out, watching a rivulet of semen drip out of her and down onto her tail.
“That was good,” Raenne said, breathing deeply for a moment before sighing. “Really good, actually. Go again?”
David’s eyebrows shot upwards. “Again?”
“Yes, again,” the tigress confirmed, her tail thrashing under them in irritation. “What, are you some kind of one-shot wonder? Even Alex can go at least twice.”
“You usually don’t want-”
“Just fuck me again, damnit. I liked the tempo you had there.”
__________________________________________________
Raenne stepped back out of the bathroom, fur fluffed from the shower dryer, walking awkwardly with the base of the dildo visible between her legs through the panties she was wearing to keep it in place. She’d switched to a slightly larger size tonight, up to the fourth of six that she had purchased in order to prepare for the twins. They weren’t due for another month, so with any luck she’d be used to the largest one by then and have an easy birth. She had no interest in repeating the agony she’d gone through with Alex. The tigress lay down on the bed next to her husband with a sigh.
“Just one more month, love,” David said quietly, reaching over and running his paw over her shoulder. He reached over and turned the light off, then rolled back to face his wife, draping one arm over her chest and pulling her close for a kiss. “Goodnight,” he said, snuggling against her.
“Goodnight, love,” Raenne said, smiling to herself in the darkness and thinking over the events of the day. David had handled this particular bombshell, finding out about the ‘nest egg’, better than she’d expected. Hopefully they would never have to deal with the last one.
__________________________________________________
Friday, December 25th, 2015
Raenne hung up the phone with a smile on her muzzle, then leaned against her husband. Apparently Alex was having a good time visiting Elizabeth. “Well, Lizzy got a pet cat. Think we can convince Alex to adopt the feral we’ve been feeding?”
David shook his head. “No way in hell. You remember how shi panicked the first night it showed up. Besides, it’s far too skittish. We could trap it and take it to a shelter though.”
Raenne nodded. “That’s a good idea.”
“Okay then. I’ll drop by the hardware store tomorrow, if they’re open. I think I saw a pair of racoon traps over there that might work,” the tiger said, gently running his claws through the fur on the back of his wife’s neck. “Are you growing out your head-fur?” he asked.
“Yeah. Alex is doing it too. It looks a bit strange when it’s long, with the stripes and such, so I might get it dyed black. Or bleached white,” the tigress replied. “Russet would be boring.”
David leaned back and looked his wife over, trying to imagine her with black hair or white hair. He shook his head. “I dunno. I’d say... let Alex dye hir hair first. If whatever shi does looks good, then you can do the same,” he reasoned, then leaned back against his wife, draping his arm across her shoulders.
The tigress snorted in amusement. “Knowing hir she’s going to get neon orange or purple or something. I’ll have to keep a geiger counter handy to make shi’s not too radioactive to handle.”
The white tiger chuckled, then leaned his head against his wife’s, watching the flames flicker in the faux fireplace they’d mounted on the wall opposite the sofa. “Merry Christmas, love.”
__________________________________________________
Monday, December 28th, 2015
Raenne cautiously pulled open the door to the little italian bistro, trying not to slip on the thin layer of snow that dusted the sidewalk just in front. It seemed strange to meet for a business luncheon at such a... well... she hesitated to call it a dive, but it seemed awfully small from the outside. Once the door closed behind her, she relaxed, taking a deep breath...and suddenly realized exactly why they’d chosen this place for lunch. The rich smell of ripe tomatoes, Italian sausage, and fresh garlic convinced her that, if anything, this was going to have some absolutely amazing spaghetti. She was going to have to take Alex here at some point.
A moment later, the door swung open again behind her as her husband entered as well. He quickly shucked his blazer, hanging it on one of the hooks just inside the door, and took her coat as well. Both of the tigers looked around, admiring the decor. It was highly reminiscent of an old-country Italian farmhouse, like you might see in the movies. Several small booths lined the walls, and dark, polished mahogany tables and chairs filled the space between. Despite the frigid weather and dusting of snow outside, the place was nearly packed.
Before either of them could do much else, a brown bear waitress walked up to them. “You must be Mr. and Mrs. Andreyev, yes?”
“Yes,” David confirmed, nodding.
“Excellent. Please follow me,” the waitress said, leading the two tigers to a small room off to one side. Just inside was a long table, capable of seating ten people with ease. A mink in a business suit, who they knew to be Sebastian Mendelssohn, was already seated at the table along with three other people that neither of them had met yet.
As the pair of tigers neared their table Sebastian cocked his head to the side. “I believe our potential clients have arrived gentlemen and lady,” the old mink said, rising from his seat and nodding at the approaching couple. As the tigers drew close he smiled broadly. “Sebastian Mendelssohn, and a pleasure to see you at last Mrs. Andreyev,” he said, offering his paw to Raenne. “And Mr. Andreyev I would presume?” he added nodding to the larger tiger as he shook paws with the tigress.
Before either of them could respond he continued, “The slightly constipated looking old grump to my left is Aaron Reynolds,” he said, pointing at a golden falcon, “who will be your general contractor if the terms can be hashed out. At the risk of his head swelling too large for the doorway, he’s one of the area’s best and most detail-oriented building professionals.”
Turning slightly he gestured towards a honey badger seated to his right. “That cantankerous old bag of fur and claws is James Brady, a talented perfectionist that works magic when it comes to combining materials to acquire the desired look. The toothpick to his right is Erin Dewitt, one of Winter Creek’s most studious and pig-headed building inspectors.” Each of the small group nodded in acknowledgment as they were introduced, but only the meerkat actually responded.
“Overlook Mr. Mendelssohn,” the slender, dark haired meerkat said, smiling at the pair of much larger tigers. “He’s a wonder at design and making impossible things a reality, but he has the social grace of a brick,” she said, offering her diminutive paw to the tigress. “It would have been nice,” she added, leaning her head to the side and cutting a glance at the aforementioned mink, “if you had mentioned that Mrs. Andreyev was expecting, you old briar patch bunny.”
“It’s not his fault,” Raenne interrupted. “I didn’t tell him over the phone, and this is the first time we’re meeting in person,” she said, taking the slender meerkat’s hand. “It’s a pleasure to meet you all.”
“Likewise,” the white tiger beside her said, offering his own hand to each of the others one by one, giving them a firm handshake. Once that was over with, he pulled a chair out for his wife and helped her take a seat before taking his own.
“Thank you all very much for at least taking the time to hear us out,” Raenne started. “We’ve asked pretty much every other architect here and in Prairie Flats, with no success. If it weren’t for Mrs. Allison over at the bakery introducing me to Mr. Mendelssohn, we’d have given up hope. From everything I’ve heard, you’re the only ones who might be able to do this project at all.”
Just as she finished speaking, the waitress appeared at her side with a pair of thin leather booklets. “Here are your menus. Do either of you want anything to drink, besides water?”
The orange tigress shook her head. “Just water, thank you.”
The white tiger glanced at the menu. “Chianti, please. Montepulciano d’Abruzzo if you have it, or another Sicilian red if you don’t. Grazi.”
The waitress nodded and vanished back into the larger dining room once again, leaving them to continue their conversation.
“I have to thank you as well, Mrs. Andreyev,” the golden falcon spoke up as the tigers settled into their seats. “When Sebastian called to pester me I was shocked. When he told me he had a potential project it didn’t even get a blink outta me. Until he told me what it was, then I thought he was pulling my leg. A traditional Japanese dojo, in the Winter Creek area? Swear to God, I thought he’d finally lost his mind.”
Raenne blushed slightly. When put that way, it definitely seemed outlandish. But she really didn’t want to teach karate in a warehouse or gym again. It just felt wrong. Like teaching a history class on a basketball court. “Well, at first I was thinking of renovating a shop here in town, but I realized it just wasn’t the right fit. Not for me, the students I’d like to have, or the town. I need a place where students can practice, spar, or meditate without distractions. I want a place that emphasizes the traditions of shotokan karate as a means of self-improvement and honors the history and culture of Japan that created it. I don’t want to deal with soccer moms looking for daycares or to train brutes spoiling for a fight; I want to train students of any age who are there of their own volition seeking genuine enlightenment...” The tigress trailed off, realizing that she'd interrupted them and glanced down at the table with her ears going flat with embarrassment. “I’m ranting. Sorry.”
“For what?” the honey badger asked, raising one eyebrow slightly. “For having a dream and speaking it? No ma’am, don't be sorry for something like that. Fur face told me what you have in mind. Sounds like one hell of a challenge, but this old badger never backs down from a challenge.”
“That I can attest to,” Erin Dewitt chimed in. “Thirty years is it now?” she asked, the older badger nodding his assent. “Not once have I ever known you to not complete a project James, on time if not before.”
“True enough,” Aaron Reynolds added. “This time a lot of this is going to ride on your back James. My guys can handle the construction, no doubt about it. The real question is whether or not you can brainiak up materials that will work, pass the building codes, and not look butt ugly.”
Raenne nodded. Since she’d had time to think about it, she’d realized that was exactly the case. “Getting materials that will look like traditional rice paper walls, tatami mats, cherry wood beams, ceramic tiles, and the rest, and still meet the wind load, snow load, and other building requirements is going to be difficult. If Sebastian hadn’t brought up Tyvek, I wouldn’t think it would be possible at all. I’m still worried that it won’t be insulating enough for a rocky mountain winter. Even if it is possible, I have no idea if our budget will be sufficient for a size-able single-story traditional Japanese style building with a basement, parking lot, and flagstone courtyard. Much less for one that has a smaller second level and an open atrium like the old Buddhist temples,” the tigress said.
“With the right people involved anything is possible,” Sebastian said with a chuckle. “Now as I told all of you, one of Mrs. Andreyev’s biggest concerns is staying within her budget...”
“Budget my big furry ass,” James scoffed. “A friggin’ Japanese dojo in these mountains isn’t going to make any kind of damn budget and you know it.” Turning to Aaron he asked, “if, and I mean if I can come up with the primary structural members to meet the codes and look right, can you and your crew handle the rest of it? And keep it as close to true traditional Japanese architecture? Materials and all?”
David didn’t say anything, but he completely agreed with the honey badger and appreciated the honesty. Unscrupulous contractors regularly underbid a project and left it unfinished if the client couldn’t cough up the additional funds. While they had more than the half million his wife had budgeted, if the bid was much higher, it was possible they wouldn’t be able to cover any unexpected expenses.
“You figure out how to keep it standing and my guys and I will worry about making it look right,” Aaron said slightly indignantly, his feathers fluffing up. “Besides, Erin is going to be up our asses every inch of the way.”
“Like it should be any other way?” the meerkat queried, cocking her head to the side. “The last time I turned my back on you lot for ten minutes, we ended up with some joker intentionally building the kitchen area upside down. I still want to know how the hell you managed that one.”
“So the one remaining question, to my thinking,” Sebastian said, leaning back in his seat, “is exactly where are we going to place this masterpiece?”
“You said on the phone that you had a few ideas for places that would be up north in the mountains,” Raenne said quietly to Sebastian. “I know the town’s rather particular about making sure buildings fit with the rest of the, uhhh, decor here, but if it’s far enough away and had tall pine trees around to hide it, nobody would object.”
“I don’t know about him,” Erin interjected, “but I know of one place that would be perfect. Three miles outside of town on the east side of Winter Creek.”
“Really?” Raenne asked. “We live on the east side, at the northeast edge of Aspen Glen.”
“That’s convenient,” Erin said with a smile, then frowned. “There’s just one thing we may have to deal with.”
“Charles? What makes you think he would be a problem?” James inquired, placing his elbows on the table before him and resting his chin on his intertwined paws.
“I didn’t say he would be a problem, only that we would have to deal with him,” the meerkat corrected. “There’s no way to get around it; he has the perfect piece of real estate for this one.”
Raenne was looking around the table, waiting for someone to give her a clue as to who this Charles person was. When nobody said anything for a few moments, she spoke up. “Who, exactly, is Charles?”
Before anyone else could speak up, the waitress returned once again, this time with a tray, a bottle of red wine, a goblet, and a glass of water. Without speaking she set the glasses down in front of the two tigers and held out the bottle of wine. “Will this suit, sir?” she asked.
David glanced at the label and raised his eyes. “I take it you didn’t have the Montepulciano d'Abruzzo. This, however, is much, much better. I approve.”
“Excellent,” she said, setting it down and pulling out a corkscrew. A moment later she was pouring the glass of wine for him, then left the bottle on the table. “Are you all ready to order?” she asked. When both the tigers nodded, she asked “What would you two like for lunch,” she asked, pulling out a notepad.
“I smelled garlic and Italian sausage,” the russet tigress said. “If you happen to have a garlic and Italian sausage ragu and farfalle to serve it on, that would be perfect.”
“I believe we do,” the brown bear said, scribbling quickly. “And you, sir?” she asked the white tiger next. “I’ll have the same,” he replied, handing their menus to the waitress.
“I believe it is safe to assume the rest of us are ready for our meals now, correct? I know I certainly am,” James chimed in, a slight smile coming to his muzzle.
“If you would be so kind my good lady,” Sebastian said, nodding to their waitress. “We do appreciate the patience of your staff this afternoon for holding our orders and apologize for any inconvenience we have caused.”
“Charles,” Erin said after the waitress departed, answering the tigress’s earlier question, “would be Charles Weynesmyer, a local resident of some standing. Some say he’s akin to the unofficial mayor of Winter Creek.”
“Not sure about that,” James piped up, “but I do know he’s pagan and that he owns that land east of Winter Creek. I tried to get it from him a few years ago; planned to build a workshop there. Wouldn’t sell it to me though; kept saying he was ‘waiting for the one the Mother had ordained it for’ or some such crap,” he said, making air quotes and shaking his head.
“Charles, or as the locals call him more often, Star Dreamer, is an odd one. But a fairer person I’ve yet to meet,” Aaron added. “If that one falls through, there is another spot about a mile further out that would be nearly as perfect. That one I know we can get on the low side.”
Raenne glanced at her husband upon hearing the name Star Dreamer. “I think I’ve heard that name before...” Raenne said. “Star Dreamer, that is. I think Alex mentioned it at some point. I don’t remember how it came up though.”
“Alex said shi and Azalea talked with him in the diner a month ago or so, back when Azalea moved. This was back when shi was scared silly over the feral we’ve been feeding, saying it was a fey spirit,” David replied before holding the goblet of wine up to his nose for a moment and then taking a sip of it.
“Oh, right. She’s been hanging out with a group of pagans at school,” Raenne said with a shrug, as if to say ‘what am I supposed to do?’.
Looking at the two tigers with a slightly shocked expression on her face, the meerkat said “if your daughter has mentioned him and she’s hanging out with the local pagan kids, I’m kind of surprised that you haven’t already met that old hair bag of a polar bear.”
“I think that’s a recent thing. Since Halloween,” Raenne replied. “Anyway, that’s besides the point. If this Star Dreamer... Charles... has the property you all are thinking about building this on, it would probably be best if we talk to him about it. Unless you all think you can convince him to sell it yourselves.”
“I’d like to talk to him regardless,” David said with a frown. “Find out more about this pagan stuff before Alex gets further mixed up with it. All the research I did before we came out here said the people were nice, polite, and very accepting of alternative lifestyles. But there’s dozens of new age religions out there,” he said, quietly adding “and some of them aren’t so nice, polite, or accepting.”
“Knowing Charles as I do, it would be best to have both of you present when we approach him regarding the property,” Sebastian said. After a moment of thought the mink turned to the white tiger. “If you have any concerns about what your child may be getting involved with as far as the pagan faiths, Charles is the one you should speak to. His schedule will probably be terrible until the first of the new year.”
“My schedule is completely open,” Raenne said. “I’m not doing anything and David can telecommute twice a week. Waiting until the new year is no problem.”
“Excellent. Then I will see when would be most convenient for Charles to meet with you,” the mink said as a broad smile spread across his muzzle. “And it appears our meals are about to arrive. I, for one, look forward to hearing what that old fur ball has to say. But for now, I think we should enjoy our meal, then discuss some of the more boring details.”
__________________________________________________
Alex did a double-take as shi followed a uniformed barn owl out onto the main concourse. There was a family of tigers that were strolling down the main walkway; including two children. They were the first tigers shi had ever seen in person outside hir own family. Suddenly shi ran into the steward, not watching where shi was going and dropped the backpack shi had carelessly slung over one shoulder.
The tigress quickly apologized and bent over to pick up the backpack, then stood back up and looked back out across the concourse. After a moment Alex spotted the father’s head above the crowd. They were heading further away. Realizing the steward was speaking at hir, shi blinked and listened as he told hir that they had to wait a bit before they could take hir down to the security gate where hir parents would pick hir up.
Perhaps ten minutes later, Alex spotted mom and dad standing at the waiting area behind the exit checkpoint and pointed them out to the airport employee who was accompanying hir, then quickly ran down the hallway into hir father’s open arms.
Another half hour later, Alex shoved hir luggage into the back of hir dad’s SUV, then leapt up to grab the edge of the liftgate and hung onto it until hir feet touched the ground again before pushing it shut. A moment later shi climbed into the vehicle and carefully shut the door after making sure hir tail was inside. Shi took a deep breath before putting on the seat belt.
“So we’ll be meeting with Charles Weynesmyer in a few days to see if we can convince him to sell us some land on which to build the dojo,” Raenne said from the front passenger seat as her husband backed the car out of the parking spot. “You said you’d met him, didn’t you... Star Dreamer?”
“Yep. I talked with him a few weeks ago, when Azzy and I were having lunch at the diner near the arcade,” Alex confirmed, only half paying attention. Shi was staring out the window as they drove out of the airport, having been on the lookout for the past hour or so in the hopes that shi could spot that other family of tigers once again and currently was scanning every car they passed. As they finally left the airport proper and made it onto the highway, shi sighed in defeat and leaned back into the seat.
“Um, mom?” the young tigress asked a minute later, breaking the comfortable quiet inside the car. “Please don’t be mad, but... I probably should get tested for STDs.”
Dad glanced at hir in the rear-view mirror while mom turned to face hir. “Why?” hir mom asked, still staring back at hir.
“Well,” Alex started to explain, nibbling gently on hir lower lip, “I told you that Elizabeth started dating another herm, a marsupial named Chris, and... well... shi came over on Christmas day...”",
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