{
  "submission_id": "3499783",
  "keywords": [
    {
      "keyword_id": "8429",
      "keyword_name": "adultery",
      "contributed": "f",
      "submissions_count": "830"
    },
    {
      "keyword_id": "25852",
      "keyword_name": "adult on cub",
      "contributed": "f",
      "submissions_count": "7585"
    },
    {
      "keyword_id": "6564",
      "keyword_name": "anger",
      "contributed": "f",
      "submissions_count": "1822"
    },
    {
      "keyword_id": "6937",
      "keyword_name": "biting",
      "contributed": "f",
      "submissions_count": "2920"
    },
    {
      "keyword_id": "1007",
      "keyword_name": "blood",
      "contributed": "f",
      "submissions_count": "21524"
    },
    {
      "keyword_id": "11882",
      "keyword_name": "bully",
      "contributed": "f",
      "submissions_count": "1501"
    },
    {
      "keyword_id": "18054",
      "keyword_name": "bullying",
      "contributed": "f",
      "submissions_count": "1956"
    },
    {
      "keyword_id": "3011",
      "keyword_name": "caught",
      "contributed": "f",
      "submissions_count": "5424"
    },
    {
      "keyword_id": "11307",
      "keyword_name": "caught in the act",
      "contributed": "f",
      "submissions_count": "1380"
    },
    {
      "keyword_id": "8129",
      "keyword_name": "cheating",
      "contributed": "f",
      "submissions_count": "2676"
    },
    {
      "keyword_id": "18424",
      "keyword_name": "choking",
      "contributed": "f",
      "submissions_count": "3161"
    },
    {
      "keyword_id": "3793",
      "keyword_name": "crocodile",
      "contributed": "f",
      "submissions_count": "8827"
    },
    {
      "keyword_id": "4659",
      "keyword_name": "crying",
      "contributed": "f",
      "submissions_count": "14076"
    },
    {
      "keyword_id": "818804",
      "keyword_name": "cut lip",
      "contributed": "f",
      "submissions_count": "2"
    },
    {
      "keyword_id": "1183",
      "keyword_name": "dark",
      "contributed": "f",
      "submissions_count": "8491"
    },
    {
      "keyword_id": "1444",
      "keyword_name": "family",
      "contributed": "f",
      "submissions_count": "6908"
    },
    {
      "keyword_id": "76570",
      "keyword_name": "family bonding",
      "contributed": "f",
      "submissions_count": "351"
    },
    {
      "keyword_id": "43470",
      "keyword_name": "father and son",
      "contributed": "f",
      "submissions_count": "2214"
    },
    {
      "keyword_id": "62",
      "keyword_name": "feline",
      "contributed": "f",
      "submissions_count": "154142"
    },
    {
      "keyword_id": "25926",
      "keyword_name": "forced sex",
      "contributed": "f",
      "submissions_count": "3036"
    },
    {
      "keyword_id": "697",
      "keyword_name": "groping",
      "contributed": "f",
      "submissions_count": "6030"
    },
    {
      "keyword_id": "4942",
      "keyword_name": "guilt",
      "contributed": "f",
      "submissions_count": "171"
    },
    {
      "keyword_id": "359",
      "keyword_name": "heron",
      "contributed": "f",
      "submissions_count": "65"
    },
    {
      "keyword_id": "52452",
      "keyword_name": "herpestid",
      "contributed": "f",
      "submissions_count": "94"
    },
    {
      "keyword_id": "511",
      "keyword_name": "hyena",
      "contributed": "f",
      "submissions_count": "19549"
    },
    {
      "keyword_id": "10856",
      "keyword_name": "implied",
      "contributed": "f",
      "submissions_count": "1343"
    },
    {
      "keyword_id": "174",
      "keyword_name": "lion",
      "contributed": "f",
      "submissions_count": "43915"
    },
    {
      "keyword_id": "11507",
      "keyword_name": "male/female",
      "contributed": "f",
      "submissions_count": "98390"
    },
    {
      "keyword_id": "1461",
      "keyword_name": "medical",
      "contributed": "f",
      "submissions_count": "1747"
    },
    {
      "keyword_id": "52042",
      "keyword_name": "medical procedures",
      "contributed": "f",
      "submissions_count": "132"
    },
    {
      "keyword_id": "1003",
      "keyword_name": "m/f",
      "contributed": "f",
      "submissions_count": "42204"
    },
    {
      "keyword_id": "42340",
      "keyword_name": "middle school",
      "contributed": "f",
      "submissions_count": "82"
    },
    {
      "keyword_id": "3289",
      "keyword_name": "nc",
      "contributed": "f",
      "submissions_count": "1708"
    },
    {
      "keyword_id": "97838",
      "keyword_name": "neglect",
      "contributed": "f",
      "submissions_count": "46"
    },
    {
      "keyword_id": "10878",
      "keyword_name": "noncon",
      "contributed": "f",
      "submissions_count": "7446"
    },
    {
      "keyword_id": "11199",
      "keyword_name": "nonconsensual",
      "contributed": "f",
      "submissions_count": "3499"
    },
    {
      "keyword_id": "81890",
      "keyword_name": "pinned down",
      "contributed": "f",
      "submissions_count": "679"
    },
    {
      "keyword_id": "35066",
      "keyword_name": "pranking",
      "contributed": "f",
      "submissions_count": "98"
    },
    {
      "keyword_id": "30816",
      "keyword_name": "pseudo penis",
      "contributed": "f",
      "submissions_count": "120"
    },
    {
      "keyword_id": "110912",
      "keyword_name": "pseudo-penis",
      "contributed": "f",
      "submissions_count": "148"
    },
    {
      "keyword_id": "24074",
      "keyword_name": "pseudopenis",
      "contributed": "f",
      "submissions_count": "464"
    },
    {
      "keyword_id": "16379",
      "keyword_name": "punching",
      "contributed": "f",
      "submissions_count": "482"
    },
    {
      "keyword_id": "112",
      "keyword_name": "rape",
      "contributed": "f",
      "submissions_count": "32255"
    },
    {
      "keyword_id": "9745",
      "keyword_name": "revenge",
      "contributed": "f",
      "submissions_count": "1273"
    },
    {
      "keyword_id": "209199",
      "keyword_name": "revenge sex",
      "contributed": "f",
      "submissions_count": "49"
    },
    {
      "keyword_id": "57004",
      "keyword_name": "semi-public",
      "contributed": "f",
      "submissions_count": "222"
    },
    {
      "keyword_id": "104764",
      "keyword_name": "sexual assault",
      "contributed": "f",
      "submissions_count": "100"
    },
    {
      "keyword_id": "9921",
      "keyword_name": "slap",
      "contributed": "f",
      "submissions_count": "714"
    },
    {
      "keyword_id": "4530",
      "keyword_name": "slice of life",
      "contributed": "f",
      "submissions_count": "1810"
    },
    {
      "keyword_id": "62575",
      "keyword_name": "slice-of-life",
      "contributed": "f",
      "submissions_count": "139"
    },
    {
      "keyword_id": "71114",
      "keyword_name": "spitting",
      "contributed": "f",
      "submissions_count": "193"
    },
    {
      "keyword_id": "249427",
      "keyword_name": "tearing clothes",
      "contributed": "f",
      "submissions_count": "87"
    },
    {
      "keyword_id": "3278",
      "keyword_name": "tears",
      "contributed": "f",
      "submissions_count": "10948"
    },
    {
      "keyword_id": "531",
      "keyword_name": "teenager",
      "contributed": "f",
      "submissions_count": "11298"
    },
    {
      "keyword_id": "3629",
      "keyword_name": "teenagers",
      "contributed": "f",
      "submissions_count": "2573"
    },
    {
      "keyword_id": "756590",
      "keyword_name": "thakurtwist",
      "contributed": "f",
      "submissions_count": "27"
    },
    {
      "keyword_id": "5467",
      "keyword_name": "underage",
      "contributed": "f",
      "submissions_count": "17233"
    },
    {
      "keyword_id": "19217",
      "keyword_name": "underaged",
      "contributed": "f",
      "submissions_count": "3439"
    },
    {
      "keyword_id": "18357",
      "keyword_name": "unwilling",
      "contributed": "f",
      "submissions_count": "1767"
    },
    {
      "keyword_id": "969",
      "keyword_name": "violence",
      "contributed": "f",
      "submissions_count": "4495"
    },
    {
      "keyword_id": "39571",
      "keyword_name": "wholesome",
      "contributed": "f",
      "submissions_count": "2067"
    }
  ],
  "hidden": "f",
  "scraps": "f",
  "favorite": "f",
  "favorites_count": "21",
  "create_datetime": "2024-12-14 21:29:43.86408+00",
  "create_datetime_usertime": "14 Dec 2024 22:29 CET",
  "last_file_update_datetime": "2024-12-27 03:16:38.357154+00",
  "last_file_update_datetime_usertime": "27 Dec 2024 04:16 CET",
  "username": "Thakur",
  "user_id": "328108",
  "user_icon_file_name": "205772_Thakur_felix-tile-the-cat-thak23.jpg",
  "user_icon_url_large": "https://nl1.ib.metapix.net/usericons/large/205/205772_Thakur_felix-tile-the-cat-thak23.jpg",
  "user_icon_url_medium": "https://nl1.ib.metapix.net/usericons/medium/205/205772_Thakur_felix-tile-the-cat-thak23.jpg",
  "user_icon_url_small": "https://nl1.ib.metapix.net/usericons/small/205/205772_Thakur_felix-tile-the-cat-thak23.jpg",
  "file_name": "5361984_Thakur_5342307_dreamgod_bully_ib_.doc",
  "file_url_full": "https://nl1.ib.metapix.net/files/full/5361/5361984_Thakur_5342307_dreamgod_bully_ib_.doc",
  "file_url_screen": "https://nl1.ib.metapix.net/files/screen/5361/5361984_Thakur_5342307_dreamgod_bully_ib_.doc",
  "file_url_preview": "https://nl1.ib.metapix.net/files/preview/5361/5361984_Thakur_5342307_dreamgod_bully_ib_.doc",
  "thumbnail_url_huge": "https://nl1.ib.metapix.net/thumbnails/huge/5361/5361984_Thakur_5342307_dreamgod_bully_ib_.jpg",
  "thumbnail_url_large": "https://nl1.ib.metapix.net/thumbnails/large/5361/5361984_Thakur_5342307_dreamgod_bully_ib_.jpg",
  "thumbnail_url_medium": "https://nl1.ib.metapix.net/thumbnails/medium/5361/5361984_Thakur_5342307_dreamgod_bully_ib_.jpg",
  "thumb_huge_x": "300",
  "thumb_huge_y": "225",
  "thumb_large_x": "200",
  "thumb_large_y": "150",
  "thumb_medium_x": "120",
  "thumb_medium_y": "90",
  "files": [
    {
      "file_id": "5361984",
      "file_name": "5361984_Thakur_5342307_dreamgod_bully_ib_.doc",
      "file_url_full": "https://nl1.ib.metapix.net/files/full/5361/5361984_Thakur_5342307_dreamgod_bully_ib_.doc",
      "file_url_screen": "https://nl1.ib.metapix.net/files/screen/5361/5361984_Thakur_5342307_dreamgod_bully_ib_.doc",
      "file_url_preview": "https://nl1.ib.metapix.net/files/preview/5361/5361984_Thakur_5342307_dreamgod_bully_ib_.doc",
      "mimetype": "application/msword",
      "submission_id": "3499783",
      "user_id": "328108",
      "submission_file_order": "0",
      "full_size_x": null,
      "full_size_y": null,
      "screen_size_x": null,
      "screen_size_y": null,
      "preview_size_x": null,
      "preview_size_y": null,
      "initial_file_md5": "07ac192ed22bc3cdf8575ff6dd4a3b5f",
      "full_file_md5": "07ac192ed22bc3cdf8575ff6dd4a3b5f",
      "large_file_md5": "",
      "small_file_md5": "",
      "thumbnail_md5": "8a84d28faa8918b11984a9c9f9810b4b",
      "deleted": "f",
      "create_datetime": "2024-12-27 03:16:38.357154+00",
      "create_datetime_usertime": "27 Dec 2024 04:16 CET",
      "thumbnail_url_huge": "https://nl1.ib.metapix.net/thumbnails/huge/5361/5361984_Thakur_5342307_dreamgod_bully_ib_.jpg",
      "thumbnail_url_large": "https://nl1.ib.metapix.net/thumbnails/large/5361/5361984_Thakur_5342307_dreamgod_bully_ib_.jpg",
      "thumbnail_url_medium": "https://nl1.ib.metapix.net/thumbnails/medium/5361/5361984_Thakur_5342307_dreamgod_bully_ib_.jpg",
      "thumb_huge_x": "300",
      "thumb_huge_y": "225",
      "thumb_large_x": "200",
      "thumb_large_y": "150",
      "thumb_medium_x": "120",
      "thumb_medium_y": "90"
    }
  ],
  "pools": [
    {
      "pool_id": "90287",
      "name": "Co-Written/Collaborations",
      "description": "This pool will hold any stories worked on by multiple writers and artists! They may or may not be related to one another, but will be kept in order when possible.",
      "count": "18",
      "submission_left_submission_id": "3464582",
      "submission_left_file_name": "5281723_Thakur_mounted_ib.doc",
      "submission_left_thumbnail_url_huge": "https://nl1.ib.metapix.net/thumbnails/huge/5281/5281723_Thakur_mounted_ib.jpg",
      "submission_left_thumbnail_url_large": "https://nl1.ib.metapix.net/thumbnails/large/5281/5281723_Thakur_mounted_ib.jpg",
      "submission_left_thumbnail_url_medium": "https://nl1.ib.metapix.net/thumbnails/medium/5281/5281723_Thakur_mounted_ib.jpg",
      "submission_left_thumb_huge_x": "300",
      "submission_left_thumb_huge_y": "225",
      "submission_left_thumb_large_x": "200",
      "submission_left_thumb_large_y": "150",
      "submission_left_thumb_medium_x": "120",
      "submission_left_thumb_medium_y": "90",
      "submission_right_submission_id": "3550301",
      "submission_right_file_name": "5438141_Thakur_dodger_ib.doc",
      "submission_right_thumbnail_url_huge": "https://nl1.ib.metapix.net/thumbnails/huge/5438/5438141_Thakur_dodger_ib.jpg",
      "submission_right_thumbnail_url_large": "https://nl1.ib.metapix.net/thumbnails/large/5438/5438141_Thakur_dodger_ib.jpg",
      "submission_right_thumbnail_url_medium": "https://nl1.ib.metapix.net/thumbnails/medium/5438/5438141_Thakur_dodger_ib.jpg",
      "submission_right_thumb_huge_x": "300",
      "submission_right_thumb_huge_y": "225",
      "submission_right_thumb_large_x": "200",
      "submission_right_thumb_large_y": "150",
      "submission_right_thumb_medium_x": "120",
      "submission_right_thumb_medium_y": "90"
    }
  ],
  "description": "Those parents of yours always say your current bully will end up being your future best friend. Glossing over the fact that they're idiots, the viciousness that bullies can bring is nothing like the teasing and ribbing that they'd \"suffer\" through in their youth. One father is about to learn that the hard way through the pain of his only son. And he's going to dole out some old school punishment of his own.\n\n[iconname]DreamGod[/iconname]—this one is without a doubt my largest departure, and the reason I decided to wait until December to make it this month's Unshackled story will be explained shortly. The story you're about to read is an original idea; but [i]no one[/i] was more surprised than [i][b]me[/b][/i] to have thought it up. [iconname]Thakur[/iconname] and I had made a handful of stories together, where we ping-ponged ideas and sections back and forth to make stories that I hope those of you out there have enjoyed. But right around the time that we were joint-writing [url=https://inkbunny.net/s/3226062]Hellhounded[/url](conceived almost entirely by him) and [url=https://inkbunny.net/s/3252543]Good Good Girl[/url](which was more of a half-n-half creative output, as I suggested the praise kink), I decided to pull out of my normal comfort zone and wanted to come up with something dark; something that I'd never normally think about. And somehow it eventually came to me, that a bully who picks on some kid over and over gets absolute hell unleashed upon them, even though they don't truly deserve it, and then the twists pile up even further from there, which I'm not going to reveal. But yes, this is the start of a series; we're just taking a break on it right now to focus on the more popular stories we did—for you fans. 🥰\n\nSo, as you noticed by the links, the other two stories are a year old. And indeed, so is this one. So, circling back to all this: the reason that I waited until December to share it is because of these reasons. Because of this being originally my conception, this story [i]technically[/i] belongs to me. However, asking Thakur for help, this made it of course a joint collaboration. That being said, I'm also doing this because of the specific milestone that's been reached. While Thakur and I typically type back and forth at random points to make conversations and scenes more natural and fluid, I specifically asked him to refrain from the climax of the story. I forced myself out of my comfort zone in order to force someone else (violently) out of theirs. 😏 The entire sex scene was written solely by me, making it the [i]first time I ever[/i] wrote a fully nonconsensual rape. \n\nFor anyone who's known me or read the few stories I've written, I've always done either the sappy romantic lovey-dovey crap or at worst, slight dubcon into a lusty passionate needfest. But never until that point had I written a fully unwilling, unambiguous \"I don't want this, and I never wanted this\" sex scene, at all. And in order to force myself to power through it and to darken my thoughts as much as I could... I wrote the rape scene intentionally over the course of three specific days: [u]Christmas Eve, Christmas [i][b]Day[/b][/i], and Boxing Day[/u], most of which was spent hiding my screen from my [i][u]family members[/u][/i] so they wouldn't see the horrors I was typing only feet(or sometimes, [i]inches[/i]) away.\n\nIf that doesn't force you to be fucked up, then nothing will. ☠\n\nI soon told (what I can safely bet was an evilly cackling) Thakur that 12,15 years ago, before I met him and found his stories, that I had the 'rape' tag blocked and didn't even want to read anything remotely close to non-consensual or forced sex. Now I'm fucking [i][b]WRITING[/b][/i] it.\n\nMan's got me corrupted. 🤣 ",
  "description_bbcode_parsed": "<span style='word-wrap: break-word;'>Those parents of yours always say your current bully will end up being your future best friend. Glossing over the fact that they&#039;re idiots, the viciousness that bullies can bring is nothing like the teasing and ribbing that they&#039;d &quot;suffer&quot; through in their youth. One father is about to learn that the hard way through the pain of his only son. And he&#039;s going to dole out some old school punishment of his own.<br /><br />\r\n\t\t\t\t\t<table style='display: inline-block; vertical-align:bottom;'>\r\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<tr>\r\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<td style='vertical-align: middle; border: none;'>\r\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div style='width: 50px; height: 50px; position: relative; margin: 0px auto;'>\r\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a style='position: relative; border: 0px;' href='https://inkbunny.net/DreamGod'><img class='shadowedimage' style='border: 0px;' src='https://nl1.ib.metapix.net/usericons/small/278/278042_DreamGod_morexis_discord_emote.png' width='50' height='50' alt='DreamGod' title='DreamGod' /></a>\r\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t</div>\r\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t</td>\r\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<td style='vertical-align: bottom; font-size: 10pt;'>\r\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span style='position: relative; top: 2px;'><a href='https://inkbunny.net/DreamGod' class='widget_userNameSmall'>DreamGod</a></span>\r\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t</td>\r\n\t\t\t\t\t\t</tr>\r\n\t\t\t\t\t\t</table>&mdash;this one is without a doubt my largest departure, and the reason I decided to wait until December to make it this month&#039;s Unshackled story will be explained shortly. The story you&#039;re about to read is an original idea; but <em>no one</em> was more surprised than <em><strong>me</strong></em> to have thought it up. \r\n\t\t\t\t\t<table style='display: inline-block; vertical-align:bottom;'>\r\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<tr>\r\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<td style='vertical-align: middle; border: none;'>\r\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div style='width: 46px; height: 50px; position: relative; margin: 0px auto;'>\r\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a style='position: relative; border: 0px;' href='https://inkbunny.net/Thakur'><img class='shadowedimage' style='border: 0px;' src='https://nl1.ib.metapix.net/usericons/small/205/205772_Thakur_felix-tile-the-cat-thak23.jpg' width='46' height='50' alt='Thakur' title='Thakur' /></a>\r\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t</div>\r\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t</td>\r\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<td style='vertical-align: bottom; font-size: 10pt;'>\r\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span style='position: relative; top: 2px;'><a href='https://inkbunny.net/Thakur' class='widget_userNameSmall'>Thakur</a></span>\r\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t</td>\r\n\t\t\t\t\t\t</tr>\r\n\t\t\t\t\t\t</table> and I had made a handful of stories together, where we ping-ponged ideas and sections back and forth to make stories that I hope those of you out there have enjoyed. But right around the time that we were joint-writing <a href=\"https://inkbunny.net/s/3226062\" rel=\"nofollow\">Hellhounded</a>(conceived almost entirely by him) and <a href=\"https://inkbunny.net/s/3252543\" rel=\"nofollow\">Good Good Girl</a>(which was more of a half-n-half creative output, as I suggested the praise kink), I decided to pull out of my normal comfort zone and wanted to come up with something dark; something that I&#039;d never normally think about. And somehow it eventually came to me, that a bully who picks on some kid over and over gets absolute hell unleashed upon them, even though they don&#039;t truly deserve it, and then the twists pile up even further from there, which I&#039;m not going to reveal. But yes, this is the start of a series; we&#039;re just taking a break on it right now to focus on the more popular stories we did&mdash;for you fans. 🥰<br /><br />So, as you noticed by the links, the other two stories are a year old. And indeed, so is this one. So, circling back to all this: the reason that I waited until December to share it is because of these reasons. Because of this being originally my conception, this story <em>technically</em> belongs to me. However, asking Thakur for help, this made it of course a joint collaboration. That being said, I&#039;m also doing this because of the specific milestone that&#039;s been reached. While Thakur and I typically type back and forth at random points to make conversations and scenes more natural and fluid, I specifically asked him to refrain from the climax of the story. I forced myself out of my comfort zone in order to force someone else (violently) out of theirs. 😏 The entire sex scene was written solely by me, making it the <em>first time I ever</em> wrote a fully nonconsensual rape. <br /><br />For anyone who&#039;s known me or read the few stories I&#039;ve written, I&#039;ve always done either the sappy romantic lovey-dovey crap or at worst, slight dubcon into a lusty passionate needfest. But never until that point had I written a fully unwilling, unambiguous &quot;I don&#039;t want this, and I never wanted this&quot; sex scene, at all. And in order to force myself to power through it and to darken my thoughts as much as I could... I wrote the rape scene intentionally over the course of three specific days: <span class='underline'>Christmas Eve, Christmas <em><strong>Day</strong></em>, and Boxing Day</span>, most of which was spent hiding my screen from my <em><span class='underline'>family members</span></em> so they wouldn&#039;t see the horrors I was typing only feet(or sometimes, <em>inches</em>) away.<br /><br />If that doesn&#039;t force you to be fucked up, then nothing will. ☠<br /><br />I soon told (what I can safely bet was an evilly cackling) Thakur that 12,15 years ago, before I met him and found his stories, that I had the &#039;rape&#039; tag blocked and didn&#039;t even want to read anything remotely close to non-consensual or forced sex. Now I&#039;m fucking <em><strong>WRITING</strong></em> it.<br /><br />Man&#039;s got me corrupted. 🤣 </span>",
  "writing": "“Shouldn’t you be going to the [i]boy’s[/i] locker room!?” Patrick yelled.\n\n“Dude, shut up!” Emery exclaimed, horrified.  His weasel of a friend was [i]literally[/i] a weasel – he didn’t know how offensive what he was saying was.  He was basically saying the “d” word to a wolf, and could get expelled.\n\nBut Nav just laughed it off.  The hyena girl was bigger than both of the boys — almost [i]combined[/i] — and she knew she had the back-up of the P.E. instructor.  She’d long ago come to terms with the bulge in her athletic shorts.  She found it amusing that she was packing more than the boys in the class, with the exception of Cyrus, the stallion.  She could have worn baggier pants, but she stuck with the girls’ outfit just to show off, and there was nothing the school could do about it.  She was following the dress code, after all.\n\n“Only if Emery uses the girl’s,” Manny joked.  “Not much of a mane on [i]this[/i] lioness.”  The saltwater crocodile was always hanging around with Nav, and he really [i]was[/i] as big as Patrick and Emery combined.  He pushed Patrick just enough not to draw anyone’s attention, and even the teachers walked on eggshells around Manny.\n\nThe shove was long forgotten – but the joke [i]stuck[/i].  Emery hated Patrick for starting it.  Now everyone called Nav a boy, which she didn’t even mind, and everyone called [i]Emery[/i] a girl.  Boy lions didn’t grow their manes for a while!  It’s not his fault he was still slender and not bulky like his dad.  The teasing was relentless, and the two bullies were the biggest perpetrators.  They barely looked at Patrick, picking out the weak and slow, like good predators.  They started pushing Emery around, taking his lunch money — it was a cliché.\n\nEmery steamed.  But he couldn’t challenge Manny at all, and the crocodile protected Nav.  There was nothing the young lion could do.\n\nExcept….\n\n[i]Slam![/i]\n\n[i]“Daaaaad!”[/i]\n\nThe well-built lion’s paws jumped at the sudden shattering of quiet, disrupting the delicate work of his model paintwork.  Mathis’ eyes rolled so far back in his head, it was a wonder they didn’t snap from his optic nerves.  That young teenager of his, as much as he truly loved and cared for his boy, was so impatient.  Whatever he strived to achieve in life — whether it was to be a famous movie star, or just to get a bag of cookies from the top shelf of the pantry — if he wasn’t immediately good at something, he’d get bored and complain.  He always wanted to find the easy way in, or out. “What did I say about slamming doors in the house, Emery?”, the broad-shouldered patriarch asked dryly as he turned to face his huffing teen.\n\n“Can you [i]please[/i] just transfer me to a different school?”\n\nEmery was only greeted with a flat stare before his father silently turned back to his project.\n\n“[i]Daaad[/i], come [b][i]ooonnn—[/i][/b]”\n\n“[i]No. Whining.[/i]”  Mathis turned sharply, fixing a stern glare at his progeny before setting down his tools, knowing his project was shot for the afternoon.  “Now, tell me what’s wrong [i]this[/i] time.”\n\nThe teenaged lion took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down before he spoke: “The kids at school keep bullying me because I’m not [i]manly[/i] enough.  They keep calling me a girl because my mane hasn’t grown in yet!  And the [i]worst[/i] one [i]is[/i] a girl, so I can’t get back at her or [i]I’ll[/i] look bad!”\n\n“You know the most manly thing to do is ignore them, son.  We talked about this at your [i]last[/i] school,” he sighed, exhausted.  It wasn’t completely untrue.  His golden-furred runt [i]was[/i] a bit of a sissy.\n\n“How can I ignore that?  All the other kids laugh.”\n\n“What do you want [i]me[/i] to do, boy?  I can’t make your mane grow in any faster.  Changing schools — [i]again — [/i]when it didn’t work this time?  That’ll just [i]prove[/i] [i]them right[/i].  That’s not the way I raised you.  Okay, champ?”  Mathis softened his voice slightly, but clapped a massive paw on his progeny’s shoulder, squeezing resolutely and speaking with a solid grip on his baritone: “The only way they can get a rise out of you is if you [i]allow[/i] them to.  You have the heart of a [b]lion[/b] in you, Emery.  Time to back that up with the [i]strength [/i]of one.  You know the saying: ‘Sticks and stones may break my bones, but—’”\n\n“Dad, I’m [i]telling[/i] you, that old stuff doesn’t work anymo—!”\n\n“[b][i]Sticks[/i][/b][i] and [/i][b][i]stones[/i][/b], Emery…?”\n\nDefeated, the teen could only sigh and mumble imperceptibly.\n\n“Words will never hurt me.”\n\nMathis’ face eased into a soft grin.  “Alright, c’mere…”  Effortlessly tugging the 110-pound teen into his arms, the man hugged his boy tight, sighing in contentment and rubbing Em’s back. Speaking into his kid’s ear, he muttered quietly, “I know this feels like hell to you, pal. But trust me, it’s all part of growing up.  It’ll pass.”  He ended the hug with two quick pats to his shoulder before pulling back, looking his boy in the eyes, and smiling warmly.  “Believe it or not, they’re gonna get bored of raggin’ on ya and move on.  You’ll become good friends, look back on these days and just laugh it off! You’ll see.” \n\nEmery smiled, but still shook his head uneasily.  “Alright, if you say so, dad.  I won’t let them get the better of me–[i]Ow![/i]  Ha ha, what was that for!?” He rubbed the back of his head, dodging another playful swipe from his father.\n\nChuckling mirthfully, Mathis replied, “Uh-huh, that honor is reserved for your old man.  And that was for slamming the door on your way in and messing up my model, you know better.  Now go in the kitchen, and get your snack, then get started on homework.”\n\n“Alright.”  Emery grabbed an energy bar, and started towards the stairs.  “Whatcha making for dinner?”\n\n“Red beans and rice, of course.”\n\nThe teen made a grimaced face and nearly whined again before restraining himself: “That cheap canned stuff [i]again?[/i]  Can’t we just get a pizza or something for once?”\n\n“Can’t [i]you[/i] come up with 30 or 40 bucks to cover one meal?  No?  Well, then.  Until [i]you[/i] bring home the bacon, you can tell the pizza place to [i]hold[/i] it.”\n\nEmery canted his head to one side, his smart-ass side coming out.  “Well, technically [i]Mom[/i] brings home the bacon.”\n\nGiving the kid a flat stare, Mathis ordered, “I can see why they pick on you, running that mouth! And if we’re being technical now, [i]I’m [/i]the one who gets the groceries.  Now get on upstairs and get to work!”\n\n“Yes, sir…” The teen grumbled playfully, springing up the stairs toward his bedroom.  Mathis listened to the [i]thump-thump-thump[/i] of his son’s footsteps reaching the second floor, each leap letting Mathis recede ever deeper into his own little world, smile beginning to wane.  The break from his hobby led the middle-aged lion’s tired eyes back to the area of the table that he had hoped to distance himself from: the growing stack of envelopes, all addressed to him and his wife.  The ones on the top were cut open and had their contents spread out, but the others… didn’t need the same treatment.  The corners all read the same: \n\nCollection Agency… Return Service Requested… Urgent… Time Sensitive… Final Notice.\n\nThe rising tower of debt loomed over Mathis and his small nuclear family, threatening to take everything that they had.  Placing a hand on the topmost bill, he looked up towards the general direction of Emery’s room, where he could faintly hear electronic music playing, and smiled sadly at the events leading up to their current state.\n\nIt was true that lions’ manes grew relatively late in their puberty… but the reason behind Emery’s lanky and diminutive stature was tragic, yet also a miracle: he was born seven weeks premature.  His mother, Alandria, had never [i]once[/i] believed she could possibly conceive in her 40’s.  She even had her cycles predicted to the [i]date[/i].  But when she fell ill one day at work and the doctor found an embryo at forty-one, she was overcome with joyous shock.  Going through pregnancy at such a late age, however, led to many complications for both her and her growing miracle baby.  Soon, the radical changes going through their bodies was taking its toll on both of them, and doctors were left with no choice but to perform an emergency Cesarean section, or risk losing one or both.  Emery was born weighing only four pounds and fourteen ounces, not even enough air in his lungs to cry.  But despite the impossible odds, Alandria recovered with the help of expert specialists, and with even [i]more[/i] intensive and loving care, so too did little Em.  He was their proudest moment.  Alandria still joked that he was “e mery-cle”.\n\nBut their insurance wouldn’t cover it.  Debt was a funny thing - it starts in one area and spreads to every other area of your life.  But he wouldn’t have it any other way regarding Emery.\n\nThinking about that smile he had at six years old, running up to his old man to barely wrap his arms around his gut and beam up at him with those bright beautiful eyes filled with nothing but mischief… had Mathis’ corneas sting; a few leaks sprung in the dam.  His breath quivered, fond tears marring his cheeks.  He let out a shaky chuckle, wiping his face and standing over his mounting problems, fixing a determined smile.  Emery may be a little spoiled—it comes with being a teenager, after all—but he loved his boy more than anything in the world.  Even if a sea of bills and deluge of debts swallowed him whole, he wouldn’t change a single thing.  Taking a deep breath to steady his nerves, Mathis walked toward the kitchen to get dinner started. \n\n[i]We’ll find some way…we just have to take it a day at a time.[/i]\n\n* * * * *\n\n“Look, it’s the school’s hottest lioness,” Nav teased, striding alongside Emery as he walked out to P.E.  Emery opened his mouth, preparing a flippant response, when he remembered his father’s sage advice: [i]Just ignore it.  They’ll get bored and move on.[/i]  With that, he rotated his jaw, turning it into a disinterested yawn, staring straight ahead as he kept walking.\n\n“She’s [i]talking[/i] to you, pipsqueak,” the crocodile’s low voice followed.  “Thank her for the compliment.”  It wasn’t a request.  Emery simply kept his eyes forward, turning toward the locker rooms to change into his work-out clothes.  [i]Hey, maybe this method is pretty effective after all! Dad must’ve been onto something—[/i]\n\n“Wrong locker room, girl,” Nav interrupted.  This time, she stepped noticeably in front of Emery, forcing him to decide: stop, or push past her.  Unfortunately, he couldn’t feign ignorance of her existence at this point, and slowed down his gait.\n\n“...‘scuse me,” he said simply, attempting to squeeze by.\n\nNow [i]she[/i] got physical, though it just amounted to pushing back against his shoulder to prevent his lateral movement.  She held up her hands, palms out, and said, “C’mon, Emmy.  I’m putting you above Cecily, and she’s smokin’.  You should be honored.”\n\nEmery didn’t know that the hyena was just buying time to use those hands in a very different way, and he didn’t hear Manny drop down to one knee behind him.\n\n“I need to get by, Nav — [i]please[/i].” Emery spoke calmly.  Hopefully, speaking civilly would help, if ignoring her was no longer an option. “I’d just like to—”\n\nThe first thing he noticed was the laughter.  Odd, because the hyena didn’t laugh until he was halfway on the way to the ground, pushed over Manny.  Still, that laughter rang most prevalent in his ears, his senses discombobulated, and he fell backward and landed heavily on his shoulders on the gym floor.  Thank God he only thumped his head a little bit.  The double crack of his phenomenal collapse immediately drew the P.E. teacher’s attention, but not in time to see exactly what happened. Right on cue, Manny grunted theatrically, gripping his shoulder as if [i]he[/i] was somehow knocked over. \n\n“You guys okay over there?” The heron coach inquired, his long beak taking considerable time to rotate far enough to peer at the disaster.\n\n“Yeah, sorry — just wasn’t watching where I was going,” Manny bellowed.\n\n“Oh well, be more careful then,” the coach explained, letting them both off the hook.\n\nEmery smarted the rest of the day; both his head and his ego.\n\n[i]“Daaaaad!”[/i] he yelled as he opened the front door.\n\nMathis sighed.  He’d already been capping his paints, but he worked double time to make sure that all of his brushes and paints were safely cleaned and stored.  “Yes, son?” he asked, trying to sound appeasing.  \n\nDragging his feet into the den where his father turned to meet him, the teenager grumbled: “[i]Yeah—[/i]that oh-so-brilliant plan of yours didn’t work, dad. The two of them just got in the way, and blocked me wherever I tried to walk!”\n\n“Well, in that case—”\n\n“I [i]tried[/i] that already, Dad!  I was civil and calm and everything.  But they just did that… stupid move where they knelt behind me and tripped me over.  How’m I supposed to ignore that, huh?”\n\nMathis simply stared. “You finished?”\n\nSensing another lecture, Emery slumped with a small sigh. “...yeah, I guess.”\n\n“Good. Now, what I was [i]trying[/i] to say was, ‘In that case, if they refuse to step up to your level, [i]then[/i] you can come down to [i]theirs.’  [/i]Now how does that sound?”  He cracked a smile at Emery’s raised eyebrows. \n\n“Y-you want me to fight back?  But, Dad —” the slender, tawny feline exclaimed.\n\n“Yes and no.  You have to be smart about it.  Get the two separated somehow.  Make sure you’re not alone.  Wait until they do something to bully you, then… [i]smack![/i]  Aim for the gut.”\n\n“Wait… really?”  Emery perked up now, genuinely excited.\n\nChuckling, the greying lion leaned back in his chair, with an air of pride about him.  “I’ll let you in on a little secret from your old man.”  He then spread his leg out, silently beckoning his teenager to sit on his lap like he used to years ago.  Emery cringed and groaned in embarrassment, before awkwardly shuffling over and gingerly sitting down, avoiding his dad’s pelvic region as if it had the plague.  Mathis lunged up and put Em in a headlock, snarling playfully and rapping his knuckles against his son’s wildly protesting scalp. \n\n“Daaad, cut it out!” he laughed and squirmed.\n\n“Alright, alright. Anyway, you wanna show the kids at school you mean business without getting in trouble?  Punch [i]low. [/i]A good hard pounding in the gut won’t show bruises, but boy, they’ll have trouble holding their Lunchables after crossing with you!”\n\nEmery’s eyes bugged out at the horribly dated reference before he hid his face in his hands.  “Oh, [i]God.[/i]”\n\nMathis continued, “And without visible damage, and friendly witnesses, all the teachers have is your word against theirs, so they can’t do a thing!”  He then leaned closer and whispered, as if they were in public: “And if you’re lucky, you might end up hitting their family jewels instead — they’ll never touch you again!”  He pulled back with a giddy laugh.\n\n“Dad, I’m trying to prove I’m a [i]man[/i].  I don’t think going for the nuts is a good strategy.”\n\nTousling the boy’s hair, Mathis ejected him from his lap.  “See, you’re already thinking.  Attaboy.”\n\nFor once, Mathis went to bed alone smiling.  He’d raised a good kid, and if these bullies couldn’t [i]see[/i] that — well… [i]karma was a bitch[/i].\n\n[i]It all made sense.  He was following his dad’s suggestions.  He’d spent the evening practicing a gut punch, and even watched a few Youtubes about it.  But…\n\nSeparating the croc from the hyena was easy enough, but after that…\n\n[/i][b][i]Everything went wrong.[/i][/b][i]\n[/i]\n“Dad.”\n\nHis son’s voice was different than usual, but it wasn’t triumphant.  Mathis felt a pit in his gut.  “Son?”\n\nUpon not immediately hearing an annoyed response — or any response from his son — he stood up from his desk, now curious.  “Emery?” He walked around the corner of his den, heading towards the front of the house. “Buddy, did you do like I—”\n\nReaching the front door landing, Mathis stopped and his heart ran cold.\n\nEmery was on the ground.  He’d only managed one step inside the house before he’d collapsed to the floor, crying.  His little boy, a miracle born from prayers and science, was a little ball of yellow fluff, curled up with his tufted tail wrapped like a protective blanket.\n\nInstinct propelled Mathis forward, drawing the concerned lion to his hurt cub. “Emery!  Emery; Jesus, what happened?”  Kneeling down, he carefully checked the boy’s body for any serious injuries, gently running his hands over his back, sides and chest, before carefully picking him up into a tight embrace. “Are you alright, son?  Please, tell me what’s wrong.”\n\nThrough shaky breaths, Emery spoke as best as he could: “I-I got one of them alone, like you said, but I got blocked and hit back.  And then everyone was laughing and… it just got [i]worse[/i], Dad.”  The lion was clutching his stomach, but Mathis knew there wouldn’t be any visible injuries – that was, after all, the point.\n\n“I can’t beat them, Dad.  They’re bigger, and stronger, and now everyone is [i]against[/i] me.”\n\nMathis gritted his teeth.  He’d overestimated his boy, or underestimated this bully.  As calmly as he could, he got the relevant information from his son, without making it obvious just what the protective father was planning to do.  He memorized the name of Emery’s assailant, got the emasculated lion to bed, and then found the address.\n\n[i]Time to take matters into my own hands[/i].  Mathis looked calm as he drove, but there was a growl already growing in his throat.  A shit-stain of a little boy, living in a shit-stain trailer park, picking on smaller kids just for the fun of it?  Well, it was time for a taste of his own medicine…\n\nGravel and rocks crunched and shifted under the tires of Mathis’ Explorer as he pulled into the lot that Google Maps had specified.  It was a far cry from decent living — stray dogs dotted the acreage, couches, chairs and other furniture sat in careless semicircles near homes, worn down by years of weather damage, and though the trailer in question had a satellite sitting on the roof, it looked to be hanging on by a thread.\n\nMathis gave four firm knocks on the flimsy door.  He spent that time looking around. [i]God, what a dump. No wonder he’s gotta pick on my boy to feel good about himself.  [/i]It was soon after that the door opened, and he found himself face to face with a tall, stocky teenaged hyena girl. The lion paused, blinking in surprise. \n\nImpatiently resting her weight on one foot, Nav quipped, “You lookin’ for directions? Because I don’t see pamphlets or a briefcase or shit in your hands.”\n\nHer rude comment snapped Mathis out of his stupor, and he reaffirmed his stern glare.  “No. Are your parents home?”\n\nShe squinted warily at him.  “No, who the hell wants to know?”\n\n“Mathis Raynor, I’m Emery Raynor’s [i]father. [/i] Is… Nav home?”\n\n“Wha…” She paused, looking him up and down. “PFFFFFFFFF–HA-HA-HA-HA-HA!!” \n\nMathis stood, getting increasingly agitated as this hyena exploded into cackling laughter in front of his face, doubling over and slapping a thigh, the irritating noise ringing throughout the park and causing some of the strays to bark out in retaliation.  Eventually, she straightened up again, dramatically wiping a fake tear from her eye as she recovered: “Wow — little crybaby needle-dick went running to his [i]daddy!?  [/i]Because he got hit by a girl?  Ha [b][i]ha!![/i][/b] Even for [i]pussies,[/i] you guys take the name serious!” \n\nA [i]girl?[/i]  Well, it made no difference.  Shaking his head, Mathis firmly stated: “You need to stop bullying my son.  He’s done nothing wrong to slight you, and it makes no sense for you to harass him —you, or your accomplice.”\n\nShe crossed her arms, taking a lax, disrespectful stance that annoyed him further.  “Yeah, well, tough shit for him, Matty—”\n\n“[b][i]Mister[/i][/b] Raynor, young la—” Mathis growled angrily.\n\nShe continued, not even bothering to acknowledge his attempt at etiquette.  “— anyway, [b]Matt[/b] — as long as your little weeping pussy keeps gettin’ in my way, I’m gonna do whatever the fuck I want!”\n\nMathis’ hackles raised, his blood starting to boil.  “I bet your parents will have you singing a different tune!” \n\nNav suddenly stepped forward, coming to the lion’s full chest.  “[b][i]They[/i][/b] don’t—!” She hesitated, only for an instant. “I don’t give a shit; they wouldn’t believe your dumb ass! [b]Ha![/b]”  \n\nGlaring down at the smirking teenager, the father snarled through grit teeth. “You [b][i]will[/i][/b] leave my son alone, or my next stop will be with the authorities.” He turned to leave.\n\n“Pfft… [i]‘son’.  [/i]That cubby cock was so tiny, I could barely hold it with my fingers.”\n\nThe 38-year-old lion froze. Everything in his world went black. In what felt like an eternity, he turned towards the hyena stifling her annoying cackles behind a curved hand. “You did… [i]what?[/i]”\n\nNav smiled, happy that she seemed to have struck a nerve with him. “Heh heh… well, your ‘son’ was having difficulties accepting their… [i]transition[/i]. Since ‘Mary’ no longer belongs in the boys’ locker room, we wanted to make her feel [i]welcome[/i] by bringing her in as one of us.”  \n\nThe hyena’s words were fading in and out as Mathis’ heart started thundering. These kids were [i]nothing[/i] like the bullies in his heyday—ribbing and light-hearted slugs were one thing… but humiliating and emasculating his young son? Sexually [i]assaulting[/i] him!? No wonder he’d been weeping on the floor! Rage filled the lion’s form as he started to shake, making eye contact with Nav once more. \n\n“... luckily, one of the girls had an extra pair of panties for him to borrow, and he was a perfect fit! It went so [i]cute[/i] with that runty, girly chest of his.”\n\nEverything happened so fast. \n\nSeemingly in the blink of an eye, the enraged parent [i]charged[/i] the startled teenager before one more cackle could peal from her mouth.  Like the [i]crack[/i] of a baseball bat in the distance, his open paw [i]smacked[/i] brutally across the young girl’s face, stopping her blathering dead and nearly lifting one of her feet off the ground from the impact.  It almost masked the shriek that chased the echo immediately after, more out of shock than anything else.  But the pain was absolutely there, and stung with a debilitating fire across the left of her muzzle.  Nav had [i]no[/i] time to turn towards the assailant, [i]triple[/i] her age with wide eyes, instinctively watering with tears, before he lunged forward and seized her, using his weight and the momentum to shove the stunned hyena into her own trailer house.  With one hand squeezing her t-shirt collar, and the other holding her neck roughly, Mathis pushed her inside, barely taking note of his surroundings as he picked her up and bodily tossed her against the wall, snarling furiously.  The destructive impact sent the entire trailer swaying, and Mathis distantly wondered if the cheaply built house might collapse around them. \n\nIt didn’t matter to Mathis. Never in his life had he been a witness to such insolence and blatant contempt for one’s elders. It wasn’t an eye for an eye, when he grew up. A flippant response was met with physical discipline. A sexual assault? This pissant had just run up the tab of a [i]lifetime[/i].    \n\n“You… “ Mathis snarled through gnashing teeth. “You little [b][i]shit![/i][/b]”  Still holding the flailing girl, he pushed tighter against the wall, forcing his grip closer, and inadvertently bringing her squirming body against his.  “You’ve got some… [i]fucking[/i]… nerve…” \n\nNav coughed and hacked, alternating between trying to pry the titanic arm from her neck and aiming one of her errant struggling kicks towards where it counts.  But with the burly lion nearly flush against her body, she barely had room to [i]move[/i] her legs, much less swing them forward enough to do any considerable injury.  Thinking quickly, she picked a middle ground and, in the split second where his grip on her neck weakened, she hacked a large glob of phlegmy saliva in his face.  Almost on instinct, the lion reactively reared back and [i]punched[/i] her across the side of her skull. \n\nNav’s ears rang with a high-pitched whine, doubly discombobulated from the impact of the strike against her head and the jostle against the interior wall of the trailer.  Her left hand still instinctively squeezed against the arm on her throat, but her legs were twitching intermittently. \n\nSeething with anger, Mathis quickly rubbed his face against the tricep holding her up, looking at her dazed face.  Seeing that she was still conscious, but not actively fighting back, he adjusted his grip, moving his hand back down to Nav’s disheveled t-shirt and letting go of her neck.\n\nThe hyena gasped in a long breath of air, before coughing and hacking, trying to replenish oxygen back into her system.  Whatever reprieve the girl was expecting, however, was cut short as she was suddenly pinned to the wall again. Nav sputtered in shock, seeing both her wrists held on either side of her head by his own two hands, as her wide eyes met his shaking ones.\n\nAs loathe as he was to admit it… feeling that body squirming and writhing against his, so heated and panicked… it stirred some familiar feelings for the lion. Feelings like the memories of himself and Alandria, up against the wall in [i]very[/i] similar fashion…in the doorway of the master bedroom, not quite making it to the queen; in the alley behind the back of the club; even one time in the school bathroom, during a Parent/Teacher meet-up party… she’d always indulged his sneaky streak, and being alone without her for so long had only compounded the frustration he felt, mounted by his son’s struggles and their ever-worsening bills. Seeing the misguided lust in his eyes, Nav’s resistance began anew, but with so little of his energy depleted, Mathis had no trouble holding her down.\n\n“You bully my son… you [i]torture[/i] him… you make his life a living hell, every day… he did [b][i]nothing[/i][/b] to you!! And then you put your [i]hands[/i] on my child… ?”\n\n“W-wait…Ma—Mr. Raynor, stop!”\n\nHer cries fell on deaf ears as the lion yanked Nav from the wall and tossed her down to the dirty floor, which he absently noticed was littered with trash and dust. “We’re gonna see how [i]you[/i] like it. I know what kind of plumbing you hyenas have down there… so let me show you what it’s like in the [b][i]boys’ room.[/i][/b]”\n\nTerrified, Nav scrambled up toward the couch at the opposite wall, seemingly going for something behind the cushions.  Mathis wasn’t having it, yanking the girl backwards until they both tumbled onto the couch, then off it, Mathis grunting and Nav gasping from the jolt. \n\nThe hyeness was in a panic—face still stinging from that painful slap an eternal half-minute ago, her last-ditch effort to snatch her father’s shotgun from behind the couch had gone sideways, and now, so had they.  Over her trembling whimpers, the lion righting himself above her was grunting like a feral demon possessed, not even sounding like anything from this earth.  Just minutes ago she was lazing across this same couch, half watching trash TV and half playing games on her phone... She begged: “No! No, get off me, [i]stop it! [/i]Aaahhh!!”\n\nIt was a sloppy, messy struggle across the rough, cheap shag carpeting.  Roaring right through Nav’s cries for help, the middle-aged lion pulled and clutched desperately, furiously, at her flailing body, harshly stretching her shirt every which way until he flicked his claws open and… \n \n[i]Tttttrriiiippp![/i]\n\n“Aaaa-haaawwll!!!”\n\nThe front of Nav’s shirt tore into shreds from her body, four strips falling between her incipient rapist’s fingers, although the back and one sleeve remained intact.  Her bra, however, suffered a much worse fate: the cup responsible for keeping the hyena’s right breast in place had a very deep gash in it, suffered from the forceful swipe of his lethally sharp claws. Mathis pinned the girl’s chest down with his gargantuan free paw, not even bothering to look at the other one while it flexed, squeezing the extra volume of synthetic gel, which [i]fpppllt[/i] out over his clenched fist. “[i]Padded,[/i]” he sneered down at her quivering form before growling again.  “And you’re one to talk about gender roles…” \n\nLuckily for her, the thickness of that extra padding saved her from suffering any permanent, or even life threatening, injuries to her body… but right now, that was the least of her problems.  In her shock at the lion condescending Nav over her secret, her guard was almost forgotten— a dire mistake as Mathis quickly moved forward, straddling the hyena on his knees and pinning her on either side of her waist.  She immediately resumed trying to fight him off, but by then it was too late.  With one hand crushing her sternum, just below her bare, flat chest, and the other shaking and working open the threaded belt loop on his dress pants, the middle aged father was shuddering with adrenaline, fury… and excitement.  He hadn’t dared consider betraying his loving wife, especially after all they had been through… he could distantly hear the voice in the back of his head screaming for reason and lucidity… but it was too late to turn back now. His son didn’t deserve this… so she [i]did[/i].\n\nSuddenly bolting upright, she screamed toward the entryway, Nav’s alarmed, piercing shrieks cutting through the clouds in Mathis’ mind, making him jump in alert: “S-stop!! HELP!! Somebody, [b][i]please![/i][/b] He’s ra—!!” \n\nCut off by a fear-induced grunt, Mathis practically [i]tackled[/i] Nav over onto her back, the paw on her chest shooting up to her muzzle and snapping down on it so hard, her teeth painfully clamped together, [i]right[/i] through her tongue. Blistering pain shot up her mouth and teeth, sending electric signals of agony straight up to her brain, the bite so hard her mouth quickly started to fill with blood.  Without hands to continue holding her down, Mathis was once again forced to use his body weight to force [i]her.[/i]  She still kicked and squirmed, moaning and whimpering painfully against his paw from the bite… but with his pants unbuttoned and undone, the hard part for Mathis was essentially over.  Well, it was [i]getting[/i] hard. \n\nTrapping the outside of Nav’s hips with the inside of his own, Mathis started to [i]grriind[/i] roughly and steadily, right against the terrified young girl’s pelvic bone.  He was using brisk, circular motions, pushing firmly with every thrust, but with the hyena still thrashing in an attempt to fight him off or attract attention from her neighbors, she was as good as humping back up against him, rubbing the bulge in her shorts directly against the lion’s cock, which barely peeked out from his underwear.\n\nMathis quickly felt the burning thrills of arousal surging through his lower body, shivering and panting against the teenager’s held-shut maw.  Looking to his left, he saw the outside view of the trailer park through the door, still open from when he barged in.  The screen door had an air-controlled pneumatic pump that closed it automatically, but the wooden door for the home itself, sat open and inviting.  Anyone could’ve heard her and ran in to save her and stop him… in fact, anyone could’ve walked by at any moment.  The danger set Mathis’ blood ablaze, and he humped harder against her, lifting his hips to slide his dress pants down without the use of his hands.  He was going to fuck this trailer trash, right [i]in front[/i] of the trailer trash—as justice for his son.\n\nPushing his hips flush against the wailing girl’s pubic bone again, he used their grinding hips to his advantage and quickly used one burly paw to grab both his and her lower garments—[i]four[/i] articles of clothing at once— and wiggled them down as roughly as he could, exposing their lower bodies, and both their penises.  Nav’s lengthy pseudo-endowment was minutely engorged from the forced rubbing, but slightly extended from her sweat-matted pelvis.  With a flash of rage in his eyes, the lion tightly grabbed her shaft, the hand holding her blistered muzzle shut moving back down to her neck to allow her to respond to him: “Is this what you did? Huh? This what you did to [i]my[/i] son?” \n\nThrough uncontrolled hiccups and streaming tears, she could only gulp a frenzied, blubbering nod.\n\n“You do anything [i]else[/i] to him? I swear to [i]God[/i], I find out you’re fucking lying to me…”\n\n“No… no!” Whether she was reaffirming her statements, or continuing to plead, Mathis was too enthralled to care anymore.  Holding firmly on her neck once more, forcing her to fight back against the strength of his bulging arm, Mathis reached down and gave three tight strokes against the shaft of her engorged clitoris—by far, the most humane thing that had occurred to her that day— and used the resulting blood flow to line her up with his already throbbing lioncock, tapered at 6 and-a-half inches… before wedging themselves together, forcing his head in. \n\n“Hhhhhh–Aaaaahhh!!!!”\n\nMathis let go of her neck just in time for her to let out a wailing shriek of pain, spreading a wide-fanged grin of satisfaction of hearing that sound coming from her throat, compared to those infuriating cackles from a few minutes ago.  \n\n“Please, please, stop… I won’t…”\n\nWith both his hands now free again, Mathis fully laid over her, ramming forward and pressing down inside her clit even more painfully.  The rest of his body easily overpowered hers, his stomach, torso, chest, and arms covering her own, spindly by comparison.  He wasn’t like his son.  Mathis’ hands wrapped under Nav’s shoulders, throwing his full body into each thrust, yowling in her face, “You won’t [i]what!?[/i]”\n\nBetween the hiccups from the shock, grunts from the pain, and gasps from forced biological warmth poking through, she could barely manage to get it out: “I w-wo… I won-won’t ever go n-near your son again, [b][i]please!! [/i][/b]Just—” \n\n“Just hurry up and cum?” Mathis grinned darkly.  “Just what [i]I[/i] was thinking.”\n\n“No! Don’t—Aaah!! [b]Ah![/b] [b]Ah![/b] [i]Aahh![/i]”\n\nWithout giving her a chance to rebut, the 38-year old quickly adjusted his knees to the floor, and started hunching his hips powerfully, slowing down the speed of his thrusts, but each one knocking a brutal punch to her waist.  He wrapped both his arms around hers, locking his hands behind her back and immobilizing her in a twisted form of a bear hug, resting his chin on her shoulder.  With each rug-burning [i]throw[/i] of his hips, the middle-aged father purposefully grunted as hard as he could, right into her ear—he wanted her to hear that sound every time she [i]ever[/i] tried to go to sleep; [i]any[/i] time there was silence in the house; [i]any[/i] time she felt genuine laughter for any reason to forget this day; last of all, [i]any[/i] time she ever laid eyes on his son.\n\nNav flinched with each thrust, grateful that she couldn’t see what she felt.  She knew her pseudo-penis was straight out and erect, matching Mathis’ cock exactly.  He was spreading her shaft out wider than ever before, his tip digging deeper and deeper until it nestled up against her inner tunnel.  This was [i]really[/i] happening.  Emery’s father was [i]raping her[/i].  The middle schooler hadn’t even had a boyfriend yet, but none of that stopped the huge lion from pinning her down and stuffing her black shaft full.  There was no laughter in her throat now, only squeals of pain, despite the thrumming in her overstimulated clit.  But even those were drowned out by his guttural, taunting growls.\n\nBut quickly, those angry grunts were interspersed with delighted panting, and quivering moans. And before long, the moment arrived, when those powerhouse plunges finally devolved into three quick short jabs, the last one which held frozen against her as spines flared, designed to stimulate an [i]adult[/i] into ovulating, digging into the entire length of her girl dick.  With a hard groan, Mathis’ cock [b][i]pulsed[/i][/b], and began to shoot lance after lance of thick, adulterous seed into the hardened, extended pseudopenis of a thirteen-year-old girl. \n\nNav’s sobbing throughout the whole ordeal had suddenly cut short at the unmistakable feeling of scalding hot warmth firing from one tube into another, seeping quickly into her body.  She shuddered at the feeling of being violated inside and out, whimpering anew as he visibly deflated in pleasure from finally releasing so many months of frustration out in a single burst, even at the expense of…\n\n[b][i]…Shit…[/i][/b]\n\nMathis stared down at the defeated hyena, her lips lined with blood. When had [i]that[/i] happened? He could see the bruises beginning to form where he’d struck her. And as satisfying as his afterglow was, his stomachache told him he’d gone too far. Even if she [i]had[/i] showed off Emery’s wiener to the girls (and she could have been boasting), this response was a huge escalation. Panting, he lifted himself up to look down at his waist. He knew what he would see, but he was still surprised to see his cock touching ‘hers’, stuffed inside and making her bulge. Like two snakes meeting in a tunnel, she’d fully engulfed him, like she was made to do.  He growled, realizing that he’d cum in her bare — he hadn’t smelled any heat, but that wasn’t proof against a pregnant belly.\n\nBut he wouldn’t hear that laugh again. His ears flattened, and he let go of her neck completely. She’d been fully stunned into silence, quivering beneath him as he pulled out of her, only yelping like a dog who’d been stepped on when his barbs ripped free of her oversensitive clit. [i]God, what have I done!?[/i]\n\n“Stay away from my [i]son[/i],” he growled down at her.\n\nShe nodded rapidly, eyes wide, panting on the floor.  Pulling up his trousers, Mathis tossed the girl what little shreds of her clothes remained, putting himself back together.  Avoiding eye contact with the trembling hyena, he attempted to make himself as presentable as he could—as if he [i]hadn’t[/i] just raped a thirteen-year-old.  He turned to her, still seeing her mostly nude body underneath the tatters of her ruined clothes. “Now…” he began, pausing until she looked up at Mathis’ glare. “I can assume this goes without saying that—” \n\n[i]Thump, thump, thump, thu-creeaak.[/i]\n\nFor one tiny instant, [b][i]both [/i][/b]their hearts leapt to their throats in a shared panic, as the thirty-eight year old attacker and his thirteen-year old victim whipped their heads to the now open screen door, eyes popping out of their skulls.  Grumbling, and wearing an articulate truckers’ cap that read ‘I Brake 4 Bitches’, a bulky, misshapen adult hyena lumbered inside, each of his boot laden footsteps practically caving in the cheap flooring underneath the dirty carpet.  Barely slowing down in his trudging, the gut-heavy father paid no mind to the frozen pair staring at them from halfway across the trailer.  \n\n[i]“D-Dad!!”\n[/i]\nBoth males jumped at her outburst.\n\n[b][i]Fuck. [/i][/b]\n\nThis was it.  She’s in the middle of telling her father that he raped her, he can do nothing about it to shut her up or defend himself, and her clothes are in tatters. He all but had his pants back down with the amount of evidence against him in that moment.\n\nThe obese male turned to her, and said:\n\n“God [i]damn[/i], Einav, I just walked in the fuckin’ house and I had a shit day already! Let me get my—!”\n\nTurning around, he finally took stock of the situation in front of him: the frozen lion with his hands [i]still[/i] on his belt, standing above her.  Nav’s shirt was torn apart from the front, but the untouched back side faced his uninterested eyes.  \n\n“Jesus, Nav…if you’re gonna bring a teacher or somebody home with ya, take him to your [i]room[/i], don’t be doing any shit with ‘em [i]out here[/i] in the open.”  And with that, he reached into a cupboard sitting above the nearby refrigerator, and pulled out a bottle of amber liquid: whiskey.  Sparing him a flat sneer, he walked past a shocked Mathis and a broken Nav, into the back.  The door flimsily slammed shut, and a lock could be heard tumbling. Mathis couldn’t help but stare in the direction of the negligent deadbeat swallowing his problems away in 80 proof, until quiet sobs broke his focus. He looked down to see the hyena, crumpled up on the floor, hand pressed against her face, poorly hiding her tears, until she gave up and used the strips of her shirt to wipe them away.  \n\nMathis had never felt so hollow.\n\nHis bright, but spoiled son complained so often about their lives… Mathis had often lamented the heartbreak of the heavy debt surrounding his family and his home.  But looking around now, gathering his surroundings for the first time, the father truly took in the squalor and destitution spread across this temporary home.  Moreso, the filth that littered the floor; almost making a third layer across the house… and finally, the teenaged girl, sticking out of the bog, like a flower growing from the harshest environments.  A flower that now lay torn and wilting against the arm of the couch.  Her crying had stopped, her movements cold and numb. The girl’s own father witnessed her in unambiguous sexual acts with a man nearly [i]three[/i] [i]times[/i] her age, and didn’t bat an eye.\n\nMathis turned to her, even more wracked with guilt. “L-listen…I… I’m so sorry.  Nav—I completely lost control.  I know, that’s not at [i]all[/i] an excuse… ”  Looking at the drying remains of blood around her mouth from biting her tongue, he patted down his shirt, finding his handkerchief, emblazoned with M.R. sitting in the breast pocket.  Luckily, the weather had been pleasant recently, so he hadn’t used it, but it had gathered a fair amount of sweat from when… \n\nThe lion knelt down in front of her, unfolding the hankie once, and offering it to Nav through his lightly closed paw. “Here… you can use this to—”\n\nShe tore the cloth out of his hands, jolting up to lock eyes with him, hers red and furious through trails of tears: “Get. The fuck. Out.”\n\n“Y’you’re right, I’m sorr—”\n\n“[i]NOW![/i]”\n\nShe lunged for the nearest item and threw it at him with all the rage she could muster. That was clear enough of a message for the guilty lion, and he took off, sprinting out through the hissing screen door, and towards his Explorer, slipping at least twice on the loose gravel. Slamming the car door shut, everything sped through his head like a video tape: his awful botched apology, him getting caught, having sex with an underage girl [i]against her will[/i]… having sex with an underage girl in the [i]first[/i] place… cheating on his wife — [b][i]oh god — [/i][/b]Alandria!! It only just [i]now[/i] occurred to him: [i]this[/i], of all things, should’ve been at the [b]top[/b] of his list. He’d just cheated on his wife of twelve years… \n\nIt was all too much.\n\nRoaring in frustrated rage, Mathis punched his dashboard over and over, grunting loudly and painfully with each plastic shattering impact until his knuckles started to bleed, before stopping suddenly and just sobbing, resting his pounding head into his bloody hands. But he couldn’t stay there, parked in front of the scene of the crime. Gritting his teeth, he did what he had to do, turning on the car and shifting into drive. Every impulse quivered through his muscles as he forced himself to drive like a sane person, when all he wanted to do was drive until there was no road left.\n\n***\n\n“I’m serious, Dad — you should’ve [i]seen[/i] it! Mr. Richardson made the fire blue, then pink, then red — he even made it green!”  \n\nMathis couldn’t help but chuckle at his son’s excitement.   Emery’s turnaround had been instantaneous—his mood improved dramatically when Nav “mysteriously” never so much as spoke to him again, even going so far as to avoid him entirely.  Manny initially still gave him trouble, but a firm yank from the hyena and some hushed angry words somehow kept him in line, too.  Before long, Emery no longer needed to ignore his two bullies—they were ignoring [i]him.  [/i]And he couldn’t be happier.  \n\nThat happiness was infectious, as Mathis found himself grinning as well.  He’d indulged their shared mood that night… with Emery’s favorite. \n\n[i]Brraaaap![/i]\n\n“Oh, my God that was waaay too much…”\n\n“[i]Manners,[/i] Em—” Mathis began to chastise, before involuntarily letting out an [i]Urp![/i] of his own.  Their eyes locked in surprise, before the grown man giggled, breaking the silence.  His son broke out into a laugh, joining him. \n\nHis laugh simmering into a chuckle, before dying into a tired groan, he moaned to his father, “[i]Why[/i] did you sit there and let me eat [b][i]all[/i][/b] of my Ultra Pepper Pepperoni?”\n\nThe middle-aged man smirked at him.  “To teach you a lesson about pacing yourself, and savoring what you have.”\n\nWith a pleasure-drunk grin on his face, Emery replied: “I [i]refuse[/i] to learn anything while eating pizza.”  Earning a head shake and a chuckle from his senior.  With a sigh, he got up, putting his plate in the sink, before dragging his feet toward the stairs.  “I’m gonna go [i]straight[/i] to bed… I’m so full, I’ll probably be in a pizza coma! G’night, Dad.” \n\n“Goodnight, Emery.” \n\nWith a bittersweet sigh, Mathis stood up, folding up Emery’s empty pizza box and storing the remains of his own on top of the stove, before grabbing his plate, knife, and fork, and headed towards the sink.  [i]Might as well wash these before I go to bed myself.[/i]  As he turned on the sink, however, an impatient knock rattled the front door.  The lion cocked his head in confusion.  That couldn’t be the pizza guy again, could it? That’s right, he [i]did[/i] forget the habanero dipping sauce! Mathis insisted that it was fine, and tipped him regardless. Wiping his hands on a washcloth as he neared the door, he flipped on the outdoor light and gripped the doorknob: “Hey, you didn’t have to go all—”\n \nMathis’ breath caught in an outright [i]gasp, [/i]dropping his dish towel.\n\nIt wafted through the dimly lit air, landing with a [i]fwomp[/i] — right at the feet of Nav the Hyena.\n",
  "writing_bbcode_parsed": "<span style='word-wrap: break-word;'>&ldquo;Shouldn&rsquo;t you be going to the <em>boy&rsquo;s</em> locker room!?&rdquo; Patrick yelled.<br /><br />&ldquo;Dude, shut up!&rdquo; Emery exclaimed, horrified.&nbsp;&nbsp;His weasel of a friend was <em>literally</em> a weasel &ndash; he didn&rsquo;t know how offensive what he was saying was.&nbsp;&nbsp;He was basically saying the &ldquo;d&rdquo; word to a wolf, and could get expelled.<br /><br />But Nav just laughed it off.&nbsp;&nbsp;The hyena girl was bigger than both of the boys &mdash; almost <em>combined</em> &mdash; and she knew she had the back-up of the P.E. instructor.&nbsp;&nbsp;She&rsquo;d long ago come to terms with the bulge in her athletic shorts.&nbsp;&nbsp;She found it amusing that she was packing more than the boys in the class, with the exception of Cyrus, the stallion.&nbsp;&nbsp;She could have worn baggier pants, but she stuck with the girls&rsquo; outfit just to show off, and there was nothing the school could do about it.&nbsp;&nbsp;She was following the dress code, after all.<br /><br />&ldquo;Only if Emery uses the girl&rsquo;s,&rdquo; Manny joked.&nbsp;&nbsp;&ldquo;Not much of a mane on <em>this</em> lioness.&rdquo;&nbsp;&nbsp;The saltwater crocodile was always hanging around with Nav, and he really <em>was</em> as big as Patrick and Emery combined.&nbsp;&nbsp;He pushed Patrick just enough not to draw anyone&rsquo;s attention, and even the teachers walked on eggshells around Manny.<br /><br />The shove was long forgotten &ndash; but the joke <em>stuck</em>.&nbsp;&nbsp;Emery hated Patrick for starting it.&nbsp;&nbsp;Now everyone called Nav a boy, which she didn&rsquo;t even mind, and everyone called <em>Emery</em> a girl.&nbsp;&nbsp;Boy lions didn&rsquo;t grow their manes for a while!&nbsp;&nbsp;It&rsquo;s not his fault he was still slender and not bulky like his dad.&nbsp;&nbsp;The teasing was relentless, and the two bullies were the biggest perpetrators.&nbsp;&nbsp;They barely looked at Patrick, picking out the weak and slow, like good predators.&nbsp;&nbsp;They started pushing Emery around, taking his lunch money &mdash; it was a clich&eacute;.<br /><br />Emery steamed.&nbsp;&nbsp;But he couldn&rsquo;t challenge Manny at all, and the crocodile protected Nav.&nbsp;&nbsp;There was nothing the young lion could do.<br /><br />Except&hellip;.<br /><br /><em>Slam!</em><br /><br /><em>&ldquo;Daaaaad!&rdquo;</em><br /><br />The well-built lion&rsquo;s paws jumped at the sudden shattering of quiet, disrupting the delicate work of his model paintwork.&nbsp;&nbsp;Mathis&rsquo; eyes rolled so far back in his head, it was a wonder they didn&rsquo;t snap from his optic nerves.&nbsp;&nbsp;That young teenager of his, as much as he truly loved and cared for his boy, was so impatient.&nbsp;&nbsp;Whatever he strived to achieve in life &mdash; whether it was to be a famous movie star, or just to get a bag of cookies from the top shelf of the pantry &mdash; if he wasn&rsquo;t immediately good at something, he&rsquo;d get bored and complain.&nbsp;&nbsp;He always wanted to find the easy way in, or out. &ldquo;What did I say about slamming doors in the house, Emery?&rdquo;, the broad-shouldered patriarch asked dryly as he turned to face his huffing teen.<br /><br />&ldquo;Can you <em>please</em> just transfer me to a different school?&rdquo;<br /><br />Emery was only greeted with a flat stare before his father silently turned back to his project.<br /><br />&ldquo;<em>Daaad</em>, come <strong><em>ooonnn&mdash;</em></strong>&rdquo;<br /><br />&ldquo;<em>No. Whining.</em>&rdquo;&nbsp;&nbsp;Mathis turned sharply, fixing a stern glare at his progeny before setting down his tools, knowing his project was shot for the afternoon.&nbsp;&nbsp;&ldquo;Now, tell me what&rsquo;s wrong <em>this</em> time.&rdquo;<br /><br />The teenaged lion took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down before he spoke: &ldquo;The kids at school keep bullying me because I&rsquo;m not <em>manly</em> enough.&nbsp;&nbsp;They keep calling me a girl because my mane hasn&rsquo;t grown in yet!&nbsp;&nbsp;And the <em>worst</em> one <em>is</em> a girl, so I can&rsquo;t get back at her or <em>I&rsquo;ll</em> look bad!&rdquo;<br /><br />&ldquo;You know the most manly thing to do is ignore them, son.&nbsp;&nbsp;We talked about this at your <em>last</em> school,&rdquo; he sighed, exhausted.&nbsp;&nbsp;It wasn&rsquo;t completely untrue.&nbsp;&nbsp;His golden-furred runt <em>was</em> a bit of a sissy.<br /><br />&ldquo;How can I ignore that?&nbsp;&nbsp;All the other kids laugh.&rdquo;<br /><br />&ldquo;What do you want <em>me</em> to do, boy?&nbsp;&nbsp;I can&rsquo;t make your mane grow in any faster.&nbsp;&nbsp;Changing schools &mdash; <em>again &mdash; </em>when it didn&rsquo;t work this time?&nbsp;&nbsp;That&rsquo;ll just <em>prove</em> <em>them right</em>.&nbsp;&nbsp;That&rsquo;s not the way I raised you.&nbsp;&nbsp;Okay, champ?&rdquo;&nbsp;&nbsp;Mathis softened his voice slightly, but clapped a massive paw on his progeny&rsquo;s shoulder, squeezing resolutely and speaking with a solid grip on his baritone: &ldquo;The only way they can get a rise out of you is if you <em>allow</em> them to.&nbsp;&nbsp;You have the heart of a <strong>lion</strong> in you, Emery.&nbsp;&nbsp;Time to back that up with the <em>strength </em>of one.&nbsp;&nbsp;You know the saying: &lsquo;Sticks and stones may break my bones, but&mdash;&rsquo;&rdquo;<br /><br />&ldquo;Dad, I&rsquo;m <em>telling</em> you, that old stuff doesn&rsquo;t work anymo&mdash;!&rdquo;<br /><br />&ldquo;<strong><em>Sticks</em></strong><em> and </em><strong><em>stones</em></strong>, Emery&hellip;?&rdquo;<br /><br />Defeated, the teen could only sigh and mumble imperceptibly.<br /><br />&ldquo;Words will never hurt me.&rdquo;<br /><br />Mathis&rsquo; face eased into a soft grin.&nbsp;&nbsp;&ldquo;Alright, c&rsquo;mere&hellip;&rdquo;&nbsp;&nbsp;Effortlessly tugging the 110-pound teen into his arms, the man hugged his boy tight, sighing in contentment and rubbing Em&rsquo;s back. Speaking into his kid&rsquo;s ear, he muttered quietly, &ldquo;I know this feels like hell to you, pal. But trust me, it&rsquo;s all part of growing up.&nbsp;&nbsp;It&rsquo;ll pass.&rdquo;&nbsp;&nbsp;He ended the hug with two quick pats to his shoulder before pulling back, looking his boy in the eyes, and smiling warmly.&nbsp;&nbsp;&ldquo;Believe it or not, they&rsquo;re gonna get bored of raggin&rsquo; on ya and move on.&nbsp;&nbsp;You&rsquo;ll become good friends, look back on these days and just laugh it off! You&rsquo;ll see.&rdquo; <br /><br />Emery smiled, but still shook his head uneasily.&nbsp;&nbsp;&ldquo;Alright, if you say so, dad.&nbsp;&nbsp;I won&rsquo;t let them get the better of me&ndash;<em>Ow!</em>&nbsp;&nbsp;Ha ha, what was that for!?&rdquo; He rubbed the back of his head, dodging another playful swipe from his father.<br /><br />Chuckling mirthfully, Mathis replied, &ldquo;Uh-huh, that honor is reserved for your old man.&nbsp;&nbsp;And that was for slamming the door on your way in and messing up my model, you know better.&nbsp;&nbsp;Now go in the kitchen, and get your snack, then get started on homework.&rdquo;<br /><br />&ldquo;Alright.&rdquo;&nbsp;&nbsp;Emery grabbed an energy bar, and started towards the stairs.&nbsp;&nbsp;&ldquo;Whatcha making for dinner?&rdquo;<br /><br />&ldquo;Red beans and rice, of course.&rdquo;<br /><br />The teen made a grimaced face and nearly whined again before restraining himself: &ldquo;That cheap canned stuff <em>again?</em>&nbsp;&nbsp;Can&rsquo;t we just get a pizza or something for once?&rdquo;<br /><br />&ldquo;Can&rsquo;t <em>you</em> come up with 30 or 40 bucks to cover one meal?&nbsp;&nbsp;No?&nbsp;&nbsp;Well, then.&nbsp;&nbsp;Until <em>you</em> bring home the bacon, you can tell the pizza place to <em>hold</em> it.&rdquo;<br /><br />Emery canted his head to one side, his smart-ass side coming out.&nbsp;&nbsp;&ldquo;Well, technically <em>Mom</em> brings home the bacon.&rdquo;<br /><br />Giving the kid a flat stare, Mathis ordered, &ldquo;I can see why they pick on you, running that mouth! And if we&rsquo;re being technical now, <em>I&rsquo;m </em>the one who gets the groceries.&nbsp;&nbsp;Now get on upstairs and get to work!&rdquo;<br /><br />&ldquo;Yes, sir&hellip;&rdquo; The teen grumbled playfully, springing up the stairs toward his bedroom.&nbsp;&nbsp;Mathis listened to the <em>thump-thump-thump</em> of his son&rsquo;s footsteps reaching the second floor, each leap letting Mathis recede ever deeper into his own little world, smile beginning to wane.&nbsp;&nbsp;The break from his hobby led the middle-aged lion&rsquo;s tired eyes back to the area of the table that he had hoped to distance himself from: the growing stack of envelopes, all addressed to him and his wife.&nbsp;&nbsp;The ones on the top were cut open and had their contents spread out, but the others&hellip; didn&rsquo;t need the same treatment.&nbsp;&nbsp;The corners all read the same: <br /><br />Collection Agency&hellip; Return Service Requested&hellip; Urgent&hellip; Time Sensitive&hellip; Final Notice.<br /><br />The rising tower of debt loomed over Mathis and his small nuclear family, threatening to take everything that they had.&nbsp;&nbsp;Placing a hand on the topmost bill, he looked up towards the general direction of Emery&rsquo;s room, where he could faintly hear electronic music playing, and smiled sadly at the events leading up to their current state.<br /><br />It was true that lions&rsquo; manes grew relatively late in their puberty&hellip; but the reason behind Emery&rsquo;s lanky and diminutive stature was tragic, yet also a miracle: he was born seven weeks premature.&nbsp;&nbsp;His mother, Alandria, had never <em>once</em> believed she could possibly conceive in her 40&rsquo;s.&nbsp;&nbsp;She even had her cycles predicted to the <em>date</em>.&nbsp;&nbsp;But when she fell ill one day at work and the doctor found an embryo at forty-one, she was overcome with joyous shock.&nbsp;&nbsp;Going through pregnancy at such a late age, however, led to many complications for both her and her growing miracle baby.&nbsp;&nbsp;Soon, the radical changes going through their bodies was taking its toll on both of them, and doctors were left with no choice but to perform an emergency Cesarean section, or risk losing one or both.&nbsp;&nbsp;Emery was born weighing only four pounds and fourteen ounces, not even enough air in his lungs to cry.&nbsp;&nbsp;But despite the impossible odds, Alandria recovered with the help of expert specialists, and with even <em>more</em> intensive and loving care, so too did little Em.&nbsp;&nbsp;He was their proudest moment.&nbsp;&nbsp;Alandria still joked that he was &ldquo;e mery-cle&rdquo;.<br /><br />But their insurance wouldn&rsquo;t cover it.&nbsp;&nbsp;Debt was a funny thing - it starts in one area and spreads to every other area of your life.&nbsp;&nbsp;But he wouldn&rsquo;t have it any other way regarding Emery.<br /><br />Thinking about that smile he had at six years old, running up to his old man to barely wrap his arms around his gut and beam up at him with those bright beautiful eyes filled with nothing but mischief&hellip; had Mathis&rsquo; corneas sting; a few leaks sprung in the dam.&nbsp;&nbsp;His breath quivered, fond tears marring his cheeks.&nbsp;&nbsp;He let out a shaky chuckle, wiping his face and standing over his mounting problems, fixing a determined smile.&nbsp;&nbsp;Emery may be a little spoiled&mdash;it comes with being a teenager, after all&mdash;but he loved his boy more than anything in the world.&nbsp;&nbsp;Even if a sea of bills and deluge of debts swallowed him whole, he wouldn&rsquo;t change a single thing.&nbsp;&nbsp;Taking a deep breath to steady his nerves, Mathis walked toward the kitchen to get dinner started. <br /><br /><em>We&rsquo;ll find some way&hellip;we just have to take it a day at a time.</em><br /><br />* * * * *<br /><br />&ldquo;Look, it&rsquo;s the school&rsquo;s hottest lioness,&rdquo; Nav teased, striding alongside Emery as he walked out to P.E.&nbsp;&nbsp;Emery opened his mouth, preparing a flippant response, when he remembered his father&rsquo;s sage advice: <em>Just ignore it.&nbsp;&nbsp;They&rsquo;ll get bored and move on.</em>&nbsp;&nbsp;With that, he rotated his jaw, turning it into a disinterested yawn, staring straight ahead as he kept walking.<br /><br />&ldquo;She&rsquo;s <em>talking</em> to you, pipsqueak,&rdquo; the crocodile&rsquo;s low voice followed.&nbsp;&nbsp;&ldquo;Thank her for the compliment.&rdquo;&nbsp;&nbsp;It wasn&rsquo;t a request.&nbsp;&nbsp;Emery simply kept his eyes forward, turning toward the locker rooms to change into his work-out clothes.&nbsp;&nbsp;<em>Hey, maybe this method is pretty effective after all! Dad must&rsquo;ve been onto something&mdash;</em><br /><br />&ldquo;Wrong locker room, girl,&rdquo; Nav interrupted.&nbsp;&nbsp;This time, she stepped noticeably in front of Emery, forcing him to decide: stop, or push past her.&nbsp;&nbsp;Unfortunately, he couldn&rsquo;t feign ignorance of her existence at this point, and slowed down his gait.<br /><br />&ldquo;...&lsquo;scuse me,&rdquo; he said simply, attempting to squeeze by.<br /><br />Now <em>she</em> got physical, though it just amounted to pushing back against his shoulder to prevent his lateral movement.&nbsp;&nbsp;She held up her hands, palms out, and said, &ldquo;C&rsquo;mon, Emmy.&nbsp;&nbsp;I&rsquo;m putting you above Cecily, and she&rsquo;s smokin&rsquo;.&nbsp;&nbsp;You should be honored.&rdquo;<br /><br />Emery didn&rsquo;t know that the hyena was just buying time to use those hands in a very different way, and he didn&rsquo;t hear Manny drop down to one knee behind him.<br /><br />&ldquo;I need to get by, Nav &mdash; <em>please</em>.&rdquo; Emery spoke calmly.&nbsp;&nbsp;Hopefully, speaking civilly would help, if ignoring her was no longer an option. &ldquo;I&rsquo;d just like to&mdash;&rdquo;<br /><br />The first thing he noticed was the laughter.&nbsp;&nbsp;Odd, because the hyena didn&rsquo;t laugh until he was halfway on the way to the ground, pushed over Manny.&nbsp;&nbsp;Still, that laughter rang most prevalent in his ears, his senses discombobulated, and he fell backward and landed heavily on his shoulders on the gym floor.&nbsp;&nbsp;Thank God he only thumped his head a little bit.&nbsp;&nbsp;The double crack of his phenomenal collapse immediately drew the P.E. teacher&rsquo;s attention, but not in time to see exactly what happened. Right on cue, Manny grunted theatrically, gripping his shoulder as if <em>he</em> was somehow knocked over. <br /><br />&ldquo;You guys okay over there?&rdquo; The heron coach inquired, his long beak taking considerable time to rotate far enough to peer at the disaster.<br /><br />&ldquo;Yeah, sorry &mdash; just wasn&rsquo;t watching where I was going,&rdquo; Manny bellowed.<br /><br />&ldquo;Oh well, be more careful then,&rdquo; the coach explained, letting them both off the hook.<br /><br />Emery smarted the rest of the day; both his head and his ego.<br /><br /><em>&ldquo;Daaaaad!&rdquo;</em> he yelled as he opened the front door.<br /><br />Mathis sighed.&nbsp;&nbsp;He&rsquo;d already been capping his paints, but he worked double time to make sure that all of his brushes and paints were safely cleaned and stored.&nbsp;&nbsp;&ldquo;Yes, son?&rdquo; he asked, trying to sound appeasing.&nbsp;&nbsp;<br /><br />Dragging his feet into the den where his father turned to meet him, the teenager grumbled: &ldquo;<em>Yeah&mdash;</em>that oh-so-brilliant plan of yours didn&rsquo;t work, dad. The two of them just got in the way, and blocked me wherever I tried to walk!&rdquo;<br /><br />&ldquo;Well, in that case&mdash;&rdquo;<br /><br />&ldquo;I <em>tried</em> that already, Dad!&nbsp;&nbsp;I was civil and calm and everything.&nbsp;&nbsp;But they just did that&hellip; stupid move where they knelt behind me and tripped me over.&nbsp;&nbsp;How&rsquo;m I supposed to ignore that, huh?&rdquo;<br /><br />Mathis simply stared. &ldquo;You finished?&rdquo;<br /><br />Sensing another lecture, Emery slumped with a small sigh. &ldquo;...yeah, I guess.&rdquo;<br /><br />&ldquo;Good. Now, what I was <em>trying</em> to say was, &lsquo;In that case, if they refuse to step up to your level, <em>then</em> you can come down to <em>theirs.&rsquo;&nbsp;&nbsp;</em>Now how does that sound?&rdquo;&nbsp;&nbsp;He cracked a smile at Emery&rsquo;s raised eyebrows. <br /><br />&ldquo;Y-you want me to fight back?&nbsp;&nbsp;But, Dad &mdash;&rdquo; the slender, tawny feline exclaimed.<br /><br />&ldquo;Yes and no.&nbsp;&nbsp;You have to be smart about it.&nbsp;&nbsp;Get the two separated somehow.&nbsp;&nbsp;Make sure you&rsquo;re not alone.&nbsp;&nbsp;Wait until they do something to bully you, then&hellip; <em>smack!</em>&nbsp;&nbsp;Aim for the gut.&rdquo;<br /><br />&ldquo;Wait&hellip; really?&rdquo;&nbsp;&nbsp;Emery perked up now, genuinely excited.<br /><br />Chuckling, the greying lion leaned back in his chair, with an air of pride about him.&nbsp;&nbsp;&ldquo;I&rsquo;ll let you in on a little secret from your old man.&rdquo;&nbsp;&nbsp;He then spread his leg out, silently beckoning his teenager to sit on his lap like he used to years ago.&nbsp;&nbsp;Emery cringed and groaned in embarrassment, before awkwardly shuffling over and gingerly sitting down, avoiding his dad&rsquo;s pelvic region as if it had the plague.&nbsp;&nbsp;Mathis lunged up and put Em in a headlock, snarling playfully and rapping his knuckles against his son&rsquo;s wildly protesting scalp. <br /><br />&ldquo;Daaad, cut it out!&rdquo; he laughed and squirmed.<br /><br />&ldquo;Alright, alright. Anyway, you wanna show the kids at school you mean business without getting in trouble?&nbsp;&nbsp;Punch <em>low. </em>A good hard pounding in the gut won&rsquo;t show bruises, but boy, they&rsquo;ll have trouble holding their Lunchables after crossing with you!&rdquo;<br /><br />Emery&rsquo;s eyes bugged out at the horribly dated reference before he hid his face in his hands.&nbsp;&nbsp;&ldquo;Oh, <em>God.</em>&rdquo;<br /><br />Mathis continued, &ldquo;And without visible damage, and friendly witnesses, all the teachers have is your word against theirs, so they can&rsquo;t do a thing!&rdquo;&nbsp;&nbsp;He then leaned closer and whispered, as if they were in public: &ldquo;And if you&rsquo;re lucky, you might end up hitting their family jewels instead &mdash; they&rsquo;ll never touch you again!&rdquo;&nbsp;&nbsp;He pulled back with a giddy laugh.<br /><br />&ldquo;Dad, I&rsquo;m trying to prove I&rsquo;m a <em>man</em>.&nbsp;&nbsp;I don&rsquo;t think going for the nuts is a good strategy.&rdquo;<br /><br />Tousling the boy&rsquo;s hair, Mathis ejected him from his lap.&nbsp;&nbsp;&ldquo;See, you&rsquo;re already thinking.&nbsp;&nbsp;Attaboy.&rdquo;<br /><br />For once, Mathis went to bed alone smiling.&nbsp;&nbsp;He&rsquo;d raised a good kid, and if these bullies couldn&rsquo;t <em>see</em> that &mdash; well&hellip; <em>karma was a bitch</em>.<br /><br /><em>It all made sense.&nbsp;&nbsp;He was following his dad&rsquo;s suggestions.&nbsp;&nbsp;He&rsquo;d spent the evening practicing a gut punch, and even watched a few Youtubes about it.&nbsp;&nbsp;But&hellip;<br /><br />Separating the croc from the hyena was easy enough, but after that&hellip;<br /><br /></em><strong><em>Everything went wrong.</em></strong><em><br /></em><br />&ldquo;Dad.&rdquo;<br /><br />His son&rsquo;s voice was different than usual, but it wasn&rsquo;t triumphant.&nbsp;&nbsp;Mathis felt a pit in his gut.&nbsp;&nbsp;&ldquo;Son?&rdquo;<br /><br />Upon not immediately hearing an annoyed response &mdash; or any response from his son &mdash; he stood up from his desk, now curious.&nbsp;&nbsp;&ldquo;Emery?&rdquo; He walked around the corner of his den, heading towards the front of the house. &ldquo;Buddy, did you do like I&mdash;&rdquo;<br /><br />Reaching the front door landing, Mathis stopped and his heart ran cold.<br /><br />Emery was on the ground.&nbsp;&nbsp;He&rsquo;d only managed one step inside the house before he&rsquo;d collapsed to the floor, crying.&nbsp;&nbsp;His little boy, a miracle born from prayers and science, was a little ball of yellow fluff, curled up with his tufted tail wrapped like a protective blanket.<br /><br />Instinct propelled Mathis forward, drawing the concerned lion to his hurt cub. &ldquo;Emery!&nbsp;&nbsp;Emery; Jesus, what happened?&rdquo;&nbsp;&nbsp;Kneeling down, he carefully checked the boy&rsquo;s body for any serious injuries, gently running his hands over his back, sides and chest, before carefully picking him up into a tight embrace. &ldquo;Are you alright, son?&nbsp;&nbsp;Please, tell me what&rsquo;s wrong.&rdquo;<br /><br />Through shaky breaths, Emery spoke as best as he could: &ldquo;I-I got one of them alone, like you said, but I got blocked and hit back.&nbsp;&nbsp;And then everyone was laughing and&hellip; it just got <em>worse</em>, Dad.&rdquo;&nbsp;&nbsp;The lion was clutching his stomach, but Mathis knew there wouldn&rsquo;t be any visible injuries &ndash; that was, after all, the point.<br /><br />&ldquo;I can&rsquo;t beat them, Dad.&nbsp;&nbsp;They&rsquo;re bigger, and stronger, and now everyone is <em>against</em> me.&rdquo;<br /><br />Mathis gritted his teeth.&nbsp;&nbsp;He&rsquo;d overestimated his boy, or underestimated this bully.&nbsp;&nbsp;As calmly as he could, he got the relevant information from his son, without making it obvious just what the protective father was planning to do.&nbsp;&nbsp;He memorized the name of Emery&rsquo;s assailant, got the emasculated lion to bed, and then found the address.<br /><br /><em>Time to take matters into my own hands</em>.&nbsp;&nbsp;Mathis looked calm as he drove, but there was a growl already growing in his throat.&nbsp;&nbsp;A shit-stain of a little boy, living in a shit-stain trailer park, picking on smaller kids just for the fun of it?&nbsp;&nbsp;Well, it was time for a taste of his own medicine&hellip;<br /><br />Gravel and rocks crunched and shifted under the tires of Mathis&rsquo; Explorer as he pulled into the lot that Google Maps had specified.&nbsp;&nbsp;It was a far cry from decent living &mdash; stray dogs dotted the acreage, couches, chairs and other furniture sat in careless semicircles near homes, worn down by years of weather damage, and though the trailer in question had a satellite sitting on the roof, it looked to be hanging on by a thread.<br /><br />Mathis gave four firm knocks on the flimsy door.&nbsp;&nbsp;He spent that time looking around. <em>God, what a dump. No wonder he&rsquo;s gotta pick on my boy to feel good about himself.&nbsp;&nbsp;</em>It was soon after that the door opened, and he found himself face to face with a tall, stocky teenaged hyena girl. The lion paused, blinking in surprise. <br /><br />Impatiently resting her weight on one foot, Nav quipped, &ldquo;You lookin&rsquo; for directions? Because I don&rsquo;t see pamphlets or a briefcase or shit in your hands.&rdquo;<br /><br />Her rude comment snapped Mathis out of his stupor, and he reaffirmed his stern glare.&nbsp;&nbsp;&ldquo;No. Are your parents home?&rdquo;<br /><br />She squinted warily at him.&nbsp;&nbsp;&ldquo;No, who the hell wants to know?&rdquo;<br /><br />&ldquo;Mathis Raynor, I&rsquo;m Emery Raynor&rsquo;s <em>father. </em> Is&hellip; Nav home?&rdquo;<br /><br />&ldquo;Wha&hellip;&rdquo; She paused, looking him up and down. &ldquo;PFFFFFFFFF&ndash;HA-HA-HA-HA-HA!!&rdquo; <br /><br />Mathis stood, getting increasingly agitated as this hyena exploded into cackling laughter in front of his face, doubling over and slapping a thigh, the irritating noise ringing throughout the park and causing some of the strays to bark out in retaliation.&nbsp;&nbsp;Eventually, she straightened up again, dramatically wiping a fake tear from her eye as she recovered: &ldquo;Wow &mdash; little crybaby needle-dick went running to his <em>daddy!?&nbsp;&nbsp;</em>Because he got hit by a girl?&nbsp;&nbsp;Ha <strong><em>ha!!</em></strong> Even for <em>pussies,</em> you guys take the name serious!&rdquo; <br /><br />A <em>girl?</em>&nbsp;&nbsp;Well, it made no difference.&nbsp;&nbsp;Shaking his head, Mathis firmly stated: &ldquo;You need to stop bullying my son.&nbsp;&nbsp;He&rsquo;s done nothing wrong to slight you, and it makes no sense for you to harass him &mdash;you, or your accomplice.&rdquo;<br /><br />She crossed her arms, taking a lax, disrespectful stance that annoyed him further.&nbsp;&nbsp;&ldquo;Yeah, well, tough shit for him, Matty&mdash;&rdquo;<br /><br />&ldquo;<strong><em>Mister</em></strong> Raynor, young la&mdash;&rdquo; Mathis growled angrily.<br /><br />She continued, not even bothering to acknowledge his attempt at etiquette.&nbsp;&nbsp;&ldquo;&mdash; anyway, <strong>Matt</strong> &mdash; as long as your little weeping pussy keeps gettin&rsquo; in my way, I&rsquo;m gonna do whatever the fuck I want!&rdquo;<br /><br />Mathis&rsquo; hackles raised, his blood starting to boil.&nbsp;&nbsp;&ldquo;I bet your parents will have you singing a different tune!&rdquo; <br /><br />Nav suddenly stepped forward, coming to the lion&rsquo;s full chest.&nbsp;&nbsp;&ldquo;<strong><em>They</em></strong> don&rsquo;t&mdash;!&rdquo; She hesitated, only for an instant. &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t give a shit; they wouldn&rsquo;t believe your dumb ass! <strong>Ha!</strong>&rdquo;&nbsp;&nbsp;<br /><br />Glaring down at the smirking teenager, the father snarled through grit teeth. &ldquo;You <strong><em>will</em></strong> leave my son alone, or my next stop will be with the authorities.&rdquo; He turned to leave.<br /><br />&ldquo;Pfft&hellip; <em>&lsquo;son&rsquo;.&nbsp;&nbsp;</em>That cubby cock was so tiny, I could barely hold it with my fingers.&rdquo;<br /><br />The 38-year-old lion froze. Everything in his world went black. In what felt like an eternity, he turned towards the hyena stifling her annoying cackles behind a curved hand. &ldquo;You did&hellip; <em>what?</em>&rdquo;<br /><br />Nav smiled, happy that she seemed to have struck a nerve with him. &ldquo;Heh heh&hellip; well, your &lsquo;son&rsquo; was having difficulties accepting their&hellip; <em>transition</em>. Since &lsquo;Mary&rsquo; no longer belongs in the boys&rsquo; locker room, we wanted to make her feel <em>welcome</em> by bringing her in as one of us.&rdquo;&nbsp;&nbsp;<br /><br />The hyena&rsquo;s words were fading in and out as Mathis&rsquo; heart started thundering. These kids were <em>nothing</em> like the bullies in his heyday&mdash;ribbing and light-hearted slugs were one thing&hellip; but humiliating and emasculating his young son? Sexually <em>assaulting</em> him!? No wonder he&rsquo;d been weeping on the floor! Rage filled the lion&rsquo;s form as he started to shake, making eye contact with Nav once more. <br /><br />&ldquo;... luckily, one of the girls had an extra pair of panties for him to borrow, and he was a perfect fit! It went so <em>cute</em> with that runty, girly chest of his.&rdquo;<br /><br />Everything happened so fast. <br /><br />Seemingly in the blink of an eye, the enraged parent <em>charged</em> the startled teenager before one more cackle could peal from her mouth.&nbsp;&nbsp;Like the <em>crack</em> of a baseball bat in the distance, his open paw <em>smacked</em> brutally across the young girl&rsquo;s face, stopping her blathering dead and nearly lifting one of her feet off the ground from the impact.&nbsp;&nbsp;It almost masked the shriek that chased the echo immediately after, more out of shock than anything else.&nbsp;&nbsp;But the pain was absolutely there, and stung with a debilitating fire across the left of her muzzle.&nbsp;&nbsp;Nav had <em>no</em> time to turn towards the assailant, <em>triple</em> her age with wide eyes, instinctively watering with tears, before he lunged forward and seized her, using his weight and the momentum to shove the stunned hyena into her own trailer house.&nbsp;&nbsp;With one hand squeezing her t-shirt collar, and the other holding her neck roughly, Mathis pushed her inside, barely taking note of his surroundings as he picked her up and bodily tossed her against the wall, snarling furiously.&nbsp;&nbsp;The destructive impact sent the entire trailer swaying, and Mathis distantly wondered if the cheaply built house might collapse around them. <br /><br />It didn&rsquo;t matter to Mathis. Never in his life had he been a witness to such insolence and blatant contempt for one&rsquo;s elders. It wasn&rsquo;t an eye for an eye, when he grew up. A flippant response was met with physical discipline. A sexual assault? This pissant had just run up the tab of a <em>lifetime</em>.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<br /><br />&ldquo;You&hellip; &ldquo; Mathis snarled through gnashing teeth. &ldquo;You little <strong><em>shit!</em></strong>&rdquo;&nbsp;&nbsp;Still holding the flailing girl, he pushed tighter against the wall, forcing his grip closer, and inadvertently bringing her squirming body against his.&nbsp;&nbsp;&ldquo;You&rsquo;ve got some&hellip; <em>fucking</em>&hellip; nerve&hellip;&rdquo; <br /><br />Nav coughed and hacked, alternating between trying to pry the titanic arm from her neck and aiming one of her errant struggling kicks towards where it counts.&nbsp;&nbsp;But with the burly lion nearly flush against her body, she barely had room to <em>move</em> her legs, much less swing them forward enough to do any considerable injury.&nbsp;&nbsp;Thinking quickly, she picked a middle ground and, in the split second where his grip on her neck weakened, she hacked a large glob of phlegmy saliva in his face.&nbsp;&nbsp;Almost on instinct, the lion reactively reared back and <em>punched</em> her across the side of her skull. <br /><br />Nav&rsquo;s ears rang with a high-pitched whine, doubly discombobulated from the impact of the strike against her head and the jostle against the interior wall of the trailer.&nbsp;&nbsp;Her left hand still instinctively squeezed against the arm on her throat, but her legs were twitching intermittently. <br /><br />Seething with anger, Mathis quickly rubbed his face against the tricep holding her up, looking at her dazed face.&nbsp;&nbsp;Seeing that she was still conscious, but not actively fighting back, he adjusted his grip, moving his hand back down to Nav&rsquo;s disheveled t-shirt and letting go of her neck.<br /><br />The hyena gasped in a long breath of air, before coughing and hacking, trying to replenish oxygen back into her system.&nbsp;&nbsp;Whatever reprieve the girl was expecting, however, was cut short as she was suddenly pinned to the wall again. Nav sputtered in shock, seeing both her wrists held on either side of her head by his own two hands, as her wide eyes met his shaking ones.<br /><br />As loathe as he was to admit it&hellip; feeling that body squirming and writhing against his, so heated and panicked&hellip; it stirred some familiar feelings for the lion. Feelings like the memories of himself and Alandria, up against the wall in <em>very</em> similar fashion&hellip;in the doorway of the master bedroom, not quite making it to the queen; in the alley behind the back of the club; even one time in the school bathroom, during a Parent/Teacher meet-up party&hellip; she&rsquo;d always indulged his sneaky streak, and being alone without her for so long had only compounded the frustration he felt, mounted by his son&rsquo;s struggles and their ever-worsening bills. Seeing the misguided lust in his eyes, Nav&rsquo;s resistance began anew, but with so little of his energy depleted, Mathis had no trouble holding her down.<br /><br />&ldquo;You bully my son&hellip; you <em>torture</em> him&hellip; you make his life a living hell, every day&hellip; he did <strong><em>nothing</em></strong> to you!! And then you put your <em>hands</em> on my child&hellip; ?&rdquo;<br /><br />&ldquo;W-wait&hellip;Ma&mdash;Mr. Raynor, stop!&rdquo;<br /><br />Her cries fell on deaf ears as the lion yanked Nav from the wall and tossed her down to the dirty floor, which he absently noticed was littered with trash and dust. &ldquo;We&rsquo;re gonna see how <em>you</em> like it. I know what kind of plumbing you hyenas have down there&hellip; so let me show you what it&rsquo;s like in the <strong><em>boys&rsquo; room.</em></strong>&rdquo;<br /><br />Terrified, Nav scrambled up toward the couch at the opposite wall, seemingly going for something behind the cushions.&nbsp;&nbsp;Mathis wasn&rsquo;t having it, yanking the girl backwards until they both tumbled onto the couch, then off it, Mathis grunting and Nav gasping from the jolt. <br /><br />The hyeness was in a panic&mdash;face still stinging from that painful slap an eternal half-minute ago, her last-ditch effort to snatch her father&rsquo;s shotgun from behind the couch had gone sideways, and now, so had they.&nbsp;&nbsp;Over her trembling whimpers, the lion righting himself above her was grunting like a feral demon possessed, not even sounding like anything from this earth.&nbsp;&nbsp;Just minutes ago she was lazing across this same couch, half watching trash TV and half playing games on her phone... She begged: &ldquo;No! No, get off me, <em>stop it! </em>Aaahhh!!&rdquo;<br /><br />It was a sloppy, messy struggle across the rough, cheap shag carpeting.&nbsp;&nbsp;Roaring right through Nav&rsquo;s cries for help, the middle-aged lion pulled and clutched desperately, furiously, at her flailing body, harshly stretching her shirt every which way until he flicked his claws open and&hellip; <br />&nbsp;<br /><em>Tttttrriiiippp!</em><br /><br />&ldquo;Aaaa-haaawwll!!!&rdquo;<br /><br />The front of Nav&rsquo;s shirt tore into shreds from her body, four strips falling between her incipient rapist&rsquo;s fingers, although the back and one sleeve remained intact.&nbsp;&nbsp;Her bra, however, suffered a much worse fate: the cup responsible for keeping the hyena&rsquo;s right breast in place had a very deep gash in it, suffered from the forceful swipe of his lethally sharp claws. Mathis pinned the girl&rsquo;s chest down with his gargantuan free paw, not even bothering to look at the other one while it flexed, squeezing the extra volume of synthetic gel, which <em>fpppllt</em> out over his clenched fist. &ldquo;<em>Padded,</em>&rdquo; he sneered down at her quivering form before growling again.&nbsp;&nbsp;&ldquo;And you&rsquo;re one to talk about gender roles&hellip;&rdquo; <br /><br />Luckily for her, the thickness of that extra padding saved her from suffering any permanent, or even life threatening, injuries to her body&hellip; but right now, that was the least of her problems.&nbsp;&nbsp;In her shock at the lion condescending Nav over her secret, her guard was almost forgotten&mdash; a dire mistake as Mathis quickly moved forward, straddling the hyena on his knees and pinning her on either side of her waist.&nbsp;&nbsp;She immediately resumed trying to fight him off, but by then it was too late.&nbsp;&nbsp;With one hand crushing her sternum, just below her bare, flat chest, and the other shaking and working open the threaded belt loop on his dress pants, the middle aged father was shuddering with adrenaline, fury&hellip; and excitement.&nbsp;&nbsp;He hadn&rsquo;t dared consider betraying his loving wife, especially after all they had been through&hellip; he could distantly hear the voice in the back of his head screaming for reason and lucidity&hellip; but it was too late to turn back now. His son didn&rsquo;t deserve this&hellip; so she <em>did</em>.<br /><br />Suddenly bolting upright, she screamed toward the entryway, Nav&rsquo;s alarmed, piercing shrieks cutting through the clouds in Mathis&rsquo; mind, making him jump in alert: &ldquo;S-stop!! HELP!! Somebody, <strong><em>please!</em></strong> He&rsquo;s ra&mdash;!!&rdquo; <br /><br />Cut off by a fear-induced grunt, Mathis practically <em>tackled</em> Nav over onto her back, the paw on her chest shooting up to her muzzle and snapping down on it so hard, her teeth painfully clamped together, <em>right</em> through her tongue. Blistering pain shot up her mouth and teeth, sending electric signals of agony straight up to her brain, the bite so hard her mouth quickly started to fill with blood.&nbsp;&nbsp;Without hands to continue holding her down, Mathis was once again forced to use his body weight to force <em>her.</em>&nbsp;&nbsp;She still kicked and squirmed, moaning and whimpering painfully against his paw from the bite&hellip; but with his pants unbuttoned and undone, the hard part for Mathis was essentially over.&nbsp;&nbsp;Well, it was <em>getting</em> hard. <br /><br />Trapping the outside of Nav&rsquo;s hips with the inside of his own, Mathis started to <em>grriind</em> roughly and steadily, right against the terrified young girl&rsquo;s pelvic bone.&nbsp;&nbsp;He was using brisk, circular motions, pushing firmly with every thrust, but with the hyena still thrashing in an attempt to fight him off or attract attention from her neighbors, she was as good as humping back up against him, rubbing the bulge in her shorts directly against the lion&rsquo;s cock, which barely peeked out from his underwear.<br /><br />Mathis quickly felt the burning thrills of arousal surging through his lower body, shivering and panting against the teenager&rsquo;s held-shut maw.&nbsp;&nbsp;Looking to his left, he saw the outside view of the trailer park through the door, still open from when he barged in.&nbsp;&nbsp;The screen door had an air-controlled pneumatic pump that closed it automatically, but the wooden door for the home itself, sat open and inviting.&nbsp;&nbsp;Anyone could&rsquo;ve heard her and ran in to save her and stop him&hellip; in fact, anyone could&rsquo;ve walked by at any moment.&nbsp;&nbsp;The danger set Mathis&rsquo; blood ablaze, and he humped harder against her, lifting his hips to slide his dress pants down without the use of his hands.&nbsp;&nbsp;He was going to fuck this trailer trash, right <em>in front</em> of the trailer trash&mdash;as justice for his son.<br /><br />Pushing his hips flush against the wailing girl&rsquo;s pubic bone again, he used their grinding hips to his advantage and quickly used one burly paw to grab both his and her lower garments&mdash;<em>four</em> articles of clothing at once&mdash; and wiggled them down as roughly as he could, exposing their lower bodies, and both their penises.&nbsp;&nbsp;Nav&rsquo;s lengthy pseudo-endowment was minutely engorged from the forced rubbing, but slightly extended from her sweat-matted pelvis.&nbsp;&nbsp;With a flash of rage in his eyes, the lion tightly grabbed her shaft, the hand holding her blistered muzzle shut moving back down to her neck to allow her to respond to him: &ldquo;Is this what you did? Huh? This what you did to <em>my</em> son?&rdquo; <br /><br />Through uncontrolled hiccups and streaming tears, she could only gulp a frenzied, blubbering nod.<br /><br />&ldquo;You do anything <em>else</em> to him? I swear to <em>God</em>, I find out you&rsquo;re fucking lying to me&hellip;&rdquo;<br /><br />&ldquo;No&hellip; no!&rdquo; Whether she was reaffirming her statements, or continuing to plead, Mathis was too enthralled to care anymore.&nbsp;&nbsp;Holding firmly on her neck once more, forcing her to fight back against the strength of his bulging arm, Mathis reached down and gave three tight strokes against the shaft of her engorged clitoris&mdash;by far, the most humane thing that had occurred to her that day&mdash; and used the resulting blood flow to line her up with his already throbbing lioncock, tapered at 6 and-a-half inches&hellip; before wedging themselves together, forcing his head in. <br /><br />&ldquo;Hhhhhh&ndash;Aaaaahhh!!!!&rdquo;<br /><br />Mathis let go of her neck just in time for her to let out a wailing shriek of pain, spreading a wide-fanged grin of satisfaction of hearing that sound coming from her throat, compared to those infuriating cackles from a few minutes ago.&nbsp;&nbsp;<br /><br />&ldquo;Please, please, stop&hellip; I won&rsquo;t&hellip;&rdquo;<br /><br />With both his hands now free again, Mathis fully laid over her, ramming forward and pressing down inside her clit even more painfully.&nbsp;&nbsp;The rest of his body easily overpowered hers, his stomach, torso, chest, and arms covering her own, spindly by comparison.&nbsp;&nbsp;He wasn&rsquo;t like his son.&nbsp;&nbsp;Mathis&rsquo; hands wrapped under Nav&rsquo;s shoulders, throwing his full body into each thrust, yowling in her face, &ldquo;You won&rsquo;t <em>what!?</em>&rdquo;<br /><br />Between the hiccups from the shock, grunts from the pain, and gasps from forced biological warmth poking through, she could barely manage to get it out: &ldquo;I w-wo&hellip; I won-won&rsquo;t ever go n-near your son again, <strong><em>please!! </em></strong>Just&mdash;&rdquo; <br /><br />&ldquo;Just hurry up and cum?&rdquo; Mathis grinned darkly.&nbsp;&nbsp;&ldquo;Just what <em>I</em> was thinking.&rdquo;<br /><br />&ldquo;No! Don&rsquo;t&mdash;Aaah!! <strong>Ah!</strong> <strong>Ah!</strong> <em>Aahh!</em>&rdquo;<br /><br />Without giving her a chance to rebut, the 38-year old quickly adjusted his knees to the floor, and started hunching his hips powerfully, slowing down the speed of his thrusts, but each one knocking a brutal punch to her waist.&nbsp;&nbsp;He wrapped both his arms around hers, locking his hands behind her back and immobilizing her in a twisted form of a bear hug, resting his chin on her shoulder.&nbsp;&nbsp;With each rug-burning <em>throw</em> of his hips, the middle-aged father purposefully grunted as hard as he could, right into her ear&mdash;he wanted her to hear that sound every time she <em>ever</em> tried to go to sleep; <em>any</em> time there was silence in the house; <em>any</em> time she felt genuine laughter for any reason to forget this day; last of all, <em>any</em> time she ever laid eyes on his son.<br /><br />Nav flinched with each thrust, grateful that she couldn&rsquo;t see what she felt.&nbsp;&nbsp;She knew her pseudo-penis was straight out and erect, matching Mathis&rsquo; cock exactly.&nbsp;&nbsp;He was spreading her shaft out wider than ever before, his tip digging deeper and deeper until it nestled up against her inner tunnel.&nbsp;&nbsp;This was <em>really</em> happening.&nbsp;&nbsp;Emery&rsquo;s father was <em>raping her</em>.&nbsp;&nbsp;The middle schooler hadn&rsquo;t even had a boyfriend yet, but none of that stopped the huge lion from pinning her down and stuffing her black shaft full.&nbsp;&nbsp;There was no laughter in her throat now, only squeals of pain, despite the thrumming in her overstimulated clit.&nbsp;&nbsp;But even those were drowned out by his guttural, taunting growls.<br /><br />But quickly, those angry grunts were interspersed with delighted panting, and quivering moans. And before long, the moment arrived, when those powerhouse plunges finally devolved into three quick short jabs, the last one which held frozen against her as spines flared, designed to stimulate an <em>adult</em> into ovulating, digging into the entire length of her girl dick.&nbsp;&nbsp;With a hard groan, Mathis&rsquo; cock <strong><em>pulsed</em></strong>, and began to shoot lance after lance of thick, adulterous seed into the hardened, extended pseudopenis of a thirteen-year-old girl. <br /><br />Nav&rsquo;s sobbing throughout the whole ordeal had suddenly cut short at the unmistakable feeling of scalding hot warmth firing from one tube into another, seeping quickly into her body.&nbsp;&nbsp;She shuddered at the feeling of being violated inside and out, whimpering anew as he visibly deflated in pleasure from finally releasing so many months of frustration out in a single burst, even at the expense of&hellip;<br /><br /><strong><em>&hellip;Shit&hellip;</em></strong><br /><br />Mathis stared down at the defeated hyena, her lips lined with blood. When had <em>that</em> happened? He could see the bruises beginning to form where he&rsquo;d struck her. And as satisfying as his afterglow was, his stomachache told him he&rsquo;d gone too far. Even if she <em>had</em> showed off Emery&rsquo;s wiener to the girls (and she could have been boasting), this response was a huge escalation. Panting, he lifted himself up to look down at his waist. He knew what he would see, but he was still surprised to see his cock touching &lsquo;hers&rsquo;, stuffed inside and making her bulge. Like two snakes meeting in a tunnel, she&rsquo;d fully engulfed him, like she was made to do.&nbsp;&nbsp;He growled, realizing that he&rsquo;d cum in her bare &mdash; he hadn&rsquo;t smelled any heat, but that wasn&rsquo;t proof against a pregnant belly.<br /><br />But he wouldn&rsquo;t hear that laugh again. His ears flattened, and he let go of her neck completely. She&rsquo;d been fully stunned into silence, quivering beneath him as he pulled out of her, only yelping like a dog who&rsquo;d been stepped on when his barbs ripped free of her oversensitive clit. <em>God, what have I done!?</em><br /><br />&ldquo;Stay away from my <em>son</em>,&rdquo; he growled down at her.<br /><br />She nodded rapidly, eyes wide, panting on the floor.&nbsp;&nbsp;Pulling up his trousers, Mathis tossed the girl what little shreds of her clothes remained, putting himself back together.&nbsp;&nbsp;Avoiding eye contact with the trembling hyena, he attempted to make himself as presentable as he could&mdash;as if he <em>hadn&rsquo;t</em> just raped a thirteen-year-old.&nbsp;&nbsp;He turned to her, still seeing her mostly nude body underneath the tatters of her ruined clothes. &ldquo;Now&hellip;&rdquo; he began, pausing until she looked up at Mathis&rsquo; glare. &ldquo;I can assume this goes without saying that&mdash;&rdquo; <br /><br /><em>Thump, thump, thump, thu-creeaak.</em><br /><br />For one tiny instant, <strong><em>both </em></strong>their hearts leapt to their throats in a shared panic, as the thirty-eight year old attacker and his thirteen-year old victim whipped their heads to the now open screen door, eyes popping out of their skulls.&nbsp;&nbsp;Grumbling, and wearing an articulate truckers&rsquo; cap that read &lsquo;I Brake 4 Bitches&rsquo;, a bulky, misshapen adult hyena lumbered inside, each of his boot laden footsteps practically caving in the cheap flooring underneath the dirty carpet.&nbsp;&nbsp;Barely slowing down in his trudging, the gut-heavy father paid no mind to the frozen pair staring at them from halfway across the trailer.&nbsp;&nbsp;<br /><br /><em>&ldquo;D-Dad!!&rdquo;<br /></em><br />Both males jumped at her outburst.<br /><br /><strong><em>Fuck. </em></strong><br /><br />This was it.&nbsp;&nbsp;She&rsquo;s in the middle of telling her father that he raped her, he can do nothing about it to shut her up or defend himself, and her clothes are in tatters. He all but had his pants back down with the amount of evidence against him in that moment.<br /><br />The obese male turned to her, and said:<br /><br />&ldquo;God <em>damn</em>, Einav, I just walked in the fuckin&rsquo; house and I had a shit day already! Let me get my&mdash;!&rdquo;<br /><br />Turning around, he finally took stock of the situation in front of him: the frozen lion with his hands <em>still</em> on his belt, standing above her.&nbsp;&nbsp;Nav&rsquo;s shirt was torn apart from the front, but the untouched back side faced his uninterested eyes.&nbsp;&nbsp;<br /><br />&ldquo;Jesus, Nav&hellip;if you&rsquo;re gonna bring a teacher or somebody home with ya, take him to your <em>room</em>, don&rsquo;t be doing any shit with &lsquo;em <em>out here</em> in the open.&rdquo;&nbsp;&nbsp;And with that, he reached into a cupboard sitting above the nearby refrigerator, and pulled out a bottle of amber liquid: whiskey.&nbsp;&nbsp;Sparing him a flat sneer, he walked past a shocked Mathis and a broken Nav, into the back.&nbsp;&nbsp;The door flimsily slammed shut, and a lock could be heard tumbling. Mathis couldn&rsquo;t help but stare in the direction of the negligent deadbeat swallowing his problems away in 80 proof, until quiet sobs broke his focus. He looked down to see the hyena, crumpled up on the floor, hand pressed against her face, poorly hiding her tears, until she gave up and used the strips of her shirt to wipe them away.&nbsp;&nbsp;<br /><br />Mathis had never felt so hollow.<br /><br />His bright, but spoiled son complained so often about their lives&hellip; Mathis had often lamented the heartbreak of the heavy debt surrounding his family and his home.&nbsp;&nbsp;But looking around now, gathering his surroundings for the first time, the father truly took in the squalor and destitution spread across this temporary home.&nbsp;&nbsp;Moreso, the filth that littered the floor; almost making a third layer across the house&hellip; and finally, the teenaged girl, sticking out of the bog, like a flower growing from the harshest environments.&nbsp;&nbsp;A flower that now lay torn and wilting against the arm of the couch.&nbsp;&nbsp;Her crying had stopped, her movements cold and numb. The girl&rsquo;s own father witnessed her in unambiguous sexual acts with a man nearly <em>three</em> <em>times</em> her age, and didn&rsquo;t bat an eye.<br /><br />Mathis turned to her, even more wracked with guilt. &ldquo;L-listen&hellip;I&hellip; I&rsquo;m so sorry.&nbsp;&nbsp;Nav&mdash;I completely lost control.&nbsp;&nbsp;I know, that&rsquo;s not at <em>all</em> an excuse&hellip; &rdquo;&nbsp;&nbsp;Looking at the drying remains of blood around her mouth from biting her tongue, he patted down his shirt, finding his handkerchief, emblazoned with M.R. sitting in the breast pocket.&nbsp;&nbsp;Luckily, the weather had been pleasant recently, so he hadn&rsquo;t used it, but it had gathered a fair amount of sweat from when&hellip; <br /><br />The lion knelt down in front of her, unfolding the hankie once, and offering it to Nav through his lightly closed paw. &ldquo;Here&hellip; you can use this to&mdash;&rdquo;<br /><br />She tore the cloth out of his hands, jolting up to lock eyes with him, hers red and furious through trails of tears: &ldquo;Get. The fuck. Out.&rdquo;<br /><br />&ldquo;Y&rsquo;you&rsquo;re right, I&rsquo;m sorr&mdash;&rdquo;<br /><br />&ldquo;<em>NOW!</em>&rdquo;<br /><br />She lunged for the nearest item and threw it at him with all the rage she could muster. That was clear enough of a message for the guilty lion, and he took off, sprinting out through the hissing screen door, and towards his Explorer, slipping at least twice on the loose gravel. Slamming the car door shut, everything sped through his head like a video tape: his awful botched apology, him getting caught, having sex with an underage girl <em>against her will</em>&hellip; having sex with an underage girl in the <em>first</em> place&hellip; cheating on his wife &mdash; <strong><em>oh god &mdash; </em></strong>Alandria!! It only just <em>now</em> occurred to him: <em>this</em>, of all things, should&rsquo;ve been at the <strong>top</strong> of his list. He&rsquo;d just cheated on his wife of twelve years&hellip; <br /><br />It was all too much.<br /><br />Roaring in frustrated rage, Mathis punched his dashboard over and over, grunting loudly and painfully with each plastic shattering impact until his knuckles started to bleed, before stopping suddenly and just sobbing, resting his pounding head into his bloody hands. But he couldn&rsquo;t stay there, parked in front of the scene of the crime. Gritting his teeth, he did what he had to do, turning on the car and shifting into drive. Every impulse quivered through his muscles as he forced himself to drive like a sane person, when all he wanted to do was drive until there was no road left.<br /><br />***<br /><br />&ldquo;I&rsquo;m serious, Dad &mdash; you should&rsquo;ve <em>seen</em> it! Mr. Richardson made the fire blue, then pink, then red &mdash; he even made it green!&rdquo;&nbsp;&nbsp;<br /><br />Mathis couldn&rsquo;t help but chuckle at his son&rsquo;s excitement.&nbsp;&nbsp; Emery&rsquo;s turnaround had been instantaneous&mdash;his mood improved dramatically when Nav &ldquo;mysteriously&rdquo; never so much as spoke to him again, even going so far as to avoid him entirely.&nbsp;&nbsp;Manny initially still gave him trouble, but a firm yank from the hyena and some hushed angry words somehow kept him in line, too.&nbsp;&nbsp;Before long, Emery no longer needed to ignore his two bullies&mdash;they were ignoring <em>him.&nbsp;&nbsp;</em>And he couldn&rsquo;t be happier.&nbsp;&nbsp;<br /><br />That happiness was infectious, as Mathis found himself grinning as well.&nbsp;&nbsp;He&rsquo;d indulged their shared mood that night&hellip; with Emery&rsquo;s favorite. <br /><br /><em>Brraaaap!</em><br /><br />&ldquo;Oh, my God that was waaay too much&hellip;&rdquo;<br /><br />&ldquo;<em>Manners,</em> Em&mdash;&rdquo; Mathis began to chastise, before involuntarily letting out an <em>Urp!</em> of his own.&nbsp;&nbsp;Their eyes locked in surprise, before the grown man giggled, breaking the silence.&nbsp;&nbsp;His son broke out into a laugh, joining him. <br /><br />His laugh simmering into a chuckle, before dying into a tired groan, he moaned to his father, &ldquo;<em>Why</em> did you sit there and let me eat <strong><em>all</em></strong> of my Ultra Pepper Pepperoni?&rdquo;<br /><br />The middle-aged man smirked at him.&nbsp;&nbsp;&ldquo;To teach you a lesson about pacing yourself, and savoring what you have.&rdquo;<br /><br />With a pleasure-drunk grin on his face, Emery replied: &ldquo;I <em>refuse</em> to learn anything while eating pizza.&rdquo;&nbsp;&nbsp;Earning a head shake and a chuckle from his senior.&nbsp;&nbsp;With a sigh, he got up, putting his plate in the sink, before dragging his feet toward the stairs.&nbsp;&nbsp;&ldquo;I&rsquo;m gonna go <em>straight</em> to bed&hellip; I&rsquo;m so full, I&rsquo;ll probably be in a pizza coma! G&rsquo;night, Dad.&rdquo; <br /><br />&ldquo;Goodnight, Emery.&rdquo; <br /><br />With a bittersweet sigh, Mathis stood up, folding up Emery&rsquo;s empty pizza box and storing the remains of his own on top of the stove, before grabbing his plate, knife, and fork, and headed towards the sink.&nbsp;&nbsp;<em>Might as well wash these before I go to bed myself.</em>&nbsp;&nbsp;As he turned on the sink, however, an impatient knock rattled the front door.&nbsp;&nbsp;The lion cocked his head in confusion.&nbsp;&nbsp;That couldn&rsquo;t be the pizza guy again, could it? That&rsquo;s right, he <em>did</em> forget the habanero dipping sauce! Mathis insisted that it was fine, and tipped him regardless. Wiping his hands on a washcloth as he neared the door, he flipped on the outdoor light and gripped the doorknob: &ldquo;Hey, you didn&rsquo;t have to go all&mdash;&rdquo;<br />&nbsp;<br />Mathis&rsquo; breath caught in an outright <em>gasp, </em>dropping his dish towel.<br /><br />It wafted through the dimly lit air, landing with a <em>fwomp</em> &mdash; right at the feet of Nav the Hyena.<br /></span>",
  "pools_count": 1,
  "title": "Bully For Me",
  "deleted": "f",
  "public": "t",
  "mimetype": "application/msword",
  "pagecount": "1",
  "rating_id": "2",
  "rating_name": "Adult",
  "ratings": [
    {
      "content_tag_id": "4",
      "name": "Sexual Themes",
      "description": "Erotic imagery, sexual activity or arousal",
      "rating_id": "2"
    },
    {
      "content_tag_id": "5",
      "name": "Strong Violence",
      "description": "Strong violence, blood, serious injury or death",
      "rating_id": "2"
    }
  ],
  "submission_type_id": "12",
  "type_name": "Writing - Document",
  "guest_block": "t",
  "friends_only": "f",
  "comments_count": "2",
  "views": "1282"
}