Acrid cigarette smoke drifted up from the courtyard, stinging the Dalmatian's nose.  Kougo snorted and shook his head, his ears flopping about in the moist air.  The horse who was smoking three floors below him took one more drag and flicked the butt onto the cobbles, stamping it out with a hoof before clopping back under the portico and into the hotel.  Somewhere out in the North Sea, a foghorn blew its monotonic drone.  Then silence stole back the night.

Though the cold had started to seep through his fur, chilling him, Kougo remained on the balcony.  Just on the other side of the French doors behind him, he knew Alastair and company were having fun, and while the Dalmatian was happy for them, he wasn't happy with himself.  

It just isn't my thing.  He had told Alastair that at first, but the energetic mongoose had deflected the comment with a twitch of his little head.  “Nonsense,” he'd said, “you'll have a swell time.  Don't you want to see me off?”  Of course Kougo wanted to.  He just wasn't particularly interested in seeing the mongoose sticking it to some rubber pantheress while a group of his closest friends cheered him on.  That was the reason the Dalmatian had come out to this balcony in the first place.

Looking at his phone, Kougo saw it was close to one o'clock.  Southend-on-Sea still pulsed with life, the low sussuration of waves mixing with the drone of traffic in an incessant din.  This was a resort town, the largest metropolitan area in Essex, and it fit its reputation well.  In other words, a good fit for Alastair and his friends and work buddies.  

Not so much for an introverted dog who'd had to suffer a long, uncomfortable train ride from London and a couple of bus changes as well.  Which meant people.  Lots of people.  People he didn't know, and didn't care to know.  Once he'd gotten to the Park Inn Palace, though, meeting Alastair's cohort had been no better.  All boisterous, some crude, definitely the mongoose's kind of people.  Kougo had wondered why he'd been invited in the first place.  He'd gotten his answer when Lily had arrived.

A shout rang out from the otherwise indistinguishable noises in the room, followed by cheers and laughter.  Jealousy and disgust wrenched the Dalmatian's stomach in equal parts, though he knew neither one was a logical, appropriate response.  Even so, he turned on his toes and pushed off the railing, padding over to a place near the doors where the curtain had been pulled aside.  He bent slightly and peered in.

Right away Kougo saw what had prompted the shouting:  in the middle of the room, a heavyset wolf and Lily lay prostrate, rump-to-rump, obviously tied.  The wolf had a lazy, blissful smile plastered across his muzzle while the purple-grey rubber pantheress mewled and made a show for the group of males watching.  Alastair came out of the bathroom with a washcloth, walked over to the wolf, and dabbed at his forehead with it.  He was wearing a robe tied so loosely it was rendered ineffective as clothing.  Kougo could tell from a distance he was well past drunk.

“Good boy, look at you!   No sex in almost a year, and you say you're no good at it.  Lily looks happy to me.  Doesn't she, mates?”  Cheers of agreement answered him.

“She's paid to look happy,” Kougo mumbled.  He suspected Lily was the reason Alastair had invited him to the bachelor party in the first place.  The mongoose had likely taken pity on the overworked and underfucked (read:  nonfucked) Dalmatian and thought it would be the perfect opportunity to pop a few of his friends' cherries.  

Except Kougo wasn't social.  Or extroverted.  Or confident.  Or keen on losing his virginity in a room full of people he didn't know to a living sex toy he'd never see again. 

When the mongoose opened his robe and stuffed his length between Lily's lips—for the third, or perhaps, fourth time that night, who knew—Kougo had to turn away.  He couldn't be a part of that kind of debauchery.  Not that it was wrong, exactly, but the prospect didn't excite him.  The knowledge that he wasn't the only male to turn away from such an orgy buoyed that decision.  

But he couldn't go back into that room without feeling like a downer.   Standing in a corner and watching would seem awkward, and high-tailing it to his own room down the hall would come off as rude.  Nobody would be coming out to smoke; they would have to go to the courtyard for that.  Kougo had shown up like Alastair had wanted, and wasn't that enough?  The mongoose was probably too blitzed to notice the Dalmatian's absence anyway.  Taking a deck chair, Kougo slid its back into a comfortable position and lay down, watching the stars blink over the North Sea's shipping traffic.  The white noise lulled him into calm, and he let his eyes close and thoughts drift. 

It wasn't until a squeak pulled him back to consciousness that Kougo realized he'd been dozing.  He stared at his feet until he heard another squeak, and looked up.  Someone was standing on the balcony one floor above, clad in a ubiquitous hotel robe.  The edge of its muzzle shined in the cityglow as it looked out toward the sea.  Alastair's fiancée had decided to have both parties in the same hotel. “For everyone to share in our happiness,” the mongoose had mimicked.  

Sharing in happiness by separating into sex parties.  Kind of oxymoronic.  Or is that irony?  Did it matter?  Kougo shifted in the deck chair, chilling himself anew and shivering.  

“Enjoying the party?”  The it on the balcony was a he, apparently.  Or a drag queen, which would have been equally believable.  The robed figure squeaked again, softly, looking down at the Dalmatian.  

“It's okay.”  It sounded dour even though he tried to cover it up, but he was tired and cold.  Not miserable, but not happy either.  

“It doesn't sound like it's okay.  I thought the point of a bachelor party was to have fun.  Unless, you have some grudge against your friend getting hitched.”  

“No, he's gonna be happy.  At least I hope so.”  And he did hope so, too.  Kougo had no reason to be jealous, and he wasn't.  He didn't feel like explaining himself, just the same.

“So, you're happy for him out on this balcony while they're all asleep?”  

“Everybody conked out?”

“My ladies gave up about an hour ago, yeah.  I can't hear anything down there, so I'm assuming the same happened to the guys.”  Kougo listened now that he was aware of it, and confirmed the lack of noise coming from the room.  

“How late is it?”

“About a quarter after three.”  He'd slept for almost two hours.  It shouldn't have been a surprise; short naps were practically a prerequisite at the Chelsea School of Art and Design, where he was wading towards a Bachelor's degree.

“So...”  The Dalmatian hesitated, then pressed forward because he had nothing better to do than have a conversation in the middle of the night.  “Nicki hired some entertainment too?”

“It was actually a package deal,” said the figure.  “Lily and I came together.”

Kougo flushed, directing his eyes away from the robed figure.  That explained the squeaking.  Images played through his head, though he couldn't quite square the idea of a room full of women cavorting with a single male like Alastair and his friends.  

“How...how did the bachelorette party go?”  

“Are you asking if it went smoothly, or how I managed to satisfy twenty or so girls in one night?”

Crossing his arms over his chest, the Dalmatian replied, “Oh, no, just if it was successful or not.”

The figure leaned further over the wrought-iron railing.  “I could probably answer both questions with the same answer, actually.  Mind if I come down?”

“Uh, sure, I don't care,” Kougo said, and stepped aside when the figure swung a leg over the railing and dropped onto the concrete with a minimum of squeaking.  The Dalmatian caught a brief glimpse between the figure's legs in the moonlight, and his flush returned.  Definitely better than Lily.

The he was a fox, and he was much larger now that he was level with Kougo.  He filled the robe out nicely and then some, cutting an imposing, masculine figure that was meant to attract as much attention as possible.  That was the point, though.  From what the Dalmatian could make out in the limited light, the fox's face was finely featured despite being made of deep red rubber, and the only thing remotely creepy about him was the absence of eyes.  He seemed able to see just fine, from the way he'd jumped down.  The scent of grenadine accompanied him.

“I bet all the guys stood around watching the action, didn't they?  Am I right?” asked the fox.  Kougo couldn't help smiling; he didn't even have to answer.  “That's usually what they do.  You know, they act all macho in front of each other, but males never seem to grow out of that locker-room comparison stage.  Why else would they stay in the room and watch their friends get it on?”

“I guess the women don't do that.”

“They wouldn't dream of it!  There's a lot of giggling and suggestive talk, but when it comes time for the serious stuff, I go into another room with one at a time.  Sometimes two, but that's pretty rare.”

“It kind of makes sense, in an odd way,” Kougo said.

“Women are bashful but pretty kinky,” the fox replied.  “Men usually have the singular goal of getting off, and they'll cheer on their friends.  But they won't join in, unless they're taking the opposite hole.  There's some unspoken space issue.  Gay guys, though, that's a different story.  They're much more comfortable with each other.”

“Heh, probably,” Kougo said, for want of a better response.  “Do you get a choice who you, uh, entertain?”  The thought of this fox sandwiched between two thrusting males pleasantly distracted him from the cold balcony.  

The fox shrugged.  “Most of the time.  Usually my boss does a good enough job of matching the client to the worker that nobody has an issue.  I'm still fairly new compared to my coworkers, so I haven't had a bad experience yet.”  Somewhere out to sea, a ship sounded its horn.  It wailed mournfully over the waves to the two canines, who looked in unison for something they knew they couldn't see.  As the fox turned, his robe fell open, and though darkness prevented any exposure, Kougo knew what was there.

“Which do you prefer?”

Chuckling, the rubber fox said, “That's a funny thing.  A couple of months ago I would have told you it was only women for me.  But a good friend of mine helped me through some money issues with her connections, and I ended up giving the slubber thing a try.  I thought, 'What the heck, if I'm a toy, it's not like it counts.'  But then I went through it, and it counted a lot more than I expected.  I like how easy it is to please females, but the males I've served  have been almost sweet to me.”

“I doubt Lily was getting the sweet treatment in there,” the Dalmatian snorted.  

“Probably not, but she was having fun.  Bachelor parties are her specialty; she's kind of an exhibitionist.  I gather you're not like that, huh?”  Turning to him, the fox put his paws on his hips, an unfortunate motion that spread the robe further apart so the weak light from the city illuminated just enough to show the sculpted definition of his body.  And, of course, the sculpted other things Kougo couldn't help noticing.

“Not really.”  

“I also gather that's not the only reason you're out here.  You're not like that either.”

Kougo balked, but his reaction only proved the fox's statement.  He raised his gaze, saw the rubbery vulpine grin, sighed, and ran a paw over his head fur.  “I...kinda.  I don't know.  Don't really feel like talking about it.”

“Yes, you do,” the fox retorted.  “Why else would you be out here, talking to me?”

“Because it's polite.”

“You could have easily told me it was none of my business.  But you didn't.  I'm still employed as an entertainer at this party, and since Lily and I were hired together, we share the contract.  I'm supposed to make sure everyone has a good time, and you're out here all miserable and cold and staring thoughtfully into space.”  The fox leaned in and placed a paw on Kougo's shoulder.  “Plus, despite how I look, I can still tell when someone's not horny.  Even better than normal, for some reason.  So when I can't smell anything on you until I swing down to your balcony, I start to suspect things.”

“Great,” sulked the Dalmatian, looking away.  It really was none of this fox's business, and Kougo could have told him off, but having an uncomfortable conversation seemed better than trying to sleep in a dew-moist deck chair.  The fox wasn't a friend, but he was somehow easier to talk to.  He shivered as the warmth from the fox's paw made the rest of his body feel that much colder.

“If we're going to stay out here, how about you put your pride aside and let me keep you warm.  I run about a hundred and ten degrees to keep flexible.”  Before Kougo had a chance to respond, the fox turned him around and pulled him back-to, wrapping the flaps of the robe around them both and tying them closed.  The Dalmatian was amazed the robe could accommodate the two of them.  He was also amazed at how warm he was already getting.  Heat suffused his body, right through his clothing.  

His tail pressed against a soft something and he shuddered.  The fox's paws encircled his chest and held him close.  Kougo sighed; Lily wouldn't have been able to do this.  Actually, the Dalmatian wouldn't have let Lily do it.

“What's your name, now that I'm practically humping you?” the fox asked, nuzzling against the back of Kougo's neck.  

“Kougo.”  The word was little more than a whisper.  

“You can call me Todd.  Are you okay with this, Kougo?  I want to warm you up, but I don't want to take advantage, no matter how aroused you smell.”  Todd's paws roamed slowly over the Dalmatian's chest, spreading heat wherever they went.  That fake-cherry scent was all around them both, strongest on the fox's breath.  Each time Kougo shivered, now, it was from Todd's touch and not from the cold.  And he didn't want it to stop, so when  he felt one paw venture down his belly he arched his back, meeting the fingertips.  They touched his hardness and then pressed, with electrifying results.

He's just doing his job.  Yes, he was, but either Todd was exceptionally skilled or the Dalmatian had been unprepared for just what another's paw on his cock would feel like.  He wanted to at least pause to tell the fox he was unexperienced, but Todd didn't seem to care.  Vulpine fingers undid snaps front and rear, and suddenly his pants were down at his knees.  He heard the fox spit into his palm, then a slick fist was stroking him beneath the confines of the robe.  

“No reason for you to be left out,” Todd murmured, “after everyone else has gotten theirs.”  The fox nuzzled against the side of Kougo's neck, his smooth surface an odd sensation on the Dalmatian's short fur.  Not unpleasant, though, as Kougo found himself a prisoner to the pleasure he was receiving.  The softness on his rear had turned to a hardness under his tail, and he knew exactly what it was, and he ground himself back against it.  What a feeling, even if it would never fit.

Todd's other paw cupped his sac and rolled its contents between his fingers, leaning into the Dalmatian so hard he had to step forward to keep from falling over.  They walked clumsily to the railing, where Kougo braced himself, spreading his legs, and the fox increased his strokes in earnest.  Using his whole fist, Todd went from knot to tip, alternating his rhythm so the Dalmatian built his climax slowly but inevitably.  It was delicious in a teasing, dominant way.  Kougo loved it, and the best part was the complete absence of the shyness that usually kept him in corners or on the edge of a conversation.

The courtyard was empty.  So were the streets.  The hum of faraway traffic combined with distant waves were no louder than the soft squeaks coming from beneath the robe.  Todd pressed Kougo against the railing, grinding that hot hardness between the Dalmatian's cheeks, wetting him with the promise of what could happen if he let it get that far.  Thoughts ran rampant through his head.  Naughty thoughts.  Bad thoughts that were simultaneously good, and confusing, and distressing and arousing.  His hips twitched.  He wanted it all, but just the temptation was sufficient to kick him over.

He barked when he came, and Todd had to clamp his other paw over the Dalmatian's muzzle to squelch his subsequent whines.  It left his body in waves that rocked him forward and back as he thrust madly, no doubt covering the robe in stickiness.  Only when he bore back too far and felt the fox's rubber shaft at his hole did he realize how out of control he'd been.  Still, he let Todd milk the dregs from him, tasting a bit of cherry while he licked at the paw that had silenced his climax.

Finally, it had happened.  It scared him deeply.  He didn't want to be here anymore.  Kougo bent to retrieve his pants, catching the fox's paw, which Todd withdrew, leaving a mixture of cum and whatever else he'd used to get the Dalmatian off.

“Kougo, are you alright?”  Kougo wriggled out of the robe as soon as he'd secured his modesty and turned to face the rubber fox.  Todd's erection parted the open folds of the robe.  Looking at it, a knot formed in his gut that threatened to turn to nausea if he didn't get away.  He didn't know why, just that it was.

“I gotta go.”  Kougo moved around the fox, who wore an expression of concern and nothing more.  

“Please, Kougo, if you need to talk to me—”

“I don't know.  I'm fine.  I need to go, I think.”  His pants rubbed uncomfortably against his still-unsheathed length.  He pushed past the fox, unable to look him in the eye.  

“Are you sure?” asked Todd, fumbling around in the robe.  When Kougo nodded, holding back tears, the fox plopped a card into his paw.  “Please don't leave it like this, Kougo.  If anyone can talk to you, I can.  I'm not just a toy.”  Conviction glinted in his eyeless eyes.  The Dalmatian stepped to the door and opened it slowly.  Soft snoring replaced the low hum of the city at night.  Then he stepped over the threshold and over the sleeping bodies of partygoers.  He couldn't bear to look back toward Todd.  But he kept the card.

The night did not pass well.

The grey London rain appeared to match the Dalmatian perfectly on this Wednesday morning.  He trudged along Lupus Street toward Charlwood, dread weighing him down more than the pack full of books and art supplies strapped to his back.  The Dalmatian-spotted umbrella he had bought when he'd been in a playful mood months back now seemed stupid and gauche, but it kept him from getting wet.

He rubbed along the card in his jacket pocket, feeling the raised lettering of Todd's name, employer and phone number.  He'd waited until he was back in his dormitory on Sunday evening to call the fox, who had answered after the second ring.  Todd had been grateful when Kougo had wanted to talk in person instead of over the phone, and he'd offered to arrange a meeting close by.  

Turning the corner of Charlwood, Kougo spotted My Cafe's battered black awning a few doors down the street.  It was the Dalmatian's place of choice because it was within walking distance of his college, it was relatively cheap compared to standard London fare, and it was quiet enough for studying when he needed to do bookwork.  Its sign was missing the C, making it “My Afe.” but that was part of its charm, along with its black-and-white tiles and thin aluminum chairs and tables out front.

Kougo considered walking past the front door and to the chemist next door for a bottle of Pepto, but decided against it.  He'd done a lot of thinking in four days, and he needed to get through this without medicating himself.  So he turned on his toes and entered My Cafe.

The fox in the Hawaiian shirt was the only fox, and the only person, in the place.  He smiled sheepishly and waved the Dalmatian over.  Kougo pulled out a chair and sat across from Todd, not quite believing the slight vulpine he saw was the same bulky hunk who'd jerked him off.  But Todd had told him to look out for the gaudy Hawaiian shirt, so there was no mistaking him for anyone else.

“Shocking, I know,” Todd said, his tailtip twitching off to the side.  “The process, I have found out, not only works to change the body's composition, but you can be molded to specifications, too.  I hope you're not disappointed.”

Only a little.  “No, not at all,” Kougo replied.  “It's all new to me, so I'm just kind of taking it all in.”

“You want something?”  Todd gestured to the steaming cup in front of him.  “They make a pretty good Earl Grey.”

“Not that hard when you just put a bag in hot water.”

“True.”  Clasping his paws in his lap, the fox leaned back against the bench, eyes trained on his tea.  Kougo didn't think he could even try for water without feeling nauseated, so he sat and waited for Todd to make his next move.  He sighed.  “I'm glad you called me.”

Kougo nodded, though he could see it wasn't the response the fox wanted, from the angle of his ears.  Todd sipped his tea and continued.

“How did the wedding go?”

“It was boring.  A lot of waiting and pomp leading up to a twenty-minute ceremony, followed by stuffing ourselves with expensive food and free alcohol.  It's fun nursing one beer while everyone around you gets drunk.”  Kougo remembered Alastair ditching his new wife to ask one of his colleagues for a dance, and smiled.  What a hangover the mongoose must have had Monday morning.

“Sounds typical,” Todd said.  “I hope you had fun?”  Kougo noticed the uptick.

“Fun enough.”  Biting his lip, the Dalmatian said, “But I had your card in my pocket the whole time.  Took me all day to get up the nerve to call.  It would've just gotten worse.”

“You know I was just trying to do my job out there on the balcony.  Don't you?”  Kougo heard the door open behind him, and soon after, the scent of otter drifted to his nose.  He saw Todd's nostrils twitch involuntarily as he picked it up as well, though the fox could have seen the otter coming from halfway down the block due to his position facing the street.  Suddenly he realized the absence of cherry-smell from Todd.  He missed it.

Taking a packet of Splenda and twisting it this way and that, Kougo nodded.  “I'm sorry I reacted like a dumbass.”

“I was surprised, sure.  But I can't really blame you.  The whole rubber thing is rather odd, when you think about it.”

“It wasn't that.  I'd seen Lily doing her thing.  Nobody'd touched me before.”

Todd opened his muzzle, but clamped it shut just as quickly.  Kougo immediately regretted having said anything, but it had to be said.  “I'm not blaming you or anything,” he amended.  “I liked it.”

“You liked it all over the robe,” Todd muttered, scratching behind an ear.  “Well, I can't say I'm not in the business of deflowering virgins, because the first time I went out that was exactly the case.  That was different, though.  He was a paying client, while you were just a hanger-on.”

“If I didn't want it, I wouldn't have let you.”  Nevermind that Kougo hadn't wanted it until Todd had started pawing him off.  Rare was the male who would stop at that point, if he'd let it go that far.  

Relief painted Todd's face.  “As long as we're on the same page.  I don't take advantage of people.  Hell, before I started slubbering, I couldn't have imagined playing with guys.  But, as the saying goes, I was broke and desperate.”

Kougo's floppy ears perked momentarily.  

Todd raised an eyebrow and smiled.  It made him look foxier, if that was possible.  “You want to hear my interesting life-altering 'broke straight fox' experience?”

“You're going to tell me anyway, aren't you?”

“I was planning on it,” Todd said.  “In case you needed a 'conflicting emotions' story to make you feel less alone.”

“I'm...” Kougo began, then thought for a second.  “I'm not conflicted so much as shy.  Doing it almost in the open like that was a lot to process.  But I never didn't like it, if that makes any sense.”

“I get it,” said the fox, and with that, he began regaling the Dalmatian with the tale about how his dire straits led him to try something—two somethings, actually—he never thought he would do in his lifetime.  Kougo listened intently, at times leaning forward on his elbows as his questions about the process were answered.  Todd's boss sounded like a bitch, but the fox always mentioned how good she was at her job, and that she could be a hardass but she knew what she was doing.  And when Todd sat there grinning broadly when he got to the part about John the badger, Kougo tried not to squirm from the erection it gave him.  

When Todd finished, Kougo rubbed his chin thoughtfully.  “How did you get past your anxiety over trying it with John?”

“A lot of ways,” Todd replied.  “First, I wasn't all 'Eww gross' about it.  Second, I didn't want the IRS extraditing me back to the States and fucking my life up.  Third, Colette was a recommendation from Lucia, someone in whom I place a lot of trust.  It takes a lot of guts to consent to being turned into rubber.  But what helped me the most was thinking of the transition as an extra layer between the real me and John.  That if I was just a sex toy there for him, the service was the priority instead of my feelings.  Honest, it was easier that way.”

Kougo still stared, agog.  “That worked?”  Todd nodded.

“At least, for me.  Why, you suddenly want to be a big living sex doll?”  When the Dalmatian didn't reply, the fox added, “You serious?”

Fact was, Kougo didn't know if he was serious.  Up until last Saturday, he'd always been a wallflower or a doormat, either watching the fun from afar or letting others carry on, even if he didn't much like it.  But his close moment with Todd, scary as it had been, had empowered him to think about life as a more open person.  He was honestly sick of his social idiocy, and if it had worked for Todd—a former straight fox—it might help him as well.

“Maybe,” said the Dalmatian.  Todd watched Kougo, as if expecting him to change his mind.  But Kougo couldn't think of any good reason to say no.  Or maybe he couldn't think of any good reason not to say yes.  He remembered not just how the fox had looked (which didn't mean he thought Todd wasn't attractive in person), but how he had felt and smelled.  The way his slick-smooth fingers had caressed the Dalmatian's erection to climax while prodding Kougo's backside like a living dildo.  Not only had it excited him, it had temporarily broken through his shyness and squelched it into submission.  Unexpected but welcome, and very enjoyable.  

Todd was holding his phone to his ear, looking down his muzzle at Kougo:  Are you sure, you foolhardy spotty?  You are precipitously close to being unable to back down.  Who was he calling?

“Bonjour , Sophie, it's Emory.  Can I speak to Collette, please?  Merci beaucoup.”  Todd looked up once more:  last chance.  Kougo blushed, but stood his ground.  A thrill went through him.  He wasn't powerless by any means, but he was acting by his inaction.  “Collette, hi.  No, no, I'm not cancelling this Saturday.  Why would I?  Yeah, that was one time, and I missed the ferry in Calais because my asshole Indian cabbie couldn't find his way from the train station to the port.  Okay, regardless, I have a proposition for you, about John.  How do you think he would feel about a threesome?”

Kougo didn't think his first time in a limousine would be so embarrassing.  Then again, he hadn't expected to be picked up in front of his dormitory in a stretched Maybach.  Students stared as a massive tuxedo-clad bull terrier opened the rear door for the Dalmatian.  Kougo ducked into the darkness and slid into the plush leather seat beside Todd...at least, the fox he called “Todd.”

“I would normally ask you if you were absolutely sure about this, but since I've put my reputation on the line, you don't get that choice.”  Kougo knew what the fox meant; Todd had worked hard to sell Collette on the idea of bringing in another newbie.  The issue of Kougo's shyness never came up.  Apparently, the fox had enough caché to convince Collette to take a chance.  The responsibility weighed on his mind, a heavy load.  

“Thank you for calling her,” said the Dalmatian.  He chuckled nervously.  “I can't believe I'm not scared to death right now.”

“You might be, later on,” Todd said, grinning and putting a reassuring paw on Kougo's thigh.  Not as warm as rubber, but soft fox fur was almost as good.  

“How does the conversion work?”

“It's better to show you, rather than try and explain it.”  Kougo nodded and watched the London city center give way to factories and rows of old, grey flats, darkened from soot and age.

“Emory?”

“Emory Altair,” replied the fox.  “But when we're working, I'm 'Todd.'  It was the first generic thing to enter my mind when John asked me.  'John' isn't his real name either, but it works for us.  Turned into kind of an inside joke, really.”

As the limo took them from the outer burbs, Kougo gave up trying to figure out in what direction they were traveling.  They drove on the A4 for what seemed like an eternity, because the Dalmatian was distracted by the fox's paw on his thigh.  Todd hadn't moved it, and Kougo didn't want it moved.  Its soft warmth comforted him, as did the fact that the fox stayed that way until they exited the motorway somewhere in Hounslow.

A few more turns and they pulled through a chain-link fence and into an industrial park whose buildings had seen better days and occupancy.  When the limo stopped and the bull terrier opened the door, Kougo followed Todd out, led by the paw to the only lit door on the street.

“Thank you, Magli,” the fox said, and waved.  “I'll see you next time.”

“Di niente .”  With that, Magli stuffed himself back into the Maybach and drove away.  

“He doesn't say much, does he?” Kougo asked, looking for a sign, any kind of identification on the building, and finding none.

“He's paid to drive us around,” Todd replied.  “He's also Collette's personal chauffeur.”

When the door buzzed, Kougo let out a bark.  The fox reached for the door and pulled it open, ushering the Dalmatian in before bringing up the rear.  “Sophie must be working the cameras tonight,” he muttered, grinning.  They walked down a stark, brightly-lit hallway, turning corners before stopping at a door marked “Office.”  Todd knocked on the door before opening it, which struck Kougo as odd because the fox didn't wait for a response.

The vixen seated at the desk wore a severe glower on her muzzle.  “I hope you realize how close you are cutting it tonight, Mr. Altair,” she spoke evenly, crisply.  “You won't take long since you've already been primed, but you're going to have to wait for your friend here.”  She nodded at the Dalmatian.  “You're Kougo?”

“Yes'm.”

“My gut is telling me I shouldn't be trusting you, but I took a chance on you before and it paid off.”  Ms. Devonshire spoke to Todd, looking at Kougo the whole time.  “Though I tend to value Lucia's recommendations more than yours, as a matter of course.”  

“Understood,” Todd deadpanned, then spoke to Kougo.  “You're gonna want to have a seat so you can sign a few things.  Legal stuff.”

“But nothing as elaborate as you had to fill out,” the vixen interjected.  “I had to treat you like an employee.  Kougo is merely an accessory to a sure thing.”

“That's as close to a compliment as you get with this lady,” Todd said, gesturing with his thumb before pulling out two chairs.  They sat and Kougo spent the next ten minutes with his head in a whirlwind, looking over the forms he had to sign.  Ms. Devonshire deferred to Todd when Kougo asked questions, but when he signed his name at the bottom of the last one he still knew nothing of what was printed on the papers.  He hoped he was making a good decision.

The vixen tap-shuffled the stack of pages and set them to the side of her desk.  Standing, she whirled around the side and snapped her fingers at both males.  “Follow me please, and don't fall behind.  We have little time as it is.”  They obeyed without hesitation, staying just behind the whip of her tail as she led them down one hallway and three-quarters down another, pushing open a pair of double-hinged doors.  She didn't hold them for the canines.

A low thrum greeted Kougo when he entered the large, bright area.  It was set up as some sort of laboratory, as indicated by shelves full of beakers and books.  Tables along the back wall and to the sides sported microscopes, tubes and open binders, while two reclining chairs occupied the center space.  The machinery attached to them looked like typical hospital fare, but the Dalmatian could tell they were far from ordinary.  

“Mr. Altair, take the chair to the right, if you would.  Your friend can obviously take the left,” said the vixen.  

“If it's all the same to you,” the fox replied, “I'd like to see him through the conversion.  At least until he's under.”  Todd had doffed his shirt, and now he undid his pants, taking everything off in one go.  While Ms. Devonshire seemed not to mind, the Dalmatian found himself burning at the face upon seeing the nude vulpine.  Then he realized that both were waiting for him to do the same.

“We have no time for modesty here,” clipped the vixen, looking as if she would snap her barely-calm exterior at any moment.  She shot a severe glance over to Todd, who padded over to Kougo and took him by the shoulders.

“This is not a good time to be embarrassed,” he said.  “As it is, I'm going to need to call John and tell him we're late.  You can still back out...but I'd really rather you not.”  The fox's body radiated more heat than he should have, and his breath smelled of cherries.  Odd, since Kougo hadn't seen Todd eating any candy or popping a lozenge.

The Dalmatian looked away.  “I want to, but...I don't know.”

“That's good enough for me,” Todd replied, sliding his paws under Kougo's shirt and pushing up.  There was no choice but to allow it to happen.  The Dalmatian barely got his shoes and socks off before Todd slipped his pants down.  When he saw the vixen staring at him, he looked down at his half-erection and meeped in horror.  He felt like dying.  

“Oh look, it's a penis.  I've never seen one before,” said Ms. Devonshire with impossible-to-hide sarcasm before she turned to a bank of instruments and began twisting dials.  “Get him in the chair, fox.”

Todd hugged Kougo to him.  Their sheaths touched, and the Dalmatian noted that the fox was a bit turgid as well.  Kougo even dared to hug back.  His fingers sank into Todd's back as if it were made of saltwater taffy.  It brought him back to the night of the bachelor party, and that did nothing but exacerbate his problem down below.  

“You're gonna do fine,” Todd said when they parted.  “John's going to love you, and we'll all have fun with it.”  The fox licked the spotty's nose.  “You're awfully cute when you blush.  Now, the chair.”  He gestured to either one of the pair of recliners.  

Kougo took the closest.  It was comfortable enough, plush leather and reclined fully when Todd reached down to pull a lever on its side.  Once the Dalmatian was comfortable, the fox pulled a clear plastic mask from a stand and brought it to Kougo's head.

“Lift, please.”  The strap went behind his ears and snapped into place.  It fit over his muzzle almost perfectly, the seal so good it was hard to breathe after a few seconds.  Todd twisted a valve on a tank next to the chair and fresh oxygen blasted Kougo's nose.  After only a few seconds he began to get light-headed.  

“Do you have to put me under?”  he asked the fox, who was now getting a bit swimmy and blurry.

“Yes,” said the vixen without turning around.  Todd held the spotty's paw.

“The transition isn't the most pleasant thing to go through.  Even without sedation, you would probably pass out anyway.”

Kougo's heart leaped into a pounding thud.  “From the pain?”

“Not in the traditional sense of pain,” Todd eschewed.  This did nothing to assuage the Dalmatian's growing sense of doom.  He looked up at the fox, whose attention was focused on Ms. Devonshire.  He looked down again, to see the creamy vulpine sheath within licking distance, immediately ashamed for having such a thought at this time.  It must be the gas.

Todd shuffled around behind Kougo's head and moved his paws to the dog's chest.  “Ready when you are.”

The vixen turned around, nodded curtly and twisted two dials to the right.  And damn if her tail wasn't wagging.  “Compound is flowing.”

“Compound?”

“The rubberizing compound that initiates the transition,” Todd said.  “It happens quickly.”  His paws grew tighter on Kougo's chest, and the Dalmatian's sense of doom intensified.  Then Kougo realized it wasn't the fox's paws on his chest, but his chest itself that was tightening.  Then he realized there were no intravenous lines in his arms.  Then he saw the grey goo making its way from Ms. Devonshire's machine through the hose to his mask.  Then he panicked.  Todd was there to hold him down.  That's why he was there.

“Hold still!  It's not going to hurt!”  Todd clamped down on both of the dog's wrists as he tried to thrash about in the chair.  He felt the fox's sheath on his head, now part of some malevolent sexual deviancy instead of the promise of a good time.  

“I can't do it!” Kougo screamed into the mask, noticing with horror that the more he hyperventilated the quicker the goo came through the tube.  It was an inevitable, unstoppable cycle.  Ten feet away, then five, and it began to creep from the floor to his muzzle.  He started smelling cookies.  He was going insane.

“Don't hold your breath,” Todd said, leaning over to stare at the Dalmatian head-on.  Kougo held his breath anyway.  Cool slime splashed against his snout, filling the mask immediately.  Nothing seeped past the mask's seal; instead, pressure built up against his lips and nostrils like nothing he'd ever felt before.  As much as he tried, Kougo felt some of it make its way behind his teeth and onto his tongue.  Again he tasted cookies.  Oreo cookies, and cream.  

“I told you not to hold your breath,” the fox repeated, in a much calmer voice this time.  “Stop moving.  If you rip the mask off now, you're going to fucking die.”  Kougo tensed.  His lungs burned and his chest heaved, starved of oxygen.  “Please breathe, Kougo.  You can't stop it.”  Todd took a paw away to wipe the Dalmatian's tear-matted cheeks.  “You can't just not trust me.”

So Kougo let the last of his air out, blowing back some of the goo, but as soon as he stopped it flowed into his nose and mouth.  Cool and smooth, it filled his sinuses and poured into his stomach and lungs simultaneously.  He didn't even have time to think about gagging.  It pumped itself inward until Kougo no longer knew how to breathe.  There simply was no way.  He didn't know he'd been arching his back until he collapsed against the chair.  The stuff inside his guts settled with a sickly sloshing.

Kougo would have thrown up if his muscles could have contracted, but he sensed with vague terror that he didn't have a stomach anymore.  As grey fog crept in from the sides of his eyes, he found he no longer cared, as long as he could just fall asleep and let it take him.

I can't see.  But I don't have eyes, right, so it's okay.  Darkness is normal .

 Okay, there was darkness.  And sensory deprivation.  Except for a Styrofoam-like squeaking when he tried to move.  He felt like Bolt from that movie a few years back, before his porno career took off.  

He considered staying still just like he was until something outside changed.  Because he didn't know what was outside, and as far as he was concerned it was safe in the packing peanuts.  And it smelled like cookies, smooth and creamy.  It was all up in his nose, his head, but felt like a part of him.  It felt natural, though what passed for natural anymore was anyone's guess.

The sounds of voices filtered in, but they were dampened by the foam.  One of them might have belonged to Todd, but it sounded like a generic male voice.  Kougo had no idea how generic voices seemed when strained through a bunch of packing materials.  It could be his hearing, too, considering what they'd done to the rest of his body.

For the longest time—though it was probably just a few minutes—the Dalmatian lay listening, straining to catch any word, any clue as to what was going on.  Eventually the sounds faded, nearly driving him crazy.  Waiting wouldn't work.  His only choice was the element of surprise.  He would have to punch through whatever container held him, Uma Thurman-style.  So he screwed up his courage and punched.

His paw hit nothing but air.  So did his other paw.  

So did his head when he sat up, spilling peanuts all over the floor around the open box he'd been lying in.  He was in an ornate room.  Todd and a chubby nude badger were making out on the bed to his right.  He smelled cherries.  

“What the f-uuuuuughhhh...”  His expletive poured forth in ribbons of thick white cream filling. Not a retch, exactly, more of a drain.

He heard Todd go, “Oh, shit,” and then the fox was next to him, holding him by the shoulders until the flow reduced to a drip and stopped.  Everything from his waist down was a hot sticky mess.  When he tried standing up, his legs wobbled and collapsed.

“Is he okay?” asked the badger, who looked like he wanted to help but thought he would get in the way.  

“He'll be fine once he gets in the shower.”

“It's a good thing your company pays for cleanup,” said the badger.  

“All part of the fee,” Todd quipped.  “Can you stand?” he asked the Dalmatian.  Kougo nodded that he could try, and after a couple failed attempts the dog was on his feet, albeit supported by the fox under his arms.  His sense of queasiness had mostly passed.  Together they hobbled across the room to the spacious bathroom, where Todd warmed the shower and stabilized Kougo until he was under the spray.  

“I'm sorry,” said the dog.  It was the only thing he could think to say that wouldn't sound corny or somehow contrived.  The water pit-patted off the slick surface of his body, the heat transferring much quicker now that there wasn't any fur in the way to soak it up.  At least whatever had come from inside him washed away effortlessly.  

“Don't be,” said Todd, and suddenly the fox was next to him in the shower, holding him.  Kougo wanted to cry, could feel his face working like he could, but with no tears—and probably no eyes—jhe didn't know how that would go.  So he settled for being held.  “I did the same thing my first time.  I talked to Collette about it.  It's rare that someone won't vomit after coming out of transition.”

Kougo nodded.  “Okay.”  He still felt horrible though, for subjecting the badger to such a display.  “Do you think he's mad at me?”

“Who, John?”  Todd rocked the Dalmatian back and forth.  “He saw me throw up cherry goop just after we met.  I doubt he doesn't understand.”  The butterflies in Kougo's stomach quieted some.  “Do you think you're stable enough to go back out there?”  

“I kinda have to, don't I?”

“You don't have to do anything you don't want to do,” said the fox.  Todd's rubbery sheath pressed against what passed for Kougo's rump.  Even that contact comforted him, if it didn't exactly arouse him at the moment.  “Once you meet John you'll warm up quickly.”

“I'm already plenty warm.”

“Is it easier to move?  The material gets more pliable when it's heated.”  Todd squeezed the Dalmatian's arm.  It bounced back like molten hard candy.  “We should dry off.  You'll feel so good.  Trust me.”

Todd shut the shower off and dried himself before handing a towel to the Dalmatian.  One pass was all it took to wipe him down, and Kougo grinned at not having to spend twenty minutes dabbing and fluffing.  When he looked in the mirror he almost gasped, but caught himself.  The eyeless white Dalmatian with silvery spots “staring” back at him was almost what he'd expected to see.  

“That's not so bad,” said Kougo.  The fox joined him, smiling.

“It really isn't,” Todd added.  “Once you're used to the unique physics, it almost becomes second nature.”  Reaching for a robe, Kougo covered up and padded out of the bathroom after the red rubber fox.  

John was sitting on the bed, still nude but very much flaccid.  “Did you get him to calm down?”

Kougo approached the badger, head hanging.  “I...apologize for...what I did.  It was—“

“Nonsense,” John interjected.  “Todd let me know what was up before you two arrived.  He also let me know that you're quite shy, which looks very cute on you.”  Kougo blushed up a storm, avoiding the badger's eyes.  “How do you like it so far?  Besides the whole, you know...”  John waved a paw toward Kougo's box.

“At least it smells nice,” Todd said.  “Like cream filling.  Like the stuff you find in Hydrox cookies.”

“Or Oreos,” John added.  “Yum.”  He patted his generous belly.  “Too many of those in here.”  

Todd looked the Dalmatian over.  “It looks Collette made you a cookies-and-cream doggy, Kougo.”  The sudden attention was working him up to a flush again, and when both males chuckled the spotty covered his face with his paws.  

“Wow, even cuter.”  John pulled a paw away.  “You don't have to worry about this one being forward, Todd.”

“My boss is doing us a massive favor in transitioning him.”  The fox came up behind Kougo and held him about the waist.  “He's had some trouble dealing with certain feelings.  The same trouble I had, except a bit more pronounced.”

“Oh.”  Whatever the badger was thinking, Kougo just knew it had to be critical.  He wondered if he'd ruined the evening with his very presence.  “We'll have to see about that.”

“What do you mean?” asked the Dalmatian, pulling his robe tighter.  

“What are you into?”

“I—”

“He's kind of new to this,” Todd covered.  “I don't think even he knows.”  

“I should go.”  Maybe if he stayed out of the way, Todd could salvage this evening and make it worth the badger's money.  “Is there somewhere I could sit and wait for you?”

In a flash, the fox had turned him around.  “Stop that.  You're not a wet blanket, and you're not sitting this out.”  Todd's eyes told a different story.  They said that that the fox had gone to too much trouble for Kougo to back out, which frightened the canine somewhat but was understandable.  At some point he was going to have to just suck it up and, well, suck it.

“Okay.  What do I do?”

“I know what I want to do,” mumbled John.  “But he's going to have to take that robe off.”  His dark eyes looked almost sinister under their twin stripes of white.  “Let's have a look at you now that you're clean.”

Todd let the Dalmatian go and stepped back.  “Only if you're ready.”

“Never gonna be ready,” Kougo replied, undoing the sash and letting the robe fall open.  John looked him up and down, and grinned.  

“He doesn't know how cute he is.  Damn, Todd, I might have wanted to see him in the fur!”

“I would be freaking out right now if I wasn't...like this,” said the Dalmatian.  

The badger stood up and walked toward the canine.  “So, you're using it as a mask to hide behind?”

“No,” said Todd.  “It doesn't cover anything up.  It just alters what's there, you know that.”

John padded around Kougo, plucking the robe from his body with a well-placed claw.  This time the dog yipped and went to cover himself with his paws before recalling how he'd emerged from the box the same way.  What was the point now?  John moved them away anyway once he got back around front.  Kougo saw his plumped sheath and gulped.  Then the badger embraced him.

“I want you to know,” said John, “that you can have fun here.  You can let go here, and no one will judge you.  Not just because you're a toy—which you're not, exactly—but because you're among friends.”  He pulled back to look at Kougo directly.  “Todd and I have had long discussions about this.  We were the same way, thrust together into this situation.”

“Todd told me about his financial troubles,” said Kougo.

“And I was having trouble accepting who I was.  I thought, however crazily, that hiring rubber call-boys would help with that.  And it only did because it was Todd.  You're lucky he's here.”

“Thanks, John,” said the fox from behind them.  “Really means a lot to hear it.”

The badger continued.  “Kougo needs to hear it too.  Just don't forget that you're among friends and equals.”

“Prostitution, the great equalizer?”  The Dalmatian couldn't help his smile.

“Something like that,” the fox said, placing a paw on Kougo's back.  “Now are you gonna stare at his sheath all day or are you gonna do something about it?”  The butterflies came to life again, but they were muted.  Hesitantly he approached John, blushing but more eager than he had been all evening.

“What do you want me to do?” Kougo asked.

“How about I just let you explore?” John replied.  We don't need to rush, and you look cute when you're curious.  Get on your knees.”

Kougo obeyed immediately, even before he had a chance to think.  It had been so easy to just do what he was told, which worried him some.  He felt good for doing it, but bad for letting it come so quickly.  

He walked on his knees until he was even with the badger's groin.  Musk flowed into his smooth rubber nostrils, slightly bastardized by the cookie-cream scent of Kougo's own body but still strong enough to arouse him.  Staring at the first set of genitals he'd ever had the opportunity to touch, he couldn't decide what he wanted to do first.  He knew John was watching him, and hoped the badger didn't expect too much.  The heady scent got to him, made him dizzy, so he nuzzled up under John's sac and let it fill him.

“Like a duck to water,” John murmured, putting a paw on top of Kougo's head.  The pads squeaked as they rubbed between his ears.  “So far, so good.  Todd, if you could join us?”  

Todd sidled up next to John, tilted his head, and went to town.  Kougo couldn't see from his vantage point, but he could hear plenty.  Listening to them kiss, he was struck with a double-edged envy:  bad because he wasn't comfortable enough to give John that kind of pleasure yet, but good because he was still part of the action.  And very good because John unsheathed himself without much direct help from the Dalmatian.  Kougo merely watched the slick pink shaft emerge from the field of creamy white fur until it bobbed gently before  him.  

It looked delicious, and Kougo was a bit ashamed.  Despite what his brain wanted to feel, he did what his body wanted to do.  He started licking John's balls up and down, bringing the base of the badger's shaft into it little by little.  The taste wasn't nearly as off-putting as he would have thought; in fact, it was quite tasty once he got used to it.  A minute later he was licking up the badger's length, and then it was slipping between his lips.

John merely held onto the Dalmatian's head, letting Kougo go at his own pace.  He was thankful for it, too.  That way he could just explore.  Somewhere in his mind he thought he should feel bad for being in this position, but it wasn't happening.  He allowed the tip in, let it slide over his rubber teeth (such as they were) and got half of it in his muzzle before his gag reflex took over.  He retched once, but his mouth filled with sweet creaminess that slickened up the shaft and made for easier going.  The next time he went down, it tickled but nothing else until his snout bunched up John's sheath.  It was an oddly satisfying kind of full.

The scent of cherries grew steadily more prominent while Kougo was busy tending to John.  He opened his eyes (having not realized they were closed) and saw the fox's shaft just off to his left.  Unlike that night at the hotel, this time Todd had transitioned into merely a twin of his normal body shape.  To be honest, Kougo liked the slightly more curved body of the fox instead of the bulky hunk on the balcony.  It was really Todd being Todd that had gotten the Dalmatian off anyway, his personality more than his looks.  And even though he wasn't endowed like a vulpine god, he looked just as tasty.  It was dripping cordial crème, too, which had to be tastier than fox cum, though there might be those who would argue that point.

It took no effort at all to switch cocks.  Kougo kept a paw on John so he wouldn't feel left out, though.

“He's a natural,” he heard John say.  

“I didn't expect this,” Todd replied, “but I'm perfectly happy with it.”  Now the Dalmatian had two paws on his head, neither guiding him, merely reassuring him.  Todd's cock was narrower than the badger's, but he had the knot, which met him every time he bottomed out.  The crème flowed steadily onto his tongue so he had to keep swallowing, but it didn't at all feel like he was ingesting anything.  He didn't know where it was going, and he wasn't sure it would make sense if he found out, either.

Once he got a feel for the fox's shape, Kougo let his mind wander.  He found his thoughts ironically dominated by submission and the thought of being told what to do.  As demeaning and potentially dangerous as it was, he imagined what it would be like to just let go as a pet—or, in this case, a toy—and do what was asked of him.  It got him hard—there was no denying that—and made him wish he could try it on a slightly less-temporary basis.  His real life was too real to consider going further.

“Let's take this to the bed, huh?” John asked.  Kougo didn't need to be told twice; he was the first one to crawl up on the comforter.  He even got on all fours and wiggled his spotted rear playfully, blushing again as he squeaked.  He felt the badger's paws on him first, caressing the curve of his buttocks and tugging at his tail.  His tail went up, and then John was spreading him open with his tongue.  

He hadn't been prepared for rimming  He hadn't been prepared for any of this, but rather than being dismayed Kougo was happy with not only his ability to please, but also his ability to put his shyness away for once and do something he wanted to do whether or not it felt right.  The dog on the hotel balcony seemed like a different person, far away from the dog on the bed, a badger's tongue in his hole and a fox bapping him on the nose with his cock.  

“What got into you?” Todd asked as the Dalmatian licked along his length before engulfing it with no trouble at all.  He made a noncommittal sound and shrugged because he didn't want to spit Todd's dick out to reply.  What a waste of crème.  The fox didn't seem to mind the lack of an answer, busy as he was driving Kougo by his ears.  

John withdrew his tongue and leaned over the dog, his cock pressing and squeaking between Kougo's cheeks.  “Would you mind, Todd?  I'm leaking, but it's not going to be enough.”

“Sure,” the fox replied, and Kougo looked up just in time to see John stick his middle finger into Todd's throat.  He felt the fox jerk as red goo shot from his muzzle, covered the badger's paw and drenched the Dalmatian's head.

“Thank you,” said John.  

“Anytime,” replied Todd, spitting the remainder onto his cock.  Swallowing, Kougo thought the fox would make a killer Shirley Temple no matter where the stuff came from.

When John stuck a finger under his tail there was no pain at all.  Which was disconcerting until he remembered he wasn't exactly organic anymore.  What he did feel was some stretching and more of that not-too-bad fullness.  He felt like he could take the badger with little to no problem, though the thought of being fucked still made him nervous.

“There really isn't much resistance, is there?” the badger asked.

Todd replied, “Just enough to be snug without hurting.”

“And no pain?”

“Not like anything you would normally feel.  The transition replaces the nerves with...something.”  Kougo would have asked himself, if his mouth weren't full.  Now he didn't have to.  

“You don't know what it is?” asked John.

“I don't think Collette would tell me if I asked!”

Kougo felt his tail go up and his legs go wide, followed by the heat of the badger's member at his entrance.  It slid between his cheeks, rubbing right across before catching and pressing gently to open him up.  Again he felt the stretching, but nothing else save for some pleasure at hearing the badger grunt when he sank the rest of his shaft.  It didn't feel bad, but then again, he didn't know how he was supposed to feel.  He realized he'd have to experience his first time twice, and that wasn't necessarily a bad thing.  He just hoped it would be with people he trusted as much as Todd and John.

The bulk of John's belly settled onto the Dalmatian's backside, the badger shuffling around on his knees.  He grabbed Kougo's hips a few times before getting a grip.  “Next time,” he said to Todd, “maybe we should give him handles.”

“I believe you can do that,” panted the fox.  “If I can vomit grenadine, you can put handles on a dog.”

“You already have handles on your end.”

“True, but you have a joystick.”

John jerked Kougo's tail up and pulled.  The badger slid up inside him like a well-oiled piston, meeting no resistance.  “I do.  Maybe I don't need handles,” he admitted.  

“Hey Kougo,” growled the fox.  Kougo looked up, playing the pup, and actually groaned when Todd took his dripping length away.  He cupped the Dalmatian's chin.  “You keep breathing through your nose.  It's putting your rhythm off.”

“I can't breathe through my mouth.”

“You don't need to breathe.  That's an artifact.  You think you need to.  You want to.  But you're really not.  Try it.”  Kougo opened up and took the fox back in.  He held his breath—at least it seemed like he did—until his lungs screamed for air, and then...nothing happened.  The tightness in his chest receded, he didn't feel like gulping, and he could lick and slurp and suck all he wanted without thinking about any bothersome involuntary functions.

John wasn't the most well-endowed male.  He was stubby, in fact, if a little thick at the base.  But the Dalmatian had no problems accommodating the badger.  Having Todd up front freed up Kougo to brace himself and bear back against the constant thrusts.  He was a plaything and a partner in the same breath, and he enjoyed being the former because they treated him as the latter.  What a way to have a first time.  

Todd's grunting brought him back to attention just in time to catch the crème as it splattered against his throat and ran down what passed for his esophagus.  The fox may have warned him while he was spacing out, but it didn't matter.  Now he just muttered incoherently through clenched teeth while he held Kougo's head to his groin, trying futilely to tie with his jaw.  Once his hips stopped he was content to dribble out the end of his climax onto the spotty's tongue.  When he finally sat back he nearly collapsed.

“And here I thought you had more stamina than I did,” John chuckled, stilling himself and rocking them both gently.  

Grinning, Todd admitted, “I never expected him to do that well for a first time.  Oral is not the easiest way to get me off.”

Kougo swallowed.  “It wasn't that hard.”  

“And modest, too,” said the badger.  “As long as you're having fun.”

“ Are you?” asked the fox, concern clouding his face.  John bottomed out again; the Dalmatian's tongue flopped out to the side.  He considered holding in the building whimper, but it came out anyway.  And it sounded good.  In case that wasn't clear enough, he nodded as well.

“You okay?  I didn't think you could strain rubber,” John said to Todd, who still appeared to be panting.

“I thought you said we didn't breathe,” Kougo quipped.

“I said it was an artifact.  If I want to, I can make it look like I'm breathing.  I'm not sucking on anything at the moment.”  

John resumed his rocking.  “We can change that.”

“I think,” the fox said as he got down into a play-bow, “that the puppy would like to get a taste of topping more than a simple blowjob.”  He nosed the Dalmatian.  If he'd had eyes they would have been looking at him.  “Whaddya think?”  Kougo's heart leaped.  For a second he swore he felt like he was falling in love with the fox, but it must have been his libido finally kicking in.  

Nodding, he managed, “I...would like to try.”

“You don't have to do anything,” said Todd, turning around and raising his tail to reveal a perfectly-molded orifice.  “I'll just hang out under you for a while.”  He spat out another gob of lube and brought his paw to his backside.  John stopped long enough for them to let the fox underneath, but the rubber-on-rubber friction made it impossible.  The sound was like balloon animals having a fight.  Finally, Todd crawled forward.

“Here, put your finger in your mouth and run it along your palate.”  Kougo did, feeling around until he found a small protrusion right before his uvula.  “Now press it.”  It took only a small bit of focused pressure before the dog felt his body jerk, and his paw came out covered in white cream speckled with bits of black.  It smelled like concentrated Nabisco.  

“Put that on your chest and my back.  And your cock too, just in case.  You can never have too much lube.”  Once Kougo had coated everything, the fox backed up again, sliding effortlessly into place as if they were jigsaw puzzle pieces.  Todd didn't stop until the Dalmatian was fully hilted, ignoring Kougo's gasp at the sudden pleasure.  Kougo just lay atop the fox and let himself feel great.

The three of them moved more or less as one, John doing the thrusting work while the Dalmatian allowed himself to feel the smooth inner walls of whatever he was inside.  As much as he wanted to feel like a top, he couldn't bring himself to believe it.  Yes, there was a fox under him, which was the international symbol for topping, but he wasn't doing any of the work.  Todd stayed still, John did the motions, and Kougo essentially fucked himself between both males.  His pliable body undoubtedly made for easier going, and cleanup would be a cinch.  The bed would be another story.

John sank his claws into the dog's sides, bending over his back and attacking his rump.  A few moments later the badger bellowed and went stiff, swelling and further stretching Kougo's hole.  He was mildly disappointed at not being able to feel John shoot, but he figured the stories he'd read had been overhyped a bit anyway.  Still, he wagged against the badger, who cried out and rolled off.

“Whoo, sensitive!” said John.  “Sorry, but that was too much.”  

“It's okay,” Kougo replied.

“You can finish without him, can't you?” asked Todd.  

The Dalmatian adjusted himself and gave a few exploratory thrusts.  “Never done it before.  I think so.  I hope so.”  

Sitting up, the badger crossed his arms over his substantial belly.  “If you need any help, I'm here.  Until then, I can just watch.”

After tempering the weirdness of exhibitionism with the knowledge that he'd just been in a spitroast and a sandwich, Kougo found himself a comfortable rhythm wherein he could use the parts of Todd that were still miraculously dry to help him hump the fox.  Once he got going, John faded into the background, as he was nice enough to be quiet.

When Todd held his ground and met the Dalmatian force for force, Kougo knew he didn't have to go easy.  It wasn't as if there was anything on the fox to hurt, just a whole lot of stretch.  It enveloped him with just the right amount of resistance and an ever-present warmth.  He couldn't help but wonder what it would feel like had they not transitioned.  The picture of him and Todd in bed together, in the fur, was so erotic and seemed so taboo that he felt himself boiling over before he could exorcise the thought.  He didn't want to, either, so he let it fuel him through to a crotch-mashing, knot-popping orgasm that left them tied on their sides, panting and slippery.

It took some doing to convince Kougo that pulling out while knotted wouldn't hurt the fox, but the Dalmatian relented and did so...painlessly.  It spoiled the intimacy of the tie somewhat, but Todd emphasized the fact that they should get going.  

“I thought he had us for the whole night,” said Kougo, surprising himself with how plaintive it sounded.  He looked back at the bed, stained through and through with red and white.  It looked like a murder scene, but it smelled like a party.  

“I do,” muttered John as he drew Kougo's robe around his shoulders.  “But I'm not exactly the most refractory person anymore.  May be hard for you to believe, but a lot of the time one is enough for me.  Not to say I wouldn't mind an evening spent cuddling...”

“You know I wish we could,” Todd interrupted.  “Collette wanted to give him a taste, as a favor to me, and then she wanted him returned and changed back.”

John frowned.  “She wouldn't object to me paying double for you two to spend the night, would she?”

“Rules are rules,” the fox said.

“Rules can be bent.”

“It's not about rules,” Todd pressed.  “Kougo's on kind of a timer.”

“How so?” asked the badger.

“He went through an operation meant for one-time experiences.  It doesn't alter the DNA like mine did.”

Kougo would have arched an eyebrow if one existed to arch.  “That's why your skin feels like silly putty.”

“Yeah, kinda.  And if I don't get you back in a decent amount of time, you risk doing permanent damage to yourself.  Collette calls it the 'Cinderella' process.”  The Dalmatian giggled a little, even though it was serious business.

“That's alright, you two had better head out,” the badger said.  “I wouldn't want you getting in trouble with that woman.  She sounds like a darling.”

“Could you call the service for us and tell them to pick us up?” asked Todd.

“As per procedure, you bet.”  John made the phone call while the fox and Dalmatian did their best to clean up the peanuts and put them into their respective boxes.  Before they put themselves in, they all shared a group hug, which led to some nuzzling and kissing.  Kougo had to admit he liked that more than the fucking.

“I hope I get to see you again,” the badger said as he grabbed the lid to Todd's box and lay it against the side.  He knelt by Kougo's box.  “Maybe even you, if you want to come along.”  His face carried the weight of knowing that was unlikely at best.  

Todd sat up.  “We'll see what the vixen says.”  His tone told a different story, though.  “If you get claustrophobic, Kougo, there's a sleep button installed inside your right ear.  Just push it and you'll put yourself out.  If you're like me, you don't want to sit breathing in Styrofoam all the way back to the warehouse.”

“Shall I cover you up, then?” asked John.  The fox nodded and pressed his ear as he lay back down.  Once his lid was on (evidently the transporters would nail them back up for the journey) John walked to the other side of the room.  Kougo heard sounds he couldn't quite place, but before long the badger was again by his side.  He had a scrap of paper in his fingers.

“In case she doesn't like the idea of you coming back,” he said, pressing the paper into the Dalmatian's paw.  “Provided you're not freaked out by the prospect of me seeing you properly naked.”  Kougo blushed and curled his fingers around the paper, and licked at John's muzzle.  “Good puppy.”

“I'll have to think about it,” said the dog before the lid came down.

“Of course,” John said matter-of-factly.  “Remember, you owe me some cuddling.”  Then the badger reached over and pinched the Dalmatian's rubbery right ear.

Kougo woke up floating in milky greyness.  A mask covered his face, feeding fresh air.  Everything was blurry, but even worse:  everything was foggy.  But since nothing was painful he decided that panicking would be a silly waste of his energy.  As soon as he tried to move he felt resistance on his wrists and ankles.  Somehow it triggered the tank he was in to start draining.  His feet touched down and, seconds later, the entire thing had emptied.  Todd stood just outside.

“Don't move.  You still have to rinse off.”  Kougo tried to reply, but water began to cascade over his body, refilling the tank.  As soon as he started floating again it emptied just as quickly.  This time, the top of the tank disconnected with a pneumatic hiss and the glass lowered into the floor.  Todd helped the Dalmatian off with his mask, which also hissed when released.

“That was almost as weird as getting goop pumped into me,” said Kougo.  “Almost.”

“Something about dissolving the rubber from the outside in.  Something freaky like that.”  Todd threw a robe around the dog and led him from the room into an adjoining dressing room, where their clothes were laid out.  They had been laundered and pressed.  Kougo asked after Ms. Devonshire but the fox deferred with a vague excuse about her preferring to stay behind the scenes as much as possible.  After they dressed, Todd escorted Kougo to the limo and they drove out toward the Chelsea school.

Neither spoke much during the drive.  Kougo did a lot of window-watching, and Todd didn't engage because he likely wanted to give the Dalmatian time to think.  Kougo was, in fact, thinking.  But not as much about what had happened as what he would do next.  There was John and the scrap of paper...oh, shit, it must have fallen out when they transferred him from the box to the tank!  He considered asking Todd if the fox could possibly get the number from his boss, or if he had it himself, but decided it wasn't worth the trouble it might cause.  Who even knew if he was allowed to see former clients anyway?  

The Dalmatian slumped in his seat and kept quiet until they pulled up in front of the school.  Magli came around the side of the car and opened the door, standing stoically and patiently.  Kougo turned to the fox, who was already looking at him.

“I hope you had fun,” he said softly.  “I hope it was worth it.”

“ I hope it was worth it for you,” the Dalmatian replied.  Todd seemed withdrawn, smaller than usual.  Kougo waited for him to scoot to his side of the limo, but when he didn't move the dog slid over.  

Todd smiled wanly.  “I thought it was going to take more pushing to get you to open up.  You really surprised me.”  He patted the top of Kougo's thigh, thinking.  The moment stretched into a minute.  Magli made no sound outside the car.  Finally, he said, “I hope you...feel better about your feelings.”

And Kougo did.  He still wasn't sure if he'd processed everything—in fact, he knew he had a long way to go—but he knew he'd liked it.  Repeating it without the “protection” of the rubber was a different story, and an unlikely one since he wouldn't be able to get ahold of John.  Kougo thought again about asking the fox, but hugged him instead.  Todd surprised him by turning it into a gentle, even loving, nuzzle.  It sent tingles all through him.

“I took that paper you had and put it in your pocket,” said Todd, looking down.  “I didn't read it, but I'm pretty sure I know what was on it.  You're not violating any rules if you look him up again.”

“I didn't ask for it,” said the Dalmatian.

“I know.  But it's there in case you felt like exploring again, without the transition.”  Todd paused.  Looked out his window.  “You know how to reach me too.  My card's in there as well, just in case.  You know.”

Kougo offered a thin smile.  “I've got some things to work out, still.  But it wouldn't prevent me from having coffee or something, sometime.”  His mind flashed right through the coffee and on to other, more intimate things.  He flushed for being unable to control his fantasies.  The fox's eyes shined in the light from the open door.

“That would be awesome,” Todd agreed.  “Give that little cafe some needed business.”

“I'll give you a call when I'm ready.”  The fox nodded, and Kougo was glad he understood.  

The sun was out in London, for a change, when the Dalmatian stepped out of the limo in front of the Chelsea school.  He bent down, waved to Todd and nodded at Magli, who tipped his hat and nothing more.  As Kougo padded off toward his dormitory, he put his paws in his pockets, relieved and excited to feel a piece of paper in each one.

6/2-11/16/11