Mardi Gras...
There were a lot of people enjoying Mardi Gras and Maddie was one of them, but she couldn't put her full effort into it. Part of it was because of her low energy reserves. Maddie didn't have very good eating habits. And unlike most people it wasn't that she ate too much. It was actually because she ate too little. Maddie had always been self-conscious about her appearance, but it only got worse as she got older. It certainly didn't help that there plenty of girls back in her hometown that took advantage of her low self-esteem and cut her down even further. Her parents were worried that she was too underweight, but she had trouble seeing that.
What everyone else could see was an extremely skinny young woman. Though one could easily think that she was younger than that considering her self-starvation had left her with no curves. But seeing the dark circles around her eyes and her gaunt cheeks might make one think she was older. Either way, anyone could see that she was very unwell. Her pale gold hair had lost all its luster and actually liked like it could fall out. Her bones were disturbingly prominent under her tight skin. Eventually, her parents insisted she go to Lyre and sign up for Project Phoenix.
Tonight was the night she was supposed to be getting her dose, apparently as part of Mardi Gras. She didn't know who her donor was. All she knew was she was going to be a cow, probably a big, fat, ugly cow. She couldn't hope to be as attractive as the other Animalian women she had seen. She looked up at the floats with the various scantily-dressed Animalians on them. She felt a burn of envy for all the female Animalians who had such perfect bodies.
But then she saw the Male Bovine Display Float and her eyes went wide. The bulls on that float were a lot more impressive than she was expecting. They were towering horn-tipped mountains of muscles with very wide shoulders, muscular arms thicker around than her waist (though not a hard achievement), and chests so perfectly formed, they looked like they cast from molds. But that didn't mean their legs were puny in comparison. Each sculpted leg were thicker than her own two put together (again not an insurmountable feat) and were quite long even without accounting for their hooves. The fact that they were dancing around in speedos made it very hard for any straight woman to look away from them.
But there was one pull in particular that caught Maddie's eye. He was just as impressive as the other bulls physically. His fur color was a jet black and his horns at an impressive length, though not at a Longhorn's length. There was something about that one that made Maddie's heart beat faster. She never had much luck with boys, most of them turned off by her unhealthy physique. But for some reason, Maddie felt a strong yearning that made her forget for a moment her own crippling self-image issues. She could almost swear that handsome bull was looking straight into her soul. And then she realized that bull was actually looking right at her. An overwhelming amount of embarrassment overcame Maddie and she quickly turned around and headed away from the parade.
Maddie couldn't remember the last time she felt this embarrassed. No one else saw her but that bull, but that was more than enough. She never felt more open and vulnerable. She rushed away before she could do something that will humiliate herself further. And yet, she still felt that strong yearning for the bull, but that only made her feel more embarrassed. She was just going to return to her hotel room and stay there for the rest of the night.
"Are you okay, miss?" asked a deep voice. Maddie spun around with a yelp and nearly had a heart attack. It wasn't just anyone who was speaking to her, it was the black bull from the float. He was even more impressive up close. He was so tall that Maddie's head didn't go past his abs. She felt like a tiny little stick in his great shadow. "Hey, don't worry. I'm not going to hurt you," said the bull, "Do you need help?"
"I-I-I'm just heading back to my hotel room," stammered Maddie.
"Well, let me escort you," said the bull, "I know these streets are safe, but things are pretty wild tonight."
"But won't they need you back at the parade?" asked Maddie.
"Oh, they knew I was going to get off later," said the bull, "Not everyone is going to be dancing on their floats the whole night. There are enough guys up there to take my place." The bull gently offered Maddie his arm and she gingerly took it. She could feel the taught muscles in his arms under the fur. The bull had to walk a little slowly so he wouldn't drag Maddie. "By the way, my name is Theseus," he said.
"Theseus? As in the Greek hero who slayed the Minotaur?" asked Maddie.
"Yes, both Farmer Brown and I are aware of the irony," said Theseus, "Still, I like 'Theseus' better than Asterion."
"You know the Minotaur's actual name?" asked Maddie with a little surprise. There were many people who didn't know the Minotaur actually had a name.
"Oh, I've read a lot about Cretan mythology. Crete is quite a special place. Greek isn't all just one thing. In fact, Crete isn't actually a part of Greece even if that is where Zeus is said to have been raised," said Theseus.
"Have you read 'The House of Asterion'?" asked Maddie, feeling less shy.
"Of course. It's one of the most touching stories I've heard read," said Theseus.
The two of them talked all the way back to Maddie's hotel. Maddie started to feel more relax with this huge bull man. As they talked more about the legends of Crete, Maddie could see that Theseus wasn't just a bull that gained hands and the ability to walk on his hind hooves. She could see a kind, gentle soul inside of him, a man who sounded as much a scholar as Maddie had ever met. She had never felt more comfortable with anyone before.
==========
Before Maddie knew it, they were already at her room. "Well, thanks for taking me back," she said, "I'd like to keep talking, but I have an appointment tomorrow."
"An appointment with Project Phoenix?" asked Theseus.
"Is it that obvious?" asked Maddie.
Theseus chuckled and said, "I actually knew in advance. Did they tell you who your donor was going to be?"
"Well, not really. I mean, I guess they did, but I was just too embarrassed thinking about it to even look. I think they said it was a Belgian Blue..." Maddie trailed off when she saw Theseus had an expecting look on his face. "Wait, you?!"
"Yes. I volunteered to be your donor. I saw your photo earlier so that's how I knew you in the crowd," said Theseus.
"But why would you want to help me? I would have thought they'd just give me some milk to drink," said Maddie.
"They could have. There's plenty of milk with the Animalian virus still active in it. It's mainly for people who want to double-dose. But when I saw you in the photo, I could see you're a woman who needs a more personal experience. And seeing you in person, I knew you deserve such. You're a beautiful woman even if you don't see yourself that way. You let others judge you and tell you what you should look like. But I can tell you that you don't need the approval of anyone but yourself on what you should look like. And I'd like to help you bring out the beauty that is really inside you," said Theseus.
Maddie felt overwhelmed with emotion. All self-esteem issues were washed away by this torrent of love. She never thought she could feel this way about anyone, let along a bull. No, Theseus was more than a bull. He was a better man than any she had ever known. "Tell me what you want to do with me," she said breathlessly.
"Well, I'd like to kiss you for starters," said Theseus. He leaned down and tilted Maddie's head up to meet his. His kiss was soft but then he stuck some of his tongue in her mouth. Maddie was a little embarrassed that she almost gagged on the long organ probing almost all the way back to her uvula. But Theseus could sense her discomfort and pulled back.
Maddie was a little stunned that she had been kissed so deeply by a bull like that. But then she felt a tingling through her body. She looked at her hands and saw hairs sprouting on them. they became thicker until she had full fur. Her fingers were also changing, the fingernails growing darker and covering the first digit of her hands until it looked like she had hooves on her fingertips. She soon became aware of other changes going through her body. She sat down on the bed and quickly pulled off her shoes to see her toes become covered by her toenails before forming into hooves. She felt a squirming in her lower back and felt behind her to feel a new tail sprouting. Her face involuntarily grimaced as it pushed out, her nose flattening and merging with her protruding mouth until she had a bovine muzzle. Maddie almost missed the sensation of her ears becoming longer and more moveable but did feel it when a pair of horns pushed out of her skull.
Maddie got back to her new feet with some assistance from Theseus. Her clothes felt a lot tighter now and she got them all off except for her underwear. Looking the mirror, she could see why her clothes were so tight. She was now a cow woman, though a lot daintier than the ones she had seen. She was mostly black, but she had white parts from her knees down, her hands, her front, and a splotch on her back. She still kept her blond hair and the tuft at the end of her tail was yellow. She hadn't gained much in height, but she did gain a lot in mass. Well, not as muscular as the other cows, but her underfed body was more pleasantly curved and not showing any bones. Her larger breasts, wider hips, and plumper rear were making her underwear pretty tight.
"I'm beautiful," Maddie said in amazement. She didn't feel the pressure of being too large nor saw herself as fat. She couldn't believe how good she looked.
"Indeed you are, but I know how you can become more so if you'll let me," said Theseus.
"Do you really need permission?" asked Maddie rhetorically.
Theseus took that question seriously and said, "Yes, because if you would allow me, I would want to become your mate." Maddie opened her mouth to ask if he was serious when Theseus pulled down his speedo. She had a good look at his apple-sized balls for a moment before his very long bull shaft emerged from its sheath. Maddie froze as she looked at his impressive cock. It had to be at least half the length of her arm and as thick around as a soda can.
Most women wouldn't consider letting that thing in them as it could probably split them in half. But Maddie felt her new instincts and didn't want to deny them. She removed her underwear, which was itself a relief as it was too tight and laid down on the bed. "Please mate with me," she breathed.
Theseus required no further invitation. He climbed onto the bed and slowly pressed his flat head against her netherlips. Maddie gave a gasp as it started to move inside her. She hadn't had sex before so her pussy was very tight around his large shaft. Theseus grunted a bit with discomfort. He wouldn't have been able to progress further if the little bit of pre that was leaking was already starting to effect her. Slowly, she started to gain mass, her body starting to cover more of the bed. Her legs were becoming thicker with muscles though her thighs had a feminine roundness to them. Her hips were also expanding wider as her ass got rounder. She could feel her tunnel becoming wider, allowing more of Theseus to enter her.
As Theseus started to rut, the changes started to affect her upper body. Her skinny arms were becoming toned before her muscles began bulking up. Her stomach had once shown her ribs, but now her abs were becoming more detailed. Her shoulders widened a bit to allow her muscles to grow larger. Most impressive was what was happening with her breasts. While they were larger than before, they were gaining even more volume now. She felt like there were a pair of water balloons inflating on her chest, her nipples extending longer with arousal. Theseus put his mouth over one nipple and drank long of her growing milk reserve. Maddie gave a low moo as she felt hornier than before.
As Maddie approached Theseus in size, Theseus rutted harder, his shaft able to enter her more easily. Maddie could feel him plowing deeper into her. The two bovines were grunting with exertion as they mated hard. The bed creaked but held their considerable weight. Maddie was pushing herself back hard against Theseus's thrust, feeling the pleasure reach its peak. Finally, the two of them let out a bellow as Theseus's floodgates burst open and filled Maddie with his considerable seed. The world seemed to stop spinning for a moment as their pleasure raced through them. It took a lot of snorting, but they eventually calmed down. Maddie could care less about what her self-esteem issues were at the moment. All she knew was that she wanted more of her Minotaur.
==========
"Wow, sounds like you two had a fun time," said Iowa, one of Maddie's co-workers. While Maddie had gotten her confidence back in spades, she was still rather limited in her ability to earn money. She didn't have enough to go to college, not that there were many colleges that a cow woman could go to. She could try for an online degree, but that still didn't pay for her rent and supplies. Fortunately, there was one easy source of income for cows in Animalia. Pasteurization had progressed quite a bit since the virus was first released. Now cow Animalians could be milked and the milk could be sterilized so that people wouldn't catch the virus. As it turned out, Animalian milk was very nutritious.
But that wasn't Maddie's only source of income. After so many years of self-image issues, Maddie wanted to show off her new body and she found a rather eyebrow-raising way to do that. It didn't really bother her that Theseus was a stripper at the Meat Market. In fact, she found performing there rather exhilarating. Taking a cue from Theseus's name, she called herself 'Princess Ariadne'. Quite often, the two of them performed together, though it wasn't just pole dancing. The Meat Market occasionally showed a bit of theatre, but definitely not the normal kind. What they did was sexualized versions of old myths with the performers as actors. The audiences loved these performances. They often described it like have front row seats at a porno shoot.
There were several Greek myths that were very popular, especially the exploits of Zeus. In those cases, the sexual overtones weren't that much exaggerated from the original tales. For instance, Iowa usually played the role of Io, one of Zeus's lovers that he had to change into a white cow to avoid the wrath of Hera. As can be expected, the role of Zeus changed rather frequently with the various tales. Theseus and Maddie once played out when Zeus abducted Europa in the form of a bull and carried her off to Crete.
"Yes, Theseus is a very good lover and a loving mate," said Maddie as she got her gauzy robes ready which did little to obscure her barely-clothed body underneath.
"I sure wish I had someone that special," said Iowa, "But when in you're in this business, you don't usually find guys who want more than a one-night stand."
"Oh, I don't think the odds are too bad for you," said Maddie, "You might find the man of your dreams."
"As long as his wife doesn't catch me and make a hundred-eye monster guard me," said Iowa jokingly.
Maddie laughed and said, "Well, at least working at the milk farm means we don't have to do this all the time."
"You could work here full-time, you know," said Iowa.
"Hey, I don't want to make Theseus too jealous," said Maddie, "He's the only bull for me."
"I'm happy for you," said Iowa, "You better hurry up. Your cue is soon."
Maddie smiled before she started heading towards the stage. She wouldn't have ever expected her life to be like this before. But this new life gave her a body she could love and people who definitely loved it.