The Herm Bachelor/Bachelorette Auction was delayed quite longer than expected, but not for the reason one would suspect. There weren't any protests over the five single hermaphrodites of Animalia willing to go on a date with the highest bidder. On the contrary, there were actually too many people who were interested. While the hermaphrodite gene was hardly a secret, it hadn't gotten too much publicity until now. And it turned out there was a lot of transsexuals who were wanting to become hermaphrodites in order to at least get close to the gender they should have been born as.
As such, administrations were frankly swamped. And it wasn't simply enough that there were far too many prospective bidders for any of the single herms to handle. There was plenty of demand for Animalian forms who had no herms yet. There were demands for tigers, cobras, donkeys, rats, and rabbits. There were even some demands for herm dragons, despite repeated explanations that the Animalian virus cannot create mythical or hybrid creatures. It required a demonstration of how tyrannosaurus and pterodactyl DNA can't be spliced together to finally convince them that dragons simply weren't possible. Though that may inspire at least one person to become a herm Dinotopian.
With so much demand and so little supply, clearly they needed a different approach than a simple auction. First, there was going to be a raffle, namely to deal with the demand for particular Animalian forms who didn't have any single herms. Additionally, this would also address the Animalia forms who currently had no herm members. This first raffle was particularly for those who need to convert the most. Some transsexuals were a bit too desperate for their own good and had gone less skillful and scrupulous surgeons for reorientation. The results were...displeasing to say the least. Of course, Animalia had a welcome-door policy for people who have been through shoddy surgery. The first group of people who won the raffle could have their say of what type of Animalia they want or don't to become. There was plenty enough to fill out the ranks of auctionees.
With the supply/demand ration a little more evened out, an actual auction could take place. Though this auction had a few twists of its own. The winners of these bids won a date with the lovely herm who up for bid, followed by an intimate conversion in private. But unlike other auctions, tabs were kept on the second and third runners-ups for each bid. After the bid is over, these unsuccessful bidders would be converted into the same type of Animalian they bid for and would be allowed to offer themselves up for bid in the second round of auctions. In the event that the runners-ups had bid for more than one type of Animalian, they would be converted into the type of Animalian they bid the most for. (Or if that was the same amount, they would get to choose what type of Animalian they became.)
Thanks to this, the herm community in Animalia became substantially larger. While the herms might be a tight-knit community, there were now enough that not everyone knew all of the other herms by name. And it was very likely that the herm population would only keep growing if more transsexuals decide to convert. Of course, these new herms had quite a lot to deal with. Not just the usual adjustment to new instincts, wardrobes, and furniture, but being dual-sexed made them twice as likely to get turn on now. Which can cause for some embarrassing instances of unwanted erections at the wrong time.
But there were some interesting stories for the original single herms who had started off the auction. Quite easily the one who had the most bids was Elena. It wasn't simply because of Elena's very attractive body or the sexiness of sharks in general. The previous week had been Shark Week on Discovery Channel, which fueled more interested than usual for sharks. Quite a few people ended up becoming herm bull sharks at the auction. Of course, Elena didn't have to settle down with the one that won hir in the auction. Shi wanted to see which shark had the most potential before becoming true bond-mates. So shi invited the group of sharks (which is called a shiver) to come with hir to Mieni Atoll where shi would be in the Bodybuilders Competition (Women's Division).
The others had less bidders, but it made it a little easier to choose among them. Everix was pleased to have hir own pride. Though considering how lion prides are usually arranged, it was hard to say how one consisting of herms would function. Holly attracted enough people to form a small herd of reindeer. Date was pleasantly surprised that were other people who wanting to become herm tanukis, more than enough to choose a mate from.
Even Rocket was not left out. Yes, a mangrove kilifish wasn't nearly as big and flashy as the others. But there was one woman who was interested in hir. Lee was a young woman who didn't come to the auction because she was transsexual. In fact, she was actually asexual and found it to be a lonely existence. She wanted to become a herm because she wanted to know what sexual attraction felt like. It might not be the most passionate start of a relationship, but it was at least a start for Rocket.
Overall the Herm Bachelor/Bachelorette Auction was considered a success, even it was a hassle to start up in the first place. When asked if he would manage another auction like this, JT replied, "Only if the people who want to bid or be bid on can get themselves more organized. And maybe if the sun rose in the north."