The summer then progressed fairly well for Slick after his arrival in Animalia. Staying at the BARA House, with largely only homosexual Animalian men for company was a bit odd, though, much of that still related to the fact that as an uplifted Burmese Python, those sorts of things were an unknown to him. However, no one made any moves on him, and they were all respectful to him. Pete Buller had also been quite helpful with certain things that were things that Slick did have to work on through the summer. The biggest thing was obviously mastering speech with his tongue. The Bull Animalian, obviously, never had to deal with the hissing issue that new Snake Animalians had, but the conversation that was there was enough for Slick to practice his pronunciation and that counted for a lot.
"I would like to thank you," Slick said to Pete one afternoon as they moved along Animalia's streets, "being able to talk with you hass helped with some of the hisssssing."
"Yeah, I have been noting the less hissing with the letter "s," good for you," Pete gave a smile.
"Practice makess perfect," Slick answered, feeling a bit more confident as now, he was managing to get through these words without dragging out the "s" for a long exchange. "Maybe... maybe it will help me win over Angie."
"You got it bad for her, don't you?" Pete laughed.
She iss my hero," Slick answered as he looked down.
"Well... as I've said be honest and respectful and listen to what she wants," Pete reminded him, "and you should be able to earn a shot. Some things may not work out... though from some of the stories I've heard with Animalians, it's more that those relations are rather casual to begin with."
"Casual, like not wearing fanccy clothes?" Slick asked.
"No... more that the couples hooked up for things that might only be physical in terms of attraction, and they accept that," Pete answered, "you're looking for something more than that, right."
"There are some thingss that I will never understand," Slick only shook his head, "so where are we going?"
"The Claw Colisseum," Pete answered, "some of the others have noted your curiosity at the weight sets we got at the house..."
"But I've noted no Human that does a lot of those things in their work and never with mundane animals that I can remember," Slick managed.
Pete nodded, "yeah... Working out can be a bit different, but it does help build muscle. It can help you keep in shape and stay healthy. As you'll want to participate in the Year of the Snake competition next year, right?"
They crossed one of the roads and Slick managed to listen to the clicking of Pete's hooves on the pavement. That was another thing he liked, having actual ears. Of course, they weren't visible on him, and it was mostly a scale on the upper back of his head that may have looked like his other scales but was actually a bit thinner to act as a sort of sensor that would pick up the sounds of things said. Sometimes he wondered if becoming an Animalian had given Slick more lizard-like traits, as mundane snakes really didn't have ears in the way that other animals did.
"The Year of the Ssnake?" Slick wondered.
"Chinese New Year," Peter answered, "often has animals representing specific years. This year is the Year of the Dragon. Two Pterodactyl Dinotopians won it. Next year will be the Year of the Snake."
"Another strange thing," Slick commented.
"But I would like to stay in shape," Slick nodded, "and hopefully not get hit by carsss."
Pete nodded, "and the instructors at the gym will be better equipped to show you how to do the lifts and maybe even make adjustments for your tail with certain machines and so on. It'd be more than what we have at the house and you'd learn more than what I or any of the others could do beyond the basics. From there, if you'd rather work out at the house, you could sign in with the schedule and so on and in knowing what to do, the only thing you might need is a spotter, particularly if you plan on pushing yourself."
Slick nodded...
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The workout sessions at the gym did help and that did allow Slick to learn some other lessons, though it mostly came more with more about some of the various other facts of life. There were jobs and expectations that were there to be met. Slick did understand that and part of his acclimation included some studies in what would count as a acclimation program that would let him earn a GED, since he was mature at the time of his uplifting. Despite the reason for said uplifting being hit by a car on a swamped road in Florida, Slick actually found himself curious about the vehicles and their parts, and over time that did come up in conversation when Angie came to visit him at the Bara House.
"Your "s" and "c" are getting better," Angie said to him while Slick worked on some curls in the gym that was part of the BARA House's facilities.
"I would like to talk with and learn more about you without constantly sounding like a love struck snake," Slick answered, "just lovestruck..."
Angie found herself giggling at that a bit. She was pretty easily aware of Slick's attraction to her, and which made sense. They were Burmese Python Animalians, and unlike the mundane animal that really didn't have emotional attachments, Animalians had them and had them firmly. She'd noted his frustration with hissing words and did her best to let him practice and learn. Particularly as some of it might also let him gain interest in some career fields that could come up when she visited. It also let Angie mask some of her own physical attraction, as Slick was fit when he was uplifted, but she could note the sell in his shoulders and biceps. It left a part of her mind drifting to the equipment held within his tail.
"Lovestruck is fine," Angie giggled, "particularly when you've been honest. That's actually counted for more to me than most men I've met in the past. Some when I was Human just saw me as a help for certain issues... and after becoming an Animalian... well... there have been some sexual jokes that I'd not dwell on."
"Like those law enforcement guys in Florida that wanted us to... masturbate for them?" Slick asked.
"In a way... but THEY at least had a practical reason that would make sense," Angie answered as she watched Slick curl the barbell again, "some of these advances from others is more... lustful... and lacks your honesty."
"I wouldn't want jusst lusst," Slick informed her as he set the barbell down.
“I know,” Angie answered, mentally noting that some of her own thoughts had a bit of lust in them as she looked to Slick’s biceps and chest muscles, which were bulging the tank top he was wearing, “but that’s all part of the honesty that I do like and respect with you. So… DON’T worry. I’m a tough girl, I can handle some guy’s voicing interest that isn’t wanted. Why don’t you tell me more about your classes? You said on the phone that you had some curiosity in some mechanical things.”
"Ssome of it is jusst curiossity on my part," Slick answered, "your machines... planes, cars, motorccyless, and everything else moves fast in ways that I'd never match on my own. Of coursse, getting hit by them hurts, and I was thinking that ass I learn more... maybe I could work in of the auto shopss in Lyre. Fix things so that they don't hurt things they strike asss much."
"That could be fun... Tyler Luwrie runs one of the bigger ones in Lyre, so he could have a spot open when you graduate with your GED, and that was all BEFORE he became a Dinotopian," Angie nodded, "though, I'd note that what you'd be doing wouldn't be so much on improving the safety of the vehicles or improving the general danger a vehicle may pose to animals or pedestrians. A lot of that can't be changed, not without major engineering changes on the makeup, engine design, and a lot of other things that would ultimately require more than a GED."
"It would?" Slick wondered.
"Yeah... mechanical engineering, science... and likely a lot of chemistry and physics, and things like that," Angie nodded, "that'd be stuff you'd need an apprenticeship for, at least, and probably a college degree would be the more practical that most employers would be looking for."
"Would you like that if I did that?" Slick asked as he looked to her.
"That would be more a question on what YOU want, Slick," Angie told him, "I know you want to impress me and win me over... but you being you is doing a fair bit of that..." Angie then silently thought to herself, "and the working out is helping with some my own thoughts..." and then continued aloud, "so, most of the rest is more on what you want for yourself. College could provide the way to learn more and gain the academic knowledge in the fields you're looking for... and thus could create the window of opportunity for a higher paying job in the future. Though it would also mean its own set of work. There is no college in Lyre or Animalia, and some colleges are better at some subjects than others and all can be expensive."
"Exxpenssive," Slick sighed, "well... I like the idea... though... maybe work at the bottom to start with and learn more on how the parts work and move from there. That could work, right?"
"It can be," Angie answered, "and know that I'll be there to support you as a friend... and... perhaps..."
"Ssomething more?" Slick asked with a smile.
"Perhaps," Angie found herself smiling back, and her eyes focused on Slick's muscles.