It had taken some time for Polly to adjust to being in high school. Most of it was due to getting used to her giantess body in a school setting. Fortunately, WSA has the facilities and experience to deal with very large Animalians. At least Polly had built up enough experience with her new size to not be constantly tripping or whacking against things.
Usually it was dealing with her fellow students that made Polly feel the most awkward. She wasn't ignorant about sex, her mother having given her 'the talk' when she was showing signs of puberty. She was only starting to feel an attraction to boys in the last two years. Polly was quite aware her second dose had made her a very sexy polar bear woman. Not only did she have humongous breasts and a curvaceous figure, her titanic muscles and larger-than-average height increased her desirability. She drew every boy's attention as she walked by, along with some girls.
It made Polly all the more grateful for the friends she had before she double-dosed. She was particularly grateful that Mattie shared the same homeroom with her. Not all of her friends did, but at least they were able to eat lunch together. They made an odd group sitting together. Obviously Polly towered over the others, particularly Mattie. There was Kammy, a llama Animalian whose long neck made her closer to Polly's height before her second dose. Jun was a bear Animalian also, though being a black bear made her much smaller than Polly even before her second dose.
"So, how has everyone been doing?" asked Polly.
"Well, the season's starting to change," said Kammy, "Which means I'll have to stop wearing summer clothes soon. And since it's past Labor Day, white is no longer an option." If there was one word that suited Kammy, it was 'self-assured'. She made no secret of her ambition to become a fashion model when she got older. Despite her vanity, she was a pretty good friend to Polly in helping her come out of her shell.
"Summer ending isn't all bad," said Jun, "It'll be nice to have some cool weather." Jun and her mom were Chinese-Americans before they met her eventual stepfather not long after the Outbreak. Jun was more grounded and reserved than Mattie or Kammy, mostly because she had to be the responsible better example for her younger half-siblings.
"Well, at least some of us have been able to make better use of summer fashion than others," said Mattie.
"It's not like I entered a fashion show," said Polly.
"The way you went to the beach, you might as well have," said Kammy, pulling up the pictures on her phone.
"If I knew you were gonna look at them all the time, I wouldn't have sent them," said Polly, though she did still have good memories from that trip.
==========
One of the disadvantages to being a polar bear Animalian was how to deal with the summer heat. Not that polar bears couldn't survive outside of winter, but temperatures further south tended to be too much for them. That was why polar bear enclosures in zoos have pools for them to swim in. For Animalians, there is the Ice Haus that was built to cater to Animalians who could only stand so much heat. There were plenty of pools for them to swim as well. And the White family took their vacation to someplace where they could swim a lot. And people on certain parts of the Californian coast have become accustomed to seeing Animalians, particularly orcas.
"Are you guys sure about this?" asked Polly a bit nervously.
"Relax, you don't have to worry about what people think," said Marcy, "And if they say mean things to you, who cares? You're easily three times heavier than they are on average. In muscles, that is."
Polly turned to her adoptive mother and asked, "And you don't have a problem with this?"
"Not as much as I would have expected," said Mari White, "I guess it's because I already went through this with Marci. And I've had some years to adjust to being an Animalian myself. So you really don't need to feel any shame. Though I'm not encouraging you to take your top off."
"What would I do that?" asked Polly.
"Ask the guys who'll be hooting and hollering at you to do it later," said Marcy, "If they work up the nerve."
The three White women did turn some heads when they walked onto the beach. Marcy was wearing a hot pink bikini that really stood out against her white fur. Mari was dressed a bit more conservatively compared to her daughters by wearing a silver one-piece. The keyword being 'compared' as it still showed off her toned figure and a generous amount of cleavage. Polly wore a sky blue bikini and certainly drew more attention than her adoptive sister and mother. Technically, it covered as much surface area as Marci's bikini by ratio, but Polly being taller than either of them, having considerably greater muscle mass than either, and having a pair of breasts that were each bigger than a human woman's head made her impossible to overlook.
Of course, the men of the White family were also there. There were plenty of covert looks at Greg and Chilly, mainly from the other women at the beach. Though Polly noticed both of them tried not to look at Polly for too long. It looked like she wasn't the only one outside of her comfort zone.
==========
"I still can't believe you didn't go to Ao Guang this summer," said Mattie.
"International flights are expensive," said Polly, "And even if the flights are a bit less expensive on Animalia Air, my family doesn't make enough to make big vacations like that."
"Well, your traveling expenses will probably soon be covered, Miss Ambassador," said Kammy.
"I told you I don't know if I've been selected yet," said Polly.
"Why wouldn't they pick you?" asked Kammy, "You'd easily get any bodybuilder/model contract you could want."
"I'd rather see if I make the cut for Animalia Ambassadoria first," said Polly.
"You'd certainly have no problem getting any guys," said Mattie.
"Only if they're within my size range," pointed out Polly.
"There are other polar bears. Or grizzly bears," said Jun, "I hear polar bears and grizzlies interbreed in the wild sometimes."
"I'm not looking for a boyfriend yet," said Polly.
"After your sister's wedding, I'm surprised you aren't," said Jun.
"I still wish I could have been her bridesmaid," said Polly, "But I guess we didn't know enough people to invite to make it a big affair and it was cheaper to be part of the mass wedding."
"Just as well," said Kammy, "You never want to outshine the bride on her wedding day."
"I'm just glad Marcy and Chilly are finally married, along with all the other couples who've been waiting about 8 years," said Polly.
"At least it won't be hard for them to remember the anniversary," said Mattie.