Layla had adapted quite well to Animalia and loved the way things had changed for her. Much of her past life had involved promoting goods and services, that were often associated with many of the sorts of things that Layla had never wanted for herself. She didn't want to be the typical Midwestern wife or homemaker, but many of the jobs that she'd got often had her advertising the sorts of products that would often fit that role. Things from appliances to clothing... all things that Layla had promoted online, and it had allowed her to make a decent living and have a decent presence on social media, where she also had to rationalize that even if she didn't live that lifestyle, there would be those that did live it and liked it. It'd thus make sense to give them some semblance of a voice. She never expected to make friends in it, and particularly the sorts of friends that she would ever meet in person.
But she ultimately did make those sorts of friends over the years, and friends that surprisingly continued to follow her after she became a Cheetah Animalian, and even after some of her own efforts at self-promotion that had been put out and, thankfully, behind age restricted paywalls. There were things that Layla did put out that were for the general public and reasonably safe for all, and Layla figured it was some of those posts that actually had old friends coming to visit, but she wasn't about to say no to having friends come to visit. It assured her that she did have lasting friendships, and friendships that she hadn't expected, but still loved. That then kept her active as she moved about her apartment, making sure things were dust free and things would be comfortable. She kept at it until she could hear some conversation outside her door and then a series of knocks on it.
"They're here," Layla said to herself with a small smile and then moved to the door.
She opened it to find a small collection of women, who in many ways resembled the "old" her. They didn't look like her in the sense that there would have been mistaken cases of a familial relationship or that sort of thing, but they did carry the sort of " Midwestern mom type" look. And a few of them fit that sort of role fairly well. Mary was almost as tall as Layla was now and had come from a farming family in Iowa, and she stood there in a pair of jeans and a black sweatshirt with a gold Hawkeye on the chest. Louise was a bit shorter and looked a little bit nervous as she looked between Mary and Layla with her fingers spinning around the leather straps on her purse. The last was Joy, who looked calm, but based on the frayed ends of her sweater's sleeves, Layla figured she was also far more nervous than she let on.
"Layla... is that, you?" Louise asked.
"It's the new me after my conversion... a lot of that could go on an adult only page... but I filled out quite nicely, don't you think?" Layla answered as she twirled in her doorway, showing of her curves, the tank top and the shorts she was wearing, "Quite a lot for a Cheetah, don't you think?"
"Or quite little," Joy commented, noting on how tight the shorts clung to Layla's hips and how little of Layla's chest the tank top actually covered.
Layla only stepped back to let them in, as it would be rude to let things just go in the doorway, "Oh... Cheetahs may not be the most typical cold weather animals... but the building is heated. I've been hustling to get things ready, and since I can't really sweat anymore... or it doesn't work with all this fluffy yellow-orange fur... I didn't want to overheat. Come in. Come in."
The three women came in and looked around. The living room that they'd entered was relatively decent sized, though it also opened toward a visible dining area with the kitchen on the other side of the wall. They could also note the bright light of day coming in from a window on the opposite wall, where Layla had hung a fairly nice-looking set of curtains.
"It's great to have old friends come to visit," Layla said as she shut the door, "I mean... I like all the changes that I've gone through. And there are a lot of things that are very fun... But it is nice to see familiar faces."
"It's good to see you again, too," Mary commented, "and you're looking good."
"And I feel good... and young again, that's the best part!" Layla smiled, "being an Animalian... it's brought in new energy... It's invigorating. And there's a lot of that that is worth selling."
"But... you're still doing some of the things that you were doing when we first met, right?" Louise wondered.
"Marketing baked goods and things like that?" Layla asked and then watched Louise nod as they all sat down in some of the chairs that Layla had set out. "I can handle some of that stuff... And I've sent offers to provide for some help when Animalia has their big Thanksgiving dinner and all that in November. Though, as a Cheetah... a lot of my diet is now pretty much meat based. There might be some garnishes that my stomach can handle, but not a lot more than that. I'm honestly still working out on what works and what doesn't for me now. I might put out something on good beef or pork recipes that can be "baked" though..."
"And you're happy with all this?" Joy wondered, "there isn't anything... bad?"
"I wouldn't say there's anything bad," Layla answered, "stuff that's new and intense... but not bad." She paused for a moment to note a look of interest on Mary's face, but she didn't move to draw attention to it. For while a lot of people liked Animalia and Animalians, some of that might just be certain sorts of interests that played to the higher libidos that Animalians had, and in her case, one that seemed to burn even harder with her youth restored. "And there are a fair number of things that are fun and interesting that I'm looking forward to. When the summer comes... I'm hoping to see if I can get up to sixty miles an hour running... race a car for a hundred yards."
"I think they already did the running for speed and endurance comparison between Humans and Animalians," Mary commented, "from some of the schedule for the IAC that they post online... I think they're going to do something related to agility. I'm not sure if that will be gymnastics, like a balance beam or the rings, or an insane obstacle course... Or if they'd show the Bird, Bat, or Pterosaur Animalians flying..."
"Which no Human could do without a helicopter or a plane," Louise nodded.
"I wasn't talking about racing people, I was talking about racing a car," Layla said playfully, "you know... for a short distance. Since Cheetahs, like all cats, are not endurance runners. It might draw a male Cheetah Animalian's attention."
"You'd be wanting a man!?" Joy gasped.
"Don't you want your husband from time to time?" Layla teased, knowing that Joy was married to a fairly bookish man named Vince.
"Well... yes, but..." Joy blushed, "that's different. You said a lot that weren't looking to be controlled by a man."
"And I still don't want to be," Layla answered, "but that doesn't mean that I can't want companionship and love, either. And to a degree, I feel that I lost out on a lot of that before. With my youth back, I've got a shot at another chance, and I'd want to make sure that any future "Mr. Layla" is able to keep up with the new me."
"Well... so long as you're happy," Mary commented, "and I must say... I do like the energy."
"In a way... it's like being reborn," Layla commented with a smile as they settled into some friendly gossip that felt like old times, even if in a new way.