Zack and Harry had never seen Naomi so angry. They cringed before her with their tails between their legs.
"I told you to protect the guests, and you didn't do it. You stopped her once, and then you slacked off. You figured it was over and you lost track of the she-bear, am I right?"
"Yes ma'am."
"Yes ma'am."
Cringing wasn't going to be enough, not this time. First Zack and then Harry flipped over on his back and and leaned his head back, exposing their throats. Naomi gently closed her jaws on first one, and then the other's neck, and shook. "Bad dog." she growled "Bad dog." The two males whimpered.
After leaving Naomi's office, the two were quiet for a while, absorbing the humiliation. Then Harry broke the awkward silence. "This job isn't really like anything else, is it?"
"Man, aint that the truth." Zack responded.
++++++
Hannah was impatient. They wanted to run some physical and psychological tests before they released her back into the park,and they had put her in a room that was more designed for humans than anthromorphs. Just being in a room with a ceiling and walls was kind of disorienting, and a hard floor was unpleasant compared to the softness and springiness of dirt. But at least she could have visitors.
"I'm so glad you're OK." Jackie began. "I almost lost it out there."
"Yes, it's amazing what they can do here." Hannah answered. "They give me some magazines and internet access, though, so I can catch up with what's going on in the world since I came here. The newshounds don't have quite as much information. It was weird--for a second I thought I had forgotten how to read."
Jackie and Keith laughed nervously. How disconnected from the human world would they get if they made their lives in the park?
Hannah continued. "I need to ask you something. Could you guys take over the support group while I'm in here?"
Jackie and Keith exchanged glances. "Sure." Jackie replied. She hadn't been a regular for a while, but she thought she knew enough about it to fill in for a day or two.
++++++
Of all the things John had never thought he would be, "wedding planner" was close to the top of the list. But he was quickly discovering that trying to create a sense of occasion without buildings, music or cooking presented a number of interesting challenges.
"OK, I'm thinking a bed of flowers for the bridal party to proceed on, and pine branches for the groom's. We can put the father on this tree stump." Dealing with the diminutive raccoon-priest in relation to the deermorphs was a problem. Another problem was the fact that Leticia wanted to invite some of the predator morphs she knew from the TG support group. John breathed a tiny sigh of relief that none of them were bearmorphs. "We can put the predator guests on the hill overlooking the scene--fortunately, it's usually downwind, so their scent won't disturb the other guests."
"OK" said Lateisha, who had started with suggestions for Leticia and her bridesmaids's hair and become John's unofficial assistant. "So bring the bride through those trees and then down the path here?"
The two continued to plot and plan for Leticia and Jeremy's special day.