Naomi walked to the nearest poster. "Well, on the bright side..." she said, pulling the poster down from the wall, and gleefully tearing it in half.
"What better way to celebrate your upgrade could I ask for?"
++++++++++
Harry was still fuming over all this "Lone Wolf" nonsense as he waited for the management to send down their liaison. Most of the park's staff
had abandoned humanity shortly after the first wave of departures had tested the waters, but every time they sent someone down to speak with
the huskies, it was always a human. He couldn't entirely fault them for relying on a little subconscious canine loyalty when Naomi was running
the show, hers being a rather... forceful personality as it were. Now that he was the one attending these meetings though, the premise
bothered him a fair bit. As the door across from him opened, he was also briefly shocked at just how strange they looked. Bald all over, like
some horrible skin disease had made all their hair fall out.
"What's this about granting 'VIP' status to to a bunch of rowdy punks? You realize we were already short staffed before Naomi left. The last
thing we need is some sort of boneheaded 'special exemption' policy getting introduced the same day you flood the park with a bunch of self-
entitled jackasses."
"The fact that we are understaffed," said the human, with a look that stole enough of the fire from Harry's indignation for him to take a seat, "is
the reason we are being so accommodating to this group."
"So what? You figure they're going to be self-policing? Because I have news for you..."
"No. I figure the donation they made to the company will keep this park fully funded for quite some time. This place runs up quite a few
expenses you realize. Apart from paying the staff, maintaining the grounds, and keeping the guests well-fed, there's a host of other concerns.
Developing new species templates, working out all the little problems they introduce. Training the medical staff to deal with all the subtle
variations and potential drug interactions. There's a whole team of lawyers on the payroll now, just to ensure basic rights for those who leave
the park in their new forms, not to mention all the lobbyists needed to keep the government from shutting the whole place down. This is still
very much a growing company, and we can't afford to pass on this kind of generous offer."
Harry sighed. Root of all evil indeed. "OK... and just what sort of 'special treatment' are they asking for in return? Bringing beer kegs and hot
wings out into the forest for them?"
"No, nothing that would damage the park's aesthetics. Apparently, they plan to hold some sort of formalized tournament, with 'official
recognition of the titles prizes and punishments' for those involved, or some such nonsense. It's all about some sort of fraternity or country
club or some such. Just inform your subordinates they're not to interfere with whatever silly little hazing rituals they have unless there's some
form of life-threatening injury, make sure a medical team is on standby when they hold their little 'tournament,' and afterwards we are to
'respect the new chain of command' they set up for themselves. Past that, just try and show a little more lenience with any minor infractions.
From the sound of it, they're planning to make this a yearly tradition, and we could all benefit from that sort of dependable revenue."
"This is a huge mistake. It may be before your time, but the last time something like this went on, someone was nearly killed, and we do not
have the staffing to manage this sort of thing on top of regular patrols. I don't know if you heard, but-"
"Again." The forceful tone snapped Harry to attention. "Hiring additional security staff is the top priority for allocating these new funds.
Openings have already been posted, and with any luck you'll be seeing a sizable batch of new trainees by the end of the week. Now unless
there were any further concerns, I suggest you pass this information along to the others, get some sleep, and do your best to make sure our
latest guests have an enjoyable stay."
Harry had quite a number of 'further concerns' in mind, but new better to voice them when clearly the matter was not up for debate. Instead, he
simply said "I may know a person or two who would be willing to come back on board."
++++++++++
Terry was having a great deal of difficulty ignoring the nearby sounds of pleasure. Why had her ears chosen now of all times to provide a
properly heightened state of awareness? Fighting down the urges they were inspiring was proving a little tricky as well. Even as she stammered
out, "I'd never- I mean, I'm already with someone, so I wouldn't..." she felt a rising urge to just leap into Tim's arms right this minute, tackle
him to the ground and- She shook the image from her head as best she could, trying to focus on something else. Katerina had just said
nobody ever chose to stay as a rabbit, hadn't she? Maybe she did have this place all wrong. Maybe it really was just the people with some weird
repressed desires who decided to stay this way. All the foreign urges were definitely there but...
Continuing down the tunnel, she caught a quick glimpse of a pair of lovers who had apparently been too caught in the moment to make it all
the way around the corner and out of sight, interrupting her train of thought until they were out of sight.
She'd definitely gathered from those at the support group that sexual preference changed with one's sex, so if she was irresistibly attracted to
the men around here, that was just affirming her normal attraction to women, right? So by extension if she was really worried about people
doubting her masculinity when she went back to normal... and hadn't she and Wendy joked once about cheating? Terry would be fine if she
brought home another girl, and Wendy wouldn't object to catching Terry with a guy... especially one built like Tim, with that chest, and those
arms...
"We all do a bit of staring when we first arrive, but the novelty wears off soon enough. Anyway, as you can see, you can get a bit of privacy in
these side rooms, but most of the colony spends their nights in the main den. You'll find as a rabbit you sleep easier with company. It's
understandable if you'd prefer not to on your first night, so just grab any unoccupied niche you see, but once being cold and lonely outweighs
that shyness, just pile on in with everyone else... we try to keep a supply of berries to one side of the den as well... from the look of things you
really should take advantage."
Terry nodded absently, too distracted by her concerns and rationalizations to fully pay attention. "I think I'll do that. The private room, I mean.
It's... been a long day." Presumably, that couple up the tunnel wasn't a couple on the outside. They were just helpless against these feelings,
and giving into instinct. Just like when she'd been chased before. She was feeling a lot more calm now though than she had been yesterday, so
clearly that sort of instinct was just a passing thing...
"Good night then," said Katerina, giving her an affectionate hug as was apparently rabbit custom. "Good night," offered Tim, also with a hug...
which still felt as good as the earlier one. Terry certainly had more willpower than the couple up the tunnel. This sort of extreme pressure
scenario was basically her job, and she had a distinct advantage from her differing motives. They really wanted to be rabbits, and she'd taken
this form specifically because she knew she'd never be comfortable like this. So obviously if they had the resolve to leave, there was no way
Terry would have a problem returning to normal, even if she tackled this whole rabbit thing with that much enthusiasm. Speaking of tackling,
she suddenly realized she was still embracing Tim.
Not wanting to embarrass herself again, she pulled away nice and slow, letting her arms follow his as she backed away. Clearly, she'd come
through all this OK. She'd just hang out in this little cave with a bunch of friendly hippie types for two months, taking it easy. She let go of
Tim's fingertips, noting she'd accidentally tugged him forward a bit as she'd been backing towards the niche. She continued to look up at him
as she sat down, lowering her gaze when she realized she hadn't broken eye contact, only to find herself at eye level with an impressive
reminder that everyone here was constantly naked. Strange really that she'd divorced herself from the nudity concept before and was suddenly
aware of it again.
Tim laid down next to her, smiling and rubbing a hand down the back of her neck to her shoulder. There was something to be said for quelling
curiosity wasn't there? See an ad for a TV show and you find yourself wondering if it's any good for a month, but usually if you just sit down
and watch an episode you see you aren't missing anything and never think about it again...
++++++++++
As James was escorted towards the exit of the park, he was still reeling from the shock of how that second husky had attacked him. How dare
he! Obviously, he'd never have bit down, that would have had the whole park shut down overnight but... to take advantage of his instincts like
that! Treating him like some animal! How dare anyone do that to him!
Still failing to appreciate the poetic justice, James sat down at his computer the instant he was home. There was no way that paper he'd been
forced to sign would hold up in court, and the Park's website likely had a staff section where he could find the name of whoever was heading
up the security team. He was going to regret...
James stared at the screen, chuckling to himself. Banned from attending the park as a guest, was it? This would be a fun little loophole... and
he would not mind a change in career at all. It would be the perfect thing really. He'd get to stay as long as he liked, run down people who
actually deserved it. Maybe even get to rough them up a bit! He'd need to apply under a fake name obviously, change his appearance a bit, but
he could manage. Might be harder once inside, he'd probably look similar enough as a husky as he looked to a wolf, but there had been an
option or two to make some significant changes. He'd definitely go unrecognized if he slipped in as a woman, but that would be taking things a
bit far. Still, it'd definitely be a way under the radar. Establish himself, earn everyone's trust. Once they got to know the real him, he could
switch back. They'd realize they had him all wrong by then, especially if he wasn't holding any grudges.
Immediately, he started looking into how he could fool them long enough to get back in.