The ‘Taur Next Door

By J.L. Atwood

Part 4: Interlude

The day was dreary; gray clouds skating low overhead, occasionally thinning to let through a patch of dull blue. Rain spat out of the sky now and again, gracing the ground with a fresh coating of damp and melting the remaining snow banks just a tad more. A subtle change had happened in the air overnight, from the blank cold smell of winter to the scent of warmer rain, damp earth, and that sweet smell of green that indicated the tip in balance towards spring. For all the grayness in the air, it held a balmy note to it, making it pleasant even if it was damp. Justyn hiked uphill towards the student union, the bricks cold and wet but no longer frozen under his bare footpads. Spring brought the loosening of the coat, and he’d soon start to shed out his winter coat, but for now he was pleasantly snug; neither too hot nor too cold. Classes were done for the day, it was his night off, and he had an open schedule for the eve save for a bit of studying; all in all, a good day.

“Just!” He swiveled his head towards the familiar voice, as his roommate came bounding (literally) towards him. Simon, a lapin-form, bounded across the wedge-shaped section between the intersecting paths, avoiding mud and wet grass and causing Just to hop to the left to avoid his boisterous arrival.

“Don’t you have to work?” Just wondered at his friend, who was not known for his attendance of said work. Simon shook his head, vigorously.

“Nah, I got the night off… legit!” Simon held up his hands to fend off his friend’s glare and the roll of his eyes. Just got tired of the ‘can I bum five credits’ from Simon, because he was a bit short this check. Mollified, Just shrugged and nodded towards home, Beacon Hall. Simon, full of nervous energy, took a ball out of his pocked and ricocheted it from brick walkway to brick wall and back to his hand. Pock-pock-thwap. Pock-pock-thwap.

“Simon… what are you hiding?” Just inquired, in a too-cautious tone. Simon was /never/ this quiet unless he was up to something. The rabbit just flashed him a too-wide grin.

“Who…me?” The buck inquired with false innocence. Just snagged the ball, and inspected it with a critical eye; it was blue, and standard racquetball issue. With little hesitation, Just popped it in his mouth and chewed, bulging the ball and generally abusing it. Simon squeaked, half-reaching for it before withdrawing his hand. “My ball… you got doggie-drool…” A leveled look from Just’s golden eyes and a turned up grin that exposed the white teeth framing the ball choked off that protest, and Simon just aimed a punch at the wolf’s triceps. “Fine, be that way…” Just’s jaws flexed again, the rubber squeaking loudly, and Simon sighed. “Alright, alright… Maxi’s party is tonight.”

“Tonight!?” Justyn exclaimed, having spat out the ball first, and gave a whoop (which was more like a howl, but the meaning was the same). “I thought she wasn’t gonna be able to…?” Simon shrugged,

“I dunno, but it’s real this time. I know I’m going. How about you?” Just snorted, his jaw dropping in a wide and wolfish grin.

“And miss seeing Maxi all dolled up? That’s a yummy bunny ---- Ow!” This time Simon’s punch was a bit harder. After all, Maxi was his girlfriend… sort of. Just wasn’t sure if they were in an off or on period since it seemed to change without notice. That, and Simon hated the term ‘bunny’. He was a ‘lapine’ or a ‘rabbit’, but never a bunny. Ducking the second swat, Just darted up the steps and inside.

A few hours later, Just kicked the door closed behind him and rounded the partition to his half of the dorm room, grabbing a can of soda out of the squat fridge that doubled as a coffee table. Setting it on his desk, he rubbed the towel over the remaining damp spots on his coat and then let it drop on the bed. His fur was mostly dry, with the damp lingering only in the places the dryers didn’t readily reach, like between the toes of his feet. Taking a moment to work his fur into a more natural lay with his fingers, his thoughts drifted through his heat-relaxed brain. Part of him wanted to curl up on the bed and relax, enjoying this sensation, the other half really wanting to go out tonight. Well, stretching out for a bit wouldn’t hurt… he had plenty of time before he had to be ready. He stretched out on his standard college issue cot, which was surprisingly comfortable and yawned. Maxi was sure to be there tonight, and of course her housemates; there was Juli, another rabbit femme, and Karen, a human. The fourth member of the household he’d met once or twice but he didn’t know his name, another human but male this time, and from what he understood of the situation he preferred the romantic company of men. Juli was in a steady, if long-distance, relationship, and had been for as long as he’d known her. Maxi and Simon were either loving or hating each other, but Karen… he and Karen had one of those odd relationships. When he’d first met Karen, he’d been on the rocks with Sand, and had been more than a little bit obsessed with repairing their relationship. Eventually, he gave up, deeply hurt and wanting nothing to do with anything female. Sand, after all, was supposed to have be it, his love of a lifetime. Sweethearts since their teen years, his mother and father loved her, hers loved him… then college happened. She changed, he changed, and they ceased to be the perfect couple. It took nearly failing a semester to shake him out of the funk he was in, and at least got him out of his mope.

Now, throughout this all, Karen had been there. Somehow she could flirt without irritating him, even in the deepest funk. She was funny, and he loved hanging out with her when he got the chance to, but the combination of schedules made that difficult at best, as well as her periodic relationships. It didn’t help that she was, to him, one of the most attractive humans he’d met; blonde, slender, with green eyes… and she knew how to treat herself so that her scent was pleasant even to his sensitive nose. Bare skin, now that was a wonder. Sleek, smooth, with no fur to mask the delightful curves and dimples. She had a thing for fur – and wolves –and when they did get together, she enjoyed running her hands over his own pelt as much as he loved her sleek skin. Kissing was interesting, too…

The door opened, and Justyn opened his eyes, regarding the gap to the other half room. Shortly Simon appeared, dropping his towel over the footboard of his own bed and reaching for his portable dryer; his dense coat was virtually impossible to get dry with the blowers in the bathroom. Simon glanced towards him, and then did it again, before flashing a wide grin.

“Yeah, I’m thinking the same thing, man.” Just looked confused, so Simon jerked his head lower, nodding. Just looked down, and then scrabbled for his towel. Grumbling at the rabbit, he threw it over his lap, but it did little to hide the tell-tale lump that poked the towel upwards.

“Hey, it’s been a long time.” Just said, trying to re-arrange the towel.

“Not that long. I heard you and Mary Palm going at it last night.” Simon chided, still grinning.

“That’s different!”

“M-m-m-maybe. Want a hand with that?” Simon generously offered, his face still split wide. Simon’s tastes in partners ranged all over the board, and while he preferred females as long-term partners, he wasn’t opposed to male company. He also was fairly outspoken about his views, just as Justyn was about his own of liking females only. Not that it stopped Simon from offering, if only to get a rise out of his roomie, and not the one he already was showing. Justyn replied with a hurled sandal, which Simon ducked, snickering the entire time.

“Asshole.” Just muttered, picking up the towel and tucking it around his hips, for all the good it did. He went to their one, communal, closet and began shifting through his things, looking for anything he could wear tonight. The pickings were pretty slim; most were stained, worn, or already dirty and he didn’t have time for laundry. Simon was almost the same build as him, so he turned ‘round and rooted there, snagging a purple silk shirt, black vest, and black slacks. Then he exited the closet with his trophies. Simon, of course, squawked.

“Hey! What if I wanted to wear that?”

“Did you?”

“Well, no…” Simon replied. He’d already set out his clothes before he showered.

“Alrighty, then.”

“Wolves… You think you’re alpha, don’t cha.”

“No… but you could be lunch.”

“Bite me, dog-boy.” The sandal found itself heading back towards Justyn.

“I thought I just… ow!”

Mel straddled her lover’s back, curling iron in one hand, a can of spray in the other. Deftly she twisted the last curl, and then fixed it in place securely just as her seat shifted, rising up off the floor with a grunt of impatience. Her seat sidled over to the mirror, cocking hir head critically at hir image. Curls framed a golden face marked over with freckled spots and two dark tears, the eyes a clear golden amber shade, and shi nodded finally.

“Works for me.” Of course, shi’d said the same thing an hour ago, before Mel made hir and let her work on hir hair. This time, Mel approved it with a nod. She slid off Wind’s back, giving herself a once-over in the mirror as well. A raccoon, her own gray and buff tones were muted, but a bit of blackening to her mask brought out her green eyes, she thought critically, and the new glasses flattered rather than obscured her face. Having a chakat for a Significant Other had made some drastic changes to her, including her willingness to ‘dress’ up. She smiled to herself, smoothing the tight red of the short skirt and drawing one of the thin little straps a bit further up her shoulder. Who would have thought she would ever own a dress like this, but Windy loved her in it, and demonstrated so enthusiastically when they got home from a date. Especially if she didn’t wear anything underneath it.

As if reading her mind, Wind stepped up behind her and buried hir face in her neck, nuzzling playfully.

“Be glad I’m in female phase, or we’d never make it out the door tonight.” Mel snickered, and rubbed muzzles with hir. In most of hir female phases, Mel could ‘fill in’ creatively, but sometimes the craving for something more… realistic took hold, and Wind had a bad case this time around, and hir enthusiasm was more than a bit infectious. Shi nuzzled again, one hand passing over the front of her hips and then down, reaching the short distance to beneath the hem of her dress and hooking upwards, drawing the dress with it. The chakat caressed her mound wistfully, finally cupping it so that hir middle finger slipped into the narrow crevasse and bumped against Mel’s nubbin. “Why can’t you have a dick?” Shi complained, teasingly, crooking hir finger slightly. Letting her head loll back against hir shoulder, Mel bit her lip a moment before teasing back,

“I don’t hear you complaining most of the time.” This had been a strange semester, and learning how to live with and love a chakat was probably the most mind-opening of all of it. Living with someone who was as much male as female and with needs accordingly had meant that Mel had had to make some adjustments in her life, both physically and in mental outlook. A chakat’s notion of sex and relations for one thing; never had Mel thought she’d have a partner who she’d willingly share, nevermind one that had a roving eye of Wind’s caliber, and she enjoying the fruits of it! Hir definition of ‘partner’ was one whom you lived with and loved, whom you made life decisions with, and while sex was a healthy part of it, sex was not strictly limited to the partnership.

What had started last semester in the pizza parlor had developed quickly; study sessions became study-dates, with real dates following quickly behind. It hadn’t been long before Wind had taken her to bed, which in itself had been an education, since Wind was built much differently than she. When the semesters rolled over, they’d opted to room together.

Wind grunted, and then sighed, dramatically, reluctantly removing hir hand and smoothing the dress back down. Shi gave an odd little shiver, and then lashed hir tail playfully. Stroking hir cheek Mel giggled, “Spring’s sprung, and libidos are running wild.”

“Running ain’t the word.”

The sounds of the party reached their ears long before they saw it, as they trudged up the side street towards the house, opting to walk since it wasn’t that far and they both wanted to leave the option of drinking open. The sounds of several other parties pierced the night, mostly from the distance, but then again it was Friday night. As they hit the light coming off the porch and the wide-open door, Maxi greeted them. Where Simon was a dark brown, Maxi was slate gray, with a patch of black halfway down her back (and a few other places, but Just was not stupid enough to admit that knowledge to Simon’s face).

“Justyn! Simon…” She greeted Simon with an enthusiastic kiss, before pointing Just into the house. “Beer’s in the kitchen, pizza’s in the living room. Help yourself.” Just raised a hand and headed in just as she took Simon down in another kiss. Apparently, it was one of those ‘on’ periods, he thought ruefully. Shouldering his way through the crowd and into the living room, he managed to snag two slices of pizza before it disappeared, and then headed for the kitchen for the promised beer. Jack, the mysterious fourth roommate, was minding the keg, and provided him with a plastic cup of lager. The pizza went down well enough, but a few sips of the beer told Justyn he just wasn’t in the mood for it tonight. Still, he drained the glass, since he didn’t want to waste it, and headed back to the kitchen for a soda.

As he reached the kitchen again, the music took a change, picking up a more steady rhythm, a dance beat, and one he liked at that. Simon and Maxi, who loved dancing above almost all else, were starting up, and he didn’t want to miss the show. Reaching the kitchen, he found Karen instead of Jack. She greeted him with a smile and a hug.

“Justyn, how’re you?”

“Just fine… any soda left?” She nodded and dug a can of the lemon-lime flavor she knew he favored out of the sink-turned-ice chest.

“Voila! Anything else I can do ya for?” She asked, wrinkling her nose at him.

“Well, actually…” He began, leering at her. She snorted, and shoved his shoulder.

“Later, cowboy. I have to take my turn at kitchen duty, then we’ll talk.” As he turned away, she swatted his rear.

“For that, you’d better catch up to me!” He headed to the living room, poking his head through the crowd to spy Maxi and Simon hard at it, with other bouncing along with them and gradually getting into the swing. While he could dance and enjoyed it, he didn’t want to get caught up into it until he’d seen a bit more of whom was here. Heading onto the back porch, he found clusters of folks in the backyard, where it was cooler and a lot less noisy. A sexy ‘coon in red caught his attention, as she leaned on the rail, staring out into the sideyard. He watched her a moment, until she turned and he damn near choked on his soda.

“Mel?!” He squeaked, and apparently loud enough, since she looked up and smiled at him.

“Yup. Heya, Just.” He blinked a few moments, trying to match up his mental image of the slightly frumpy Mel he knew with… this one.

“You look… I mean… wow.”

“I clean up good, huh?” She grinned at him, wrinkling her nose. Just nodded mutely, before recovering himself.

“Great… I mean, how’ve you been?”

“Eh, not bad. Trying to pass Biology 310, and failing miserably.” Justyn winced, remembering that class,

“I still have my notes for that…”

Windchaser wended hir way though the party, greeting those shi knew and smiling at those shi didn’t. Shi was having a wonderful time, meeting friends of friends and putting faces to the names shi’d heard a lot about. The party was in full swing, now, and a few couples hung on each other in the darker corners. Some of them weren’t bothered by public affection, and Wind didn’t mind a bit, save that it made hir a bit lonely. Shi and Mel had come together, but with the idea that should one pair up, the other would give them space, mostly because shi was in full female mode and shi really craved some male companionship. If only Mel were a chakat… Shi shook that off, refusing to be melancholy with music blaring and smiles flashing. Spying hir friend Maxi, shi slipped through the crowds towards her and ‘pounced’, wrapping hir arms around her shoulders, mrowling into her ear,

“Great party!” Maxi jumped and spun, then swatted Wind.

“You scared the hell out of me! Crazy kat!” In answer, Wind leaned forward and kissed hir soundly, which Maxi returned with interest. “But still a great kisser. How’ve you been?” Wind shrugged, idly scratching the small of Maxi’s back as shi did so.

“I’ve been better.”

“Oh? What’s wrong? Not Mel, I hope?” Wind opened hir mouth to answer, only to have someone yank hir tail to the side and press themselves against hir backside. “Simon!”

“Unhand my girlfriend, scoundrel!” Simon laughed, and shi craned hir neck around to spy Maxi’s boyfriend just as he dropped hir tail and clambered astride hir back. Maxi craned around, frowning at something on Simon’s pants. Using the napkin she had around her pizza, Maxi gave a few swipes at a small wet spot on his jeans, and succeeded in smearing it. Looking down himself, he looked a bit perplexed, rubbing at it and then sniffing his fingers. “What the…” Maxi laughed, and then hugged Windchaser a bit closer, stroking a hand over hir breast. Simon gaped.

“I see your problem. C’mon Simon, let’s help Wind; Juli can watch the party for a while.”

“Help hir?”

As Maxi shut the door to her room behind them, Wind glanced about curiously. A bed was shoved against the wall, which Maxi pulled the coverlet off of, as they watched on. Maxi crooked a finger at Wind, and shi meandered over to the blanket, standing in the middle.

“Poor kat…” Maxi giggled, reaching out to lift Windchaser’s simple knitted top off of hir, setting it on the bed. Simon looked a bit between confused and shocked.

“Maxi, uh…”

“Shi’s in heat, Simon. Shi helped me once upon a time with something similar, and now we’re gong to return the favor.”

“We…?” He stuttered, and Maxi grinned, nodding at him. She alternated between shedding her own clothing and setting it on the bed, and nuzzling Wind’s breasts, licking each nipple in turn. Simon stared at her a moment, a bit shocked at this; first, that she’d been with another… guy(?), and the second, that she was going down on another girl(?). The two mental images crashed together, but Wind was most definitely appealing in hir own right. Shedding his shirt, then carefully peeling off his pants for fear of snagging something, he approached the two. Wind’s head turned lazily towards him as he approached, hir eyes half lidded as shi held Maxi close against hir side, Maxi’s mouth quite literally fastened around a nipple and suckling. Hir eyes drank him in, slowly drifting down his body until they reached waist level. Hir eyes widened a little, and the look shi bestowed his erect shaft as shi licked hir lips was nothing short of lust, and sent a shiver down his spine. Shi stepped towards him, Maxi shifting with and looking unconcerned, and reached for him, hir mouth covering his before he had a chance to respond and hir arm snaking around his hips. The kiss shi drew him into made his head swim, his shaft caught against hir foreshoulder and lower chest and nestled into a bed of warm fur. A second hand stroked his backside, and an excited murrring rose from his girlfriend, a glance revealing her eyes avidly watching them both over the curve of the breast.

Wind’s hand moved forward, following the curve of his hip, until shi laid hands on his shaft. Stroking it knowingly just beneath the head, shi soon had him trembling, in that way only someone with a cock hirself should know. Maxi giggled slightly around hir mouthful,

“Shi’s good, isn’t shi?” Simon could only gasp. Letting go of hir breast, Maxi stood up and took his hand, pulling him away from the ‘kat and hir hands. He whimpered slightly, but Maxi quickly took him into hir own hands, stroking him lightly as she led him around behind Wind. Wind crouched, hir rear end rising in the air, while hir upper torso reclined back along the slant of hir spine, watching him with impatient eyes. “And now shi’ll find out why I call you good.” Shi stroked his cock slightly, aiming him just beneath hir tail, guiding him with knowing hands to the wetness that streaked hir hind end. Rubbing his cock into hir slit, she pushed forward on his hips, and he slowly sank into hir. Yelping loudly, he hammered his hips deep as he felt hir surround him, his cock throbbing and pulsing as he emptied himself into hir. Wind looked shocked, then horrified, and then finally disappointed and frustrated. Maxi giggled, and moved back to hir front, nuzzling hir chest.

“I’m… sorry…” Wind began, “I don’t mean to be a sourpuss. It’s just I—Ahhh!” Wind sighed in turn, as instead of finishing and withdrawing, Simon thrust into hir again with greater enthusiasm, taking hir breath away. Maxi giggled once more, licking at a nipple tip again. Wind dropped hir head to lick at Maxi’s brow, yeowling softly with each rocking thrust into hir sex, even as she settled her lips over the nipple and began suckling again, draining hir of milkwater. Simon pressed close to hir again, his shaft shoved deep even as it gave another set of sharp jerks and twitches, his hands fisting into the fur of hir hips. The slow, hard throbs of his cock as it jetted into hir, combined with the delicious torture to hir nipples by Maxi, set hir spiraling into hir first orgasm, pulsing in time with him. Shi panted, hir body still throbbing with the last pulses when shi felt him bend over hir, hands clutching now at hir haunches as his hips slammed forward, more aggressive yet and still stiff as if he hadn’t cum at all. Wind just leaned into Maxi, growling hir delight.

Justyn leaned over the railing, reaching out with his foot to nudge the door to the house closed, so as to kill some of the noise from inside. As the night wore on, the music had become louder, and with it the people. Mel sat in the porch swing, her legs tucked up and shoving lightly at the railing to set herself swinging. It was one of those lazy, hazy nights, where it was just cool enough to wish for a sweater, but not so cool as to make it worth getting up to put one on. Justyn had proved to be rather nice company; Mel admitted that Wind’s dislike of him had rubbed off on her and a brush with the real thing brought home the fact that he wasn’t such a bad guy, after all. The night was wearing on, and she found herself stifling yawns now and then, and feeling the urge to head someplace quieter where she could get out of the sexy, but uncomfortable, dress. Just caught one of the yawns, and offered,

“Tired?  Want me to get you something with some caffeine in it? A coke?” She nodded around her yawn, the raised a hand to stop him.

“Actually, I’m going to wait in line for the bathroom.” She stood, smoothing the skirt down.  He nodded, mutely, and the ducked his head in a wolfish grin, his tail bannering from side to side in that endearing canine way..

“Well then, I guess I’ll see you… when I see you?”

“Sure!” She ducked past the door he held open, and waded through the party, partly looking for the bathroom, partly looking for a certain spotty rump. The bathroom she found, and made use of, but Wind was nowhere to be found. No on either porch, not in the kitchen, not anywhere. Mel had a feeling about what may have happened, so she waylaid Karen with a hand on the arm, and asked if she’d seen Windy leave and if so, with who. To her surprise, Karen just kinda smiled, and shook her head.

“No, Wind’s still here, but, um… shi’s a bit indisposed.” Mel’s eyes grew wide in their mask.  Indisposed was not surprising, but here… at the party? “Last I saw hir, shi was heading upstairs with Maxi and her boyfriend.  You know Simon, right?  Justyn’s roommate?” Mel nodded, a bit surprised. Well, more than a little, at the odd irony of it. Karen patted her shoulder, and dived into the crowd, off to whatever errand she had been heading for in the first place. A hand touched her shoulder, and she almost jumped out of her skin; she spun to find Just, again.

“Whoa!” he yelped, jerking his hand back. “You okay?  You look a bit… off.”

“Yeah… you wanna get out of here?” She asked, suddenly overwhelmed with the urge to get away from the noise.

“Sure, I mean… Simon--“

“--is busy,” Mel interjected.  A bit hastily? She didn’t think so…

“He is?” Justyn looked a bit confused.

“Yes.”

“Well, then, let’s go.  He knows where home is.” Justyn gathered his coat, and hooked his arm in her’s.