The Circular Object Mark I and II story, characters and concept copyright \xA9 Gregg G Guydish 2001, 2002 et al except the following: Zig Zag is copyright \xA9 Max Black Rabbit. Wanda Vixen is Copyright \xA9 Chris Yost. James Sheppard, and Rhonda Badger are Copyright \xA9 James Bruner. Marvin Badger is Copyright \xA9 James Bruner after a description by Chris Yost. Sabrina Mustelidae is Copyright \xA9 Eric W. Schwartz. Everything contained in this document \xA9 Gregg G Guydish, all rights reserved.
The Circular Object MARK II
\xA9 2001, 2002 Gregg G Guydish
Epilogue
The Unbreakable Promise
Trust is earned, not given, and so very easily betrayed.
The not too distant future…
Towards the end of their production meeting, Zig reclined in her chair and tossed her notes onto the desk in front of her as Marvin lowered his own paperwork. "So, how's Operation Pestilence coming?" She asks. Marvin knows the code word refers to her private mission of eliminating copies of Indecency 666 from the market. He tilts his head back as he thinks. "Well, our returns have been pretty good so far. The dummy companies we set up to seek out and purchase them back have worked pretty well." Zig nods her head. That was one of Marvin's good ideas. Instead of ZZ Studios inquiring about the movies, and subsequently drawing unwanted attention to itself, he suggested setting up some false businesses that would acquire the copies back to the studio, without the studio actually being involved publicly. "We found a lot of stores that had back stock of the things laying around, forgotten in their inventory." He looks at her. "I can't believe it, but the negative reviews we got on the thing actually ended up helping us." She gives him a small smile. "I guess it's a good thing that it was universally panned." Marvin nods his head in agreement. "That, and our record keeping. You always did run a tight ship, Zig, those records were invaluable." "Always keep track of your product, you don't want anything coming back and biting you in the ass because you threw out the receipt." Marvin chuckles, then turns serious. "I think we're getting close to the end of the rainbow, Zig. What copies of that movie that are left are in the paws of the public at large, and we can't control private use or transactions. We've kept a tight lid on this thing, but sooner or later someone is bound to notice that they can't get the movie for love nor money, and then its gonna shoot straight to collectors item status." He shrugs, there's really nothing they can do about it and he knows it. "Not that I've let that stop us. I have Clarence checking Ebay and other online auction houses and sale sites scouting for the thing, money no object." He gives a snort. "Probably the biggest budget he'll ever have control over in his life." Zig smiles broadly and chuckles appreciatively. "Thanks, Marvin, I see you've got the situation well in paw." "Just doing my job, Zig. The numbers from the production report give us a recovery percentage near the ninety-nine mark." He shakes his head. "But we'll never live down that last one percent."
"All the same, we've done a good thing, Marvin. Taking that movie out of the paws of impressionable kids is the best thing we could do for society." She shakes her head before looking at him again. "You were right, it was a bad idea." He shrugs again. "Don't sweat it, Zig, everyone makes mistakes. What matters is that we're fixing it. Not only that we are fixing it, but that we can fix it. If we didn't release a hit at the same time we released that dog it would have spelt disaster for the studio." Zig nods sagely. They came pretty close to bailing then. Marvin continues. "Fortunately, the praise for the one outweighed the bad publicity for the other, and Indecency slipped into the shadows, forgotten." Zig gives a mighty exhale, then sits up straighter in her seat, Marvin taking the cue that that discussion was over. She reaches out her paws and straightens the papers on her desk. "Let me know if we run into any more scheduling conflicts on the Pi\xF1on Project, and keep an eye on the Blue Horizon's budget, you know how those space yarns draw on resources." "Will do, boss." They both stand as their meeting came to an end. "By the way," she says as they head toward the door and out into the hall, walking back to his office. "I'll be leaving early today." "Got a hot date tonight?" He kids her, he knows she and James have been living together for the last month now. She grins for his wit. "No, gotta stop at the bank before they close. You know bankers hours." She gives a little grimace for the inconvenience bankers seem to hold over the world. They part company at his office, he entering, and she continuing on to the lobby to check her messages with her actress come receptionist.
~
"So," Wanda said to Sabrina as she speared another leaf of lettuce on the tines of her fork, "how are things going with that boyfriend of yours?" Sabrina takes a sip of juice before answering, the two femmes chatting over lunch in the forward breakroom at ZZ Studios, Amber quiet between them. "You mean, fiancé." She says with a smirk, waving her paw about pointedly. Wanda throws her head back theatrically, lifting a paw and resting the back of it against her forehead. "Ah, the fallacy of youth! Will these children never learn? Limiting themselves to just one fur?" She straightens and points her utensil at her. "You'll live to regret it, girl!" Sabrina sticks her tongue out at the vixen. "Not on a bet!" She affects a prim pose then. "You're just jealous!" She lids her eyes and lifts her muzzle snobbishly, looking disdainfully away from the table, and her company. "JEALOUS!" Wanda drops her fork and spreads her arms wide, the few other furs in the room looking over at her. "Honey, I'm the queen of all I survey. I got males and females both queuing up just at the slightest chance to see me!" She snaps her paw and waves it imperiously. "Girl, I have got it going on!" Sabrina looks back over at her and picks up her sandwich demurely. "Yeah, but who have you got to hold you at the end of the day?"
Wanda falters for an instant. Only long enough for the people who really know her to notice. Her recovery is instantaneous and not detectable to anyone not in the know. She touches Amber's arm suggestively. "Why, any one I want." She gives the pandas arm a gentle squeeze, turning to her. "Ain't that right, babe?"
Amber blinks a few times before lifting her head and looking confusedly back at the vixen. "I'm sorry, what?" Wanda's eyebrows knit in concern and her touch becomes instantly softer, Sabrina pausing for her new friends distracted air. "You okay, honey?" Wanda asks, tilting her head to the side. "You look like someone just ran over your cat." She shakes her head, leaning in close. "And I know you don't have a cat." Amber looks back at her friend, and occasional lover, and bites her lip, her eyes, wounded. She looks down at the table between them, and, just when it seemed like she wasn't going to respond, suddenly pulled a folded piece of paper from a pocket and held it out, speaking softly. "This was in my box this morning."
Wanda snatched the paper and opened it brusquely, Sabrina trying to lean over Wanda's shoulder as she read what was, apparently, a printout of an email, while Amber simply stared hard at the table.
~
"Any news, Mia?" Zig asked, smiling at the other lovely young red panda in her employ. Mia looks up at her imposing boss and smiles in return. "Just a few calls, nothing urgent." She says, pawing over the slips of paper. "Oh, and, Mike's waiting for you, if you have a moment." And she gestures over to the waiting area. Zig turns around and immediately recognizes the big black feline. "Mike," her smile genuine, "I haven't seen you in a long time." Mike grins and waves as he stands up. "Hi." Zig motions with her head. "C'mon back, we'll talk in the office."
~
Wanda's brows furrowed ever deeper as she read. At the end of the terse note, she lifted her head and looked at her close friend, anger sharp on her tongue. "THAT BASTARD!" Amber seemed to shrink in on herself at Wanda's exclamation, and the vixen once again drew every eye in the room to her, while Sabrina's own brows knitted together. "You're not going to let him get away with that, are you?" Wanda asked, seething. Amber shrugged halfheartedly. "What can I do?" She asked in a small voice. Sabrina tried to reach for the email just as Wanda erupted again. "Well for starters, you can rip his balls off and shove them down his…" "WANDA!" Amber shouted, her head snapping up instantly to cut off what she was certain to have been a ribald remark at best. The vixen bites her tongue and thrusts the letter at Sabrina, the skunkette reeling suddenly, but taking the proffered parchment, her eyes widening significantly as she reads the short e-note.
Sabrina's jaw fell open as she read, and, when she was done, she looked up not at Wanda, but at Amber. "But, how did he know?" Amber shifted her attention from the vixen to the skunk and embarrassment played across her features. She scowled softly as Wanda folded her arms across her chest and glared at her. "I told him. A few months ago." She admitted, Sabrina lowering the paper and glancing between her two friends. She leans towards Amber. "And how did you know?" She asks. Amber glanced back at the table before shrugging softly. "Wanda told me." Sabrina looked at Wanda and the vixen spoke low and surly. "Rhonda told me, and she got it from Marvin." Sabrina picked the letter back up and quickly read through it again before crumpling it back into her lap, and glanced between the two of them. "What are we going to do about it?"
~
Zig tosses her messages onto her desk by the phone before motioning him to sit, he doing so only after he sees her begin to do so. "So what's on your mind, Mike?" She asks pleasantly. He looks over at her. "Well, boss, I was wondering if your offer still stood." She stared blankly at him and he hurriedly continues. "The one about offering me a full time position if I ever asked. Well, I'm asking. Got any openings?" Her mind recalls the events that led her to telling him that he would always be welcome in her fold, and why. "I thought your girlfriend wouldn't let you do that?" He shakes his head. "We broke up." She lowers her head and looks down her snout at him. "Not over the job, I hope." He smiles easily. "No, before then. Actually," he leans back in his chair, feeling comfortable around her for some reason "I think it started to fall apart when I mentioned your offer for me to model. After that, things just sort of went downhill. You were right, Zig, she was pretty closed minded about sex." Zig purses her lips, she certainly wouldn't want anyone's job here to have a bad effect on their private lives. Still, she thinks, if they're split, they're split, all water under the bridge now.
"So, what made you decide to drop the freelance circuit and seek full time employ?" She wants to know. "My car broke down." Was his puzzling reply. He continued before Zig could say anything about the apparent non sequitur. "She's been complaining for months now, and she finally gave up the ghost. I want to pull the engine and replace it, but in the meantime, it leaves me with two problems. First of all, I don't have any transportation to the various different clients I contract out with, and second of all, the uneven money flow from freelancing isn't going to help me realize my goals. If I can get a steady job at one place, I can just use public transportation until I get her running again." He pauses for a moment. "I remember what you said, and I came to you first. I figure you're my best shot."
Zig nods her head, following his logic easily. But that leaves her with a problem, and she says so. "Mike, I'm flattered that you came here first. And I wasn't kidding about wanting you to work here full time." "But." He interjects, feeling a cold knot form in his gut. Zig takes a breath before continuing. "I'll be honest with you. I don't have enough work to justify three full time editors." "Zig, I'll take what I can get, things are gonna get tight when the money runs out, I know that." Zig evaluates that remark, and decides to accept it. She knows what it's like when the money runs out and things get tight. "I always keep my word, Mike, I promised you the job, so you'll have the job." She extends her paw. "Welcome to ZZ Studios." His gaze moves from her face to her paw, then back to her face and he replies without taking the proffered appendage, his mind screaming at him for not taking the offered position.
"Zig, I don't want to be a burden on your company. If you don't need another editor, then there's no reason to hire one. I understand economics, you won't hurt my feelings by turning me down." She slowly withdraws her paw, an odd expression crossing her features. "Not that I'm ungrateful or anything, but I'm not looking for a mercy job." Zig regards him for a few moments before speaking. Another male with integrity, she thinks, all of a sudden they're coming up in spades around her. "I can respect that." She thinks a few moments more. "Mike, I'm the last person to take advantage of anyone's situation, but I have a counter proposal for you that I think you just might like."
The jaguarundi looks back at her with apparent interest as she continues. "You mentioned the modeling offer earlier. Have you given that any further consideration?" He nods his head in an affirmative. "Yes, I've thought about it. For a while there I was even going to do it just because my girlfriend hated the idea so much, but I hate to be petty like that, so I didn't." "Do you have any major issues with doing that kind of thing?" He shakes his head. "No, not really. It would be a little awkward, I think, but no major issues or anything. Why?" His forehead crinkles as he tries to follow the thread of Zig Zag's thought. "Mike, if I gave you an editor's position here, and you can still have it if you want it, you would be low male on the totem pole. The only work you'd get would be the stuff we would normally tap a freelancer for anyway. So, yes, you'll be pulling down a weekly check, but you'll also spend a lot of time sitting around here cooling your heels. I have a better offer for you, one that will give you more free time to spend fixing your car, or whatever, and will allow you to pull down a better paycheck than you would get if you merely worked forty hours a week." She pauses for effect. "Model for me."
~
"DO?!" Wanda nearly shouts. "Why, we go over there and, after we retrieve the tape, we rip his…" "Wanda…" Amber warns. The vixen turns to pierce the femme with her cold eyes. "DAMMIT!" She extends a paw towards her. "This guy's a piece of shit! Surely you're gonna break it off with him now!" Amber sends her an absolutely vile look, placing her paws on her hips, her tone positively scathing. "Well what the fuck do you think, honey?" "Oh," the vixen retorts sarcastically, "so you do have some moral standards after all." Amber looks down her snout at her. "Look who's talking little miss porn star!" Wanda's jaw drops open, and just as she's about to retort, Sabrina practically lunges across the table and intersperses herself between the two femmes.
"SHUT UP, BOTH OF YOU!" She turns her glare from one to the other until they both backed down. "Neither one of you are the enemy!" She shakes the hardcopy of the email between them, speaking in disgust. "He is!" She slams the note down onto the center of the table and sits back in her chair with a huff, letting the silence grow as she smoothes down her ruffled fur. Amber casts her eyes back to the table, locking onto the note, while Wanda recrosses her arms over her ample bosom and glares around the room at the furs gawking at them.
Whether it was the unusual display of anger from the normally reserved skunk artist, or the evil eye they received from the vixen was unclear, but before any of the three femmes knew it, they were alone in the breakroom. And into that ensuing silence Sabrina once again spoke. "We need a plan."
~
Mike stared at her blankly for the request. Zig watched him but held her peace. She knows the younger male needs to reach his own decision, she's not going to force anyone to do anything like that against his or her will. "Uh," is his inarticulate reply as his mind spins. He honestly hadn't considered her offer in quite that light before. He looked almost warily over at her. "What are the advantages again?" She grins, she's got him on the ropes. "Here's the deal. Until we get an opening here, or we get so busy that we need another full time editor, we'll sign you up as part time so you can pull a regular salary and get medical coverage. You'll be at the top of the list for any additional work before it goes to the freelance pool. Your extra income will come from the web modeling. I like to give my performers a free paw in how they handle the shoots, so you'll have a lot of liberty in working out what's comfortable for you. I'll hook you up with Mark, he's our Principle Photographer, and one of my best assets. Shooting for the website is pretty flexible, so I have no doubt we can work something out that suits you. You'll get a royalty on every CD of photo's you publish, and you can create your own private galleries online as well." She winks at him. "It gives you the opportunity to build a fan following." She writes a figure on a slip of paper and, folding it, slides it across the desk to him, his eyes going down to look at it as she releases it. He picks it up and opens it as she explains herself. "That's the entry level figure for my web models. You earn more by building a fan base. The more projects you take on, the better the salary gets. If you're not interested in that stuff, don't participate. I want my people to be happy." Mike's jaw hung open slightly as he regarded the figure on the paper. All this just for taking his clothes off? He must be dreaming. Zig continues. "And the best part is that there're no strings attached." He lowers his paw and looks back at her. "Strings?" She shakes her head. "Nope, no strings Mike. You're obligated to sign a standard contract, and we have some pretty stringent requirements about health and drug use, but we're not going to make you sign your life away with us. You can back out of the business anytime you like, as long as you give us the due notice stipulated in your contract. So when that full time position opens, you can back out gracefully." She grins at him. "Of course, you might not want to."
Mike stares blankly at her, his mind awhirl as the offer spins in his head. On the one paw, there's his morality, but on the other paw, there's the money. And the money is fantastic. Why, it's almost as much as he'd pull down if he were working as a full time editor, and it's just a part time gig! And that doesn't include his part time salary! He's almost convinced to go for it, but he's got just one last question. "What kind of obligations will I be under in regards to producing content for the web galleries?" Zig understands the question. "Right. You're obligated to maintain and build your fan base. I encourage you to build a rapport with your fans so you can give them what they want. Your obligation is to keep them interested and buying. We'll help you with that, after all, your success is our success. We'll work out a schedule that suits you, but when you're scheduled, you're expected to show, just like any other job, honey." He considers that. A job, just like any other. He gets to work in a great place with a great boss and lots of other things that can only be accurately described as 'fringe' benefits, and his salary will nearly double from what he was earning as a freelancer and that's just for starters! He grins at her. "Where do I sign up?" Zig's grin spreads from ear to ear. "Right here." She motions for him to stand and he does so as she leans back in her chair. "Take off your clothes." He blinks at her, not believing what he just heard her say. She knows this look, she's seen it a million times, and assumes a more serious expression. "I have to see what I just bought, Michael, so show me that my investment is worth it." He realizes that she's right, he just didn't expect it to come quite this suddenly. Well, he thinks to himself, this is certainly not the time to get cold feet, she's the boss, so he'd better get hopping. He takes a step or two back so she could see him without the desk getting in the way and began slowly unbuttoning his shirt.
~
The three ladies glared, respectively, at the e-note, the far wall, and Amber Ailurus. It was the femme glaring at the panda that broke the silence first. "Sabrina's right." Wanda lets her eyes fall in shame. "I'm sorry, babe." Amber shakes her head and draws a paw through her short headfur. "Forget it, luv." Sabrina reiterates her original question: "What are we gonna do?"
"We hafta get the tape." Wanda states flatly. She lifts her eyes and glances between the two of them and speaks with rancor, but not heat. "No way am I gonna let this bastard get the best of Zig." Her eyes settle on Amber. "Or you." Sabrina looks at Wanda. "I agree. But how?" Wanda looks over at Sabrina, but its Amber who answers. "I know how." She lifts her head to look at them both. "And it involves Mia."
She stands abruptly, her lunch utterly forgotten. "C'mon, let's go see Marvin."
~
The badger listened quietly as the three ladies explained their situation, and how they knew so much about what was supposed to have been a confidential operation, before cutting them abruptly off before they went too far in their efforts to elaborate the plan. He held up his paw to gain silence, then picked up his phone and punched a number on his speed dial.
"Clarence? This is Marvin." The other three listened to the side of the conversation they were privy to, Wanda's erect ears belying her… abnormal interest. He shakes his head, as a scowl crosses his muzzle. "No, you weren't scheduled to come in today." He was quiet for a moment, then continued on a new tack. "I have it on good authority that you're involved in a bidding war under the operation." Again he shakes his head. "Never mind how I know that. It's my business to know stuff like that." Silent. "What's the offer?" They see him nod his head, his eyes dilating just a tad. "Really? That much?" He nods again. "On the table? Uh, huh." He leans back in his chair, settling one paw behind his head. "Okay, look. I need you to string him along. Don't make any promises. And don't raise the bid unless you're absolutely certain that you'll be outbid. Got that?" Again he nods. "Yes, that's right. Keep him interested, but don't settle the deal until you hear from me, first. Oh, and Clarence?" A silent moment. "Don't be obvious about it," he looks significantly back at the three ladies, "but make sure he knows that we won't pay up unless he can guarantee he has the tape." His eyes go out of focus then. "Otherwise, it's S.O.P. Keep the studio out of it." He nods his head. "Keep up the good work, Clarence, and I want you in my office first thing tomorrow morning. Uh, huh. Goodbye." And with that, he hung up the phone and refocused on Amber.
"Okay. The ball's in your court." He holds his paws up, palms facing her. "I don't want to know the details. Officially, the Studio must not be involved. As far as I, or Zig, are concerned, this conversation never happened and we will deny it if it ever comes up if you get my drift." He lowers his paws to the desk and looks over the three conspirators, nodding to each of them in turn. "I've bought you some time. And, if this scheme of yours pays off, you'll be saving the company a tidy sum of money. And that's something that I promise to bring to the boss on your behalf." The edges of their mouths twitch but Marvin tempers it with a stern warning. "But if the press gets wind of this, or the authorities somehow become involved, you could lose a lot more than just your jobs. The protective arms of ZZ Studios can only extend so far." This has the effect he desired, and they sobered instantly. Satisfied, he dismissed them. "Go, get. Keep this to yourselves and report back here the moment you're done. Understood?" Amber speaks on their behalf. "Yes, sir." He scowls and waves a paw, the three femmes obediently turning and trooping out of the office, Marvin spinning his chair around and staring at the picture of his wife on the corner of his desk. He shakes his head. "Oh, babe," he says softly, "the trouble you cause me sometimes…"
~
Out in the hall, Amber speaks during the short walk to the lobby. "Sab, you stay here and keep an eye on things. You got my cell number, right?" The skunkette nods her head affirmatively and Amber looks at Wanda, lifting an eyebrow in amusement. "You wanna drive getaway, babe?" The vixen grins ferally. "Need you ask?" They stop in front of the reception desk and Mia looks up at the attractive knot of furs, and smiles. "Can I help you ladies?" Amber's evil grin grows slowly, Mia glancing nervously between the three femmes, looking for all the world like she's just been declared lunch. "Mia," Amber says absolutely deadpan, "I need your body."
~
Zig runs a critical eye over Mike's svelte, wiry frame, evaluating his model worthiness, happy to see that her instincts for her business are as sharp as ever. After he got over his initial embarrassment he displayed a lot of initiative in showing himself off to his best advantage, making her think that he was a natural for the business. Eventually, she indicates for him to get dressed, and she looks at him with an amused expression. "It's too bad you're not interested in acting, you could be the next big thing." He returns a lop-sided smile to her. "Thanks, I guess." She laughs and stands, extending her paw, Mike approaching her desk with his shirt held in his paw and takes the proffered limb. "Welcome to ZZ Studios, Mike, I'm happy to add you to our little family." He shakes her paw firmly, returning every ounce of her strong grip and not a jot more. "Thank you, Zig Zag, I hope it'll be a mutually beneficial relationship." They release paws and he gets on with the task of putting on his shirt as Zig gathers her purse and the things she'll need for the weekend. When she's done, and everything is in order she looks up at him. "I'll walk you out." He smiles. "Sure." Zig stops and pokes her head into Marvin's office on the way. "Marv," his head snaps up at the sound of her voice, not expecting to either see, or hear her. "I've hired Mike, one of our freelancers, on as a part time editor and as a web model. He'll stop in Monday to finalize the paperwork, 'kay?" Marvin collects himself quickly, fervently hoping his little… posse, has had the time to disappear. "Sure, Zig," his gaze shifts from her to the jaguarundi, "hey, Mike." Mike waves from behind as Zig continues. "You need me for anything before I go?" Marvin shakes his head. "No, Zig, everything's cool here." "See you Monday." And with that she was out the door and headed to the parking lot, Mike Mezcal in tow, the fact that it was her artist and not her actress sitting at the reception desk never even registering on her psyche.
She looks around in the midish-afternoon sunlight, has a sudden thought, and turns to him. "How did you get here?" He looks back at her and smiles slightly. "Took the bus." She tilts her head. "You need a lift?" He shakes his head. "Thanks, but no. I've got a friend coming round to pick me up when he gets off work, we were gonna go out, maybe catch some dinner." He smiles more broadly. "Looks like we got something to celebrate tonight." He pulls a copy of Video Editor Magazine from his back pocket and motions across the street with it. I'll just hang out in Starducks to kill the time." She follows his gaze and looks disapprovingly at the establishment. "Starducks," she shakes her head as he watches in mild surprise, "I really hate conglomerates." She turns back to him with a shrug. "Suit yourself." She waves as she steps away from the curb towards her sleek, black Lexus, disarming the alarm with the tiny remote in her paw. "Have a good weekend, Mike, see you Monday." "Bye, Zig, and thanks!" She turns back to him with the door open. "Thank you, Mike. Remember what I said," she gives him a wink, "the next big thing." And she gets in her car and pulls out of the lot, Mike watching her go for a few moments before shaking his head and heading across the street to the café.
~
"So, we're talking seduction, right?" Mia asks her counterpart from the back seat of Wanda's car. Amber smiles and mutters directions to the vixen before turning around and looking back at Mia. "Yeah. Look," she gives a little shake of her head "I promise you Mia, there will be no sex. In fact," she grins menacingly, "if we play our cards right, we can not only get him tied up, but gagged and blindfolded as well." Wanda glances at her in something akin to awe. Amber glances between the two of them. "Remember, I didn't get any email." She shakes her head. "It doesn't exist. All I want to do is have some fun with my guy," she looks significantly back at Mia and grins, "and I brought a friend along to join us."
She looks back to the front and points with a paw. "Turn here, luv." Wanda obediently directs the vehicle where instructed and they hurtle off down a new street as Amber's thoughts cloud over. "I shoulda known." She mutters, Wanda looking over at her. "Known what?" A quick shake of her head. "That he was lying about those tapes. He brought it up at every opportunity." She mocks now. "I swear babe. I tanked the tapes, babe. I promise." She makes a disgusted noise. "I can't believe I let myself fall for it. Guys are scum."
"Not all guys are scum." Mia pipes from the back. But it's Wanda that finishes the thought. "Just that one." It's silent between the three of them for a moment, then the vixen spoke. "Are you sure he'll be home?" Amber nods her head in an affirmative. "I know his schedule. Believe me," she thumbs her chest, "Christo is nothing if not a creature of habit. Over here, babe." She directs her last comment to Wanda and she pulls over, blocking a red Jeep Wagoneer in its driveway. Setting the parking brake, she cuts the engine and the two actresses look to the engineer.
"Wanda," Amber says, "you wait here and be ready to peel." The vixen nods her head in acceptance of her orders and she turns to her near twin. "Mia, you follow my lead. Let's roll." And the two pandas slip out of the car but instead of heading into the apartment building as Mia had expected, she stepped over to the Jeep and popped the hood after opening the drivers door. "I always told the idiot to lock his door." Amber muttered to Mia as she lifted the hood, drawing her ever-present screwdriver out and going to work on the engine. After a minute or two she was holding a metal and plastic shaft with a gear on one end and a tangle of black wires dangling from the other. She put her tool away and closed the hood, carrying the thing over and dropping it in a convenient trash bin.
~
As Zig was led to a private room by a burly bear of a guard, her safe deposit box in his huge paws, she recalled the last time she was here. Only that time she was making a deposit, not a withdrawal. The guard placed the box on the table for her, then turned and left without saying a word. Zig stood silently until the door closed behind her, assuring her of her privacy. Her eyes fell upon the box and she stepped over to it, turning it to face her. Inserting the key she unlocked it, and folded its top up to reveal its contents. Her mind cast back to a time a few months past as her eyes settle on the thing in the box, her comment to herself echoing in her ears from the vault of her memory. 'Maybe someday, when I'm ready.' Her paw reaches out and withdraws the cassette. She looks at the thing, then slips it into her purse. Closing and locking the box she calls for the guard. She's ready.
~
"AMBA!" Chris exclaimed in surprise, thinking he was seeing double for the mouthwatering sight before him. "W-w-what are you d-doing here?" He backed up as the two red pandas slinked their way into the room, both of them looking at him with bedroom eyes. Amber ran her paws over his chest and spoke in a sultry voice. "Guess who I saw at work today?" She tilted her head to the side as Mia closed the door and Chris groped for an answer. "Uh," was about the best he could do. "I had the most interesting conversation with Mia," she turned and looked at her twin, curling her long tail around the back of his legs, "you recognize Mia, don't you honey?" She moves her muzzle against his ear. "She was in And Babe Makes Three with Zig, remember?" Chris nodded dumbly, swallowing reflexively and without conscious control. "H-h-h-hi." He managed to stammer out. Mia simply winked seductively at him, causing his heart to do a fair imitation of leaping out of his chest. "We got to talking," Amber continued as she steered him deftly back to his bedroom, Mia following along in her wake, "and I let slip how one of your fantasies was to have us all in bed together." She flutters her eyelids at him, making his tongue loll. "And what do you know? Mia liked the idea so much, she wanted to… cum see you first paw." Chris's heart was pounding so loudly in his chest by now it was wonder he could think at all. Amber pressed her lean body hard against him, Mia returning the favor on his opposite side and nearly causing the fox to swoon.
He reined in enough sense, if that's what you want to call it, to look almost seriously at Amber and speak coherently. "You didn't get my email?" She looks innocently back at him. "What email, love?" He glances nervously between the two femmes. "The one I sent you this morning." She works the buttons on his shirt loose and Mia helps her pull it from his trousers, Chris lowering his arms so they could pull it free from him. "Sorry babe, but I was much too busy this morning to check my box. Was it important?" She caresses his chest down to his beltline and begins on his pants. "You could tell me now…" she suggests. Christopher smiles to himself and decides to let sleeping dogs lie. After all, she'll find out soon enough, why spoil a perfectly good fantasy? He glances between the two as the smile spreads over his muzzle. "Nevermind. What do you two lovely ladies have in mind?" Amber looks at Mia and they share a smile between them. It's Amber who speaks. "Remember how much you liked that blindfold?"
~
Christopher Vulpes struggled in his bonds, naked as the day he was born, and efficiently deprived of both his tongue, and his sight. Getting him to participate at that level was child's play, and both pandas didn't even attempt to hide their amusement. While he was so occupied, they covertly searched his apartment for the wayward tape. And, when they found it, rather sloppily hidden at the back of a filing cabinet, quickly replaced it with the subtly different dummy Sabrina had hastily made up for just such purpose. The tape secured, there was only one last task to perform, and Amber did not need Mia present to fulfill it, but that didn't stop the femme from watching from the bedroom door.
Amber reached into a pocket of her ubiquitous coveralls and pulled out a tiny digital camera, causing Mia to smile with pure, unadulterated malice. She snapped a picture of him before she spoke. "Do you know what I'm doing, babe?" She asked in anything but a sultry voice. Chris stiffened in his bonds and his ears flicked forward attentively. "Hmph?" She nods her head as if understanding exactly what he's saying. "I'm taking a few pictures, for posterity." And she snaps another. "Mmfmrff?" "Uh, huh. Pictures." She takes another, "ah, now that's a Kodak moment" and one more just as a proof, then verifies they are stored in the camera before slipping it away and sitting on the edge of the bed. She leans over and pinches his ear, pulling his head up to her muzzle. "The next time you decide to break up with your girlfriend," she says sweetly, "have the decency to do it to her face, pig." She releases his ear and his head falls back to the bed and she stands. "You even think of calling me or trying to get a hold of me and I'll file a harassment suit and get a restraining order so fast it'll make your head swim." She crinkles her nose in disgust as she looks down on him, and thumbs her chest. "Amber knows how to take care of herself. And I got friends that know how to watch my back." Unseen and unknown by her, Mia nods her head in agreement. She turns then, suddenly startled to realize that her twin has, apparently, been watching her all this time, then pads over to where Mia is waiting and addresses her. "C'mon, luv, let's blow this dive." She glances back over her shoulder as he struggles to free himself. "Oh, by the way," he stops when he again hears her voice, "your distributor is in the trash. I told you you should lock your car." And with that, she left, her arm linked with Mia's, both the procyonid's ignoring the inarticulate screams from the bound and gagged male they left behind.
~
This time there were four curvaceous ladies sitting in Marvin's office, and the Business Manager of ZZ Studios looked them all over with a carefully neutral air before settling his eyes on their engineer. "I trust your… mission was a success?" Amber holds a paw out and Mia pulls a videocassette from her slim purse, sliding it into the other panda's waiting paw, and that panda, in turn, leaned forward and set it on the edge of the badgers desk. Marvin waited until she withdrew her paw and settled back into her seat before leaning forward himself and picked up the tape, scanning the label before refocusing his eyes on her. "Have you checked it?" She shook her head silently and he got up and padded over to his TV setup, and slipped it into the VCR slot, the self-contained unit activating both itself and the monitor at the same time. He punched play, and fast wound through the warnings to the title shot, the other four femmes watching with interest as the title scenes of ZZ Studios most wanted movie played out: Indecency 666.
Satisfied, Marvin hits the eject button and pulled out the tape, punching up the black channel on the router instead of turning off the television, and walked back over to his desk. He set the cassette down before he sat himself, then folded his paws together as he regarded the gathered employees. He smiled, focusing his gaze first on Amber, then on the rest of them.
"Good work." They smile back, each one of them looking far too smug for Marvin's comfort, each one of them secretly proud for the silent, or not so silent, role they played in securing the tape. "I can't promise anything, but I assure you that I'll do my best to see that you each get appropriate credit where due." The ladies nod at each other, beaming happily. Marvin gives them the moment, then clears his throat, bringing the focus back to him.
"Now then." He looks more serious and they echo his expression. "You all have a piece of the puzzle, and I find that a partial understanding of a situation is far more dangerous than complete understanding, so therefore, at my sole discretion, I am now going to give you four full disclosure. Understand, " he takes care to make eye contact with each one of them, "that this is confidential information that you are about to learn, and as such, you are all expected to keep it in confidence. If I hear a word of this come back to me from any other source, you four," he points at them, "are going to be my first suspects. Clear?" They nod their heads and answer more or less in unison. "Yes, sir." "If you feel a need to talk about it outside of yourselves, you should come to me first, Zig second, and Clarence never. Also clear?" Again they nod and verbally assent. He looks them over one last time before bringing them into the fold, and educating them about exactly why Indecency 666 is movie non-grata at ZZ Studios. A revelation which, of all those assembled, impresses Amber Meeya Ailurus, the most.
~
Once again outside of Marvin's office Amber turned to Sabrina, pulling the little digital camera from one of her many pockets, and pawed it over to the skunkette. "If you would just put them on a disk for me, I'd be obliged." She said with a smirk, and Mia piped up from the back. "And a couple of eight by tens for me!" Amber nudged her in the ribs as Wanda spoke in disgust. "What would you want pictures of him for?" The red panda smirked at the vixen. "You never saw 'im." She winked at Amber. "It's too bad he was such an animal, he was pretty cute." She looks back at Wanda. "Besides, there's something to be said for having a picture of a guy all tied up like that. Liberating." Sabrina's eyes went wide. "You tied him up?" Mia responded before Amber had a chance, the actress delivering a punch to the engineers shoulder. "Yup! Trussed up like the turkey he was!" She sent Sabrina a wink this time, the young skunkette wondering how they managed to tie a male up. Chris would never allow such a thing… would he? She was dragged away from her private revere when Mia continued. "Tied, gagged, blindfolded, signed, sealed and delivered!" She looked at Amber. "So how long you gonna leave him like that?" All eyes turned to Amber.
She ducked her head a little as she fought her blush, then lifted it again as her self-confidence reasserted itself. "Oh, I'm in no rush." She looks around the little group and smiles. "What do you say we go out and have a few drinks, my treat. I feel like celebrating!" The other's cheer the suggestion, even Sabrina, for once actually not minding the prospect of spending an evening with her coworkers. "After all," Amber finishes slyly, "we know he's not going anywhere." The ladies chuckle appreciatively and she leans over next to her body double and speaks into her ear. "Remind me to make an anonymous call to 911 later, 'kay?" Mia lifts her muzzle and looks her in the eye, a playful smile plying her lips. "Whatever you say, Mia." She links arms with her then, Amber taking Wanda's on her other side and the vixen linking up with Sabrina as the femmes take off into the night, the four of them relaxed with the complete confidence of trust in each other.
~
After dinner, Zig and James retired to the great room in James' country home, and settled next to each other on the couch in their usual, comfortable style. Zig takes a deep breath, then turns to face him. "James," she starts as he turns to look at her expectantly, "I want to show you something. Something from my past." James gives her his full attention, knowing from the tone of her voice that whatever was on her mind was important. She swallows, suddenly nervous, before rising and stepping over to her purse and withdrawing the tape. She holds it in her paws for a moment, as if considering her course of action, then turns back and resumes her seat on the couch next to him. James keeps his peace despite the questions running through his head. He knows better than to rush her with whatever is on her mind. "James," she says, looking down into her lap, "I once made a movie that," she considers her words, "abstractly represented my… childhood." Her voice was very soft, and James' ears were perked fully forward to catch them. She looks up into his face. "It was a lousy movie, but," she looks down again, "it had a lot of… powerful imagery for me. Some of the dialog came directly from," she paused as she closed her eyes, then finished, her voice a mere breath "memory."
It hurt James just to look at her for the way she was acting on this topic, and he felt the need to give her the opportunity to escape. "Zig, you don't have to" was as far as he got before she looked back up and placed a paw over his muzzle. "I know what I have to do, James. And, more importantly, I want to." After a heartbeat he nods his head fractionally to her and she drops her paw along with her gaze to her lap. She takes another breath and holds the tape out to him. "This is one of the last remaining copies of this movie, I've destroyed all the others I could find." She lifts her eyes to his. "I want you to see the way I saw the world when I was a…" another nervous swallow, "child." He reaches out and takes the tape in his paws as if it were made of the most fragile crystal, knowing in his heart what he's being given. He finally looks away from her to read the title but is none the wiser for it, then looks back up at her. "Are you sure, Zig?" He asks, his voice soft. She nods her head to him in a silent affirmative and his gaze returns to the tape. He rises and walks across the room to plug the cartridge into the machine, then stepped back with the remote and settled again at her side, activating it along with the TV, Zig finally turning to look as he started the videotape.
They watched in silence as the movie played out its foul scenes for them, Zig often glancing at James to gauge his reactions, feeling somehow satisfied that he was as repulsed by the movie as she expected him to be. His ears were pressed flat against his head and he could barely contain his growl at the brutality displayed on the screen before him. The thought that anything even remotely like this could have ever happened to Zig Zag was enough to make him retch. He swallowed his bile and clenched his jaw, the tendons in his neck standing out, sending a clear message to Zig of how he felt about her movie. And how he felt about her past.
When it was over he numbly thumbed the stop button and turned off the set. He sat staring at the blank screen for a full minute to compose himself, before turning back to Zig, who had been watching him all along.
"That," he says, his voice weak, "was a… an embodiment of your," he pushes the word out "childhood?" She gives him a faint nod, afraid now, finally allowing herself to feel the fear of him leaving her over this. The fear, that if he knows how dirty she really was, he won't want anything else to do with her. She forces herself to speak, to put the movie into the underlying perspective that only she understands. "The bondage was a metaphor for my powerlessness against my father, the mothers weakness, a symbol of the lack of protection and the submissiveness," she pauses before taking a breath to finish "was necessary to protect my siblings." James is quiet as he absorbs that, the film was her childhood condensed down to one fetid, retched boil of a memory. "And the language?" He asked, near shock. Zig replies softly. "That was real."
He's quiet for a long moment as he considers what he's been told. He knows how difficult it must have been for her to share this with him, but he also knows how significant her sharing it with him is. He takes a deep breath and as he slowly releases it, his thoughts galvanize.
He reaches his paws out and takes hers in his own and looks into her eyes. "Zig, I've told you before that what has happened to you in your past won't change the way I feel about you. And I'm going to keep on telling you that until it sinks in." A very faint smile twitches her lips. "Zig," he speaks earnestly to her, his tone serious, but sympathetic. "I can't imagine what it must have been like for you, but I want you to know how much I respect you for rising above it." She blinks at him, not expecting that response. James continues. "You don't know how grateful I am that you felt you could share these things with me." A strange feeling is settling over Zig as he speaks to her, a loosening, an… unwinding sensation, as if something long held in the deepest recesses of her soul is crumbling away. "Zig, I've waited for this moment," he gives her paws a gentle squeeze, her crumbling sensation getting stronger as her jaw falls open very slightly. "Thank you for taking down your walls for me. I promise you, you don't have to hide the pain anymore. Zig, just let me in and you'll see, I'll never let you fall, if you just take down the wall, I'll be standing right here beside you if you'll just let me in. You don't need the walls anymore Zig, I'm here."
Yes, Zig thought, he's still here. She let him in on her deepest secret and he didn't flee. She was right, it was time. She closes her eyes and leans against him, curling her head into the hollow of his neck as he releases her paws and brings his arms around her, holding her against the demons of her past. Holding her close as he lays his chin protectively atop her head, his own eyes closing, knowing that he's finally been allowed inside, and resolving never to leave. Now, he's her wall.
The End