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Aquablue

This story is copyright © 2003 Kathmandu (David White) This story may NOT be posted or used on any commercial or pay site without my written consent. Posting on newsgroups or free story web sites for which it is appropriate. Any other reposting is a no-no and is forbidden. Where reposting permission is given or allowed, all titles and headings including this one must be included. I'm easy to get along with, just ask.

This story has very adult themes including violence, alternate lifestyles, erotic elements, extreme elements of peril and death, accurate descriptions of drowning and really bad puns. This has lots of plot and character development and not so much sex although it does have some. Do not read if you are under age in your respective location or if you cannot handle reading stories containing adult content.

Cheetaur is © Himself and so is Wirewolf. All other characters © D. White and any resemblance to any other characters, real or fictitious is completely coincidental and unintentional.

Aquablue

The ancient VCR whirred, clicked then ejected a video cassette into the waiting paw of a slightly graying tiger. He grabbed the tape then turned back to face the gorgeous tiger-doe fem sitting in a well worn chair she had flopped into once he started showing her the tape.

"So, waddia think?"

"Oscar, you called me up and asked me to drive all the way over to your dump of a studio to watch a porn tape? Jeeze, I could have done that back at my studio with a glass of champagne and someone warm and cuddly to share it with. Instead I'm looking at your ugly mug and drinking flat Coke out of a paper cup." Dusty Mousehold, the current darling of the adult video industry and old friend of Oscar's, drained the last dregs of her soda and crumpled up the cup. "I don't do fetish videos Oscar, you know that."

"Fetish, what fetish? It's two furs having nice vanilla sex. I'd be boring as hell if it weren't for the location. Almost broadcast TV boring if you ask me. 'Next on Sally...'"

"Don't kid yourself bub, that's borderline kinksville as far as I'm concerned. I kept waiting for the inflatable sheep and ball gags to show up. Who the hell is going to buy the video Oscar? There may be a hundred guys in the country that would get off on anything like that. Not enough of a customer base to cover production costs from where I sit. Besides I'm not set up for this sort of thing, the camera housings themselves would break my budget for the rest of this year."

Oscar Zulu grabbed Dusty's right paw and held it gently in his own huge orange and black paw, "Dusty, babe, its you I want not your studio. I got a guy in Florida who does this sort of work, even has a couple of actors ready. I want you to act in a video for me."

"We go back a lot of years Oscar and I've done more than a few shoots for ya when times got tough but this... this is way beyond that."

"Oh come on Dusty, it ain't a snuff video for chrissake." Dusty shuddered as Oscar mentioned "snuff video," no one, not even her closest friends knew how much that threat scared her. She hid it well. "I need you, babe, because of all the sexy love goddesses in the business, you are the only one I know who can stand to let her fur get wet. Could you imagine Dusky Gold or Ginger Anne doing this?"

Dusty smiled at that, those two fashion plates would die if they ever got caught in the rain let alone do what Oscar had in mind. Rumor had it Ginger Anne acts simply to pay for her clothes and Imelda Marcos-style shoe collection. She could just imagine one of them doing this sort of video. "What about Shelly? She likes the water."

"Dusty, she is drop dead gorgeous and all but damn-it; she is such an airhead I don't think she could get her head underwater. Between her tits and her head I don't think she has ever had the top of her head wet, sorta like dunking a helium balloon."

"Oscar I can't..." The image of Shelly bobbing her head trying to go underwater and popping back to the surface like a balloon came to her mind and she started laughing. He was closer to the truth than he even realized. She had shared a hot tub with the vixen on many occasions but she couldn't remember her ever dunking her head.

"Dusty, of all the ladies physically fit enough to do this video you are the only one who likes water and is not likely to drown in the process. Your tiger heritage could come in handy I think."

"Look, just because there is a little tiger or who knows what in the woodpile doesn't make me aquatic. Hell you're a tiger and I don't see you living in a pond. Why don't you get a couple of otters to make the video?"

"Because my dear, it would be a documentary not pornography. Nothing unusual or exotic in that sort of thing and to tell you honestly they aren't all that interesting as far as smut is concerned. They do a lot of ritualistic underwater dancing and such but the actual act is quick and not really filmable. I need a professional."

"Ok, let's say I agree to do this nutty video, what's in it for me babe? I don't do charity work you know. I'm talking cash Oz, benjamins and lots of them."

"Twenty grand plus expenses. You fly down to Florida for a week, four days of shooting and some time off for yourself. Take a fluffer with ya and call it a vacation. We have access to a beautiful house in Boca Raton with a huge pool for a week and you are welcome to use the house, we just need the pool." Oscar got up from the chair he was sitting in and ejected the video tape and handed it to her, "These two are amateurs but they were still good enough to make you wet. Imagine how hot this would be with you in it. Think about it, will ya?"

"Damn you and your predator's nose Oz, yeah they were a pretty hot act considering but jeeze you old pervert, you don't have to embarrass a lady."

"You? Embarrassed? I doubt it." They both shared a laugh. Oscar did score points with Dusty by not saying anything about her not being a lady. She and Oscar had been friends and competitors for years and he never failed to treat her with respect. It tended to be rare in the porn biz and the fact he never did anything more than flirt endeared him to her. The guy was an enigma in the biz, he did a lot more gay and fetish videos than Mousehold Studios did and what straight stuff he did was sleazy and as low budget as you could get. Thing was, he was a straight up guy with no interest in participating in what he filmed. It was a business and that's where it ended with him. He never used a "casting couch" for auditions and had been married for sixteen years and had two wonderful cubs.

"Make it twenty five and you got a deal. I figure you are going to play up the star factor and bleed it for all its worth. I know you will tap into my current fan base so you will at least make ten times that much in video sales. Be glad I'm not asking for a percentage."

"You would if you thought I would make enough to make it worth your wile you heartless bitch. Twenty five and you have your graphic artist do the box. Final offer."

" Ok You scoundrel., looks like we have a deal. We get second billing on the box, Mousehold Studios in big letters. We'll let our lawyers do lunch and finalize the contract. Fair enough?"

"All right you evil harpy, sounds like we have a deal. I just..." Oscar could hear the "but" in Dusty's voice.

"One last thing Oscar, if I feel it is too dangerous or I'm uncomfortable I pull the plug. Got it?"

"Hell, Dusty that goes for anything we do. I never coerce anyone to do anything they don't feel comfortable with. You especially." Oscar reached up and stroked her cheek. No matter what she did or how big a celebrity she became, he would always remember her as the headstrong young woman who walked into his studio on her eighteenth birthday and basically twisted his arm to put her into one of his movies. She had been living on the street for a couple of years and she needed the job. She was too strange looking as a half-breed to do more than gutter hooking and no one would hire her for the same reason, especially with no experience or education. He saw something in her eyes that told him she was desperate and on her last legs. He put her to work that day, cleaning the studio. It was only months later after she had shown she was mature and dependable enough to handle the movie end of the business that he let her do a video. "How did I ever let you slip through my fingers?" he said as he remembered the day she left to form her own studio.

"I believe it had something to do with whipped cream, avocados and a circus midget."

"Oh hell, it would have been fun and you know it."

"Oscar, you know me, I'll try anything once and I like kinky sex as much as the next pervert but I don't do fetish videos. I have an image to maintain. It was bad enough you talked me into the lesbian mud wrestling scene on "Ali Babbabet" remember?"

"Hey, you were the one who said you were bi, how was I supposed to know you hadn't actually been with another girl before."

"I was scared to death, I lied because I needed the work and you did a lot of girl/girl videos at the time."

"You were a real trooper though, I had no idea. Zelda said you had to ask her what to do."

"Yeah well, times have changed eh?" Dusty winked at the tiger, "Let's say you and me get together and cruise for chicks?"

"Only if Pam can come with us..."

"Oh, you're no fun."

"Oh I'm lots of fun but only when my wife says I can."

"You are so whipped, Oscar. It must be love."

"Yes," he said in all seriousness, "it is."

***********************************************************************

"Amanda, have I got a deal for you. How would you like a trip to Florida?"

Amanda, a cute skunkette newly hired to the studio looked over her large glasses and stared at her boss, "Depends on what I have to do and who with."

"Well, I just scored a deal with "Katmandu Studios" for a video shoot down in Florida for a week. Part of the deal was I could bring a friend and there would be plenty of off time to see the sights. I'd like you to come with me to take some photos and do some sketches for the video promos and cover. Part of the deal was for you to do the box art and I know you have an eye for these things."

Amanda raised an eyebrow and said,"No... ah... room sharing? No monkey business?"

"Separate rooms and I'll be on my best behavior, promise."

"I don't know Dusty; this sounds too much like a set up like the last trip. Why don't you take Shelly or Nichole, they'd be tickled to spend a week with you down in Florida. They are a bit more...accommodating than me." Her cheeks showed blush under her fur, her sexual preferences running along straight lines much to Dusty's dismay.

"I admit they are a lot more fun alone in a hotel room but honestly, have you really ever had a conversation with either one of those two? Shelly makes Forest Gump look like a genius and Nichole has about a five word vocabulary and rarely puts two words together more than once a day. Roxanne is too much the nympho to have any sort of conversation with and Anne has to mind the store. Besides, I'm probably going to be too wiped out from the shoot to even care about doing anything other than relaxing. This going to be a rough shoot for me but it will put a nice tidy sum in the studio accounts."

"I still don't feel right about taking off with you."

"How about some spending cash, let's say a thousand bucks?"

Amanda's jaw dropped, "a thousand dollars? You are going to pay me a grand to go with you to Florida and you aren't expecting sex?"

"Ok, make it two grand and I promise no funny business. Waddia say?"

"I...ah... make it $2500." Amanda squinted at Dusty wondering if she had pushed too far. Not that it would hurt her feelings not to go.

"It's a deal, I'll tell Anne to make out a check. We leave Friday."

"Wait a minute, you agreed to that too fast. How much would you have gone up to?"

"Oh, I scammed Oscar out of an extra $5 grand and figured it would take that to entice you to come with me. Since I got ya for half that, I figure you like me a little better than I thought. I'm wearing you down, you'll be in my arms in no time," Dusty giggled.

"In your dreams." Amanda turned and walked out of the break room in shock and slightly peeved at losing out on the other $2500.

"Yes, you have no idea..." Dusty said under her breath as Amanda left.

***********************************************************************

"She paid you what? To do what?!? You are kidding me? Lemme see that check." Amy, a buxom vixen and Amanda's roommate, grabbed the slip of paper and stared at the amount. "Lordy girl, that's a lotta scratch for a week's work. You sure she ain't out to corner you like she did before?"

"I'll knock her for a loop again. I can handle myself. She has made it clear there was to be none of that and she will be on her best behavior. Besides she hasn't been a problem since I made sure she knew my preferences. Teasing now and again but nothing I can't handle. She wants me to do some promo pics for the box and such plus she wants someone she can talk to."

"Still, I don't trust her. She is a predator in every sense of the word and she is looking at you."

"I'm not defenseless you know. I can spray if all else fails."

"Yeah, I forget about that stinky butt of yours." Amy handed the check back to Amanda and looked thoughtful, "That reminds me, did Justin ever catch on to that little joke you pulled with the tomato juice?"

Amanda blushed, "He insisted it was the proper treatment and I couldn't convince him it didn't work, especially after he stopped smelling it himself. Sensory overload is what they call it. He only got a few drops so he didn't smell too bad anyway and I figured he needed to learn about skunks himself."

"I would have loved to see his fur all bleached out, it would have been a hoot. Still, him walking around smelling like that was pretty funny anyway."

"He called me up a couple of days later almost in tears asking if there was any better way to remove the smell. When I told him about bleach, he dropped the phone and filled the bathtub with water and a healthy dose of bleach right then. He was so relieved I don't think he ever realized what was going on. I think he will listen to me a little better from now on though."

"Don't bet the farm on it girl, men are hard headed. It's their nature."

"I heard that dear," Bill, Amy's wolf husband, said from the living room.

"I said they were hard-headed not deaf. Besides, this is an "a" and "b" conversation, "c" your way out of it."

"Any more of that and no foot-rub tonight." Bill said smiling wide as he peeked into the doorway.

"No foot-rub and I'll cut you off mister."

"I doubt it; you don't know where I'm getting it from."

Amanda, covering her mouth trying not to bust out laughing said, "You two sound like my parents."

"Must be love." Amy said then stuck out her tongue.

Bill walked into the kitchen where Amy and Amanda were sitting drinking sodas. "What's this about you going to Florida?"

"My boss wants me to accompany her on a video shoot she is doing for a friend of hers down in Boca Raton. I leave Friday and I'll be gone for a week. She is paying me $2500 bucks to boot and I really could use the cash."

"That sounds like fun, have a good time and send a post card."

Amy looked at her husband in shock, "Have a good time and send a post card? Fer chrissake Bill, she is going to Florida with that, that she-cat in heat!"

"Darling, Amanda knows her boss better than we do and if she feels it is ok, then I know she will be ok. Remember, Amanda is an adult and she has proven she can handle any problems between her and her boss. Anyone who can stand up to a mugger brandishing a knife can handle a hormone soaked tiger-doe or twenty. I think she will have a tougher time telling Justin..."

Amanda blanched, "Oh god, I forgot about telling him. He has a three day weekend next week and we were going to spend it together. He's going to be so disappointed when I break the news to him."

"Well, Amanda, since you have enough capital to afford it, why not fly him down for that weekend and you two can have a mini vacation. Round trip airfare and a hotel for a couple of nights wouldn't be over $500. I have a friend who works for an airline and may be able to get cheap, short notice tickets." Bill leaned on the kitchen counter. "And if he can't make it, I'll take his place."

"What a great idea Bill, except for the last bit. It might be fun but I still have to live here." Amanda said.

Amy picked up her paper napkin and threw it at Bill who acted grievously injured by the impact. "Et tu Brutae?"

Amanda picked up the phone and called Justin's work number. She left a message for him to call when he was free. Almost as soon as she but the phone down Justin returned her call and Amanda explained what was going on. The raccoon was excited by the idea and told her he would look around for some cheap tickets online if there was a hitch on Bill' end. She said they would talk about it after work and she hung up. "Sorry Bill, looks like Justin is going."

Bill staggered and clutched his chest, "The cruelest cut of all!"

"Take one class in drama and he's William Shatner. Go on Julius; go cross the Rubicon or something. We girls need to talk."

"Beware the ides of March? Ha, better to beware my wife and girl talk."

"Go dear; I think they need you at the forum or something. Shoo."

***********************************************************************

Amanda walked up to Dusty's office and knocked. She heard Dusty say come in and she opened the door. Her jaw dropped as she saw Dusty sitting at her desk with a dive mask and snorkel on her head and a pair of fins on her feet. Amanda took it in stride and asked, "You wanted to see me?" Her tail wafting behind her in agitation.

"Yeah, I was thinking of doing some diving while we were in Florida and wondered if you might want to try it out, I got a friend who teaches SCUBA and could get you a resort certification in a few hours so you can swim around with supervision, of course."

Amanda smiled at the idea and said, "Thanks but I don't need a resort cert., I am already certified advanced open water, deep water and I'm rescue trained."

Dusty stared at Amanda in amazement, "I never would have thought..."

"Yeah, I got certified in college. I had to take so many hours of phys ed and I took diving. It was the easiest elective I could take at the time plus I got to watch guys in wet swim trunks." She patted her ample rump and said, "I'm not the sports type, as you can tell."

"You go girl!" Dusty said as she adjusted the band on her mask and slipped it over her eyes, the soft silicone foam conforming to the fur on her face making a watertight seal. "Any other skills I should know about?" Her voice sounded strange with the formfitting mask covering her nose and upper part of her muzzle. She was lucky, her muzzle was short enough to use a one piece mask, some furs had to use a two piece affair consisting of a nose plug and a tube running to the eye mask so you could equalize. Uncomfortable but it worked.

"I have a student's flying license for light, single engine aircraft."

"Really? You can fly an airplane?"

"Well, I have a "learner's permit" basically, I can take off and land but that's about it. It was either that or tennis." Amanda said sheepishly.

"Wow, ever thought of getting your license?"

"I thought about it but it is really too expensive and impractical a hobby plus I just needed the credits, was fun though."

"Well, I think you should look into it. The studio does offer a tuition assistance program; it pays part of the cost if you want to go back to school."

"I don't remember that in the benefit package."

"It's not in there yet." Dusty said.

"Oh, when did you start the program?"

"Ummm," she looked at her watch, "about 15 seconds ago."

"Wait a minute; you aren't going to just offer that to me only are you?" Amanda didn't like the idea of preferential treatment; it didn't sit right with her at all.

"Oh no, it will be available to everyone, just you are the only one who might show any interest or ability. Not many brainiacs in the porn biz, I'm lucky, I have a degree because someone helped me out and made me get it. It was hard work and I didn't exactly set the world on fire with my grades but I got it. I've always been willing to help out but no one has shown any desire."

"Make it a part of the benefit package and you might get some interest."

"I'll do that."

"Ummm, Dusty, can I ask a question?"

"Why sure dear, I don't bite... unless you ask nice first anyway." She smiled and batted her eyes inside the mask, looking silly.

"I was thinking of asking Justin to fly down to Boca Raton one weekend while we were there..."

"That would be delightful! Invite him for the whole week! There is plenty of room. It'll be fun and I can terrorize him the whole time."

"He can't take off an entire week right now, too many others on vacation or something but he has a three day weekend while we are down in Florida and I hoped he could join us."

Dusty removed the mask and said, "That sounds great, have him book a flight and we'll pick him up."

"You don't mind?"

"Heavens no dear, I love the idea. Is he certified? If he is or wants to get a resort certification we can plan a dive trip that weekend. It'll be a blast."

"No funny business Dusty or I'll quit and I'll never speak to you again."

Dusty sighed, "I said no problems Amanda, and I mean that."

"Yes, with me but you haven't said anything about Justin; off limits."

"Amanda, I may be a slut and a porn slut at that but I'm not that bad. I do not betray friends or employees and certainly not you. Now I will say that I wouldn't pass up the opportunity of a three-way or whatever if everyone is agreeable but no poaching out of season."

"Dusty! There will be nothing of that sort going on!"

"Easy girl, I said everybody concerned which isn't likely to happen. I'm not going to stop being me to suit you though and become a nun. The offer stands for you and your sweetie any time. Honestly though I really doubt he could handle the pressure, him being new to the world of sex, at least with another person...in the same room. Men are funny things, they like to think they are sexual masters but the truth is they are far from it. If he were to find himself in bed with me, I doubt he would be able to perform or would be too quick in finishing. You two are discovering sex together and you are at the same level of experience but with me, I would be like a master to a beginning student. Anything he did he would feel, I dunno, like he was competing with all my previous lovers and he would know in his mind he would fall short." Dusty shrugged, "It would scare him to death to have sex with me. It would take a lot of time and some feelings toward each other to get him to even close to being able to perform. You and I stand a better chance."

Amanda blushed so red Dusty thought she would ignite. "How would you know what he could or couldn't do?"

"I know males dear; it's my job so to speak. I've seen far too many males who find themselves with the woman of their sexual fantasies only to find Mr. Happy not so happy after all. Your boyfriend is too much the beginner and he isn't aggressive enough to take such a cavalier attitude about sex. You were his first at 25, right? That tells me he is too straight laced to be a Casanova. He's nice and he has a cute ass but he is yours and you two need to learn together.' Dusty winked, "Give him a few years and I may change my mind."

"You're going to leave him alone, right?"

"Oh no, I'm going to tease him mercilessly." Dusty ruffled Amanda's hair, "You both are just so cute when you're flustered."

"Yeah, I figure I'm in for a real "cute" week." Amanda said trying to straighten her hair.

***********************************************************************

The limo that met them at the airport was quite the attention getter. It was orange with black stripes that mimicked Dusty's pattern. Amanda was impressed as it pulled up to the curb and a driver jumped out and opened the door for Dusty. She left her bags on the sidewalk with Amanda and stepped into the limo. Amanda, a bit overwhelmed by the celebrity status of her boss naturally picked up the bags and headed for the trunk. Dusty saw Amanda struggle with the bags and nearly came unglued. "Amanda, honey, leave the bags for the handsome young fur so he can impress us with his tasty muscles." The driver, a young and athletic looking wolf hurried over and took the bags from the skunk and helped her into the limo. Once she settled into the luxurious automobile and the driver closed the door, Dusty said, "When you travel with me, you are not a lackey or pack mule. I do not expect you to carry my bags or act as my servant. That's not your job. I do not expect it of anyone who works for me, not just you."

"I'm sorry; I just figured working for you I was expected to..."

"No, not at all. I expect any and all courtesies that are extended to me are extended to you as well. I ride in a limo, you ride in the back with me and you don't carry my bags. Enjoy the treatment while it lasts my dear, soon we will be back home and back to reality."

"Ok Dusty, I'll try to remember. Thanks."

After a nice and surprisingly subdued trip from the airport they pulled up to a huge, sprawling mansion. The driver got out and opened the door for the both of them. They got out and were met by a Cuban American ferret, complete with gold chains and white hat.

"Hello my dear, you must be the famous Dusty! I am terribly glad to meet you. I am Dean Martinez but everybody calls me Dean Martin or Dean. I am the producer for this video. How was your flight?" He extended his ferret paw and shook Dusty's hand. He spoke very fast with an odd nervousness about him.

"It was nice, caught a little bumpy air over Georgia but smooth otherwise. Loved the limo Dean, the paint job was great. How did you manage to get a black and orange stripped limo in my pattern? Must have cost a fortune."

"Heh, no it didn't really. I have a brother in law who runs an auto body shop in Miami and that limo is in for a new paint job. He put a quick and easy to remove pattern on it for me and let us use it for the week. Your chauffeur is actually your safety diver while shooting. His name is Rick." Dean extended his paw to Amanda, "And who is this lovely lady? She must be the luckiest person in the world to be the intimate lover of the great Dusty Mousehold!"

Amanda extended her hand and shook his but started to pull away when he mentioned the lover bit, "I am not..."

Dusty was behind Amanda so she couldn't see her when she shook her head at Dean and made the universal signal for the hopelessly straight. She put her fingers together and traced a square in front of her.

Dean saw this and back tracked quickly, "I'm sorry, my English is a bit rusty, I meant 'intimate friend,' I am terribly sorry." He was smooth as silk; Dusty had to smile at his quick thinking.

"This is Amanda, my graphic artist and web master for the studio. She is a marvel with promo art and graphics and I want her to get some scenery and atmosphere to use for the ads. She is a bit new to the biz but she is a great addition to the team. She did the cover art to 'Forbidden Dreams' and 'Bad Ass'."

"How wonderful! You are fantastic! I just loved the art to 'Bad Ass' the stripes blending into the edges were beautiful. Made me consider changing religion."

Amanda, slightly confused by the compliment said, "Thanks, it was one of my better covers."

"Yes, it was. Oh, I just realized, Oz said you would be doing the cover to this video. I am so happy because I know you will do a great job. We will have a winner on our hands for sure." Dean gestured to the door to the huge mansion and they entered. "There are 27 rooms to choose from and an indoor Olympic pool. We have the run of the house for a week and you are welcome to stay. This is Mr. Belgium." A very large bear in a suit and tie bowed his head to them, "He is the head butler and will show you to your room... err rooms."

"Glad to meet you Mr. Belgium, I am Dusty and this is my associate, Amanda."

"Ladies, may I show you to your... rooms? Yes well this way." The bear ambled across the front room and headed to the stairway at the far end.

"Get settled in and I'll show you the pool and let you meet your costars in," he looked at his watch, "an hour, how's that?"

"Sounds great. Where can a lady find something to drink in this place?"

"Mr. Belgium will see to all your needs; ladies I must depart. I have to make sure Marko is ready with the cameras for tomorrow's shoot. Need anything; Mr. Belgium knows my cell number. See you in an hour?"

"Great, see ya." Dusty said as she sauntered after the butler. Amanda followed gawking at the beautiful house. They went upstairs then down a hallway that ended with two rooms at the end. He opened the door on the left and Dusty entered and looked it over. "Lovely room Mr. Poland, the bed is gorgeous." It was a 16th century cherry canopy bed with gold inlay.

"That's 'Mr. Belgium' miss and yes, this is one of the nicest guest bedrooms in the house. Please make yourselves at home; your luggage will be here shortly if the rooms meet with your approval?"

"Well, this one suits me just fine, unless you want it?" she asked Amanda.

"Lemme check mine out, though I'm sure any room in this house will be far better than what I'm used to."

"This way, my dear." The old bear said as he pointed to the room across the hall. He opened the door and showed her inside. The room was beautiful and contemporary with black lacquer and gold trimmed furniture.

"Hey, nice. Amanda like. This will do nicely, thank you Mr. Belgium."

"You are quite welcome my dear. My staff is ready to make your stay enjoyable. Just give me a call if you need anything, my number is 123. Dinner is at seven unless you decide to go into town for dinner. The some of the staff is off this week but I am a good cook in my own right. Please let me know your plans so that I can prepare."

"Certainly Mr. Belgium, thanks."

"If you would like, I can escort you to the rec. room downstairs near the pool. There are refreshments and a full bar. I believe Mr. Martinez will meet you there later."

Dusty stepped into the room and said, "Hey, nice. This ok, Amanda?"

"Great, I love it."

"Good. Hey Jeeves, you said something about refreshments?" Dusty said, obviously teasing the bear.

The butler frowned and said, "Yes, well. If you will follow me I will show you the house and we can meet the rest of your friends in the recreation room next to the pool." The bear then shook his head at Dusty and said, "My name is Mr. Belgium; learn it or I will be forced to call you by your real name. Yes, I know what it is; I make extensive checks on those who use this house."

Dusty's eyes widened, "Yes, well Mr. Belgium, I think we understand each other. I was only teasing."

"I am a congenial host Miss Dusty but I will not tolerate disrespect of any sort. If you would, follow me and I will give you the tour so you can find you way around."

They followed the bear as he pointed out the various rooms in the house, the library, the sauna and gym. While they looked around Amanda asked who owned the place.

"This house is owned by a company that is using it as investment property. They bought it from the estate of the late actor Jerome Powers whom I served as a gentleman's gentleman for thirty seven years. The actual owners have probably only seen it in pictures. They lease the property to various movie production companies, executive retreats, social functions and the like." The bear showed them the huge kitchen, "Mr. Martinez leased the use of the pool on a slow week for us. The majority of the staff is off this week as it is and the price was very attractive I imagine."

"I can't imagine the owners letting this house be used for an adult film." Amanda said as she looked over the dining room. The centerpiece on the table probably cost more than she and her parents and grandparents made their entire lives. Not that she would want the gaudy thing.

"Oh no miss, they don't care at all. We invariably have an adult film or two during this week or a TV pilot. The late Mr. Powers was no paragon of virtue himself and he gained quite the reputation over the years. The parties he would throw, my, those were the days. I doubt there was a young man within a twenty mile radius he didn't proposition."

Amanda blushed and Dusty just smiled. They continued the tour that finally ended in what was called the recreation room. It was a large room that had couches set in a sunken area on one side of the room. The wall the couches faced was clear and to both of their amazement, it was looking into the swimming pool. The water was up to about two thirds of the window and they had a perfect view of the deep end of the pool. It reminded Amanda of an aquarium. The upper level of the room had a pool table, TV, several old pinball machines and a wall full of stereo equipment. The far corner had a complete bar and to the side of that was a cozy table and chairs.

The bear showed them how to use the items in the room then walked over to the bar, "I do believe someone mentioned they were looking for a drink? What is your desire ladies?"

"I am parched; I think I'll have bottled water if you have any?" Dusty said as she sat at the bar. He opened the door to a small refrigerator under the bar and opened a bottle of expensive water and poured her a glass over ice. "Thank you."

Amanda was surprised Dusty chose water over free booze. Thinking about it though, she never remembered her boss drinking more than a glass of wine and that was at a party. The old bear looked at Amanda expectantly. "I'll take a cola." She said hesitantly.

Mr. Belgium opened a freezer and put a frosted glass on the bar then produced a real glass bottle of Coke. He then put some ice in a blender and crushed it then filled the glass. He followed the ice with the cola, filled the glass to the top, and added a straw and a cinnamon stick.

Amanda looked at the glass, taken aback by the cinnamon stick. She accepted the glass and took a sip. Her eyes widened as she tasted the most wonderful glass of soda she had ever tasted. She couldn't taste the cinnamon stick but something about it made the flavor jump out and hit you. "Wow!" she said. "That is amazing."

"That was Mr. Powers' favorite. It's imported from Canada; they use real sugar and not corn sweeteners. The glass preserves the flavor as well."

"Dusty, you need to try this." Amanda said holding the glass out to her. She hesitated then took a sip from the same straw Amanda used. She was right, it was wonderful.

'Hey, that's great!" Dusty said, handing the ice cold glass back to Amanda. Dusty dreaded the next few seconds waiting for Amanda to remove the straw, either wipe it off or turn it over. They did, they all did. Being a porn star had one giant drawback; you were unclean in everyone's eyes. It was subtle most of the time and they usually didn't know they were doing it really. They were also unaware of how much it hurt when they did do it.

Dusty watched in surprise as Amanda took the glass and sipped from the straw without even considering it. It was a small thing but it lifted her spirits for some reason. A victory was a victory, now matter how small.

"Can I interest you in one, my dear?" the bear asked amicably.

"Defiantly later sir but I plan on working out and I need to stick to water for now. Thank you though. Can I use the pool to do some laps later?"

"I'm afraid the main pool here is closed for today but there is an endless pool in the gymnasium that is open any time."

"What's an endless pool?" Amanda asked.

"It is a small spa that has pumps built into it in such a way as to let you swim in place, much like a treadmill is for running or walking. That will work nicely. Why is the pool closed?" Dusty asked as she sipped her water.

"The pool is being clarified for your video shoot tomorrow. The water is being treated so you will have absolutely clear water."

"I see. I suppose that is important," Amanda said, still not comfortable with the idea of the sort of video Dusty was doing. It made the videos she was used to working with at the studio seem normal, almost commonplace.

"Well, ladies I have other duties to attend to. Make yourselves at home and help yourself to some snacks in the cupboard there and you are welcome to use the bar as well. I will be back from time to time if you need anything special." He maneuvered his bulk around the bar and left them at the bar.

"What a fantastic place!" Amanda said, still in awe.

"Nice, yes I have to admit. Not to my tastes but nice. The pool though is a great idea, especially with the window there. I can imagine the venerable Mr. Powers sitting in here watching his handsome young males cavorting in the pool."

"Sounds rather disgusting if you think about it," Amanda said, swirling the cinnamon stick around in her drink.

"I dunno, sounds rather nice to me. Need a few girls with the guys to make it even better."

Amanda blushed at that, knowing Dusty was bisexual. "Yeah, but you aren't eighty."

"What does age have to do with liking sex? Just because you get old doesn't mean you can't enjoy it. We are programmed to find the old undesirable sexually because the older you get, the greater the chance of birth defects. Unfortunately this makes for a lot of old, lonely people. It's worse for women my dear, we start getting old sooner. Not a lot of old porn actresses but guys can work into their fifties if they stay healthy."

"Um ok. Thinking of my grandparents...Ummm you know, is still kind of creepy."

"Of course it is, until you get their age anyway. Come on, let's try the couch." They both got up and walked down the steps to the sunken couch. It was very soft leather, white as snow and unbelievably comfortable. The couch wrapped around the sunken floor so they sat opposite each other. There was a low table in the center and they both put their drinks on it and relaxed.

"Are you afraid of getting old? I mean more than most people since everyone is a little." Amanda asked.

"Honey, I am scared to death of getting old. I have another five, maybe ten years before I turn from one of the girls to a madam. That's why I spend so much time working out and taking care of myself, holding back the inevitable as long as possible. That's also why I try to live life to its fullest, experience it all before I get too old to enjoy it. I started the studio so I can still work once I get too old to 'shake my money maker', so to speak. I can't act forever but I can work behind the camera until I get gray and retire. A lot of actresses find that once the roles dry up, life gets very unpleasant. I plan to avoid that."

"I never really thought about that before but I guess the career of adult actresses is rather short. What usually happens?"

"Most of them find a partner or a husband and quietly fade away. A lot of them don't make it that far though; they die from alcohol or drugs, maybe both. Some fall into hooking or they may not have ever quit in the first place. The rarest of us break into legit acting like Tracy did a few years ago. Some die from abuse or outright murder since we have to deal with some of the worst scum on earth.' She paused to take a drink of water hoping Amanda didn't notice her sudden nervousness, "There are even rumors of snuff films but none have ever been proven to be real." Dusty knew she had an irrational fear of being murdered on tape but she kept it in check as best she could.

"What's a 'snuff film'? Amanda asked unaware Dusty's insides turned to jelly just mentioning the concept.

"It's where an actor is murdered on tape, usually while having sex but not always. All the one's the authorities have investigated have proven to be faked but there is the possibility some could be real. That's why I never travel or film alone."

"Sounds awful, why would anyone choose to become an actress?"

"Because my dear, it is usually the better of a very few bad choices. Its money and fairly easy work for a good looking girl. Some do it simply because they are natural exhibitionists and they are turned on by doing it on camera. Others do it to feed their drug habits or whatever. Many are hookers who do films as another way to make cash. Some, like Shelly, do it because it's a fun way to make a living."

"What about you? Why did you get into the business?"

"Well, I don't usually like to talk about it. I got into films for a definite purpose, to change attitudes and make a living at the same time."

"Huh? I don't understand."

"I was told the entire time I was growing up I was trash, a mixed breed. I was considered lower than dirt because of my mixed blood. I never had a chance at a normal life like yours Amanda; I have always been an outcast. I couldn't finish school because of the teasing and fights. The teachers treated me like dirt and so did the other kids. I was destined to life on the street once my father kicked me out of the house."

"Oh god, how awful..."

"Nah, not too bad really, the abuse stopped after that. He kicked me out when I clawed him after a really bad beating, I lost control." Dusty picked up her tail and smoothed the fur back into its trademark pattern. "I didn't have much choice but to do the best I could to scrape by but with my odd looks and mixed blood it was tough. I lived in a cardboard box for a while, and then I lived with a lesbian couple who took me in. They were the ones who got me interested in doing films. They worked for a studio off and on and thought I should give it a try. They said they liked it because they got paid for having sex with each other and they didn't have to turn tricks to pay rent. When I turned eighteen I went to the studio they worked at and I got a job. I cleaned the studio for minimum wage but at the same time I learned the way a studio worked. I saw how they set up shots and camera angles, how to set microphones and lights. By the time I did my first bit part, I knew just exactly how to look great on film. I eventually grew to bigger parts and better roles. Unfortunately for Oscar, I also learned how to sell videos and market a personality, chiefly mine." Dusty took a sip from her water and sat back in the couch. "I founded Mousehold Studios for two reasons; one was to focus on videos that starred myself so I could build a following and to offer the public a classier alternative to "Katmandu Studios."

Amanda raised an eyebrow, "How has that changed attitudes?"

"Well, look at what you see before you. I am a mixed breed fur from the wrong side of the tracks, once considered the lowest rung on the ladder in society and I used to live in a cardboard box. Today, I am being driven around in a limousine and I am loved and respected by a large number of people, they pay money just to see me. It is because of a change in people's attitudes toward us, letting the mixed bloods join in society. I like to think I helped by showing we could be sexy and desirable too."

Amanda thought about this for a minute and decided she would never fully understand Dusty but she did now understand where she was coming from. She recalled the way she felt when she found out Bill was a mixed breed. She remembered the prejudice she felt just for an instant back then. She fought long and hard since not to let it creep into her conscious thought. She knew it was wrong and felt guilty for feeling the way she had; it may even be why she let Dusty get away with so much with her. Overcompensation maybe? Then she remembered what it was like when she was a kid and how people treated mixed bloods back then and she realized attitudes had changed significantly since. She couldn't imagine being in Dusty's shoes back then, it would have been horrible.

"Anyway, enough ancient history for today, have any ideas for the promo art?"

"I have some thoughts but I really need to see the script first, I want the art to at least come close to the material it promotes." Amanda said as she remembered a video cover she did a couple of months ago that she was rather embarrassed about due to the fact they gave her the wrong title and story synopsis and the cover art reflected that.

"I can understand that, I haven't read the script myself other than a rundown of my parts. I do a lesbian scene and two straight scenes in the pool there and one in here. I have some fill in scenes to do but nothing too rough."

"I know I'm not real up on the adult business but why is it going to take four days? You do that in a one day shoot, maybe two if someone gets tired."

"I don't really know. It may be scheduling with one of the other actors or something. It may involve the pool and dealing with clarity or whatever. I've never done this sort of video before and your guess is..."

"Hello ladies." Dean walked to the edge of the sunken area and looked down on them. "So, what do you think of the place?" He removed his hat and walked over to the bar and set it down on the counter then descended the step to join them. "I love it myself but it is too big, I get lost in the place."

"Yeah, I know the feeling." Dusty said taking a sip of water. Dean sat down on the couch between the two and made himself comfortable. "Amanda brought up a good question, why are we scheduled for four days of shooting? Seems kinda long for just a few scenes."

"Ah, yes, well. The first day we will take time to train you how to perform underwater comfortably. I have a trainer ready to make sure there are no difficulties."

Amanda put her hand up to her mouth to suppress a laugh. Dusty and Dean both looked at her. "Sorry, the idea that Dusty needs a trainer for anything dealing with sex just struck me as funny."

"Does sound funny. I'm sure there is more to this underwater deal than just insert tab A into slot B. Do you have a shooting schedule on you?"

"I'm sorry, I don't have one handy. I will have a copy sent to you in the morning, besides we are relaxing today except for setting up. The real work will start tomorrow though. We will start training at 8:00 am, eat light tonight and skip breakfast in the morning except for liquids."

"What on earth for?" Dusty asked. Starvation wasn't part of the deal at all.

"Just a precaution, you will be thankful you did if there is a problem. Don't worry, we will finish up training by noon and you can eat whatever you want then. We won't actually do any wet filming until tomorrow afternoon. Also, for your safety I must insist no alcohol or recreational pharmaceuticals while we are filming this week. The filming is not particularly dangerous but an accident could happen so I need you in top form and sober."

"That's not a problem Mr. Martinez, I am a professional."

"I know but in dealing with the people in this business I have learned never to assume and to leave nothing to doubt. It is for your safety after all."

"I can understand. So, what sort of training am I supposed to get tomorrow? I've done it in water before so I am sort of curious," Dusty said as she looked at the pool.

"The trainer makes semi-amateur videos here locally and has done photo shoots for Playfur and even was the focus of an HBO Realsex episode about a year ago. Probably the most experienced underwater sex video producer there is. He is actually the production manager on this film and his name is Truman Gertz. He will be dropping by later to meet everyone. Anyway, the biggest part of your training will be breath control. You have to be able to hold your breath for a minute, two would be ideal."

"Two minutes? That's a long time, I think the best I've ever done was forty-five seconds and that was a struggle," Amanda said.

"Yes, that is a long time to hold your breath while having sex..." Dusty said, rather distractedly.

"He says he can get most anyone up to over a minute in a couple of hours and we are counting on that. He will also get you prepared for the sex scenes so that you won't drown in the process."

"That is a good thing..." Dusty said but was interrupted by several people entering the rec. room.

"Hiya Dean! Wow, nice pool," a scantily dressed black pantheress said as she entered the room along with a stocky Siberian Husky with the most startling powder blue eyes Dusty or Amanda had ever seen. "Oh my Dean, is that the famous Dusty? Of course it is, my you are more beautiful in person. Loved your last movie, 'Bad Ass', it is a classic."

"Thank you," Dusty said "and you are?"

Dean said quickly, "Dusty, these are your costars on this video, Sandra Noir and Lance Steele." The husky waved and Sandra blew them a kiss.

"Mind if we join you?" Lance asked as he approached the stairs to the sunken area.

"Please do," Dusty stood and greeted each of them as the came down the steps. Lance shook her hand and Sandra kissed her cheek. "Lance, Sandra this is my associate Amanda, she is my graphic artist and internet guru for my little studio."

Amanda nervously stood and shook Lance's hand and like Dusty, Sandra leaned over and kissed her cheek. As she did, Amanda caught the sound of purring, very quietly. She glanced into the panther's eyes and found something there that made her suddenly uncomfortable. It was the same look Dusty had just before she slugged her and Amanda felt the need to be elsewhere. "Glad to... Ummm meet you both. I'm sure you folks are going to talk shop and all. I'm sorry but it's been a long trip and I think I'm going to relax in my room for a while."

"No need to run off, sugar. We're real friendly I promise," Sandra said in a husky voice.

"Don't worry about it Amanda, go ahead and get settled in your room and rest up. I'm looking forward to a nap myself. We'll get together later, how's that?" Dusty said noticing the skunk's unease; she should since she had caused it before on many occasions herself.

With that she practically ran up the stairs and out of the room. Dusty stared after her then turned her attention to the pantheress, "My dear, I do believe you scared off my employee. She is rather skittish for being in the adult film business, still new to the whole thing really. Poor dear is too clean cut for her own good and she is straight to a fault."

"Oops, sorry 'bout that. I thought she might be interested..."

"Afraid not, she may be repressed or whatever but she doesn't swing that way. I learned the hard way myself not too long ago." Dusty rubbed her eye in memory. "She has a boyfriend to boot so I would ask you all to lay off of her. I'd hate to have her quit because you two hitting on her."

Lance sat down on the couch and said, "Not to worry Miss Dusty, I have a tough week of filming to worry about and I'm not looking for extra credit so to speak. Besides, I have you two ladies to make my week interesting as it is."

"That's right Lance, you do," Sandra said as she sat next to him on the couch placing her paw on his inner thigh.

Dusty smiled at the little interplay between the two of them. "So... you two into this underwater thing?"

"Oh yes, we love it. There is nothing else like it in the world," Sandra said running her tongue across her muzzle.

"What about drowning while doing this, aren't you worried?"

"Hasn't been a problem. You won't drown; your body won't let you. I suppose there is the possibility though that's why we have a safety diver on hand, just in case."

"How long can you hold your breath?" Dusty asked.

"I can usually do two and a half minutes consistently; my best is four and a quarter minutes."

"Good god... that's like forever. How can you hold your breath that long?"

"Practice and lots of vigorous sex," Lance said with a big grin on his face. Dusty and Sandra both laughed at that. "I can usually do two minutes but I can't seem to break the three minute mark. Too much muscle mass I guess."

"That is still impressive. You think this Truman can get me up to two minutes?"

"Oh yes, he can help out anyone to get close to two minutes usually. He is good."

"I hope so..."

***********************************************************************

Amanda awoke slowly, enjoying the feeling of silk sheets on her fur. The bed she slept in was wonderful and she hated to get up. Soon though, there was a knock on the door. "Come in," she said and Mr. Belgium entered the room and opened the drapes letting in the sun.

"Did you sleep well miss?" he asked as he turned to her.

"Oh, yes. Very well in fact. I could get used to this very easily."

"Yes, well indeed, breakfast will be served shortly. What would you like?"

Amanda thought about it then said, "I'd like some toast and coffee."

"Very well miss, should be ready by the time you are dressed. I believe your associates are awake and will meet you in the breakfast room."

"Thanks Mr. Belgium."

"You are most certainly welcome my dear." He then turned and left.

Amanda pulled the covers off and oozed out of bed. She went into the luxurious bathroom and started to take a shower but realized she had the wrong toiletry bag. She knew right off because there was a package of birth control pills and a box of prophylactics right on top. She tried not to blush but her face had other plans. She closed the bag and carried it with her as she walked out of her room and knocked on Dusty's door. She heard a muffled thump then she heard a voice say come in. She opened the door and peeked into the room.

"Come on in hon, we don't bite," a very naked Sandra said as she lay sprawled on top of the bed next to Dusty. Dusty was still under the covers propped up on pillows, her naked breasts were mostly covered by her long hair.

"Morning Amanda, how did you sleep?" Dusty asked as Amanda took stock of the scene before her then began blushing in earnest. She was afraid she would soon burst into flame.

"I... ah... was ok. The...ah... your ... bag... Ummm.."

'Easy girl, relax. We are all friends here." Dusty said trying to calm the embarrassed skunkette. "You know I don't sleep well alone."

"I... its ok. Just surprised is all. This is Ummm your bag; they must have been mixed up when we moved into the rooms."

"Ah, I was looking for that. Good thing I pack spares. Check the cabinet in the bathroom; I think I saw a strange bag in there, probably yours."

"Ah, ok. I'll check and put this up." Amanda went into the bathroom then returned a moment later with a similar bag. "That's mine; I left yours on the counter. You two coming down for breakfast?" She looked at the opened curtains then remembered a certain butler waking her up moments before. "Must have been interesting when Mr. Belgium woke you guys up, lucky you didn't give him a coronary."

"The butler? I doubt it sugar, he ain't interested. His tastes are more masculine I suspect," Sandra said as she stretched and yawned.

Amanda blushed again, her cheeks burning hotly. "Go on, get out of here and get dressed before your cheeks catch fire. We'll meet you downstairs in a bit, ok?" Dusty said as she pushed Sandra out of bed. "Might want to put on your swimsuit, we're going to be by the pool most of the day and I'm sure you'll want to take a dip. Sandra said the pool is an absolute delight."

"Um, ok... I plan on doing some sketches today so I doubt I'll spend much time swimming but who knows?" Amanda said as she walked out the door.

After Amanda left the room, Sandra jumped back onto the bed and began laughing, "My god, where did you find her? Steal her from a church picnic and ice cream social?"

Dusty immediately launched into tickling the pantheress. "In fact I did, sun dress, goofy hat and all."

"Ah ha ha ha... stop or I'll tell her about you screaming out her name when you came last night..."

Dusty stopped and said, "You wouldn't dare!"

"Oh yes I would, try me."

"Sandra, in all seriousness, please don't say anything about that. I really don't want her knowing and I really, really don't want to scare her away."

"Oh good heavens girl, she ain't interested in you and here you are mooning over her like a school girl. You got it bad..."

"And I don't want her to know about it either," Dusty said rolling out of bed and walked to the bathroom, the fur between her legs still damp from the attention a certain pantheress was paying to her just before Amanda knocked on the door. "Ah well, not like I won't be getting any this week," she thought to herself as she stepped into the opulent shower and turned on the water. She was joined shortly by Sandra who made the shower take a lot longer and far more interesting.

***********************************************************************

"Ok Dusty, Amanda, this is our production manager, Truman. He will show you what you need to know to do the filming we have in mind," Dean said.

"Hello ladies, glad to meet you. Can't believe I'm working with the great Dusty, it is a real honor." The raccoon reached out and shook her hand then shook Amanda's. "You folks ready to get wet?"

"I suppose I am," Dusty said, "Amanda is my graphic artist and she is doing some sketches and such for the studio. She isn't part of the filming."

"Oh, I'm sorry. I thought there would be two... Thing is, I really need two people in the pool so they can watch each other during training. Sure I can't talk you into joining us?"

"I'm not really..."

"Come on dear, you can keep an eye on me. Maybe ya might learn something and it'll be fun." Dusty said as she took her loose blouse off revealing a turquoise bikini underneath.

Amanda shrugged and unwrapped the towel from around her revealing a green, opened back one piece swim suit that tied behind the neck and sat down on a pool chair next to Dusty.

"Ok, ladies there are some important ground rules to remember while doing anything underwater. First off, just to be sure everyone is on the same wavelength I want to remind you that you cannot breathe water. There is a remote possibility that you could drown during either training or filming and you could die. I and the rest of the filming crew will do everything possible to keep that from happening but accidents can happen." Truman walked over and sat down facing the two women. "Secondly, no breath holding alone or when no one is paying attention to what is going on in the water. That is why we have safety divers. No hyperventilating prior to an extended breath hold either."

"Don't what?" Dusty asked confused.

"Don't breathe fast and hard before going under to extend your breath hold times. This is dangerous because you will flush out the carbon dioxide out of your bloodstream; blocking out the signal to your brain telling you to breathe. You cannot increase the amount of oxygen in your body so when you run out you will not feel the need to breathe and you could pass out. Passing out underwater is not a safe thing to do because, as I said before, you cannot breathe water. It's called 'shallow water blackout' and it drowns a lot of folks, even experienced divers. Take three or four deep breaths before you dive under and try to relax. Extended breath holds are a mental exercise more than a physical one. Keeping your mind on something else can help you extend your bottom time. I have filmed couples having sex underwater doing four minutes simply because they were occupied and didn't think about the fact they were underwater."

"Really? That's hard to imagine going that long. I can't even do a minute." Amanda said.

"I can get you past a minute and a half right off, two minutes may take a bit more effort but it is very do-able. Of course, it depends on your physical condition and the amount of activity you are doing. You will be surprised how long you can stay under if you are relaxed and having a good time."

"What about the act itself? Anything I need to worry about?" Dusty asked.

"You will find everything to be about the same except for two important things, one is lubrication; the other is buoyancy. Your body's natural lubrication is broken down pretty quickly in water and can grind everything to a painful halt. Most couples find entry to be rather harsh but after that things work normally. I recommend a waterproof silicone based lubricant to keep things sliding along nicely.

Buoyancy is the other problem. To have sex underwater, you have to stay underwater and you have to stay close to each other and not float away. Depending on how much body fat or muscle you have determines how buoyant you are. Ideally you and your partner should be slightly negatively buoyant. More than likely you will need to exhale a good amount of air from your lungs so you can stay underwater. That severely cuts into your breath hold ability but it means you don't have to wear weights just to stay down. My filming tank has handholds and webbing installed to help maintain your position. Unfortunately this pool doesn't have that so we will have to make do. Go ahead ladies and jump in."

Dusty and Amanda both stood up and Dusty was first to dive in. Amanda did a cannon ball dive right next to her boss as she surfaced and splashed her and Truman quite well. Amanda popped to the surface laughing while Dusty splashed her in the face in retaliation and caught a mouthful of water. She stopped laughing and spit the water out making a face. Dusty saw this and raised her eyebrows.

"Truman, what is the deal with the water? It tastes salty." Amanda asked making a face.

"Sorry, I forgot to tell you, this is a salt water pool."

"Salt water! What on earth for?" Dusty asked licking her muzzle and tasting the salty water herself.

"Many reasons; it needs a lot fewer chemicals to keep it clean for one. With the ozone filtration system and saline there is no chlorine in the pool water. The main reason we are using it for filming is the fact the water is the same salinity and PH as your body so you can open your eyes underwater and it won't hurt. You can also let water enter your nose and it won't burn like fresh water will. It is very comfortable to be underwater in this type of pool. Go ahead and try it. Open your eyes and see what I mean."

Dusty jumped up and grabbed Amanda's shoulders and pushed them both underwater. She let go of Amanda and they watched each other open their eyes and look at each other. They both smiled at the wonder of it then they surfaced. "Hey, this is neat! There is no discomfort at all. I gotta look into getting a pool like this myself."

"Yeah, this is neat. You say it won't hurt if it goes up my snout?" Amanda asked.

"Nope, won't hurt at all. May feel a bit weird at first but no pain. This is important for you Dusty, as you will be asked to take several positions during filming that will flood your nose. That's why we used this pool knowing it would be asking too much to require you to acclimate your nose to fresh water. Sandra and Lance are old hands at the underwater filming gig and have no problem with it but we were sure you would on your first underwater shoot. Go under and lean back, the water will enter. Remember not to breathe it into your lungs because..."

"You can't breathe water." Amanda and Dusty said in unison.

"Hey, you two catch on quick." Truman smiled then said, "There is another benefit to a saline pool, you are slightly less likely to drown in it. A little added safety never hurts."

"Why is that?" Amanda asked.

"Well, when a fur drowns and water enters the lungs different things happen depending on what sort of water is inhaled. Fresh water is absorbed into the bloodstream; your body does this so you don't drown on a foggy or really humid day. If you inhale fresh water, your body will naturally try to absorb it; unfortunately this will dilute your blood to the point where your heart will stop long before you die from lack of oxygen. Sea water on the other hand isn't absorbed but instead it draws out plasma from your blood causing it to thicken although you will have died from oxygen deprivation before that kills you. Also there are chemical imbalances caused by other chemicals in sea water that make it harder to revive you in a near drowning. If you have a choice, drown in fresh water. It is far less painful and you are easier to revive."

The two ladies were looking rather apprehensive as he explained drowning to them, Dusty turned a little green in fact, Amanda wasn't doing so well herself. "This water here is a saline solution that matches your body chemistry pretty closely so if you do inhale it, you body will not absorb it nor draw off blood plasma. The advantage is you have a lot more time available for rescue. You could, in fact, remain conscious long enough to get out of the pool yourself in a saline pool where you would pass out almost instantly from either fresh or sea water."

"That is if you actually inhale any water. Quite a few drowning victims actually never have any water enter their lungs because water hitting their windpipe will cause it to close off, not allowing water to enter. Strangely enough you are better off to inhale the saline than to have this happen because the buildup of CO2 will cause you to pass out sooner than drowning in the saline. The saline will carry away CO2 quite nicely buying you time to either extract yourself or be rescued."

"You mean you could breathe in this stuff?" Dusty asked.

"Well, no not really. They tried experiments using oxygenated saline back in the sixties and the test animals could breathe it for a little while. The saline had to be at eighteen atmospheres to have enough oxygen to keep them alive but the water still caused mechanical damage to their lungs. Mammals just aren't designed for breathing water."

"What about otter and beaver furs, they are aquatic?" Dusty asked.

"They have a distinct advantage over the rest of us in that they can hold their breath a lot longer plus they can't drown."

"Huh, come again? They breathe air right?" Amanda asked, confused.

"Oh yes, they do indeed. Aquatic mammals do not drown. If they can't get to the surface to breathe, they eventually slip into a coma-like state until they finally die but they don't ever inhale water."

"Interesting... anyway enough about this morbid stuff. When do we get to the sex part?" Dusty asked in mock coyness.

"First off we need to get you two comfortable underwater. I want the both of you to hold your breath and sit on the bottom for as long as you can. Take three and only three deep breaths then go under. Ok go!"

Amanda and Dusty both submerged and drifted slowly to the tiles at the pool floor. Dusty's hair floated all around her while Amanda's made a nice halo around her head. Amanda managed to stay on the bottom fairly well while Dusty kept trying to float up. After less than thirty seconds first popped Amanda then Dusty, both panting like steam engines.

"Less than 20 seconds ladies, you gotta do better than that. Dusty, try not taking such a deep breath before you go down, you'll find it easier to stay under that way. Ok, once again, three breaths then go." The two of them did just that and under they went.

This time Dusty had less problem staying under and on the bottom as they both watched each other hold their breath. Soon Dusty was puffing her cheeks in and out trying to extend her time while Amanda tried swallowing air. After thirty seconds or so they both were again at the surface panting.

"Ok, ladies, time to get used to holding your breath. You are now only allowed to take three breaths and then you have to duck back under. You can come up as quick as you want but you can only take three breaths. Feel free to explore the pool, do laps, whatever you wish but you can only surface for three breaths and that's it. If you feel dizzy or you are in distress, go ahead and stop; we don't want any accidents."

The both of them took several deep breaths then they both dove under. They looked around for a while then Amanda decided to swim to the deep end. She made it about half way before she had to surface. She did as she was instructed and only took three breaths then ducked back under. She swam back down to the bottom and continued to explore the deep end. She reached the far end of the pool and looked back to see Dusty's blurry form about six meters behind her. Amanda watched her for a few seconds then went back to exploring the bottom. Suddenly Dusty was in front of her with a really evil grin on her muzzle. Amanda back pedaled in surprise then lost sight of her as she darted behind her. To her horror she felt a quick tug on the string to the top of her swimsuit and a sudden loosening of her top. She turned as her hand darted to her top to keep it on. Dusty smiled then stuck out her tongue then backed away. Amanda quickly grabbed the strings and tied them back behind her head. Meanwhile Dusty laughed out a small cloud of bubbles then swam away. As soon as the knot was secure, the chase was on.

Amanda popped to the surface, took a quick breath then lifted herself out of the water with a kick then dove straight to the bottom like a spear. Seeing Amanda head to the surface, Dusty figured she had plenty of lead time and half a pool length so she went to the surface for a breath or two herself. Amanda hit bottom and kicked off hard to shoot herself like a torpedo at Dusty who had her back to her and was at the surface. Dusty suddenly felt a slight tug on her bikini top and realized Amanda had covered the distance much quicker than she anticipated. She ignored Amanda for a second or two to let her untie her top. An event she would find very appealing indeed. She then turned with mock surprise to find Amanda fiddling with her top strings. With a kick she tried to get away and in a quick motion tried to pull the top off of her and met with a great deal of resistance. She swam a few lengths away then reached around to feel what she had done. To Dusty's exhibitionist soul's dismay she found the skunkette had tied a big, ugly granny knot into her bikini stings ensuring the thing stayed on no matter what. Dusty cried out in frustration sending up a cloud of bubbles.

Amanda in turn began laughing at Dusty's expression as she discovered she was trapped in her swimsuit. Dusty then came to the conclusion that Amanda needed a good dunking right about then. She began swimming at Amanda with an evil smile on her face. Amanda suddenly realized she was in trouble and it was swimming straight at her. Instead of swimming away she hovered there watching as Dusty approached. Just as she was within grabbing distance, Amanda moved her arms upward plunging her straight down instead of away as Dusty expected. Amanda, being an artist and computer user allowed her to think three dimensionally where Dusty was still stuck in two dimensions for a few moments. By the time Dusty had stopped her forward momentum and started to swim down to Amanda, she had already touched bottom and then kicked away from Dusty putting half a pool length between her and the tiger-skunk.

Dusty, noticing Amanda's advantage, quickly adapted her strategy and followed her by dropping to the bottom and pushing off as hard as she could. This allowed her to get close to Amanda before she could swim off. She reached out for Amanda's foot but grabbed her tail by mistake. Amanda turned with anger in her eyes as Dusty realized her mistake and let go and raised her hands in apology. All furs learn early to never, ever touch someone else's tail without invitation. Amanda realized it was a mistake and forgave her with smile then swam to the surface. She broke the surface and sucked air while Dusty surfaced next to her.

"Sorry about that, it was an accident," Dusty said as she caught her breath.

"Forgiven."

"Good!!!" Dusty said as she rose out of the water and crashed down on Amanda, grabbed her by the shoulders and pushed down. Amanda, caught off guard, struggled as she was driven under and expelled air as she screamed in surprise. Dusty pushed her to the bottom and held her there for a few seconds as Amanda struggled. Suddenly she stopped struggling and went limp. Dusty immediately let go and backed away. Amanda just floated there not trying to swim up to the surface or anything. Dusty, just a bit worried, grabbed Amanda's arm and pulled her around to look at her face. To her horror, Amanda's eyes were closed and her face was completely slack. Panicking, she put her arm around her waist and raced them both to the surface.

As Dusty bolted to the surface, Amanda miraculously came back to life and managed to tie a huge knot in the string that held Dusty's bikini bottoms on. Once they broke the surface Dusty pulled Amanda around to face her and caught a face full of water. Amanda spit a huge mouthful of pool water at her and swam away as Dusty recovered. Dusty realized she had been tricked and laughed as Amanda sped away on the surface. Dusty swam off after her.

They both stopped as Truman called and waved them over to him. They both swam to the side of the pool near him. "Ok ladies, time to see where we stand. Three breaths and go." He started his stop watch as they both went under. They drifted to the bottom and sat facing each other. They sat motionless and waited. Soon though they got bored and Amanda began giggling. Dusty tilted her head and shrugged wondering what was so funny. Amanda grabbed her swimsuit and mimed pulling it off but with resistance.

Dusty in turn mimed "Ha ha," then stuck out her tongue. Amanda, trying desperately to hold her breath while giggling even harder as she pointed to Dusty's waist. She looked down and saw the knotted tangle that was her bikini string. She looked back at Amanda in amazement and tilted her head in question, "When?"

Amanda waved her arm as though she were swimming to the surface then she went still as though she were drowned then bent slightly and pretended to tie a knot. She turned to Dusty and smiled, shrugging.

Dusty put her hands on her hips in consternation then extended her middle finger in a Brooklyn salute and Amanda returned by blowing Dusty a kiss. This caused them both to laugh and lose air. After a few seconds they settled down and resumed sitting there as the need to breathe became more and more insistent but they calmly resisted for as long as they could. Amanda was the first to head to the surface while Dusty remained for a few more seconds then too returned to the surface. They both looked at Truman and Dusty asked, "Well, how did we do?"

"Surprisingly well in fact, Amanda was nine seconds shy of two minutes and you managed two minutes, four seconds. Outstanding ladies."

Amanda was shocked as was Dusty, "How on earth could we have done that?"

"Simple really, once you put it in your mind that you can't spend much time on the surface your body adjusts to the new situation. Basically you wean yourself off easily accessible air and only breathe when you really need to. Also, occupying yourselves and not really thinking about the fact you are holding your breath helps a great deal as well. One thing you need to keep in mind while filming is to be relaxed and not struggling to hold your breath. Nothing ruins a shot faster than looking like you're drowning. Time isn't as important as looking like you are comfortable and having a good time." Truman pointed to Dusty, "Ok, next part is getting you comfortable in different positions. Amanda, I need you to hold Dusty's legs while she lies back. Dusty, you need to lean back and let the water try to enter your nose. Some furs can keep the water out by maintaining a positive pressure and keep the water out. Unfortunately most can't because of various reasons, usually the way their sinuses are constructed. Go ahead and try. Remember, if your nose does flood, do not panic or let it enter your lungs."

Dusty lay back in the water and floated on her back while Amanda grabbed her legs. She took a couple of deep breaths then submerged. She let out a tiny stream of bubbles from her nose then a few large bubbles escaped as her nose flooded. Her eyes grew wide as the saline entered her sinuses with no discomfort. She just floated there adjusting to the weird sensation for a few moments then made an ok signal with her thumb and forefinger. She tilted her head back and enjoyed the freedom she had. She soon felt the need to breathe so she came up for air. She surfaced and coughed and choked as she tried to breathe. She realized her mistake as she recovered and vowed to remember to blow her nose clear before inhaling next time.

"You ok?" Amanda asked.

"Yeah, the water drained when I tried to breathe, wasn't expecting it is all." Dusty said as she cleared her nose.

"It happens, once you try it a few times you can usually not even bother to clear, just close off your nose and keep it flooded while you breathe. It gets easier the more you do it. Go ahead and practice a few times, trying to look as comfortable as possible."

Dusty once again leaned back and let the water enter again. She was expecting it this time and it was uneventful. She got used to it quickly and found she could handle it well enough. She floated trying to relax and found it wasn't hard at all. Soon her thoughts turned to Lance and Sandra, imagining the fun she would be having later on with those two. Soon she opened her mouth and let it flood as well. She tasted the salt only momentarily until she became used to it. It was really benign as far as she could tell, rather erotic actually. Her paws began to wonder as she enjoyed the sensations she was experiencing, rubbing them across her belly and hips. She stopped herself before she got carried away, remembering who was standing next to her. She closed her eyes and imagined a certain skunkette doing very naughty things to her and vice versa. She smiled as she came to the surface, took a few relaxed breaths then went back under. She arched her back and drifted down almost touching the bottom with her head.

She stayed like that for a few seconds then floated up again just under the surface. She could see Amanda watching her with an odd look, something akin to confusion but not exactly. She shrugged and closed her eyes. She let her mind drift and she relaxed. Her lungs felt fine so she decided to stay under a while longer.

The next thing she knew, Amanda let go of her legs and pulled her to the surface. Dusty opened her eyes and looked around wondering what was wrong. "Are you ok?" Amanda asked with a very worried expression on her face.

"Yeah, I'm fine," she said as she caught her breath. "What's wrong?"

"You were under for almost four minutes and you acted like you were unconscious, I got worried and pulled you up. I thought you were in trouble."

"No, I was fine. I think I may have actually dozed off. Four minutes? You have to be kidding; there is no way I could have done four minutes."

"More like three and a half," Truman said, "impressive none the less. You say you dozed off? I think there actually may be some otter in your ancestry, some aquatic grandparent perhaps?"

"I honestly don't know, maybe. Don't really know much about them. My parents didn't talk about them much and they never mentioned any otters I'm sure."

"Not a problem but you may want to look into it; may explain your rapid progress in your training. Anyway, I don't think there will be any need to continue breath hold training being you can beat both your costars. We will move on to more advanced training." Truman stepped away from the pool and opened a gym bag that was against the wall. He returned carrying two small packages. He tossed one to each of the women. "These are new."

Amanda looked at the package for a moment trying to figure out what it was, had a lot of Chinese writing on it. She glanced over at Dusty and found she had opened the package and was looking at its contents. It was an eight inch long purple, anatomically correct dildo. Amanda looked at the package again and saw a picture of the same thing only pink on hers. "Um... this looks a little too much for me. I think I'll sit this part out."

"I understand. I would appreciate it if you would hang around though; I would feel better if there was a third person here in case of a problem." Truman asked.

"I... um .. dunno.."

"Come on girl, loosen up. You might just learn something. You don't have to do anything if ya don't want to, just watch. I think ol' Truman is afraid to be alone with me, I might jump his bones or something if you leave."

"Yeah, you just might at that. Ok, I'll stay but I'm not using the toys." Amanda said as she tossed the package back to Truman. "I'm not doing any filming anyway."

"That's great, thanks. Ok Dusty what you need to do is practice fellatio underwater. I need to make sure you don't drown doing this. It is probably the most difficult part for you but it is the easiest part to film. In many cases this is the only act that can be filmed with some actors and actresses due to the difficulty of other positions. This toy," he held out the dildo Amanda handed him earlier," is about the same size as your costar so if you can handle it, he should be no problem."

"Hmmm not the biggest I've had, in fact it's about average for the porn industry," Dusty said as she tried out the toy with a few deft licks.

Amanda rolled her eyes. It was huge compared to Justin she thought as she watched Dusty devour the phallus completely then pull it out slowly. She couldn't help thinking she had enough trouble with Justin let alone something that big. Her words echoed in her thoughts about Justin and his supposed problems sleeping with someone like Dusty and she could see what she meant by it. Dusty was a sexual athlete and someone like Justin could be intimidated easily by her. Thinking about it she realized she had little to worry about as far as Justin and Dusty were concerned. Amanda smiled at that.

Dusty seeing her smile caused her to pull the toy out of her mouth and return the smile. She gestured to Amanda to give it a try and she promptly shook her head. Dusty shrugged and returned to licking the thing very seductively.

"Ok Dusty, obviously you can handle Lance well enough. Time to see if you can handle him underwater. Ready?"

"Sure, no problem." With that she ducked under and began doing very naughty things with her mouth to the plastic penis. Every now and then bubbles would escape her mouth and nose as she worked on the purple phallus on the bottom of the pool. After a minute or so, Dusty returned to the surface for a breath.

"Very good, now try it upside down. Amanda, could you grab her legs again?"

"Sure," she did as she was asked and grabbed Dusty's ankles. The tiger-doe floated on her back catching her breath. She nodded when she was ready and ducked under with the dildo in her mouth. Amanda pulled up on her legs and caused Dusty to float inverted in the pool. Her nose promptly flooded but she paid it little attention as she worked on the dildo. She did this for a bit longer this time, enjoying the sensations. Soon though the need to breathe made itself undeniable and she returned to the surface once Amanda let go of her.

"Well my dear, you are one of my best pupils to date. Obviously you will have no trouble with fellatio. The rest of your training will involve you and Lance getting to know each other and doing a little rehearsing. The last thing I need to show you is lubrication. If you have had sex in the water before you know lubrication can be a problem. This will greatly help with that." Truman pulled out a small aqua colored bottle and handed it to Dusty. "This is a waterproof lubricant made for playing in the water. It does not wash off so it will keep things sliding smoothly. It will only come off with soap so if that is a problem, now is the time to tell me. A very small amount will go a long way so be careful using it. It is silicone based so there shouldn't be any allergic reactions to it."

"Ah, I've seen this before, may even tried it one time or other. Good lubricant but a bit pricey even when bought in bulk. This stuff gets everywhere though and is a pain to get out of fur," Dusty said as she eyed the bottle.

"Yeah, the only time I use it is in the water. Otherwise I use water based, makes life easier." He dug out another bottle and put it near Amanda's towel. "Just in case."

"Yeah, the door on my car may start squeaking or something," Amanda said, "thanks."

"Heh, never heard it put that way before. You are quite welcome. Dusty; feel free to practice in the pool for a while. Try the lube out and make certain penetration doesn't cause you any problems underwater. Just use a drop or two..."

Amanda put up her paws, "Whoa, time for me to leave folks. I've reached my comfort limit here, sorry."

"That's ok Amanda, thanks for sticking around as long as you did. I'll meet up with you for lunch, that ok?"

"Sounds great, have fun..."

"It would be a lot more fun with a friend."

"Yeah, well I'll pass."

"Suit yourself. See ya later." Dusty said as she watched Amanda pull herself out of the pool. As Amanda climbed the ladder, Dusty watched the skunkette's butt with unabashed desire. Yeah, it was a little wide but she had something that many would kill for, a well proportioned figure. Dusty was well endowed in the breast department but her ass was just a bit too narrow to match her boobs. Many women are the opposite, nice rear but the breasts are too small. Amanda had a nice balance that she could only wish for.

Amanda turned and saw Dusty watching her. She quickly walked over to her towel and put it around her hips. The little Aqua-blue bottle fell over and she bent down and picked it up. She was about to just leave it on the pool deck but she took it with her instead to prevent someone from tripping on it; planning to toss it out in a trashcan later. She felt like fleeing out of the poolroom to escape the tiger-doe's lecherous gaze but decided to maintain her dignity instead and she calmly walked out. She was used to it although it did unnerve her at times. She really didn't know how to feel about the unwanted attention. On one hand it was a terrific boost to the ego to find one of the most famous and popular sex film stars wanting you in the worst way but on the other hand Dusty was female and was in the habit of sleeping with just about everyone. She wiped the wet hair out of her eyes and stepped into the showers.

She placed her towel onto a bench along with the little bottle of lubricant. She then stepped into the shower and rinsed the saltwater from her fur and swimsuit. She removed her swimsuit and let the water wash over her for a few moments then walked over to the fur dryer. It was a standard unit that was attached to the wall and had several nozzles on it that blew air in many directions to quickly dry the fur. She hit the start button on the device and began turning slowly letting the warm air dry her thoroughly. She ran her blunted claws through her fur to separate the hairs to help dry faster. She didn't use a dryer everyday because it tended to leave the fur a bit on the fluffy and dry side which was uncomfortable but in the Florida heat and humidity it wouldn't be a problem.

As she dried herself off, Amanda was startled by Sandra who was watching her. Amanda was getting tired of being the object of lecherous stares at this point. She covered herself with her paws and said, "Oh good god! Can't I get a little privacy! I feel like it's a damned meat market and I'm prime rib on sale."

"Sorry sugar, don't mean any harm by it. I just wanted to talk to ya a second is all." Sandra said as she turned around to give Amanda the illusion of privacy to finish her grooming. She watched Amanda in the mirror out of the corner of her eye, a smile crossing faintly across her muzzle as she watched the embarrassed and upset skunk girl quickly finish drying off and put a towel around herself.

"Ok, what do you want?"

"I just wanted to apologize for yesterday; we got off on the wrong foot. In this business we tend to be very friendly with each other and I mistakenly thought you might be interested. We were told you were Dusty's fluffer and..."

"A what? What is a fluffer?"

"In the biz, it is a term used for someone, usually a close friend or partner who helps an actor get or stay sexually aroused between takes or before filming starts."

"Oh for heaven's sake, I am not anything of the sort. Why does every lesbian I meet think I'm gay?"

"I don't know, maybe its wishful thinking in the subconscious or something, I don't know. I'm not a lesbian, by the way."

"I... huh?" Amanda said in surprise.

"I'm like your boss hun, I like boys a lot but I'm attracted to girls too. Lesbians generally stick to other girls. There is a big difference, at least in my book. Most folks are flexible enough to at least fantasize about a same sex encounter from time to time, just too repressed by their upbringing to act on it, usually."

"So why are you different?"

"I dunno sugar, I just am. I guess I'm more concerned with enjoying sex with a person and I ain't so hung up on plumbing. An orgasm is an orgasm no matter how the plumbing is arranged."

Amanda considered it for a moment then said, "That explains some things, I guess but it doesn't explain the fact I keep getting hit on when I do nothing to indicate I swing that way. I just don't get it, my clothes are cheap, my butt is too wide, I wear glasses ten years out of fashion and my fur pattern is common as dirt."

"Honey, those are superficial things that don't matter much. I can't say exactly why I thought you were gay or bi at least; you just sense these sorts of things. Then again you were traveling with the great Dusty and she ain't shy about her sexuality and I assumed you and her were more than friends is all." Sandra looked the skunk over as she stood there and said, "Another thing, your butt is too wide... for a fashion model. For a fur who eats more than Tic Tacs and ice water you have a very fine butt. I imagine Dusty has offered to make you an actress, am I right?"

"Yes, she has and I don't think I'd make a very good one."

"Don't kid yourself, doll. You are built like a brick shithouse. A little rough around the edges maybe but a definite two seater for sure." She reached over and picked up a robe hanging on a hook on the wall and handed it to Amanda.

Amanda promptly blushed at the compliment. She put the robe on and dropped the towel then tossed it in the bin provided. She walked over to her swimsuit and gathered it and the little bottle hoping the black panther hadn't seen it. She wished she could ditch the damned thing but she couldn't at the moment.

"There is a clothes dryer over there if you want to use it, that way you don't have to wear a robe around the house. You can also put it in with the towels and the staff will wash it and have it ready for you this afternoon. They run a tight ship 'round here and they don't want you drippin' water on their nice furniture."

"I can see that. Thanks." Amanda walked over to where Sandra pointed and sure enough there was a washer and dryer set around the corner. She tossed her wet clothes in the dryer and turned it on. The lightweight fabric wouldn't take more than a few minutes she figured. She turned around and leaned against the dryer and looked at the cougar. "I still don't get it; I don't look anything like either of you. I look like a frumpy house frau at best and there isn't anything special about me."

"I think it has less to do with looks than it does with personality, in my case at least. You are attractive in a wholesome sort of way and you are very comfortable with who and what you are and that makes me want to be with you. I can't really explain it; the heart is hard to understand sometimes. And speaking of hearts, you need to be careful with another fur's heart because you hold hers in the palm of your hand. Try not to crush it. You have no idea what power you hold over her or how she feels about you. Me, I just want to get into your pants but Dusty, I think she would give up acting if you asked her to just so she could be with you. She has it bad for ya."

"Oh come on, you've got to be kidding. I'm nothing more than an unclimbed mountain to her, a new conquest to add to her collection or another notch on her makeup case. She would lose interest the minute I went to bed with her and you know it."

"It may have started out that way but that isn't what it has turned into. I slept with her last night but she was sleeping with you in her mind. She's in love with ya sugar and you've no idea do you?" She felt a twinge of guilt as she broke her promise but there were bigger issues at stake.

"No, I didn't... and I still don't," Amanda said, crossing her arms, "Why are you telling me this?"

"Hun, I've been in a similar situation and the damage inflicted was too terrible to imagine. I'm trying to keep it from happening with you two."

"What, you were in love with someone who wasn't interested?"

"No sugar, I was loved by someone I didn't expect and I unknowingly hurt them so badly they committed suicide. I have never gotten over that and I hope to spare you and Dusty a similar fate. You really need to know before someone gets hurt. You can rip her heart out if you want, I don't really care but I think you should at least know."

"My god, I had no idea. She isn't the type you think could love anyone like that, more of the love'em and leave'em type plus her being a porn actress, well I just..."

"Hun, just because someone's in the biz doesn't prevent them from having emotions. In many cases though we have to hide behind a mask because being in the biz isn't the most respectable of professions and we pretend it is the mask that does the dirty deeds, not the real person underneath. She wears a different mask with different people, with you she pretends to be the overbearing tramp while with me she is the older sister. Incestuous older sister I might add..."

"Spare me the details," Amanda said as she rolled her eyes.

"Heh, suit yourself sugar. Anyway, the woman behind the masks is not the one you see, not really. She is as caring and vulnerable as anyone else, maybe more so. She also feels things just as deeply and she can be hurt just as bad. Her scars are thick though and it would take a special person to bring that real Dusty to the surface if at all. She is in love with you girl, like it or not. Try to look beyond the mask and keep in mind there is a real person there."

"Well that's just dandy. What the hell am I supposed to do? I don't love her, the idea of having sex with her or any female makes my skin crawl. She is hard to take sometimes and the fact she sleeps with just about everyone makes me... I dunno, uncomfortable. Now you tell me she is madly in love with me."

"Can't tell you what to do hun, frankly I don't know what to tell you but I did want you to at least know what was going on. I can tell you this, love doesn't require sex but it does make it better; friendship can be almost as good. Throw her a bone every once in a while, hold her hand, touch her, hug her if she needs it, let her hug you if you need it. If, and it is a remote if, you do find yourself falling for her it isn't so terrible. No man can ever match the touch of another female," Sandra said with a smile on her muzzle.

"Yeah well, I'll keep that in mind but there is little danger of that, trust me."

"I used to think the way you do until I met the right person. That's all it can take girl, the right person in the right place and time."

"If you say so but like I said there is not much of a chance of that happening," Amanda said as she turned and checked her suit and found it dry. She took it from the dryer and signaled Sandra to turn around. She smiled and turned to let Amanda dress. A few seconds later the robe flew by her into a laundry basket near the far wall then Amanda said, "Ok, you can turn around."

"You're cute, weird but cute."

"I'm me, take it or leave it." Amanda picked up another clean towel and wrapped it around her waist then stepped toward the exit. "It's been real... now, if you will excuse me."

"Certainly hun; do me a favor if you would, let's keep this little conversation between us. Dusty would die if she knew I told you this, she is afraid you'll run off or something if you knew. I don't think you will though, I think you are stronger than that."

"I dunno what I'll do, I'm not exactly convinced she is all that hung up on me and all. As long as she behaves herself though I don't see a need to leave anytime soon. She is the most interesting fur I've ever met and she pays well. She drives me crazy but it's never dull when I'm around her and it certainly beats waiting tables. Anyway, I need to go. I won't mention this to her but I will keep it in mind." Amanda turned and walked to the exit. "See you later."

"Later, hun. See you at lunch maybe?"

"Probably, I'm going to do some sketching before lunch, catch Dusty before filming starts and all." With that and a swish of her tail, Amanda left the room.

Sandra stared after her for a moment then looked at the mirrors and smiled then left herself.

***********************************************************************

Dusty was finished with the training session for the morning and was just about to get out of the pool and hit the showers when Amanda's voice came over a speaker in the poolroom. "Hey, over here." Dusty turned and could see Amanda on the other side of the glass wall waving at her. She swam to the wall and to the side of the pool and looked for an intercom. "Just talk, I think there is a microphone on already."

"Uh...hi. What's going on?"

"Mr. Belgium said Truman had left and that you were done. I was thinking we had a little time before lunch and you were still in the pool I figured it would be an opportunity to sketch you swimming in there."

"Fine by me, you want nude or in my bikini?"

"Bikini is fine; I can take it out easier than putting it in later. I want you to float around in different poses in front of the window so I can do a few roughs and then pick the best to finish."

"Ok but nude would be more fun though."

"Yeah, yeah but I couldn't work. You think you can hear me underwater? I doubt you can see me if I signal."

"Try it." Dusty dunked under and peered into the glass not seeing very well.

"How's that? Can you hear me?"

Dusty nodded her head and gave an ok sign.

"Great, let me get set up and we will get started. Hang on." Amanda turned to the coffee table and picked up a sketchbook and pencil then sat down. She looked at Dusty and said, "Ok, give me some sexy, yet classy poses and I'll tell ya when to stop and hold it."

Dusty nodded then bobbed to the surface, took a breath then went under. She hovered mid-window and began what she called "her routine" which consisted of various glamor style poses she runs through when doing still photo work. She adapted the basic poses for underwater as best she could and Amanda watched while chewing her pencil until she held up her hand and yelled, "Hold that pose. Just a sec."

Amanda began sketching quickly to get the basic flow of the pose, the details would come later. Dusty floated in one place as best she could using small motions until she could hold her breath no longer. She was about to break for the surface when Amanda said she was finished. She zoomed to the surface and breathed several deep breaths to settle herself.

"Ok, you can try a few more when you're ready." Amanda said as she changed to a new page.

Dusty gave a thumbs up then dived under again. She tried a few more poses, this time using the freedom of three dimensions to a larger degree. Amanda soon told her to hold up, did a quick sketch then motioned her to continue. This went on for another thirty minutes; Amanda drawing while Dusty tried a multitude of seductive poses and catching a breath when she could. Suddenly Amanda looked up from her latest drawing she was working on and said, "Take a break Dusty, I got to get another pencil. This one is dead."

Dusty waved then went to the surface and caught her breath then dove back under. She peered into the window and could make out Amanda digging around in her art case. Figuring she had a moment, she ran her claws through her hair to get it flowing away from her eyes. The claw on her right paw caught in her hair, snagged on a cracked tip she meant to fix this morning but was sidetracked by a certain panther and fresh batteries. She tried to pull it free but it was going to pull a lot of hair with it so she used her other paw to reach around behind her head and carefully extract her hair. She stared up blankly as she concentrated on the task of getting her paw free. She drifted down a bit while she did this, her attention totally on her claw tip.

Amanda meanwhile found her pencil and returned to the couch and her sketchbook. She picked up the pad and then looked at Dusty. Her jaw dropped as she saw the perfect pose. Dusty had it nailed and Amanda madly began drawing before Dusty lost it. "Hold that pose! Don't move a muscle!" she yelled at the intercom as she tried to get it down.

Dusty, heard the skunk yell and froze. "She has got to be kidding," she thought. She shrugged and kept working the hair out of the bad claw while not moving around too much. Without losing too much hair in the process, Dusty finally managed to free herself. She peered into the glass and she saw Amanda still drawing like mad. The need to breathe was becoming more urgent and soon she would have to go for air. Amanda looked up then went back to her drawing. Dusty let loose a torrent of bubbles trying to stay off surfacing for a few more seconds.

Amanda realized Dusty had been under quite a while holding that pose so she said, "Ok Dusty, I got enough to work with..." Before Amanda could finish, Dusty was darting to the surface. She was sucking air like a freight train getting her breath back. Amanda looked at her watch and realized it had been almost five minutes. "Dusty, I can't believe you did that!"

Dusty turned while treading water on the surface, "Did what? I got my hair snagged in a claw."

"The pose was perfect no matter why; what I meant though was the fact you just held your breath for almost five minutes. That is scary for a land mammal, you have be part otter or something."

"I could be, no doubt something is different. I come from a long line of mix-breeds so it is possible. Did you get enough?"

"Yeah, more than enough actually. I need to flesh this latest pose out before we move on, won't be but a minute or two. Hang out and rest for a few while I finish this up."

"Ok, no problem. I like posing in water, no sore muscles or hurting back." Dusty said as she floated, relaxing.

"Yeah, but where would you put the water tank? Not the closet I call an office I hope."

"Nah, if we could actually use that room for anything it wouldn't be your office. Maybe an extension to studio A."

Amanda was concentrating on drawing so she really wasn't paying Dusty much attention and idly said, "Why not make it a combination deep spa and hot tub with a couple of glass sides, that way you can use it in videos for a variety of settings. One side looks like a hot tub, another side looks like a pool. You can use it as a hot tub when not filming yet still take it off your taxes as a business expense."

"Not a bad idea, not bad at all. You may have something there," Dusty said as she thought about it.

"Yeah right. Anyway, I'm finished with this one. How about a couple more? Maybe one with you in a similar pose but with your right paw reaching for the surfa..." Amanda looked up from her drawing and saw Dusty. To her chagrin, Dusty was floating underwater close to the glass with her bikini top pulled up and her ample breasts were fully exposed while she pushed them together and fondled them. Amanda rolled her eyes and covered her face with her paw while shaking her head. In a bad imitation of Arnold as the Terminator she said, "I need a vacation."

"What was that dear?" Dusty said innocently. Amanda looked up again and saw Dusty had put her top bikini back on and was floating on the surface laughing.

"Very funny," Amanda said in exasperation, "On that note, I think that I'll call it quits for now. That last pose is probably the one I'll use anyway so I'm going to head back to my room and finish up these sketches and give you some roughs to look at later and we'll choose the one to go with."

"Ok, we're meeting for lunch I believe?' Dusty asked.

"Sure, I think we are going into town right?"

"Yeah, that's the plan. Sandra and Lance want to try out some new restaurant on the beach. Supposed to be really nice."

"Expensive too I bet."

"You know it. Don't worry Oscar is picking up the tab. See you later."

"Ok, have fun."

***********************************************************************

The door to the limo slammed shut as Dusty, Amanda, Lance, Sandra and Dean Martin settled in for the fifteen minute ride to the restaurant. Rick walked around and got into the driver's seat and soon they were off. The ride to the restaurant was uneventful except when they passed the Miami Dolphin's team bus and Dusty and Sandra opened the sunroof and waved to the players then in a move that was pure Dusty, she took her top off and flashed "publicity and advertising" at them. Meanwhile Amanda tried to crawl under the seat while Dean and Lance just smiled.

After a fantastic lunch at a place called "Harry Dix Seafood Shack", they all piled back into the striped limo and drove back to the mansion. Sandra showed off the t-shirt she bought from the restaurant with "I got crabs from Harry Dix" on the front and "I love Harry Dix" and in small print, "Fresh Seafood and Steaks," on the back. Everyone groaned at the horrible pun.

As they sat at a light a couple of miles from the mansion there was a terrific crash and they were all slammed around inside the limo. Airbags deployed in strategic locations preventing anyone from hitting anything very hard. They were all stunned and shaken but unhurt. Dusty, being closest to the door tried the handle but the door was stuck. The sunroof still worked so she hit the button and opened it. Lance stood up and looked out to see a large rusty truck plowed into the rear of the limo. The driver was desperately trying to start the truck, most likely trying to run. Lance jumped out of the limo and ran for the truck. The driver seeing the large husky coming for him panicked and opened the door and ran on foot. Lance was faster than that and had the Latino looking driver on the pavement face down before he knew what hit him.

Meanwhile Amanda and the rest of the party extracted themselves from the wreck and gathered around Lance and the 'hit and almost run driver'. Dean was on his cell phone calling the police and Dusty looked around then asked, "Where is Rick?"

Amanda and Sandra turned and ran over to the limo and checked on Rick. He was curled over the steering wheel holding his muzzle. Blood was trickling through his paw. "Rick, you ok love?" Sandra asked with genuine concern as she opened the door.

"I'll live but I cut the devil out of my muzzle and forehead. Anybody got a rag?"

Sandra produced a handkerchief and handed it to Rick. He used his free hand to wipe the blood from his eyes. "You need an ambulance Rick?" she asked.

"No, I'm fine. The cut isn't bad but head wounds bleed a lot. What the hell happened?"

"Looks like the guy in the truck slammed into the back of us then tried to run. Lance stopped his get away and he is making sure he stays put until the cops get here." Sandra looked back at the car and whistled, "Angelo is gonna kill Dean..."

***********************************************************************

"Oh, no. Absolutely not. I am not going to be in the pool while you are.. are having sex. No!" Amanda was adamant and on the verge of panic.

"You know as well as I do Rick can't do it. The cut on his face has him out of the water for at least three weeks and we need a safety diver. You are the only spare diver we have. And the only one I trust to take Rick's place, I might add." Dusty said as they sat in the rec. room facing the glass pool.

"Why do you need a safety diver in a pool anyway?" Amanda asked Dean who was sitting next to Dusty.

"It's a law down here, no commercial filming underwater without a safety diver. Doesn't stipulate how deep or where. Dusty said you were qualified and since we start filming in twenty minutes I don't have time to find another. I got a guy I can call but he is already on a shoot today. We just need you to watch the actors and make sure they don't get into any trouble. You will also have an octopus rig setup so you can give them air and they won't have to go to the surface quite so often. I can pay you the standard dive rate of $300 a day." Dean looked worried as he explained the situation.

"Oh no I...," Amanda's eyes got big, "Did you say $300?" and her jaw dropped.

"Yeah, $1200 if you do all four days of shooting. I'll lose twice that amount today if I have to cancel shooting for this afternoon."

"I'll kick in an extra $1000 if you do all four days as well, I trust you far more than "some guy" off the street anyway," Dusty added.

"You have got to be kidding! That's $2200! I can't believe you want to pay that much..."

Dusty said, "Look, here's the deal, we have only a few days to do this shoot and we lose the pool and house. If we don't complete the shoot, I don't get paid and the studio is out the money I paid you and our expenses. I get a $1000 show up fee that will cover airfare for one of us and that's it." Dusty leaned over and touched Amanda's shoulder, "Please, as a favor to me?"

"Why do I see myself giving you mouth to mouth after you fake drowning? Oh yeah, I realize now... because I know you," Amanda said crossing her arms.

"I would never... ok the thought had crossed my mind," Dusty said sheepishly, "but I promise no funny business, scout's honor."

"Right, when were you ever a scout?"

'She knows me too well,' Dusty thought. "Ok, ok, I promise no messing around."

"All right, I'll do it but on one stipulation, when we get back home you have to look for a legitimate job for the studio."

"What?" Dusty asked in surprise. "What do you mean by that?"

"I'm talking about you finding non-adult projects for the studio, like a commercial or a community service video, I don't care. I want something I can show to my parents when they ask about where I work. Anything that doesn't involve pornography will do. Promise me that and I'll do it; well that and the money that is."

"With our reputation I doubt anyone would touch us with a ten foot pole but I'll try, that good enough?"

"That's all I can ask anyway." Amanda said, "Where is the dive equipment? I need to check it out."

Dean looked at his watch, "Rick should be back from the clinic by now, he called and said they were done stitching him up and Marko went to bring him back. Get with Rick and he'll get you set up. Thanks a lot for helping out."

"Sure, I'll get set up. What do I do, just hang out until they are ready to film?" Amanda asked as she walked toward the dressing room area to put her swimsuit back on.

"Yeah, we will be doing some rehearsing, light and equipment checks right off then we will do scene 12 and 13. 12 is topside so you just need to be ready just in case but 13 is wet and you need to be there in the pool." Dean said. "Rick will be with you to give you a hand."

"Ok, I'll see you in a bit then."

***********************************************************************

"How is the face Rick?" Amanda asked as she met up with the wolf. He had a bandage on his muzzle and forehead. He was setting a couple of scuba tanks down near the side of the pool. She was wearing a blue 'shorty' wetsuit Sandra had let her borrow. It was a little tight but it would serve to keep her warm during her long periods of submersion. The cut off arms and legs allowed freedom of movement while keeping her from getting chilled. She had to admit she looked good in it.

"Oh, it's not bad, 23 stitches and a little bruising. The doc said no submersion for a while so I'm out of action." He gave Amanda an appreciative glance then smiled.

"Yeah, I heard. I got talked into taking over the safety diver bit. Dean said to get up with you."

"You are rescue trained? Gotta be certified or there could be a problem." Rick said.

"Yup, PADI certified advanced with rescue and deep water." She had her certification card and her ID in a waterproof case around her neck so she pulled it out of her wetsuit and showed it to him.

"Really? That's unusual. Ohio? Where in the world did you get a deep dive cert. in Ohio?" he asked as he looked at the card through the clear case.

"I was certified in an abandoned missile silo that had flooded. The thing was 150 ft deep. The college used it for all sorts of dive training and it was not too far away."

"Neat, sort of like diving down a well I suppose. Done any open water diving in the ocean?"

"No, I took courses while I was in school but really haven't done much since."

"Ah, well you need to experience a real reef dive while you are in Florida. I have a cousin who runs a dive charter boat, he could set you up. I wish I could take you myself but ..."

"I understand, sounds like it would be fun. Dusty said she wanted to do some diving while we were here. Maybe we could take you up on it later this week. I'll ask her, how's that?"

"Fantastic, I'm sure Carl will be thrilled to have Dusty and yourself on a dive trip. He has a really nice boat in fact, best setup around."

Amanda looked over the equipment Rick had piled up next to the pool. She picked up a regulator and looked at it. "Kind of beat up isn't it? I think this must be 20 years old."

"Yeah, it is rather old but they are all still in perfect working order, kept rebuilt and checked regularly. They have been relegated to shallow water work because they are a bit long in the tooth and all. They also purge easy and can be inverted so if an actor grabs it upside down they won't get a lung full of water. They don't make them like this anymore, at least where someone could afford them."

"Oh, I see. What do you use for weight? I'll need about ten pounds or so."

"Right here, I have these soft weights, they are a lot more comfortable than a regular weight belt. Try them on."

Rick handed two soft pouch weights to Amanda and she looked them over, "You put these on your ankles right?"

"Yeah, here ya go. Put your foot out." Amanda complied and he put the weight around her ankle then the other. They were soft and conformed to her nicely. "You won't need a buoyancy compensator in the pool since it is so shallow. Put the gear on and we will check the weights. You got a mask?"

"Yeah, I have a prescription set I bought for the trip." She showed him the mask and snorkel. She then showed him the fins.

He looked at the mask and nodded then looked at the fins, "Those are nice but they are way too much for the pool here. Fins this long are going to get in the way too."

"Why is that?"

"Well, they tend to get into the shot while they film. Mysterious fin tips are a sure ticket to a ruined shot. Here, I have a set of shorties that will work. Try them on."

After much adjusting of straps, Amanda managed to get them to fit. She took them off and set them to the side. She grabbed a regulator and started checking it over then proceeded to attach it to the tank in textbook fashion. When she was done she looked up and noticed Rick was watching her. "What?"

"I've always wanted to watch how it was supposed to be done. Very professional." He smiled and told her to turn around. He picked up the tank and helped her put it on. They spent the next few minutes adjusting straps and such until it fit correctly. "Get in and we'll check your weight and make sure everything is ok."

"You know, I can do this myself," Amanda said as she picked up her mask and fins.

"Oh, I'm sure but I don't get the chance to help a lovely lady into her dive gear very often."

"Flattery will get everywhere. Too bad I'm already spoken for."

Sigh, "Yeah, me too."

"Thanks though," she said as she stepped to the side of the pool and descended the ladder. As she stood in waist deep water, she slipped the mask over her face and muzzle. The soft silicone gel conformed to her face and sealed against her fur. It would leak a little but the purge valve would drain most of it. She smiled at a remembered image of a commercial diver who shaved around his eyes to get a complete seal, ick. She put the regulator in her mouth then tried a few breaths. Finding no problems, she tried the spare octopus regulator to be working as well so she walked to the deeper end of the pool and dropped underwater and put her fins on. Once they were strapped on she switched regulators and purged the water out of it and took a breath. Working as it should she swam into the deeper end of the pool. She soon noticed she was a little too buoyant and swam back to where Rick was standing.

"How is everything?" Rick asked as she stepped to the side of the pool.

"I'm a little light, maybe a couple pounds more."

"No problem," he turned and rummaged through the gear piled near the pool then returned with a couple of small soft weights. "Here, slip these into the pouches on the side of the weights, they are a pound apiece."

"That should work," she said as she took the weights and slipped them in and secured them with Velcro. She tried the new arrangement by swimming to the deep end again and did a few checks. The new weights were about right, slightly heavy but close enough. She switched regulators a few times making sure they breathed and purged correctly. She swam around a bit making sure the fins worked out ok. Finding no problems she swam back to the side of the pool where Rick was standing and popped up out of the water.

"How is everything?" Rick asked as he bent down near the edge of the pool.

"No problems here, been a while since I've done this."

"Go ahead and get used to using the gear and burn up some air, we have plenty. They are still setting up."

"Ok, good idea." She looked over to the far end of the pool and saw Sandra and Dusty standing next to Dean obviously going over the scene. One of the film crew signaled to Amanda and she swam across the pool to him.

"Since you are already suited up, could you take this gray card and hold it up to the camera so we can get a color check? We need you against the window to start then back off a bit. We will tell you where we need you with the intercom.

Amanda took the card and swam to the window. She dove under and held the card against the glass in front of one of the two cameras.

"That's good," came a distorted voice through the water. "Now the other camera. Good" Marty, she thought his name was, adjusted the camera. "Ok, swim back five feet." She complied. "Good, right there." He again adjusted the camera then moved to the other and fiddled with it too. "Ok, now swim back about 20 feet. Keep going, keep going. Good, right there." Again he adjusted both cameras then said, "Ok, that's it, thanks." With that she swam back up and handed the card back to the crewmember.

There was a splash near the window and she saw Rick drop in some air tanks with long hoses and regulators. An otter Amanda hadn't seen before took the tanks and swam down to the bottom near the window. Dean waved at her and said, "We are about ready to start filming. Come over here for a second will ya?"

Amanda swam over to their side of the pool, "Yeah?" she asked pulling the regulator from her mouth and pulled down her mask.

"I need to get you together with the actors and go over hand signals. Truman said it would be best if we did this right before filming. Dusty, what is the signal for, 'I need air?' She pointed to her muzzle tip. "Great, now what is the signal for, 'I seriously need air or I am in trouble?' Dusty grabbed her throat with both hands. "Good, Lance, what is the signal for, 'I need to go to the surface?' He made a pointing gesture to the surface then shrugged. "Remember Lance, you and your partner are not going to be able to see very well. Use your entire paw and move the whole arm. You and Sandra are old hands at this and can tell what is happening with the other but Dusty will have to get used to each of the other two. With the intercom we can give direction, so just listen to what is said."

"Amanda, you are going to be a headache for us because of the two cameras so try to stay in the spot we tell you. We will be in the deep end near the window so we will need to have you close so they can get air. We have tanks and regulators within reach of everybody but it is your responsibility to be there if they can't reach or get into trouble. Anybody have any questions?" Dean looked around, "Ok, no questions then let's get wet."

Sandra dove in a few feet from where Amanda was holding onto the side followed by Dusty. Dean walked back over to the rec room and the cameras. Lance followed him. The otter Amanda had seen before slipped into the pool with a hand held camera. He wore only a pair of dark thong briefs and a snorkel. The snorkel was a puzzle since otters were at home in the water. Once he was in the water she saw why he was using it, he could breathe without taking his eye off the camera. He waved at her then disappeared underwater. She in turned waved back then put her mask back on, put the regulator in her mouth and dropped under as well.

Dusty and Sandra were breathing from a couple of regulators on long hoses while the cameraman swam playfully around the two of them stopping occasionally to adjust the camera. Amanda moved near the tanks and hoses in case she had to grab them for any reason. Soon Dean was on the intercom, "Ok Sandra, Dusty, we need you to move to the middle of the window. Look down and you will see a fake drain on the bottom. That is your reference mark, try to stay near that if you can. Amanda, move to the left. That's it. See the stripe? That is your boundary, stay on the far side of the line and you should be ok. When the actors drop the regulators, pull them out of camera range. Bring them back when they signal. I would appreciate if you two would take breaths at the same time if possible so we can get some filming done." Dean looked at his watch and said, "Places everybody. Ladies, you know the shot, I want some hot lesbian action. Start sensual and work into it. Landis, give me intimate tight shots." The otter gave a thumbs up and began filming. "Action!"

Sandra and Dusty both dropped their regulators and Amanda pulled them away. She grabbed them up and waited, watching the two actresses start doing what they were paid for. They swam around each other in a slow motioned dance at first then they moved together in an embrace, locking muzzles. Amanda looked around in panic as she realized where she was and what was going to happen. She fought the feeling down as best she could and decided to concentrate on watching for signals for air or of distress. In that way she could ignore the fact she was watching two furs having sex; females at that.

As the scene progressed, both ladies shed their bikinis and were kissing again when Sandra stopped and signaled Amanda. She swam instantly to her side and purged the regulator and handed it to the pantheress. Dusty was in no distress and winked at her then took the other regulator and caught her breath as well. It was almost three minutes before Sandra and Dusty got their breathing back to normal and recovered enough to go back to a minute or two of filming. Soon they handed the regulators back to Amanda and swam back to the mark. Again they returned to acting out the scene, apparently with enthusiasm. Dusty played her lithe tongue over Sandra's nipples as her hands massaged the panther's tight butt cheeks. Sandra's head fell back and she made bubbly moans into the water. The otter cameraman Landis moved closely to the two and filmed what Amanda could only think of as an anatomy lesson filming so close. She did her best not to think about it.

Before very long, Sandra disengaged from Dusty and signaled for air. Amanda was instantly there again with two regulators and waited for them to catch their breath. She gave them both an ok signal with her fingers and they responded in kind then Dusty removed her regulator and blew her a kiss. Amanda rolled her eyes and took the regulator away from her and waggled her finger at her. Dusty was surprised by this unusual show of defiance and realized she still needed a couple more breaths. She looked at Amanda and gurgled a laugh then shrugged. She then batted her big, sad eyes at Amanda and pointed to her muzzle asking for more air. Amanda relented and handed her the regulator back.

The little interplay between Amanda and her was a new twist to their relationship. Dusty was suddenly and inexplicably turned on by the skunkette's asserting a little backbone for a change. She became increasingly aroused by the idea and this in turn caused Dusty to literally devour Sandra as they returned to filming. Dean and Marty stood in awed silence as Dusty transformed a relatively mundane sex scene into something... else. The sexual energy was intense as Dusty's passions discharged onto Sandra like lightning hitting a flagpole. Dusty's muzzle buried itself into Sandra's warm, wet folds and lavished the panther's flowering womanhood with a ravenous passion, her tongue dancing and flicking like mad with and occasional bubble passing her lips. Sandra was lost in a sea of pleasure, oblivious to everything except the electric touch of Dusty's tongue and the feel of the tiger-doe's hands on her body.

Everyone watching was affected by the passion they displayed including Amanda who watched with the others and couldn't help but be affected by the raw sexual energy flowing from those two. It was amazing. Amanda realized she was holding her breath while watching them and only broke from her trance as she remembered to breathe. As she took a couple of breaths she noticed Sandra was suddenly losing air in great torrents but refused to stop. How much time had elapsed she had no idea but it seemed a couple of minutes at least. Dusty showed no sign of needing or wanting to stop as she worked Sandra's body over.

Sandra suddenly threw her head back and convulsed uncontrollably losing even more air. Amanda was instantly worried because she had been without air a long time. Soon Dusty stopped and let Sandra recover from her orgasm, grinning from ear to ear. Sandra came to her senses moments later and realized she was in trouble. She started trying to swim to the surface but was too weak and disorientated to make it. Amanda was there shoving a purged regulator into her muzzle within a second or two. She sucked great gulps of air as she struggled to recover her breath. Amanda could hear her whine with each breath, she had cut it close. She looked at Dusty and found she had retrieved a regulator herself and was breathing off of it without difficulty. She noticed the tiger-doe was rubbing herself absently as she breathed, not caring in the least if anyone was watching. Amanda was conflicted, at once embarrassed by seeing what she had and also envious of her shameless sexuality and confidence. She also wished she had a little privacy at that precise moment so she could relieve the pressure building in her own loins, imagining Justin working her over like the scene she just witnessed.

The intercom crackled to jarring life, "Wow, folks that was amazing! Landis, tell me you got that..., please tell me you got that!" The otter grinned at Dean and Marty and gave a big thumbs up. "Fantastic! Good job people. Alright everybody, lets take a break and let everyone catch our breath." With that everyone headed to the surface, Amanda towing Sandra slowly to the side of the pool. Amanda latched an arm around the ladder as she pulled them close to it. She looked to Sandra and saw she was on the surface and had dropped her regulator and was still breathing hard. Amanda spit her regulator out and asked, "Are you ok?"

Sandra looked over to Amanda and said between breaths, "I... am... fucking great! Dear lord... what got into that woman? That is the best... sex I've ever had!"

"That's um... nice. Can you climb the ladder or do you want to head to the shallow end?"

"I'm fine, just give me a couple of seconds." Sandra said, her breath easing. Dean, Marty, Rick and Lance walked into the pool area and met them by the ladder. Dusty and Landis popped up seconds later and headed to the ladder as well. Once they were all at the surface Dean started off a round of applause that was picked up by the others.

"Great work ladies. That was amazing!" Dean said as the applause ended. They helped Sandra up the ladder followed by Dusty. Dean wrapped Sandra with a robe then in turn wrapped Dusty in one as well. "Ok folks, take thirty minutes then we finish the scene."

Rick motioned to Amanda and she paddled over to where he was standing. "Everything go ok? Did Sandra push it like she usually does?"

"Yeah, I'd say so. Darn near drowned, she do that often?" Amanda asked pulling down the mask.

"Usually, she really loves the water. I've had to resuscitate her a couple of times."

"Really? Sounds like a death wish or something." Amanda said as she removed her tank and handed it to Rick.

"Oh, no, nothing like that. She just enjoys pushing herself and sometimes she pushes too hard."

"Weird if you ask me. Did look like she was enjoying herself though. I don't know, something came over Dusty while we were filming I've never seen. She was almost wild down there."

"Well, when you hold your breath while having sex the experience can become more intense, maybe she was caught up in that. I don't know."

"Yeah, that could be it." She flopped her fins on the pool deck then proceeded up the ladder. She grabbed a towel and dried off her face and hair. Rick checked the equipment then set it down next to the rest of the gear. "I see now why it's going to take four days to film just a few scenes. One minute of film and three minutes of breathing could make this a very slow process."

"We are actually ahead of schedule right now, that scene went pretty fast. Dusty is really taking to the underwater bit pretty well, she is doing far better than Dean and Truman expected. Dusty has great breath control, if she can keep up with Sandra underwater she is a natural. Lance can't even come close and I'm not even in the running."

"Oh, you are an actor too?"

"Oh, no, I'm not 'wolf' enough to be in porn and I am not an exhibitionist. No way I could perform for an audience. Being married to Sandra is tough enough..."

Amanda did a double take and almost choked, "You're married to Sandra?"

"Yeah, ain't it a kick in the pants. We have a rather open relationship as you can tell."

"But she slept with Dusty last..." Amanda said in shock.

"So did I and we had a wonderful time. Dusty is a great gal and a lot of fun. I had to get up early and get some equipment so I didn't see you this morning," Rick said. "Sandra told me about your reaction to seeing her and Dusty."

"Aren't you jealous?" Amanda asked incredulously.

"No, not at all. Sex and love are not the same thing and we don't base our relationship on sex. Sandra and I are soul mates but our sexual appetites are vastly different and if we were true only to ourselves, we would have split up years ago. It's an arrangement that works for us and our marriage couldn't be stronger."

"I'm sorry I didn't mean to pry, I was just surprised to find you were married. I'm afraid my Midwest upbringing didn't prepare me for such things very well. I work for a porn studio yet I get embarrassed just looking at pictures I work with." Amanda smiled weakly.

"Don't worry about it, if everyone was like Dusty or Sandra, they wouldn't be special."

"What about Lance? I thought they were a couple."

"Lance is an ok guy, kinda strange but treats Sandra like a goddess. Lance is able to keep up with Sandra and her underwater fixation far better than I can. He is the perfect partner for her when filming and they have quite a following for their videos. Sandra and Lance aren't much more than casual lovers and usually pair up for filming only."

"I don't understand but I guess I don't have to as long as you and her are happy." Amanda said as she finished toweling off. "Anyway, what is next?"

"Well, after the break we get back in the water and film the rest of the scene which involves Sandra returning the favor then a grind session."

"Huh? A what session?"

"You know, they open their legs and ..." Rick made two peace signs with his fingers and brought them together and interlocked them.

"Oh, wait, I get the picture. Never mind, I don't want to know." Amanda said as she crossed her arms. It was going to be a really "fun" video shoot, she could tell.

***********************************************************************

Dusty, Sandra and Lance were at the bottom of the pool finishing the final scene. Amanda stood by as she had for the last four days of shooting serving as safety diver while Landis swam around them filming tight close ups with his underwater camera. Since Lance wasn't in the shot except from the waist down, he was breathing off a regulator while Dusty and Sandra took turns fallating him. Amanda, having spent the last few days watching the participants closely knew the routine by now. This was the longest part of shooting a scene since it doesn't end until Lance ejaculates and it could take a while. One good thing was that since Dusty and Sandra were in this one together they could switch off thereby keeping Lance stimulated and hopefully finish before they all grew old.

Dusty had let Sandra take her place with Lance and swam out of the camera's view and to Amanda who waited with a regulator in her hand. Dusty was completely naked but four days of watching the tiger-doe have sex at the bottom of the pool had pretty much immured her to the situation and really didn't spare it a thought now. Dusty caught her breath and waited her turn. After a minute or so, Dusty spit out the regulator and looked at Amanda with an inpatient expression then rolled her eyes. This probably reflected what everyone else was thinking right then, hurry up and let's get this over with.

Amanda made a big production out of looking at her dive watch then laughing into her regulator. Dusty smiled as well then pretended to yawn. It was his third session today and it was a given that it would take a while and it did. Although not the final scene of the movie, it was the final scene to be shot for the video. Everyone was anxious to wrap up filming so that they could go about their lives. Dean and Marty had to be at the airport that afternoon to catch their flight to Cincinnati to deliver the raw video tape to Oscar but more importantly to Amanda, Justin would be arriving on the same commuter flight. She was excited at the prospect of seeing Justin again and hoped they would have a great time together before they had to fly back home to the snow.

He called yesterday and said he had passed his accelerated diving course and would be able to join them on a diving trip when he got there. Rick's cousin had arranged for a private dive trip to a beautiful reef that only a few operators knew about. That of course would have to wait, everything was put on hold until Lance finished and he seemed to be taking his own sweet time. Dusty took another couple breaths from the regulator then returned to take Sandra's place. They switched around and Sandra swam over to Amanda and retrieved a regulator and caught her breath. As she sucked in great lungfuls of air, she reached over and grabbed Amanda's arm and looked at her dive watch.

Sandra was just as anxious to be done as everyone else and Amanda could tell by her body language she was getting tired. Dusty was at home doing this, even more so than Sandra since she had much better breath control and she was in better shape than Sandra to boot. Amanda had noticed Dusty was trying not to out do Lance and Sandra by too much, instead she kept her breath holds about the same as theirs. Amanda supposed she didn't want to show them up or maybe she just didn't want anyone to know she may be part otter, she wasn't really sure.

She watched Sandra breathe off the regulator to make sure she was okay. Her attention was then drawn back to Lance and Dusty as Lance began moaning into his regulator. "Oh good, we can get this over with finally," Amanda thought as Lance orgasmed, sending stringy tendrils of ejaculate into the water. Sandra immediately dropped the regulator and joined Dusty to finish out the scene. Amanda had to swim to the side to keep everyone in view as Landis moved in to get the close up. Sandra and Dusty worked on Lance a little while then they both blew bubbly kisses to the camera then swam to the surface.

"That's a wrap folks, thanks for the great work," Dean said over the underwater intercom. "Landis, lets get that camera housing cracked open double quick, we have two hours until the flight leaves and we need to get everything ready to go." The otter gave a thumbs up and headed to the surface. Lance, the only actor still in the pool slowly made his way to the surface, looking over to Amanda and gave her an ok signal. Once he was climbing the ladder Amanda went to the loose SCUBA tanks, props and lost swimsuits and began scooping them up to hand to Rick. Once everything was out of the pool, she made one last look around and headed to the shallow end herself. Once she reached the end of the pool she stood up and began taking her gear off. Rick helped her with the tank as she climbed out of the pool.

"Man, am I glad to be done with that. Nothing lessens your appreciation of sex like turning it into work," Amanda said as she set her mask and fins on the pool deck. Rick handed her a towel and she used it to dry her face.

"Yeah, I know," Rick said as he began breaking down the tanks and other gear. Amanda raised an eyebrow at that but said nothing. She helped him breakdown the gear and carry it to his truck.

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"Justin!" Amanda said as she ran up to him as he walked out of the security area. He saw her and set his bags down a second before being nearly tackled by a very excited skunkette. They locked muzzles in an impassioned embrace and only let up for air.

"Ok you two, keep this up and I'm getting my video camera..." Dusty said with a big smile. Justin looked over Amanda's shoulder and saw Dusty for the first time. She laughed and Justin smiled sheepishly and said, "Hi, ah Dusty." Amanda grabbed his muzzle and kissed him again. Dusty burst out laughing. Moments later they broke off again, both of them a little breathless.

"Miss me?" Amanda asked

"Not at all, why would you think that?" Justin said with a huge smile on his face. Amanda punched him on the arm. "Ok, you got me; yes I missed you."

"That's better, I missed you too." Amanda said as Justin collected his bags. "You ready to do some diving? I told you about the trip we have planned, you think you can handle it?"

"I thinks so, I'm not confident doing it yet." They all walked to the parking area of the small regional airport.

"Don't worry about it Hon, we'll watch out for you," Dusty said as she grabbed one of Justin's bags. "Nothing to it, shallow reef dive with lots of stuff to look at."

"That sounds great, I'm looking forward to it." Justin and the ladies stepped into the bright Florida sunshine and made their way to the rental van. Rick got out and helped load the luggage and soon they were on the way to the mansion. On the way Justin asked, "So, how was your week of shooting? Everything come...err... did it go ok?"

Dusty burst out laughing and Amanda smiled and rolled her eyes. "Yeah, everything came out in the end." Justin proved to both of them that raccoons could indeed blush. "Amanda saved the day for us, her safety diving on the shoot allowed us to complete filming."

"She told me about it on the phone. Quite the turn of events, what happened to the other driver?"

"He had several outstanding warrants out on him, he'll be in jail for a while from the looks of it," Rick said from the driver's seat.

"So, what was it like watching Dusty... ah, never mind," Justin said becoming embarrassed.

"It was boring as hell for the most part, Justin. They spent most of their time catching their breath and after four days I doubt they got thirty minutes total film out of it," Amanda said crossing her arms. "I've had more fun at the dentist to tell the truth."

"That is why it's called work my dear and it is why you were paid for your time. Paid well I might add." Dusty said. "It wasn't exactly all fun and games for me and the other actors. It did have its moments though."

"True, there is that. Justin, I may finally have enough to get that new laptop I've been hoping to get. Plus I can get a new set of tires for the car."

"That reminds me, Steve at work lent me his for the trip. I had a few things I had to work on over the weekend, thankfully I got most of it done on the plane. Do you know if they have net access at the mansion? I need to send some files to the office."

"I think so but I'm not sure. We'll ask Mr. Belgium when we get there. He's the head butler and caretaker," Dusty said then added, "He is also rather formal in his demeanor. Be sure to address him as Mr. Belgium, by the way."

"I'll remember, thanks," Justin said as he put his paw out and Amanda grabbed it and held him in hers. He smiled as he once again realized how lucky he was.

***********************************************************************

"Amanda, how do I get this fitting to stop leaking? I checked the o-ring and it looked fine but I have a small leak where the regulator attaches to the tank."

Amanda looked at Justin's SCUBA tank and disassembled the regulator and checked the o-ring. She used a claw to pull the small rubber ring out of the valve seat. She carefully examined the o-ring but found nothing wrong with it so she looked at the seat. She ran a claw tip around the recessed area and then said, "Here is the problem, there's a tiny spot of dirt stuck in this groove allowing air to get around the ring. Nothing serious." She scraped the offending debris out of the groove and replaced the o-ring. She reattached the regulator and turned on the valve. She listened a moment then picked up a bottle of sports drink and dribbled a little over the valve then looked for bubbles. Nothing showed so she let Justin continue to assemble his gear. She watched him like a hawk making sure he did everything correctly.

She couldn't fault him on the o-ring, she had learned about that trick the same way in her college course. She smiled at the memory while she assembled her own equipment. She looked over and saw Dusty and Sandra putting their gear on as well. Carl, the dive master, was giving them one last look over before telling them to descend to the platform on the back of the boat and get in the water. Carl was Rick's cousin and he had a similar fur pattern although that is where the similarities ended. He was barrel chested and looked like a pro wrestler with his swimsuit on. He was strong as an ox and proved it as he tossed around dive tanks like they were paper mache.

He helped Dusty and Sandra waddle to the stern then watched them lower themselves off the dive platform and into the water. Making sure they were ok, he then walked over and checked on Amanda and Justin. "How's it going over here?"

"Had a small leak on an o-ring on Justin's rig, I cleaned it off and checked it out. Not leaking now so I think I got it."

Carl tugged on Justin's arm having him turn around. He spun around slowly and Carl looked at the valve closely then checked the lock down knob. He then spit on the junction looking for any bubbles indicating a leak. Satisfied there was no other problems he looked them both over carefully, adjusting Amanda's buoyancy vest a little and then told them to hit the water.

With their fins in paw, they waddled across the slightly swaying deck to the stern then made their way down to the dive platform. Justin followed Amanda's lead and sat down on the platform and slipped his fins on then lowered himself smoothly into the water. Amanda puffed a little air into her buoyancy compensator vest to keep her at the surface then watched as Justin did the same. "You ok?" she asked.

"Yeah, no problem." Justin asked as he put his mask over his eyes, the muzzle cup made him look like a very odd bird. She didn't say anything since hers looked just as silly. Carl, on the other hand, had to use a nose tube since his muzzle was too long for a one piece mask. He was at the dive platform slipping his fins on as she looked at the mask he was wearing. She had tried them once and found she didn't like them at all compared to a one piece. Amanda thanked her lucky stars as she put her mask on as well. She then put the regulator in her mouth and bit down on the conforming muzzle piece. The soft silicone formed around her teeth providing an airtight seal. She tried out the regulator and found it working as it should. She breathed in and out while she watched Justin.

Justin put the regulator in his muzzle and tried it out himself. He bubbled as he ducked his head under and breathed through the regulator. He popped up a few seconds later with a big smile on his face as he spit out the regulator. She couldn't help but smile in return, it was infectious. She was excited and nervous as well, this being her first real dive in open water but she kept up a confident appearance since she actually had more experience and training than everyone except Carl.

She put her regulator in and gave it a try by dipping her head under and taking a few breaths. Everything worked as it should so she looked around a bit. She could see the bottom of the dive boat and the anchor line dropping into the crystal blue depths. She could see Dusty and Sandra off to her left and Justin floating next to her. She reached down and behind to snag her pressure gage and made sure she had plenty of air. Satisfied she had a full tank she reached over and checked Justin's just in case. Finding nothing amiss she lifted her head out of the water just in time to see a blur and hear a wet slap. She looked and saw Justin with a pair of bikini tops plastered to the side of his head.

"Sorry, I was aiming for the boat," Sandra said while laughing at Justin. Amanda rolled her eyes then looked over at Sandra and found what she expected. The ebony pantheress had removed her top and was floating there half nude. She then saw Dusty shrug and pulled her top as well and tossed it squarely into the stern of the boat. Justin, caught between embarrassment and shock peeled the bikini top off and looked at it a second realizing its implications then threw it onto the boat. He then looked at Amanda with an expression of borderline terror, expecting Amanda to... well, he really didn't know what to expect.

Amanda, having spent the last week around those two naked and having sex, going topless was pretty much a non event. She smiled at Justin's discomfort and told him in a quiet whisper, "Look but don't touch." She then splashed him with her paw and laughed.

Justin, visibly relaxing, splashed her back and joined her in a laugh. They stopped when they heard Sandra say, "Hey Sugar, why don't you join us in going au natural?"

"No thanks, I don't think my boyfriend could survive it. He's about to have a coronary as it is," Amanda said, "Besides, I can't compete."

Justin paddled over to Amanda and pulled her mask off and kissed her wet muzzle then said, "Don't believe that for a second, you are more beautiful than those silicone bimbos ever thought of being."

"Justin, you are such a wonderful liar. I almost believe you." Amanda returned Justin's kiss but broke it off when Carl entered the water.

"Ok folks, everybody ready? Justin, you test your gear?"

"Yeah, everything is working ok." Justin replaced his mask and tried his regulator again.

"If everyone is ready, let's head down. Take it nice and easy, drift down the anchor rope and we will meet up on the bottom then head for the reef. Put your gloves on and don't brush the coral, it will slice you up like a cheese grater. We have an inexperienced diver on this trip so I have to keep a wary eye on him. Try to keep out of trouble." Carl said this as he put his mask on then tried out his regulator. The rest of the dive party put their masks and regulators in and got ready to descend. Once he saw everyone was ready he signaled and let the air from his buoyancy vest then grabbed the anchor rope about ten feet down and waited. Everyone followed suit and descended down the rope slowly.

Amanda held Justin's paw as they dropped into the clear blue liquid sky of the reef. She watched him closely looking for signs of distress. She was worried he might have trouble clearing his ears on his first dive. Of course any diver can have problems, it's a part of diving for the most part. He had no trouble and even pulled his regulator out and smiled at her. He forgot to purge the regulator and got a nice slug of salt water when he put it back in. She heard him cough into his regulator and she made the hand signal asking if he was ok. He gurgled a bit but said he was ok. She shrugged then showed him the right way to purge the regulator and he nodded. He removed his regulator and then purged it correctly then put it back in. Satisfied he could handle the basics she relaxed a little and they continued down the rope.

Sandra and Dusty were on the bottom first followed by Amanda and Justin. Carl brought up the rear making sure he kept a close watch on his charges. They all regrouped at the bottom then Carl pointed to a large coral formation about 20 yards from them and they made their way to it. The first thing Amanda noticed was the unbelievable number of colorful fish swimming around. The water was alive with fish swimming in countless patterns and Justin was lost in the movement and color. She couldn't help but be caught up in it as well as a school of tiny fingerlings flashed by in a cloud. Sandra stopped and opened her arms as the fish swam by letting them surround her. Amanda was struck by the sudden beauty of the moment and vowed to put the image to paper when she had the chance.

Just as suddenly as it appeared, the cloud vanished into the blue. Once everyone recovered Carl motioned to move on. They swam along the reef stopping now and then looking at an interesting denizen or coral structure. They were all watching some rock lobsters crawl along the bottom when they all heard some clicking. Amanda looked up to see a pod of dolphins circling around them. She nudged Justin and he looked up and did a double take as a gray streak passed near him then disappeared into the blue. Soon another one swam near and hovered by them, giving the group a good look over. The warm water suddenly filled with squeaks and pops as the pod chattered around them. Dusty and Sandra looked up as they realized they were being watched. Carl was off to the side a bit watching everything like a mother hen.

There was a large dolphin that seemed bolder than the rest that eased close to Dusty and she reached out and touched him on the snout gently. He let her rub him a bit then he moved over toward Amanda. She was both scared and thrilled as the dolphin swam to her. She hesitantly reached out with her paw and the dolphin turned and presented his belly and she gently rubbed him as he drifted next to her. She forgot to breathe as the wild dolphin let her rub and touch him. Soon other dolphins joined in and let others in the dive party come close and rub and touch as well. There was something magical about dolphins and they way they would interact with other intelligences in the sea sometimes. This was a moment that would be remembered by each of them for the rest of their lives and it made their entire trip.

Carl, of course, had seen this all before as it was his edge in the dive tour business. He had befriended the pod years ago and made sure to bring lots of their favorite fish to keep them in the area. Even so, he was still affected by their presence and no matter how tough and crusty he made himself to be, he still marveled at their streamlined beauty and keen intelligence. He would spend more time with them once he finished with the day trippers and feed them properly. He never fed them while the tourists were with him so the dolphins never expected food from them and kept their behavior in check.

All too soon the pod of dolphins moved on and the divers were by themselves again, all were caught up in a sense of wonder and were slow to recover. Amanda, concerned about Justin, was first to break the spell and reached over to Justin's pressure gage and nearly screamed when she saw he was at 300 psi. She grabbed her gage and saw she was not much better. She reached down and grabbed her dive knife and tapped the hilt three times on her tank. Everyone stopped and looked at Amanda as she waved her arms. She took her gage and pointed then made the signal for low air. Quickly everyone looked at their gages and realized they were all low on air.

Carl took charge and signaled everyone to slowly swim to the surface. They were not all that deep so Carl didn't worry too much but did make certain to get the dive party moving smartly to the surface. Amanda grabbed Justin's buoyancy vest and watched him like a hawk, asking him if he was ok with hand signals as she puffed a small amount of air into his vest then did the same for hers. As they moved to the surface, Amanda looked at the others and saw Sandra was buddy breathing with Dusty and Carl was watching everyone while keeping an eye on his pressure gage. She looked at hers and saw it was reading 250 psi and it was getting a little harder to breathe.

Carl pointed at his gage and then pointed to her. She signaled her pressure with her fingers then pointed at Justin and signaled his 300 psi reading. He gave an ok sign then got Sandra and Dusty's attention and did the same thing. They slowly and calmly ascended towards the surface, stopping at about ten feet for couple of minutes for a safety stop. So close to the surface, everyone's air pressure came up and consumption dropped off enough to allow everyone to stop and depressurize without a problem although Justin's air fell off pretty quick due to his excitement.

Once they had completed depressurizing they all moved to the surface on Carl's signal. Amanda and Justin broke the surface and they used what little air they had left to inflate their buoyancy vests. Amanda spit out her regulator and asked, "Justin, are you ok?"

"I'm fine, a little scared but good otherwise. What happened down there? I'm sure our air should have lasted longer than that, right?" He pulled his mask down to look around. He saw the others had surfaced and were swimming their way.

Amanda, pulling her mask down as well said, "Yeah, they are supposed to. We were only at 50 feet so we should have had plenty of bottom time, 30-40 minutes at least. I don't think we were down over twenty at the most."

Sandra, Dusty and Carl soon joined them. Amanda asked the same question to Carl and he said, "I think we were the victims of hot fills. They probably didn't cool the tanks off before filling them or their air coolers weren't working. They put hot air into the tanks and because of the Florida heat they didn't show their true pressure until we were in the cooler water for a while and we were faced with near empty tanks. Anyway, everyone ok?" The dive party all said they were so he nodded then swam to the boat, "You can wait here and I'll pick you up or you can swim back to the boat if you're up to it."

Dusty put her mask back on and followed Carl underwater which Amanda thought was odd until she remembered Sandra was buddy breathing off her regulator so she may have had a lot of air left. Sandra followed on the surface using her snorkel. Amanda looked to Justin and asked, "Think you can swim to the boat or do you want to wait?"

"I'm ok, I can swim. It isn't that far. How about you?"

"Not a problem, just worried about you." Amanda said as she kissed Justin and tasted the salty sea water. She broke the kiss then said, "Last one to the boat is a shaved ape!"

Amanda and Justin raced to the boat although with all the equipment it was a slow, ponderous race. Justin pulled ahead as they approached the boat and was waiting at the dive platform when Amanda arrived out of breath. Considering they were both out of shape computer geeks, it wasn't exactly a surprise. Carl helped them climb onto the dive platform then onto the boat. They removed their gear slowly because they were all bone tired from the excitement and exertion from the dive and the swim back to the boat.

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"Hey Amanda, what's this?" Justin asked as he picked up a small bottle that fell out of a towel and rolled on the thick carpet covering the bedroom floor. He read the label until Amanda hurriedly snatched it from him. "Aquablue, what the heck is that?"

"Nothing, none of your business," Amanda said, her cheeks turning a bright crimson.

"Oh come on, what is it? You don't have to hide anything from me, we're lovers remember?"

"Well, I guess you're right. I meant to throw it away but I didn't have the opportunity." She handed him the bottle.

"Aquablue Lubricant," he read off the label, "Intimate personal lubricant formulated for use in the water. Silicone based, will not wash off with plain water, perfect for the pool, hot tub or shower." Justin handed the bottle back to Amanda. "Why would you want to throw that away? We might want try it out."

"Justin Conrad, I have no intention..." Amanda started to say then trailed off as she realized she may not want to throw the bottle away quite so quickly herself. She was so caught up in not wanting Justin thinking she was perverted or whatever that it never occurred to her he might be interested himself. That added another dimension to their relationship she didn't even know existed. "I don't know, I might. You don't think it's weird to do it in the water?"

"Amanda, love, it's perfectly natural. Most guys fantasize about doing it in or underwater at some point or another. Heck, they invented hot tubs just for that sort of thing. You like it in the shower don't ya?"

Amanda blushed as she remembered the warm water and screams of passion. "Well, yeah, but that's different."

"How so?" Justin asked as he took the bottle and slipped it into the top dresser drawer where he kept his toiletries. Amanda couldn't really answer him so she remained silent. "I'll hold on to it just in case." For some strange reason, Amanda felt a little excited as she watched him put the bottle away.

"So, how long do you think you will be tied up this afternoon?"

"I figure a couple of hours at the most. I want to get a few sketches done with Sandra, Lance and Dusty by the pool. Lance talked everyone into posing together, said he wanted a sketch to take with him. Dusty loved the idea so she wants me to do a couple of them before everyone leaves. Sorry Honey, I wanted to spend more time with you today."

"Oh, that's ok. We have all evening to spend together. Mr. Belgium has asked me to look at the computer in his office anyway, he can't get anyone out on the weekend to fix it so I volunteered. I figure I can make a little pocket money if it isn't too awful bad. It'll keep me busy until you are finished." Justin bent over and gave Amanda a lick on her cheek. "I'll see you later."

"Yeah, you bet. You haven't tried the pool yet, it is pretty neat. Might need to take a swim once we get done; what do you think?"

"I think that might be a good idea. I'll see you later, have fun."

Amanda sighed, "I'm afraid it isn't all that much fun really. You might think so but to be creative on demand tends to suck more than not. Beats working for a living though." She smiled and punched Justin lightly on the shoulder. She then gathered her art supplies and headed out the door.

Amanda waved at Justin then left him in their room. She walked through the huge mansion down to the pool area. The house was quiet since there was hardly anyone there at the moment. Mr. Belgium and the cook were the only staff around and she assumed Lance and the fems were in the pool room already. She was whistling a tune as she opened the side door that lead to the pool. Her tune stopped suddenly as the heavy door slammed shut behind her and locked with an ominous finality.

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Justin walked up to the door to the head butler's office and knocked. He heard the bear tell him to come in through the heavy wood and brass door. He opened it and walked into the surprisingly sparse office. "Hi, looks like everyone's going to be busy this afternoon and figured it would be a perfect time to look at your computer."

Mr. Belgium stood up behind the desk and pointed to a very expensive and powerful computer on his desk. "Yes, that would be fantastic, thank you. The machine has been running flawlessly for the last couple of months but in the last few days my internet speed has crawled to a near halt. I have to send reports and expense accounts to the owners on a regular basis over the internet and this has created a problem."

"I see. What sort of connection are you using, dial up?"

"Oh, no we are using a T-3 connected to a backbone server. It is part of one of the final projects Mr. Powers was working on although I really don't know what it was for."

"Ye gods, a T-3? Little overkill don't you think?" Justin asked as he took the chair in front of the computer. He set his borrowed laptop on the desk next to the machine then began typing. He soon discovered the connection was slower than molasses, making a 56k dial up look down right speedy. The computer was up to date and had all the latest virus protection programs so he didn't think that was the problem.

He looked at the network properties and found everything as it should be. He was perplexed so he decided to hook up the laptop and see if the problem followed. If it did he could rule out the computer and concentrate on the network connection. He plugged in the laptop and configured it normally and found a good connection to the local network. He also found a huge amount of data being sent upstream that ate up every bit of bandwidth. He went back to the main computer and looked again at the network connections and found no evidence of any traffic.

Justin turned to the butler looking over his shoulder, "Do you have anything being sent to the internet that you know of?"

"No, nothing. I'm the only one who has access to this computer and I rarely use it." The bear had a confused look on his face, "You don't think we have a virus do you? The computer company comes by very regularly and updates and checks everything. Odd that I couldn't reach them yesterday or today."

"You could have some very new virus but that is unlikely. The data is coming from another computer. Is there another one in the house?"

"No, this is the only one, besides the network is password protected and only I know the password."

"Well, your network is being hijacked and being used to send an unbelievable amount of data somewhere." Justin pulled a CD out of a pocket and put it into the butler's computer. "I have some special software that might allow me to tap into this feed so we can maybe get a clue as to who and what is being sent."

"Very good, this is quite puzzling to be truthful. I had noticed the computer was a bit slow at times but not a problem. The technician said it was net traffic so I didn't think any more about it. It has been pretty bad all week but still usable until yesterday morning."

Justin grunted as he concentrated on running the diagnostic software. As he dug deeper he found an elaborate yet elegant hack that had been incorporated into this computer. It hid any traffic coming from this mysterious source plus any speed detecting software would give the same traffic and high speed connection information. It was also supposed to throttle the bandwidth to keep anyone from noticing the traffic. Unfortunately something went wrong and the throttle was stuck wide open. He tried then to decipher the signal but it was encrypted.

He thought about the situation for a few minutes then went to the laptop. He looked then found a small program that Steve had told him about but never expected to use. It was illegal as hell if he used it in any other circumstance but it was the only way to find out what was going on. He looked to Mr. Belgium and said, "My next step is to break the code on this transmission, I have to have your permission to do this otherwise I could go to prison."

The bear had a shocked look on his face, "Well, that serious then? By all means, this is unauthorized and I have to know who is doing this and what is being sent. It is my responsibility to maintain security in this household."

"Ok, hold on to your butts," Justin said as he started the program that began cracking the encryption. It didn't take long before the code was broken, it was an older encryption that the program could crack easily. Once the code fell away it was obvious to Justin it was a video feed so he used a program to access it. He was soon overwhelmed with over 50 individual feeds, each named for a room. Security cameras? "This looks like security cameras throughout the house, are you sending video feeds somewhere?"

"The security system cameras are a separate system that feed to a bank of recorders that record 24 hours a day. Due to privacy concerns they are only viewed if there is something damaged or stolen."

"Hmm, well then let's have a look." Justin searched and found a feed for the room they were in. He found it labeled 'office' and soon saw himself and the bear on the computer monitor. It was a very high quality picture and came from a relatively low angle. Mr. Belgium looked up at a small security camera mounted near the ceiling and stared at it curiously.

"That's not coming from the security camera, see." He pointed to the high camera and saw his image was pointing in the wrong direction. He moved his paw around the room until he found he was pointing directly at the camera then walked to that part of the room. He peered carefully and only saw a painting of a horse hanging on the wall. He walked over and grabbed the picture frame and pulled only to find it was attached to the wall. He growled then plunged his powerful claws into the plaster and pulled the painting with his considerable strength and yanked it off and a part of the wall with it. Behind the painting was what could only be a very small and expensive camera mounted to the back. It used the horses' eye to peer through the painting and into the room.

Justin got a confused and whirling image as the butler spun it around to look at the offending camera. Mr. Belgium was about to pull the cable from the wall when Justin told him to stop. "We don't want to alert whoever it is filming until we can find out who is doing this. Put the camera back and let's look around a bit first."

"Good thinking sir." The bear put the picture back into the wall as best he could. It was tilted but close enough. He then joined Justin at the desk as be began looking through various rooms in the mansion. He went to the kitchen cameras and saw the portly cook chopping celery while apparently dancing to some unheard music. Justin looked around and discovered a sound feed as well. He turned it up and heard what sounded like some old Disco tune, Debbie Gibson or some such.

Justin was appalled by the blatant violation of everyone's privacy in this mansion but the butler turned absolutely white as he realized the implications. Although the cook's actions were innocent enough, he certainly wouldn't want anyone else seeing him dancing around like a fool. The bedrooms didn't have security cameras nor did the bathrooms for obvious reasons. "Check the bedrooms..."

Justin scanned around until he found one labeled Butler's Bedroom and discovered three cameras there and one in the attached bathroom. The huge bear began shaking and sat down in shock. He felt as if he had been raped, his privacy violated.

"I'm sorry Mr. Belgium, are you ok?"

"No, Mr. Conrad, I'm not alright but I'm sure I will be soon enough."

"Do you think it's for blackmail perhaps?"

"Well, I can't think of anything that I might be blackmailed about. My history of sexual indiscretions stopped when a camera like that would have weighed twenty pounds. No, I feel we are the victim of some voyeur I'm afraid. Check your bedroom, it is number seventeen."

Justin's paw shook as he looked for a feed from his bedroom and soon found it. It had the same three cameras and one in the bathroom. He thought back to the night of lovemaking he had shared with Amanda last night and suddenly felt the same feeling of violation. Oh god, she'll die when she finds out some pervert has tape of her and himself. Worse yet, having their private sex life put up on the internet in some sleazy porn site. He had to let her know.

He scanned the feeds looking for the pool room. It took a little while to find it because there were no actual cameras inside the pool room but there were several looking into the pool from the recreation room. The sight that met him was possibly the most horrible and frightening thing he could ever imagine. He jumped up from the desk and ran to the door nearly knocking the elder bear down. As he ran from the room he screamed, "Call an ambulance!!!" then disappeared down the hall.

Mr. Belgium recovered his composure then went to the computer monitor to see what the fuss was about. He couldn't see too well so he pulled out his reading glasses and looked again. Once his eyes focused and he realized what was going on, he cursed then grabbed the phone and dialed 911. He prayed it wasn't too late.

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Amanda was whistling some tune she had heard on the radio earlier when she entered the pool room. She realized something was wrong as soon as she stepped into the room but the door slammed shut behind her and locked before she could react. Suddenly a powerful paw slammed her in the back causing her to fly across the pool deck while her art case crashed into the wall and clattered across the deck. Amanda landed in a heap near the edge of the pool, dazed. Miraculously her glasses stayed on.

A second later she orientated herself and looked up in time to see a husky male who looked a lot like Lance with something over his face coming at her. She turned to spray him when she heard Dusty yell, "Don't, he has an air mask on!" She looked up to see Dusty tied by her ankles and wrists next to Sandra who was similarly tied. She saw the terror in her eyes as Lance came up from behind. Amanda turned just in time to see the husky's fist slam into the side of her head. She slumped bonelessly to the deck as consciousness left her. As the world went black she heard Dusty scream.

The world returned to Amanda as she regained consciousness. She could feel someone, probably Lance, tying her ankles together. Her arms were behind her, tied securely. The nylon rope was tight and cut off blood to her paws. She struggled as she opened her eyes only to find Lance standing near her feet. He looked at her but said nothing, the only sound was the regulator on Lance's Scott Air-Pak he wore. It was a full faced mask attached to an air tank, used mainly by fire departments to supply breathable air while fighting fires. They were also very effective in nullifying the effects of skunk spray. She was glad she hadn't sprayed, it would have only made them miserable.

She stopped struggling once Lance put his foot on her throat and pressed lightly. She got the message and lay still. He returned to tying something on her feet. A few seconds later he stopped and walked off. Amanda squirmed and looked around as best she could. She saw Dusty and Sandra laying near her. Dusty was weeping while Sandra looked to be unconscious.

"I'm so sorry Amanda... god I wish I had never agreed to come here. I wish I hadn't brought you into this."

"Yeah, well, I wish you hadn't either but that doesn't help us now. Is Sandra still alive?"

"Oh, I have no doubt she is, for the moment." Lance said with a muffled voice coming from the mask. He stood over her then reached down and ripped Sandra's swimsuit top off. She opened her eyes and spit in his face which hit his mask causing him to laugh.

"I knew you were a sick son of a bitch Lance but this is going too far. Let them go Lance, they don't like the water like we do." A trickle of blood ran out of Sandra's nose, evidence of the abuse she suffered from Lance.

"I'm sure they will learn to like it soon enough..."

"Lance, stop this. You kill me you won't have anyone to play with anymore," Sandra pleaded.

Lance stopped for a moment then put his paws up to his mask and wailed, "I know damn it but with you and Rick..."

"Rick, what about Rick?"

"You don't love me Sandra, you never have. The way Rick looks at me knowing what you and I are doing... I hate him and his condescending stare."

"What are you talking about Lance? Rick doesn't have a mean or jealous bone in his body. He would have invited you into our bed if either of us thought you would have accepted. We are both very fond of you."

"You don't get it do you Sandra. I'll never be more than fuck meat to you will I? Good for getting your rocks off while Rick gets your love. I can't live like this, you ripping my heart out and stomping on it."

"Lance, you are off your rocker! You always liked our arrangement, preferred it actually. You were the one who wanted no emotional baggage, remember? I have never denied you anything you ever wanted Lance, it was you who didn't want more..."

Lance stepped between Dusty and Amanda placing his foot near Amanda, close enough to get a good whiff of his natural scent without the masking smell of salt water and realized it wasn't Lance. That explained the bloody nose on Sandra and Dusty, this person didn't want them smelling him and only by sheer luck he had missed bloodying her nose making it possible for her to smell him. Without the sense of smell she realized Rick and Lance would look almost identical. With a fur's nose though, it was impossible to mistake them. A camera can't transmit smell so to anyone watching it was Lance not Rick. "Sandra, that isn't Lance!!" Amanda yelled just before the fake Lance kicked her in the side of the head knocking her unconscious.

Amanda awoke with the mother of all headaches. Her glasses were gone and all she could see was a blur. There was nothing wrong with her hearing because she could hear Sandra and Dusty screaming and cursing at the top of their lungs. Her blood suddenly ran cold as she heard a splash and Sandra's scream cut off short. He was most likely going to drown them all and an icy thrill of terror ran up her spine as she realized what was happening. She began to hyperventilate involuntarily as fear gripped her. Suddenly Dusty's cursing was cut off as she joined Sandra in the deep end of the pool.

She soon felt rough paws drag her to the edge of the pool. "You are the lucky one my dear, don't wake up and it will be over very soon. Unfortunately for me, your nose has made my life a lot more difficult and cut my final sex scene short. Pity, I really looked forward to fucking Dusty as she drowned but I gotta run." With that he threw her into the pool, some sort of weight was tied to her ankles and it dragged her down. She took a deep breath just as she was pulled under. She rocketed down then stopped suddenly as she hit bottom. She was facing the window so she couldn't see the other two. She used her tail to turn her body toward the other end of the pool. What she saw terrified her even more than she thought she already was. Lance, the real Lance was handcuffed to the drain with a duplicate Scott Air-Pak laying on the bottom, out of his reach. His lifeless body floated near and Amanda began to panic when she saw him, she tried vainly to free herself but her bonds were too secure.

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Justin ran through the mansion like a possessed fur, all he could think about was the image of Amanda and the others tied and weighted at the bottom of the pool. Tears ran down his cheeks as he madly ran for the pool area. He could only pray the ambulance was in time. He came up to one of the side entrances and found the door locked. He tried to break them open but the door was very well built and solid. He picked up a very expensive Louis XIV antique chair and beat the door with it. It was a very well built piece of furniture in its own right and took four very solid hits on the heavy doors before it shattered like kindling without effecting the door at all. He then ran back toward Mr. Belgium's office and yelled, "Bring your keys, the doors are locked!"

The butler slammed down the phone as he finished calling for help as he heard Justin yell up to him to bring his keys. He grabbed the master key ring from his top desk drawer and hurried down to the pool. He found the frantic Justin beating on the door as he arrived. He tried the lock with the key but something was broken off in the lock. "Come on boy, this one's been jammed. Let's try the rec room door!"

The elder bear surprised Justin by beating him in a dead run to the rec room. They burst into the unlocked door that lead into the room with the glass wall. The sight that greeted them would be forever burned into their brains. The three fems were floating upright like some macabre underwater plants while Lance hovered near the bottom. They ran to the door that opened into the pool room and tried the lock. It too was jammed. Justin ran up to the glass near where Amanda floated helplessly and beat the clear acrylic in frustration.

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Amanda struggled frantically trying to free her paws yet only caused the rope to bite into her deeper. She heard something and she looked to see what it was. Dusty was close and was making grunting noises. Amanda looked at Dusty and saw she was trying to tell her something. She shook her head and then went still closing her eyes, opened them then closed them then went still again. Amanda realized she was telling her to calm down and try to conserve her air. She tried as best she could, closing her eyes and relaxed as much as possible. She thought she heard a pounding noise but it was probably her heart beating in terror so she tried to ignore it.

Before long though the air in her lungs grew stale and the need to breathe was becoming unbearable. She let small bursts of bubbles escape her mouth in hopes it could ease the burning in her tortured lungs; finding it helped a little but not for very long. Her nose flooded as she ran out of air to keep the water out. It didn't bother her except it reminded her she didn't have much longer before she drowned. She heard the pounding again and realized it was someone pounding on the glass wall. She used her tail to turn and could see a blurry Justin pounding helplessly. "Oh, god no, don't let him see me drown," she thought as she let the last of her air escape. She felt a sudden wave of sorrow as she saw Justin cry. Seconds later the undeniable urge to breathe canceled all other thoughts and she succumbed to her body's impulse and breathed in. The water entered her body and she coughed and choked, the last remnants of air in her lungs escaped in a fine curtain of bubbles. As she drowned, all she could think of was poor Justin...

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Justin stood and watched in renewed horror as he saw his love turn and open her eyes and look at him then with a sad expression and begin losing air in heart wrenching bursts. The bubbles stopped and for a couple of seconds Amanda just hung there, frozen in time. Suddenly Amanda stiffened and opened her muzzle. He fell to his knees as he watched her breathe in the warm water and slowly sink to the bottom of the pool, her eyes pleading for help. He cried out and pounded on the glass as he watched his girlfriend drown before him. He wept as she settled to the pool bottom, a thin stream of bubbles escaping the corner of her muzzle as the water passed into her oxygen starved body.

"Come on, give me a hand and stop all that caterwauling lad." Justin looked up and wiped the tears from his eyes. "GET YOUR GOOD FOR NOTHING ARSE UP AND HELP ME!!" Mr. Belgium yelled at the top of his lungs. "These doors are bullet proof and designed to withstand fires and hurricanes, we're going to have to work hard to get them open!"

Justin pulled himself together and remembered there was still time yet. He ran up the steps and followed the bear into one of the other rooms in the house. They trotted down a hallway and Mr. Belgium stopped suddenly as he ran into something. That something turned out to be some fur who went flying after bouncing off of the bulk that was the house's head butler and crashed into a china cabinet. Justin came around the bear to find a male fur with Lance's fur pattern but with the unmistakable cut with stitches along the side of his muzzle and forehead and as a testament to his prior deeds, he also sported a set of four claw scratches across his bare chest. Dumbfounded Justin asked, "Rick?" The fur, momentarily stunned came to life suddenly and tried to stab them with a large dive knife but with a blood curdling roar, the bear backhanded Rick across the muzzle. There was a sickening crack as the fragile neck vertebrae in the wolf's neck snapped like a dry twig. Rick was dead before he hit the carpet.

With time running out, they left him there and continued to a small library lined with books. The bear stopped at a marble bust of Shakespeare and flipped the sculpture's head back revealing switches. He pressed one and a set of shelves split open and slid back. Behind the shelves lay a staggering array of weapons from small pistols to full scale machine guns. The bear grabbed the largest gun he had ever seen, it looked like it must have been four foot long. He grabbed a box of ammunition then handed Justin what appeared to be some sort of assault rifle and a bandoleer with a dozen full magazines . He then started running back to the rec room as fast as his bulk could carry him with Justin loaded down and following close behind.

They were crossing the main hall when they heard pounding on the front door. The bear bellowed, "Break it down and bring the biggest guns you have." They continued running, Justin looked back to see the door splinter and burst open and two police officers entered into the house; guns drawn. Justin noticed one of them was a 'taur which was unusual in itself, the other looked like a tall lanky wolf. Justin yelled to them, "Over here, and for god sakes don't shoot us!" then disappeared into the rec room.

They ran to the locked poolroom door and Mr. Belgium set down the huge gun and took the assault rifle from Justin and popped in a full clip then pulled back the slide. He handed the rifle to Justin and said, "Just pull the trigger and aim it at the door, do not hit the wall or it may crack and if the holes aren't big enough it could shred those ladies like cheese. Try to weaken the area around the lock but don't shoot the lock itself, it's designed to be bulletproof. I will talk to the officers." He ran to the door and closed it behind him. Justin, with tears stinging his eyes pulled the trigger and three rounds were fired into the door. Seeing how the rifle reacted he began firing more and more, squeezing the trigger as fast as he could. The bullets chewed chunks out of the door but it still held.

The bear quickly closed the door behind him and threw up his hands and waited for the police to arrive. It didn't take long once the assault rifle began firing. The officers rounded the corner and confronted the bear. "Don't shoot! There are four people trapped underwater and we are trying to shoot the door open." The firing inside the room stopped and the butler yelled to Justin, "Put the weapon down Mr. Justin so the officers can assess the situation."

Justin did as he was asked and put the rifle down and stepped away from it and raised his hands. The female 'taur entered first, saw Justin then looked past him at the four dying furs in the pool. "Dear god, Wirewolf get in here," the unusually thin looking police officer looked into the room and his muzzle dropped. "Call backup and get the hardware up here pronto."

Mr. Belgium yelled as he readied the rifle he was carrying as he walked to the room, "The door is bulletproof with a Kevlar core, the lock is bulletproof too, try to weaken the door around the lock and don't hit the glass wall!" The 'taur nodded then began firing into the door. The bear entered the room, picked up the assault rifle, changed clips then handed it back to Justin who resumed firing into the door. Seconds later the wolf returned with a shotgun, a similar assault rifle to Justin's and a battering ram. The 'taur holstered her pistol then took the shotgun from the other officer then began firing while he used the assault rifle in full automatic. The door was taking a hell of a beating and was slowly being weakened but would it be in time to save any of them?

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Amanda found herself sliding to the bottom, the salt water invading her body and easing the burning in her chest. The thick liquid passed in and out of her lungs and she found the sensation to be odd but not too terrible. Her lungs hurt with every breath but it was nothing like the burning from holding her breath. She sat up and realized she was no longer floating but actually resting on the bottom. She used her legs and found she could push off from the bottom and drag the weight with her. She was about to try to bounce her way to the shallow end when she saw Dusty watching her. She stopped and considered her options, she could try to make it to the shallow end but she may not remain conscious long enough and die halfway there and leave Sandra and Dusty to die as well or see if she could help Dusty escape, knowing she could live a lot longer than she was going to and maybe save them all.

Dusty was wide eyed and shook her head "no!" as she realized she was giving up her chance to save herself as she hopped towards Dusty. She moved close to the tiger-doe and bent down and began working on her bindings with her teeth. The sound of gunfire startled her but she kept working on the ropes anyway. She heard a torrent of bubbles and then saw Sandra settle to the bottom of the pool to her right.

The lack of oxygen was affecting her as she struggled to free Dusty, she was becoming weaker and weaker. After possibly a minute she was too weak to work on the ropes and floated away from the struggling tiger-doe. All too soon she began to lose consciousness. She was surprised to find Sandra had taken her place at the ropes as she drifted away from Dusty then back down to the smooth concrete floor of the pool. She thought of what was happening to her with a strange detachment and she figured drowning wasn't so terrible, there were worse ways to go. She drifted into blackness as she remembered Justin's terror stricken face...

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Mr. Belgium bellowed above the gunfire, "Hold your fire and get back, I'm about to get serious!" He raised the huge rifle to his shoulder and once everyone was clear he let loose with the monster. The report shook pictures off the wall and cracked windows. The door itself withstood the impact of the slug but there was a sizable chunk of door missing. The recoil sent the bear reeling.

The female officer, who was a cheetah 'taur looked at the bear in amazement, "What the hell is that thing?"

"My dear this is a 1903 Jefferies elephant gun. It's a .600 caliber cannon used for stopping angry elephants back when killing large animals was fashionable. If you will excuse me though, I have people waiting." He reloaded and took another shot. This time the door had a hole blown in it big enough to put an arm through. At the same time the bear was thrown against the far wall and crumpled in a heap. The female officer ran for the door trying to open the thing while Justin looked to the butler.

"Sorry my lad, I'm afraid that was all for me, I think that bloody rifle broke my shoulder." Justin grabbed the weapon and loaded a cartridge just as he had seen him do it. The bear tried to stop him, "No son, you are too light. It broke my shoulder and I'm twice as large as you."

Justin looked at the bear thinking for a moment then put the stock against the far wall and aimed as best he could as the officers scrambled for cover. The bear yelled something but he didn't hear him. He gritted his teeth and pulled the trigger. All he remembered was a loud bang and something hard hitting him right between the eyes.

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Dusty was starting to get muzzy-headed but she was still conscious as first Amanda then Sandra worked on untying her paws. Soon though Sandra grew too weak to do any more and joined Amanda on the bottom. They were both still breathing the saline which was a good sign, Dusty thought. She struggled with the ropes until a paw managed to work free. Elated, she bent down and worked on untying her feet. Moments later, just as she was about to pass out herself, a loud gunshot sounded startling her and giving her a little extra adrenaline which was enough to free herself from the weights and rocket to the surface. She popped into air and with a great moaning gasp took a breath. There wasn't much of anything that could compare with how sweet that air was right then. She took only a few breaths then dove back down to save the others. Suddenly another shot rang out and it rattled her teeth. She grabbed Amanda's limp body and rushed to the surface throwing her on the deck with strength she didn't know she had then took another breath and dove down for Sandra. Again she flew to the surface and threw Sandra on the deck.

She took a couple of breaths then went down for Lance. He was likely dead since he had been in the water so long but she had to try at least. She found him still cuffed to the drain and lifeless. Looking for someway to unlock the cuffs, she recognized them as a pair of BDSM sex props, not real cuffs. She grabbed them and using her legs she pulled for all she was worth, this was not the first time she had to break the cheap things. Lance had to have been unconscious for them to hold him when he was put in the water. Another teeth shattering gunshot went off just as the chain links on the cuffs gave way. He was now free and Dusty was able to swim him to the surface as well. She was too tired to throw him plus he was a lot heavier. She wedged him on a ladder then she climbed out of the pool and drug him out of the water by his arms. By this time Sandra was coughing up pool water and was breathing air again.

Amanda wasn't doing so well, she lay on the pool deck unmoving. Dusty immediately began CPR, first finding a ragged pulse then cleared her airway. She held Amanda's tongue with her thumb and sealed her muzzle around Amanda's and puffed air into her lungs. She did this three times but got no response. With growing apprehension she turned Amanda on her side and slapped her back trying to get some of the water out of her. She once again puffed air into her lungs three times then checked for a pulse. She didn't find it this time. She began chest compressions along with breathing for her. She was afraid she had been too late...

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"The lock is jammed on the other side too," the officer 'taur said in frustration, her right arm through the door trying the latch.

"Sikorsky, get back." The cheetah 'taur pulled her arm out of the hole and stood out of the way as the wolf rushed the door and hit it with the battering ram. Something broke inside the door and it flew open with a crash. The cheetah flew past the other officer and raced around the pool deck using the corner walls to bank herself off of. Her speed was unbelievable as she raced to the people on the other side. She skidded to a stop and used her radio to tell the paramedics it was clear to go to work. She looked the situation over and found Dusty was doing a good job of performing CPR on Amanda but Sandra was in trouble. She was valiantly trying to give Lance CPR but the way her lungs were rattling she sounded like she needed it herself. She immediately took Sandra's place with Lance and gave her a break.

Tears were streaming from Dusty's eyes as she worked on Amanda. "God, please, no. Not this close." Again she gave her chest compressions then breathed for her followed by compressions. Suddenly Amanda's eyes flew open as Dusty was breathing for her. She coughed and white foam erupted from her muzzle. Dusty sat back and watched as Amanda came back into the world of the living. Dusty's tears of loss and sorrow turned to tears of joy as Amanda heaved and coughed up what seemed to have been gallons of water.

Once the coughing died down some, Amanda said in a hoarse whisper, "Thanks."

"Why do I see myself performing mouth to mouth on you after you fake drowning, oh yeah, because I know you..." Dusty said with a big smile. Amanda could only grimace. Less than a minute later the paramedics arrived and gently pushed Dusty out of the way as they went to work on the half drowned skunk. She turned her attention to Sandra who was being checked out while two more helped the cheetah with Lance. She looked up and saw Justin and Mr. Belgium helping each other limp over to see who might still be alive. Justin had a bleeding gash on his forehead and the bear's right arm was dangling at an odd angle. "What the hell happened to you two?"

"It seems we had an argument with an elephant gun and lost," the bear said as he helped Justin to Amanda's side. The look of relief was almost enough to make Dusty cry all over again. She sniffed back the tears and watched as he gently took Amanda's paw while a paramedic placed an oxygen mask over her muzzle. She heard someone behind her yell, "Clear!" then she heard a buzzing noise as they shocked Lance's heart. She turned and watched as they did it again, his body convulsed as the voltage shocked his heart once more. They were soon rewarded by the sound of Lance coughing and returning to the world again. She could hear the tears of joy Sandra cried through her own oxygen mask as she saw Lance struggle to breathe.

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Amanda sat up in the hospital bed trying to choke down the Jell-O that constituted her lunch. Her lungs ached and her stomach was sore from the drowning and hours of coughing and heaving. She counted herself lucky compared to most of the others. Justin had a fractured skull and was in a room two doors down while Mr. Belgium had broken his shoulder and collarbone and he was down the hall. Lance was currently in ICU but stable. They were worried about brain damage but they were hopeful because the drug Rick used had slowed his metabolism down considerably. Sandra was in better physical shape but she is dealing with a dead husband and a nearly dead... boyfriend. Her melancholy thoughts were interrupted by the noise made by a very grumpy old bear pushing a raccoon in a wheelchair with one arm, the other in a huge cast. They entered the room and Justin got up shakily and kissed Amanda.

"How are you doing?"

"Apparently better than you are, should you be up?" He was sporting a bandage wrapped almost completely around his head with only his ears showing.

"Nope but that isn't going to stop me. Scootch over princess." Justin climbed into the bed with Amanda and she snuggled up with him.

"So, how did you manage to crack your skull? They said something about an old gun but I didn't catch all of it."

"That young man of yours has a problem listening to his elders. I tried to tell him not to fire the gun after it broke my shoulder. He reloaded and fired before I could look the gun over first. The stock had cracked and when he used the wall as a stop the stock broke and the barrel flew up and caught him betwixt the eyes."

"Ouch," Amanda said as she rubbed her forehead in sympathy

There was knock at the door and they all looked to see the two uniformed police officers who helped back at the mansion and a rumpled looking cat wearing an even more rumpled suit. "Mind if we have a word?" asked the female cheetah 'taur.

"No, please come in." Amanda said "You mind if my company stays?"

"Oh, no not at all. We just wanted to introduce ourselves properly and give you an update on what we know." They walked into the room and introduced themselves, "I am officer Cheetaur and this is my partner Chris Lupe but we call him Wirewolf since he is a hopeless computer geek. The cat who looks like he hasn't slept in a week is Detective Ashbrook who has been working your case."

The Detective cleared his throat and said, "We found out a few things and thought you should know. First off the camera set up was part of a Reality Show for German television that contracted with the company that owns the house to film the goings on in the place. They also hired Sandra and Lance and clued them in on the filming. They gave them certain scripts and scenarios to play out when they weren't filming this adult video. Nothing major, just little dramas to play out for the hidden cameras to get your reactions. They were able to keep it legal by not using any of the original film but use it to develop scripts using different actors and names. Since everyone signed a waiver about the use of security cameras there really isn't

anything the law can do about it."

"How did Rick fit into all this?" Amanda asked still not believing the wolf had tried to kill her and the others. He just didn't seem capable.

"Rick's real name is Randy Bell, a known sex offender and con-man with a rap sheet as thick as Wirewolf's glasses. He appears to have been connected with a couple of deaths involving adult film actresses but nothing that could be proven. He used his wife's connections in the business to gain access to them to make several snuff films. We think he may have done this before. He had contacted a known Russian Mafia member here in the States and they may have been involved, probably looking for a buyer. He hatched an elaborate plan to murder Dusty, his wife and her boyfriend too using the German cameras to make it look like Lance had gone psychotic. Rick knew Lance was very similar in fur color to himself and used it to frame him in a murder-suicide scheme. Probably would have gotten away with it if you hadn't survived and if he hadn't met with Mr. Belgium in the hallway. He died from a broken neck, by the way Mr. Belgium, remind me not to make you angry. The room grew quiet as the implications sank in.

"I learned that move while descending Everest in '61, one of the Sherpas went mad with altitude sickness and tried to murder us in our sleep. Unfortunately for Mr. Bell, Sherpas are a lot tougher."

There was another knock on the door and then in walked a large bouquet of flowers with legs. The flowers walked over to the small table near the window then settled on to it. The legs actually belonged to Dusty who stepped out from around the arrangement and then said, "Hi" to everyone. She seemed oblivious to the stares as she walked over and stood near the bed.

Justin asked,"Officer Cheetaur, I have a question for you. I heard officer Lupe call you 'Sikorsky' back at the mansion, I was wondering why since it isn't your name?"

"Ah, that is a private joke between me and my partner. He calls me 'Sikorsky' because I'm a hellova cop-taur..."

Amanda groaned with everyone else then she said, "Somebody get me a wet trout!"

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Months later during the warm Ohio summer Dusty had to go out of town for a distributor's meeting and would be gone all weekend. Amanda shyly approached her boss a few days before and asked if she could use the pool behind the house. She took a key off her key ring and handed it to Amanda and told her to keep it and use the pool anytime she wanted.

Once they had the house to themselves they eventually made their way to the pool and jumped in. It grew quiet as the sounds of splashing died and the only sound was a neighbor's television playing the latest in a string of used car commercials featuring Shelly extolling the virtues of some used SUV in the briefest of bikinis. Soon the surface of the pool calmed and it was only broken by an occasional bubble and a little aqua blue colored bottle bobbing up and down...

The end

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Author's note: The question asked most about this story is the technical/ medical information true? The answer to that is a yes with caveats. Everything in this story is as accurate as I can make it with information available to me and using personal experience while still telling a story. Saline pools are real as described and really do not hurt your eyes or nose. Experts say you can survive twice as long in a saline pool after inhaling water before death occurs. The drowning sequence is a bit problematical as people are different and some people would die quickly while others would not, it's very hard to predict that sort of thing. Being they are not human I took a liberty or two there.

Any resemblances to the movie "The Cell" are unintentional as I had written the scene and had completely forgotten about the movie until it was mentioned by one of my proofreaders. The movie was pretty forgettable at any rate. I had considered the possibility of having them shoot out the glass but there is way too much water in that pool and if the hole wasn't big enough it would squeeze a body through like toothpaste out of a tube. The aquatic mammal information I read once somewhere and its veracity is iffy but it works for this story. The Jeffreys 1903 .600 caliber elephant gun is real and is the largest non-military hunting weapon ever made and does have a history of breaking bones.

Truman is based on a real underwater video producer and the training is close to what he uses. I did take liberties with that though and tamed it down, believe it or not.

I want to thank Cheetaur and Wirewolf for helping me out with this story, their input has been invaluable and made for a much better tale. Blame Cheetaur for the pun, he did it, not me, I swear.

If some of the characters and situations seem similar, it's because this started out as a Sabrina Online fan fiction and is available on my website as such but it is significantly toned down compared to this story version. By using my own characters I have a lot more freedom as far as adult content but it also loses the built in familiarity that a fan fiction offers.