A New Dress
The Courtship of Alexis Hawkins01 A New DressBy Assilsasta»-(¯·.·´¯)->July 30, 2013<-(¯·.·´¯)-«»-(¯·.·´¯)->Exasperation<-(¯·.·´¯)-«[Steven Archer July 25] The banquet will be held on Friday August 2.[Steven Archer July 28] Miss. Hawkins, I wanted to let you know that the event is a formal banquet. Attire should be an evening gown.[Steven Archer July 28] Please tell me where you would like me to pick you up friday evening for the banquet.Alex looked at the text messages on her phone again. She had been looking at it for days not knowing how to reply to the kestrel, or what her next step should be. She had never been this confused about a guy before in her life. Until two weeks ago she knew exactly what she was getting into with each guy she met. They were always in the relationship for the same thing she was, a quick one night stand, a fast weekend of fun, or even a short term no strings attached fling. Steven was different, she couldn't tell what he wanted. And on top of that she was worried about the political ramifications if she made the wrong move. They had in hand all the paperwork for the nonprofit organization registration for both state and federal, which he had helped them expedite. He seemed to be willing to help them as long as she agreed to go to these events.But there was more, something about him that set him apart from the others that had nothing to do with his political power. He was a normal guy, jeans and t-shirt, laughing and joking, pizza and games with kids. That one night just confused her even more. Susan had a point that a successful political figure needed a good looking companion, but he seemed different. The smile, the look in his eye, was different than she had expected after she found out who he was. But he was a politician, and
everyone knows they have the skills and willingness to manipulate people into doing what they want, and thinking what they want. She just needed to go along with it to keep things going for Cecily and her plans for the future. Thats all that mattered right now, figuring it all out would come with time. For now she needed and evening gown for their next date.She sat up on the old canvas army cot that was situated in the large room, and looked around the spotless space, the only place in the massive house that she felt comfortable enough to stay in overnight. They had been there for three days and there was still much work to be done throughout the mansion, but this room was hers, her place, her sanctuaire, her realm of control, and it was going to be perfect, even if it killed her. She had spent nearly the entire three days in the room , cleaning, filling in holes and painting while Susan and the others worked on replacing the windows and doors. She had been grateful that Lilliana had seemed to understand her need for this one room. One more coat of paint and the room would be ready for her furniture.She stood and walked into the bather where the walk in closet stood open. SHe looked across the row of business suits and professional attire and around to the stack of plastic temporary storage drawers that held her every day clothes and club wear. Her heart began to race as she realized beyond a shadow of a doubt she had nothing to wear for the occasion, and no Idea where to get it. She had always been prepared for everything that came her way, until now. Susan had mention getting a dress the evening he had first offered to let her be his 'plus one', but she had shrugged it off thinking he would do what so many others had and just call it off. But he hadn't, he had done just the opposite and only confirmed his intentions to take her to the event. She screeched in frustration at her lack of clothing for proper attire for a formal event. As she did she blindly heaved the plastic storage bin against the wall and listened to it shater only to follow it with and assault of punches and kicks to the wall and remnants of the bin. Alex, for the first time in a long time was frustrated at her lack of knowledge and readiness for a situation she never saw coming. She leaned her back against the wall of the closet as she slid down to the floor and said, "'oo would wanna take me ta any'tin', le' alone a foahmal pahty?"Alex sat her head in her claws to cover the tears in her eyes as she heard a voice
from the closet door. She recognized the low rumble and slight sound of anger in her voice as Lilliana spoke, "And man that wanted the perfect eagle for any situation. Now get off your ass, we need to go shopping so you can knock that kestrel on his ass."'Wha' are ya tlakin' 'bout?" Alex asked as she stood up wiping the tears from her eyes."Susan told me about your date this weekend and you're not ready for it," The liger said as she approached her. "I don't know anything about what's going on, but if you're going to be the representation of the Dark Riders at some shindig, you're not going out looking like a ghetto trash club slut. And if you're as interested in this guy as I think you are, you want to make his eyes pop out of his head and show him the the Alex that I know. The eagle that is in total control of every situation regardless of who the fuck is there or what is going on. Show him the real Alexis Hawking, The Chicago attorney that cares more about doing what is right than doing what is expected." Lilliana grabbed the eagle by the hand and started to drag her out of the closet, "Now let's go blow some money on some shity rag they call an evening gown so you can make it look good."»-(¯·.·´¯)->Disorientation<-(¯·.·´¯)-«Steven sat in the highback leather chair behind the large oak desk. For the past week he had pondered the strange eagle that had been the first to outright insult him without regard to her self or who he was. He looked over the stack of papers that waited his signature before looking back at the cell phone on his desk. He had sent three messages and tried to call several time to confirm their engagement for the weekend. He gnawed on his thumb as he thought about the look in her golden eyes when she yelled at him during their first lunch. She seemed more angry at the fact that he was someone of importance than enthralled by it. Every woman before seemed to throw themselves at him as if he was the prized catch of the day. He knew he was good looking and position made him a desirable mate for many women that wanted to spring into the upper echelon of society. But this eagle, Alex Hawkins was something different, every turn she made confused him even more about her. She was confident, but she seemed to be backing down from him. She was passionate about the things she cared about and not afraid to show it. That was a side of a woman he rarely got to see, and it seemed to be the most engaging part of this one. He leaned forward on the desk and pressed the intercom button on his phone. A moment later a female voice came back, [Yes, sir?] He leaned back in the chair again as he said, "Cancel all my appointments for the day, I have a mountain of paper work that needs to be done." [Right way Mr. Mayor]Set on finishing the task at hand he picked up his pen and the first folder of papers as she started to read through. He needed to get back into the roll of things for The banquet this weekend. He couldn't be worried about whether or not he had a date. She's give him enough notice to pick her up. Besides, he thought slipping in the opportunity for her to spread the word about their project might just have been all he really needed to get to spend some more time with her and get to know the 'Boomer' just a little better. He almost felt like a teenager again as he wasted hours in his office daydreaming about the upcoming banquet.He slowly worked through the stack of bills and propositions that covered his desk, almost half-heartedly signing off on thing he thought he should be more passionate about, and nonchalantly disregarding things he was sure he would have done more to show his disapproval. He sat back once again feeling the destruction that had been plaguing him for a week now. The world seemed to be going at half speed as he glanced at the phone again. As his eyes fell on it the saw the thing vibrate in a small circle. In an almost childlike excitement he snagged the phone off the desk, and looked at the screen.[Boomer 15:45] Can I meet you there? All I need is the address and time.This is the second time she refused his offer for a ride. He wondered what she had against him that she wouldn't even let him give her a ride to a banquet. Alexis Hawkins was both a conundrum and a challenge, and he had always like a challenge. This text was going to haunt him for the rest of the week unless he found some excuse to sneak out and see her before the banquet, but he needed to get back to the stack of papers he had let pile up or he might have the cancel the outing himself. Steven groaned as he leaned back in to continue the laborious task of keeping him mind on track.»-(¯·.·´¯)->August 3, 2013<-(¯·.·´¯)-«»-(¯·.·´¯)->Cinderella<-(¯·.·´¯)-«Steven sat in the parking lot of the conference center anxiously looking at his watch. He needed to make his appearance soon, but he hated to go in without the lady he had invited. He looked in the side mirror of his CTS coupe to make last minute check of this feathers and straighten his bowtie. He scratched at a smudge on his beak as he thought about the fact that he hadn't put this much thought into how he looked in years. As he stood back up he saw the Zaritzkys walking to the entrance. He took a deep breath as she started to reluctantly started to make his way to the Banquet as well. He did not like many of the political or social views of the dalmatian councilman, but he had to put up with him and show the proper respect as he continued to get re-elected by his constituents. He snickered a bit to himself as he thought about the interesting group than was now his neighbors and constituents. Having not meet any of the others from the NPO he could only guess about what they might be like from what he had seen of Alex and her two friends. He just knew the group would clash with Mr. Zaritzky on many levels.Steven looked around the ballroom as he walked in. It was filled with the usual members of the upper crust. A few members of the city council, the average born into money family representatives, some of whom show up just to maintain their presence in the community they cared little about. The amount of false friendship and tolerance present in the room almost sickened him. He hated the Political face they all put on at these events only to garner the support they needed for their current pet projects. He put on his own forced smile as he started to move through the room to greet and shake paws and claws with the people that managed to tolerate him and his policy changing administration. He snagged a wine glass from a passing tray, downed it quickly to steady himself, and replaced it before the waiter was out of reach. He continued small talk with a small crowed as he continued to talk up his third gender policy goals when the room fell silent for a moment. He looked for the source of the situation. As his eyes moved in the direction of everyone else he found the cause. He stood there dumbfounded for a moment as his mind drifted to the Cinderella story. He stood in the center of the crowd like the prince as all the attention was drawn to the the future princess. Alexis Hawkins, his 'plus one', stood in the entryway in a dress that made everything else in the room look like rack bought hand-me-downs worn by the richest members of the community. The outfit stressed the conservative nature of the majority of the attendees, Shown more feathers and upper body than anything else in the room. From the waist up the dress was made of a satin floral appliques that with a wide and deep neckline, if you could call it that. Her shoulders and the center of her chest were fully exposed with the appliques only covering the majority of her abdomen and breasts. The patchy satin floral appliques covers portions of her wings giving the appearance of sleeves and the sides of her thighs were visible through openings in the dress that were bordered by the same satin flowers. The nearly blood red clashed almost perfectly with the dark grays of her body feathers. Steven stood awestruck and unable to move until he say the Dalmatian man start to walk toward her and the conversations continued around him."You'll have to excuse me for a moment, my companion has just arrived," he said to the small group of young ladies that has started to form around him as she started to make his way back to the entrance. His heart started to race as he moved quickly to try and avoid a scene between his guest and the City Councilmen.»-(¯·.·´¯)->Introductions<-(¯·.·´¯)-«Alex stood at the door uncertain of what she was supposed to do at this kind of event. It wasn't like an office party or anything near a club scene, and she needed to think through how to interact with people she had only dealt with on a legal council level. She grew nervous as Susan's word echoed in her head, 'The people you will be seeing tonight are the ones that can make or break our efforts on a political level. You are the face of the Dark Riders tonight, make us look good... and don't be yourself.' She took a deep breath and put on her professional attitude. She readied herself as much as if she was walking into a courtroom to present a case to the judge and jury.Moments before she was able to make her move into the room to find the Mayor a dalmatian man in his late forties walked up to her with a glass of champagne in each paw. He had the classic debonaire smile on his muzzles as he came closer and started to speak. "Who has been hiding this angel from the world." Alex stifled a scoff as she took another deep breath and replied with as much of a mock smile as she could, "I've just come into town with a new Non Profit, I was invited..."He reached forward with a glass as he interrupted her, "Well then, let me properly welcome you to Marblecliff." He winked as he spoke. Just as Alex was about to reply again a dalmatian woman in a conservative evening gown walked up next to the man and hooked her arm into his. His smile melted quickly as she asked, "And who is our new acquaintance, dear?"Gritting his teeth slightly he answered, "We haven't been properly introduced yet."As if responding to the call, Steven walked up beside the couple and said, "Mr. and Mrs. Zaritzky, I would like to introduce you to Alexis Hawkins, a member of the..." He trailed off as he suddenly forgot their organization's name in the rush to quell and upheaval."Dark RIder House," Alex broke in to finish the introduction.Steven breathed a sigh of relief as he heard the well formed accent free statement. He continued, "Alex, this is Mr. and Mrs Roman Zaritzky City Council member and your neighbor across the street if I recall the address correctly."Roman looke the eagle up and down for a moment when Steven offered the bit of information. With a bit of a smile she said, "So you are the one that picked up that old place, the Homeowners Association had just started a petition to have the eyesore torn down." He huffed as his wife elbowed him for his statement. Changing his tone and adding his smile back he asked, "Is there a Mr. Hawkins? I would like to discuss having your contractors not work so..." He winced again with another elbow to his ribs.Wanting to steer the conversation away from an incident with the Zaritzkys Steve offered a different topic, "How about you tell them what your organization plans on doing here in Marblecliff, Miss Hawkins?"She took another deep breath to maintain her composure as she started to give the semi prepared speech she had tried out on Susan and Lilliana earlier in the day. "We, at the Dark Rider House, are going to provide a place to help troubled youths." The hope was to be sure to exclude the thought of a prison or halfway house. "The thought is to give them a place to keep them off the streets and get them the help they may need to have a better life.""It's about time someone did something to get the delinquents off the streets," the dalmatians said with a little smirk on his face, "So which of our lower class neighborhoods are you putting this Home in, or are you planning on multiple locations?"Alex took a sip of the champagne before she made her reply nearly ready to have an outburst like she had at her first lunch with Steven, "In Fact, the house we purchased in your neighborhood is our starting point for this project." As she spoke the look on the councilmen's face gave Steven a moment of joy as he nearly choked on his champagne. He knew that the dalmatian might react as he did, but to see it in person was priceless.Roman's face melted to a frown as the news sank in. "I do not believe that the property you are working with is zoned for commercial use such as that.""I am afraid you are mistaken Mr. Zaritzky," Alex started to get a little annoyed with his sudden opposition to their project without understanding their goal, "Before we purchased the property I had spent two full days researching the zoning regulations for the city and state. With our non-profit standing and the fact that it is the primary residence for all the members of the organization, commercial zoning is not required for our project."Gruffly, under his breath, he said, "We'll see about that."Hearing the undertones comment Alex's expression moved from the calm collected smile to a harder look of her annoyance. "What exactly are you saying, Mr. Zaritzky? You have a problem with helping the youth of your community become valuable members of society?""No ma'am, it's
just been my experience that when you take the cubs out of the ghetto, they bring the ghetto with them. To expect someone to change by putting them in an affluent neighborhood is just foolish. I understand how many people and groups with your obvious Influence and pedigree may not understand this, but ghetto trash will always be ghetto trash deep down, no matter how well you dress them up." Steven watched in almost horror as her demeanor changed dramatically as Roman spoke. He saw a side of her he had yet to see, the anger he had seen at his own words was nothing compared the the dalmatian's little speech. At that time she was only upset and lost all care for the consequences of her actions. Now he saw real anger burning in her eyes. All three members of the conversation were stunned to silence as the champagne glass fell from Alex's hand to the floor. Alex stepped forward toward the dog man, her voice at near shouts drawing the attention of the entire room as her refined accent dropped to her inner city drawl. "Ya wanna say dat again? Wayah do ya gett off callin' anyone ghetto trash? Dose kids ain't done not'in' ta deserve yer 'atred and scorn. Ya don' know wha' dey live in er go t'rough each day. Ya don' deserve to represen' no one when ya don' even 'ave da decency ta know wha's really goin' on in da wo'ld." Roman started to back away from the eagle as he saw the animosity in her eyes and heard the venom in her words. She grabbed him by one ear as she continued, "Oh no ya don', I ain't done wit' choo yet. Ya wanna see jus' 'ow much ghetto is lef' in dis 'Refined' gahl from da 'igh pedegree dat ya t'ought you migh' wanna bed when I firs' walked in?""Let go you crazy bitch!" Roman yelled as the crowd started to circle."I'll le' ya go chit fer brains." Alex swung her free claw around behind his head and pulled him down into her rising knee. The hollow thunk against his skull echoed through the silent room as the dalmatian collapsed to the floor unconscious. "Ya wanna step up fer yer man, puppy?" Alex looked to the dalmatian woman as her husband cascaded to the floor. She reached into the small purse that hung at her shoulder and pulled out a business card and flung it at her as she said, "Ya cen give dat ta yer lawyah when he t'ink he's ready ta take me ta court."Wide eyed for a moment as the events unfolded in front of her, the dalmatian woman caught the card before her demeanor returned to the calm relaxed facade she had before the short moment of violence. She looked at
Alex and said, "He deserved it." then went back the drinking her champagne and turned to leave him laying on the floor as she continued to socialize.Steven stood in horrified silence as the scene play out. He could tell she had a temper but had no idea how deep it went. Uncertain of just which part set her off he looked at the eagle as she turned to him and said, "I t'ink I'm done 'ere. T'anks fer da invite, but I t'ink I wore out my welcome." He looked down and smiled with a little triumphant feeling as the dalmatian lay on the floor his consciousness slowly returning. He knelt beside his strongest opponent and said, "Looks like you found the one political attack you can't deflect with money or influence." Roman groaned as the kestrel spoke to him. "And to think, she and her group are now living and voting in your district. I wonder just what kind of enemy you've made." He smiled again as he stood up and waved for staff assistance for the fallen councilman before he turned to follow the eagle out of the ballroom. He had made his appearance and didn't really want to deal with the aftermath of the event without a better understanding of her motivations.»-(¯·.·´¯)->One on One<-(¯·.·´¯)-« Alex dropped into the driver's seat of the freshly polished, yellow Corvette and let her head roll back. "Ya stupid, stupid bi'ch." She grabbed ahold of the steering wheel as she shook her body and screeched loudly in frustration. As she continued her tantrum, she became aware of the sound of the passenger door opening and the feel of the car shifting as someone sat in the seat next to her. She opened her eyes to see Steven in the passenger seat with his bow untied and top button undone. He looked over at her and said, "You have no idea how many times I've wanted to do that to him. Maybe not the knee to the forehead, I hadn't really thought of that one. But, damn if that didn't make this night worth it.""An' all I did was prove 'im righ'," She said as she looked back forward. "wha' ah ya doin' in my cah?""Well, I invited you to a dinner and we haven't eaten yet," the kestrel replied, "So, what do you feel like tonight? We've done French,
how about German?""No," she said as she looked over at him, "Wha' ah ya doin in my cah? Ya can't jus' leave sumtin' like dat."He smiled back at her as she said, "Well, I can't go back in now without a good explanation of why my guest laid out a City Councilman, and to be honest, I don't want to. I'd rather handle it Monday morning. And in order to do a good job of disaster recovery, I need to do my part of learning more about YOU." Steven felt a little giddy at his sly attempt to slip past the eagle's defences and get to know her better. He had a free weekend and nothing planned for the rest of the evening. The opportunity was perfect.Alex turned to him angrily and nearly shouted, "Ya wanna know why I laid da fuckah out? I'll tell ya why. 'is pompus ass looked at me once and t'ought I was from da same side a da tracks as 'im. 'ee didn' even t'nk abou' da fac' da ya cen put an expencive dress on ghetto trash like me and parade us around a ballroom as well as any oda fuck ya can fin' on da street. Den da ass 'as da neahve ta tell me I 'ave no Idea wha' its like ta live dere. I fuckin' grew up dere. My muder and fader... dey were were both druggys an' alcoholics. My brodah didn' life pas' nine mont's. I lived in a pigsty. Dey le' da trach pile up fer weeks. Da management a da projec's 'ad ta tell 'em to get it ou' when da smell go' too bad. It's da fuck's like 'im dat let da chit stand, as long as dey get deir cut 'oo kahes wha' 'appens ta da little guy. 'ell keep'em on foo'stamps and ya keep deir vote. I go' outda dere and dere ain't no way ya can tell me it ain't gonna work. And dere ain't no way in 'ell I won' give anoda cub a bettah chance dan I 'ad. Now ya cen edeah ge' out a da cah er I cen t'rogh ya out. I'm done wit'cha two faced politicians fer da night."With a twinge of fear at what she might do if he refused, Steven reluctantly got out of the Corvette and closed the door, before he walked away he leaned in the window for one last word. "I'm sorry tonight did not go as well as I had hoped, but I want you to know I'm on your side. I don't like the way things are right now and people like Councilmen Zaritzky are the prob..."As he spoke he heard the car engine roar to life and she started to pull away nearly knocking him to the ground as she did. As he steadied himself and watched her speed away the talked to himself aloud, "That is one bird who is
passionate about her beliefs, and a ball of fire to boot." He started to walk to his car as he thought about what he might do to make it up to her for the horrid evening. But more important at the moment was getting out of sight before the news crews that were inside started to swarm his car. »-(¯·.·´¯)->Toy Box<-(¯·.·´¯)-« "It appears that the altercation at tonight's charity banquet at the community center between an unidentified guest of Mayor Archer and Councilmen Zaritzky was brought on by a disagreement in the operation of a newly founded non profit group known as the Dark Riders. Mayor Archer could not be reached for a comment at this time. Currently there are no charges filed against the assailant of Councilman Zaritzky. The Councilmen was rushed to the hospital with a concussion and cracked snout. It is reported that he is being released within the hour."Alex sat in the parking lot not wanting to go back to the house just yet as she listened to the radio rebroadcast of the top story for the night. She had really screwed up this time. She had gotten the Dark Riders and now everything they were working for tighted up in her inability to control her own temper. She looked down at the now dried blood on her overly expensive dress as she ran the event through her mind again. The look in Stevens eyes was the most frightening part of her evening. If he had been interested in her for anything more than an arm dressing, he certainly wasn't now. Her actions may have damaged his reputation as well as that of the Dark Riders before they even went public with their plans. She had really done it this time. There was no way she could face Cecily and tell her she had ruined their chances of any political support just because she didn't like the guy calling anyone ghetto trash. She needed to control herself better, it was her fault for letting it get to her. She had blown her chances with what might have been a good man, and screwed up Cecily's one dream.She looked at herself in the rearview mirror for a moment before she readjusted it to look out the back window. The neon lights of the all-night adult novelty store came into view. She knew the place had to have some sort of changing room. She turned to and grabbed her gym bag with a change of clothes from the back seat as she readied herself to talk her way into the changing room without having to buy anything.A small
bell above the door jingled as she entered, The first sight she noticed was the wolf woman behind the counter on the a cell phone watching a small T.V. From across the room she could hear her laughing and talking to whoever was on the other end of the line. "It's about time someone gave the guy a concussion." As the wolf looked up to greet the new customer her smile broadened as she said, "you will never believe who just walked into the shop. I'll call you back." The wolf stood up and start to walk around the counter as she added, "My personal hero."Alex looked at the woman oddly as she was greeted. Caught off guard by the odd comment from a complete stranger she said, "Wha' evah it was, I didn' do it. I jus' wan'ed ta use yer fittin' room ta change outa dis dress.""Oh no, you're the one that did it alright. It's about time that stuck up asshole got taken down a notch. He's the biggest opponent to herm equality. And you could clearly hear you defending the poor kids with problems. Someone posted a cell phone video on youtube, and they replayed it on the news." As the wolf got within arms reach she offered a paw to alex, "The name's Shey, can I offer you a drink? You look like you could use one."Alex took hold of Shey's paw for a quick shake as she said, "Alex. Dis wouldn' be a good time fer me ta drink, bad t'in's seem ta 'appen when I 'ave a drink in my 'and. I jus' wan'ed to get out a dis chit.""Oh, come on. Not even in good company while you tell me more about this Dark Rider thing they mentioned on the news?" Shey asked with a bit of a mock pout in her voice.Alex sighed as she conceded, "Well, okey. It's not like I'mma go anywayah andy time soon. And I can at les' say I got ta tell someone wit' out knockin' 'em out."The wolf stepped around her and locked the door as she said, "I was about to close up for the night anyway. I have a lounge downstairs, you can change and we can talk back there. Can I also interest you in a few slices of pizza?"As if answering for her, Alex's stomach rumbled, "With a quick turn up on the corner of her mouth she said, "Dat would be nice sinse I didn' get any a dat fancy food dey 'ad at da
banque'. But I really just wanna ge' ou' a dis 'orrific outfit."As Shey lead the way to the lounge she said, "I think that was possibly the best looking dress I saw in the video. Or maybe it's just who was wearing it. And I have a no clothing policy downstairs anyway." She waved a keycard over an electric lock and opened a door to a staircase that led down. Alex followed her into the fully furnished basement, on one side was a glowing fireplace. The floor was covered with a thick, red shag carpet. There were several leather sofas and loveseats and a large flat screen mounted on one wall. As they entered the room ALex collapsed onto one of the sofas, dropping her gym bag on the floor next to it while she let out a loud sigh of relief. "Oh my God, a real couch." Shey cocked her eyebrow at the quick comment and said, "Welcome to my little playground.""Jus' gimme a sec," Alex said as her head rolled back and he relaxed limply, "It's been a while sinse i 'ad ssumt'in' odder den a futon ta sit on.""You don't have any furniture?" Shey asked as she started to stripp of the simple outfir she was wearing."We do, bu' da place we go' needs a lotta work and we'ah cleanin' it up befer we move da goo' stuff in." Shey pulled a couple of beers from the well stocked bar and walked back over the the seating area, "So you just moved into a place?"Alex graciously took the offered bottle and popped the cap off with her beak before pouring the contents down her throat in one breathless action. She let her and and the bottle fall next to her limply as she answered, "We go' a mansion da 'ad been lef' settin' fer a few yeahs. We'ah fixin' it up fer da Dark Ridah 'ouse Projec'." She leaned forward and opened the guy bag to pull out several pieces of plastic. "YA wouldn' 'appen ta 'ave a showah 'ere would ya?" She asked as she started to peal the upper applique portions of the dress from her feathers covering the sticky backing with the plastic pieces, quickly stripping down to nothing as the dress seemed to be the only thing she was
wearing to start with."I have more than just a shower if you like," Shey said with a slightly seductive smile on her muzzle. "But, What exactly is this Dark Rider thing they they are talking about?" "It's a Safe 'aven 'ouse for troubled yout's," She pause for a second as the lunch with the mayor ran through her head again, "An' befer ya say anyt'in', it's not one a dose 'alfway 'ouses. We'ah tryin ta pu' tagedah a 'home like place wheah dey cen come an ge' away from bad sichawachuns."Shey smiled as she said, "I could tell it was something different just by the way you defended the kids with that dick Zaritzky.""Well, da 'ole t'in' is da brainchild of our own trubled yout'," Alex said as she relaxed on the couch again, "She 'as 'er 'eart set on givin' evahyone at leas' on chance that 'ave a goo' place ta live, even if only fer a short time. And it 'ad ta be differen' from da 'omes and instatuchuns she'd been in and seen. So 'ome cooked famly style meals, real beds, personal space, and not'in' dat could be mistaken fer any kinda instatuchun.""Wow!' Shey said enamored by her quick description of their plans, "Is there anythign I can do to help?""Dere's not much ta do right now. Most a it is jus' remodelin' and renavatin' da house. Da time line righ now looks like it;ll be new yeahs befer we'ah ready to open da doors. But, dats is I didn' fuck it all up tanigh' by breanin' our neighbor fer being a cock." As she spoke her phone vibrated, "Speak a da devil." She pressed the ignore button ass he droped it back into the gym bag."I wouldn't worry too much about it, the councilmen has a lot of opposition, and I am sure you just earned a lot of points with that crowd after that video hit," Shey said with a smile, "The sound of his head hitting your knee made it sound like he really had no brain." Alex snickered for a moment then added, "I kinda feel bad fer 'im, 'ees liek fify years old er sumt'in'. I really need to get dat anger undah control again." As she spoke the phone vibrated again from the guy bag. "Fuck,
I beddah get goin'. If dey have ta come looking fer me, it won' be perdy.""Um," Shey started slightly shocked by the situation, "Alex, I just have to point out that you never said anything about...""About what?" She asked cutting the wolf off, "Da nice place? Da fac' day I didn' get a pizza?""No," Shey replied, "none of that. Its that people usually have some reaction to me being a herm.""Why?" Alex said, "it ain't like it's dat big a deal. All da bullchit about gendah is jus' dat, bullchit. Ya ain't anywheyah near da first 'erm I've meet, and ya ain't goon be da las'. If ya wan' i can give ya da 'OH MY GOD, YA GOTTA DICK!' if ya really wan' it. But I jus' aint in da mood fer dat right now. 'Sides it's a lill' on da small side when ya compare it to da 'erm back at da 'ouse. Now Dat t'in' is sumt'in ta write 'ome about." She sat up and reached into her gym bag and pulled out a plad work shirt with the sleevs torn offf and a pair of short cutt-oof, frayed denim shorts. "But, Unless ya want a crazy liger stromin yer store 'untin' me down, I chould get going. I'll 'ave ta come back sometime an look aroun'at wha' ya got.""Well," Shey said with a smile, "It was a pleasure to meet you Alex. Next time you drop by I will give you a live demonstration of anything I have, you can even try them out yourself.""I'll keep dat in mind," Alex said as she shook the wolf's paw again, "An' ya can jus' call me Boomah.""Well then, Nice to meet you Boomer," Shey said with an even bigger grin. With that she ushered to bird back to the door and gave her one final farewell, "You come back soon, and let me know if there is ANYTHING I can do to help you guys out." Alex looked in the rearview as she pulled away from the sex shop. If it had been any other day she might have just stayed and had a little fun with that sexy fox hermaphrodite. But her mind was in too many places with all that had happened in the past three weeks.