User:MatthiasRat/Bathing Alone
 | [[:Category:Paradise|Paradise]] story universe |
[[Setting::Paradise| ]]
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{{#if:Nuvola apps bookcase.png|}} | Works by MatthiasRat on Shifti |
This is the second story of Christopher's life in the Paradise setting. New material will be added to the end unless otherwise noted.
{{#ifeq: User |User| Bathing Alone | Bathing Alone}}[[Title::{{#ifeq: User |User| Bathing Alone | Bathing Alone}}| ]]
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"There!" Rob exclaimed, stabbing at the paper with his pencil. The last question on the network administration homework was complete. As far as he was concerned, it was utter lunacy to give paper homework for a computer class, but his teacher was like eighty years old or something. He probably thought network administration was making sure the card decks got from the programmer to ENIAC in the right order.
Of course, what most irritated him about it was that it had taken him a couple weeks just to get used to handling a pencil again. He stared at his hands, noting the black fur and short claws that tipped each finger. Three weeks ago they'd been human, but now, they were the humanized paws of a skunk.
Rob took the papers, stapled them, and put them away in his backpack. His long tail danced behind him as he sat on his bed. He stretched his toes and yawned wide, long red tongue sliding out of his mouth. When he'd finished stretching, he stared at his room. Three weeks ago it had been a mess. He'd never been very organized, just tossing things wherever it seemed convenient. But the week after he'd changed, Chris had come over and helped him straighten everything out.
And for the first time, Rob felt somewhat intimidated by Chris. That he was now a female bear, taller, and heavier than he was, probably had a lot to do with it. Still, Rob couldn't help but be grateful for all that Chris had done in the last few weeks to help him adjust. He couldn't tell his roommates anything; even though they were all furry, they couldn't see that he'd become a skunk.
They could smell it though. Chris had been right to bring him all those scented candles and potpourri. He'd rather be made fun of for them than for stinking like a dead animal all the time.
Saturday mornings were normally reserved for sleeping in late, drinking coffee, playing games, and then doing homework. Not anymore. Now after his homework was finished, he climbed onto his computer to continue the project that Chris had labored at for six years: to find others like themselves. There had to be other people changed into animal-men out there. It was just a matter of finding them.
Rob dashed his fingers along the keyboard, being careful to strike the keys with the thick calluses instead of the sharp claws. Chris had been searching all wrong as far as he was concerned. His friend focused on identifying people she thought might be changed and sounding them out over weeks. But Chris was terrified of being discovered by the wrong people, though she could never quite say why.
Instead, Rob decided to find a place with heavy traffic, and expose himself. Chris had shown him what happened when they took pictures of themselves. She'd even shown him her photo album chronicling his/her various changes over the years. It was hard to believe that Chris had been a four and a half foot tall rat when they'd first met, and then until a few weeks ago, a female donkey! It was even stranger seeing his friend as a huge brown bear. Despite knowing Chris for over two years, he still had to remind himself that everyone else saw Chris as a guy.
And more importantly, Chris said she — he — wanted to be treated that way.
Last week Rob had gone to Walmart to buy a digital camera. He would have gone to Target where Chris worked, except that Chris would have become a very angry bear if she knew what Rob intended to do with it. What had taken him so long was getting just the right picture, and deciding where to post it.
There was one furry forum that Chris had sometimes trolled that traded stories and engaged in roleplaying, much of it as realistic as possible. Rob signed up, read through the traffic, and figured it was the most likely place for others like themselves to congregate. Now it was time to take a chance.
He churred to himself as he cropped and resized his photo until it met the web forum's standards. He took a deep breath and said a quick prayer as he uploaded it to the site. His long tail flitted behind him as he spent the next ten minutes posting banal replies in popular threads. Elsewhere in the apartment he could hear Trevor and Brett snoring, while Nick was taking a shower. Very typical.
He nearly jumped out of his seat when the phone started to ring. Damn skunk instincts! He used to be cool and collected, but since the change, any sudden noise startled him out of his fur.
It was Chris on the other end. Her deep, feminine growl had a cheery note to it. "Good morning, Rob! Are you free today?"
He scanned his calender. "Sure, what did you have in mind?"
"When was the last time you washed?"
If not for the fact that Chris was helping him adjust to being furry, he would have laughed off such a question. As it was, he hated to admit the answer, "Not since last week. Washing is such a pain, take forever to dry off. And nobody seems to notice."
"They will," Chris replied, a little growl in her voice. "Grab some shampoo and a few towels. Then come over to my place. I wanted to show you where I go when I can."
Rob blinked. "You don't use your shower?"
"At my size? Rob, I can't! And I had trouble when I was a donkey. My hooves might have cracked the tub." He could almost see her smile. "Trust me on this. It'll be fun. Get some towels and shampoo and drive on over. Oh, and bring the dog comb too. You'll need it. And something to snack on."
Rob rolled his eyes and laughed. "Fine, Chris. I'll see you in a bit." Rob closed down his computer and gathered everything he'd need. He couldn't help but wonder the whole time what Chris had in mind.
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Christopher put down the phone, a grin creasing his muzzle. The big bear stepped gingerly down the hall, listening to the sounds of Leslie soaking in the tub. With utmost care he opened the linen closest and grabbed a stack of towels, and stuffed them under his arm. One of his claws caught on a loose thread, and he growled under his breath as he twisted his finger back and forth to free it without tearing the towel apart.
He slipped into the computer room, took one of the year three boxes from his closet, and removed a large shoulder bag. A pair of dog brushes and several bottles of shampoo rested at the bottom already; he shoved the towels in over them. He carried the bag into the kitchen, snagged a large plastic bag and shoved it into the towels.
Setting the shoulder bag down, he grabbed his lunch pail and loaded several fruits inside, as well as a package of pre-cooked sausage. He barely managed to close the lid. From her beanbag, Crystal watched him with lazy eyes. He smiled, walked over with as light a steps as he could manage as a bear, and patted her on the head. She closed her eyes, leaning into the touch. He wondered how much his dog could see him, but she had never shown any sign that she could tell he'd changed. At least none that he knew, and he did know a thing or two about how dogs acted.
Christopher stretched and checked his attire. Tough denim shorts that only came half-way down his thighs, and a tank top that revealed as little cleavage as possible. No way he could risk wearing a bra with the tank top on. But as warm as it was that day, he wouldn't be able to wear anything more. Besides, if they were lucky, he wouldn't need any of his clothes for a while.
It wouldn't take Rob long to get there, but he wasn't going to leave without telling Leslie. He walked down the hall, careful not to knock any of the pictures down as he passed. With the back of his paw, he knocked on the bathroom door. "Leslie? Mind if I come in?"
"Okay," she called back.
He opened the door and was immediately greeted by a wall of steam. His tongue stuck out his face, and he blinked and waved one paw in the air to disperse the cloud. Leslie laughed, staring up at him — or rather, she stared at his breasts thinking that was where his face was. "Too hot for you?"
"Yes, a bit," he replied. "But it does smell good." Everything had a strong flavor of raspberries. Those bath lotions his wife loved so much were always too potent for him.
"Glad you can smell it," she replied, a little frustration creeping into her voice. "Pizza Hut is killing my nose."
"Hmmm," he wished he could say he was sorry about that, but it made it easier to hide his beastly musk if she couldn't smell anything at all. He glanced at her body lying in the tub, most of which was covered by filmy water. Still, he smiled just staring at his wife. "Rob and I are going to take a hike."
"Oh? Wish I could do that. Dumb Pizza Hut making me work all day long."
He sighed. He did wish that they would have more time together, but now that he'd finally met another person changed like he was, it was hard not to want to get Rob out and do things together. "At least you have tomorrow off," he said, hoping that would cheer her up. "And you aren't closing tonight. I'm really surprised, with the Tech game and all."
"Tony's sick," Leslie replied. "Been sick for the last few days, but he came in anyway until today."
Christopher's ears perked slightly. Then he took a deep breath and let the momentary excitement abate. People getting sick in September didn't mean anything. "Well, I'll make sure I have something ready for you to eat when you get home. Anything you'd like?"
"Not pizza!"
He laughed deep in his chest, breasts jiggling inside his tank top. "I'll find something good. Love you, sweetheart! I hope your day goes well."
"Me too. Have fun hiking!"
Christopher closed the door, and then brushed the moisture from his cheek fur. Everything was set, now he just had to wait for Rob to get there.
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Rob pulled into the Chasewood Downs parking lot for the third time that week. The apartment complex was much smaller than Foxridge, and much less complicated. Chris said that there were more young families living there than students, and judging by the nicer cars he saw in the lot, Chris was right.
He was there for no more than fifteen seconds when he saw Chris climbing the steps from his apartment door. She lived with her wife on the ground floor apartment, and generally kept the drapes shut. She must know the sound of his car engine by this point.
The skunk felt his eye begin to twitch as he saw the bear walking out in only a tank top and shorts that revealed far more furry leg than he wanted to see. Probably covered a lot more for all the humans who would look at her. Of course, they all saw a guy. Rob tried not to stare at the way Chris's breasts bounced behind her shirt.
Rob opened the passenger door, and Chris slung her shoulder bag and a lunch pail in the back seat on top of a pair of keyboards, and an old monitor he planned to get rid of. "You really need to clean your car out, Rob," Chris said as she slid the passenger seat all the way back. "This is a mess! What did I tell you about leaving messes around?"
"Hey, it's my car," Rob snapped. "And watch your claws on the upholstery too."
"I've been doing this for six years, Rob, trust me." Chris put one leg in, the huge foot and four inch claws coming dangerously close to tearing up the carpeting. But the bruin was right. She settled into the seat without causing any damage, although the car did sink an inch or two.
"Okay, so where are we going?" Rob asked as he pulled out of the lot.
"Get on 460 West and stay on it for a while." Chris struggled with her seat belt for a minute. Her belly was large enough that she had to pull the seat belt all the way out to get it to fit.
Rob took the left onto Tom's Creek and then put on his right blinker. "You know, even if we do get into an accident, you probably won't go anywhere."
"Don't get into an accident," Chris said, her voice humorless. "I mean it. The last thing we want to do is go to the doctor. What are they going to do to help us? They cannot even see us as we are."
Rob turned right onto 460 and sped up to 70. The speed limit was only 55, but the cops never patrolled this side of town. "Good point. Do you want me to slow down?"
"Heh, no. You'll need to go this fast to make it up Brush Mountain."
Rob laughed and nodded, his long tail twitching behind his head. He'd discovered that driving with a tail this long required slouching in his seat. He couldn't fold the tail directly up from the root. But if he gave it a few inches to curl on its own, he could manage it.
Alongside the highway were farms and fields with grazing cattle and horses. He didn't see any dead skunks in the highway, and he barely noticed his own scent anymore. But Chris certainly did, she kept rubbing her nose and trying not to make it obvious. "You can crack the window if you want. I'll leave the AC on for you too."
"Oh, thank you!" she exclaimed, gingerly pressing the button with the back of one claw. The rush of wind blew the fur in her face straight back. Her nostrils flared from the pressure like a dog's would.
"So," Rob said as they started up the steep slope of Brush Mountain. The road stayed straight, but the incline was so sharp that almost immediately he lost ten miles of speed. "Where are we going exactly?"
"This place I know," she replied. "Very private, and nobody will ask questions about any animal hair we leave behind."
Rob glanced at the bruin, beginning to suspect something amiss. "What, is there a bathhouse out in Pearisburg I didn't know about?"
Chris laughed and shook her head. "Just enjoy the drive. It's a lovely day out." She stuck her snout out the window and made a show of sniffing. All around them the road was lined with trees in full summer colors. "Ah, you can smell the trees."
"You look like a dog with your head out the window, Chris."
She sat back in her seat and laughed again, a warm rumbling sound that made her seat shake. "I've been a dog twice now. You saw the pictures."
They reached the top of Brush Mountain and almost immediately started going down the other side. "Yeah, hard to believe all of them are you." He debated telling Chris about the picture of himself he'd posted to the forum. He glanced at the four inch claws on Chris's paws, and decided to keep quiet. She may be smiling and enjoying herself now, but no need to risk upsetting her. He's seen her angry one time, and he didn't like her when she was angry.
"So, how far do I have to drive?"
"Not that far. The turn's in Pembroke, just past Mill Mountain." Chris drummed her claws on her shorts. "You know that's where they filmed ‘Dirty Dancing'?"
Rob nodded. "Heard that at freshman orientation." What could possible be in Pembroke? There was nothing in that town. "Wait, you said the turn's in Pembroke?"
"That's right. Where we're going is another few miles up the road."
Rob almost hit the brakes, but he kept his paw hovering over the accelerator instead. Once west of Blacksburg, 460 became very twisty and very mountainous. The last thing he wanted to do was lose control. "Don't tell me were going to the Cascades Trail?"
Chris laughed again, nodding slowly. She had that motherly look that made him so uncomfortable but looked so natural on her face. "Trust me, Rob. You're going to enjoy this. It's worth the drive and the hike."
"Oh it better be!" His long tail thrashed behind him in agitation. The bruin saw it and just laughed.
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The Cascades Trail led through a narrow valley between two ridges, following the course of the Little Stony Creek. The trail was only a little over two miles long, but it ended with a forty foot waterfall. The amazing scents, the beautiful sights, and the wonderful water had always made this one of Christopher's favorite destinations.
He stretched after climbing out of Rob's car. It was bigger than his Saturn, but he still took up every bit of room available. Already, the ridges blocked the sun, and the shade felt so wonderful against his fur. "Ah, this is more like it." He grabbed his shoulder bag and lunch pail, hoisting them both over one arm. "Come on, Rob. Have you been down here before?"
The skunk slipped a backpack on, bent half over, and moved his tail around several times. Christopher watched him curiously. "Just getting the kinks out," he explained. He rolled his shoulders forward a few times too, then stood up straight and nodded. "Yeah, I've been down here a couple times with Audrey. Last time she brought her sketch book and tried drawing the falls. You should ask to see her sketchbook next SOAP meeting."
Christopher laughed again. "Society of Anthropomorphics, how utterly appropriate, especially today. Well, let's get hiking!" He started up the trail, paws leaving the asphalt behind and treading comfortably upon the hard earth and numerous imbedded stones. A few roots and the occasional bit of grass also littered the path. Rob followed behind him after muttering something unintelligible under his breath. Christopher smiled.
Very quickly the path crossed a wooden bridge over the creek and followed the right bank. Huge rocks and trees surrounded them, and the dirt path several times gave way to smoothed stone. The creek flowed past, flush after the summer's rains. Birds chirped in the trees from time to time, squirrels dashed through the branches collecting nuts, and several critters thrived in the underbrush. Christopher could smell a family of rabbits, a pair of deer, and more bird than he cared to name, and that was just within the first five minutes.
Behind him, he could hear Rob churring to himself. "Wow. I never realized how alive this place was."
"Well, you haven't really left Blacksburg since you changed," Christopher said. His claws scraped the stone as he climbed over a large boulder. He grinned and pointed at the creek as it tumbled through stream beds and rock piles. "It's one of the nicest things about this, you really will love the outdoors. It was the way I felt most alive after I changed. I've come out here so many times by myself, but it is so much better with company."
Christopher smiled to the skunk, who nodded and hoisted himself up beside the bruin. "Yeah, it's nice to come here with friends."
Pushing back with his paws, Christopher slid down the other side of the rock, and continued down the trail. He shifted the shoulder bag to the other arm, and kept walking. Rob followed after, and for a time both of them just admired the view, the myriad of scents, and the multitude of sounds that brought the forest valley alive. By the time they crossed the creek a second time, Rob was even churring again.
The path became increasingly jagged, going up and down and around jutting rocks. They were one step away from falling into the creek one moment, and then the next it was hidden behind a stand of trees. The path led them slowly uphill, as the creek coursed through fallen rocks; nearly every twenty feet there was a waterfall of a foot or more. The creek was too narrow to even contemplate kayaking, if Christopher even dared entertain such a ridiculous notion, but there were a few pools big enough for wading.
"And there it is!" Christopher pointed with one claw at the falls that they could now see through the trees. They'd heard it for a few minutes now, but only after climbing over a particularly narrow set of steps had they climbed high enough to see it.
"The hike doesn't seem as long as I remember it," Rob said. "But yeah, that's beautiful."
They continued to hike along the path. The falls cascaded down a forty foot tower of thin layers of stone. Christopher supposed it was slate or sandstone, but he didn't know for sure. At the bottom of the waterfall a large pool gathered, before flowing downstream through the valley. The pool was framed by a cul-de-sac as tall as the falls. Surmounting the cliff face were more trees. Opposite the falls, the path had become a wooden bridge that connected to some of the rocks jutting into the pool.
Christopher walked out to those rocks and stretched, "Ah, this is going to be wonderful!" He set down his lunch pail and shoulder bag, and then removed the phantom shoes from his paws.
Rob followed him out and stared wide eyed. "What are you doing?"
"Getting undressed," Christopher replied. "This is where I like to bathe when I can." He pulled his tank top over his head, breasts bouncing in the cool shade. Rob still stared, muzzle hanging low. "Remember, Rob, I'm really a guy still. What would Audrey say if she saw you staring at my tits?"
Rob blushed and turned around. "Jeez, Chris! What if somebody comes up here and sees you?"
"Sees us," Christopher corrected in a rather arch tone. "Because you are going to get undressed and join me in the water. Trust me, you'll love it. Just relax." He folded his tank top and stuffed it in his shoulder bag. Rob hadn't moved yet, but his striped tail was sticking way out. He rumbled a laugh. "And don't worry. People come up here to swim all the time, but not in the morning."
"I still say you're crazy, Chris."
Christopher shook his head, and unzipped his shorts. "Just think of it this way. After bathing here, you don't have to clean all the fur out of the bath tub. And you don't have to worry about clogging the drain either."
"This seems like an awfully long way to go to take a bath."
"Yes, but you can't bath every day and expect the fur to handle it." Christopher slipped off panties, careful not to catch his claws on the satin. These he definitely stuffed deep into his bag. He then puled out his shampoo bottle and set that on the edge of the rock.
"Just tell me when you're in the water," Rob said, his voice strained. Christopher couldn't help but laugh at how thoroughly he'd embarrassed the skunk.
Sitting on the edge of the flat boulder, he edged himself off, legs sinking into the cool mountain water. He kicked with his paws, and then pushed away from the stone. The clean water rushed into his face, soaking his muzzle and even getting into his ears. He spun around, splashing and snuffling in delight. Ah, this felt so good! All the heat drained from him, and he felt only contentment.
Glancing back at the stone, he saw the skunk still standing there petrified. He laughed, "Going to join me?" He didn't wait to see what Rob would do. Taking a deep breath, he dived beneath the surface and looked for fish.
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