Lines and Twists 2 (Patreon)

Lines and Twists 2 - or ‘Surprisingly enough, Furry America is less problematic’ (Jay Naylor's Furry Comics, Human!SI)

First week has gone rather smoothly.

While it took me a while to understand that there was indeed a bigger presence of ‘nudists’ due to the issues of mixing fur with clothes, I definitely didn’t see much obscenities that could have ended with me in a bad spot.

The supermarkets were mostly safe havens. The real plight there were those with the exhibitionist kink, but they were easy to kick out when they were caught. The business was actually doing well for Grunkle as he told me that things in the neighborhood tended to be frisky but ‘manageable’.

I could see his point after a week spent there, and I was also able to get to know a few recurring faces here and there. One of those was actually the youngest client the store had at the moment and someone quite recurring as of recently.

“Well, well, well, if it ain’t little Jason.”

The giggling boy bolted to the counter, stretching up and giving me a bright smile as his blue kind eyes were aimed at me.

At first glance, one would confuse the boy for a snow leopard due to his white fur and dark-brown spots, but I was told by his mother the few times she was around with him that the child was a hybrid and his father was a cougar cat.

Thus, the white cat genes of his mother were slightly altered with the brown fur of his father, creating a ‘fake snow leopard’. Beyond that, the kid was as boisterous as a boy his age should be.

“Hiya Johnny!”

“How are things, kiddo?” I asked.

“Good. Mama said that we are going to the park tomorrow to play with Auntie Dessie.”

“Glad to hear that, so… you up for some chocolate?”

“Nope, mama said that I had to do some big boy work. And I need your help!”

I perked up at this. First Jason refused candy and now he needed my help with a big boy business? That was indeed a surprise.

“Sure thing, squirt. What do ya need?”

Jason gave me a list, and it was packed with lots of stuff I couldn’t expect a kid to carry on his own.

“So, what’s the big list for? Did your mom tell ya?”

“She said that she’s going to be busy and can’t visit,” Jason admitted quietly, clearly upset by the ramification of him skipping on a few visits. I reached out and ruffled his hair much to his giggling annoyance.

“No upsetty, kiddo. Stuff happens, and your mom definitely has a reason to be busy,” I hummed, “Now, let’s go for a lil’ treasure hunt. Yarr!”

The boy mimicked the pirate greeting and we went to ‘fish out’ all the things marked on the list. Took us around ten minutes to have it all put on bags, paid off with the money the boy had been given, and, after telling Grunkle Frank I was going to do a ‘delivery’ for one of the habitual clients, I followed Jason back to his house.

Unsurprisingly enough, it was close enough to the convenience store so it wasn’t too difficult of a trip to make with the many bags I had. To make Jason more ‘involved’ on this, I gave him one of the smallest bags he could carry on his own with ease.

As we reached his house’s porch, I reached out to ring the doorbell, and it didn’t take too long for the owner of the place to come open the door to us. Despite what many would think when first introduced to Bethany, or Beth, the cat girl was not as simple to understand with just a glance.

Appearance-wise, she was indeed a woman with pristine white fur, blue eyes, a mane of messy black hair and a petite frame many would think is being owned gracefully by a 20-something girl.

In truth, Beth was in her mid-forties. She was not married, had never been one to begin with, and was supposedly a single mother. I didn’t get the chance to pry much info as she was the kind of private lady that didn’t want any ‘frisky adventures’ after Jason was born.

Dunno enough about her past, I only know she was doing moderately well.

“John, thank you for helping.”

“Only doing my work, Miss-”

“It’s Beth. Drop the formality at least once,” She prodded at my chest with a finger, interrupting to correct me. “And come in, I would like to talk with you.”

I blinked in surprise at the request, but nodded at it. Beth paused a moment to lean down and pat her son’s head, calling him a very good ‘big boy’. The praise had the boy smiling eye-to-eye as he bolted for the kitchen with the tiny bag.

I helped around to get all the bought products set in the kitchen, listening to Beth’s instructions on the various cabinets and shelves where specific items were meant to go.

Once we were done, she told Jason to go back in his room as I would stay for lunch. Not exactly the first time I heard Beth being so commanding, but as the boy left for his room, the woman explained why she decided to go for this plan without my consent.

“I am sorry, but I have to repay you somehow.”

I frowned at this. “...Why?”

The cat-girl rolled her eyes, “It’s complicated. I am sure Jason told you that my sister will be visiting tomorrow.”

“He did.”

“Well, I would like you to do something about it. Not tomorrow, specifically, but I would ask you if you can have her crash at your place for a few weeks..”

…What?

“What?” I vocalized my thoughts, and Beth… gave me a genuinely uneasy look.

“I know this sounds weird, but my sister is the kind of big lady that doesn’t like to bug me too long since I have my own issues. I am asking around with people I can tell are not going to exploit her current situation. She is getting divorced and… and she is not as strong as she tries to appear.”

My lips twitched at that. Siblings’ Drama was something that always got to me being that I had a younger sister.

“How long?”

“Two weeks. I will call you later tomorrow before she gets the chance to contact you, so you can alert your girlfriend-”

“I am single.”

My response surprised Beth a moment, as she gave me a perplexed look.

“No way,” She muttered with a mixture of awe and disbelief dripping from her voice.

“Is it a problem?” I asked, hoping that wasn’t the case.

“Not really. I guess that spares you from explaining why a curvy cat lady is going to live at your place.”

A few more details were entertained, but I was just asked to be the host for this woman so she could get out of her current home, get a stable place to draw some plans and then get a new place to live.

Nothing too extensive, the woman was rich due to her high-level job. It sounded like a feasible situation, so I decided to open up to that. And as it was time for lunch, I managed to at least get Beth to allow me to clean some of the dishes by the time we were done.

I could tell Jason was quite giddy to have me around, and yet very sad I had to go.

“I am still at the same place you visit, kiddo. I ain’t leaving.”

It mellowed him enough so I could leave for good…

Unaware that Beth was staring at me leaving from one of the windows and musing on how to break the news to her sister.

—---------d-d-d-d—-------

Bethany knew things could be worse, but she still found living as a single mother to be a tedious thing.

When she ended up pregnant, she didn’t expect for Ty to keep around and take care of this mess. They had barely met when she got pregnant, and she had been told already by Trixie that he wasn’t going to get hooked like this to a relationship. That expectation had been proven right. Despite that, Beth had been on the move to ‘clean things up’.

She was still into the kinky side up until it was the last two months for the pregnancy, but she had done all she could to prepare herself for solo motherhood. Her sister provided some help, but as a woman handling a potential second divorce that hadn’t been as extensive as needed.

Still, Bethany made it and she was now the proud mother of a little Jason that kept on giving her new joys about her unplanned parenthood. Did she regret it? Nope. Her baby boy was her world despite how little emotion she seemed to show around others.

The kid already knew his mom was not the kind of person that wore her feelings on her face and that her actions had a deeper meaning compared to many others. It made life easier in that regard, but not that easy in handling the notion that she was getting older, and she should not be pondering on impossible what ifs.

So, when it came to that lovely Saturday visit at the park, Beth was a bit distracted while her sister recounted to her how things had gone with her second husband. There was no surprise that Desdemona had grown upset with her latest marriage, the same mistakes as the first one repeating within a similar lens: she wanted kids, her husband was not ‘sure’, and it kind of led them breaking apart.

It was also a matter of ‘kinkiness’ as Desdemona just had the worst luck when it came to striking the preferable balance she had long wanted. She was close to fifty, still childless, and extremely frustrated by this.

“How’s the kid treating you?”

“He is a good boy,” Beth calmly replied, deciding against putting any extra detail out of genuine worry. “I also spoke with a few friends for your situation-”

“Sis, just focus on yourself. I can handle it,” Dess replied calmly, trying to smile but making it appear so strained and forceful that Beth didn’t need to look too deep to know how fake it was. “I have a tiny spot to keep for a month and then I will be fine:”

“...He's a good guy.”

“The fact it is a guy is not a good condition-”

“And I trust him with Jason.”

…

That was a big jump compared to just ‘I trust him’. As much as Beth knew this was a display of trust unnatural from herself towards others, she knew that the new helper at the convenience store was a life-saver and a good man.

John was clearly a perv as he would catch glimpses of her… in a way that it felt like he was admiring her beauty. It barely touched any sexual leering and it felt like he was just appreciating her appearance.

A rare behavior in today’s society with how promiscuous the newer generations had gotten. But it made her slightly mad that he couldn’t see her like a proper perv at times.

“That’s quite the big leap. Is he that trustworthy? You sure you’re not just exposing the kid to someone that ‘looks’ good?” The question was raised with some genuine concern, but Beth’s answer was immediate.

“I know he is trustworthy. Which is why I want you to give him a call through this phone number.”

Dess glanced at the paper on the bench, then back at Beth.

“There’s more about it,” She rightfully suspected. “Something about you and him. What are you not telling me, Bethany?”

Beth sighed, looking at her son playing and then feeling compelled to be honest with the thought that had been gnawing treacherously at her the more she ‘discovered’ who John was.

“Do you remember when I started dating Fisk a long time ago?”

“That’s decades ago, but yeah- he was a bit of a prick. Please, don’t tell me my ‘future housemate’ is a prick too. I will hate you forever, you crazy girl.”

Huffing, Beth glanced back at her sister. “It’s the no-nonsense attitude. And the straightforward mindset they both share,” She admitted. “It’s endearing, it makes for a stable partner.”

…

“But?”

“I am two decades older than him.”

“That’s a very young friend you got there, sis. But still… what about it?”

The glare was a telling sign. Beth already had this conversation with Dess when they talked about trying to make it work with Ty. One of the main worries was the fact he was ten years her junior. That gap could be ignored, the twice as big one that was between her and John was not comparable. Especially when her bond with Ty was more sexual than the heart tugging she felt around that silly human.

Dess pulled back, looking at her nephew. “I guess I’ll play nice while I stay at his place. But I don’t promise you I will not be open for some fucking if he plays his cards nicely.”

Beth merely nodded, knowing it wasn’t like she could do much about it. Not only Dess was her own boss about this kind of stuff, but she was in no relationship with John. In fact, it felt silly to even think of pushing limitations out of pseudo-jealousy.

No, she didn’t have a chance at all, but there was something good about this.

At least Jason had a positive paternal role model to grow up around for the time being.

—------d-d-d-d—--

AN

I never thought writing Beth would feel so ‘dispassionate’ in how she behaves. She is a beauty turning towards the end of her turbulent life, happy to be a mom but also aware things could have been better if she had caught herself in her decades-long ‘fall’ into trying to fill the missing gap.

Her sister put in a better effort, but Beth was the one that scored half the goal Desdemona wanted to gain from her marriages. She is not bitter about it, but the odd luck is not missed to either of the sisters.

Maybe I should write an AU/What If set far before Force of Nature. BethXJohn would be an oddly pleasant ship to write about.

Next time… Trash Panda is caught day(wet)dreaming in the shop, which leads to a very interesting discussion and proposal. Or ‘Brooke Reed ends up making a friend that doesn’t bully her for her vivid sexual fantasy’.