Coye 6.2

Chapter 2 - Doing Pretty Good

Everyone saw what Eschal meant when they followed him into the private room. Despite the odds, Coye was wide awake. The bed was on a slight incline, allowing him to partially sit up. A thick blanket covered every inch of his body save for his face, hiding the wounds and the traces of Eschal's treatment. His face was bandaged and still a little swollen, but Coye didn't seem to care. Far from minding all the pain he should've been in, the boy was smiling like a damn fool. His eyes were gigantic and filled with childlike wonder as he stared at the group of well-wishers that poured into the room.

"Everyone..." Coye muttered in a low and dreamy voice. "Hi...!!"

Shayla had to try hard not to laugh at him. Even though she should've been worried, his addled state relieved most of the tension for her and everyone else. The visage of Coye out of his mind on painkillers was a welcome one compared to him getting his head bashed in over and over by a pair of stone fists. Even Britni couldn't help smiling when she saw him with his slack jaw and dopey, bandaged face.

Coye looked at all the girls visiting and was swallowed by their positive emotions. He felt loved beyond measure, and no one even said a word yet. Then, he realized a certain someone was missing. Where was Shayla? Oh, wait. No. Byng was wearing his hat. Coye smiled even wider, lifting his hand under the blanket to waive at Shayla as he stared at his hat.

'Oh, gods... he's even higher than he got when we hung out with Tiph the other day...' Shayla laughed awkwardly. She was worried he might somehow give her away, but she instinctually started to wave at him even though he couldn't see her.

"How ya doing there, short-stuff? Feeling like a winner yet?"

"Maybe?" He tilted his head, unsure of the implications. "Wait. Wait! Is that why I'm here? Did I win?"

"Not as much as Britni, gahaha!" Byng cackled as she approached his side.

"Just can't let it go, can you?" Britni took a position almost identical to the one she had stood in the previous room, leaning against the wall nearest to the door and crossing her arms while looking disinterested.

Coco was still at Britni's feet but was much more honest about her interest. The pup wagged her tail as she stared at Coye, even going so far as to subtly smile at him every now and again.

The fact that Britni was present suddenly registered with Coye. When looking at the group as a whole, he didn't think much about it at first. Now that the initial happiness had faded somewhat, though, he hazily remembered their confrontation this morning. If things had turned out differently, Britni would've been the one he ended up fighting in front of the whole Guild. She said such hurtful things to Dorothy, and his anger intensified when he recalled her words.

He turned straight to Dorothy and asked her point blank, "Why... is Britni here? Is she being good? She's not giving you trouble, is she? If you let me have a nap first, I'll get up and give her a lesson... just... give me a bit, and I'll-"

"Um," Dorothy started to break out into a nervous sweat as she turned to look at Britni, who- shockingly- was not amused by his comments. "No, you don't need to do that, Coye. Thank you, but... no. Britni is just here to see you and has been rather kind and helpful, actually."

"You don't need to oversell it," Britni grumbled.

"Kind? Helpful?" Coye blinked.

"First time for everything, you know?" Tammy shrugged.

"Huh..." Coye kept continually blinking as if the thought of Britni behaving as such was against the fundamental rules of reality he knew and understood. "Well, okay." He came to terms with it and lazily smiled. "Good girl, Britni. Good girl!"

Of all the things Britni expected to hear from him, that wasn't one of them. Her face got red- so red that her makeup did little to conceal it. One could practically see the steam billowing out of her ears.

"Good... girl...? Me? Did you really just fucking say that? Like, I don't fucking care how high you are, t-that's-"

"Oh, come now..." Suzette sighed at the flustered bully and her ever-conflicted emotions. "It's the drugs talking, dear."

"Yeah, well... it, like, totally better be..." Britni looked away and closed her eyes in a huff.

"Must be the drugs," Coco mumbled under her breath and nodded in approval. "Coco is the good girl. Not Britni." She was looking up at her Mistress, a little jealous that she received such high praise and offended that Britni didn't appreciate it.

As amusing as this was, Suzette approached the table beside Byng and smiled down at her injured lover with all the warmth in the realm. "You know, you really scared me today. I've never seen such a display of superhuman abilities, Darling. It turns out that witnessing such things in person is entirely different than reading about fantastical adventurers in pulpy fiction..."

"Sorry..." Coye frowned with exaggerated sadness as he met Suzette's gaze. "But... it was for a good reason!"

"That it was," Suzette agreed while Dorothy now blushed, stared at the floor, and scratched her arm. "I only hope I never have to see you like that again. I'd also be pleased if you were more careful about who you pick fights with in the future, but-"

"Suzette, I might be high, but... I'm not high enough to promise you that and actually mean it."

There was some chuckling at his honesty, and the older woman herself couldn't help but give Coye a weary smile. "I figured you'd say something like that. Oh, well. Better than lying, I suppose. How are you feeling right about now, Darling?"

"Pretty gooooood..." he replied, a drop of drool passing his lips as he blinked one eye and then the other.

'No surprise there,' Shayla snickered.

It was evident that Coye wasn't the best source of information regarding his current condition, so she turned to Eschal, who was monitoring things from the doorway while keeping to himself. He couldn't give them actual privacy when there was such a large crowd, but he stayed out of their affairs unless spoken to.

"You said we can bring him home in only a few hours? Are you truly sure about that?"

"I believe I explained my personal rule to you before, Miss. I try not to say things unless I'm sure of them. Beneath that blanket, P-Soft Boy's flesh is mending at a rapid pace. Wherever I had to cut him up to extract bone fragments, I sutured him with magical thread. This thread will disappear on its own after several hours, and at that point, the risk of infection will have passed. P-Soft Boy can then be moved home, where he can enjoy the oncoming bone growth in the comfort of his own bed."

"Bone growth..." Coye giggled. "I often enjoy bone growth in my bed."

"Quite so." Eschal agreed while Shayla rolled her eyes and Byng cackled.

"Bone?" Coco's eyes widened almost as wide as Coye's, and her ears perked.

"Not that kind of bone, dummy," Britni mumbled, leaving her pet to tilt her head in befuddlement.

Low-level sex puns aside, Suzette was relieved. "That's wonderful to hear. I hope you'll forgive me for doubting you."

"Hysterics are to be expected in the aftermath of a loved one's injury. I'm not in the habit of taking such comments personally."

"Thank you," Suzette smiled politely, even if she was somewhat offended at the usage of the word hysterics. It'd been used against her and many other women to belittle their suffering, but Suzette let it go as she knew Eschal didn't mean it like that. There were more important things to take care of.

"Much as I'd like to stay by your side till you recover, Darling, I think I'm going to go and run a few errands and stop by your house. You might need a few things during your recovery, and I'd rather be prepared than not. While I'm out and about, is there anything special you'd like for dinner tonight, Darling? You deserve to be spoiled after everything you've done today, so you need only say the word and-"

"Do you have any cake?" Coye asked with little hesitation.

"...Cake?" Suzette blinked. "No, I can't say I do. However, I can stop by a bakery if that's what you desire... Darling, you do know I was talking about dinner foods, though. Don't you?"

Coye was dazed as he pondered what that meant. He didn't spend too long thinking about it, instead jumping straight into a more absurd question. "Are frosted sugar cookies a dinner food...?"

"They most certainly are not," Suzette took a knowing glance toward the pixie sitting inside Byng's hat. "But I'll find you some all the same."

"Chocolate-" Coye drooled. "Make sure there's chocolate, too... lots of it..."

"This is typically not a diet I'd recommend any of my patients-" Eschal saw fit to interject. "However, given P-Soft Boy's unique circumstances, I believe it might be worth indulging just this once." He kept his wording vague so that it wouldn't tip off anyone not already in the know, but the implication was obvious to Byng, Suzette, and Shayla most of all.

Coye was developing more pixie traits.

The fact made Shayla conflicted. She was happy knowing their bond deepened to the point where they were starting to get tangible results from it, but she also worried about what would become of Coye and how it would affect him. Becoming a sugar addict was one thing, but where was the cutoff point? Oh, well. There wasn't much they could do about it right now, so she focused on the positives.

Since Suzette was already planning on picking some up...

'Make sure you get enough sweets for me, too. You got that?' Shayla insisted, causing the older woman to roll her eyes over her predictability.

Hearing Coye talk about sugar was affecting Britni as well. It wasn't something she was often allowed to have- as sugar was for children and the weak. She was forced to grow up at the tender age of ten, but even now, Britni couldn't hold back her desire for a sweet roll. Maybe she'd sneak one for herself later on in the night when no one but the All Father was watching...

Coco was drooling, too. She wasn't allowed to eat sweets- especially not chocolate- but that never stopped her. Neither did the after-effects.

Byng had plans other than indulging Coye's newly developing sweet tooth.

"You know that I stand by my man no matter what, short-stuff," Byng reached out to softly tussle Coye's hair. "But I'm not just gonna let you eat sugar and nothing else for the rest of your life. I'm gonna swing by my camp and haul some fresh meat over to the cabin, alright?"

"Sweetmeat is good, too..." Coye responded, missing the point. "You can glaze it with honey, or sprinkle brown sugar, or-"

"And to think we were worried about him, huh?" Tammy nudged Dorothy's elbow, eliciting a nervous smile from the quiet Guild Mistress.

She indulged Tammy but wasn't honest about her feelings. Even though things had taken on a lighthearted tone around here, Dorothy was still deeply concerned about Coye. More so, she was anxious about both of them and the changes in their dynamic.

"Sorry, short-stuff. No glaze today- all I got is salt. Not as much as Auguris, though! Am I right?" Byng raised her hand and was close to patting him on the shoulder before she thankfully thought better of it. "Whoops. Almost forgot, gahaha.... anyways... before I get going, I just wanted to say I didn't stop believing in you for even a second back there."

"Thanks, Byng. I believed in me, too." Coye smiled vapidly before thinking better of it and correcting himself. "Actually, I mostly tricked myself into believing in me. I'm stupid enough for that to work."

"False courage is still courage," Britni mumbled in what sounded like approval.

"Yeah, what she said. And hey, let me in on the fun next time you make a big dramatic stand like that! Being on the sidelines doesn't suit me- I'm not the kind of girl who likes to sit there and watch her man get his ass kicked. You get me? We could have beaten the shit out of him if it was the two of us out there!"

"Probably," Coye laughed before his mind spiraled into the unknown. "You're brilliant and tricky, and I'm strong, and... holy crap, what are our kids gonna be like...?"

Byng lit up with a momentary blush before laughing it off, leaning down, and giving him a kiss on his forehead. "Our daughters will be gengaggi like me, you silly man. Fraid we don't get much choice on that. Gods, you're fucking high as shit."

"I am!" Coye proudly declared. "That looks good on you, by the way..." he commented, looking up at his hat.

"You think?" Byng started walking toward Suzette at the door but paused to pull down the brim of his hat over her forehead and smirk. "Thanks. Bit heavier than it looks, though."

'I don't want to hear that coming from the chick with the fattest ass in Cransmere,' Shayla snapped back as if that somehow wasn't a compliment. 'Before we head off, I wanted to say a few things. Don't talk back, though. Remember. I'm a secret!'

Coye nodded his head- a seemingly random compulsion to half the room who didn't know he was being talked to by an unseen presence.

'Good job during the fight, baby. A lot of crazy shit happened back there, and we'll need to talk about it soon. Maybe not today, and maybe not tomorrow, but we'll get there. I'm gonna stick with Byng for now. You need your rest. Rest, and some alone time with a certain someone...' Shayla glanced over at Dorothy, the catalyst for all of this.

If Shayla was the one who pushed Coye to take the first steps toward changing himself, Dorothy was the one who inspired him to bring it home and proclaim his change to the world. Just like Byng and Suzette both did, she played an equally vital part in his recent development, and Shayla had to respect that.

Coye understood Shayla's meaning somehow. He looked at the group at large and smiled as he addressed them. "Thanks again, everyone. I'm... I'm, uh, really glad you all showed up. Even you, Britni-"

Britni tried not to react to his gratitude but failed, manifesting the hint of a smile on her painted lips. She couldn't look him in the eyes, but his words made her heart flutter.

Coco was far more shameless, popping over the edge of the bed to ask him, "What about Coco?"

"Especially you," Coye laughed at the adorable beastfolk. "But if you guys don't mind, I, um... I kind of want to talk to Dorothy alone for a while."

"W-What?" Dorothy muttered, caught unawares. She didn't expect to be called out. She'd mostly been keeping to herself during this entire affair. She and Coye were closer now, maybe even significantly so, but she didn't have the same rights that Byng and Suzette did. Dorothy couldn't just go to his side and start comforting him, even if she wanted to.

"Coye, I... I'm not sure if that's the best idea right now. You're not very lucid, and you need rest more than-"

"So what if he's high?" Britni cut in, her voice poised like a dagger. "Did you forget the whole reason he's in that bed is because of you? And before anyone calls me a bitch, I don't mean that in, like, an accusatory way. I'm just saying you should show appreciation and do whatever the fuck he asks without simpering and stammering."

Britni had hit her where it hurt. Dorothy cursed herself for making excuses almost reflexively and hung her head.

Thankfully, she still had plenty of backup.

"Now, now..." Suzette sternly addressed Britni. "Put aside your jealousy-"

"Jealousy?!" Britni denied as sparks buzzed around her.

"Yes, dear, that is the word I just said. Thank you for repeating it." She teased, ensuring that Britni held her tongue. Once satisfied with her silence, Suzette continued. "Do try and remember that Dorothy here is recovering from recent trauma, as well. Trauma that you not only ridiculed in front of all her employees but openly exacerbated."

Britni clenched her teeth as tight as she could. Behind her arm, her nails dug into her skin hard enough to make it bleed. Hearing what she'd done spelled out for her so viciously made the gravity of it all the more real.

Britni had already apologized, already broken her promise to never seek forgiveness or act with regret.

Vikings were meant to look to the future, never the past. Every moment of weakness was just another excuse for the Valkyries to one day pass you by upon your death. Valhalla had no room at its tables for the apologetic or the remorseful.

Britni struggled and wondered if her oncoming apology was about to damn her even further, but she was stopped short of having to do so.

"It's all right," Dorothy raised her hand to Suzette and shook her head.

"Regardless of how she put it, Britni has a point, and I'm sorry that was my initial reaction, Coye. It's true that I'm still not feeling the best right now, but... if you really want me to be here for you, then there's nowhere else I'd rather be..."

Coye smiled at her while Britni grunted in approval, turning for the door.

"Leaving so soon?" Tammy teased.

"We're not going far. Come on, girl." Britni patted her thigh, expecting Coco to follow after. Instead, the pup hesitated. She continued staring at Coye from the foot of his bed.

"Before I- uh- before Coco goes... want to tell Coye that today was amazing! Changed everything." Coco mumbled with a degree of desperation before shaking it off. "If Coco can ever do anything to help-"

"Actually-" Coye interrupted. There was sparkle and intrigue in his gigantic eyes as they zoomed in on Coco's tail that peeked out behind her and wagged. "If you're offering..."

"Am!" Coco started wagging even harder, happy with the possibility of being helpful. "Am offering!"

"Well, there's a favor I'd like to ask before you go... it's... something I've always wanted to do to you."

'Oh, gods...' Shayla winced. Phrasing aside, she could already tell this wasn't going to be good. Byng thought as much as well and smirked while Suzette wondered whether or not she should intervene before deciding to let him have his fun.

Coco blinked a couple of times awkwardly. Even though she found the phrasing a little lewd, she was captivated by Coye all the same. She leaned even further on the bed, looking like she was about to jump up on top of it.

"Tell! Will help Coye however he wants!"

"I think I would feel a whole lot better if you came over here and put your tail in my face," Coye said with a level of dramatic seriousness one could only manifest while high on painkillers. "Honestly, I'd prefer if I could just hug it, but I don't think I can move my arms right now..."

"I would strongly advise against hugging anything, fluffy tails or not," Eschal confirmed most helpfully.

"Damn..." Coye grumbled. "Still, though. Please? Ever since I first met you, I've wanted to feel your tail on my face..."

The awkward silence didn't last very long. Byng couldn't help laughing, nor could Tammy. It was too much to ask of them. Even Suzette found it mildly amusing. It only worsened as Coco grew increasingly embarrassed at the request.

"W-What? Uh, no, um... Coco can't... I... she..." Coco's vision darted around, confused by how suddenly the request came and how it made her feel. Her heart was beating rapidly, and as she often did when she needed guidance, she looked to her Mistress for permission.

Coco expected Britni would tell her no, and that would be that. She didn't expect her to sign off on this.

"What are you waiting for? Give him what he wants." Britni smirked.

Sure, Britni was a little annoyed. Coye seemed much closer to her pet than she was aware of, and she wasn't thrilled about them having a big moment together when he didn't ask her for any special favors, but whatever. Denying him Coco's tail served no purpose- not when he'd have the both of them in due time.

"Wait- really?!" Coco couldn't believe it. She then looked around the room, witnessing Byng and her smug smile, Suzette overflowing with gentle support, Tammy studying her with curiosity, and even Dorothy smiling a crooked, halfway amused smile.

Coco didn't know what to think. Were they laughing at her? Did they think she wasn't up to this? Yeah, right! She balled her fists and summoned her resolve. Coco said she'd do anything to help, and above all else, she didn't want to be a bad girl who went back on her word. No. Even more than that- Coco wanted to help Coye from the bottom of her heart.

"Fine!" She growled, stood up, and strutted over to the side of Coye's bed, where she turned her cute little butt to face him. Unfortunately for Coye, her massive tail obscured the view of her tightfitting shorts, but he was granted an equally enticing sight in exchange.

Coco's tail was massive, fluffy, and curly. It was almost bigger than her body- the ultimate in doggy tails- the be-all and end-all. Coye was fascinated and wanted to do far more than simply rub his face in it, but everything had its time.

"Coye promises this will really make him feel better?" Coco asked. Sweat was starting to drip down the sides of her face. The thought of doing this was difficult for her, and the action held more connotations than he intended.

Coco felt as if this was just shy of presenting herself to him as a prospective mate- as a female. After all, he was essentially asking for her to rub her butt in his face. Sure, the tail wasn't actually her butt, but the association was there, and she couldn't stop imagining it.

She'd never shown herself off to a male before, but there was a first time for everything.

"I promise. It's gonna make me feel really, really good..." Coye assured her with hazy determination, willing to say anything to finally get a face full of fluff.

"Okay..." Coco shut her eyes, took a deep breath, and clenched her fists tighter still. She started to raise her tail. "But the only reason Coco is doing this is because Coye was really cool today! Was strong and didn't give up and cared lots about desk lady, so... here! Feel better, and get even stronger! And cooler! More alpha, too!"

At long last, it happened. Coco purposefully dropped her entire tail exactly where he wanted it. It smothered his face, and Coye was fully inducted into fluffiness heaven, finding out straight away that it was everything he wanted and so, so much more. Soft didn't even begin to cut it. It was softer than soft- every single strand of her fur being nothing short of purest perfection...

"Mnnn..." Coco whimpered and bit down on her lip. Her nose was getting wetter, and saliva started pooling in her mouth. The poor girl wanted to start panting but resisted the urge- knowing how bad that would look.

And then he started smelling her tail.

He expected Coco to smell like an outdoor dog, but that was far from the case. Her fur smelled of expensive shampoos, leaving Coye to reckon that for all of Britni's faults as a partner, it couldn't be said that she didn't keep Coco well-groomed. Beneath that scent, however, was something more. Something primal and wild. He wondered what it could be and kept sniffing for over a minute as Coco continued making lewd noises.

It was like they forgot there was an entire room of onlookers. This whole display was hilarious at first, but it got a lot less funny when everyone realized how into it they both were. Ultimately, Tammy had to point out the obvious through a pointed question.

"So... correct me if I'm wrong, but this is a sex thing. Right?"

Coco's eyes shot straight open as soon as it was spelled out, and she hurriedly scampered off to join Britni. "Coco is done now!!" She announced in a rush. "Feel better because, um... not doing that again anytime soon!"

Relieved that the embarrassing display was over, Britni reached down and scratched her pet behind her ear. "Sooner than you might think," she mumbled low enough that only Coco heard it.

"Wha...?" Coco didn't quite understand the meaning, and Britni's words rattled her. Still, she followed after her Mistress once she turned away and left the room without even telling Coye goodbye.

There was silence for a moment, broken when Coye turned to Tammy and answered her question. "It was kind of a sex thing, but kind of not..." he pouted.

"I can dig it," Tammy shrugged.

"Want me to bring some direwolf pelts along with the meat, short-stuff?" Byng cackled. "Some of them have real fluffy tails!"

"It's okay," the delirious boy frowned a deep-set frown like his dreams had just been crushed. "It wouldn't be the same..."

'Great. Now he's never gonna be whole again until he adopts that mutt.' Shayla reckoned. 'She better not give me fleas. Those nasty-ass things are almost as big as my head!'

Suzette was amused and took Byng by the shoulder before heading out. "We'll be on our way now, Darling. Try not to be too upset- we're leaving you in good hands, remember?" She smiled at Dorothy, giving her a few words of advice. "Do your best, dear. There's no need to rush things."

"Thank you," Dorothy smiled at the kindly older woman, happy to have reassurance from someone more mature than herself. "I appreciate it..."

"Guess I'll just go back upstairs for now and keep away all the visitors," Tammy considered. "They're crowding up the lounge right now, you know. Everyone wants a piece of your hero."

"Ah... ahaha, right..." Dorothy gulped. It was only a matter of time until someone gave her some teasing over the way she referred to Coye, but damn it, calling him 'my hero' felt right. She didn't regret the phrasing- not even a little bit. "Well, I appreciate it, Tammy. Really. You've outdone yourself, and I can't ever thank you enough."

"It was no big deal. Just happy to finally be of use for once."

Another smile, one less person left in the room. All that was left was Eschal and Dorothy, and the healer soon removed himself from the scenario as well.

"I'll be in my office should you need me. I won't tell you what to say or do while you're alone, only remind you that both of you are in poor condition and shouldn't push yourselves. Keep things tasteful."

"Thank you, Eschal..." Dorothy blushed, knowing he didn't mean to sound as stuffy as he did. She appreciated his advice. Even now, he was considerate of both of his patients and wanted to ensure she didn't overextend herself.

"I'll be fine, really."

"Very well," Eschal nodded and took his leave, closing the door on Dorothy.

She was now alone with Coye in the cold, dark examination room lit only by a scattered assortment of candles burning blue flames, each seeming to flicker in time with the nervous beating of her earnest heart.