Pairs of Pumpkins #06: The Sales of a Silken-Furred Sister

"I know! She's like, if sand was made out of silk!" Portia turned to Anya with a laugh of disbelief. Marina frowned.

"I see my family is no less handsy than my clients except they don't pay as well. You said something about time... mother?" the half-mink nearly choked on the last word. Her head dipped down to intercept her attention and Portia recovered from her moment of wonder.

"Right. Sorry. We've come to break you out, assuming you wish to leave. We know where the guards are posted and we've mapped out the fastest way out to the street. We can get you out of here then you can live whatever life you want to lead, either with us or with anyone. By yourself, if you chose! You don't have to be someone's property anymore. You won't have to sell yourself to make someone else rich and if you do decide to sell yourself, it's your money. We're offering you the choice."

Marina took a step back, slipping her wrists gently out from Portia's grasp and Anya's touch. "They don't treat me badly here. Not really. I'm not left wanting for anything and honestly, I like all the sex. Some people are surprised by that, like no one could do this job without hating it."

The half-mink took a few paces around the side of her bed. "On the other hand, I've never left this compound. Lucian tells me that no one outside these walls would ever accept me because they can't tell what I am. But you've been out there," she looked to her sister for guidance.

"Not for very long. It's getting a little old to have people constantly asking 'what are you' but that's about the extent of it, so far. They're curious but nobody has made a problem of it."

Marina smiled at Anya's answer and mused to herself again. "I'd like to see some of the places my clients talk about. Maybe the Southlands, where they dress like that," she said and gestured to her mother's outfit. "Maybe sail somewhere? I suspect if I got to keep my wages, I'd never need to work another day in my life."

"You make fifty gold per hour with a client?"

Marina spun back with sharp eyes and keen interest. "I do. That's a lot, right?"

Portia nodded emphatically. "That is a lot. I've got scars from jobs that paid less than you make in an hour. When I was younger, I mean."

Marina moved to her bedside and opened a nightstand drawer. She fetched a pouch from it, heavy with jingling coins. "I've had four clients tonight. They don't collect until the morning."

"If you have two hundred gold in there, you'll be set for quite a while."

"I'd be able to buy nice things? Fine clothes?"

Portia softened. "Well, it's never hard to get rid of money if you're trying. The nicer the things you buy, the faster it will go."

"But I'll have a family?" Portia and Anya both nodded. "There are others? Brothers too?"

"You have a lot of brothers and sisters. A LOT. And we're going to find them all, just like we found you."

"It sounds interesting." Marina folded her arms and softened her demeanor then appraised the two of them again. "Many siblings. You never met my father. I assume you're going to tell me a very good reason why I grew up in a whorehouse instead of your house?"

"I promise the truth but I can't promise you'll believe it."

"There's a good reason." Anya confirmed with a quick nod. "My story is kind of crazy too but mother came for me as soon as she knew."

Marina paused and pondered. "So I am really half-mink and half-fox?"

"You are," Portia gave a single, incredulous nod. "It wouldn't be possible naturally but yes, you are and Anya's one quarter-bear." Anya obliged her mother and presented her large hands, waggling black, claw-tipped fingers with faux menace. "The story, crazy as it is, is all kind of connected."

Marina gave a small shrug and a hint of a smile, still quite calm about the situation. "I'm intrigued. Let's do it. Mother. Sister."

Portia cracked a grin like a whip. "Grab your things. Valuables and essentials only. Clothes are heavy and cheap, jewelry is light and expensive."

It became quickly apparent and was entirely unsurprising that Marina packed like she had never been on a trip in her life. Anya had been in a similar situation just a month before but those few weeks on the road and sea had educated the part-bear Pridemoon daughter as what was truly necessary. Gold and jewelry were ransacked from the room by Portia and her newfound daughter while Anya selected a few of her more versatile outfits. She rolled them up in a bundle and tied them up with a dress for a rope, for the predictable absence of any bags, chests or luggage.

Marina made some protest as to not bringing more of her sheer, thin outfits but Portia reminded her that they were only a week into Spring on the northernmost peninsula of the mainland. It would be much more cold and wet outdoors and was enough to dissuade her. Less than twenty minutes passed from their introduction when Portia peeked her head out of the double doors of the room and with it clear of guards, she led the chain of her daughters purposefully down towards the second floor.

"There's a hidden service door for the cleaners to the laundry room. From there, a corridor to take out the trash will lead us out to the alley behind this place. The alley is too small to have more than one or two guards. Follow my lead and don't stop for anyone."

Portia walked briskly, leaning Marina by her dainty wrist. Anya followed in the rear, doing their best to be nonchalant while turning heads as they made their way to the back corner of the brothel complex. Far enough away now that it was getting sparse and suspicious to be there, the mother vixen stopped and peaked around, finding a much more sparse hallway, where only a handful of couples cavorted and flirted, then through it, another around the next corner that was completely empty. Her attention darted between her daughters and whispered: "we're almost there," before leading them down it.

"Marina?" A man's voice bellowed from behind them, cutting through the distant chatter and music, echoing through the empty hallway.

"I said don't stop," Portia repeated, squeezing her daughter's wrist but the voice called out again, commanding attention.

"Marina!"

The voice commanded attention this time and three vixens turned back to see a brown-furred grizzly bear towering well over seven feet tall, alone in the hallway with them. His sturdy form was wrapped in black leather shaped around embossed metal plates in a suit of armor, clinging to a broad-shouldered and powerfully muscled body that he held with a regal grace and poise. Over his shoulder was an ornate bastard sword that would be two-handed for any of them, even Anya.

Portia sized him up with suspicion. Were they caught? This man was not a guard. The whole place was rich with excess and opulence and the guards she had seen blended in better and curiously, were all wolves. This bear exuded wealth and power in the most unsubtle of ways and was almost certainly a client. But clients weren't allowed weapons. Was he someone more powerful than that? His eyes widened from a squint to their fullest extents as he drank in the sight of the trio, huddled in together. With a broad grin forming, he approached.

"Tell me that's not Lucian LaCroix," Portia muttered, squeezing Marina's arm but Marina shook her head and laughed.

"Lucian is an alligator. And hideous."

"My Gods, Marina. Where have you been hiding these two?! Were you jealous?!" The bear laughed as he spoke and he extended his arms out to his sides. Marina twisted away from her mother and hurried to meet him, jumping into his arms where he lifted her with ease and squeezed her, greedy hands groping in her soft fur like both Anya and Portia had.

"If it's not my favorite customer, Lord Ryo of Westerkerk!" Marina kissed his cheek before he set her down before him, giving her an admiring once-over and holding her shoulders as he towered over her, hands ruffling her irresistibly soft fur. "I didn't think you'd be back up this way for some time."

"They sent me to Erdlake to report on how Westerkerk's new cold-weather training center is going. Our King is concerned about the things he's hearing after what happened in Duncaster and wants to make sure our troops are fit for it, should any more trouble arise. Since I'm originally from the North, they chose me to check in and I couldn't come back to Erdlake without paying you a visit. I didn't make an appointment but I was hoping I'd catch you. I trust you've been well? They're still taking care of you?"

Marina's familiarity did not translate to comfort for the rest of them and Portia edged in front of Anya, glancing around the hallway for potential weapons. She knew the difference between the vanity fitness of the handsome women and men of this place and real, martial exercise. Lord or otherwise, this bear was a fighter and that was what she'd expect of a Westerkerky Lord. The city-state in the southwest had been the center of many wars in the past and was renowned for its superior army, armorers and weaponsmiths.

"I'm doing well. I just had a very interesting reunion with, well, my family!" she stepped aside and extended an arm, presenting them. "This is my mother, P..."

"Penelope!" Portia blurted out with a genial chirp and the bear stepped past Marina with his attention on her mother and sister now. He extended his hand as he drew near, his ursine muzzle crooked with awe and delight. She tensed before offering her hand to his just as he reached her. "Pleasure to meet you, Lord Ryo. We're in a bit of a hurry though."

The bear shook her hand with a grip that was soft at first then tensed into a more solid one, like he might shake hands with a man. His eyes narrowed with intrigue and interest while hers fell away to study closer the statuesque example of masculinity before her. His appearance embodied the fiercest warriors she'd known and fought alongside but he had the scent of a Lord with a tasteful perfume of lavender around him. The armor he wore was clean and ornate but looking over it, it was also practical and functional, right down to the two buckles that held closed a codpiece the size of a mop bucket except more attractively formed and engraved. Her eyes rested there for a long moment, her body already battered by the relentless displays of sexuality throughout the brothel and her own, long-simmering frustration. He had all the indicators of a dangerous man and that only made him more attractive.

He held her hand longer than was prudent, watching her inspection of him. "No mystery where Marina gets her looks from. Nor her incredible bosom. Not her softness, strangely!" he said and Portia narrowed her eyes, snapping them back to his. He cracked a smile as he looked past her to Anya. "This must be Marina's sister. Another hybrid?"

"This is... Alice, my other daughter," Portia jumped in.

"I'm one-quarter bear," Anya said from over her mother's shoulder. "We're apparently very coarse-furred but you would know that."

The bear's head tilted with intrigue as her mother's eyes darted back to her sternly. "One-quarter bear? One half-mink? I'm intrigued by the capabilities of your womb, Ms Penelope. I never knew such cross-breeding was possible." His eyes moved back to Anya with interest. "So you can bear, bear cubs?"

"It was nice to meet you, Lord Ryo but we were on our way... to meet another client," Portia turned back with a nervous, genial nod. "We must be going."

"All three of you? What a lucky client. I would pay quite a sum for such an experience."

"I'm sure but we're booked all night. All three of us."

"I could pay them all off. I'm quite certain."

"They're very important men. Like you," Portia said with a head shake.

"Down here on the second floor? This is unusual for you, Marina."

The bear straightened himself out and turned back to her, where the mink-fox had followed him and stood now at his side. His glare was suspicious and found her lips pursed and pensive. Sharp, green eyes darted back to her mother. "He really is my best client and a decent man! Can't we spare twenty minutes? He'll pay well."" He grinned and glanced back to Portia with a shrug before inching closer to her face.

"We have to go," Portia repeated, tugging at her daughter's arm.

The towering bear's smile collapsed and the sharpness of his eyes intensified. "I don't know what you three are up to but I've been coming here a long time and I've never seen you two. I would remember. You don't wear this like Marina does. You've picked a strange venue for a family reunion, considering that you two are obviously not whores," he explained in a quiet voice. Portia froze.

"Alice is doing an admirable job of hiding how terrified she is to be here and you, Penelope: you don't get scars, calluses, biceps and thighs like that just from riding cocks and jerking guys off. You're a fighter. You've seen battle. An arctic fox woman warrior carrying a chest like a wine barrel," he mused for a moment before lighting up then with a sudden realization. "By the Gods, you're Portia Pridemoon!"

Portia was frozen, her eyes failing to hide that he'd guessed correctly and Marina looked to her with piqued interest.

"You're famous?"

"I know who you are!" he laughed, a bit louder now and glanced behind him, suspiciously. "I've only seen a chest as impressive as Marina's on Marina until tonight but I've heard stories about a white-furred fox adventuress of similar endowment. Greater, it turns out."

The half-mink sighed and folded her arms under her heavy bosom, scooping them up with her forearms. "Well, this is going to be a thing."

"It makes perfect sense that Portia Pridemoon would be Marina's mother, I just wouldn't have thought it possible! I have so many questions but... " The towering bear noticed that she was silent and tense, fingers balled up into fists. His broad grin returned and he continued with a shake of his head and a chuckle. He took a small step back and reached over his shoulder to grab the sling for his sword scabbard. He lifted it off, over his head and set it against the nearest wall.

"You can relax. I don't work for the brothel: I'm a client. I've tried to convince Marina to leave with me but she says she can't and perhaps she wouldn't if she could. Regardless of how she feels about me, I care deeply for her well-being. I assure you that we both want what's best for her."

"Alright." Portia nodded slowly but did not relax. "So where does that leave us?"

"You can go. Do whatever you like." She nodded again, taking a daughter by the wrist in each hand but her posture remained tense and guarded. She started to back out of his space before he continued. "But Marina is right: I am very rich and for a once-in-a-lifetime fantasy of mine, I could pay staggeringly."

At the corner of her vision, Marina stood between her and the bear. "He can," the mink-fox nodded. "I'd be much more comfortable if I was leaving here with more money than just two hundred gold."

"Just two-hundred?!" the bear popped in disbelief. "Oh no, that's not going to work at all. I'll double that even if you say no, just out of pity! "

Sharp features whipped back to Portia and the nostrils of the half-mink's pink nose flared. "You said that was a lot of money."

"For most people, it is," the vixen said as she clenched her jaw with a glare to the towering Lord. "Most people don't have the tax coffers of a military state to raid for whores."

"Well, Lord Ryo does. He's an amazing lover and just look at that thing!" Marina reached out and flicked the bear's enormous codpiece with her claw tip. "It's quite an experience. I'm not leaving without hearing him out."

Portia's brow perked at that, even as she simmed and it was not lost on the bear's attentive gaze. "That gets to the fantasy, Portia: I want all three of you. I can smell that you're thinking about it too."

"Like, sex? No! Absolutely not," Anya balked and shook her head. Ryo stared with a smug smile for a long moment before he nodded in concession.

"This one is innocent. Fine. She's off the hook. But you two aren't. What do you say? Mother, daughter and me."

Portia craned her head aside with tension. "I don't know what kinds of stories you've heard about me, Ryo but any involving whoring, definitely are not true."

"You say that with such judgment of your daughter's chosen trade. I'll give you one-thousand gold."

Portia froze for a moment at the number but scowled as the rest of the comment sunk in and her attention turned to Marina. "She didn't choose this life. That's why I'm here."

"A thousand gold, Mother! Ryo used to pay me double until I told him that I don't get to keep it. He's a very generous man."

"He's a very rich man," Portia snapped before she looked back to Anya, who was squeezing her wrist now.

"We are going to need more money. We're getting more and more mouths to feed. Whatever you want to do mother, don't let me stop you. Remember, I grew up under the leering eyes of a bear his age. I'm not so innocent and you're a grown woman."

"Thank you, Anya but that isn't the issue. I will not pay or be paid for sex. Ever. Period. It's principal." She looked back to the bear with a shake of her head. "You people have too much money but you can't buy everything."

"Five thousand then." Ryo made his counter-offered without hesitation or shame. "In diamonds, so you can actually carry it."

Marina's wide eyes darted up to Ryo. "What can five-thousand buy you?"

"A small warship? A modest keep?"

Marina and Anya exchanged disbelieving expressions before looking at their mother.

"I am not. A whore," she repeated firmly but the bear only grinned, reaching down to unbuckle his codpiece while Marina threw her hands out in disbelief.

"Are you a fool, Mother?! Or are you that disgusted by what I do? "

"I'm not disgusted by anything about you, Marina. But I have rules about people like him using the rest of us."

Ryo seemed only more amused by their dynamic. "I respect your integrity, Miss Pridemoon. Being a role model for your daughters and all. You have an interesting moral compass. Five thousand then, for one last fling with Marina. Twenty minutes and she can live off that comfortably for... well, for her whole life if she plays it right. All you need to do is watch. Both of you. With your tops off. That's reasonable, right? I simply must see those magnificent breasts!"

The second buckle slipped free and his codpiece fell to one side, a dam pushed aside by the avalanche of cockflesh behind it. It spilled out and down from where it had been balled up in the prison of his armor and settled into a fat, swinging pendulum down to his knees, with a girth like his forearm and his cockhead like gigantic, balled up fist. She witnessed the angry veins that wrapped it, throbbing as it surged to life, resting over testicles like cantaloupes.

Marina was young but clearly not naïve in such matters from the experience of her trade: Ryo's cock was massive, comparable to the most gifted lovers Portia had ever known and in twenty years of traveling the land and rampant promiscuity, she had known many. Her mouth fell agape at the presentation, betraying her stoic tension. She stared at it for a long moment before turning to Marina, who was pulling her dress off over her head, casually presenting her sleek, naked body. "You can wait twenty minutes, Mother or you can go without me. I'm not leaving this place poor."

"I'd like to stay dressed," Anya said quietly through a locked jaw and Ryo chuckled.

"Fine, I'll use my imagination. But you have to watch. And your mother? Top off. Non-negotiable."

Marina slipped up against Ryo who was unclasping the last buckle of his codpiece before it fell carelessly below him. The naked, slinky half-vixen threw herself at him once more, this time meeting his muzzle in a hungry kiss. Her hand dropped down to start stroking his cock toward a full, tree-trunk-like erection while the bear's giant hand mashed into Marina's breast needfully, his grip of a scale that complimented their size difference. Her foot swung out to lightly kick his codpiece aside and out of the way.