Rustle 3

"Get undressed," she ordered.

She snickered when he quirked an eyebrow at her. She left the room and quickly returned without the cup. She began undressing and soon Russell was on his back with a beautiful young witch mounted on his hardening cock.

Her hair was still brown from the color-altering tonic that Media had given her. He held her face in his palms and kissed her lips as she began sliding his cock in and out of her blessed tightness.

"Do you like my hair like this?" she asked.

"So long as it's you, I don't care what you look like," he assured her.

"Will you say that when I'm wrinkled and gray?" she pressed.

"As long as you're still willing to let me shove my withered rod inside of your glorious cunny, yes," he replied.

Her kisses were feral. He wasn't sure what had brought this out in her but he was happy to be able to be a part of it. She'd already given him a terrific orgasm with her mouth and her hand and he loved the feel of her body against his, the sounds of her passionate arousal, and the wanton moaning as her climax came.

He rolled on top of her and she keened at him and begged him to fuck her hard. He relented in his attack as she came the first time. Russell continued stroking - albeit more slowly in and out of her - as she shuddered through her second one. By that point, he was convinced that he had worked up enough of a load to give her some cream of her own. He growled as he fucked her mercilessly and finally emptied his balls inside of her. She came a third time as she felt the heat of his seed spurting inside of her. They kissed and cuddled and finally realized they should be getting up.

Media was sitting in the front room.

"Stew's still in the pot," she said. "I was worried it would be cold by the time you finished."

"Sorry," Mara replied.

"No need to fret," Media assured her. "I've eaten and you've given me my treat. I'm completely at peace. If you need to warm the stew, you know how to run the stove."

They assured her that it would be fine and went to fill their stomachs. The bread was no longer warm but the stew was - and (as was always the case with the old witch's cooking) it was savory and filling. Russell got a couple kisses while the two of them ate but they finished their food as quickly as they could so that they could join their host in the front room.

Russell dropped into his usual chair and Mara sat across his lap. She giggled as the ferret kits jumped up to snuggle with them. Tildy settled onto Media's lap. As the girls chatted, Russell nodded off. He was not sure what time it was when Mara pulled him to his feet, dragged him to the bedroom, stripped his clothes off, and pulled him under the covers with her.

~~~ Home ~~~

The next morning, He switched to his ape form, grabbed the cask of mead, and carried it to the cave, placing it towards the back of their living space. Everything else looked undisturbed so he quickly set off to return to Media's cottage.

He helped her with a few items around the place that needed the ape's super-human strength or agility. Once those things were taken care of, they ate a light lunch, and then gave the old which their good-byes.

Mara and the kits climbed onto Russell's back and they headed off, across the meadows, towards their cave home. They stopped a few times and gathered plants and other things that Mara needed for her spells.

The next night would be mid-week and she needed to hurry if she was going to have anything to peddle to the trader when they made the weekly trip to Media's to meet with the man.

~~~ Winter ~~~

The next couple months flew by with no signs that anyone was going to come looking for the six missing hunters. By then the weather had turned cold and winter was well on its way.

Over the next few months, they got to see the place where they lived change pretty dramatically. The good news was that the stream continued to run - even when it had a rime of ice along the edges of the eddies. The cave was even more chill than normal, and they kept the entrance closed most of the time.

During the coldest weeks, Russell was the only one that left the cave - and that was only to hunt and gather fuel for the fire. Their visits to Media's house became less frequent - only happening every second or third week. When they did go, they stayed for a day or two and made sure she got the cream she needed for her tea.

The kits were now almost as large as their mother. She still checked them each over every time they came in. They quieted under her scrutiny and then gave her hugs and cuddles after she'd confirmed that they were free of pests and injuries.

Russell caught the girls talking more and more about babies and children but - for now at least - Mara was still content to put those decisions off for a while longer. He had to admit that he was jealous of his time with his lover and was not in a tremendous hurry to bring another party into the group who would require the undivided attention of both of them.

~~~ Building ~~~

Winter turned to spring and Media informed them that she wanted to build a hog-pen and acquire a few pigs. Russell built a shelter into the hill - with a separate section to allow for a sow to farrow her piglets.

They made a trip south, once more, and came home with two bred sows. Media had him build another pen so that they could acquire a boar - or raise one of their own.

The next project was to expand the mare's paddock and improve the shelter. Once that was complete, Media bought a couple of old milk cows. She was able to get them to produce and soon he was making cheese.

When Russell finally realized that Media and Mara were plotting, he confronted them about what was going on and they informed him that Media was planning for them to move in with her full-time.

Once the cows were settled, they began working on the addition to the house. Off the back of the kitchen, they added two new bedrooms and a room with an indoor privy and a large bathing tub. By this point, they had been living at Media's full-time. Summer had turned into fall and they were quickly headed back into winter.

Russell had returned to the cave and had closed things up there as best as he could. Everything the girls thought would suffer if left there was moved to the cottage - including the bed from Mara's old house. This went into their new bedroom. The room across from them would be the nursery if and when the lovers decided that they were ready for children.

~~~ Seasons ~~~

Winter turned into spring - and then fall turned into another winter and the young couple had soon been living with Media for two years. Russell had become the manager of the livestock. They regularly had extra animals to sell at the market. Mara was in charge of milking and cheese-making. Russell was in charge of feeding the animals and mucking the shelters and everything else that went along with animal husbandry.

The mare died and they bought another the next time they ventured to town. They used one of the steers to pull the wagon to get there - with a little encouragement from Russell's ape-form. They sold the steer off to help pay for the new mare.

Whether the people that had been pursuing Mara had given up - or whether she'd managed to use the effigies to kill off the main conspirators - they never found out. Nobody ever came looking for them. Mara's watchers showed a couple people in the woods near the falls but they were just hunting and trapping for food.

~~~ Request ~~~

It was midsummer when the trader informed Mara that the bandit attacks had resumed - at the same location as before. The fact that he mentioned it to them suggested that he hoped they'd be able to do something about it.

Mara and Media had been playing with some ideas on making Russell's transformations go faster - and reduce the down-time while his body and mind adjusted to the changes. They had him try transforming while wearing a number of amulets they had created together. Some reduced the fatigue - while others sped up the transformation. Still others reduced his recovery-time. Wearing all of the amulets together didn't improve everything - it was like the magic would only pick one part of the process to improve.

A week after the trader first mentioned the reemergence of the thieves, the merchant arrived with a copy of a notice from the Duke, offering a reward to have the bandits removed.

The next two days were spent in never-ending experimentation as the witches worked to combine the effects of the various totems into one, single, all-functioning piece.

At long last, they came up with an amulet that did as much as they thought was possible. The stomach-gripping pain was eliminated, the transformation went more smoothly, and the recovery-time was reduced. The whole process now took about five minutes - regardless of whether Russell was going from man to weasel or eagle to griffin.

They had happened upon a young griffin as they had been exploring the mountain foothills in search of components for Mara's rituals and spells. The shapeshifter studied the creature as closely as he could and - of course - as soon as he was able, he tried transforming into one.

The beast was slightly smaller than Media's old mare, but he could carry Mara and the kits as he flew. Technically, the twins were now big enough that they should no longer be called "kits" or "pups" but the humans still called them that quite often.

In his griffin form, Russell had practiced the take-offs and landings until he could manage without dumping them all onto the ground as he crashed onto his face. It was a good thing that Media and Mara were adept healers. Practice for this took longer than expected.

Over the next couple days, Mara created a few watcher effigies and some other things that she thought she would need for the task of bandit removal. Once those preparations were complete, they were ready to make a visit to the Duke's city.

~~~ Duke ~~~

It was mid-morning as they flew over the forest and landed on the bridge that was about a hundred yards from the southern gate of the city. Mara dismounted. Demon rode on her shoulders. Spawn sat on Russell's head like some kind of dragon-rider. He waited about halfway to the gates. The archers were already nervously fidgeting with their crossbows and bows. Mara approached the gate and held up the Duke's notice.

"It's been a while, but I was the one to remove the brigands last time," she told the guards. "I will do it again with - of course - a little help from this crazy winged lion - but I want some assurances from the Duke first. If you could arrange a meeting, I would appreciate it."

From within the gates, an old familiar face appeared. The guard that Mara had talked to before, at the trader's camp, came walking up. He offered her a shallow bow.

"Well met, fair lady," he said.

"Lady?" Mara laughed. "More than once, parties from this city have hunted me."

"I assure you that those mercenaries did not do so with the knowledge or the blessing of the Duke. If you would be kind enough to wait with me, I'll send a runner to see if his eminence has a few moments to meet with you."

"What about the griffin?" she asked.

"Guards! At ease! These are guests of mine," he yelled. He turned to someone inside of the gate and said, "Run to see if the Duke has a moment for a chat with the brigand-slayer. Use that title for the lady when you ask."

A young guard nodded and took off for the center of town.

Russell kept an eye on the guards but cautiously joined Mara. The ones standing near the gate scooted to the sides of the city entrance to let him pass - as did those trying to get in and out of the city.

"Right this way, my lady," the guard said.

"I don't know your name," Mara told him.

"Merritt," he replied, gesturing to a space in the courtyard where they could wait.

People resumed their journeys now that the gate was clear but they were all obviously nervous about the griffin and the redhead who stroked his mane with affection and disregard for her personal safety.

Demon and Spawn curled themselves around Mara's neck and kept an eye on Merritt and the other guards.

"These ferrets don't look like the one from before," Merritt said. "His pups?"

"Not his," Mara replied. She gestured to Russell and said, "He's chosen a different form today."

Merritt bowed his head to Russell and said, "I HAD wondered, my lady."

"I would prefer that it was not widely known," she told him. "He had a run-in with a wizard a dozen years or so ago."

<"The house burned,"> Russell told her.

"The wizard's house and workshop burned - probably to the ground."

"I know of it," Merritt told her. "It is abandoned." He leaned closer and whispered, "Like your old place."

Mara nodded to him and said, "I thought as much. That will be part of my payment from the Duke for dealing with his problem."

Merritt nodded - and then waved the returning messenger over.

"The Duke will be here soon," the young man reported.

"Back to your duties," Merritt told him, waving him on.

"Can I get either of you a drink?" Merritt asked.

<"The blood of a small child,"> Russell told Mara.

She snort-laughed.

Merritt looked at her with a quirked eyebrow.

"My mate has a bizarre sense of humor. It would probably be best if I didn't speak aloud what he said. You and I might find humor in it but it will likely scare any others that hear it."

The guard's eyes went wide but he nodded at Russell and smiled - although his smile was somewhat forced. Within a few minutes, a man dressed in finery - who was accompanied by a half-dozen well-dressed guards - approached.

"My lord," Merritt said, bowing, "may I present the brigand-slayer?"

"Thank you, guard captain. Since you seem to be at ease with our guest and her companion, please remain in case I need your services."

"Happily, my lord."

The duke turned to Mara. She held out the notice for him to read.

"I can, and will, deal with your security concerns," she told him. "I have a couple requests in exchange for those services."

"You have my attention."

"I would like a notice to be given that I am allowed to come and go within the city without insult or injury and that I am permitted to defend myself if those instructions are not followed."

"All citizens are offered such here and I would be happy to make a declaration that you fall under those protections. In the notice, I would like to add that you are a friend of the duke and that it would be unwise to think that bringing any concerns to me would result in a decision against you without a fair judgement."

"Most acceptable, thank you," Mara replied.

"I assume you want something more than that?"

Mara looked at Merritt and said, "The two residences ..."

For the next couple minutes, the guard captain described the wizard's home as well as the witch's former residence. Once the duke understood which properties were being discussed, he sent a runner to fetch a scribe.

"What is it that you require?" he asked Mara.

"I would like a writ confirming my ownership of my former home - and another transferring ownership of the wizard's properties to me."

"Since both of those are currently useless to me and the residents of the city, I have no problem with that request."

"That's all I ask," Mara said.

"In exchange for?"

"I will capture the brigands that are currently using the hidden alcove for their operations. I will deliver them to you in whatever form - dead or alive - unconscious or screaming for their lives - that you desire."

The duke's eyes widened a little but he nodded.

"I will, then, level the area that they have used and sow it with raspberry bushes - which will give the wildlife a place to shelter but make it mostly unusable for thieves and brigands."

He nodded again.

"Assuming that my beast and I are allowed free entry and travel within the city - and access to my properties - I intend to spend some time investigating the wizard's home and workshop. Once that is complete, I will make periodic visits here and will respond to any requests to deal with more bandits for the next five years without further remuneration from you."

The duke nodded, and said, "Those terms are acceptable. I assume you keep all loot from the thieves?"

"If I find anything that is obviously marked as belonging to you or any other residents, I will return it and accept a modest recovery fee."

"More than generous," the duke remarked.

"That's it - unless you can think of anything else ..."

"Beyond your investigation of the wizard's property, could I ask your intentions?"

"I am unfamiliar with the place, but I plan to salvage anything I can, and then I might see what prospects it holds. At a minimum, I plan to clear away the debris and rubble."

"I can ask no more, thank you."

At that point the scribe arrived. Over the next few minutes, the duke described the notices that would be posted, the properties that would be transferred, the deeds that would be issued, and the agreement for services that the duke and Mara would sign. She would receive a copy and one would be retained at the hold where the duke lived.

"Is it okay to shake your hand?" the duke asked, eyeballing the griffin.

"Yes," Mara said, extending her hand.

The duke shook it and said, "Thank you for meeting with me. I would like the brigands delivered alive if possible - so that we can investigate things. If they resist, feel free to make them suffer before they die. Hopefully that will lead the others to loosen their tongues."

Mara nodded and then released the duke's hand. "Where do you want them delivered?"

"You can hand them off to the gate guards with instructions to deliver them to me. Sound good, Merritt?"

"Yes, my lord," the guard captain agreed.

"As soon as the scribe has the paperwork done, I'll leave a folder with Merritt for you," the duke said.

"Thank you," Mara replied. "If we're done here, I think I'll take my winged-cat and do a little brigand hunting."

"I would wish you good fortune," the duke said, laughing, "but I've been told not to wager against you - so I don't think luck is of any concern to you."

"I'll play a dice game with you any time you want, good duke," Mara said, smirking.

"I think I'll just keep my coin purse closed, thank you very much," he replied, laughing. "Good hunting to you, Lady Mara."

<"Lady?"> Russell asked, snickering

<"Hush,"> she shot back.

Mara climbed onto Russell's back and hung on as he leapt into the air and took them over the walls of the city. More than one of the guards let out a sigh of relief as they headed on their way. One of the guards excused himself to go change his pants.

They flew to Media's and hitched the mare to the wagon. They promised her cream for her tea as soon as they got back from town.

Mara had intended to leave the wagon at the trader's camp but - as they approached the ambush spot - she got a magical glimpse of what was coming.

<"We're about to be attacked. Lie down in the wagon.">

As Mara warned the ferrets about what was happening, Russell (in the shape of the low-land gorilla) lay down in the bed of the wagon and pulled the canvas over himself.

<"Six of them,"> she said, "three and three.">

<"Tell Demon and Spawn to stay and cover you. I'll take the archers first and then deal with the swords.">

<"Right.">

The wagon stopped, men ran towards the wagon screaming, and then a massive ape appeared from nowhere, clothes-lining the swordsmen with his massive arm as he ran past them to deal with the archers. He took an arrow to the bicep as he killed the first one. The second one was nocking another arrow as the third one threw down his bow and ran for the trees. Russell somersaulted through the dirt, praying he didn't take an arrow in the eye, to bowl over the second archer.