Sold! | Chapter 3 [Comm] (Patreon)

Chapter 3.

The mansion that stood before them towered over the three furs as they approached the grand staircase that led up to the front entrance. The sun had passed far enough in the heavens above that the looming building cast a shadow on the group as they approached, Tufts feeling a noticeable shift in temperature as the sun’s rays no longer alighted on his pastel colored fur. 

A shift in the air was not the only element that tingled the manokit’s senses. Looking up, his eyes wide and watery at the marble and cement behemoth that glowered over him, he could sense that the inside of the mansion was as cold and unwelcoming as the shadow it cast. 

Looking around, there appeared to be no cars or signs of life despite the fact that their overly cheerful tour guide had mentioned that they would be seeing company very soon. As if on cue, the tiger ascended the stairs two at a time as his prisoners did their best to waddle up the steps given the awkward gait caused by their slightly sagging diapers. 

“Just up this way folks, you’ll be ready to be admired in no time!”

He grinned, giving Tufts a sly wink as he added. 

“Though I’m afraid we won’t have any time for pit stops or changes along the way, you’ll have to wait and see if your behavior hits the mark for one of those!”

He finished the sentence in a sing-song voice, giving Tufts an impression that what he was saying was a more serious truth than he led on. The manokit did not have the foggiest clue what might constitute behavior good enough to warrant a change, but he figured keeping up with the tiger’s footsteps and not lagging behind might be one of them. 

Breathing heavily, the rabbit and manokit made their labored way up the stairs and approached the front door. Reaching up, the tiger grasped the brass knocker situated on the center of the entrance and rapped it several times in quick succession. Tuft’s ears perked up as he heard the sound of metal striking wood reverberating inside of the house, his suspicions confirmed that they were about to enter an atrium of sorts. The marble floor beneath his paws sapped the heat out of his body, causing him to shiver. 

The only source of warmth he had been provided was the straightjacket keeping his arms firmly tucked around his sides, as well as his own contribution to his padding still radiating a relatively pleasant amount of heat back into his rear. Tufts tried not to think about the fact he was about to meet an entirely alien group of furs wearing a very exposed and obviously soiled diaper. 

He glanced at the rabbit next to him, who appeared somewhat less concerned about the situation they were being led to against their will. If anything, there appeared to be a look of determination on his muzzle. 

Or is that… Gratification..?

Tufts speculated, but did not have time to dwell on the twist in the rabbit’s lip any longer as the door swung open. Holding the door, a gray canine wearing a neat tuxedo turned his nose up at them as he examined them with a suspicious gleam in his eyes. The look was appraising, and Tufts was not sure whether the cursory assessment from the canine was met with a sense of disapproval or disgust. The tiger, his enthusiasm showing no bounds even in the face of this judgemental figure, saluted cheerfully before greeting the wusky. 

“He-llo Horatio! I’ve brought our guests for the evening, I hope there’s still room inside this humble abode.”

The wusky sniffed, his narrow form like a stark arrow pointing upwards with his ears directed towards them. Not a flick, or a twitch came from the wusky’s form, as he replied in a smooth tone. 

“Cletus, come in.”

He nodded at the tiger, watching closely as the two padded prisoners followed closely behind him. He arched an inquisitive eyebrow at Tufts who maintained his gaze for a moment, a silent exchange passing between the two of them that the manokit was unsure how to judge. If he had to, he would have said that the wusky had been mildly surprised that he kept his gaze for as long as he did. 

The size of the entrance room would have dwarfed the pantheon itself. A vast chandelier hung above them, glistening and catching the light streaming from the open windows on the opposite end of the room, casting a dazzling array of color on the floor below. Tufts would have become entranced by the sheer beauty of the display had his situation not already set, his heart pounding in his narrow chest. 

Behind him, he saw Horatio resume a position next to the door that he assumed was his post. Above, just beneath the window, a female caracal stood gazing out on the grounds that sprawled beneath her, a hedge maze that appeared to stretch as far as the eye could see. She turned, her eyes narrowing into pointed slits as she took in the sight of Tufts and the rabbit approaching the foot of the grand stairway. 

“Cletus, right on time too. I see your companions didn’t dawdle as much as the last group.”

She was garbed in an emerald green dress, the color contrasting with her desert orange fur and highlighting her golden irises in a stunning display of feminine beauty. There appeared to be a predatory gleam in her eyes as she assessed Tufts and the rabbit next to him, focusing for a moment on the slightly sagging state of their padding before she met the manokit’s gaze once more. 

There was something different about this woman, her poise and physique displayed the epitome of effeminate composure, but it gave off a feral impression. There was no class, no pomp and circumstance, or sense of superiority that wafted off of her even as Tufts caught the scent of her pine-needle perfume. 

The manokit felt like she might spring forward at any moment, alighting on all fours and sprinting towards him to tackle him like a lion would a stray antelope. Tuft’s resolve quivered, the jovial sense of comfort given off from the tiger now dissipating as he became the fixation of the caracal’s gaze. Something told him that he was now hers, to some degree, and whatever happened next would be dictated by her whim and her whim alone. 

“Yes, Diana. They were very well-behaved, I might add. Barney here even has a bit of an achievement I’m sure he would love nothing more than to gloat about.”

Tuft’s gaze shifted to the rabbit, who appeared somewhat uncomfortable at the moment as he shifted his weight on his footpaws. The rabbit did not meet his gaze, even as the caracal descended and stood several feet in front of them, her paws clasped behind her back. The rabbit spoke, aware that he was now the center of attention, his voice quivering slightly as he lisped. 

“Yesh, ehrm… Hrm… Uhm, I did as you asked, Diana. The manokit was quite easy to convince, given that I employed the strategies you came up with.”

The caracal nodded, unspeaking, causing the rabbit to clamp his mouth shut as she began to circle them. Tufts followed her with a turn of his head, unsure of whether he was going to be reprimanded for doing so. He could not find the courage to voice himself, the feeling of self-consciousness overriding any will to muster his voice as he watched the caracal study the protruding lump the back of his diaper now sported. 

“Very clever, and am I to understand that this occurred before or after your arrival in the grounds?”

“After, during our promenade, Diana.”

She nodded, returning her gaze to studying the sagging posteriors of the two straitjacketed furs. At last, Tufts found his voice, not daring to address the feline as he raised an eyebrow towards Barney. 

“What are you talking about?”

The rabbit looked increasingly uncomfortable, appearing as though looking down at his paws was suddenly his greatest newfound interest. His words came out in a muffled tone, almost inscrutable and causing the manokit to lean in in order to catch his statement. 

“You-... I, uhm… Well… I was supposed to… You know… See if you could be convinced to… Use… Your diaper…”

“It was a test of inclination towards obedience, little one.”

The caracal finished for him, stepping forward and placing a paw on Tuft’s shoulder. The manokit felt an immediate instinct to jerk away from her, but he stopped himself. He was hoping the conversation could be prolonged, just in case it might provide further insight to what was happening to him. The caracal purred, glancing down once more at his posterior with a look of satisfaction coloring her whiskered muzzle. 

“Little Barney here is one of our regulars, I guess you could say. He has quite the talent for convincing new arrivals such as yourself to embrace their newfound lives without so much as a fuss. Were he not mine to own, I would certainly hold him as one of my more valuable employees.”

Her words spawned the realization of what the rabbit had done, as it dawned on Tufts he turned with a hurt expression towards the rabbit. Barney caught his eye, appearing genuinely dismayed as he blubbered out an explanation. 

“Look, I didn’t lie! They will go easier on you now that you did that! Sure, I didn’t tell you the whole story, but I really am on your side here! I-”

The caracal laughed, cutting off the rabbit’s unsteady stream of hasty apologies as she finished the statement.

“That’s exactly why he’s so talented, no sin committed under the sun. He’s just a little bunny that wants to make his Mommy proud, isn’t that right darling?”

The caracal stepped forward, her claws unsheathing from her right paw as she did so. She gently scratched between the rabbit’s floppy ears, causing a mixture of emotions to erupt on the rabbit’s facial expression. Pleasure, remorse, guilt, a sense of euphoria, even a smidgen of pride. 

Tufts watched the strange exchange with a mixture of horror and disgust, seeing now that the rabbit truly was subservient to the carcal’s commands. He had been tricked, and quite convincingly too, and the results of which now was causing his rear end to feel slightly itchy, and inescapable sensation as his absorbent undergarment clung to his hips. 

The caracal continued to coo as she scratched between the rabbit’s ears, cupping her other paw underneath his chin and scratching him gently. Tufts muzzle hung open in an express of mild terror as he watched, which the caracal quickly picked up on. Feigning ignorance, she blew a kiss towards his direction as she intentionally misinterpreted his feelings. 

“Oh honey, I’m sure we’ll find someone who’ll shower you with as much adoration as I do with Barney, when he behaves that is.”

As if pulled by an invisible puppet string, the rabbit took an obedient step back, hanging his head and avoiding everyone’s eye contact. Tufts was wondering what to say next, when Cletus jumped back into the conversation. 

“Now then, Diana, would you like me to escort our newest arrival to the auction stage? I’m sure our dinner guests are looking forward to meeting him!”

Diana nodded, reaching forward and taking the leash that was attached to Barney away from Cletus and tugging it gently to prompt him to step closer to her. As he complied, Diana replied smoothly as she motioned for Cletus and Tufts to proceed. 

“Very good Cletus, and do be sure to ensure that the manokit is properly secured for viewing. We wouldn’t want any spirited attempts at retaining his dignity now, would we?”
The tiger nodded, appearing to understand the vague instruction quite clearly, as he pulled on the manokit’s leash and instructed him to follow closely behind him. 

As the four departed the entrance room, two words seemed to spiral around in Tuft’s head like frightened doves, their wings flapping and causing dust to rise up in plumes and cloud his thoughts. 

“Auction room… Auction room… Auction room…”

His apprehension heightened, the manokit followed a little more closely after the tiger gave his leash another good-natured but firm tug, guiding him towards the aforementioned auction room and whatever ‘properly secured’ meant. He continued to waddle, grimacing slightly as he felt the contents of his messy diaper continuously shifting with every hesitant step he took.