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The Traders' Oasis, or Otharni Oasis, as its proper name had been a lifetime before, was perhaps the single busiest location on the entire continent by volume alone. When the trader's conference was called, they flocked from across the lands, and even braved the journey from across the far seas, all racing to ensure they had a favourable place from which to conduct their business.

From individuals with but what they could carry by cart to great caravans and airships loaded down with goods, people braved the harsh deserts, raiders, conflicts, the climate and risked ruin for a chance at selling their wares.

But of course, being an oasis in the middle of the great desert also made it an invaluable stopover for all of those gathered for one other reason, a simple biological need that could not be ignored. It was also the only source of water for days in any direction. The crisp, mineral teal waters were strictly rationed and paid for in full for any amount larger than what one man could use himself in a few days.

For many of the larger airship based traders and the great caravans of camels and other beasts, those fees could very quickly eat into their profit margins had they not prepared in advance. Series of great hydraulic pumps ensured a steady stream was available and many airships would simply berth beside the river. It had been excavated off of one end of the oasis for just such a purpose, allowing more water to be stored and greater room to access it.

Thick lengths of hoses snaked back and forth, delivering it directly to each ships onboard reservoirs before they would disconnect and return to whatever landing site they had previously used.

However, the abundance of freshwater also allowed for much-needed relief from the desert heat and for many crew and free travellers, as a swimming location, shaded beneath towering palms and date trees along the shores, the river was hard to beat, even when compared to the majestic waterfalls deep within the canine coalition pack lands.

Even to Shadi, it sounded like a fantastic way to break the monotony of her day to day life on the ship, between tending to Isiat and her practices. She was yet to have an actual client and was beginning to suspect that Isiat was merely keeping her to himself as much as able after her misadventure with the guards.

Plus, Larise had all but begged her to ask. In her own words "Anyone lower than a gold collar won't get anywhere near the water without a pack of guards swarming them." She was convinced that Mack would act as their escort if she asked nicely. Plus, nobody would bother the old dire wolf.

Which was why when Isiat shot down her question as soon as she asked, she couldn't help but pout.

"No. Absolutely out of the question. There are still too many eyes watching right now, and I'm too busy this week trying to play catch up on all the business I've put off to take you myself. I could move High Fortune there, but it would take a full day to make the required maneuvers, and all of our water is captured by the receptacles on board, so it would be a moot gesture regardless that would earn me no favours from the other traders I would disrupt doing it."

"But why not? Mack would keep us safe, and it's not too far to walk!"

Isiat looked up from the sheaf of papers he'd been working his way through the signing of and fixed her with a gaze that told her that this was not an issue she could simply slide under his desk to change his mind on. If anything, that would only give him more reasons to keep her aboard.

"Mack is old, and despite his size and strength, he's also vital to the ship. I'm not going to jeopardize my chief doctor aboard, my prize investment, and the mother of so many of the pups aboard-" He fixed Larise with that same stern look, and the coyote's ears folded in sheepish submission. Even she couldn't deny that when put like that it seemed foolish. "-so you can enjoy the water. My answer is no, and that's final."

But then, an unexpected saviour had come to her and Larise's rescue.

"If they're so insistent, I'll take them. Nobody will question a dragon doing as he pleases, and I can have the client I was expecting to speak with meet me there instead. There's a gentle breeze, and by the river itself, it should be pleasant enough before the sun reaches its apex. That way, you needn't worry about their safety. Nobody will try anything after my last demonstration."

The dragon sat back in his seat across from the black-furred vulpine. Looking between them, it was funny how close the red that separated Isiat's black and white fur where they met was to the colour of Scions scales. Scion lazily folded his arms behind his head, his wings stretching out like great leathery blankets as he deliberately showed off the aura of power he simply seemed to radiate without trying. Even Isiat with all his wits couldn't find a logical reason to refute the dragon's offer, and with a defeated sigh, he tossed his paws up in resignation.

"Fine, fine. Take them, but they are your responsibility. I want Shadi back by the afternoon though. I have a meeting arranged I want her present for since she has missed every single other one since we arrived." He grumbled.

Shadi piped up in a cheery tone.

"Not true! I was here for that uh... The fat hippopotamus man who came by the other day-"

"Naked and asleep on my bed does not qualify as present, Shadi." Isiat said.

"Not true. He seemed happy I was there!"

His response was a flat, humourless smile. She could tell though he was trying not to allow himself to show amusement at her antics, and the retort did nothing to dissuade her. Besides that, his tails were wagging in a dead giveaway, and the slight tug of a grin at the corner of his lips sold it. How he had won this ship playing cards was beyond her. His bluffing face was awful around her!

"By the afternoon, and not a minute later. Your responsibility Scion or I'm withholding any cut of any deals made today." He turned on the Dragon, who merely shrugged, abandoning his silk shirt entirely in favour of letting his scales soak up some of the sunlight for a change. Unlike Isiat, as a dragon, he had the benefit of not being beholden to his business by his appearance. People who tried to make that argument with dragons seldom lasted long enough to enjoy any minor victory they might have gained.

"Fine by me. I'll take your pretty dancing girl and your hampster and flaunt by the shores, shall I?" He stood, gesturing with a lazy flick of his paw that Larise and Shadi should follow.

Shadi couldn't help her giggles at Larise's face of mixed emotions. Insult, at being likened to a hamster, but also delight that she got to strut about on the arm of a dragon for an afternoon. This would be great for her line of work at least! She hurried to catch up with Scion, but a short pair of finger snaps held Shadi back.

"A moment, Shadi?"

She nodded, and with a quick word to Larise, closed the door, before walking back across the office to Isiat's desk.

"Please... Don't stray too far from Scion today. I may own you, but you are no prisoner aboard my ship, nor will I treat you like one. I won't pretend to like it, but I trust Scion to keep you safe... Were that I could, I'd arm you myself, but..." He sighed, rubbing at the back of his neck. Despite his youth, at that moment, Shadi could see the weight of his age and station weighing heavily on his shoulders. Pitying him for his role was far from out of the scope of imagination.

He was her owner though, and she was his slave. That was the nature of their agreement. She worked for him, and he paid her so she could pay her way out of the collar that had been forced on her.

She didn't know why she did it at that moment, but she reached out, and gently put her paw on Isiat's, forcing him to set the quill he was busy writing with down for a moment.

"I will be okay. Scion is far more fierce than Matthew anyway. Plus he doesn't strike me as the swimming sort. My sisters and I used to visit the waterholes every summer to cool off. We'd splash around for hours on end until the sun was already setting. I just want a little time to enjoy myself and forget about what happened. I don't ask for much else..." She let the words linger a while.

Isiat nodded, and stood, reaching across the desk to gently brush a strand of Shadi's hair away from her cheeks. Her feline features were absolutely striking to him, like light reflecting off of a perfectly cut gemstone. She made him smile.

"No... No you do not, but you are welcome to, you know? Go and have your fun then, but stay near to Scion and Larise. You're smarter than to get lost, but there are still people here who would want nothing more than to see you lost. All I ask is you be careful, and be back before it gets too late in the afternoon. I run a business after all, and I'll need you being your beautiful self to distract a particular buyer Scion has lined up."

Then he leaned over and gave her a quick kiss on the cheek. Perhaps that was the oddest thing from him though. She had been kissed by him before, yes, but passionately, possessively, with a mountain of desire behind it.

That simple gesture had some other emotion behind it as its driving force, and for a moment, it made her heart flutter in her chest as it hadn't for a long time. Her nose pinkened as she shied away. Neither mentioned the feeling. She turned quickly with his leave and trotted across the top deck of High Fortune to catch up to her companions, leaving Isiat chuckling quietly to himself inside his quarters, a dumb smile smacked over his vulpine muzzle.

---

To Shadi, the feeling of new and exciting places should have worn old by now, or at least that was how she felt. Alas, it did not, however, and being tugged along by Larise, who was busy babbling out an excited explanation, she let herself be pulled, simply staring at the sights around her in wonderment.

Scion walked ahead of them about five paces, enough to give the pair of girls their space, but close enough that he could have stretched a wing out and smacked them should he have wished.

But to Shadi, it was like being an ant, walking amidst giants. Airships, massive in their own right and yet much smaller than High Fortune were anchored or landed on large, sandstone pads that had been constructed around the river at regular intervals. Specialised crews worked the large water pumps, and Shadi noted that many of them were desert-dwelling species, fennecs, field mice, lizards, jackals... For them, it was likely a semi-permanent position. Not a one wore the marks of a slave, and she rubbed her collar self consciously. Given the general impression she had gotten since arriving, they most likely simply didn't trust slaves with such vital work.

The slaves she did see were chained together in work crews, clearing mud that gathered from the frequently spilling pipes. A whip cracked as a burly rhinoceros flicked it dangerously above the work gangs' heads, shouting orders in a language Shadi didn't recognize.

"Your thoughts are brooding again Shadi~" Larise teased, the coyote bumping her hip against Shadi's own to get the lioness's attention. None to subtly, she pulled her friend away from the sight, continuing down the path behind Scion.

"Sorry! I just... Are slaves hated so much? Just for being slaves?"

"We're..." She gnawed on her lower lip a moment as if contemplating how best to answer. Scion, with his ears sharp as ever, interrupted for her.

*"You are fortunate to be a part of such a unique crew Shadi. Yes, bar a few, Isiat treats his slave's with regard and respect that is wholly unheard of for the majority of slave owners present. Even your treatment before Isiat was somewhat above where the bar is typically set. Most are simply used as an infinitely renewable and expendable source of labour for menial tasks such as you see here. Anything that has so much as a minor risk of being sabotaged here is designated to freemen and specialists whose loyalty has been assured." *

The dragon flexed his shoulder, extending one wing in a sweeping gesture towards the work crew. The rhino slave driver glanced over as they passed, seeming to eye Shadi and Larise with utter contempt as if seeing a slave out of chains were an insult in and of itself. His face twisted disgustingly in a scowl, and his whip cracked towards his charges again. But then he caught sight of Scion leading them, and at once, inclined his head and jutting, large horn in a respectful bow. Scion merely flicked a hand dismissively in return. It was as if simply being a dragon here was enough to place him far above any rung of the social hierarchy than they could ever dream of being.

In a sense, that was the simple truth of it. The Dragon clans seemed to their claws in everything, and even a slight misstep outside of what was considered proper was grounds to be shunned by the rest of civilisation like a pariah. On the flip side of the same coin, being in the presence of, or travelling with one instantly opened other doors that would otherwise be firmly bared for a slave such as herself.

The mere mention of a dragon seemed enough to quickly quiet even the loudest of arguments. Few were willing to even insinuate any wrongdoing of the creatures, lest the words reach the wrong ears and lower their social standing. Her father had been much the same, but she never truly understood quite why. It had always simply been the way of the world as she understood it to be. Nobody had ever explained just how the state of affairs became what it was. As surely as the Savanah lion ate the antelope, or the sun rose from the eastern horizon, dragon's were always at the top of the pecking order, and that was simply all there was to it.

She was perturbed by the thought, and it refused to leave her head, even as Larise nudged against her again.

"Why is it Scion, that your kind seems to rule the world wherever we go? Nobody dares lift a finger against you or your kind, despite the fact they easily could. There are more combined of the other species than there are dragons in the Clan mountains! Why haven't dragons simply been overthrown?"

Scion stopped midstep, and turned, his golden eyes narrowed into predatory slits that zeroed on Shadi like a hawk sighting its prey. At once, she felt very, very small, and even Larise seemed to pause, as if aghast that her friend had even said anything. It was like a taboo topic coming up at a family dinner. The air had grown very, very quiet indeed.

*"They tried once, do you know Shadi? It is not often spoken of, but once, a long time ago, the species who lived in the regions around the clan homes had just such a thought. They rose up, demanding their share of our hoards, our advanced tools, the secrets that we knew. In their anger, they captured a young drake, Urion Goldclaw. They held him for ransom until their demands were met." * His words were dark, and a cloud seemed to pass before the sun, momentarily dimming the world around her as the dragon told his story. The foreboding in his words seemed to anticipate just what happened next.

"When we refused, an angry mob broke into where he was being held, dragged him to the town square, and stoned him to death. He was a drakeling, barely an adult by other species standards. Innocent of all crimes but being a dragon. Few thought they had gone too far, but others insisted it wasn't far enough. They wished for the mantle of stewardship themselves, and would take it by force."

*"So we sent a single messenger to fly to each of the towns that had voiced their dissent, to ask if they would still take arms against us. Seven keeps in all declared their intent for hostilities, and their lords flew the banner of their rebellion, planning to meet us in battle as they amassed their forces together to lay siege to the closest clan homes at the base of the mountain. But what they did not know, is that all of the clan homes are linked. There is no 'lowest settlement' of the dragon clans. It is merely the bottom-most door to the mountain." *

*"So that night, the clans took wing, as they had never done before, and likely will never have to again. The sun rose on seven utterly destroyed villages the next day, scorched to nothing but ash. Any thought of rebellion was snuffed out like the fire. Before their time, we took the secrets of those who came before as our own, to guard and protect like we do our hoards. It is not knowledge we protect out of greed. It is the knowledge we protect because as the nations that exist now are, they would merely use it to destroy each other." * He stopped, turning around and continuing down the path towards the water's edge, beneath the shade of a massive Rex palm tree.

*"That Shadi is why my kind rules the world. None other has the will or discipline to. We fought a war over this. You'll learn more when we visit the Clanhomes after all this..." * He gave a distasteful wave of his arms and stretched his wings out, gesturing to, well, everything around them.

*"Distraction is over. But that will be some time yet. We should enjoy the morning while it is fresh. Don't ask such questions again, especially of me. I answer out of courtesy and my friendship with Isiat, but even that has limits. Larise-" * He stopped, and gave a glare quite unlike any other she had ever seen the dragon give, or would see him give again. The blonde coyote's face paled like she'd seen a ghost.

"Y-yes, Scion?"

"Forget everything you heard. None of it is for repetition."

"F-forget what?" She stammered. Shadi never recalled seeing her look quite so unsettled before, and she scooted against the small lioness's side, her tail firmly tucked between her legs.

Scion merely nodded his approval and carried on down the road towards the reservoir.

After a few long moments, Shadi hurried along as well, trying to refocus herself on the enjoyment she was about to get from the luxury of a swim, instead of the feeling of dread that the Dragon's words had gone and tried to plant in her head.

She moved on, trying her best to put it behind her.

"Come on, he's being all serious and ruining the swimming, and I... I don't think I've gone swimming in years. Not since before, at least." Shadi said with an awkward scratch of her head. Larise was gaping at her.

"Are you serious? Do you remember how to??" The coyote teased as they finally reached the edge of the reservoir. She ignored the few gold wearing guards scattered here and there, as well as the other slaves chained in their workgangs or tending to other tasks as dictated by their owners. She hauled the thin bathing cover up and over her head, before tossing it onto the fine sand at her feet. Scion had already laid himself out upon the warm, artificial dune created to contain this part of the reservoir. His wings were spread wide, and his tail lashing a deep line in the sand beside him.

"Don't be going further than where I can shout. *I don't want anyone mistaking you for someone else less-important's property." * Came the dragon's call, like a disinterested parent telling their children to go play so he could sunbathe in relative peace. He'd already folded his wings out to their full span on the warm sand and seemed a good way towards a nap while he waited for whomever it was he had planned on meeting. In the sunlight, his scales shone like rubies.

Larise all but dived into the sky blue waters, disappearing briefly beneath the surface with hardly a splash at all, before resurfacing a good thirty feet out from the shore, waving at Shadi to jump in already.

Shadi hesitated for just a moment, her fingers running along the rim of her collar. What if the metal weighed her down? Gold was much heavier than copper! She might drown! Or tire further out than she could quickly swim back from! The watering holes had never been this deep, and she had always been able to kick herself off the muddy bottom. Here, she could barely see the bottom only because the light did not penetrate that far down!

"Come on! What are you waiting for, an invitation?" The coyote laughed, and yanked the short-cropped swimming top she was wearing upwards, flashing her tits at the lioness from the deep blue waters.

Shaking off her fear, Shadi took a running start, before becoming a tan cannonball with her tail wrapped about her body, aiming for the now squealing coyote.

Compared to the coyote's splash, Shadi made waves.

---

True to his word, Scion had both of the women back before the sun had reached its zenith, the heat outside already oppressive. Fortunately, for Shadi, it was also warm enough to dry out her fur almost entirely by the time they reached the gangway back aboard.

She sidled her way around the other crew and lesser traders who dealt directly with them, the largest ramps broad enough to march twelve abreast down. Those ones, in particular, bustled with crews of slaves loading and unloading crates of goods with complex pulleys, rollers and cranes. This was the lifeblood of the trade business, and these gangways were like High Fortune's arteries. A blockage on any of them for more than a mere moment could grind profits away as quickly as a smith's wheel could blunt a sword's keen edge.

She didn't pretend to understand many of the specifics of it and largely was ignorant to just what exactly it was being traded. Some items were obvious; Bolts of silk and fabric, pallets of lumber, ingots of various metals, and grain were all abundant. Much of it was being brought aboard, eagerly being sent to stores to feed the industries aboard the vast ship and fuel the micro-city that was made up by the occupants.

Much of what was being hauled off the ship was completed goods. Clothes, tools, leathers, and what few weapons she could see all seeming destined for distribution off the ship. Before she could watch too long, they passed through the doorway and into the vast network of tunnels and passageways that made up the belly of the beast., with Scion ever nudging her along from behind.

"Ahh! There you are. I trust your swim was pleasant?" Isiat seemed to beam at Shadi as she entered his quarters. Scion politely and wordlessly dismissed himself at the doorway to go and do whatever it was the dragon did all day long.

"Enough, if Larise would have stopped trying to ride my tail like it was a sea serpent she could wrestle." Shadi said softly, and they shared a brief laugh before Isiat nodded. Pleasantries done, now it was time for them to work, and she knew it. Perhaps, she had been dreading the moment for a while, but now it was upon her, and she had no choice but to press on. The heavy weight of her collar around her throat was an ever-present reminder of what she had escaped, and what she had to do to be truly free. She steeled herself as he began speaking.

"I have a meeting soon with one Jakob Stripeson. He fancies himself a businessman, but I've dealt with him before. He's a pushover. Every year, he purchases almost a full hold worth of Antarian lumber, usually at quite a large expense..." Shadi recognized the name from one of the maps her father had shown her. The small island was off the northern coast of the continent and had bristling trees that touched the clouds, or so the stories went. She had seen drawings even once and laughed. No tree could be that tall!

With all she had seen since she had been captured, she wasn't quite so sure anymore of anything. What had once been fantastic tales turned out to be true, and things she suspected as fact had been a mere fantasy. Discounting anything was impossible. She nodded and spoke up quietly.

"I know of it, a little... My brother, Troy. He had a bow made from it and antler bone, the same wood as our house. He used to brag it was unbreakable until Tyde snapped it for a bet." She let out a quiet snicker at the memory. The look on her brother's face still stuck with her as if it had been yesterday.

Isiat snorted quietly, tacitly ignoring the flash of a lonely look on the feline's face as the memory passed, and instead poured a pair of small glasses of something deep red that smelled faintly of sweet berries. He offered her one without asking before his free paw brushed her cheek with a fond smile.

"Good. That might make it easier then, though I don't expect you to speak unless you have something suitable to add. And you should ask, before interrupting. He's not as kind to his slaves as I am, but he's also under no illusion about their role in the order of things." Isiat nodded, giving her a look up and down. With a shake of his head, he crossed to the small curtained portion that contained his private area and bed.

"You should be provocative with this one I think. It will keep him off guard, and his attention from the details. He's a notorious haggler as well, so if you see an opening to sweeten the deal, well... You'll know your cue and role. For what he's worth, he should be rather easy for someone of your skill to please. He's a feline after all." He laughed at the quiet implication, and Shadi rolled her eyes.

He pulled out a long, silk dress, split from the neck all the way down to just below where her belly button would have rested. The fabric was green the colour of early spring grass, bright and invigorating. In an ironic way, it would have fit perfectly out among the sea of airship sails and shade cloths, and yet, held none of the garishness of their own designs.

"Hmmm, spoiling me again?" She teased, passing quietly up behind her master, her tail giving a lazy curl as it wrapped around his hip.

Isiat's grin was infectious and smug as a devil.

"Perhaps... And after the other day, I-" Shadi stopped him short of whatever it was he was going to say, and instead turned and kissed him on the cheek.

It had the desired effect of making him shut his mouth. She didn't particularly want to keep revisiting the encounter, and would much rather move on with her life. Besides... He had come to rescue her. If anything, shouldn't she have been the one giving him thanks? It had been her idea to try and take the initiative with the guard, and on her part, it had been a bad call. It was a lesson, that was all, and one she was keen to learn from and move on.

"I'm okay, let's just.. Here!" She rolled her eyes and snagged the fabric from his paws before he could protest, twirling elegantly away as she cradled the silken garment like a newborn.

The individual strands shimmered as the light from the window reflected off their sheer, smooth surface, and she let it wave from her motions a moment longer, weighing and judging the dress, getting a feel for it, as it were. She nodded after a few moments longer and quickly began undressing so she could change.

With a grin, Isiat plopped himself down on the edge of the bed, a throaty chuckle rumbling forth from the vulpine. That same grin was stuck on his face like someone had put it there with plaster.

"I do love the enthusiasm you bring to your post..." He commented, taking a sip of his wine as she turned about, her long, thick tail wriggling with delight as she stripped down to her fur.

"Well, even as the chief's daughter, I didn't get spoiled like... Well, this. My father was powerful in his own way, but... We could have never gotten something like this. I doubt anyone in my family would have known where to begin looking for clothing like this!"

Her eyes sparkled like silk as they ran across the dress again. She gave a faint jump as Isiat crept up soundlessly behind her, his muzzle warmly laying across his shoulder as his breath chuffed across her ear.

"Yes, well... Once upon a time, I had to find my own outfits when I wore a collar. I had to learn who to speak to and what to ask for. It's merely a matter of knowing how to ask. In this case, I had requested this piece for a particular dance I'd like for you to learn for me." His fingers caressed her hips, giving her just the lightest of teases as they brushed over the base of her tail and away to her other side as he walked past.

She watched with fascination as he adjusted his music player, and a vibrant, quick-paced tune began to play. Higher mid-tones in a slow and sultry melody overlaid the deep base notes of some kind of brass instrument. Truthfully, she'd never heard anything quite like it in her life, but it was catchy enough that she didn't notice her tail immediately fall into a swaying rhythm with it.

Isiat marched over to her dancing pole by the chaise, as with a flick of his paw, she was right there beside him, still carrying the dress.

"Hmmm, should I put it on for this lesson?" She teased him, and in a heartbeat, he'd knocked the garment to the floor, and dragged her into a kiss. His muzzle was warm, inviting, hungry. Certainly welcome as he kissed her roughly against the pole. Her spine backed against the polished brass, and almost reflexively, her tail coiled around the metal, holding her steady.

He growled as he parted from her, his tongue washing over his chops as he savoured the taste of the kiss.

"Good. Just like that in fact... Now-" And slowly, he began to teach her the steps of the erotically charged display. It began slowly enough, moving her body like a piston and slowly shifting up and down along the pole, using her tail to keep herself centred on the stage. Much of it gave her free will to be creating about what she did exactly as she swung gracefully around the metal, grinding her sex across the sleek pole as it pleased her.

As the song concluded, she gripped it in both paws and kicked her legs outwards, creating a twirling momentum that ended with her suspended bodily upside down, her feet cross around the upper portion of the pole, leaving her panting and warm with her naked body on full show, her perky breasts bouncing with her breaths.

Isiat gave a quiet few claps, approaching her with a proud, yet smug look.

"Good. Think you will have any trouble with remembering the motions?"

She smiled cheekily back at him from her upside-down position.

"Think he'd really notice if I didn't?

"No, but I like to consider myself a professional. If you're going to do a dance, you need to at least complete the steps. Whatever else you do for him to please him though is entirely up to you..."

She nodded thoughtfully, holding her precarious pose.

"Hmm. And until then?" She asked, licking her lips invitingly.

Isiat stepped towards her naked body, and grabbed her by the thighs, letting his teeth softly grace the warm flesh and soft tan fur of her leonine figure. She couldn't help the way her body responded, practically arching out away from the pole to get closer to his touch. Whatever the canine's had given her, it made her pliable and eager to please, which had probably been their whole idea.

"Well, I suppose there is a little time before then we could make better use of..."

In this case, it worked greatly in her favour. She grabbed his own thighs in her paws, and using them as support, tugged him inch by inch closer until his crotch came precariously level to her muzzle. Her fingers made quick work of his belt, letting the pants splay open as she undid the button.

His dappled red prick was already slipping from his sheathe, and leaning in, she let her tongue drag across his tip, earning an instinctive little vulpine hump towards her muzzle. His taste filled her mouth as she obediently opened it for him, receiving her owner's gift as a good pleasure slave ought. Complain as she might at her situation, but Isiat was not at all unattractive in his own way, and watching his tails wag back and forth while she nursed on the spade-like tip of his maleness was always a good sign he was enjoying himself.

But then again, he was a male... Most of them were rather straightforward when it came to ensuring they were satisfied. She allowed herself a little giggle around his cock as she moved her paws to his waist, helping to support the... Rather unique position she found herself in. Sure, she had tried this with Larise before, but... Never upside down while suspended on a pole. It was only Isiat's firm grip on her wide, fluffy hips holding her up now.

Her feet's grip had turned fluttery and faint at the first drag of his tongue across her bared sex, the slick texture caressing her womanhood in all of the right ways. As she was, his access to her body was entirely unimpeded and the many-tailed fox took full advantage of this fact, kissing the hooded bud of her clit after each lick.

"Mhhm... You taste exquisite. Better even than the wine." He could have passed for a tiger with how deep the rumbling purr he gave was. Both of their glasses had been long since set on the side of her little performance area, abandoned in favour of other delicacies.

She let out a moan as he explored her body from this new angle, taking each lick like he was mapping her body out with his tongue, each stroke a firm, pleasure-filled brush against her already tingling nerves.

Shadi didn't want to be the only one enjoying this erotic little encounter he seemed to have set up from the beginning, and pulled his hips closer, engulfing the vulpine's maleness completely within the warmth of his muzzle. Almost with a hint of teasing threat, she let her teeth graze the very tip of his cock, applying just the slightest pressure around his sensitive glans with her tongue.

"Mmm~ Make it worth my dance, and maybe I'll give you another private show later. The usual fee of course-Mmph!" Her clever, sultry naughtiness was cut off by a swift hump of his hips forward, slapping his knot against her lips with a wet smack. The familiar taste of his excitement filled her senses, a rich, male scent that clung to his fur like his fancier colognes that mingled in an almost intoxicating way for her. It excited her and sent shivers of that excitement along her nerves and to the pleasure centres of her brain.

Perhaps it was just Isiat himself, or perhaps, it was whatever the canines had given her all that time ago. Maybe it was both. At that moment, she didn't care. She had the male right where she wanted him, and he wasn't going anywhere until he-

Shadi's body tensed as the vulpine wrapped his lips around her clit, rasping his tongue back and forth in rapid, yet smooth strokes, abusing the tight little bundle of nerves with a practised skill he oh so loved to demonstrate for her pleasure. She moaned loudly around the thick bulb of flesh, her own tongue dancing across his slick rod wantonly, even as her passage desperately clenched around the empty space where his tongue had been moments before.

"Ngggh~ Put it back please? I'll be good..." She pleaded sweetly, dragging her tongue from base to tip along the underside of his prick, freeing one hand so she could gently stroke his sheath. His instinctive thrusting into her paw started instantly, and she wrapped her muzzle around him to give him the relief he clearly sought, even as his tongue delved back into her sex, a low growl in his throat making the entire muscle vibrate within her snatch.

Another peak came quickly creeping up on her, nerves singing in pleasure as his tongue stroked over her body. He played her like a harp, seeming to know exactly when and where to have his tongue to have her make the sweetest little moans and squeals of pleasure while he fucked her throat.

Together, their rhythms of mutual pleasure-giving created a symphony of messy slaps and pleased purring the filled the chamber. It was never disrupted, never off-key. Together, the pair of them made the whole action seem as natural as breathing. She knew unless Isiat told her for a performance, he preferred her not hold herself back, and her tail curled its way along the brass poll, supporting her like a lifeline as she bobbed her head back and forth upon his length.

Effortlessly, he pulled her thighs forward, forcing the lioness's knees to either side of his head, her feet interlocking behind his head. This served two purposes. First, and most importantly, it stopped her tumbling to the floor in a hot, messy pile, but secondly, it forced his muzzle back down into her snatch so he could keep his tongue lapping eagerly at her sensitive passage.

He peeled the rest of her from the dancing pole with an elegant, slow, backwards dip that used his mass of tails to support his descent down to laying on the floor with her atop his torso, never parting his lips from her sweet, succulent sex throughout, so intent upon his work he was. Shadi's tail uncoiled from it like a rope unspooling, and quickly, the flicking appendage found itself wrapped around Isiat's shoulders as he gave his all to please her.

Likewise, she wasn't about to get shown up by her master again when it came to the arts of pleasing someone. That was what he had saved her for after all, wasn't it? She at least took a point of pride in the fact that not all of his tails were so coordinated anymore, and softly, she gripped and massaged his knot between her paws, free to use her hands to aid her mouth now that they were laid out in a tangled mess of fur upon the floor.

His head, at last, fell back from her quivering mound when his lung capacity caught up with him, the male letting out a deep groan of bliss as his fox hood positively throbbed in her maw, tickling her throat with his tip. His flavour coated her tongue from tip to base, and she purred sultrily, taking a deep suckle as her lips widened, threatening to engulf his knot. At the same time, she tightly gripped the length of flesh just behind the thick breeding bulb, trying to hold his jumping and twitching shaft steady as she worked her mouth around him.

It was just too much for the male, and with a hiss of her name and his rounded claws digging into her shapely rump, he bucked upwards and unloaded into her maw. She swallowed everything he had to offer eagerly, purring torturously for the male all the while, the sweet aroma of her own arousal coating Isiat's vulpine maw.

His essence splashed across her tastebuds in washes, each jolt of his shaft leading to a new flood of his virile seed filling her maw. She swallowed obediently, gulping down his essence with a content little purr as she did.

When at last his climax did taper off to an end, she mercifully released with a messy sounding pop and a satisfying swipe of her lips with her tongue. Carefully, she turned about on the panting vulpine and kissed him on the lips, sharing her master's flavour with him. Isiat didn't even try to resist, rather just wrapping his arms around her head and deepening the kiss instead. The grin that split his muzzle stretched ear to ear.

"Mhmm, my god you could have been trained by some foreign seductress for all the natural skill you've got Shadi." He said. His tails were still beating a very pleased and rapid tempo on the floor, though a little more ordered now that he'd taken a load off, so to speak. Her body was thrumming like a struck harp, and she shuffled her hips eagerly around, lowering her rump down upon his hips to pin the male's overly sensitive length between her thighs, letting him grind against her silky soft fur.

Her sex ground against the top of his knot messily, filling his cabin further with the scent of feline arousal.

He placed a hand against her collarbone, and gently pushed her back, desire her mewling, needy meows and his own lustful panting.

"No, no. Not right now at least... we both need to get ready! And I'm sure the last thing any prospective client wants is to be treated as a performer's second choice." He chuckled, wriggling his way out from underneath the amorous feline.

Shadi huffed, folding her paws with a playful pout.

"Even if they are?" She asked, eyes still locked on Isiat as if she were contemplating how quickly she could pin him back down if she moved now.

"Yes, but you're also not telling them that." He laughed, buckling his pants back up.

"It would entirely ruin the performance. Best they merely see what we want them to, which is to say, you, and keep behind the curtains for ourselves, yes?"

He helped her dress into the fine silk garment he had picked out for her, before bidding her sit on the floor in front of his seat so that he could comb out her hair. It was growing long once more, a brilliant crown of beauty that cascaded down her back like waves upon the sea. She purred contentedly as he made small talk about the upcoming deal, going over the various types of lumber and their merits that they had stored below decks.

One thing for sure about Isiat, he was like an excited pup speaking on his favourite topic. She smiled at his enthusiasm as he went over the finer points, prior deals and other some-such, his tails a flurry.

"Now, we'll tour the stores with him, naturally. He'll want to inspect the wares he intends to purchase after all. I imagine you can start your little show there. Play the part of the obedient slave. Take notes when I say, and keep his focus on you instead of haggling. Once we're done with the tour, we can come back here, I'll get the paperwork arranged and you..." He trailed off with a wry grin.

She purred sweetly and shot it right back at him.

"Help him seal the deal in my own way?"

Isiat tapped his nose.

"Just so."

---

Stripeson was clearly an apt name for the trader, a common shorthair tabby, with deeper orange stripes across his face and tail that made it look like a poor attempt to imitate a tiger. He walked with quiet, feline grace, but he was not at all like the other felines she had grown up with.

They had all been natural predators. This one looked as far removed from a predator as a puppy did from a bulldog. His clothing, poise and pompous air he gave off made him regal and respectable. Not any air of raw strength or might that a full-blooded Amasii Lion Rex gave off simply being in the same room.

Even Isiat at least gave off the kind of threat that a coiled, but resting viper may have. He might not strike unless provoked, but she had seen him when he was angry. He only struck once, and that was always enough.

No, this house cat in a nobleman's silk garments gave of all the threat and danger of a chihuahua. His bark would no doubt be infinitely worse than any bite he may give, and Shadi was certain that this one knew better.

Isiat sat waiting in his seat, with Shadi obediently kneeling before him, one of his paws idly petting the hair between her ears like a pampers, prized pet. Adding to the theatre of it all was her quiet purring that filled the room, near as loud as the trader's footsteps. She enjoyed the gentle affections, but they were set to come to an end.

"Shadi, why don't you go make yourself pretty for a moment. My friend here and I have a business to attend to." Her owner gave his fingers a sharp pair of snaps, gesturing her across the room to her dancing pole. She nodded and stood quickly, giving the new trader the barest hint of a sidelong glance, her eyes narrowed. A deliberately timed lick of her lips as he caught her looking nailed the first act of her show home. He noticeably flustered, if but for a moment before tearing his eyes away from the scantily clad lioness in the green silk dress.

Perhaps Isiat had been right. Trader's really were easier to deal with when they had their eyes fixed on something they wanted.

The pair of males conversation faded into background noise as she tapped the side of Isiat's music box with a swish of her tail as she sauntered past it, and soft, yet lively music from before began anew, almost jovial in its undertones. She'd only had the chance to properly listen to the song once, and practice this new routine Isiat had guided her through this morning once more after their tryst, but she was confident. Like the vulpine grinning behind his desk, as he subtly watched on, carrying on his conversation with the trader, she was confident she already had this deal sealed.

One-two three-four, One-two three-four...

Her body moved with the motions of the song, from on the small, relieved circle of wood that made up her 'stage', to against the pole, her paws caressing the metal while her tail wrapped about it like a long, furry scarf. She swayed her body to the music, her eyes drifting closed as she went through the memorized motions, letting her body and the music guide her motions.

One-two three-four, Twist-tail pivot-leg!

She kicked her foot out and around, relying on momentum to pull her around and back onto the pole, before she kicked off the floor and began the twisting series of motions while suspended upon the brass rod, gyrating her body across the sleek, polished metal.

A few quick glimpses from her almost dizzying act confirmed her suspicions. The other feline had completely diverted his attention from the meeting, sitting sideways in his chair and unashamedly watching her performance, the curvacious, barely concealed lioness putting herself entirely on display.

_Let them watch... Their coins are going straight into my purse... _ She gave a sassy, predatory grin as she passed next, disguising it behind a convincing cover of arousal and the pleasant warmth building between her thighs that had less and less to do with the friction of the pole as she danced.

She could feel herself flushing, a soft purr already building in her chest that lined up with the tempo of the music flawlessly. Whatever damnable drug the canines had forced onto her clearly was there to stay. Even the slightest hints of lust seemed to rapidly swell within her into a raging conflagration, demanding to be sated lest it engulf her from within.

But, she reminded herself sternly. You still have a job to do if you want this damned collar off.

Biting her lip, she moved into the final motions of the exotic dance, her body limber and elegant from her previous warm-up session. Improvising, she let one arm of the thin silk dress slide off her shoulder as she spun, allowing them both an unfettered view of her breast as the dress hung open loosely. She cupped it gently with a single tan paw, letting her fingers tease and tweak her already firm nipple with a breathless gasp, her brain forgetting the dance for a fraction of a second from the lightning bolt of pleasure that raced along her spine.

She licked her lips and recomposed herself by the time she'd swung around the pole again, now nearing its top with both of her legs supporting her body weight. Her paws and hips guided her motions now, and with a flourish, she went completely inverted as the music hit its crescendo and ended, the bottom of the short dress falling open to show off her glistening honeypot.

The tabby trader cat was momentarily speechless. Isiat was grinning as if he'd just made the best deal of his life, tails beating a rhythm of their own against the hardwood floor behind his chair. Shadi just smiled, panting in a soft, alluring way from the vigorous dance, keenly aware that all eyes were upon her.

"She's quite the spirited dancer, wouldn't you agree? Jy'hivian dancing pole instructors are hard to come by, but, fortunately, she had a good one. He only finished her mastery of this routine today in fact. You're the first to see a live performance." Isiat spoke with silky smooth tones. The 'lucky you...' was left unsaid, but as obvious as the garish airship colours visible through his quarter's windows.

Without preamble or subtlety, he slid a sheet of paper over to the cat, who, still staring at Shadi, dumbly nodded and signed his mark upon it. Isiat snatched it up and dropped it through a thinly concealed slit in the top of his desk, depositing it away in his locked drawer for Scion to agonize over the details of later.

"Excellent. Well, without initial negotiations for the immediate goods to be delivered to your camp, shall we perhaps tour below and see what other fine lumber I have aboard? I'm certain Shadi would be delighted to accompany you and take notes." He shot her a sly wink as he stood, his tails giving a perfectly synchronised twitch before they fell into their normal 'organized chaos' of back and forth motions.

To the untrained eye, it was almost painfully asynchronous, but to Shadi, it was as if poetry in motion, the tips of individual tails, never the same ones, sharply changing directions with every one of his steps. He led them across the cabin, offering Shadi a quill and paper for her to 'keep notes'.

Shadi just grinned, and fell into step beside the very pleased looking tabby, her little chest purring like the motors that drove High Fortune. Her over-long tail swished behind her, its fluffy tip occasionally rasping along the floor. Politely, she'd fixed her dress from her dance. Isiat led them down a series of decorated and open corridors before finally, they stepped into a cage at the end of one such path.

Shadi hesitated just a moment at the threshold. There was a slight gap in the floor there, and what she saw went a very, very long way down. Isiat beckoned to her with a subtle flick of his paw that was unnoticed by the tabby, and taking a breath, she entered the small room.

All considered, her first trip on an elevator might have been more frightening if it had not also opened up new possibilities for her. She hadn't even known these existed! Before, she'd always taken the winding stairs and ladders between floors. When Isiat went on to explain that there were actually two locations aboard that she might find them, her tail gave an uncontrolled flick of excitement.

"Ahhh, but these are typically for VIPs and cargo. They become painfully slow if everyone aboard were using them constantly." He explained casually to their guest and made a point of nodding at Shadi like an adult, politely but firmly reminding a youngster that the elevator wasn't a toy for her personal amusement.

She gave a playful pout and sidled up to the trader instead, purring sweetly against his side. Let the damn multi tailed fox be jealous instead. She'd show him taking notes and looking pretty.

And so, for the next hour, while Isiat and Stripeson toured the cavernous cargo holds that dominated the lower decks and inspected various pallets of lumber of differing strength, quality as purpose, Shadi did exactly that.

She purred, languished about. She bent conspicuously over in front of the trader and her master too, briefly and naughtily teasing them with flashes of her bare rump beneath her dress as her tail flagged upwards. But so too, did she scribble notes down whenever Isiat signalled that she should, playing the part of the oblivious but loyal slave.

Isiat wanted her to earn her keep aboard the ship? Oh, she was going to show him.

Whenever a price was haggled, she would make careful note of where they started and finished as well. Whenever a quantity was mentioned, it went right down on her notepad. Whenever Isiat paused to complain about lowering a price because of some difficulty or other, that got scratched down as well.

When they, at last, concluded their tour, Isiat beckoned for them both to return to his cabin so they could finalize the arrangements. Shadi grinned the entire way back.

"Just put your notes on my desk Shadi, and go make yourself comfortable for our guest here. Perhaps bring one of the chilled wines? Over as well, would you?" The vulpine waved his paw at her dismissively, and like a good slave, she did exactly as she'd been asked. Someone had brought up a bronze urn filled with ice from the galley, and she plucked the sweet, deep red wine from within, along with a pair of glasses for her 'refined betters', neatly pouring them both a measure before she retreated, watching as Isiat took a sip of his and pretended to skim her notes, having already committed the figures to memory.

It was like watching a clock ticking down.

Three, two, one... Shadi counted in her head. Isait gagged for just a moment, thumping his chest to cover the cough. His eyes were wide at the neat lines of numbers and draconic scrawling upon the pad.

Well, you let 5% of me go to a dragon. Surely you didn't expect me to pick something up... She mused with a sly little smirk of her own. Watching the Vulpine stumble on her unexpected little ploy was perhaps, almost... nearly better than the sex with him. Nearly. It was worth it to watch him be the one flat-footed for a change.

Isiat for his part blinked a few times, reviewing the lines of script as fast as he'd ever read anything in his life, his eyes flicking up and down the flowing lines of the script while his paws thumbed over to the next page. His tails beat almost excitedly against the floor.

He glanced once over to Shadi, the feline sprawled almost luxuriously out along the length of the chaise against the wall of his quarters, purring happily in the bit of sunlight shining in upon her favourite spot.

_Devious little cat... But all of her numbers are good... Perhaps- _He paused his thoughts and went over the notes once more. Stripeson cleared his throat almost impatiently, sitting opposite Isiat. The vulpine flicked up a single digit, indicating that he should, in fact, shut the hell up and remain so until he was good and ready, but in far politer terms, or more specifically, in no terms at all.

Stripeson needed these materials for his own deals at home anyway. He'd keep for a few moments longer.

The fact that she'd done this unprompted and un-supervised was impressive in and of itself. The only one who might have bested such a reshuffling of inventory for maximum profit was Scion, though Scion deliberately kept his nose out of the major deals unless Isait specified otherwise.

She'd recorded town all of the amounts, both stated and actual, and the quantities that had been agreed upon, but then... She'd gone and deliberately discounted many of the higher-priced timbers in favour of more 'market value' prices on the lower cost items... Which, as a matter of fact, ended up, if he'd checked her numbers correctly, come to a 2% better deal than initially considered.

And with the sums of coin changing hand in the deal, 2% was a sizeable sum. And according to Shadi's agreement, any additional she brought in for a successful deal would compound her allocated bonus. It was a good portion of her accumulated interest since they had arrived at the trader's forum. Even he wouldn't have paused to double-check.

He cleared his throat, and set the papers neatly upon his desk, making a stealthy gesture to Shadi to approach. Turning back to the tabby, he sighed.

"Ahh, and now for the far, less exciting part, the paperwork. Of course, I'll have Scion notarize a final agreement, but your signature today will lock in the deal. I must say, you're getting quite a deal, but... What if I could sweeten it for you?"

Shadi knew her cue and softly lay her paws on the tabby's shoulders, kneading her soft, leathery paw pads into the male's tired muscles through his silk shirt. Isiat drolled on in the background, his paws making gestures around, slowly increasing a small stack of tokens that he seemed to pull from nowhere to represent their actual funds. He'd get to those soon.

He deliberately overestimated many of the costs, and then brought them back down after a few shifting tokens, making it seem more and more like the Tabby was the one getting the better part of the deal. She could feel his pleased purring as she pressed her bosom against the back of the male's head, distracting him further with gentle nuzzles of her cheek against his ears, whispering the terribly scandalous things she could do for him all the while.

She practically watched the front of his trousers spring upwards with unbridled arousal.

When she slid around the seat to playfully straddle the male's lap though, Isiat hissed at her like one might a disruptive pet, snapping his fingers towards the chaise.

"Ah-ah. Shadi, what have we discussed while doing business? Make yourself busy elsewhere, girl." He tutted, and Shadi pouted cutely, giving an indignant huff as she made to stand back up. Stripeson's paw curled around her waist.

"Oh, no no... She's quite alright, no bother at all... I focus better with little company..." Isiat's look was deliberately dubious as if putting on display he knew exactly how much crap the trader was talking at the moment. Still, who was he but a humble merchant himself?

The vulpine shrugged his shoulders and went right back into his dealmaking while Shadi's paws subtly shifted, adjusting the trader's clothes so she could stroke the male's cock stealthily between her soft paw pads. Whatever her master was saying was entirely missed by her and the trader both, her wicked little fingers curling around his stiff, barb coated shaft, her thumb smearing his preseed all across the exposed flesh and Stripeson's sheathe. His huffing in her ear was a clear signal enough she had his undivided attention on her.

Sure, occasionally he'd give a half-hearted nod or an "Uh-huh..." Of agreement to Isiat's words, but he had better things to worry about. And when she shifted and parted her dress to slide down onto his shaft with a soft squeak of pleasure, she knew she was in for it.

He was rough with her, still playing at pretending to pay attention to the deal, but he was throbbing and twitching from the start, spilling copious amounts of precum up into the lioness riding in his lap. She gyrated upon his hips, twisting and clenching like a vice to squeeze her rippling muscles along the male's shaft insistently, purring loudly all the while.

When finally he could take no more, his claws dug into her ass, hip-thrusting up one final time into her as he unleashed himself within her honeypot, huffing between throbs of creamy white seed that dribbled down Shadi's thighs.

Behind her, Isiat cleared his throat.

"Your signature Stripeson? You were about to sign..." Isiat nudged the paper and feather quill closer, nodding insistently like he had been waiting.

"Oh, yes... Of course... I'll have my secretary go over the details later... You have a... Very well trained slave." He chuckled, cheeks still flush. Shadi clenched around him as he scribbled, and his hand jerked, leaving a clean stroke of ink across the side of the paper. Isiat didn't care. He snatched it up before he had a chance to even consider the fine print, tucking it away in his drawer.

Shadi stood with a soft, pleased chuff, her dress neatly falling back in place to hide any evidence of her little lap dance. Stripeson meanwhile fumbled to adjust his pants and cover himself, a stain covering the groin of his robes. He huffed, attempting to look dignified as he straightened himself. Isiat saw him to the doorway, thanking him as it shut and he locked it.

He grinned at Shadi, his own trousers tended from her little performance.

"Get on the bed you devilish little lioness. I'm going to fuck you silly, and then you're going to tell me where you learned to do that."

Shadi just purred, and let the dress spill from her body like a waterfall of silk. She turned, entirely naked, and gave her tail an inviting swish towards him.

"I'm more than just a pretty cat, you know? What do you think Scion has me do for him when he's too worn out for me to ride?"