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The St. Louis Cathedral had been an institution of the French Quarter for as long as anyone could remember. The white spires that twisted into the sky and the square it overlooked featured prominently in portraits and pictures everywhere. It was an immobile bulwark against the sin that could be found in so many places in the alcohol fueled section of the city. A place of morality and salvation for the sinners that populated the Quarter. And yet, it also became a spot that attracted tourists, both the spiritual and the ones that simply came to view the paintings that decorated the ceiling and the beautiful statues. And the fingers of morality didn't extend much farther then the front door.

The Square attracted it's own sorts of people. They gathered from every corner of the city to sell paintings and tawdry souvenirs for the tourists. Lines of carriages set up along the far street in preparation for tourists to hop in to see the place without having to destroy their feet in the attempt. And small tables were set up that boasted mediums and tarot card readers for those that were interested in the darker underbelly of the city. Charlatans created faux gris-gris bags and boasted of being sixth century voodoo practitioner. The citizens of New Orleans merely shook their head and ignored the rag tag band and snickered at those who were taken for their money by such ludicrous claims. Most of the native citizens didn't bother visiting the Quarter, it was for show, for visitors, for people who wanted commercialized jazz music.

The few natives that continued to visit the quarter either worked there, enjoyed the lively night life, or pursued darker intents. There were always tourists that were fat with money and too drawn in by the bright sights and music to pay attention to what was happening behind them. There were always those that had little sense about vacationing in another town. There were always those that didn't keep their wallets secure in their pockets or chained, those that wandered into tight alleys where the polices' eyes weren't so far reaching. And that was by CJ and Dale passed through the crowded streets and braved the press of the mobs that gathered along Bourbon Street to weave their way towards Jackson Square.

"It's too fucking hot to be out here today." Dale pushed his hat back and licked the sweat off his upper lip. "Why the hell did you drag me out? It's a fucking heat wave."

CJ glanced at his compatriot and drew his brows together in a frown. "Because we're out of cash and everyone is coming out at night now. And they're hot, tired and not thinking straight. We'll be able to make some cash easy."

"Not even worth it." Dale grumbled and the tall slender man leaned back on the edge of a street sign that marked Pirate Alley. "Fucking waste of time."

"Shut up, just keep your eyes open. We need a fat mark and then we can go home, alright?" CJ frowned at his partner and snorted in annoyance before looking out over the people that were passing by the shadow of the Cathedral.

It was hot. The sweat was trickling down along the back of CJ's neck as he tried to keep his attention on the passing crowd. It was too damn hot, even for this place. It was starting to get on everyone's nerves who had to live here. It was positively ungodly how so many tourists appeared perky in the thick humidity. It made him want to kick the next person that was cheerfully laughing in their drunken stupor when they wandered by. He sighed out heavily and pulled out a worn kerchief to try and rub the sweat off the back of his neck. The only reason he'd been willing to come out in the miserable weather was the lack of money and the chance to make a hit on one of the exhausted tourists.

Ideally he'd rather do a snatch and run instead of mugging someone. It lowered his chances of getting caught. But trying to run in this heat was unthinkable. They'd have to follow someone towards one of the darker quarters of the Square and get them to hand over their goods one way or another. It would just take a bit of force and show of a blade to ensure that they handed over their cash. The heat would at least work to keep Dale contained and his enthusiasm under wraps. It was an enthusiasm that was starting to become problematic as they continued to work together. More then problematic, it was starting to get sloppy. There was nothing worse than having things turn messy.

"What about that one?" Dale gave him a subtle jab with a finger as he nodded towards a young woman who was trailing behind her friends. The thin man licked his lips rapidly. "Bet she's got cash on her."

"No. Too young, probably has cards." CJ gave his head a shake. "Besides we're not getting you near any fucking girls again. You lost it last time."

"Heh, bitch had it coming. All that whining over a little ring." Dale pushed his pale hair away from his thin face. "She gave it over eventually."

"You cut her god damn finger off." CJ hissed and felt his stomach turn in disgust at the memory. "it was a fucking mess and you're lucky we didn't get caught."

"Oh shut the hell up. There's so much crime around here and these people are in and out all the time. Cops won't catch me." The man grinned lazily. "You worry too much. I say we go for the girl. Sweet little ass like that..."

"No. Keep looking." CJ kept his words harsh and firm before turning his head back to the Square. He didn't want to mince words with his partner in crime.

Dale was growing unbalanced, uncontrollable and it was becoming a problem. He didn't give a shit if a girl lost her finger, but he hated messiness. He hated fuss. He hated the risk of being caught. That was the one reason he tried to keep a rein on the taller man's habits. If he was left to his own devices he would rob and rape his victims each time. Rape. Another messy crime that meant more clean up, more chance of being caught. CJ had worked hard to force the bigger man to follow his rules and it worked.. most of the time. Lately, though, there had been more problems then normal. Normally he'd let the man have a bit of fun with a secluded victim, but now Dale wanted to fuck anyone they caught.

He'd have to ditch him soon. He'd have to get rid of him. The mess was growing unmanageable and he refused to go down with the piece of filth. He could find someone else to work with, though that would take time. It would also mean having to hit the streets more often to set aside a slush fund that he could live on while he tried to find someone else to team up with. That, of course, would mean getting rid of Dale. But that was easy enough. A botched mugging and slip of the blade and he'd leave his former partner behind with no trail leading to himself. Coming to that thought made him feel a weight lifting from his shoulders and he devoted his attention to those who were shuffling about.

"There, that one. The one walking towards us." CJ spotted a loan walker without anything but a leather hand bag that looked far better then anything the younger kids had.

"Jesus Christ, Cj!" Dale hissed and pushed away from the wall. "She's older then dirt. That isn't even a challenge. Let's go for one of those younger-"

"No, we're not here for a fucking challenge, you idiot." He glared up at the taller man and curled his lip up in an attempt at a smile. "Think of it this way, we get her bag and then can get back to the AC."

"Fine, but make it quick. I'll go get in position." Dale's expression was surly as he stepped away from the shadows of the Cathedral.

The larger man moved along the shadows of Pirate's Alley almost soundlessly. That would be one thing he'd miss about the man. Dale could move quietly and without drawing attention to his big frame in a way that CJ had never been able to replicate. But that talent wasn't worth the danger of getting caught. He gave his head a short shake before stepping out away from the Cathedral and forced a smile on his face as he matched the path of the old woman. She certainly looked as if she had money, even her clothing was neatly pressed and high quality. Everything about her screamed money, even her hair was perfectly fixed and boasted a professional dye job. Just the sort of mark he wanted to find running around here.

He waited until he found a position that was close to the shadowed edge of a building that was both closed and mostly cast into darkness. A quiet corner that would allow Dale to slip into place. "Excuse me, ma'am?" CJ called out and kept his expression pleasant.

The old woman stopped and partially turned to him. In the lamp light her brows furrowed in a frown as he made a point to step out of the shadow and into a spill of light. "Yes?" She finally replied, but made no offer to come closer.

"I'm sorry to bother you, ma'am." He kept his voice soft and respectful before pulling a folded map out of his pocket. "You look like you know where you're going though, and danged if I can figure out all these street names. I was wondering if you knew where the Provincial was?"

CJ was a good actor, he'd always been a good actor, and this time was no exception. He always knew how to sound abashed and nervous when approaching a potential mark. Most people assumed that a criminal would be rough, uncouth, and rude, but he was a professional. He knew how to lure them in and the old woman's frown faded at his words. A smile tugged the edges of her lips and he made a show of unfolding the map as she approached. The paper's crinkled and he let out a short good natured grumble at it's inability to unfold. A subtle signal to Dale that the mark was coming in close.

"Of course I can help you. I actually live not far from here. Lived here all my life.." The woman came to his elbow with her brown wrinkled features wreathed in a sardonic smile. "Now, the Provincial you said? That's only a few-"

"Don't move, don't scream, don't even breath.." Dale's voice was a harsh whisper as she moved to touch the map. "Just be a good old bitch and drop your bag."

The woman stiffened and her eyes widened as the large man loomed behind her and judging by the jerk of her back she felt the prick of the knife. "Just drop the bag and we'll go away." CJ offered and balled the worn map up to shove into his pocket. "And your jewelry."

"So this is what my city has come to? Men luring old women away to mug them?!" The woman's voice cracked slightly. "How dare you!"

"Shut the fuck up, bitch. The bag, the jewelry, now." Dale's voice was harsh and he gave the woman a shove forward.

"Better do what he says," CJ moved his hands up with gave a tight smile. "He gets upset the longer he has to wait."

CJ didn't know how it happened, he didn't know exactly what happened. But one moment he was standing in front of the old woman waiting for her to hand over her jewelry and the next moment he was on the pavement beside Dale. His eyes saw sparks and a sharp pain formed behind his eyes as he found himself staring up at the woman looming over him. The wrinkled face twisted in anger as she glared down at him and one of her boney fingers jabbed at them. How had they been thrown to the ground? He looked around and at her hands, half expecting to see some sort of taser that had knocked them both down.

"You! You are what is wrong with my city!" The old woman's voice was harsh as she glared down at them and bristled with obvious rage. "For seventy years this city has turned towards the darkness and now this. How dare you behave this way! How dare you threaten to take what is mine! Vermin! Pestilent creatures!"

"Jesus grab your knife." CJ lunged and tried to snag his fallen blade, but he was frozen in place. Dale stared at him wild eyed.

"Knife? A knife against an old woman!" The woman stepped forward and jabbed her finger at him again. "You should be ashamed. But I doubt you have that emotion left in you."

"Shut the hell up!" Dale lunged up, only to fall back when the woman flicked her fingers forward.

"No, you shut up, boy. You are the waste of my city!" The woman stepped forward again and CJ trembled as he felt a sensation like electricity crawling along his body. "So you shall be the vermin in the streets and alleys, the vermin of the sewers and swamps. You shall be the filth of the French Quarter doomed to scurry on all fours and slink upon your stomach."

"Shit, you're insane." CJ snarled up at him and writhed backwards, only to feel the electricity hit through his body so that he bucked against the ground.

"No, boy, you'll only wish I was." The woman tilted her head and gave a low laugh. "When the dawn finds you, you will either greet it as men or as filth. The choice is your own and what you learn in the underbelly of this place. And within your own conscience! If you learn nothing, feel nothing, change nothing, you will remain where you belong. With the dirt and rot of the swamps. Go, go and find what the night has for you and see what you learn. GO! And when the sun rises, we shall see if you are men or filth!"

CJ felt the electricity jolt through him as the last word was screamed. The sound resonated through his mind, his soul, his body. It raised a terror inside of him that he couldn't ignore and he heard Dale's screech of terror a heart beat behind his own. He stumbled to his feet and scrambled away nearly falling down. The electrical sparks hit and snapped against his body as if they were leaving burns behind. He didn't care that he was running away from an old woman. He didn't care that he was fleeing for no real reason and couldn't figure out what he was terrified of. All that mattered was he had to get away! Get away and fast!

He dimly saw Dale tearing up and over the fence of the church as she went speeding down a corner and twisted around into a tight alley that didn't even have the benefit of lights. He scrambled in an attempt to pick up speed. As he twisted through the alley the sparks and electricity built through him. It sparked and snapped against his skin until he could feel the pain growing and growing. With the pain came pressure that formed along his belly and made his stomach cramp painfully down. CJ barely got more then a few more feet down the alley before the pain hit a peak that twisted his stomach. A scream burst from his throat and the world around him changed as his feet gave out from under him and sent him slamming down against the ground.

"HELP! OH GOD HELP!" He screeched out in terror as his body knotted up and electricity rolled over him and engulfed him.

His vision greyed as he kicked and struggled against the ground. The pain lapped through him as he felt his bones popping and cracking. The joints slipped out of place and realigned themselves as his heated skin rippled and twisted over it. He screamed out again and shrieked it out while his clothing twisted and caught against his limbs while he struggled to find a way towards light. Any light. Any place a person might see that he was in trouble. But he couldn't move. His limbs shortened and his body arched upwards through the change. It felt like an eternity of fiery pain and twisting bones before he dropped down under something thick and heavy. His body shuddered as the last of the pain rippled over his back and left him curled against the ground.

He could hear his heart pounding against his chest and a whimper bubbled in his throat as he rolled onto his stomach and huddled in a miserable ball. His body ached, a bone deep ache that made even his teeth hurt as he tucked his chin down and found himself luxuriating in that sense. The ache was nothing compared to the moment of agony that had overwhelmed him the moment he had fallen down. It meant he was alive despite the terror that had his heart racing so fast that the sound of it created a steady backdrop to his own frantic breath.

What the hell did she do? _ He thought to himself and flexed his digits against the ground as he slowly lifted his head. _What the fuck did she have? Some sort of taser?

_ _

CJ slowly stood up and felt something slipping along his body and he blinked his eyes rapidly. He found himself peering out of something that looked like a blanket. Had someone heard him screaming and tossed a blanket on him for some reason? He couldn't recall anything except for pain and terror. The way he had screamed should have brought some sort of response. It should have given him some aid. With a groan he moved his hand out to push the cover back so he could see who had come to help him. The moment he extended his arm though he froze and stared at it in horror and without comprehension in the spill of light that peeped from beneath the edge of the blanket. Wait, not a blanket. It was his clothing! And his arm wasn't an arm!!

Cj let out a muted groan and scrambled forward to get out into the light to see if what he saw was really real. He stumbled out and stood up to stare at his hands again, his hands which had short thin fingers with sharp pale claws that extended from the tips. The bare flesh ran all the way up to his wrists before fur took over. Fur that went all the way up his arms and coated every inch of his body. He was covered in grey-black fur all the way down along his belly and towards his haunches. It was everywhere. He cried out and tried to stand up, but his legs gave out and send him stumbling to one side. His legs wouldn't hold him when he tried to stand upwards. His legs were no longer shaped right, they were bent and set on a set of heave haunches.

It wasn't until he turned his head to try and look at his own body that he saw the long naked tail that was curled slightly against his haunches. A rodents tail, a rat's tail! His tail! He whimpered a little bit and flattened his whiskers down along his muzzle. His muzzle! How could he possibly have a muzzle. He huddled down on himself and looked around wildly and blinked his eyes rapidly at the pile of clothing that he had been wearing that were bunched up against the ground. All the way down to his shoes and socks that were kicked to one side where his flailing legs had sent them. Clothing that would no longer fit him.

I'm a rat. A RAT! _ He shuddered and reared up onto his haunches to stare down at his naked pink paws and the paler fur that rippled down his belly. _This can't be right, it can't be right! It has to be a dream. It has to be a dream!

_ _

He moved his clawed digits down against his stomach and raked it through his fur. He could feel the smooth velvety coat along his plump soft belly. He shifted on his haunches and peered downwards to try and look at his feet. The legs weren't shaped right at all. It was terrifying to look at those appendages and think of them as his own. But when he wiggled his toes he could see his own wiggling back at him. He lifted up one hind paw and leaned back so that his tail was braced against the cobblestones like a kickstand. In the process of lifting up his hind foot he found one final humiliation the old bat had given him. One final horror to grace him with in the form of a rat.

There were no outsized orbs between his legs. There was nothing that even hinted as masculinity. He wasn't an idiot, he'd seen enough rodents in his time to know that they were renowned for massive balls at the very least. He didn't have those. Not at all. Instead he twisted and contorted himself... god no, herself to stare at the taut tiny lips between her haunches. Her stomach turned in disgust at the sight as she tried to find some hidden hint of masculinity left to her.

"It came from over here." The voice vibrated the world and CJ jerked herself up as heavy footfalls hit the ground.

"Yeah, look. Someones clothes. Damn, another rape victim?" A second voice answered as she twisted around and tried to focus her eyes.

"Damnit. Rats. Grab that and get it outta here." The first voice replied a moment before movement erupted in her field of vision. She was barely able to make out the blurred shapes!

It was hard, she wasn't tall enough to see up, instead she had to tilt her head to get a good view. She could see movement above her as they spoke and the vague impression of a uniform, but nothing clear. Nothing definite. A curse and a cup thrown at her made her bolt to one side with her heart pounding. The sudden movement made something inside of her crack and instincts that she had never possessed in her life snapped alive. Her mind was flooded with confusion and terror at the state of her body that she didn't try to remain near her clothes and the police, instead she bolted towards what looked like comforting darkness to one side. Her claws scrambled against the ground as she shoved herself into a pipe and wedged her body through the opening so she could get away from the sounds. She didn't to find a hiding place! Somewhere safe! Somewhere away from them!

"Get out your gun!! That wasn't the damned rat. I heard someone." One of the men called out briefly as she pushed her way through the damp slippery pipe. "STOP RIGHT THERE!"

CJ kicked her hind legs as she wiggled herself further into the pipe, far enough away that she didn't feel her tail her haunches exposed. Once she felt secure in the hiding spot she crouched down and dropped her haunches down and crouched against the slippery metal. The water that dribbled out came up to her wrists as she contorted her body and twisted around so that she could see out of the opening and the light that suddenly seemed overly bright. The voices of the officers came to her, but they were distorted by the round pipe and made it hard to pick out exactly what they were saying. But that didn't mind. Her instincts screamed at her to keep safe, keep hidden, keep herself away from the light and loud moving bodies.

The wet pipe was slimy with bits of moss and growth that clung to her fur, but it didn't matter at that moment. Nothing mattered except keeping safe and away from the loud sounds of the muffled voices and the vibrations that came from the feet hitting the ground as they talked. She flattened her ears down and lowered her head until it rested in the water and tried to still the terror that still crept under the surface. Her stomach was twisted up in knots as she felt her entire form trembling. The last effects of her run made her want to be sick. She was paralyzed now that she was in safety, the rat's body seemed to have more control over her actions then her own mind did!

Oh god, what am I gonna do. What am I gonna do.. CJ's mind ran in circles as her breath came in short hard puffs. _ This can't be happening.._

_ _

~ ~ * ~ ~

It was hours before she stirred from the dubious safety of her pipe. Hours spent in the dank wet and the scent of the city filling her nose. It was hours before she had the courage to creep out into the darkness of the now quiet alley and stand up on her haunches to try and look around. Hours that she had spent thinking of what had happened and how. The only thing that struck her was the woman's speech. The command that they would be vermin, live like vermin, be a part of the dark underbelly of the city. Even remembering the pain and fear of that voice made her flinch, but it gave her a direction to go. She had to find the old woman and find someway to make the bitch change her back. There had to be something she could do, some bargain she could strike. The only thing that gave her any satisfaction that Dale was likely in the same situation and not nearly as smart.

Fucker is probably trying to rape squirrels or something. _ CJ thought with a bit of rough amusement while scurrying to the side of the alley. _I know I can convince her to turn me back, or at least bite the old woman's throat as she sleeps if I can't!

_ _

With those thoughts the former man darted down the alley way and kept her body pressed up against the walls. Any time she tried to move into the open her instincts screamed danger so that she kept herself to one side as far away from wide open space in the middle. She had to push past her horror of the current state of her body and concentrate only on her goal. The old woman had said that sun rise would see them as men or filth, so she had until sunrise to find her and get her to change her back. The rat's tail flicked and twitched as she darted behind a set of trash cans and paused at the opening of the alley into one of the major road ways.

Her whiskers twitched slightly and she turned her head to try and gauge which was the best direction to go. She couldn't read street signs in this form. There was no way she could scurry up one of the poles to get a better look either. The best bet would be to make a bolt for it and try to find the St. Louis Cathedral. That was a good starting point and from there she knew the general directions she'd have to take. The rat tilted her head and leaped away from the comfort of the wall so she could rear up on her haunches and turned her head this way and that. She swayed back and forth as she tried to gauge where the towers of the cathedral were to guide her. She wasn't positive which way she had taken to reach the alley. At the time, she hadn't been able to think of anything except the pain of the moment and the fear that drove her on.

SSSSSSSSSSSSSssssssss Rtck-rtch-rtch... The sound sent a tremor down her spine and she froze in her attempt to see if the white mass in the distance was what she wanted. Rtchrtchrtchrtch....

_ _

The rat's body had the instincts that she didn't and that was the only thing that spared her from ending the story of her life as another rat killed in the Quarter. She leapt forward just as movement spilled beside her and a great diamond patterned form launched itself at the spot she had been in. She squealed out and her eyes bulged at the sight of the large snake that had curled itself in the entry way of a shop, the massive spade shaped head swayed back and forth drunkenly as it seemed to be jabbing the spot she had been with its blunt snout. A rattlesnake! What the fuck was a rattlesnake doing here? The question didn't matter, not when her body was nearly vibrating with a rush of adrenaline that had her leaping for some sort of shelter.

The fur on her back bristled and she twisted around just in time to avoid another blow before launching herself over the side walk and towards the street. Her heart hammered while her claws scrabbled and caught against fabric just enough that she went tumbling onto the pavement. Her chin cracked on the stone while she skidded on her side. Her paw was tangled with loose rough string on a shirt that reeked of sweat and some indefinable scent that made her recoil. With a shrill shriek she yanked backwards again and freed her paw as the snake twisted and turned its head towards her. The scales along its stomach plucked the ground as she bolted over the pile of discarded clothes and into the empty street leaving the rattling sound behind her.

Her ears flattened down against her head as she ran at full speed until she reached the overhanging growth of some ferns against a black fence. She didn't stop there, instead she leapt up onto the stone the fence was placed in and scrambled her way along it. It wasn't until she had left the creature and street far behind that she was able to slow down and try to still her own rapidly beating heart. And as she forced calm on herself and slowed to a weaving trot that took advantage of the growth, she realized what she had seen back there. Clothes that had been seemingly thrown onto the ground, abandoned on the street. A rattlesnake where none belonged.

_Fuck! Dale's a snake? _ CJ bristled a bit, and for a moment felt outrage that her former partner had been given a form that could defend itself and even had some dignity. _Bastard was always a snake. At least I have legs. _

She shook herself out and paused as she came to the end of the fence and reared up on her haunches to look around again. And right into the eyes of the Blessed Virgin Mary. The rat froze as she stared at the statue that was lovingly placed in a small shrine beneath vibrant trees and illuminated by a spotlight set at the base. The small garden was immaculately kept to add to it an air of beauty and peace for those that sought it out. The small garden of herbs that the priests used were settled out of the way in a modest corner so most of the greenery was given over to those who simply enjoyed the sight of it. She was behind the Cathedral!

With a sigh of relief she hopped off the fence stones and onto the soft grass and the welcoming darkness. The Cathedral. She knew her way around here, she knew how to get her way to the river front and hopefully she could find something of the old woman. She might even be waiting in the Square to see if either of them would return. Well, Dale wouldn't. The bastard didn't have a mind as a man and if he was trying to eat rats he obviously didn't make that good of a snake. That left herself and she knew she could find the woman easily enough. With a soft whimper she dropped down on her belly and stretched out her aching legs. First she needed to try and recover from her run. The relatively short distance it would have taken to walk here as a man, had been massive when given four short legs.

CJ dropped her head down onto her forepaws and stared at the lit statue of the Virgin Mary and shuddered a bit at the peaceful face. She'd never enjoyed holy statues. They always seemed to be judging in their silent way, no matter how peaceful the countenance. She wanted nothing to do with them at the best of times. But for now she was at least safe and she could put up with the eerie blank eyed stares of the statue while she stilled her heart and stretched her hind legs out. She felt overly hot in the sultry night and running hadn't helped at all. It had made things worse. But at least she hadn't been eaten or squashed. The rat's body had superb instincts that left her feeling relatively safe that they would alert her if she was found in her tucked away hiding spot. At least, that's what she assumed would happen.

As she stretched her forelegs out in front of her and rolled onto her side, she found herself hitting something larger and heavier, and just as warm as she was. With a squeak she rolled onto her stomach and twisted onto her legs ready to run, except a soft grinding noise came from the shadowy lump that had sneaked up on her. The darkness wasn't so consuming with a rats eyes, but it was still hard to make out the crouched form. The grinding noise came again and the outraged instincts that had brought her lurching her feet relaxed at the sound. She started to grind her teeth together in return and bristled her whispers forward in response.

The large form reared up and a slender muzzle lifted into the air. Another rat sniffed at her and bruxed a response before she felt her muscles relax entirely. Another rat. She took a step back and tilted her head to look at the creature and shuddered. It was a monster. A heavy bodied bruit that was nearly the size of a small cat with large yellow teeth and ragged black ears. The waxy looking fur bristled in a ruff along its head and the haunches were almost twice the size of her own. It was disgusting, vile, horrible. But at least it wasn't a danger. CJ's stomach unknotted as she realized that there was no danger from a rat, she was a rat too. And the size of the massive body would probably scare away the most determined cat while she relaxed.

She shook her head back and forth and took a few more steps away so that she slipped beneath a thick fern and settled herself down on her belly. The brute didn't do much more then sniff at the place that she had been laying before rearing up on it's haunches and started to wash his muzzle with its paws. She wrinkled her nose at the acrid scent of the beast, but forced herself to drop her head down on her paws and went back to easing the ache along her haunches and forepaws. The muscles twitched slightly in exhaustion from her run and her stomach made it even worse. It cramped with hunger and she thought wistfully of the dinner she had had before she'd gone out earlier in the evening.

To take her mind away from it she watched the rat that crept along the ground and sniffed at the grass. Were rats really this big? She had seen them at the store and they'd barely been the size of her hand, but nothing this big. She turned her head to peer at herself briefly and tried to gauge her own size. She was larger than a rat at the pet store, but nothing like the brute that was snuffling and grinding its teeth. If rats were really this large then there was little doubt as to why so many people were fed up with the river rats coming into the Quarter. They were horrifying. The tail was even disgusting, it was large and patched with black and pink in the faint light.

The answer came when the creature stepped past her and seemed to be snuffling towards food. The ears flicked up and the haunches waddled back and forth. As it passed by her she stared at a set of truly massive balls dragging along the ground behind it. Comparative to body size they were positively obscene. They were waxy looking and oblong as the male waddled past her and snuffled against the edge of a leaf with interest. She didn't care what he was doing, she was mesmerized by the size of the testicles. What on earth would a beast that size have need for something THOSE large? She felt a burn of anger and humiliation at the fact she had had her gender taken from her.

_My gender.. OH SHIT! _ The thought of her gender when accompanied with the sight of the rat's connected two things in her mind.

CJ launched forward just as a snout snuffled against her haunch. The puff of breath hit against her as she tried to get away from the beast. Her ears flattened down against her head and she huddled up near the base of a bush. She flipped her naked tail around herself only to find the large buck following her with his nose twitching on the air. The sharp acrid scent of him was carried to her on the air as he waddled forward and jabbed his nose towards her own. She tried to jerk her head to one side and she squirmed backwards, or at least she tried to get herself away from the beast. She screamed at her legs to MOVE MOVE MOVE. She wanted them to move!! She screamed at them to move!

They didn't, instead she found herself crouching down as the large rat snuffled against her ears and pushed against them. The whiskers pushed against her ears and prickled against them while her toes curled down against the ground. She squinted her eyes shut and tried to get herself to dart away, to bite him, to run as she had when she had heard the police coming or the sound of the snake. The bruxing noise returned, but this time against her ear as the massive rat crowded against her and pushed her back into the bushes.

Oh god run run run run run run.. She screamed to herself, but instead she started to grind her teeth together and let out a low noise in her throat.

Why was she doing that? Why? Her entire body vibrated with the sound as she crouched against the ground and felt the waxy furred form pushed against her side and one of the paws clambered against her back. The claws scraped against the fur and she yelped out softly before a hot snuffling nose shoved itself beneath her tail. The naked base was forced out of the way as the nose tip shoved beneath it and the breath puffed up hotly against him. The moist air puffed against her soft folds so that she shuddered at the disgusting feel of it. She twisted her head and tried to snarl or squeal or shriek her displeasure, and instead found herself nearly pushing against the large leathery ball sacks. The hot scent of the musk made her stomach clench up and she splayed her haunches at an odd angle.

The former man squeezed his eyes shut to try and block out the invasive feel of a slimy tongue jabbing out against her folds. Her inner walls contracted in reaction and tried to squeeze at nothing as the monstrous rat examined her. It was degrading, humiliating, and terrifying as he forced her tail up slightly and the naked length slid to one side so that her feminine sex was exposed. Her feminine sex?! God, no she'd never had one of those before, this couldn't be happening. Her mind was alive with fear as the hot snuffles poked and prodded against her several times before the big male lumbered past her and moved with a swiftness that took her aback. She barely had time to squeal out and formulate a plan to get away from what the creature had in mind.

_I'm not getting fucked by a rat! _ She screamed to herself and the terror the vision invoked helped brake past the instincts that made her want to submit.

She launched forward and was crushed against the ground as the massive weight pressed down over her and pinned it beneath the soft fur of his under belly. She twisted and screeched out, her tail lashed back and forth while grabbing paws gripped around her waist and tugged her backwards. The large yellow buck teeth snapped down and gripped the scruff of her neck firmly and pulled backwards. Her splayed toes scraped furrows in the earth as he mounted her and her world was filled with the harsh abrasive male musk. It filled her nose, her senses, it filled everything while his powerful hips pushed up against hers and the hind legs spread open to wrap around her.

Her squeals didn't give her any hope, any chance to escape or any prayer that she'd wriggle free. The buck ignored her while his hips curled inwards and she yelped as something hard poked and shoved up against her inner thighs. The wet slimy tip rubbed intimately between her legs and along her lower belly so that she felt the sticky stuff smearing over her. Her stomach turned in disgust as she twisted herself back and forth and let out a higher pitched scream. She tried to jerk her head back and snapped her teeth at him, but the brute had other intentions. The hips rocked and jabbed in short hard strokes that hit the cock tip between the former man's legs again and again. Despair rolled up inside of her as she lashed her tail and slapped it against the ground.

She fought, or tried to fight, but it didn't matter. The rat's teeth nearly tore into her neck as the cock tip pushed upwards and caught against the virginal outer lips of her sex. She felt the pressure before the buck slammed forward and yanked her back against him. The thick shaft speared into her body and yawned her too small folds open as she shrilled out in pain. Tears welled up in her eyes as her vulnerable inner body was strained open so wide that she was nearly tearing around him. The tip of his cock hilted deep inside of her as the oversized orbs rubbed intimately along her inner thighs. The breath was knocked out of her in that single blow, but the beast didn't give her a chance to brace herself. It wasn't about her pleasure. It wasn't about her wanting it.

As the hips dragged back and her burning folds were tugged and caressed her mind was alive with the dozens of times she'd watched Dale pin one of their victims. The way the tall man would shove them to the ground as they screamed and drive himself into their bodies as they fought and struggled. How CJ had been forced to help hold them on more then one occasion. She felt herself nearly throwing up, she would have thrown up if she had had any food in her stomach. The visual memories and the feel of the cock pulling back with a wet slimy spurt that left rodent precum staining her passage was too much. She kicked her hind legs only to be dragged back as the rat slammed home again and forced her to swallow every last inch of his cock.

Her jaws gaped and the beast started to move in brutal punishing movements. Her entire body was rocked under him as his haunches started to piston back and forth. The apex of each thrust forced the tip so deep within her that it was grinding right against a barrier that made her stomach cramp up. She arched her back and her walls contracted tightly around the beast. They pulled around him and started to grow slicker, the thick strands of nectar being drawn from her body by the animalistic act of being bred. Mated. The instincts she had so cleverly felt sure of in keeping her safe betrayed her in the most debased way possible as she milked around the cock that stabbed and tore through her.

The hot breath puffed against her neck and the buck's grabbing forepaws clenched against her smooth belly as he claimed her, raped her. The hot thick spills of precum could be felt drooling out of the tip and were squelched back out as the creature began to drive himself into a frenzy. The sound of flesh on flesh slapping together were sharp in her keen ears, just as sharp as the grunts and squeaks the rat made as he spread his thighs wide and weight pushed her harder against the ground. She twisted and screamed out in a high pitched voice as her tail slapped and scraped against the ground. The bushes around them moved as the apex of each thrust started to not only make her ache, but made her squirm in some small measure of pleasure.

It was a pleasure she didn't want. She didn't want her body and nerves to react to the harsh brutal breeding. Her body clamped down tight around him as the teeth twisted the nape of her neck and her head was forced backwards. The large rat arched his back and the hips suddenly slammed up as her haunches tensed. The final thrust nearly threw her hips into the air, or they would have if she hadn't been so firmly pinned. The boned cock speared into her and slammed into the opening of her cervix so hard it was like a punch to her gut. Her rough cry couldn't block out the sensation of what happened inside of her. Couldn't block away the rippling silken muscles that locked themselves around the cock as the first hot jet of rat cum flooded her belly.

The slippery vile semen jetted out hotly into her stomach as she curled her fingers against the ground and gritted her teeth together. She tensed up as each jerking twitch of the cock sent out more of the sperm rich fluid into her body. She didn't want to think of it, but all she could feel was the thick heavy cream being pushed into places she had never had. And her treacherous body squeezing and milking around it as it continued to jerk and pulse. And as an added humiliation the rat shifted his hips and started to rise, only to feel something bubbling up from the cock. Thick slimy sticky wetness splattered into her as the boned cock jerked and twitched on its way out.

The tip came free with a lewd popping noise while the massive rat stepped off her and promptly leaned down to start licking his exposed red cock. CJ couldn't think, couldn't move, she felt locked as she crouched on the ground and felt the sticky fluid oozing out of her and clinging to her folds. After several moments of watching the monstrous rodent cleaning off his slimy cock she forced herself onto all fours and made them move. Within her she felt the last of the fluid sticking and hardening within her. The gel plug forcing her to hold the semen that had just been injected into her. She felt vile, filthy, used, violated. She barely got to the bushes before her legs gave out and she curled herself into a ball.

The only thought that came from deep within her was one that offered no comfort or hope. It was one that made her stomach turn. How many girls had she allowed Dale to rape? How many times had she helped pin the victim down as she was used because it made HER life easier to have her partner well behaved? She'd given girls to the other man as if they were treats, toys, presents for being well behaved and left them broken and used behind. A wash of horror, shame, despair and disgust rolled over her as she let out a choked sound and curled her naked tail around herself. Her entire body trembled while she felt the burning ache between her legs where she'd been violated.

_God, I deserve this.... What have I done? _ She sobbed in her own mind as she huddled in a ball. A ball that was only disturbed when the horrible snuffling and bruxing sound came closer again. And the relief that she was offered from her thoughts of what she had done, was not one she wanted as the recovered rat once again made his claim. The first time of many that night.

~ ~ * ~ ~

The sunlight streamed over CJ and rose up into the sky with the sound of bird songs that called out lustily to herald the new day. They sang and rejoiced in the simple act of being. In the simple act of another turning of the world. It wasn't the songs that awakened him. It wasn't the sweetness of their voices and the hope they offered, but a prod to the side of one hard leather boot that rolled him onto his side and sent him face down into the dirt. Face down as he had been placed nearly a dozen times the night before by the filthy rat that had bred him, fucked him, raped him with all the eagerness of any creature ready to sow his seeds in a ripe female.

"Get up, sir." A disgusted tone penetrated his mine and CJ pried his eyes open to stare over his own filthy nose tip. NOSE TIP.

"What?" He slurred and scrambled up to grab his own face, with his hands. Dirty hands that held soil crusted under the nails, but his hands.

"Put this on!" A blanket was thrown at him and smacked him on the head while he gave a jerk and stared up at the two men who were glaring down at him.

The police officers didn't look as happy as he felt as he grabbed the blanket and mercifully covered his nudity. His cock! His masculinity was back! He wrapped himself up with it and wrinkled his nose as he felt the dirt and sweat that was caked on his body. The scent of himself made it even worse as one of the officers gestured for him to stand up with a look of disgust on his features. CJ didn't care. He was human! It was dawn and he was human! He was all too willing to stand up and he pushed himself onto his legs before swaying slightly.

"Come on, sir. Public indecency isn't allowed here, no matter how many drinks you've had. Where did you leave your clothes?" The man's voice was sharp as he was pushed towards the gate that led out of the garden. CJ stumbled slightly as his lower body ached. He looked down briefly, there was no bruising, no tears, but a phantom ache of everything that had happened to him. Everything he had been forced to experience still lingered there as a sharp reminder of what had happened to him.

"I.. ah.. d-down an alley, that way." He slurred the words as his bare feet touched the hot side walk. "I left them down the alley."

"Jesus, he was the guy from last night that went screaming down there. Folks called it in all night." The younger of the officers looked annoyed. "Jason spent all of last night trying to find him and whoever else he was with. What happened to the other guy?"

"Other guy?" CJ repeated stupidly as he tried to follow the conversation. "I.. don't know. W-we tried to mug someone and it went wrong. We got separated and I don't know where he went."

"Mugging? That explains the knives then..." The older of the pair raised his brow as he was led towards a car. The hands that had been somewhat gentle on him, as if afraid he was going to pass out suddenly firmed. The grip on his upper arm clamped down a bit."You have the right to remain-"

As the words were spoken, words he had known from other brushes with the law, words he avoided at all costs he felt himself lighten slightly. His breath came out a bit faster as he listened to them, but not with the heavy heart he had always felt and cunning that he began to work on how he would plead his case to get away from it. Not with the anger and fury that he had been caught. But they cleansed him. How many people had he harmed, terrorized, destroyed mentally and emotionally? How many people had suffered at his hands? He drew in a breath and blew it out as he felt the weight slide away from him. He had debts to pay for what he had done. He knew what he had done and that had only been one facet. He lifted his head up and nodded his head as the last of his rights were finished. He understood. He accepted.

"JESUS MOTHER FUCKING CHRIST!" Someone screamed and the officers jerked their hands down towards their belts as CJ was pushed up against the car. "SOMEONE CALL ANIMAL CONTROL!!"

"What is it, Jenks? You about scared the shit out of me." The older officer snapped out and stepped around the car, the younger left to demand CJ's wrists for the steel handcuffs.

"Biggest rattler I've ever seen. Jesus..." CJ's head came up at the words and he craned it up slightly to see the pair of officers standing on the side walk staring down at the ground.

"Why didn't you hit it with your baton?" One of the voices snapped out. "That shirt is going to have to be tossed."

"Just call animal control! Ugh. My brother in law works there. They're always needing some of the venomous snakes in their labs." A portly man stepped back and rubbed his sweaty head. "He'll come grab it and use it for the venom for anti-venom. Or use it as a breeder."

"Is that really a thing? I thought that was just in the movies?" The officer that had woken up snorted. "They're breeding those things? Ugh! There's enough of a problem having them out here!"

"Yeah, they milk it from them and make it into a shot in case someone gets bit. They're always looking for wild ones. Just give them a call alright? And have them scour the area for more. The hell if we need people getting bit by snakes around here. It's probably from the garden." The portly man looked up and glared at CJ as he was being pushed into the car. "Our nudist is lucky to be alive. Probably scared the snake out. Did you see the size of it?"

CJ let himself be placed in the back of the car with his wrists cuffed in front of him and the blanket covering him. He glanced out to see the officers coat writhing with the trapped snake. Dale. Dale was still a snake, still changed, still a bit of vermin in the midst of this city. He drew in a breath as he leaned backwards and stared up at the ceiling. He wasn't trapped, though his body still ached with the abuse he had endured the night before, and he wouldn't remain a bit of filth in this city. He had sins to make amends for, sins that clung to him, but they would wash away. He would pay his debts. Now that he knew exactly what he owed.

As the car pulled away from the curb he watched the writhing snake being stuffed into a sack. Goodbye, Dale. Hopefully he wouldn't make such a mess in his new life. Maybe he'd even have a revelation of his own someday.