Merrie held down Tai's trousers and underwear with both arms as she kept her tilted head jammed up between the guard's muscular thighs. Tai's sex drooled into her mouth and Merrie had to keep her lips sealed around Tai's opening to prevent it from dripping down her neck and face. Not that it mattered, but she loved the musky taste of Tai and wanted to drink every drop instead of wasting it on the ground.

Tai grabbed her ears and pulled her tight, guiding Merrie to her clitoris. Her arms strained as she tried to lift her leg, but with it trapped underneath Merrie's weight, she could do nothing but lean against the brick wall and clench her teeth to avoid calling out.

Merrie loved the frantic submission and the desperation. Tai was off duty in less than an hour, but the hard edge of excitement couldn't wait. So, they were back in the alley between two tanners. Around them, the sharp smells used to treat the hides mixed in with the steady spring rain that dripped down the gutters and railings to splash down around them.

One stream splashed down on Merrie's back. Every droplet of the cool air sent little twinges down her spine. She pulled back the cloak to let it run along bare skin and down between the cleft of her buttocks. Each droplet clung to her pussy before dripping off. The sensation, while tiny and minute, just added to the intensity of the moment.

She ground her face harder into Tai's pussy, breathing through the thick patch of hairs and lapping hard. She knew the woman's pussy like the back of her hand, where to lick and where to touch. She drank in the flood of juices and flicked the little fold of flesh.

“Faster,” whispered Tai, “please. Please harder.”

Merrie forced her head back so she could pry her shoulders between Tai's thighs. She stretched back and worked her tongue further back to burrow between tightly clenched buttocks of the guard.

“Oh, please…” cried Tai. She brought her hand up to her mouth and bit down on the glove to avoid attracting attention. Guards weren't suppose to use whores at all, but while on duty it would be a firable offense. But, there was no way that Tai could know that Merrie shaded them from sight and even telepathic detection.

Merrie jammed up, forcing Tai up on her toes. She found the tightly clenched anal ring and ran her tongue along it.

Tai's pussy clenched and a flood of juices filled Merrie's mouth and splashed down. It ran down both sides of her face and Merrie moaned at the loss of the taste as it coursed down her breasts, but she simply focused harder on lapping Tai's asshole.

Tai cried out into her glove and clenched tightly on Merrie's ears. The pain only encouraged Merrie to lap harder, circling around the wrinkled opening until it squeezed tight with Tai's rapidly approaching orgasm.

Merrie jammed the tip of her tongue into Tai's hole and fucked her while using it like a little cock. Each thrust ignited a burst of pleasure in the guard and soon Tai was trying to squat down on Merrie's face to keep more inside her.

When Tai came, it was a little burst of pleasure. It filled Merrie with warmth and she drank in the feel of it, along with the musky scent of Tai's pussy and ass.

Shuddering, Tai slumped back. She released Merrie's ears and her glove creaked.

Blood flowed back along the sensitive ridge and Merrie squirmed as the flash of discomfort radiated through her body. She gave the trembling hole a final caress before pulling back. Carefully, she released the trousers and watched the fabric sliding back up Tai's outstretched legs.

“Oh, fuck the gods,” gasped the guard. “I needed that.”

Merrie grinned and brought herself into a begging position. She bobbed up and down as her tail wagged back and forth. Her naked body glistened from the rain, but unlike Tai, she could cover herself in a flash.

With shaking hands, Tai reached down and pulled her trousers up. “Sorry, Lacy, but I really should be on duty.” She finished buckling the belt before she fished into her pockets. Pulling out a twenty mark bill, she looked away as she handed it to Merrie.

Merrie's cloak flashed up and gently plucked it from Tai's fingers. With a ripple of blackness, the money was secreted in one of the pockets. Merrie pulled it back then stopped when she noticed that Tai was missing one of her rings.

Hissing silently, Merrie grabbed the end of the cloak and dug into the pockets. A moment later, she found the ring and pulled it out. As the cloak grew in strength, it started to exhibit of her master's tendency for kleptomania. She had to keep track of her marks to make sure they didn't lose their wallet or jewelry while they were fucking her.

Innocently, the cloak rippled around her and fluttered against her skin.

Glancing up, she pushed Tai's mind into blankness and had the guard hold out her hand. Merrie dropped the into her palm and Tai reflexively put it back on her finger.

Merrie brought the cloak back to her. The thin fabric draped itself over Merrie, sliding along her naked skin and covering her once again in the shifting black folds. Underneath a faux skirt created by a fold of the cloak, the cool air continued to tickled against Merrie's bare sex, prickling the drying juices that coated her own thighs and sex.

Flushed, Tai took a deep breath and looked down. She stroked Merrie's ears. “Thank you, Lacy. I really needed that.”

Merrie barked and smiled.

“I'm also glad that Gail doesn't mind you ‘relieving’ the pressure. Though, I wondered why she doesn't seem so hung up on you like the others.”

Merrie only shrugged.

“Well, I better get on duty. Fang is probably finished writing up the report from the robbery.” Tai double-checked her belt and trousers and hurried out of the alley.

Following her with her mind, Merrie reached into Tai's thoughts and calmed her breathing down and hid the flush of excitement. She left the warm afterglow that smoldered in her loins along with a desire to find Gail as soon as she was off duty. With a smile, she crawled in the opposite direction and into the crowded street.

The district smelled of blood and manure, but the rain beat it down until it was only a palatable stench. The throngs of people on the street moved slower in the rain, not to avoid the water but simply to enjoy the respite from the smells that would be suffocating in a few short months.

The first day of summer was coming and Merrie found herself looking forward to going to the message boards. She didn't know what Eolis would say or leave, but she was proud that she obeyed him. Even in absence, his command kept her going through the winter and through the spring.

She lifted her head and let the water rain down on her face. It felt good. Opening her mouth, she enjoyed it splashing on her tongue and washing away the musky smell of Tai's cunt. They had a bottle of wine hidden in one of the planters for that, but Merrie found struggling with the bottle not worth the effort of calling Scorch or any of the other whores working the street. Nir would help, the girl was begging at the corner, but Merrie could tell that she was having a good day and didn't want to disturb her.

Wagging her tail, she jumped on a nearby bench and transferred herself up to a planter. The flowers were in full bloom and her movements brought whiffs of perfume around her. Finding a comfortable spot to kneel on the edge, she turned to the boardwalk and settled down.

Turning her head to the sky, she let her mind drift. She didn't want to say she was happy but being a whore felt right. She loved bringing people pleasure just as much as she enjoyed having hard cock and questing fingers filling her. More nights than most, she was in someone's bedroom, giving as much as receiving. Life seemed better when she was fucking and she wondered how she could have ever let herself plunge into the despair that almost took her life.

The pain of her loss was still there. It never went away. Every time she thought of her master, she felt it tearing into her soul. There was an empty place that couldn't be filled. Every time she swallowed, she wished it was him. She prayed that she would wake up from her dreams to find herself back in the cage, but it never came true. Instead, it was an empty box in an alley surrounded by beggars. It hurt, but she found that the tears didn't come anymore. She would forever be empty, but at least she was as happy as she could let herself be.

“Hey, Ears?” Nir spoke up next to her. She was healthier than ever, mostly because of Merrie, but there was still a gauntness in her frame. Dark shadows hung underneath her eyes as she glanced at the crowd, trying to measure if anyone would give her a few more coins. One strand of knotted black hair fell down over her face and she absently brushed it aside.

Merrie scanned the people walking by, but none of them were willing to give more than a few coins. She pushed them to do so and Nir held out her hand as they dropped money into her palm without either of them looking.

“I'm sorry,” she coughed and one of the coins dropped from her hand. She whimpered and knelt down to grab it. As she was below, the cough grew louder before Nir managed to regain her composure. Standing up, her face was pale. “Sorry. I-I don't think I can stay out anymore. This rain is really cold.”

Cocking her head, Merrie took a deep look at the girl. She was getting worse. And while the rain felt good against Merrie's skin, she could see how it was sapping Nir's strength with every passing moment.

Taking a deep breath, Merrie dug into her cloak. The pocket came to her arm and she eased out the twenty that Tai had just given her. The cloak gripped the edge and wrapped around her arm as she held it out to the beggar girl.

“I-I can't, Ears. You've—”

Merrie shook her head and jammed the money into Nir's chest. Then she pointed to the cafe down the street, the one under the guild's apartment. Scorch was in the apartment at the moment with a pair of customers, but Nir knew not to go in there.

Reluctantly, Nir took the money and scurried down the street.

Merrie watched her nervously, unsure what to do. The obvious answer was to suggest that Nir join the guild with Merrie. She was old enough not to be under Consent's protection, but she didn't think Nir would be open to it, not when she was raped by her father. Neither broached the topic, not that Merrie could, and she was forced to watch Nir getting weaker by the day.

There was also loyalty to the rest of the beggars. She couldn't save them all, but it felt wrong to take Nir to a comfortable life when she couldn't do the same for the rest of the alley.

Most of her money went into the alley, to give them enough shelter to ease the suffering of their lives. She paid for healers when they needed it, ensured they would have steady meals in their bellies, and company to get through the days. They never asked for her obvious talents of sex, but they all craved her patronage.

It hurt that she couldn't do more, but Merrie didn't know what she could do. She couldn't save them all.

Sighing, she let her mind drift and focused on her job. Over the next few hours, the crowds came and went. She gave a number of blow jobs, got fucked against some crates of fruit, and even jammed her arm into a regular's ass. By the time night fell down on the city, she was brimming with excitement and enjoying the afterglow that pulsed through her body.

She was about to call it a night when a familiar man came down the street. It was Fang but the guard wasn't wearing his uniform. Instead, he had on a light rain cloak and was furtively looking down the alleys as he passed. To her surprise, he was looking for her and she could feel the anticipation as he drew closer. There was no question what he wanted, she could feel the anxiety and horniness coloring his thoughts. There was also depression darkening his mind.

Merrie pulled the cloak away from her body. The rain soaked her instantly, but she knew what would turn him on. She sat up into a begging position, something he had glimpsed her doing for Tai, and waited for him to draw closer.

He slowed as he approach, his eyes locking on hers. There was a strange intenseness in his eyes, something more than just a desire to orgasm. For a brief moment, he looked familiar to her, more so than the occasional looks they shared since the day she was freed. She stared into his brown-green eyes as he stopped in front of her. He was taller than her, even with her kneeling on the planter. Merrie couldn't picture it, but she could have sworn she saw his eyes before, but she didn't remember when. She wondered if it was before she lost her memories, of the days before the mill.

“You,” he breathed.

Merrie nodded.

“I know she's fucking you,” his voice was filled with longing and need, “right?”

She cocked her head but didn't respond.

“Look, I need it. Can you give it?”

She knew what he wanted, to have his cock in something warm and hot. But, there was also a hesitation. He had money on him but he was hoping for a freebie, something he assumed Tai got whenever they were in the alley. For a moment, Merrie considered saying no, but the eyes drew her. She knew she had seen them before.

With a bark, she jumped off the planter and headed down the street.

Fang followed after tugging his cloak over his face to shield himself. He moved quickly after her. When she ducked into the alley, he hurried past her into the darkest part. Shielded from sight, he pulled back his cloak and whispered to her. “Over here.”

Merrie didn't need him to tell her. She could see in shadows as brightly as day. She crawled over the cobblestones and stopped in front of him. With a smile he couldn't see, she pulled herself into a begging position and rested the ends of her arms on his thighs.

He jumped at the touch. “Just give me the same deal, okay?”

Merrie stared up at him. His brunette hair was in a thick ring around his head and it left the top of it bare. She could feel that he hated his body and wished he was someone else.

There was also loneliness in his apartment, something he didn't want to go back to. She got the impression he used to live with someone, but now there was only depression and hopelessness. She didn't push further, not when he was exploring her ears with his fingers.

She leaned forward and nuzzled his crotch. She could feel the hardness underneath the fabric.

Fang fumbled with his trousers and unbuttoned them. With a groan, he fished his cock out. It was long and thin, about sixteen centimeters in length with a arrowhead tip. When he tugged his balls out of his jeans, the tip smacked against Merrie's nose.

“S-Sorry.”

Merrie opened her mouth and tilted her head so she could lick along the bottom ridge of his length. His body tensed with her tongue and she continued up toward his tip.

“Sweet…” His voice trailed off into a moan. He clutched the wall behind him and thrust forward with his hips.

Reaching the tip, Merrie used her tongue to work the tip into the foreskin and explore the tip. He was clean underneath, but sensitive. Even the brush of her breath against his cock head caused him to tense up.

“Slow, please slow?”

Merrie pulled back and slid her lips down the bottom edge. She kept her arms resting on his thighs, to give him an anchor to focus on in darkness. She stopped at his balls but didn't mouth them; she knew that he didn't like his testicles being played with. Opening her mouth, she clamped her lips on the side of his hardness and worked her way up, using her saliva for lubrication.

Fang moaned even louder. His fingernails scraped the bricks as he pushed forward. He stepped out of his pants and spread his legs even further apart.

Taking her time, she slathered his cock with her mouth until it dripped. Rising herself up on her knees, she reached the tip and rolled it around against her lips, giving him a bit of pressure as if he was about to penetrate her.

His cock jumped at the sensation.

Merrie pushed her mouth down, parting her lips just enough to give friction as she took his cock in her mouth. The hardness bumped against the top of her mouth and slid along the smooth palate toward the back of her throat.

He was obsessing on every millimeter that sank into her mouth. He could picture it in her mind and she added in the details until he was almost cumming from the mental image. She bobbed down, taking a few centimeters before sliding it back up.

His precum was light and musky, tinted with a sweetness. It pooled on her tongue and she gulped to enjoy the warmth sliding down her throat. It wouldn't be long before she had more, but she wanted to bury it completely in her throat. He wanted to cum inside her, balls deep, but she was going take her time getting there.

Merrie bobbled up and down, sucking on his entire length until her cheeks hollowed. Her body trembled with the anticipation and she clenched her inner muscles to fight back her own lusts. She continued to move in slow strokes that took him deeper and deeper.

She relished every ridge and bump as it scraped against her lips. The tip bumped against her throat, deeper than he ever had someone take him, and then further down. She gulped as she stuffed his cock into her mouth, enjoying how he shuddered as the tip sank into her throat.

He finally released the brick wall and grabbed her head. It was a frantic touch, a primal desperation to drive deep.

Merrie surrendered to him with a flash of pleasure. She opened her mouth just enough as he began to fuck her face, pounding hard. His belly, hard from guard duties, smacked against her nose. His cock drove deep into her throat, scraping against the back end and sending fire along her nerves.

She pulled away her hands, knowing how he would respond.

Fang grabbed her tighter, afraid she was pulling back, and thrust harder. His balls smacked against her chin with every stroke. Wet slurping noises drifted up and pushed him to drive in faster. Soon, she was seeing stars from the wet, meaty impacts, and they were sinking down into her belly, stoking the fires of her sex.

His orgasm came bubbling up. It was hot and searing as she felt it cresting inside him. And then his cock swelled inside her mouth, stretching her lips.

He moaned loudly and began to slam into her, driving deep with hard, erratic strokes. His cock surged and cum poured down into her throat. She gulped at it and held herself limp as he pounded her face a few last times, then buried his length as deep into her mouth as possible. His shaft surged and jerked in her grip as more cum poured down into her belly.

Merrie tenderly cleaned his cock as he withdrew, leaving it spit-shined and slick. Her stomach growled as she watched him pull his trousers back into place and button them.

“I… I…” he gasped and staggered back.

He wasn't going to pay her. He had the money, but the shame and humiliation burned brightly with the afterglow. It turned into blind panic and he fled the alley in a dead sprint.

Merrie licked her lips and smiled. She didn't fuck for the money, just the pleasure. She brought the cloak back around her and crawled out of the darkness.

“Well,” said Scorch in an angry tone, “he ran out in a hurry. You aren't suppose to scare them, Bitch.”

“Don't listen to him, Ears.” Nir hurried over and knelt down to hug Merrie. “He's just a meanie,” she whispered.

“I heard that,” came the familiar growl.

Nir glared at him, but she was also smiling. “Good, because you are a meanie.”

Scorch's body shimmered with heat as he folded his arms over his chest. The rain that splashed down on him hissed and sizzled away. He glanced down the street where Fang had ran. “He didn't pay you, did he?”

Merrie shook her head, her ears drooping. Kirin had talked to her about not getting paid for every fuck.

“The guild is going to take twenty-five percent no matter what, you know.”

Merrie nodded.

“But, you can't let the marks think they can get away from that. You might fuck for the joy of it, but if you teach them that, then you put all of our jobs at risk.”

With a sigh, Merrie lowered her head and looked up at him through her eyelashes.

“Puppy eyes doesn't change anything, Bitch. Collect the money or else,” he snarled. He dropped his arms and shoved past Nir to head down the street. Steam followed after him, wafting in the air before the rain beat it down.

Nir hugged Merrie tightly. “Don't worry, I'm sure you won't get in trouble.”

Merrie shrugged and nuzzled Nir's face.

The girl smiled and kissed Merrie on the nose. When she sniffed, she crinkled her nose. “You smell like cum.”

Wagging her tail, Merrie gave a little bark.

Nir stood up and looked around through the streaming rain lit up by the light of the lanterns. “Think we can stop by Ratty's? I'd love to bring a little desert. I got enough money.”

Merrie barked. She looked up at the guild apartment. The lights were on and she could feel one of the whores already inside, alone and masturbating. Not worried about it, Merrie crawled next to Nir as they headed back home.

It took them almost an hour to walk across town. By the time they reached Ratty's street, the rain was pouring down in sheets. It overflowed the gutters and the puddles stretched across the street. The occasional wagon threatened to soak both of them, but Merrie discretely used her cloak to shield both herself and Nir from being touched by the sheets of water.

In one strong splash, something clinked from the cloak. Merrie peered down to see a ring. It was from one of her marks, but one that had long since headed home. Swearing softly, she picked up the ring and stuck it back in the cloak. At the same time, she posted a reminder using a spell to return it as soon as she saw him again.

The cloak rippled and she tried to figure out some way of making it stop stealing.

Lost in thought with her efforts to control her cloak, she didn't realized something was wrong until they were a block away from Ratty's restaurant. There was too many minds for that late at night and their thoughts were in a cloud of regret and dread.

The only cheerful person was one of Ratty's neighbors, a self-satisfied woman who hated the beggars. She was trying to pretend to be devastated while inwardly she was already cheering.

The healer was kneeling on the ground next to Ratty's body. The stench of vomit and feces stank up the air, choking, but the healer had seen far worse. He was trying to save the flicker of life in the old woman's chest, but it was too late. He just couldn't stop, not with the promises he made when he joined the guard. His only regret is that no one found her earlier.

His eyes looked down at the blood and vomit on the ground. Food poisoning was a terrible way to die, more so when your neighbors wouldn't come to your cries for help. He glanced at the old woman talking to the guards. He knew that she waited until Ratty was dead, but he couldn't prove it. The sick feeling rose in his stomach, not from Ratty's corpse but at the pettiness of the woman speaking.

Merrie gasped. She rushed forward and blocked Nir's path.

“Ears? What's wrong?”

Merrie shook her head and pushed Nir back. Even as she was moving, she cast out her senses to the beggars in the alley. She couldn't find them and dread rose inside her. There was always someone in the alley at night.

Frowning, she shoved Nir back again and the girl stumbled.

Merrie focused harder and scanned the surrounding areas. She found a pedestrian was walking by and Merrie grabbed him with mental fingers. Rushing through the domination spell, she took over his body and forced him down into the alley.

Another spell gave her his senses so she could look.

Not comprehending why he decided to walk down an alley, the cheese maker took a sniff. It smelled vile in the darkness. He thought about the store at the end, a competitor. No wonder the cheese was rank there, not with the stench in the alley. He continued forward, pushed by some unseen force.

He tripped on the first body and fell forward. His hand splashed into a puddle of something wet and sticky. Panicking, he looked up at the unseeing faces around him.

Merrie felt sick as she recognized Copper, Threads, and the others. They were all around the pot of food that had been spilled in their death throes.

“Ears? What's wrong?”

Merrie pushed her back, away from the alley and Ratty's.

“No, what's wrong?” Nir tried to go around Merrie.

Merrie shook her head and pushed back. She started a spell to dominate Nir, but it faltered. She couldn't do it to a friend. A stranger was fair game, but not someone who held her at night. Not for this.

She sat down heavily and shook her head. She held up her arms and her cloak spread out into black wings, darkening the street. It blocked her body.

Nir gasped as she stared at the billowing darkness. Then, as the tremors started to shake her, she lowered her gaze down to Merrie. There was confusion and fear in her. It slowly blossomed into realization. A sob tore out as she shook her head and stepped back. “No, not Copper. Not the others.”

Merrie bowed her head.

“No!” Nir spun on her heels and sprinted the other way, sobbing loudly as she splashed through the rain.

Merrie forced the stranger in the alley to call for the guards and ran after Nir.