Harnessing the power of second-grade science labs, Neara brings the rain. She also makes out with Tony because sometimes you just need to blow off a little steam.

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"It's called static electricity." Neara touched Winston with a giggle and his tail flicked behind him.

"And the point is?" Orson's hair couldn't have been more buoyant.

"You're just mad you look like a cloud." Benedict casually shocked Orson as he walked by, earning a snarl and a punch.

"S-T-A-T-I-T-A-T-T-T-C" Tony spelled proudly. WIth some coaxing from Neara, Orson allowed the other two beastmen into their reading lessons, although Benedict didn't show up for lessons more than half the time.

"Close: S-T-A-T-I-C. You got the letters right, but you added a few." She smiled encouragingly at him. Maybe she should get more mates? Shay rushed into hers, but it's not like she'd ever been kidnapped... except the time Calvin almost took her, and the time the Rabbits took her..how many times had they been made off with? How many mates would she have to have before they finally stopped?

Alone, she was a prize to be claimed, with a few mates, she needed more. Even with a super powerful mate like Orson, they were still coming after her. It seemed like the more she mated, the more she needed to keep safe. She bit her tongue trying to soften chewy tuber Orson brought back from his daily excursions, not in some small part because she'd remembered Aetius and the last time she'd seen him...

"And we need all the beastmen?"

Neara nodded. "And all the furs. If they all shuffle around, it should attract..."

"A lot of Eagles wondering what the hell we're doing."

"Since when do my ideas not work out?" Neara faced Orson and scowled darkly.

"There's a first time for everything."

"And there's such a thing as recognizing a pattern, stone-head."

A small smile, meant only for her, parted his lips.

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Using Ethel's Eagle mate, (who again apologized for being slow to pick her up) they picked a day when most of the clouds would be over the City. Beastmen rolled out every fur they had, to the disdain of their mates, watching and fuming. A large tree in the middle served as a ladder to help stabilize the growing line of beastmen clinging to each other. Overhead, Eagle beastmen circled, waiting their chance to connect the two lines with the heavens.

Winston stood near the tree in an authoritative position; Ape King chose not to come, telling his Clan they could make their own choice, but highly advising against angering the gods... whatever that meant. Neara didn't see any religious ceremonies or oaths (besides Orson's) or shrines or anything to suggest they took the gods seriously. Beastmen stood in small concentric circles around the tree, the females standing outside the circle of furs looking suspicious. He raised his hand and chopped it down, "Beastmen, now!"

The air hummed as beastmen shuffled as fast as they could around the tree, dragging their feet as they marched. Orson, Benedict, and Tony raced each other as fast as their rings would let them, occasionally glaring daggers at each other. Soon the beastmen became blurs of colors, streaks of testosterone until Winston roared. All of the men stopped and grabbed hands, clustering around the base of the tree. Winston reached for a Leopard beastman hanging from the tree and above, Eagles dove for the dry branches. When they all connected, an enormous crash seemed to break the sky, a deluge of rain falling in huge sheets to the ground below.

Everyone stood in shock as the waves of water let up to a pleasant downpour, sun-warmed spots quickly melting into thirsty soil. Even Benedict seemed to perk up as the smell of rain wafted across the City.

Soon, solemnity forgotten, beastmen began playing and splashing in the fields around them, joining their mates in games of tag and... basically tag. Neara forgot they didn't know much else and rugby had been forbidden. She'd have to change that. Eventually.

Orson smiled at her from under the tree, hands held above his head to protect his fluff. His jagged smile made her feel warm inside, like he was holding her. She could feel his thin fingers inching their way across her hipbones and...

"Agatha!" Tony dove on top of her, his eyes downturned with worry. "Your spots!"

...shit. She'd forgotten about the makeup.

He scooped her up, a process she was quickly getting annoyed with, and ran to Tiger Castle.

"How did you know that would work?"

"Huh?" She'd been thinking about Orson.

"Making the beastmen tingly... how did you know?"

"Um, I thought about how lightning strikes the ground in a rainstorm and how maybe if we used lightning to strike upwards, we'd get some rain." They hadn't talked about molecules yet, if they ever got that far, so she didn't think he'd understand about shaking the droplets until they collided and combined to make bigger drops that fell.

"And who taught you to make lightning?"

"We just need to make sure everyone thinks this is Winston's idea... if we're going to get rid of Ape King, we need to make sure the City sees him as their new leader."

"The City respects strong beastmen."

"Is Winston stronger than Ape King?" She paused to pull more of her hair over her face. Just because she didn't think anyone was watching didn't mean people wouldn't notice Agatha transforming into Neara with a single swipe.

"From most beastmen's point of view, Winston has more stripes, so he's stronger. He has good ideas, so that helps, but Ape Clan is revered because they know how to think." He shifted her weight to one arm and tapped his head. "Before you came back, Ape King tried to summon rain, but only brought a few clouds. This might change the favors though, since Winston succeeded in bringing rain... and he made me feel like I helped too."

Neara thought for a few minutes. If she managed to create pottery, and she still had to figure out the glaze, pots would be easier to carry, making it so beastmen could have time for other crafts or thinking for themselves. Who knows how technology might take off if these super powerful creatures had free time to think?

Safely inside the Castle, she tapped his arm to set her down. All the beastmen were outside, celebrating in the rain. She didn't have to worry about someone seeing her. Her legs shook slightly as she walked up. "Tony?"

He smiled down at her, his tiny ears looking more proportional now that his damp hair clung to his head. "Yes?"

"Do you remember..." Just ask, you idiot! Better yet, pin him against the stairs and give me fuzzy bear cubs! "... when we kissed?"

A light pink splayed across his features and he held a hand to his mouth. If this were an anime, there'd be rose petals blowing in a breeze that didn't touch his hair, his eyes seemed to go dewy, the eyelashes thick on his cheeks. "I haven't been able to stop thinking about it." He straightened and scratched his shoulder. "But if you want me to forget, I will." Before she could stop him, he slapped the side of his head roughly, going cross-eyed in the process.

"No! I just, I wondered if... ugh, of course you do, I just wanted to know..."

Tony finished shaking his head. "You know everything already; what do you need to know? Do you want soup? Are you hungry?" His eyes widened. "You got wet and I didn't even think about getting you a fur! I should bundle you up." He reached for her again and she placed her hands on his firm, warm, strong forearms. His hands paused, the heat from his wide hands radiating and sending goosebumps around her waist.

"I want to do it again." If she hadn't paused between every word, it might have sounded badass and feminist and... shoot, did he even know what 'it' was? She mentioned kissing earlier, but he'd said other things, then almost touched her, so did he think she was trying to tell him to back off and she'd smack him again? Also badass and feminist but not quite the vibe she was going for...

Then he was kissing her and cold stone contrasted with the hot body pressing hers against what she assumed was a wall, but might have been the floor. He smelled like rain and sweat, clean but dirty, like maybe he'd washed his hair but not the rest of him. She felt the tip of his canines on the corners of her mouth/lips, then his warm arms separated her from the wall, lifted her up until she was surrounded by his heat.

His lips softened and pulled back, his eyes just above her head, lazy and unfocused. She smiled shyly at him, incredibly aware of his...emotions. Thoughts threatened to drift across her consciousness, quickly shooed away by the dangerous cloud of pleasure.

"I wanted to make sure she was safe." The deep voice rumbled from the wrong direction.

"Don't worry, Winston, she's safe. I have her." Tony smiled again and Neara spun in his arms, all positive emotions turning to stone at his empty gaze.

"I see." Winston nodded once. He looked at her, no malice or jealousy in his eyes. A tendril of disappointment snaked its way up her throat. Why didn't he care? "The plate is in your room." He turned and walked away, even his tail swung nonchalantly.

Tony squeezed her slightly. "Was that a good kiss?"

"Yeah..." she felt breathless, and not entirely because of the Bear.