"Challenges"
A story by Andre Cotton, featuring characters copyrighted to Earl Bacon, 
Andre Cotton, and Cloudchaser Shaconage

Please read the prequil, "Home Front," Featuring Cassie, Foxonian (Cassie's husband) and Cindy (Cassie's bass player) at
http://www.cassietherockvixen.furtopia.org/new_paths_taken.txt
Please read the sequil, "The Golden Chord," featuring Featuring Cassie, Cassie's Band and Yang Li at
http://www.cassietherockvixen.furtopia.org/the_golden_chord.txt

(The lyrics Cassie and Laretta sing are from the song "Dust in the Wind" by 
Kansas.)

"A woman is like a tea bag - you never know how strong she is until she gets 
in hot water."
-- Eleanor Roosevelt, United States First Lady, diplomat and reformer

For the life of her, Cassie could not recall how she found herself on the 
darkened stage.  She had been through this so many times before, it ought to 
have been second nature to her to find herself here.  Regardless, she 
thought to herself, this was no time to let her anxieties get the better of 
her.  Show time was soon, and she was going to give the performance nothing 
short of her best.

She recoiled as the harsh glare of the spotlight fell upon her.  Regaining 
her senses after a moment, she realized in shock just how "incorrect" things 
were.  Missing were her trademark guitar and elegant blue performance dress. 
In what seemed a cruel, tasteless mockery, she found herself in a garish, 
multi-colored suit and matching wig that would have ideally suited a circus 
clown.  Cassie's initial shock subsided into a creeping sense of dread.

"Ladies and Gentlemen!" a disembodied voice, one that sounded eerily like 
Ozzy Osbourne's, thundered from the pitch black recesses, with an air of 
haughty, mocking condescension, "Prepare to be entertained by Miss 
Cassandra!  She lives for only one purpose - your amusement!"

Cassie could now feel her pulse quickening and her fur start to stand on 
end.  The same mocking voice boomed, "Let the show begin!!!", and in a 
moment of pure shock, an invisible force ripped off the front of her suit, 
fully exposing her bare breasts.  Cassie could only react in sheer horror as 
she saw her breasts absurdly adorned with flashing lights, screeching 
whistles, and rapidly whirling tassels on each of her nipples.

Her helpless horror only escalated as she realized that an enormous crowd 
sat before her, roaring with cruel laughter.  Tears welled in her eyes as 
she saw all the cackling faces - fellow musicians, media moguls, music label 
agents, and many, many young humans and furries who would otherwise be 
admiring her.  Cassie's feeling of terror escalated to a climax as she 
recognized all the faces in the front most rows - her late mentor Rose, her 
former band mates from Furrosity, her loyal crew of roadies, her loving 
parents, and even her beloved mate Foxonian - all pointing and laughing with 
cruel, malicious glee.

Besieged from all sides with the gales of terrible laughter, she desperately 
sought escape, blinking through all her tears.  All she managed to do was to 
stumble and fall off the stage, accompanied by more roars of laughter, which 
now bordered on hysteria.

She attempted to right herself - her inner terror now becoming an ill, numb 
feeling - only to find herself scrabbling around in a muddy pit.  She forced 
herself up on her hands and knees, looking up desperately though her 
blood-shot, tear-soaked eyes.  She recognized the faces of the young furry 
ladies also standing in the mud before her, and she felt a brief glimmer of 
hope.  They were not laughing along with the crowd.

Any hope Cassie mustered utterly vanished when she realized that her five 
companions were glaring at her with fury and scorn.  "You stupid bitch!!!"  
the snow leopardess snarled as she hurled a large handful of mud at the 
sullied vixen, striking her squarely in her garishly decorated chest, 
"You're nothing but the world's worst bad luck charm, dragging us down here 
with you!"

The young wolfess sneered and also flung a glob of mud at the vixen, hitting 
her directly in the eye.  "Yeah!  Who'd want to be caught dead with a 
has-been loser like you?"  she laughed bitterly with a light growl.  Cassie 
winced as she attempted to flush out the terrible burning sensation in her 
eye, only to find her companions encircling her with horrid taunts and 
jeers.

Cassie could no longer will herself to put up any kind of resistance.  She 
was now entirely dead inside, staring up blankly at her former 
friends-turned-tormentors, the insanely laughing crowd, and the voice that 
also boomed with laughter from overhead that became deeper and more demonic 
with each bellowing laugh.  The voices all echoed louder and louder with 
each horrific moment as the whole scene crashed down upon her, swallowing 
her up in blackness.

Just like that, the dream ended, though not without Cassie sitting bolt 
upright screaming at the top of her lungs, with her eyes frozen open wide in 
terror and her body fur drenched in cold sweat.  She only became gradually 
aware that she was in the darkened bedroom of the mountain lodge home that 
belonged to her and her husband.  Still, the feeling of terror remained, 
enveloping her in coldness and making each breath she took a pained, 
desperate pant.

She simply could not shake the feeling of total numbness...at least until 
the feeling of two large arms embraced her, bringing warmth back to her 
body.  Her frenetic heart beats and breathing gradually slowed as her loving 
mate gently stroked her damp fur and whispered into her ear, "It's 
okay...it's all right now...you're awake...you were only dreaming..."

Cassie simply collapsed into her husband's arms and sobbed softly.  "Oh dear 
God," she moaned, "It happened again...it was so...so terrible!"  Foxonian 
simply cradled his vixen wife's head in his arms and brushed away her bitter 
tears, "The same dream again?"

Cassie sniffed and swallowed, gasping for the breath to continue, "Y-yes!  I 
could see...Rose...Mom...Dad...all my old colleagues," she slowly turned to 
face Foxonian, revealing to him her sorrowful, blood-shot blue eyes, 
"And...even you!  I'd just become an awful joke to you all!  An-and the 
girls, they just hated me so much!  I let them all down!"

Cassie could no longer compose herself and broke into another round of sobs, 
while Foxonian simply held her trembling body tightly in his arms.  Over a 
month had passed since Cassie's disastrous "wardrobe malfunction" during her 
band's live performance at the "Live 8" charity concert.  Since then, damage 
control had left the Rock Vixen, her husband, her current band mates, and 
their representatives exhausted from effort, henceforth stalling progress on 
their upcoming album.

The news was not entirely bad, though.  Encouraging signs indicated the 
event's organizers were seriously reconsidering litigation against the band. 
This decision may have been influenced by well-publicized cash donations 
for the Southeast Asian tsunami relief efforts, along with Cassie profusely 
apologizing for the incident in public, solemnly insisting that she meant no 
disrespect whatsoever.  It was also apparent that Philadelphia officials 
lacked solid grounding for the charges they brought against Cassie.  Still, 
the incident left its impact on Cassie and the band, and would publicly 
haunt them for a long time.

"There now," Foxonian said calmly, gently rocking Cassie back and forth in 
his arms, doing his best to calm her down.  "As far as I and the girls are 
concerned, you haven't let any of us down!  You also know that I talked 
everything through with your parents.  They know that what happened was an 
accident and that you truly regret it."

Cassie sniffed and kept her head resting on Foxonian's shoulder, "Yeah, but 
they were still pretty freaked out about it at the time...", as she 
regretfully recalled that her parents were proudly watching her televised 
performance, only to be shocked by her sudden exposure and her thorough 
obliviousness.  She gritted her teeth, without moving her head, and croaked 
out, "Honey?"

"Yes, dear?"  Foxonian replied, rubbing his cheek against hers.  Cassie 
finally turned her head and fixed her eyes with her husband's, giving him 
the same blood-shot, grief-stricken gaze.  "Wh-what's gonna become of me?  
My whole career, everything I worked so hard for...is it all just downhill 
from here?"

Foxonian kept his arms tightly around his wife and thought for a moment 
before replying.  "You're the only one who can completely answer that 
question," he said, gently touching a fingertip to the end of Cassie's black 
nose.  "You know that the girls, plus Slim and the other roadies, are behind 
you 100 percent."

Cassie simply nodded and rested her head on Foxonian's chest, having calmed 
down from her sobbing and brushing dry the damp fur on her face and muzzle.  
"Thanks for the reassurance, hon," she sighed, "but I really think it's 
gonna be a long time before I'm in top form again."  She shifted around, 
sitting upright on the side of the bed, staring out the window towards the 
moonlit forest outside.  "These damn nightmares aren't helping much either," 
she muttered, "I guess I ought to tell Belinda about it when we see her 
tomorrow."

While Cassie was talking and staring out the window, Foxonian had gotten out 
of the bed and padded over to sit beside his wife.  "Oh yes, you're 
definitely going to tell her.  You can't deny that with her help, you've 
been making a lot of great progress," he said as he put his arm around her 
shoulders.  They would both be eternally grateful to the border collie 
'morph who was also a graduate psychology professor at the University of 
Massachusetts in nearby Amherst.  Foxonian truly wanted to get the best 
available help for Cassie, but dealing with a big-city psychiatrist would 
have likely brought more negative publicity than they needed at the time.  
Belinda, however, was everything they could have hoped for.  In addition to 
keeping Cassie's visits secret, which she described as "a new branch of 
research", she proved to be tremendously compassionate and understanding of 
Cassie's situation.  It turned out that she knew very much about Cassie 
beforehand, since many of her students were big fans of the Rock Vixen!

The therapy sessions, which were really basically afternoons of sharing tea 
and friendly chatter, did help Cassie a great deal.  She felt completely 
reassured about maintaining her marriage with Foxonian and the close bonds 
of friendship with her band mates.  As for repairing the damage to her 
career and reputation, Belinda advised her to take things one step at a time 
and to never lose perspective.  Cassie did have to admit that things could 
have been going a lot worse for her.  "She's just been such a saint," Cassie 
continued with a grin, "though someone rather close to me has also been of 
great help!"

Foxonian smiled and hugged Cassie tightly, "He sounds light a real stand-up 
guy!"  Cassie giggled lightly and leaned back into her husband's hug.  "Hon? 
There's just one other thing I really need to set straight with you," she 
said calmly, running her hand down Foxonian's bare chest.  "What is it?"  
Foxonian asked, holding her gently, anticipating what she was about to say.  
Cassie took deep breath and sighed, "You know the day...it happened, and how 
I flipped out, screaming over the phone that I wanted to die?  I..."  She 
swallowed with great effort to keep her voice from cracking, "You know I 
really didn't mean it, don't you?  I just couldn't think straight...I-I felt 
so scared and helpless...God, I just didn't know what to do!"  She wouldn't 
say another word on the matter, too emotionally exhausted to say anything 
more.

Foxonian held her still, and turned her so that they faced one another.  He 
kissed her passionately on the lips, a gesture that she eagerly accepted and 
returned.  "Yes, hon, you know I understand perfectly.  Honestly, I was 
scared for you, right up until I finally made it to the hotel, but once I 
held you in my arms again, it made me realize how much I truly do love you." 
He sighed and stroked her long black hair, "No matter what we have to 
face, even if it means going to Hell and back, I'll never abandon you.  That 
I promise you, Cassie."  Cassie looked back up at her husband and smiled, 
"Then I promise you the same.  Thank God I have you!"

Neither of them said a word as they sat together in their warm embrace, 
needing no words to tell how strong their love was.  Eventually, Cassie 
dozed off again into a peaceful slumber.  Foxonian returned to his side in 
the bed, and before he drifted back off to sleep, he gently kissed his 
sleeping wife on the cheek.  "Good night, my love," he whispered, "and 
pleasant dreams."

**********

The following day was fairly pleasant for a summer in the New England 
countryside.  The sun shone brightly and not too hot, though the atmosphere 
still had the air of cloying humidity.

Cassie had spent another pleasant meeting with Belinda, and when she and 
Foxonian returned to their lodge, she felt she was in just the right mood to 
relax by practicing on her acoustic guitar on the outside porch.  She really 
couldn't focus on trying to come up with any new songs, but strumming some 
old tunes by Bob Dylan and Simon &Garfunkel did a lot to brighten her mood. 
Dressed casually in a T-shirt, shorts and flip-flops, she hummed gently to 
herself as a breeze wafted through the tree branches overhead.

She paused momentarily to adjust the strings on her guitar when she suddenly 
felt two hands grips each of her shoulders from behind.  Momentarily 
startled, she broke out into a warm grin as she realized it could only be 
her husband.  "Beautiful day, isn't it?" he asked, gently massaging Cassie's 
shoulders.  Cassie simply smiled and turned her head upwards to kiss 
Foxonian on the lips, "A big improvement over last night, I can tell you 
that!"

As Foxonian knelt down next to his wife, they made a passing glance over to 
where a group of contractors were in the finishing stages of constructing a 
private recording studio on their property.  Considering what they had just 
been through, Cassie and the band would be glad to have some private space 
to do their future recording sessions.  Furthermore, Cassie was anxious to 
get everyone organized for starting recording of their next album once the 
project was complete.

As if he could read Cassie's mind, Foxonian told his wife, "Remember, hon, 
don't put too much pressure on yourself.  You don't need it!"  Cassie 
nodded, "I know, but I really feel that getting back to work is what we all 
need to do.  It will draw attention away from that fiasco and get everyone 
to see that we really are serious about our music."  Foxonian just smiled 
and hugged Cassie gently from behind, "If that's what you want.  I'll be 
back inside, organizing all the construction paperwork and contracts.  You 
just keep on relaxing and enjoying yourself!"  Cassie smiled and nodded, 
turning her attention back to her guitar as Foxonian re-entered their home.  
She sighed and motioned her fingers placidly over the strings, starting into 
another tune she enjoyed and knew very well.  As the music gently lilted 
from her instrument, her eyes slowly shut as she gently started singing to 
herself.

"I close my eyes,
only for a moment
and the moment's gone.
All my dreams,
pass before my eyes
a curiosity.
Dust in the wind,
all we are is dust in the wind..."

Cassie smiled as she sang, her body and tail gently moving back in forth in 
time to the music.  Her eyes still closed, she was so caught up in the 
joyous melody and rhythm that at first she wasn't fully aware of another 
voice and guitar joining her in unison.

"Same old song,
just a drop of water
in the endless sea..."

Both voices and guitars wove together beautifully into the gentle melody.  
Cassie realized this now, opening her eyes in a mix of mild surprise and 
curiosity, wondering who was there with her, though she neither stopped 
playing nor singing.

"All we do,
crumbles to the ground
though we refuse to see..."

The second voice, now clearly familiar to Cassie, grew louder and clearer as 
a young wolfess, with black shoulder length hair and dressed casually in a 
short sleeved purple blouse, black shorts, and black Teva-style sandals 
approached the lodge from the woods.  In her hands, the wolfess played an 
acoustic guitar much like Cassie's, except hers was painted black and she 
did the strumming with her left hand.  Cassie smiled in friendly 
recognition, though the wolfess just smiled and nodded, politely gesturing 
that they finish their song.

"Dust in the wind,
all we are is dust in the wind!"

Foxonian, who had heard the duet from inside the lodge, came back outside to 
find the two young furry ladies had set their guitars down and were laughing 
in a friendly embrace.  "Why, Laretta!" Foxonian exclaimed, "What a 
wonderful surprise!"  The wolfess smiled and shared a hug with the human 
male as well, "Well, I was in the neighborhood visiting, and I just wanted 
to check in on you two, to see how you were holding up!"

Cassie smiled back to her lupine friend and band mate, "That's just 
wonderful of you, Laretta.  We're both hanging in there!"  Foxonian asked 
back, "So how are things with you, Laretta?"  Laretta nodded as she stepped 
into the lodge, setting her guitar and day-travel bag down by the door, "Oh, 
just great, thanks!  I just paid a visit to some of my relatives up in 
Canada.  It was a great reunion, so I think this down time was sort of a 
good thing for me!"

Cassie grinned back as she entered the kitchen to retrieve some refreshments 
for their guest.  "Why don't you stay for a bit, Laretta, make yourself 
comfortable, and we'll get you up to speed on when we start recording 
again?"  Laretta smiled and nodded, "Okay, but I can't stay too long!  I'm 
going to be meeting Ben in New York later today.  It's going to be another 
short date between us, what with his busy schedule."

As Laretta finished speaking, Cassie set down a tray of small sandwich rolls 
that she and Foxonian brought back from Amherst and looked at Laretta 
fondly.  "Laretta," she started, "I want you to know that I'm grateful for 
all that you've done for me.  Your friendship and support has done so much 
to get me through this crisis."

Laretta looked back at Cassie, cheerful and friendly as ever, "Thanks, 
Cassie!"  She gave an earnest look up towards Cassie's face as she also 
gently held her hands, "I want you to know that you can always count on me 
whenever you need it!  Cassie, I mean it when I say that I'd never be where 
I am today if it hadn't been for you!  You've done so much for me in the 
past, I'll do whatever I can to pay you back!"  To this, Cassie smiled 
broadly and gave her lupine friend a warm hug, accentuated by a very light 
rumbling sound that resembled the contented 'murr' sound of the vulpine 
species.

Following the friendly exchange, Foxonian smiled and asked, "Laretta, why 
don't you just relax and make yourself at home for now?  I'll go finish 
getting our construction business squared away."  Cassie nodded, "I'm going 
to give a call to my folks, and see how they're doing."  Laretta nodded 
politely, took a turkey and swiss sandwich, and sat down on the couch in 
front of the couples' custom-made flat panel TV.  Just out of curiosity, she 
eyed the TV's remote control, and decided she could handle a little channel 
surfing.

In the days after the catastrophic performance, every member of the band and 
their closest acquaintances had completely shunned watching television and 
the news.  Not a night went by when every self-serving late night talk show 
host and two-bit stand-up comedian would make the crassest jokes about 
Cassie's misfortune.  It wasn't any better on the news and talk shows, where 
it seemed every pundit and self-proclaimed "morality and virtues" expert 
would denounce Cassie and her band mates as "the Devil's harlots" and 
"cheerleaders for moral and cultural decay".  Everyone agreed that they did 
not need any more caustic reminders of their unfortunate situation.

However, Laretta thought, by now they must have moved on to something else.  
After a couple more high profile celebrity divorces and another pro 
athlete's drunk driving arrest, surely they'll no longer have to see 
Cassie's name in the headlines?  That seemed to be the case, as Laretta 
flipped through a few channels showing reruns of B-rate movies and soap 
operas, all safe enough, but none at all interesting.  Just then, she 
stopped switching channels as she arrived at a cable entertainment news 
network.

"...so hopefully, this mega-blockbuster will break Hollywood's summer losing 
streak!  Now, let's check in with our rockin' rhino, "Wild" Willie Maddox, 
where he's about to interview the hottest new act in anthro heavy metal, a 
feisty group of young furry ladies known as 'Furversity'!"

Laretta was fully at attention now, sitting upright and her ears jutting 
forward, just as Foxonian came back into the room.  "Hey, Laretta, what's 
on?" he asked, noticing just how excited Laretta was.  The wolfess quickly 
swallowed a bite of her sandwich in order to reply, "You might want to see 
this, Foxonian.  They're talking about a new furry heavy metal act.  It 
would be worth finding out what they're like and how good they are.  Do you 
think we should tell Cassie, too?"

Foxonian shook his head, "She's still on the phone with her folks, so she 
shouldn't be disturbed.  You're right, though.  It's good to stay in the 
know of the new acts coming into our field."  He took a seat on the couch 
next to Laretta, "This has certainly caught my attention!"

They both focused their attention on the TV, where a spazzed-out looking 
rhinoceros decked out in black leather was standing in a studio with a 
quartet of young furry ladies, who certainly looked like a troupe of rock 
musicians.  "Thanks, Phil!"  the rhino replied, "Let me say that these 
totally bodacious furry babes are the hottest act on the charts today!  
Their debut album is just burning up the charts, leaving all the competition 
in the dust.  I'm just so psyched to be with these hot and wild ladies of 
'Furversity' - Sasha Reinhardt, the lead singer vixen and guitarist; Wendy 
Larson, the hyena bassist with a major league attitude; Sherri Potter, the 
sexy ferret from Manchester, England who plays rhythm guitar and keyboards; 
and Maryanne O'Brien, the totally goth-ed out badger who nails it on the 
drums!"

The camera panned closer on the group of furry ladies who were seated 
casually on the couch.  The blond haired vixen in a tight black leather 
outfit - earlier identified as Sasha, the band's leader - flashed a 
pointy-fanged grin and replied, "Heh, thanks, you're just too kind!  The 
babes and me, we just wanna rock this whole mundane planet.  As for us 
kicking the competition's butts, well, can we help it if fans out there know 
real talent when they hear it?"  She and her band mates chuckled and 
exchanged high-fives, while Laretta and Foxonian glanced at each other 
uneasily, uncertain of what to make of this new act.

"Say, speaking of competition," the rhino Willie continued, 
"I...heh-heh...guess I don't need to elaborate on what happened to a 
certain, more famous rock vixen some time ago!  Do you ladies think you can 
show her up and put some class back into this scene?"  Laretta and 
Foxonian's expressions now became pained and anxious, knowing what had to 
come next.  Apparently, there was still one insensitive lout who couldn't 
just let the whole thing go.  Furthermore, the giggling, guffawing, and 
derisive snorting and head shaking from the rival band showed exactly how 
much worse it was going to get.

"Oh, come on!" replied Sasha with a yelping laugh, "I mean, what else can be 
said about trashy...", she covered her muzzle in mock embarrassment and 
giggled, "Whoopsie, I mean, Cassie the 'Rack' Vixen!  It's just so sad and 
pathetic when an old lady gets so rusty, that she has to resort to cheap, 
sleazy striptease just to keep her fans' attention!"  The large, 
grungy-looking hyena femme next to her - the bassist Wendy - broke out into 
loud, raucous laughter, adding, "Hah!  Good one, Sash!  Y'know, that was a 
pretty weak stripper act, says I!  She oughta have thrown in whipped cream, 
or somethin' like that.  All those starving African brats oughta demand a 
refund!"

As Foxonian watched on in increasing dread, he turned and noticed something 
highly astonishing about Laretta.  She was sitting bolt upright, her eyes 
fixed ferociously on the screen.  Her breathing had become fast and heavy, 
and her lips tightened and pulled back to show all her sharp teeth in a 
vicious snarl.  Her shoulder blades were clearly visible through the back of 
her blouse, a sure sign of her raised hackles, and her tail was flared out, 
twitching erratically side to side.  Her expression was accentuated by deep, 
fearsome rumbling growling.  Foxonian was amazed - he had never seen Laretta 
get very angry about anything ever before, but seeing her like this made him 
very relieved that he was not the target of her wrath.

Meanwhile, the other rival band members were quite eager to speak up.  A 
tall, lanky and very scantily clad ferret femme - Sherri, the rhythm 
guitarist and keyboardist - took a drag off her cigarette and drawled in a 
pronounced British accent, "If ye ask me, Ah think 'er man just ain't 
satisfyin' 'er.  Why else would she flash 'er 'eadlights like that, eh wot?" 
She gave a sly grin and wink towards the camera, "...but now, ef she needs 
some'ne to take 'im off 'er 'ands, Ah know some'n 'oo's available!"  At this 
point, Foxonian was now feeling his body temperature rise to its limit, 
clenching his teeth and whispering furiously, "No...that's a damn lie, you 
bitch!"

The final band member, a short and stout badger femme with a lot of facial 
piercings and decked out in black 'goth' clothes similar to Rachel's, simply 
snorted and rolled her eyes.  "I just think they're all sluts!" replied 
Maryanne, the band's drummer, with a sneer.  "They all might as well just 
pack it in and become a Las Vegas whorehouse act!"  In a rather thoughtless 
and immature gesture, the rhino laughed out loud, commenting, "Whoa!  Now 
that's what I call fragging the competition!  I'm not surprised either, 
since you ladies are poised to shoot straight for the top!  Now, we'll get 
to hear some of the hottest songs from your new album tonight at your 
concert at the Metro Stadium, right?"

Sasha chuckled and nodded, "Yup, and believe me, the only thing *we'll* be 
ripping off are the ticket scalpers!"  The ladies laughed again, with Wendy 
mockingly calling out "BOOOOO-BIEEEEES!!!"  Willie still played along with 
the act, "Heh-heh, that's pretty funny, ladies!  We even have some 
selections from your new CD right here, which is interestingly enough 
titled..."

Before the show could go on any longer, the TV screen suddenly went black as 
Laretta, who was clutching the remote control very tightly now, shut the 
power off, unable to stand another minute of the travesty.  "ARRGH!!!" she 
growl-shouted, throwing the remote against the wall, smashing it to pieces, 
"Those horrible BITCHES!!!  I swear...if I ever get my hands on any one of 
them!!!"  Foxonian himself was too preoccupied with forcing himself to calm 
down to react to anything Laretta said or did, while Laretta just clutched 
her head in her hands, shaking it and growling.

"Hey, you two," called a voice from the top of the staircase, "What's going 
on down here?"  Laretta and Foxonian both turned in surprise to see Cassie 
coming down the stairs, having finished her phone conversation.  They were 
both momentarily flustered as Cassie also noticed the wreckage of the remote 
control.  "And...what happened here???" she asked, looking over the broken 
pieces curiously with her ears twitching side to side.

Laretta swallowed hard, forcing herself to regain her composure, as she 
nervously replied, "Uh...ah...Cassie, we were just doing a little, you know, 
channel surfing, but there wasn't anything really good on...and then I-I 
could swear I saw a huge bug on the wall, and I freaked out and threw the 
only thing I had in my hands...th-the remote..."  She looked at Cassie quite 
nervously, fidgeting with her hair a little, "I'm so sorry, I guess I just 
didn't know my own strength!"

Cassie again looked somewhat suspiciously between the shattered remote and 
her lupine friend, but just shrugged and replied, "Hmm, okay, if you say so. 
Don't worry about it, it's no big loss, but please try to be more careful 
next time!"  At this point, her attention became fixed on her human mate, 
noticing his state of agitation.  "Hon, are you okay?  You're sweating like 
crazy!"  Foxonian took a couple deep breaths and wiped off his damp face 
with a tissue, "Um...yeah, it's nothing.  It must be this darned humidity!  
I never could get used to it."

Cassie grinned slightly, "Well, at least you don't have body fur to deal 
with on top of that!  I just got off the phone with Mom and Dad.  They've 
really been taking things great.  I'm actually amazed that they're acting 
like nothing ever happened at all!"  Laretta and Foxonian had both calmed 
down by now, enjoying hearing Cassie talk happily.  "Well, I might as well 
clean up this mess I made," Laretta replied sheepishly.  Cassie nodded, 
"Again, it's no big problem, Laretta.  As for me, I'm just going downstairs 
to look for an extra pair of Dad's shades.  He thinks he might have lost 
them the last time he was here!"

Foxonian chuckled a little, "Sparky never struck me as the forgetful type!"  
Cassie gave a chiding look to her husband, "Well, he is getting up in his 
years, you know.  You won't think it's so funny when you start 'losing' 
stuff!", she called out as she headed down the stairs.  "Touche!"  Foxonian 
called back lightheartedly.  Meanwhile, Laretta had preoccupied herself with 
picking up the pieces of the broken remote, and Foxonian went up close to 
'help' her, once he was certain that Cassie was out of earshot.

Laretta cringed as she fumbled around with the fragments.  "Foxonian, I-I'm 
so sorry!"  she said softly, looking very remorseful, "I just can't believe 
what got into me!"  Foxonian nodded sympathetically, placing his hand on 
Laretta's shoulder, "There's no need to apologize, Laretta.  It's safe to 
say that neither of us saw that coming!"  Laretta nodded and sighed, "Well, 
at least Cassie wasn't here to see it!"  She cocked her head with a slightly 
nervous look.  "Foxonian?"  she asked hesitantly, "Do you think that, if 
Cassie heard all those horrible things that awful band said, she would 
have..."  She glanced off to the side anxiously, before continuing in a 
whisper, "...lost it again?"

Foxonian paused and looked thoughtful for a moment before replying, 
"Laretta, I honestly don't know.  I know she's been making great progress 
with her therapist, and lately all she's been doing is relaxing and enjoying 
herself, and that's worked wonders for her mood.  Still, though, everything 
is very fresh in her mind, and I just don't know what it could take to set 
her off again."  He sighed and shook his head, "I think it's for the best 
that neither of us mention this to her."

Laretta nodded silently in comprehension, when suddenly their attention was 
diverted by knocking at the door.  "Who could that be?"  Laretta wondered 
aloud.  Foxonian shrugged and went with Laretta to the door to meet their 
visitor.  Upon opening the door, they were surprised but greatly relieved to 
find two more familiar faces.  "Rachel!  Vixina!  It's great to see you two 
again!"  Foxonian said happily, greeting the band's keyboard and fiddle 
players.  Laretta also happily hugged the deer femme, dressed as usual in 
her black gothic dress, and the bespectacled red fox vixen, also dressed 
casually in a tied button-down shirt and very short denim cut-offs.  The 
friendly exchange remarkably eased the tension.

"Well, we were passing on through the neighborhood," Rachel remarked as the 
duo entered the foyer, "and we knew we couldn't pass up the chance to check 
in on Cassie!"  As she said this, Cassie herself came back upstairs to see 
what was happening, and she was equally happy to see her companions.  "Cass, 
yew look jes' great!"  Vixina exclaimed as she shared a hug with her vulpine 
friend and gave her an admiring look.  Cassie smiled, "Thank you both so 
much!  It just makes me so happy, knowing that you still care enough to stop 
by and visit!"

As Rachel approached Cassie for a one-on-one conversation, to get caught up 
on all that was happening, Vixina quietly approached Foxonian and Laretta 
off to the side.  "Rach' 'n Ah wanna talk to yew both prah-vetly!"  she 
whispered to them out of the corner of her mouth, giving a careful glance to 
Cassie.  Foxonian and Laretta both nodded slightly, signaling their 
comprehension without letting Cassie on.

As Cassie laughed at something Rachel told her, Foxonian politely cut in.  
"Say, hon, how about I show them a view of where the recording studio will 
be when it's finished?"  Cassie nodded, "Sure, that's fine by me.  I still 
haven't found Dad's shades yet, so you know where I'll be!"  As Rachel 
joined the others, who were motioning her towards a back room, they 
furtively grouped together once they were certain that Cassie was out of 
eyesight and earshot.

"So, what's going on?"  Foxonian asked calmly, noticing that Rachel and 
Vixina now looked much more anxious than before.  "Sumthin' awful, that's 
whut!"  Vixina replied, fidgeting with her glasses, "Thar's some new-fangled 
furry-femme metal band that's goin' 'round sayin' th' most horrible things 
'bout Cass!"  Laretta and Foxonian shared a knowing glance.  "Would they 
happen to be a quartet named 'Furversity'?"  Laretta asked, feeling quite 
certain that she already knew the answer.

"Huh, that's right," replied Rachel, somewhat surprised, "You've heard of 
them already?  At any rate, yeah, it seems they've devoted their whole time 
to trashing Cassie over her little accident."  She gave a look of pure 
disgust, "You do not want to know what they said about her in a radio 
interview!  I swear, I switched the station to New Age just to shut off that 
garbage!"

Foxonian nodded, "I understand.  Of course, this is why you wanted to talk 
to us privately, away from Cassie."  Vixina nodded back and cringed, "We'd 
jes' hate t' see th' look on Cass's face if she knew whut thos' day-am 
beetches wuz sayin' 'bout her!"  Meanwhile, Rachel retrieved her personal 
MP3 player, custom painted in black and red, from her purse.  "As if that 
weren't bad enough, just wait until you hear this one song of theirs I 
downloaded."  She rolled her eyes as she passed the device to Foxonian and 
Laretta, "Believe me, I'm not proud that I paid money to download this!"

Foxonian and Laretta simply shrugged as they each plugged one earphone into 
one of their ears, and turned on the portable player to find Furversity's 
song, "Dirty Vixen", highlighted.  They both recoiled slightly as they were 
assaulted by very loud, grating speed/thrash metal music.  After hearing the 
fast, grinding guitar solo, they heard Sasha singing in vicious and mocking 
tone of voice:

"Hey, bitch!
You're acting like a fool!
Taking it all off,
and thinking that it's cool!

You're history now,
and you're on nobody's front page,
so put your shirt back on,
and get down off that stage!
'cause you're a DIRTY VIXEN, DIRTY VIXEN, DIRTY VIXEN!!!"

That was all they needed to hear before pulling out the earphones in 
disgust.  There was simply no mistaking to whom that verbal assault was 
directed.  "Don't tell me that people actually *like* that song?!!"  Laretta 
exclaimed in bewilderment, still trying to shake the song's nasty imagery 
out of her mind.  Rachel sighed and nodded, "I hate to tell you this, but 
it, along with several other of Furversity's songs, are among the top 
downloads from the site I visited.  I haven't even mentioned their songs 
called..."

"Hey guys, what's up?"  Before Rachel could continue, Cassie had rejoined 
the group, apparently having found her father's sunglasses.  Rachel gave a 
very slight start as she attempted a reply, "Oh, well...I was just, you 
know, showing them a few synthesizer samples I've been experimenting with 
lately."  Cassie nodded, "May I hear them?"  Rachel fidgeted nervously for a 
minute, coupled with an anxious exchange of glances from the others.  
"Um...uh...Sure, of course, Cass!  I, ah, first just need to..."

Rachel was saved from having to make up an excuse to keep her MP3 player 
away from Cassie when there was another knock at the door.  "Hmm?  Who could 
it be now?"  Cassie asked aloud as she went to answer the door.  Rachel and 
the others gave quiet sighs of relief for the interruption, and only just 
later realized how happy Cassie was to find their new guests.  "Well, what 
do you know!  The gang's all here!"  she called out happily as the others 
found a familiar snow leopardess and white arctic vixen in the foyer.  
Cindy, dressed in her standard black leather biker outfit, laughed and 
hugged Cassie fiercely as she gestured to the group, "Just take one look at 
her, will ya?  Isn't she just the most gorgeous vixen on the face of the 
earth?  I know you're all just green with envy!"

Alex, casually dressed in a light blue tank top, denim thigh-length skirt, 
and sneakers, smiled and nodded in agreement, "Oh yeah, you said it!  You 
just can't touch her!"  Cassie giggled slightly, putting her arm around 
Cindy, "Why do I have the suspicion that you're just trying to butter me up, 
or something like that?"

As the newcomers made their round of greetings, Cindy quickly turned back to 
Cassie and asked, "Hey Cass, do you remember those song ideas and samples we 
cooked up the last time I was here?"  Cassie thought for a moment and 
replied, "Yeah, I think they're down in the music room somewhere.  Why do 
you ask?"

Cindy hesitated slightly before giving a thoughtful reply, "Well, you know, 
wouldn't it be neat if we could let the others here get a look at them, see 
what they think?"  Cassie looked like she was about to rebut, but simply 
shrugged.  "Well, all right, if you insist.  First it's Dad's shades, now 
this!"  she replied lightheartedly as she proceeded back down the stairs.  
As she did this, Cindy responded with a humorous grin, though as soon as 
Cassie was out of sight and earshot again, Cindy quickly turned back to the 
rest of the group with Alex.  This time, their moods were much more agitated 
with clear undertones of anger.

"Damn, I really hate to pull the wool over Cass's eyes," Cindy started 
breathlessly, "but we've got a serious mess on our hands!"  Before she or 
Alex could say another word, Foxonian cut in, "Wait, don't tell us, it's 
about a 'hot, up-and-coming' metal band named Furversity, right?"  Cindy 
hardly registered any surprise as she continued, "Well, I for one wouldn't 
call them a 'band' so much as a bunch of poser skanks!"  The look on her 
feline face was a clear expression of scorn and revulsion.

Alex nodded in agreement, "You sure said it!  Besides being a bunch of 
no-talent losers, they just won't cut Cassie any slack!  Check this out..." 
she took another careful glance back towards the stairs to make certain that 
Cassie wasn't there.  Reassured, she dug into her hand bag, acting as if she 
were digging around in a putrid wastebasket, and retrieved a small object 
she treated like radioactive waste.  She gave a regretful glance to the rest 
of the group, "This is their new, chart-topping CD!"

The others huddled around, taking a closer look at the disc case in Alex's 
agitated hands.  Every one of them stared in shock and disgust.  The case's 
front cover depicted the scene of a darkened back alley, supposedly behind a 
concert hall.  In this dark alley, there lay a vixen in a rather poor, 
distraught condition.  She was down on her knees in an oily puddle and had 
mussed long, black hair, smeared make-up, showing that she had been crying, 
and a torn blue dress that forced her to keep her arms folded tightly in 
front of her naked breasts.  In front of the vixen was a broken electric 
guitar.  Most indicative of all was the album's title at the top.  In bright 
neon letters was the name of Cassie's musical group, but with two extra 
letters wedged in between, such that the title clearly read, "CASSIE'S 
BAN-NE-D".

Foxonian took hold of the album and let out an exasperated sigh, shaking his 
head.  Cindy sneered and spat out, "There's gonna be Hell to pay for this!  
They're not just kicking Cass while she's down, it's like they're spitting 
and dumping trash on her, too!"  She pounded one fist into the palm of her 
other hand, "What I wouldn't give to have a go at those whores!"

An uneasy silence fell over the group.  Rachel was the first to manage a 
reply.  "I know the situation stinks, but what can we do?"  she said, 
shaking her head slowly, "We're in no position to start touring again, and 
we can't even begin recording until the new studio's finished."

"Besides that," Laretta spoke up, "how can we even begin to tell Cassie 
about all this?"  Before anyone could respond, the sound of a throat being 
cleared caught everyone by surprise.  "May I toss in my two cents?"  asked a 
familiar voice in a plain, even tone.

Everyone turned in astonishment to find Cassie standing at the top of the 
stairs, leaning back against the railing with her arms crossed.  She gazed 
over the whole group with an unfathomable expression in her icy blue eyes.

All the others wore expressions of sheer discomfort, while Alex quickly 
pulled the CD out of Foxonian's hands and thrust it back in her bag.  
"Um..."  Cindy started hesitantly, "How...how long have you been standing 
there, Cass?"  Cassie remained still as she replied in the same neutral 
tone, "Not that long, really.  I missed a lot of the details of each of your 
conversations."  She uncrossed her arms and walked slowly towards the group, 
"On the other hand, it takes a lot to put one past me.  I've been in this 
business long enough to know how it works."

Glancing between each of her friends', and her husband's, faces, Cassie 
spoke as if she were solving a mystery, piece by piece.  "I think I've got 
it all figured out," she continued.  "There's a new metal band on the scene, 
all female, all furry-morph.  They're suddenly all the rage, what with 
everyone talking about them and their album shooting straight to the top of 
the charts.  And..."

At this point, Cassie turned away from the group and faced one of the large 
windows that gave a sweeping panoramic view of the mountains and forests 
outside.  She placed both of her hands on the window sill and lowered her 
head slightly, allowing her hair to sweep around both sides of her face.  
With only a slight drop in her voice, she completed her last thought, 
"...and they're mercilessly exploiting my total lapse in judgment from that 
time.  I really don't have to explain to the rest of you what I mean."

For a moment, no one said a thing, though Foxonian approached Cassie from 
behind and gently wrapped his arms around her.  "Everything's gonna be okay, 
hon," he said quietly into her ear, "We'll get through this somehow."  Cindy 
smiled and nodded in agreement as she also approached, "Yeah, Cass, just you 
wait and see!  These wanna-bes will crash and burn big time, and before you 
know it, we'll be back on top!"

Cassie turned and gave a little smile to all her friends, as well as a 
gentle kiss to her husband.  "Of course, you're absolutely right!"  she 
replied as she turned to face the others, who all smiled back.  "It's going 
to take some time, but I know we won't back down.  When the time is right, 
we'll be back in the game, better than ever before!"  She gave a look of 
admiration to all of her friends, "You've all shown me that!"

The other ladies started to look relieved, even as Laretta replied, "Cassie, 
we're sorry we tried to hide this from you.  We're just still so worried 
about you and didn't want to see you hurt!"  Cassie smiled and put her hand 
on Laretta's shoulder, "It's okay, I understand.  I just want you all to 
know that I'll be right there along with the rest of you in the middle of 
the fight!"  The others gave some light cheers and applause, while Cassie 
returned to Foxonian's side.

"Of course, we've got some business to take care of first!"  she said with a 
wink to her husband.  Foxonian grinned and replied, "Naturally.  Once the 
studio's finished, we can worry about how to handle these new rivals."  
Cassie gave Foxonian a hug then approached Alex, "Say, Alex, can I take a 
look at that CD you were just holding?"  Alex gave a slightly startled 
expression before replying hesitantly, "Um, are you sure you want to see it, 
Cassie?"

Cassie nodded and replied earnestly, "Of course I do.  I'd like to know what 
their general impression of me is like."  Alex cautiously reached back into 
her bag and handed the "CASSIE'S BAN-NE-D" CD over to Cassie.  Cassie seemed 
to study the cover for a moment before giving a smirk and a slight chuckle, 
"Please, this vixen barely looks anything like me!  Say, were you planning 
to do anything with it?"

Cindy gave her friend a sly grin, "Oh, I figured we could donate it to the 
local shooting range, so they could have an extra clay pigeon!"  The other 
ladies giggled at Cindy's suggestion, while Cassie smirked and responded, 
"Well, I for one am a little curious about what would happen if it got 
dropped in our wood chipper!"  The others were now all laughing heartily out 
loud.

At this response, Foxonian took hold of the CD.  "Oh, I don't think so," he 
said in a light hearted tone, "We're not wrecking perfectly good machinery 
with a piece of cheap garbage like this!"  As the others laughed girlishly, 
Cassie hugged her husband again and asked, "Well, what do you think we 
should do with it?"  Foxonian smiled and kissed his wife on her muzzle, "Why 
don't we use it to start a romantic fire tonight?"

**********

To be continued...