You didn’t really know what was up with the anthros, but a few of them were gesturing to you from a nearby booth, and you couldn’t really bring yourself to ignore them. You walked nervously up to their table, to see three women sharing a round of drinks; one a pudgy alligator, one a muscular tiger, and one a posh bird. As you grew closer, you realized they were all a solid few feet taller than you, which, combined with their strange animal features, was a little intimidating. “Well, aren’t you just the cutest thing! I could just eat you up,” the alligator woman said, with a smile on her face that showed her countless, huge teeth. “Come sit with us!”
You hesitantly climb up into the booth, feeling small surrounded by the three humongous ladies. With a giggle, the alligator woman wraps an arm around your side, pressing you against her pillowy, chubby side. “I don’t know, Lily,” the tiger narrowed her eyes. “I’m no human expert, but this one looks a bit young to be milling around the casino, much less the bar…”
“I-I’m 21,” you stutter.
“Mhmm, and I’m 70. Seriously, you look like you’re barely out of high school,” she glared, and you averted her feline gaze, staring nervously at the floor.. “Trying to sneak a drink, huh? I have half a mind to turn you over to the bouncer, ‘young man’...” Your heart sinks at the thought. If your parents found out you had snuck in here, you were dead meat.
Seeing your horrified reaction, the bird can barely contained herself, bursting out laughing. “Bah, relax! She’s just messin’ around with ya, kid! The casino’s all about having a good time,” she said, sliding a half-empty pint glass across the table to you. “Here, wanna try a sip?”
“Oh! R-really, I can just…?” You said, a huge smile on your face as you shakily held up the glass. You hesitated, looking up at her for approval, only for the bird to smile and nod. “Uh, hah, okay! I mean, I never…” Eventually, you work up the nerve to bring the glass to your lips and take a sip. You were immediately struck by how bitter it tasted, and how much it seemed to burn going down. “Oh! Bleh…” You reacted, sticking out your tongue in distaste.
“Pfft! Not a Guinness man, I take it?” She giggled at your reaction, sliding the glass back to herself.
With that, the three of them went back to talking about… something. You couldn’t really decipher their conversation. Something about shoes? “So, uh…” You say, trying to sate your curiosity. “... what are you guys?”
“... don’t tell me you don’t know what an anthro is,” the gator blinks.
“I knew it. You snuck in here, didn’t you?” The tiger glared.
Your heart sinks once again. You couldn’t quite tell what was going on, but you could tell you’ve made a mistake. “... um… hypothetically, what would you do if I said ‘yes’?” With that, they all groaned.
“Oh no…” The bird frowned, her tone suddenly seeming very serious.. “Sneaking in here was a very, very bad idea. You have no idea what you’ve signed up for.”
“What do you mean? What did I sign up for?” You ask, your eyes wide.
“Well, uh… how do I put this?” She stroked her chin. “The casino caters to a very special sort of… clientele, and among them, there’s pretty much an open season on human males.”
“‘Open season’?” You asked, your voice becoming more and more frantic. “What? What are they going to do?”
“Anything. Any gal can do whatever she wants to ya. Including gobble ya up,” the gator said, absentmindedly gesturing to her belly. You didn’t comprehend her at first… but then, her statement starts to set in. Animals devour eachother alive all the time in the wild. What’s stopping these anthros from doing the same? They were certainly large and strong enough to devour you with ease. Especially when the entire casino seems catered to such a thing...
“Oh…” You groaned, suddenly feeling strangely dizzy. Your entire body was shaking as your slowly stood up from the booth. “I think I’m going to… get out of here…” You say, weakly, your only thought was escaping the way you came.
“You can’t, pal. You’re locked in here,” the tiger said, putting a hand on your shoulder before you could walk. “Only way out is to talk to Bunnie herself. And she probably won’t be happy to hear you snuck in.” You pushed her hand away by instinct, shivering at the anthro’s touch. From the look on your face, it seemed you were about to have a panic attack any moment now.
“Oh, come on. You’re scaring the poor dear,” the bird frowned, lifting a wing. “Listen, we’ll take care of ya, kid. Just stick with us. We’ll get this allll sorted out.” As you stood there, shivering, she used her other to wing to lift you back into the booth and place you on her huge lap. With that, she hugged you gently against her like a teddy bear, letting you relax against her huge, warm body. “There, there. Everything’s going to be just fine. You just made a little mistake — that’s all. Not the end of the word,” she reassured you, in an almost motherly tone. She seemed convinced everything was going to turn out okay. The gator and the tiger didn’t seem so certain.
Eventually, the cradling of the larger woman has mostly calmed you down. The anthro women went back to talking to eachother about whatever they were talking about — their voices just sort of faded into the background noise at this point. Eventually, they finish their drinks and start standing up from the booth. You’re disappointed when you’re pried from the bird woman’s arms, but you suppose all good things must come to an end. You at least get to hold her ‘hand’ as they walk around the beautiful casino.
“Alright, well, before we get busy, we should get this fella to our hotel room. Make sure nobody snatches him up from under our noses,” the tiger says as they approach the betting room. “Since there are no locks, somebody’s going to have stay there and watch over ‘im. Who’s it gonna be?” You were a little nervous as they decided. You knew that the bird woman wouldn’t do anything inappropriate with you, but as for the tiger and the gator, you couldn’t be so sure. You really didn't want to be alone with them.
Who ends up taking you to the room?