Cadi did well working at Briar's bar, learning the ropes from the badger, and doing her part. It was fun and invigorating, and she got to see people... happy. That was a big change from her old life, where most of what she knew was pain. Here... there was purpose, and there was actual love.

She and Dawn were doing very well together, and their apartment was a place of intense happiness for both of them. Cadi was starting to get a feel for her abilities. They weren't much, but it did make housework a lot easier. They even served well at her work, letting her help people with more than a friendly atmosphere and good drinks at the bar.

Things were going well. Unfortunately, in a story like this, that state of affairs can't last for overly long. Can it?

After a few months, the public announcement system in the Furry district screeched on before a powerful voice spoke from it. “Attention all residents of the Transhuman District. This is your notification that new laws are going into effect in seven days' time. There will be a law-enforcement presence permanently stationed within the district in order to ensure that these new laws are obeyed to the letter."

Understandably, that caused quite an uproar within the district, and a meeting was called by the head of the TOA, using the largest park in the district. She was a wolf by the name of Christine, and she stood on a podium wearing a white suit. Cadi was right there with Dawn by her side, right next to Carla and Robbie.

“Alright, alright! I know everyone is worried. We've never had an outside police presence inside the district, just at the entrances," she started, her hands on the podium as she took a deep breath. “I've had a team going over the new laws. They're not great, but I know that none of you are going to stir up any trouble with them. We're better than that. Better than they think we are."

“They are going to mean that things are going to get tight around here. There are limits on shopping for non-essentials. So, I'm afraid that new fall fashion is going to have to be put on hold," she said, getting a laugh out of the crowd, even if it was a tense laugh. “There's also going to be limits on gatherings. So bars, restaurants, and all of those kinds of things will have to limit their patronage. Operational hours are also going to have to be cut for some places because there's a curfew going into effect. No one and I mean no one is going to be allowed to be outside of their homes after nine o'clock."

This triggered a clamor from the crowd, which Christine brought under control as best she could. “Look. There's no pretty way of saying it, but this district is about to become a police state, and until we can get this fixed, we're just going to have to keep our heads down, okay?"

That drew murmurs from the crowd, but no one really argued. Cadi took a long, deep breath as she closed her eyes. When she let it out, she opened them again and looked at the other three. “This... this is bad."

Carla nodded her head, the rabbit looking particularly grim as she furrowed her brows. “I know that the outside world doesn't care for us, but this... is something else entirely... we're going to have to figure out who's behind this, and get through to them." There was a general sense of agreement among the quartet, and they somberly made their way back home.

A month went by in the... new normal for the Transhuman District. Wretched as it was. Cadi watched as morale dropped within the district within days, the furs walking around with their heads down, doing their best not to draw the attention of the new police force.

That had been far more excessive of a force than anyone could have guessed, and they seemed to have been hand-picked to be the most Fur-hating officers that could be found. There weren't too many incidents, but it was a rare day that went by with at least one act of cruelty. The main thing that kept the furs from fighting back against them was that they were typical alpha male types... picking their fights with only the biggest and toughest of the furs. Very few women, and no children. So that was a small mercy.

With the lockdown in effect, the TOA went into overdrive, doing everything that they could in order to make sure that people had what they needed. As much as it was only non-food items that had been identified in the restrictions, the supply of food coming to the district did suffer, and what did come through was generally pretty basic stuff. The restaurant owners banded together with the TOA and worked hard to make sure that what food came into the district was put to the best use possible.

Cadi in particular took a break from the bar, which had largely been put out of business by the curfew, and instead, spent her days going around the district, using her powers to help out however she could. Anything that was broken, she would fix. Any injuries, she would heal. The medical supplies were short enough, as it was.

At the end of the first month, there was a buzz about a politician coming to visit the district. There was a brief hope that it would be someone sympathetic, but no... it was soon determined that the visitor would be the man who was, in many ways, the architect of their misfortune. For most, this brought a general sense of depression to the citizens. For Cadi, though, this brought an intense sense of resolve.

She was determined to talk to this man in order to convince him that all of this was unnecessary. Very few others felt that this was a good idea, including Dorran, but this was one of those things that Cadi wouldn't be talked out of. Still, in the meanwhile, there was a lot of work for her to do, to keep everyone together.

But, finally, the day came for his visit. The man... just reeked of self-entitlement and hate for furs. That took some of the wind out of Cadi's sails, but she hadn't gotten this far in life by backing down to challenges. So, she waited for a good moment to approach him, holding herself proudly. “Mr. Parson, I need to speak to you."

She could see the man recoil in disgust at her approach before he settled into a sneer. “Oh? And just what does someone of... your kind have that is worth my valuable time?"

Cadi took a deep breath as she looked him levelly in the eyes, doing everything that she could in order to project strength and resolve. “Sir, you need to stop this. The people here don't want to cause any problems, and we don't need to be watched over by so many police officers in order to keep us from causing trouble. These policies are making life... very difficult in the district, and we just want to live in peace," she said, her voice impassioned.

One of his two bodyguards looked... uncomfortable about all of this, her words hitting home with that man, but the other bodyguard... and the congressman were just completely unmoved. If anything, Mr. Parson was more moved to anger than to compassion. He stepped forward, standing toe-to-toe with Cadi as he looked down into her eyes.

“Now, listen here. I don't give a fuck what any of you... degenerates have to say. Not least of which, a little bitch like yourself. You're all affronts to nature, and it is my mission in life to make sure that you all know exactly what your place is in the world. This is only the beginning, as far as I'm concerned. I've got so many more plans to put into place as soon as I've got the pull to bring it off," he said, his face showing his unrestrained anger at her.

He'd made a mistake in how he'd handled the situation as Cadi glared fiercely back at him, visibly breathing deeply to keep herself in hand. “So... there's no... lofty ideal behind your cruelty... just unrestrained hate for our kind," she said, doing her best to count to ten in her head.

“You've got it right on the nose, bitch."

When he used that word, she flinched, closing her eyes and turning her head to one side as she gritted her teeth. “That... was the wrong thing to call me," she said with a low, warning growl in her throat.

The bodyguard who had sided with his boss stepped forward, putting his hand on Cadi's shoulder. “I think it is time that you leave... miss," he said, though 'miss' carried all of the venom that 'bitch' had from the senator.

She turned her head to look up into his eyes as she brought her hand up to put on top of his while she stared daggers into him, her golden eyes starting to glow red, “That was the wrong thing to do. Besides, what could a weakling like you do to me?"

As she asked that question, he went to grip her shoulder and pull her away from the senator... but he couldn't make her move at all. “What the..." he started to say as Cadi turned her eyes to the senator, her burning red gaze meeting his eyes, which were starting to fill with fear.

“Senator Parson... Just remember this... I tried being reasonable..." she said with a snarl as he found himself frozen in place, pinned down by her gaze. All the while, his other bodyguard took a step back, not understanding what was doing on, but he definitely didn't like it.

She moved to stand nose-to-nose with the senator, her eyes burning into his as she breathed deeply. “I think that you need a little bit of... sympathy," she said, her tone flat as his eyes started to unfocus before tears began to come to them, streaming down his cheeks as he just breathed, starting to jibber softly.

Her eyes then turned to the bodyguard who had tried to lay hands on her, letting her eyes burn into his the same way that she had with the senator, and you could just see the color melt from his face as he stood there, his mouth hanging slack.

Her eyes faded back to gold as she turned to look at the remaining bodyguard. “You... don't have anything to worry about. Strictly speaking, neither do either of them have anything to worry about. They're just facing some things that they rather wouldn't in their minds." She looked to the other bodyguard, saying, “He's seeing... just how pathetic his posturing looks... and he," she said, turning her head to the senator, “Is getting to experience the life of a resident of the district. He's getting to feel what it is like to be a fur... all the way right from the change... being picked up by the authorities... and dragged to the district... having to live under these draconian laws," she said with a little, dry laugh, smirking at the guard. “I would give them about... fifteen minutes before they're done. There's a café right over there where you can get yourself a drink or something to nibble on while you wait. But it is going to have... quite an impact on them, I'm sure."

He just stared dumbfounded at Cadi, “That's... unbelievable..." he said, looking to the other two, who clearly were not doing well. “I hope you can change his mind with this... I've never seen it happen, so I'm not necessarily optimistic, but... if what you've done to him can get through to him, more power to you, honestly."

Cadi laughed and grinned, “Thank you. And, hey, you're always welcome to come to visit the district. We may just be furs within these walls, but that's not by our choice... It's way more the faults of people like them that humans don't feel welcome here," she said with a sigh.

He laughed and smirked a little. “I might have to take you up on that. At least when I'm not on the clock looking after him," he said, shaking his head.

Cadi laughed at that and left him to look after the other two as they processed through the visions their minds were being flooded with. She still had business to get on with of helping the other residents out.

When she got home that evening, Dawn rushed right up to her, her eyes wide as she looked at Cadi. “What happened? How did it go? Did you get to talk to him?"

Cadi laughed and smiled broadly, letting out a sigh as she wrapped her arms around her pet and hugged her close, kissing her full on the lips. “Yes, honey, I got to talk with him... the talking didn't really work with him... and one of his bodyguards," she said with a glint in her eye. “However, I got through to them all the same. I rather... directly shared the experiences of the furs here with him... I wouldn't be surprised if he took at least twenty minutes to run through it all in his head."

Dawn's eyes went wide, her mouth hanging open as she stood there in stunned silence, “You can do that... with your magic?" She was genuinely amazed at what Cadi was describing, “So... in his brain... he lived through the experience of the furs here?"

Cadi laughed and sighed, “Neither did I until... I did it. Leaves me wondering what else I'm capable of. And yeah... in that time, his brain lived through a compressed down version of... almost every fur in the district's experience from change to relocation here... not to mention living under his new laws. The fear, the sorrow, the pain of it all...he got to feel all of it."

Dawn was about to speak, only working on getting her brain together before the television kicked on, triggered by the emergency broadcasting system. It was after nine, at that point, so all furs should be at home, or at least within range of a television.

The announcer requested that people give their attention to the broadcast, as the senator who had just visited the district was about to make an announcement. When he finally appeared on the screen, he looked very sober, showing none of the usual poise or pompousness that he usually displayed.

“Citizens of the Transhuman District, I have an important announcement to make. Effective immediately, all of the recently implemented laws are being revoked. All curfews and enhanced police presence are at an end. During my visit, I..." he started, pausing a moment to take a deep breath, “I had an opportunity to gain a sense of perspective for the struggles that you all face on a daily basis, and the impact that these laws have had on your lives."

He paused again, trying to find his words as his mouth moved for a moment before he continued, “I... am sorry for the pain and distress that they have caused all of you. I was... wrong to inflict that on you. I'm... not trying to buy your forgiveness, but I am going to turn my attention to pushing for aid and resources to be provided to the residents of the district. You all... deserve so much more than the table scraps of the world outside." He took another deep breath, closing his eyes before he returned his gaze to the camera. “Thank you. May tomorrow be a brighter day for all of you."

The announcement came to an end, then, and after a moment, the usual programming reasserted itself. Cadi snapped her fingers and turned the television off, looking just... beyond relieved. Meanwhile, the night air that had been silent, but for the police presence, erupted with noise, cheers, and elation - first coming through open windows, but soon enough from out on the street itself as furs swarmed out onto the streets.

Cadi laughed and smiled at Dawn, “Let's go join the celebration," she said, taking Dawn's hand and walking out onto the street, following with the flow as it made its way to the park where the head of the TOA had spoken to the residents, where extra lights were already being set up. Even speakers were being set up, with music kicking in to accompany the celebration.

They even saw Briar hauling two large kegs to one of the tables that had been set up, setting them on the stands that someone had brought out. She tapped them with ease and quickly started to let the beer flow. That got a good laugh out of Cadi as the badger called out to her, “I expect to see you at work tomorrow! We're going to need all the help we can get!"

Cadi saluted in reply before she and Dawn just drifted through the crowd, basking in the moment. Though, as they made their way around, there was an “Ahem," that was clearly directed at Cadi, who spun around to see Christine standing there with a grin on her face, even as her arms were crossed in front of herself, her foot tapping on the grass. “I get the feeling that you and I need to have a bit of a talk, Miss Carys," she said with a stern tone in her voice.

Cadi straightened up at that, taking a breath before she nodded her head. “Yes, ma'am," she said with a half-smile on her face as Christine walked them off to the edge of the party, stopping by Briar's table to grab drinks for the three of them. They found a park table that was at least semi-private and quiet enough of a conversation to where they wouldn't have to be shouting at each other.

Christine sat down across from the other two and took a long sip of her beer. “Ahh, Briar always brews the best... anyway, I've been asking around to try to figure out the reason for the sudden turnaround, and everything I've heard points back to you. So, would you care to enlighten me on what happened? Oh, and before you ask, yes, I do know about your special abilities. I've heard enough stories about them from the residents to not doubt them. Especially with the extra work that you've been doing since the lockdown took effect."

Cadi gave Christine an “Okay, you caught me" smile, and took a deep breath before she started going over what had happened. To her credit, Christine maintained her poise as Cadi talked, her eyebrows the only real indication of her reactions as she sipped on her beer. “So, you see that I didn't hurt him... or threaten him in order to get the lockdown lifted. Hell, I didn't expect anything to happen in a hurry. But I guess what I did was... particularly effective."

Christine set her beer down on the table, taking a moment to think things over. “Well... I'm certainly glad that you didn't use force against him... which would have caused many more problems for us than it would have ever solved. I'm... surprised with the solution you found... but... I can't deny that people who treat others the way that he has frequently do not have a sense of the other person's personal experience, so... I'm not surprised that it was as effective as it was," she said with a little chuckle. “And that bodyguard... ahh, such a lovely little tangled mess there," she added with a big grin, clearly having been quite used to dealing with men like that.

Cadi chuckled and nodded her head, “Such an obsession with strength... and making sure that it is shoved in peoples' faces, right?" She took a sip from her beer before looking at Christine, “So, I'm not in trouble, right?"

“Mmm, no, not at all. Far from it, really. If anything, you're now someone on my short list of people to help deal with... unexpected situations," she said with a big grin. “At the moment, it is quite a short list, but at the end of the day, if we're going to survive as a community, we need people who act like the glue of the place. Briar is on my short list, too... and Carla should be on it too, honestly... her restaurant ends up kind of being a lightning rod for newcomers." She chuckled and sighed, shaking her head, “That's why she's got the spare room, and I haven't pressured her to get a permanent resident in it."

“True. She really didn't seem all that phased by my arrival, so yeah... she's got to have some sense of how to handle things," she said with a little shrug. “Either way, I certainly don't mind being on your shortlist. I've really enjoyed helping out around the district during the lockdown. It felt... right for me," she said with a big smile.

“Great. I'll have to start writing up the paperwork to make you an official TOA agent," Christine said with a little laugh, shaking her head and sighing. “You'll even get a fancy little badge to keep in your wallet and all."

“And a fancy title? Like Prime Meddler, or something like that?" Cadi laughed, shaking her head.

Christine grinned from ear to ear, “I like that... suits you, too... given what I've heard about you around the district." She sighed and looked out over the party, shaking her head, “Almost said the city... one of these days, we'll have a city of our own... a land of our own, if I can swing it. It's hell being stuck here... surrounded by these walls."

“You'll get no argument from me on that... plenty of good parks, but that's nothing compared to having an area of true wilds to just... stretch your legs in. Worse, it leaves us absolutely dependent on the outside world. That's only going to work for so long, especially if the population here keeps growing." Cadi closed her eyes, just taking a moment to let her brain run, “Maybe an island... a good-sized one where we could spread out and build up."

Christine laughed at that, “I like the sound of that. Islands don't run cheap, and most of them are already claimed. It would take some really fancy footwork to get one for our people."

Our people. The phrase had a strangely powerful ring for Cadi, and she took a deep breath, nodding her head slowly. “Yes, our people. Our people need our own land... and that's going to end up being something for us all to work toward." There was something pressing on Cadi's mind as she spoke, causing her face to scrunch up for just a moment. That sounded... familiar somehow. But how could it? Even Dorran felt it. But that resonated with more than just Dorran inside her. But what? Could it be the source of the magic?

Whatever it was, she just had to shake it off for the moment. “So... you've got ambitions beyond 'director'? What, Mayor? Governor? President?" She laughed as she teased Christine.

The wolf laughed right alongside her, smiling from ear to ear at that, “I suppose that would come with the territory, wouldn't it? Quite literally. President sounds nice... but we'll cross that bridge when we get to it, yeah? And don't you dare start calling me 'madam president' in the meanwhile, do I make myself clear?" Her look was properly stern as she looked Cadi dead in the eyes.

The tigress was still laughing at her little joke, a smile plastered across her face. “Yes, director," she said once she'd gotten enough control over herself.

Christine smiled and nodded, just letting her body relax there in the seat. “I look forward to more smiles like that... I've missed those during this lockdown... thank you for what you've done, Cadi. I mean that with all of my heart."

“Well, with this news, there'll be a lot more room for smiles around, yeah? But for tonight, let's enjoy the party," she said, lifting her nose and sniffing at the air, “Smells like the restaurants have finally started arriving... let's get some food and just enjoy the night."