~Sibirskaia Seventeen~
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(November 26th)
Just past noon.
A television illuminated an otherwise unlit living room. And from its screen, a ferret spoke...well dressed, even more well quaffed, a microphone in his paw, and a school's facade at his back.
A reporter, on location, ``...but, in a written statement, had this to say:''
And he was replaced with a calm, blue and white graphic: a block of text on the screen, which he read: ``Protecting our students is our highest priority, and the district intends to cooperate fully with the police department in their investigations.''
The text cut away, and the ferret stood, still, before the school as he went on, ``As of this morning, only one incident is believed to have occurred on school property with a student. And, while the school district says they hope nothing else occurred on campus, they stress that they will work with the police to be sure.''
Previously filmed footage replaced him. Students walked to and from the school building. The silhouette of a wolf hung his head in the back of a police car. But the ferret's voice remained, ``Some parents have found comfort in these statements, but others feel it's too little, too late.''
But, as a fruit bat -- a concerned parent labeled `Heather Pierson' -- took the ferret's place upon the screen, the sound abruptly cut short as the television was muted. And, standing in the light of the silent screen, Kristoff Masters set its remote aside.
In the dim, still room, the husky sighed as he lowered himself into the old recliner behind him. His head sunk into his shoulders. His eyes fell to on the floor. Rain tapped the window like buzzing static. And, standing unseen in a doorway to the side, William Masters thought...
If one could capture the image of depression, itself.
Of course, aside from today's perfectly somber backdrop -- the November rain beyond the window, casting its shadow upon the day -- this had been the image of the Masters' home for over a week now. This is what his brother had become...
...since Elliot had gone away.
Toffy hadn't said much. He hadn't needed to; his face said enough. How his eyelids never seemed to fully open, anymore. How his gaze lingered -- at every passing -- on the door to Elliot's room. How he trudged, blank, from task to task. How he sank into his seat. And how all of that changed...
...the moment he heard his son's voice on the phone.
Will had seen the joy drained out of his brother's life. And he'd seen him latch on to even the tiniest rays of hope, when Elliot would call. When they could speak. The elder husky wasn't broken. Not yet. He was too strong for that. But this was the closest William had ever seen him come.
But of course, this was a concern for another day. There was nothing William could fix, here. For now, all they could do was soldier on. Wait for the trial. Make sure when it came, they won. But today, they had another problem to face.
One which would hopefully prove distracting for Toffy, even if only for a single, rainy afternoon...
So Will turned and left his brother alone to his darkness, and to the rattling hum of the rain. And he made his way to his and Aaron's room, where he found the rabbit idly brushing out his fur, nude but for the towel hanging around his shoulders.
Nearly eight weeks ago, William lost his job. He was dragged before the CEO of his firm: a dragon named Castagnoli. The old drake and his bird from FR took some time to get to their point, complaining about transparency and conflicts of interest, before they finally made it clear that they had taken issue with his homosexuality...and with his relationship with Aaron.
They threatened Aaron's career
They told the husky, in no uncertain terms, that his boyfriend, a client there, would never be published through the firm, so long as Will worked there, as an agent. They were forcing him out the door, and he had no choice but to let them. Aaron, after all, had nowhere else to go...
He'd tried to hide the truth from his bunny -- tried to spare him both the guilt, and the reality of the firm's bigotry -- but two weeks ago, that decision was taken out of his paws. A pair of detectives came to accuse William of a crime...a crime he'd committed, but which they couldn't prove. And while they were there, they told Aaron how the husky really lost his job.
Will expected his lover to be angry. He expected talk of trust and honesty. Talk of how Aaron was an adult, who didn't need to be protected from reality. But this story had proven more complicated than that...
``Heard from Stan, yet?'' He asked his preening bunny...
...who nodded in response, ``Yeah. He left a voicemail while I was in the shower.'' He leaned in closer to the mirror, as he brushed through the fur on his neck and chest. ``He's gonna' be late. Got caught in traffic on the highway.''
``Ah. The wreck...''
``He thinks so.''
``No. It's a wreck,'' William repeated. ``I heard about it on the news, a minute ago.''
Aaron stood back from the mirror, double checking his dusty fur once more, and then tossed his towel and brush onto the bed. ``Well, what about our other would-be guest? Have you heard from, uhm...'' he blinked and trailed off.
``Kiliona Anoa'i.''
``I am never gonna' be able to pronounce that.''
And his husky chuckled, ``He says we can call him Kili for short.''
``Kili?'' Aaron's face lit up. ``Like the hot beaver from `The Rabbit'?''
``Even spelled the same!'' Will nodded happily...
...just as the chime of the doorbell hit both their ears.
``And that would be one of them, now,'' William pointed over his shoulder, in the direction of the living room.
But his rabbit shook his head, ``No, if it's either of them, it'll be Kili. Stan's still gonna' be a little while.''
``Do want me to...?''
``Yeah. Go let him in,'' Aaron waved a paw to shoo the dog away. ``I'll be out in a minute.''
And so he did.
Will made the short walk through their apartment, and back to the living room. He intended, there, to turn on the lights. To break the day's darkness. To welcome his guest with a less maudlin scene than that of his brother -- justifiably or not -- sulking in his grief.
But that brother had beaten him to it. And William was greeted by bright, artificial light, and by Toffy's smile -- apologetic and defeated, though it was. The younger husky returned his brother's smile with a nod, and went on to the door...opening it to the sight of a dry and smiling otter, busily folding his dripping umbrella.
Kiliona Anoa'i.
This happy little mustelid had been Will's direct supervisor when the husky was still lucky enough to be employed. He had always been kind, always friendly, but never a friend. After all, he was the dog's superior. But William liked him, nonetheless, right to the end.
And Kiliona had been there, too. He had stood alongside Castagnoli and his bird as Will's sentence had been handed down. And though Castagnoli took joy in the proceedings, Kiliona clearly did not. He was disgusted. He was appalled. And, what little he could, he had even fought for William. But it had all been too late.
And now?
Now many things had changed. Not least of all, their relationship with one another...
``Mr. Anoa'i,'' Will offered his paw to shake.
``William!'' the otter though, burst through the open door and wrapped his old employee in a hug, catching the dog more than a little off guard. ``I thought I told you to call me Kili!''
And as his grinning friend stepped away, William let out a nervous chuckled, ``O-only if I couldn't pronounce Kiliona, though.''
``And a fine job you're doing!'' Kili smiled, as he patted the husky on the shoulder, ``But it's a bit of a muzzle full, isn't it?''
And Will flashed an embarrassed grin, ``Sounds a bit forced coming from me, huh?''
``A bit,'' the otter smirked as he began peeling off his jacket. And then he lifted that jacket, as if to place it upon the coat rack to the side, but paused, turning to look at his host with a questioning eye...
...and the dog nodded, ``Go right ahead.''
As William watched him hang up his jacket, he scanned the otter's torso. His thin, tight turtleneck did little to hide his physique. Leanly muscled, and surprisingly cut for someone the dog had never really taken a second look at, in the past. And that's when he realized that this was the first time he'd ever even seen him out of a suit...
``And this must be your brother!'' Kili suddenly exclaimed, thrusting his paw past Will...
...where Kris stood, ready to take hold of it and shake, ``It is.''
``I thought you said he was older, Will.'' The otter looked back and forth between the two, as he withdrew his paw, ``You two could be twins!''
And Kristoff laughed, ``Flattery about my age? Isn't that the sort of thing you'd normally say to a woman?''
``We can all use a little flattery now and then,'' Kiliona winked, and then stopped to survey the apartment. ``So where's everyone else?''
``Aaron's getting ready,'' Will answered, ``and Stan got caught by a wreck, on the I. He'll be late.''
The otter paused in thought, ``And Stan is Aaron's older brother, right?''
William nodded and opened his muzzle to speak, but Aaron's voice cut him short:
``That he is!'' the rabbit chirped as he padded in, now dressed, to join them. ``Hello, Kili.''
``Aaron...'' the otter's infectious smile, which had earlier drawn a laugh even from Toffy, faded away, as he pulled the little bunny into a gentle, sympathetic hug, ``...I'm so sorry about all of this. I want you to know: it was completely out of my paws. There was nothing I could do.''
``I know. I know it's not your fault,'' Aaron squeezed back in the hug, and smiled as his friendly new guest pulled away, ``Especially now.''
``Yeah!'' Kili chuckled. ``Can't be responsible for much, if I'm not even there.'' And then he turned to look at Kris and Will, ``And I'm sorry to hear about everything else, too. William brought me up to speed, and...'' he shook his head, ``...I know it might sound hollow, but things will get better.''
To which Toffy plastered on a dramatic, hopeful smile, ``Well that's why we're here, today, right?''
``Indeed it is,'' Kiliona nodded. ``So, should we wait for Stan, or-''
``No,'' Aaron assured their guest, ``he won't mind us starting without him.''
And the rabbit motioned toward the kitchen, and its empty table. The husky brothers each nodded, before leading the way...where all three, and their mustelid friend took their seats: William across from his former boss, and Aaron across from Kristoff. For a moment, Will thought to point out that it was a good thing Stanley wasn't here, since all four seats were already full, without him...
...but Aaron spoke up before he could: ``So,'' the bunny looked to their guest, ``Will already told you everything, right?''
``Indeed he did,'' the otter nodded, ``But I'd still like to hear it from you: get a little more insight. Some details on this theory of yours.''
And Aaron nodded, ``Well, you know why Will got fired. You were there.''
``Technically he wasn't fired,'' Kili hummed, ``more...backed into a corner and forced to quit,'' and he shared a short glance with Will, ``but yes. I was there.''
``But see? He didn't tell me that, right away,'' the rabbit explained. ``He told me he was fired because of some rule about dating clients. He thought he was protecting me by hiding the truth. Thought it was best if I didn't know that I was being represented by homophobes...and thought I'd blame myself, if I knew he was really fired because he'd outed himself for me.''
Kiliona arched a brow, ``Not the best decision...''
``No, it wasn't,'' Aaron shook his head. ``But don't get me wrong. I appreciate the thought, and he knows I'm not mad. But if I'd known the truth two months ago, when this first happened...I might've realized what was being done to me, sooner.''
And the otter asked: ``So what do you think's being done, then?''
``I'm being held down!'' Aaron answered immediately. ``My attempts at getting published are being delayed -- intentionally -- because I'm gay.'' He shrugged, ``I thought I was just floundering, at first, you know? I mean, I wasn't doing any better with Sylvia, right? So I thought that maybe I just wasn't good enough. Or, if I was, that my agent wasn't smart enough to know. But now that I've found out the firm all but literally tossed Will out on his ass for being gay...''
``...you think you're being sabotaged.''
``I do.''
``And you're right,'' Kili confirmed. ``Nothing gets published at Castagnoli's firm, if Castagnoli doesn't want it published.''
``And he definitely doesn't want ME published,'' the bunny concluded.
``Indeed he does not,'' Kiliona frowned. ``Your agents can do whatever they like, but so long as you're with this firm, you're going nowhere.'' And he leaned back in his chair with open arms, and a wide smile, ``And this, boys, is why I left.''
Aaron could only blink for a moment, ``You...you mean quit the firm because of me?''
``In part,'' the otter shrugged. ``But really, I quit because I finally got tired of being party to Castagnoli's discrimination, in general. I mean...you don't think you're the only victim, here, do you?''
Head tilted, William interjected, ``Are...you...?''
``A victim? No,'' Kili shook his head. ``Thankfully, I kept my private life private. Didn't give the old dragon a reason to fuck with me.''
Kris, then, spoke up to infer: ``But he WOULD have had reason to fuck with you, if you hadn't?''
And Will translated that to the blunter question: ``Does that mean you're gay, too?''
But Kiliona just met it with a laugh, ``No,'' before looking to Kristoff, ``and I'm not bi either. Not that I have anything against it, of course. It's just not for me.''
``Ah...'' the younger husky gave a slight nod.
``Sorry to disappoint, William,'' the otter winked. ``If it makes you feel any better, though, I did give it a shot, once. Back in college. Because, you know, what else is college for? My roommate gave me the best sales pitch ever. He said that I had never had a blow job from a girl like I could have from a guy. And he said that this was because...''
And despite it being so surreal to hear his former boss talk like this, Will finished that thought for him: ``...no one knows how to handle a dick like someone who has one of their own!'' It was, after all, a line HE'D used as well.
And Kili, again, belted out a laugh, ``Exactly! So...I gave him the chance to prove his point.'' Though, he held up a finger, to amend. ``I should mention: I was very drunk.''
``But you didn't enjoy it?'' William assumed.
``I didn't get the chance to find out,'' Kiliona shrugged. ``Little Kili wouldn't even...uhm...rise to the occasion?''
``That's too bad...'' Aaron chuckled...
...but their guest shrugged, ``Eh. I don't feel like I'm missing out on anything.'' And, finally, he got back to the subject at paw: ``But anyway, no. Castagnoli didn't discriminate against me. I just saw it happen to too many others. And they weren't all gay, either.''
``What else has he done?'' Will asked.
``Well, let's see. There was you two,'' the otter motioned to William and his rabbit. ``And there was this other guy -- one of our agents -- who Castagnoli found out was an atheist. You shouldn't be surprised to hear that he was forced out, just like you were,'' he pointed to Will. ``But the final straw, for me, was another one of our writers. He found out that this poor woman had gotten an abortion. She was already well on her way to being published -- a good book, too -- but he found out, and stepped in at the eleventh hour...and now she's in the same quagmire as you,'' he shot Aaron a sideways glance...
...and the bunny sighed, ``Guess I shouldn't be surprised that a homophobe would also turn out to be an ultra-conservative.''
``But you know, I could deal with that,'' Kiliona crossed his arms as he spoke. ``I'm not super liberal myself; I fall somewhere in between. And I've worked for more than my fair share of conservatives. I mean, think of where we live! But I just couldn't deal with Castagnoli, anymore.'' He shook his head, ``I don't care what his reasons are. Even if he was firing Christians, gun owners, and right-to-lifers, it would STILL wrong! You don't screw with someone's livelihood -- their whole damn life -- over politics.''
Will huffed, ``Too bad more people don't agree with you.''
But to his side, Kristoff held up a paw, ``Wait. I don't get it. How is this even possible? Isn't this against the law? Aren't there protections set up, to guard against workplace discrimination like this?''
``Well,'' his brother answered first, ``and feel free to correct me if I'm wrong, Kili...but as far as I know, Castagnoli hasn't technically broken any laws.''
And Kili nodded, ``At least not any we can prove.''
``See?'' William went on: ``I wasn't actually fired, and from the sound of it, neither was the atheist. We were both just forced into situations where we had to quit...and that is MUCH harder to prove.''
``Right,'' the otter agreed. ``And on top of that, even if we could prove anything in Will's case...our state has no workplace discrimination laws when it comes to sexuality. Punitively, nothing could be done. Castagnoli's only concern would be negative publicity, or maybe a small civil suit.''
``Which, I'm sure,'' Will added, ``is the only reason he didn't just fire me out right, to begin with.''
``No doubt,'' Kiliona nodded...
...but Kris asked, ``What about Aaron, and the woman who got the abortion?''
``Well,'' Kili sighed, ``it's even harder to prove whether or not he's holding someone down. All Castagnoli has to say is that their work wasn't good enough. And, at that point -- no matter how many people we could find who would say it WAS good -- we'd be arguing a matter of opinion.''
``And you can't prosecute someone for not liking a book,'' William explained...
...and Kiliona added, ``Or prove that their lying when they say they don't.''
``Okay,'' Kristoff drew in a frustrated breath, ``so is there any evidence we could get?''
``Right!'' Aaron echoed the sentiment, ``Maybe if we got enough people to come forward? I mean: we've got me, Will, and the other two...''
``Even if we could get all four of you together,'' the otter stalled in the middle of his answer to clarify, ``And let me stress: there's no guarantee on that. There's a reason I haven't mentioned this woman's name. Do you really think she'd want her abortion to become public knowledge? Especially in this state?'' And he went on: ``But even if we could get both of them on our side, I don't know if four voices would be enough.''
``So what are the chances we could find more?'' Will wondered.
``More people who'd be willing to risk blackballing themselves?'' Kili shrugged, ``I don't know.''
Nearly exasperated with it all, Kris finally asked: ``Well, do you have any other ideas, then?''
And Kiliona nodded, ``Well, what I think we need is another local option. We need a firm: one that's neither Castagnoli's, nor hours and hours away. Somewhere authors and agents can go, where they don't have to hide from the old dragon's politics.''
``Yeah,'' Kris spoke through a dismissive little laugh, ``too bad we live in the sticks.''
But the otter's normally smiling face met the husky's with a cold, determined stare. ``Everything has to start somewhere, Kristoff.''
``Wait,'' at that, William sat up straighter, ``do you mean to say you've got plans?''
And, wide eyed, Aaron leaned in, ``Are you thinking about starting your own firm?''
``Maybe,'' Kili held up his paws, as if to calm them down. ``But nothing like this just happens overnight. It's gonna' take time, and it won't be someplace you could work,'' he motioned to Will, ``or you could get published,'' and to his rabbit, ``anytime soon.''
``I uhm...'' William rubbed his neck, ``I'm not actually looking to be an agent anymore. I have a book of my own I'd like to get published, soon.''
``My mistake,'' Kiliona nodded and corrected himself, ``Then: it wouldn't be somewhere either of you could get published, anytime soon.'' And he went on, ``No matter what I may or may not do in the coming months, something STILL needs to be done about Castagnoli. And for that, we need money. We need connections. We need someone who could really spearhead this and convince people to join the cause. We need-''
At once, he was cut off by the sudden chime of the doorbell...
...and across the table, Aaron smiled a toothy, little grin. ``My brother.''
