The Zoo - Brown Bear
Story by The Rhys on SoFurry
The Zoo - Once a place where majestic animals are brought in for the general public's enjoyment, The Zoo has become a luxurious place for humans and animals alike. But strange things are happening at The Zoo, both big and small, and everyone, humans; animals; and everything in between is at risk.
The first in a new series where besides just me, you, the reader, also get to choose the animal and the theme of the coming stories by just posting what you want in the comments!
(Examples: Transformation, Paw Play, Weight Gain, Hypnosis, Growth, Muscles, or even a combination of stuff, almost anything you can think of so long as it is not necessarily "adult" content for this series).
This particular story was not a request.
Cody couldn't help but smile in anticipation as he looked through his mail. Every day when he got home from school he waited patiently for the mailman to arrive, and the moment he moved on to the next mailbox, Cody would run outside and snatch the mail up as quickly as possible. It was finally time to hear back from the colleges he had applied to so long ago, and with his eighteenth birthday coming up soon, birthday wishes were bound to show up among acceptance letters too. The boy had applied to twelve different schools, thirteen if he included Dartmouth, but he didn't get his hopes up for the ivy league school, he wasn't truly at that level. Cody wasn't the brightest kid in school, and he knew it well. His peers had never considered him to be dumb, in fact, many had said that if he really tried, he could place well above the average student in class rankings, but Cody had other things to focus on.
Where the boy truly excelled was in athletics. For most of his life, he had been a fan of baseball; Cody had played on his middle school team up to the seventh grade, and he was good at it too. His coach always regarded him as a game winner, both a skilled pitcher and hitter, a very sought after combination. It wasn't until his father got involved that he switched to football. He remembered their conversations clearly, “Baseball is great," his father would say, “but it's football that wins scholarships." His father wasn't wrong. While any good athlete, was cared for by universities, it was the football players who got the good scholarships. While Cody was never a true fan of football, he trusted his father, and come freshman year of highschool, Cody tried out for the team.
It wasn't hard for Cody to get the hang of the game, he had practiced all summer with his father to prepare for tryouts, and while he was a skilled strategist, he knew that he wasn't built for a game of this brutality. Being a baseball player, he was on the thin side: his body was lean, built to run, and his arms were just strong enough to hit a homerun, the girls loved it, but when held up to what would soon be his football teammates, he was a stick. Every tackle during practice would hurt more than it should've, most of the throws he made hit the ground before they could reach their intended destinations, and the locker room was hell for small guy. It had taken a lot of time, but after a few years on the team, he had finally bulked up, or at least tried to. He worked out more often, his arms and legs hardening with muscle, and the rest of his body followed suit. Come senior year, Cody was a pro, and though he still hated the sport, none could say that he was bad at it.
Finally, Cody thought as he brought the mail back inside, I'll get my answers. As the boy leafed through the mail, his smile began to fade. There was but one letter for him, and it wasn't from a university. With a sigh, he tossed down the mail and grabbed the only piece that was for him. Cody gently opened the envelope as he read the front: “Colorado's Newest Zoo Invites You!" Opening the letter, a smile slowly returned to the boy's lips. Skimming through its contents, Cody caught sight of only the date, the address, and a few phrases, “private opening", “VIP", and “free refreshments". The boy was shocked, the event was scheduled to take place in only a few hours, but it was close by! Looking around his small home, he found his wallet and the keys to his car, then, Cody hopped into his car, and drove. His parent's wouldn't care anyway.
The mountains were truly a beautiful passing sight as he made his way towards The Zoo. He had seen mountains before, they littered his state, but these were truly magnificent. The deep green hues of the mountain's vegetation surrounded him as he drove through a narrowly cut road between them in awe. He had never been this way before, and it took quite some time for his GPS to find the path to this new zoo, but Cody was sure that it was worth it. Cody had been to zoos before when he was smaller; he liked seeing the lions, bears, and elephants the most, the amphibians and water dwelling creatures didn't catch his attention like they did. While he loved the lions and elephants for the sheer majesty of the animals, his appreciation for the bears stemmed merely from appreciation. They weren't uncommon to see in Colorado, but to see them up close was gratifying in a way, just like how the sight of a cute dog excites the common passerby. While they were everywhere, they were still a nice change of pace to behold.
Cody quickly became nervous as he pulled into the parking lot. There weren't many other cars there, only about two others. There must be a parking lot for staff, the boy thought, hoping that he wasn't going to be alone during this trip. Cody strode to the front gates cautiously, and as he grew close, a man in a white coat came to greet him, extending his hand. “You must be Cody," the man said, “we're so glad you could make it."
“Glad to be here," Cody shook the man's hand firmly, determined to show off his reasonable strength, “how do you know my name?"
“Ah," the man exclaimed, “I apologize, I've gotten a bit ahead of myself! My name is Johnson, I'm the veterinarian. You're our youngest VIP guest, and so I merely assumed your identity. Now if you don't mind, I'll start off the tour." Johnson motioned for Cody to follow, and so he did. The veterinarian seemed strange to Cody; he had a handsome, youthful look about him, yet he spoke like an intellectual, with dignity and a fierce will. He was in control around here, at least that was the vibe that Cody got from him, and so the boy trusted Johnson and began to shift his focus on the zoo.
“Now it isn't much," the vet stopped for a moment in front of a large, plains-like habitat, “but we've been growing quite quickly in our acquisitions. We only have but four habitats so far, only two filled, but we feel that you'll enjoy them all!" Cody looked at Johnson in confusion. Only two animals?! he wanted to cry, why have a VIP opening with only two animals?! The boy was furious, he felt as though he had wasted his time; the vet saw this and frowned. “Trust me," he said as he brought Cody up to the first exhibit, “you'll have a good time. First we have the lions." The vet pointed up towards some scaffolding where three lions sat.
Cody watched the trio in confusion. At the center sat a strong male with a bright red mane, and besides him two others, one with a deep orange mane, and one with a vibrant yellow mane. The three nuzzled and licked each other, they seemed very happy. “You see that one in the middle?" Johnson asked, “his name is Michael. The orange one is Gabriel, and the yellow one is Raphael."
“Like the archangels? They're very… affectionate," Muttered Cody, struggling to find the right words. The vet laughed and squeezed the boy's shoulder. “We only have a collection of, well, special animals here Cody." The vet rolled up a sleeve and looked at his watch. “And while I would love to show you our other exhibit, I believe it's time for dinner," the vet said with a harsh sigh, “it's a shame, I truly wanted you to see our new polar bear, Sam, but I'm afraid we'll have to put that off till later. Come with me." Cody frowned slightly at Johnson's words, but held hope that he would see the polar bear later. He had only a second to catch a glimpse of one of the unfilled habitats, one meant for wolves, before he was lead into an office building. He did not consider where anyone else was.
Johnson lead Cody into his office, which was nearly filled by a fold up table right in the center. Inside, a man and woman were plateing what appeared to be salmon onto two dishes across from each other. As Cody and Johnson entered, the pair made their way out. “Thank you Janet," the vet said to the woman before tipping his head to the man, “Vincent." The Cody and Johnson took their respective seats and began to eat. “I apologize for our current conditions," Johnson said, motioning to the room around them, “we have yet to finish our dining facilities, we're working on the Petting Zoo first." Cody smiled and dug into his meal. The boy did not expect such a meal, and was more than pleased to see something rather healthy on his plate. The vet ate slowly, and smiled ash he watched Cody fly through his meal.
The feeling in his stomach wasn't really painful, but Cody felt uneasy as he finished up his meal. The boy stood up, and made his way to the bathroom, which the vet told him was right down the hall. Cody stood by the sink and watched himself in the mirror. He placed a hand on his chin, which was now showing signs of stubble. I must've forgotten to shave this morning, he thought. The boy splashed some water on his face and decided to make his return to the vet's office so he would not appear to be a poor guest. The table was gone when he arrived, the food cleaned up, and the room spotless. Johnson stood in the corner of the room with a look of concern spread across his face. “Are you okay?"
“It must've been the salmon," the boy said with a smile. Then the fur started spreading. At first it was his chest, Cody felt a strong itch travel across and ravage his body. The boy tore at his shirt trying to relieve the itch but to no avail. The vet moved towards the door and locked it, trapping the beastial boy inside. The fur slowly worked its way up to his face and covered his hands and feet, his entire body. Cody examined his hands and ran his fingers through the brown fur that covered his arms. As quickly as he was distracted, the itch clawed its way back into the forefront of his mind, and the boy went back to scratching what he could of his body. Fur sprouted from the open neck of his flannel shirt, and pushed out from in between the buttons and any opening it could find. His shirt began to rip as he scratched at it, holes appearing wherever his hands dug, revealing fur aching to be free of the clothing. The boy shut his eyes tightly as claws began to puncture his shoes and shirt. Cody tore off his clothing, leaving the furry boy nude in the vet's office. The itching had finally stopped, leaving the boy panting.
Johnson looked at Cody, and then to his watch, smiling, as if he were counting down to the next happening. Cody looked up at the vet in fear. “W-what's happening to me?" the boy cried. The vet merely moved towards the boy without fear and scratched his head, placing his free hand on Cody's midsection, giving it a soft rub before moving back again. Cody felt powerless against the man, but a warmth spread across his head before he could say any more.
Cody crossed his eyes as his mouth and nose pushed out to form a short bear's muzzle. He was surprised that there was no pain, but kept focusing on his new face. A strange feeling passed through the boy as his ears migrated to the top of his head and began to round out. “Did you do this?" Cody thought out loud, his mouth feeling odd as he spoke. Johnson wrote a note down on his patient chart in both awe and confusion at Cody's ability to speak. Though he had never experimented on a human before, this was unexpected.
Cody felt the warmth spread down his body, filling what had yet to be touched. The beast boy murred as he felt it cover his unmentionables. He could feel his body groan as he shrunk two inches to an even six foot. It felt odd being smaller, and Cody looked around the room in shock as he adjusted to his new height, even though he had not shrunk by much. Too much was running through Cody's head now as he ran his hands, slowly turning into paws, through his new brown fur.
The boy, now looking like a very malnourished brown bear, began to feel his muscles bulge. His arms and legs grew thick and strong, and his chest barreled out along with them. He felt powerful, but it soon became clear why he would need that strength. His once toned stomach started to grow. It was slow at first, fat piled onto his stomach forming a slight paunch that was well on its way to becoming a round belly. Cody smiled at the feeling, and laughed as he thought about how he could take the role of defensive lineman with ease at the rate he was growing. He would have been unstoppable.
Cody's thoughts were quickly cut off as he lurched forward, his growing belly dragging him down. His spine curved and he caught himself on all fours, a small, stubby tail popping out as he hit the floor. The boy, once a handsome star athlete, was panting with glee as he took on his new weight. Cody moaned softly as he felt his belly stop just inches from the floor. The bear moved his paws up experimentally and pressed them into his new belly until he felt that he would fall without their support.
Johnson came over and inspected the new bear, running his hands across his back and down his sides. Cody's chest and belly had taken on a light beige shade, distinguishing the parts from the rest of his body. The vet rubbed the bear's belly, and shook it slightly, causing Cody to puff and moan. “That's nice…" Cody said in a much deeper voice that would've shocked him had he not been so tired. The vet kneeled in front of Cody and inspected his eyes and muzzle, moving down to his chest, which creased in between his legs, and finally his paws. “You're perfect Cody," Johnson said.
Cody lay there with his eyes closed, his belly both holding him up and spilling out from under him. The athlete was gone. The fat brown bear was truly magnificent.
Cody quickly grew to like his new habitat. It was scary at first, he had to learn how to move properly with such a large belly, which only grew slightly larger every week, and he was alone for most of the time except when the keepers came around to feed and play with him. He grew careless and lazy, and he loved it. Johnson had been visiting him almost every day, and they would discuss Johnson's new life and any of his needs (many of which would be addressed) as the vet sprayed him with some kind of perfume. Cody liked the smell. The bear had forgotten about his family, or rather, believed that they would be okay without him. Johnson had ensured him of that. He had made sure they too would forget.
What the bear liked most was his weight. Throughout his life, Cody had been watching his figure, keeping in shape, eating the right foods, but now he could relax. Every night he would sit down and murr as his fat belly filled his lap and covered his crotch. He would sink his paws into it and squeeze and jiggle it, rubbing and playing with it until he went to sleep, cradling his new belly. The keepers liked to play with it too, especially the vet, who had once even fallen asleep cuddling the bear. Johnson had told Cody to keep that part “their little secret," blushing deeply as he did so. Cody truly did think that he was a handsome man, loving his dark spiked hair and rough stubble. The thoughts the bear had about Johnson were strange, but he didn't mind. Cody was relaxed, more than content with his new life.
Cody looked around in confusion when he woke up. “Hello?" the bear said, examining his surroundings. Behind him, a lion and polar bear stirred. The lion opened its eyes and stared at the large bear. Cody recalled seeing the lion. Michael? he thought. “Another bear?" Michael asked, rolling his eyes. The polar bear was still sleeping, the lion laying on him smiled softly, his eyes moving to a sign above Cody's head. “The Petting Zoo".