Cy sat at the dinner table, drumming his fingers on the table.  He was always nervous about blind dates, and his cousin had warned him that she was a bit...well, she had baggage.  But Cy was ready.  He scanned the restaurant, wondering where his date was.

"Evertide, here to meet Cy?" a quiet female voice spoke from behind him.  An anthro blink dog was speaking with the host.  She looked a bit timid, her posture a little drooped.

Cy stood up, twitching his tail excitedly and giving a big collie grin.  "That'd be me, ma'am!"  He offered his right hand.  "I'm Cy.  Cy Fur."  He gave a bit of a sheepish grin.  "My parents had a sick sense of humor."

The blink dog looked over and smiled, walking over.  Now that she wasn't hidden by the counter, Cy could see that she did indeed have a fair bit of baggage: she was pregnant, her stomach rounded with what looked like a woman in her seventh month.  She shyly extended her hand.  "Pleasure to meet you, Cy.  I hope we can have a nice evening together," she said.

He smiled at her, wagging his tail more.  He loved pregnancy, and he wasn't going to make a complete idiot of himself.  "Ready to have the best spaghetti since the beginning of time?"  He grinned widely.  "The chef is from Italy, so she knows spaghetti!"  He led the blink dog to their table.

The woman's posture immediately improved, her ears perking up and her tail wagging.  She had clearly been terrified her date would leave right then.  "I can't wait!" she chirped as she walked.

"I also recommend the garlic bread.  I love garlic bread.  And now I'm babbling.  I'm sorry."  He drew her chair back.  "Please, please, sit.  I always get sore when I've got a lot on my back, and I only carry my backpack!"

She chuckled and rested a hand on her stomach as she sat down.  "Such a gentleman.  I know everything about sore backs," she replied.

He smiled a bit wider.  "This is going to sound like such a come on, but I give a really good backrub."  He held out his hands, wriggling the fingers.  "I would be happy to help.  My cousin is a massage therapist, and she uses me as a guinea pig, so I learned a few tricks."

"Ohh, that would be wonderful."  She smiled warmly up at her date and gestured for her to sit down.  "Hope you don't mind, but I came hungry.  Well, I always come hungry," she said, scratching the back of her head.

Cy sat down and grinned.  "I know the feeling.  Plus, yer eatin' for two!"  He blushed a bit.  "Well!  Um, what d'ye want?  I like the lasagna, and the spaghetti, and the chicken parm...."

Evertide blushed a little and looked away.  "...Three, actually..." she trailed off.  "I'm only five months."

"Well, all the more reason to enjoy yerself with lots of good food!"  He offered her a menu.  "When my sister was pregnant, I went to the best restaurants.  All right, she IS a restaurant critic, but still...."

Her smile returned full force as she accepted the menu.  "You're so sweet.  All my other dates were just, 'No way!'"

He blushed.  "I, er, love pregnant chicks.  I think they're...very pretty."  He offered her a garlic roll, dipped in olive oil.

Her brown eyes went wide open at that.  "You...what...?" she asked incredulously.

Cy blushed.  "That is, I know not to put my foot in my mouth.  Only not so much, because I tend to put my foot in my mouth anyway and I'm just gonna be quiet now...."  He put a garlic roll into his mouth.

She stared at him for a few seconds before she slowly nodded and took her own garlic roll, clearly stunned by his confession.  "I see...."

His ears drooped as he looked away.  "I'm sorry.  I'm screwing this up.  I'm sorry...."

Evertide smiled down at her plate, her hand on her stomach again.  "It's okay...that's...the nicest thing someone's said about me in a while," she said.

He looked up, startled.  "What?  No way!  Yer so pretty, they gotta be sayin' nice stuff about ye all the time!"

"I don't know if you know, but for all the progress that's been made, pregnant women are still labeled as off-limits by the general public.  Figure, she's got a bun in the oven, someone must be in her life."  She looked aside.  "Most do."

He reached out for her hand, a bit shyly.  "I think yer beautiful," he whispered.

She moved her free hand to let him take it.  "You're a good guy, then."

Cy squeezed it, and then took his hand back.  "All right, let's order!"  He smiled at the waiter.  "Hello, Angelo!  How are ye on this fine evening?"

"Very good, Mister Cy.  Now, what can I get for ye and yer beeee-u-tiful lady?" the Italian greyhound replied.

"I'll have the lasagna, please," he replied.

"And I'll have, um...the spaghetti and meatballs, and an order of garlic bread, please," Evertide said.

"Goood choice!  Might I recommend the lemonade iced tea?"  After the pregnant blink dog nodded, the greyhound smiled at the two of them and walked off.

Cy leaned forward.  "If I can talk ye into the gelato, I believe ye might have the best Italian meal of yer life."

She cocked her head.  "The gelato?  What's that?" she asked.

"It's like ice cream, but creamier."  He grinned.  "I can promise ye that if we keep dating, we might end up hitting all of the good restaurants in town."  He paused.  "Except for Indian, cuz I know ye'll get really bad heartburn, and I actually enjoy having my taste buds not burnt off."

She giggled at him, sipping her water.  "My my, quite a charmer, you are.  The question is will you still like me when I don't have this anymore?" she asked with a smile, patting her tummy.

He nodded.  "Of course!  Then we can have a pair of budding gourmets!"

Ever looked down at her tummy.  "Won't that be nice...well, you'd probably have to come to me, since, well, newborns and all," she said.

He nodded.  "Well, I love to play with little ones.  I love children."  He smiled and took out his wallet, showing pictures.  "These are all of my nieces and nephews.  So I have some experience!"

"Haha, now let's not get ahead of ourselves, it's only the first date," she teased, then squirmed a little.  "Mmf...s'cuse me, gotta go to the ladies' room."  She offered her hands.  "Be a friend?"

He giggled a bit.  "But of course.  Every parent needs a big guy to wear the minis out."

"I mean, help me up?"

"Oh."  He took her hands, lifting her up.  "But of course...."

"Oofda...twins are hard on a girl," she said, rubbing her back as she made her way to the bathroom.  As she walked, she decided to give him something to look at, intentionally waddling a bit more than usual.  He stared, tongue lolling out.  He even drooled a bit before sitting down.

As the dinner date progressed, Cy and Evertide traded small talk and stories.  Cy eventually coaxed Evertide's story out of her.  After she had confessed some sort of secret to her old boyfriend after they first had sex, he hadn't handled it as well as she would have liked, so they agreed to separate.  It was only after that she found out she was pregnant.  The two of them agreed they wouldn't work if this was how he felt, and while he promised to pay child support, she had resigned herself to the fact that she was going to be a single mom.  Cy nodded and shook his head at the right moments.

Over gelato, he offered her a second date.  "If ye ever need someone to talk to, ye kin talk to me..." he promised.

The blink dog smiled and nodded.  "I think I would like that very much."  She took a cocktail napkin and fished around in her purse for a pen.

Cy smiled back.  "Would ye like some more dessert?  This place has good gelato, but I'm more in the mood for this really good ice cream place...."

Evertide scribbled her phone number on the napkin and handed it to Cy.  "Okay.  I'd love some cheesecake...with strawberries!" she said cheerfully.  "Of course, it goes to my hips, but...."

He smiled, widely.  "I could take ye to a nice bakery tomorrow, maybe.  Um, that is, if ye'd like...."

She smiled shyly.  "I'm afraid I'm busy tomorrow."  She looked around for their waiter.

He lifted his hand up to signal the waiter.  "How about Friday?  If the weather stays good, we can maybe go on a picnic?"  He blushed a bit.  "I know a place that does really god sammiches...."

"Friday...okay, we'll keep in touch through your cousin if you don't mind."  She looked up at their server and smiled.  "Um, I would like a piece of strawberry cheesecake, please."

"Certainly, madam.  For fifty cents more, there is fresh whipped cream."  Cy grinned and ordered himself some crème brulee.

"That'd be great, thank you!" she said.



That Friday, Evertide waited in the park a bit nervously.  She was always a little shy around new people, especially when she was out alone with how pregnant she was, so she carried her cell phone as well as mace in her purse.  She looked down at her feet as she sat on a bench, straightening her college sweater out.

Cy walked towards her, wearing a pair of jeans and a big floppy sweatshirt.  "Hiya!  I'm sorry I'm so late!"  He smiled, a bit shyly.  "How ye doin'?  Ye look beautiful today, as usual!"

She smiled up at him, her tail wagging.  "Thank you...hope you don't mind my ugly clothes, but I was kind of tired and took a nap before I came."  She offered a hand.

He smiled.  "I think ye look beautiful."  He offered a hand to help her stand up.  "Now, ready for a cruise around the island?"

"Hup!" she grunted as he helped her up.  "That would be wonderful," she said, linking an arm in his.

He smiled and shyly kissed her on the cheek.  "Come.  Let us go and look at the duckies.  And geese.  And that very strange species that are tourists."  She blushed and discreetly rubbed her cheek, instinctively walking a little closer to him.  Darn pups made her affection quota high.  He put an arm around her shoulders.  "There are several subspecies of the genus tourist...."  The collie was taking on a slightly lecturing tone.  "Can ye spot any of them?"

The blink dog looked around.  "Um...the cowboy," she began, pointing at a coyote wearing an annoying cowboy hat.

He nodded.  "Good job."  He gestured lightly with his head.  "That is a prime example of tourista orienta...."  He intoned, motioning towards a pair of nervous looking Japanese bobtails.  They were wearing cameras and baseball caps.

"Tickets, please!" called the captain.

Ever looked at the captain, then up at the sign over the boat.  "We still have a few minutes...aww, look, baby duckies!" she cooed, immediately moving towards a small family of ducks.

"Aww."  Cy took out a bag of stale bread.  "C'mon, duckies."  He smiled as Ever knelt near the shore, and then raised an eyebrow at her reflection.  He could swear he saw...no, it was just a trick of the light.  "Baby duckies are always so cute and yellow."

"I know!  And fuzzy!  And they make cute noises!"  She rubbed her tummy.  "Kinda like blinkie dog pups," she mused, taking some of the bread and tossing it to the ducks, which gobbled it up.

He nodded.  "Or other pups..." he trailed off, tossing the duckies some more bread.  "Want some bread?"

Ever blinked, freezing for a moment, and tossed a little more bread before hefting herself up.  "Mm...well, maybe we should go."

He helped her up the gangplank.  "How many d'ye have in there again?"

Ever looked at him with a cocked head.  "Two, remember?"  She put both palms on opposite sides of her tummy.

Cy smiled.  "May I feel?"  He handed the captain the two tickets.  "Okay.  Ready to see some more boidies*?"

She looked at the captain, then back at Cy.  "Make up your mind," she said a little impatiently.

"Hm?"  The two of them headed towards the benches on the bow of the ship.

"One sentence you ask to feel, the next you're talking about...birds, I think," she continued.

He grinned.  "I have a strange attention span."  He sat down, offering her a seat closer to the railing.

Ever nodded.  "I guess."  She sat next to him, sighing happily.  "I dunno if I'm cut out for twins...I mean, they's heavy."

He grinned a bit. "When my sister was pregnant, she made me give her backrubs every day.  Sometimes more than once a day.  If ye need me for anything, I'm yer man."  He grinned, placing his hand along her belly.  "Ooh!  A kick!"

"Mm," she merfed, a little upset that he had felt her belly without her saying so but trying not to show it.  "Yeah, they like moving."

"Sorry."  He took his hand back, looking over the rail.  "Look!  A family of swans!"  The ungainly little cygnets** were paddling happily after their two regal parents, close enough to the boat that they could be fed.

"Hm?"  Ever turned to look as well, perking up right away and hoisting herself up, leaning over the railing a little to crane her neck.  "How pretty...."

Cy smiled, and then stared at her reflection.  So...he wasn't seeing things.  "Um..."  He muttered.  "Uh..."  He bit his lip, staring at the creature standing next to him in the water's reflection.  "D-d-d-dye like geese or swans better?"

She started to turn back to look at him.  "What's your- wha?"  She paused at seeing her reflection, flinching.  "Oh no...ohno...."

"What?"  He moved to take her in a gentle hug, slowly so as not to frighten her.  "Please, don't worry...."

"I'm sorry."  She wriggled to escape his arms, scurrying into the ship.

He followed her.  "Wait!  Come back!"  She wormed through the people on board...as well as a second-trimester-with-twins blink dog could...and shut herself in a bathroom.  He sighed, leaning against the door.  "Ever...."

"*sniff* Go away...I'm sorry I didn't tell you, but...yeah, I'm a split fursona," she whined from inside.

Cy shrugged. "And I'm purebred***."

She was quiet at that save for a little sniffling.  "...Really?"

"Yep.  I'm from the Sapphire Kennel.  Ye know, the one that got caught in that cult...it was my brother who was the one caught buggering his four teen and preteen wives, one of whom is also our cousin."

Ever was quiet again, this time for much longer.  Understandable, really, given what Cy had just told her.

"So compared to me, yer family is probably pretty normal.  Now come on out and let's go feed the duckies and later I can take ye to my house and I'll cook for ye and we can watch bad movies."

She unlocked the door.  "Would you...come in...just for a second, please?"  He came in, smiling a bit nervously.  She was sitting on the toilet seat, looking up at him with tear stains running down her cheeks.  "My friends tell me I'm far too trusting for my own good...but I'll trust you if you'll trust me."  She motioned with her head to look in the mirror: sitting on the toilet in the mirror was an anthro displacer beast wearing Ever's clothing, which looked a bit small on her given that she was a few inches taller than the blink dog in front of the real Cy.

He looked in the mirror and smiled.  "Yer taller than me as a displacer," he said, offering her his handkerchief.

She accepted it and wiped her eyes, then blew her nose on it.  Sighing, she handed it back.  "You're...nicer than my other dates in that regard, that's for sure."

He refolded it and placed it in his pocket.  "Then yer other dates were weenies."

Ever chuckled despite herself.  Then she leaned back against the wall of the bathroom and lifted her shirt, showing her rounded, furry tummy.  "You can feel if you want to."

He leaned forward.  "Hi, guys..." he whispered, gently stroking her with his big hand, "ye have a nice mama."

Both puppies wriggled a little, causing Ever to blush and murr.  "One who isn't going to be lonely, now."



* Boidies = birdies.
** Cygnet: Young swan.
*** borderpuppy: [in the furry world, pure bred are looked down on, as they are inbred as all hell sometimes]
Si M: [Ah.]
borderpuppy: [they're also considered overly snooty]