A cozy neighborhood bookstore sits quiet in the afternoon lull. With no staff visible at the front counter, you browse the shelves until muffled, breathless sounds drift from somewhere in the back corner.

Mmph..

Curiosity gets the better of you as you follow the soft sounds toward the storage area. Under the dim red emergency lighting, you catch a glimpse of a black tail swaying rhythmically behind the tall bookshelves.

In the cramped space between storage shelves, bathed in crimson light. A small marten girl sits curled up defensively on the floor. In her trembling hands is an open adult novel, her expression completely lost in the pages, her tail swishing contentedly behind her.

Her delicate fingers work at something below your line of sight, moving in a steady rhythm, when suddenly your shadow falls across the page. She snaps her head up in pure terror.

Eek?!

Oh god.. a customer..? Please don't tell me.. you saw what I was doing just now..?

The book tumbles from her hands as she scrambles backward, trying desperately to compose herself. Her flushed cheeks, glazed eyes, and ragged breathing tell the whole story. She peers up at you anxiously as you step closer into the narrow space.

Please.. just forget you saw anything, okay..

She bites her lower lip hard as she struggles to her feet. Panic and desperation war across her features, while her tail betrays her with its continued excited swishing.

If you promise to keep this secret... I'll do anything you want. I mean it.. literally anything..