[b]The Five Fox Challenge[/b]
 
The fox yawned as he trotted into the fairground, his thick fluffy tail swishing proudly through the air behind him. Had it really been a year since he was last here, moving through the tents and banners as the guest of honour of this dingy event. He stopped to inspect the pen, people were already gathering to see him. He lowered his front and gave them a big swooping wave of his tail, discreetly shaking his butt at them at the same time. He got a few wolf whistles and laughs, and with a playful kick of his hind leg to kick up some dust he slipped into the Five Fox Challenge tent.
 
The challenge was deceptively simple. A predator would enter the ring and eat their way through five feral foxes chained together. If they could swallow all five whole in under five minutes, they’d win a grand prize. Of course, the foxes who were eaten were doomed to a horrible fate regardless of whether the predator succeeded or failed, but the ones who remained uneaten would get a cash prize of their own; one large enough to tempt even the most intelligent foxes to risk their tails in the contest.
 
Brushtail had made quite a name for himself since his first encounter with the event. He had started as a humble, timid forest fox risking his life to live in the anthro city. After realising how few predators could reach the higher numbers, he began to find ways to trick the other foxes into giving him the fifth collar, and given the turnover rate of contestants it wasn’t as though anyone was around to call him out on his tricks in the past. Now he trotted proudly through the fairground as its hero; the untouchable Fox #5, with his thick beautiful tail and suave personality.
 
It hadn’t been about the money for a while, now Brushtail only entered the contests for the fame. Everyone loved a guy who lived in danger, and there were few things more dangerous than willingly being tied up to be a potential meal for a hungry predator. Of course, he was never really in any danger; Most predators were full by their third fox, with some particularly gluttonous ones reaching fourth. All he had to do was be Fox #5 and he’d always get the payout, sure it was smaller than the 1st or 2nd position prizes, but it was enough for him to live in the anthro city, throwing wild parties and charming anthro ladies with his confident feral strut.
 
It was the same strut he used to approach the four foxes gathered in the tent. “Hey folks, bright-eyed and bushy tailed, are we? Everyone got their affairs in order?” He teased with a swish of his tail as he joined the table. “Last chance to drop out, this isn’t for those with a weak stomach… well, unless they’re the pred of course, am I right?” he nudged the snow white vixen next to him with his paw, leaving her blushing and giggling bashfully into her tail. “She knows what I’m talking about, I get the feeling you’re gonna make it, lil lady~”
 
“Gosh, I hope so~” she murred as she ran her paws over her tail. “Oh, but wouldn’t it be exciting if I almost didn’t~?”
 
“I was wondering when you were going to show up. It’s not exactly a five fox challenge if there’s only four of us,” The smallest yipped at him, breaking his attention away from the pretty vixen. “But now that we’re all here, we can pick our collars,” he raised his snout high, his forepaw hovering on the edge of the table. The other three quickly followed suit, their eyes on him as they awaited his command. “On the count of three, everyone grab one. What you get is what you get.”
 
“Woah, woah, woah, friend! Do you want to lose your fur before you even enter the ring?” Brushtail gasped, his paw pressed to his fluffy chest in a show of humility. The remaining foxes stared at each other in alarm, and then glared down at the smaller fox. How quickly they turned on him at the slightest challenge This was going to be fun~
 
“Now, I’ve been doing this show for a long time, and we have rules we follow.” Brushtail spoke up, putting his forepaws on the table and standing on his hind paws to raise himself above most of the others at the table. “We have ways of deciding who gets what without fighting for the high numbers.”
 
“O-oh, well if there are rules already, we should follow those, right?” The hulking tod next to him blinked slowly. “I wouldn’t want to get in trouble or anything…” Brushtail stared up at the fox in awe, since when were ferals that big?! …still, he’d make a perfect last-minute hurdle. Brushtail’s muzzle spread with a cunning grin as he looked back at the others.
 
“You do realise we’re about to be put into a ring with a hungry predator, right?” The tall vixen sitting across the table looked up at him. “I think breaking some rules is the least of our concerns right now.”
 
“Now now, these aren’t just rules, they’re traditions, passed from one generation of rodeo foxes to the next,” Brushtail lied as he sat up, his chest puffing out. “We do this to honour those who were eaten so we could have this chance, so their sacrifices to get us feral foxes a shitload of money weren’t in vain.” He nodded firmly, “They were eaten so the rest of us could have a chance at living alongside anthros in big city apartments, rather than wandering the woods looking for shelter from storms or…” he shuddered, “Being a [I]pet[/I].”
 
"It's so weird some ferals do that," the large fox shuddered in turn. "I'd never let anyone trick me into living like some dumb animal. I'm way too smart for that."
 
"Yes you are," Brushtail replied, barely keeping a straight face as he wrapped his tail around the fox's side. "So let's do this, for the fallen foxes who came before us."
 
The fox nodded in firm agreement, determination burning in his eyes as he put a decisive paw down on the table, heavy enough to cause the metal collars to clatter. Brushtail smirked as he turned away to face the others; One down, four to go.
 
“Mmh, I can imagine there’ve been a lot that’ve come before us…” a snow white fox across from him squirmed, her forepaws digging at the ground as she stared down at the five numbered collars on the table. “W-wow, I can’t believe we’re about to do this…”
 
[I]‘Oh good, we’ve got a horndog.’[/I] Brushtail grinned to himself as he stared at the horny vixen. Horny, that was an easy enough name to remember. Following that logic he glanced at the fox next to him, his eyes drifting to his gut. [I]‘Okay, so Fatso is gonna be my 2, hopefully Horny will be somewhere near the back… now I just have to figure out how to get these other two to fall in line…’[/I] He thought to himself as he stared across the table at the tiny Runt and the tall vixen.
 
“So, what’re these ‘rules’ you’re so insistent on us following?” Runt snapped, his paws inching towards the number five collar. “Because I figured it should be first come, first served. And you were the last to arrive, so…”
 
“No, no, that won’t do. There’s only one fair way to make sure we don’t settle this with greed.” Brushtail shook his head at the small fox. “We will each take a collar we want to give to the fox sitting next to us, that way it’ll be fair because we can’t choose our own.” He picked up the four collar and handed it to Fatso to demonstrate. “Here, I want you to be number 4.”
 
“W-wow, four?!” Fatso gawked at the shiny silver collar. He took it with his forepaws and clasped it around his neck, locking it with a click. Now only an anthro with thumbs would be able to remove it. “Th-that was so generous of you.. Uh…” the fox’s fat paw fumbled around the collars and finally picked the fifth collar. “Here, you can be five.”
 
“What the hell, that’s not fair!” The tiny fox snarled. “You just tricked him into giving you the last position!”
 
“Now now, Fats- err, my friend here, chose freely. I haven’t known him long, but I can tell he’s way too bright to be outfoxed by the likes of me,” Brushtail grinned up at his dim-witted friend as he secured the number five collar around his neck. “Now, we can either sit and bicker about right and wrong, then get an anthro to come over here and take our collars off… or you three can decide who gets to be number 3.” He swished his tail poignantly, “you know, some call it ‘the last safe spot’.”
 
“Ugh, fine…” Runt grunted as he picked up the two collar. “Hey, you. You get to be number 2.” He shoved it to the taller vixen next to him. “You’re welcome, I’ll be taking that three now.”
 
“As if, you can be Fox #1.” The vixen chuckled as she secured her own collar with her paws and used her tail to sweep the one collar over to the fox. “Sorry dude, but if you’re getting me ate, you’re going down with me,” she smiled as she ran her paw over the smooth surface of the collar tag. “Though I’ve got to say, if I win this thing, I’m gonna have to thank you for making me rich.”
 
[I]‘Guess she’s here for the money,’[/I] Brushtail grinned at the coy vixen. [I]‘Think I'll call her ‘Cash.’..’[/I]
 
“Th-that’s not fair!” Runt snapped, his tail lashing as he held the collar in his paws, glaring down at the bold number 1 in the middle of it. “W-we need to do it again, that fluffy-tailed asshole is tricking you all!”
 
“What are you talking about? I’m happy with my four.” Fatso tilted his head in confusion.
 
“And you’re the one who gave me a 2, not Brushtail,” Cash agreed as she glared daggers at Runt. “I ought to eat you myself for that, but then I’d be the one in the first position.”
 
“B-But…” Runt stuttered as he glanced around the table, then finally made eye contact with Brushtail. The fox grinned and waved with his tail, [I]‘Checkmate, loser~’[/I]
 
“Number three is perfect for me,” Horny murred as she picked up the remaining collar and put it on before Runt had a chance to stop her. “S-so close to danger, but I might still get out… and he has to spit me out if he can’t finish all of me, right?” she huffed, her tail thumping against the floor. “H-how exciting…”
 
“Yep, that’s right. Remember folks, the goal is to stay outside the pred for as long as you can,” Brushtail replied, forcing his way into leadership as all the foxes but Runt stared at him in admiration. “Even a single paw out of the jaws is enough for them to have to forfeit and hock you back up, but if you’re gulped, you’re gone.” He grinned and shrugged his shoulders, “And hey, when your goose is cooked, maybe don’t pull the chain? It’s a little disrespectful for all us foxes who’re still on the outside. Just sit tight and wait for nature to takes its course~”
 
Horny was squirming bashfully and Fatso was nodding as if he was forcing his tiny brain to remember it all. They were putty in his paws, but Cash and Runt still weren’t convinced. “Now, it’s true that the more foxes survive, the more prize money goes down the chain. If all of us make it, Shorty here might be a millionaire and the rest of us would go home empty-pawed..” he winked at Runt condescendingly. “Hell, if the pretty lady next to him wins, she could still move out of that dingy forest and into a nice place in the city.”
 
“Ugh, I’m so tired of living in the forest, especially now that it’s the rainy season.” Cash murred as she fluffed her tail, “I’m going to buy myself a big apartment and a spa day. You’re all welcome to visit, of course,” She smiled down at Runt, “Of course, not all of us will be there~”
 
“Maybe I’ll just have to pull the rug out from under you and win the entire pot myself,” Runt growled. “I’ve been practicing my escape techniques, I’ll be out of those bindings in no time. The pred won’t even get a single gulp on me.”
 
“Ooooh, lil Houdini over here!” Brushtail grinned, struggling not to laugh at the incredulous chances of the fox escaping his bindings, let alone the predator. Still, Houdini was a better name than ‘Runt’, at least for the short amount of time he’d be forced to spend with the doomed fox. “Well, anything’s possible,” he lied, “Good luck!”
 
“I am going to buy your apartment just to demolish it, you’ll be back to eating rats and running from predators in the forest in no time, Brushtail.” Houdini glared at him.
 
“Mmh, well we’ll see.” Brushtail replied as he stood up and made his way around the table, slapping Houdini’s face with his thick fluffy tail as he walked by. “Come on, let’s go tell the handlers what we’ve decided so they can get us chained up.”
 
“I wonder who the predator will be,” Horny thought out loud as she stood up to follow him.
 
“We won’t know until we’re chained up in the ring,” Brushtail replied, his tail swinging high behind him as he led the foxes to their doom, and his profit. ‘Probably some eyes-bigger-than-belly rube who can barely stomach a single feral.’ he thought as he walked along to the back of the tent.
 
* * *
 
“Welcome one and all to the Annual FIve Fox Challenge!” The announcer called, signaling for the foxes to enter the ring. Brushtail walked with his head and tail held high, marching proudly as he pulled the chain on his tail attached to the collar of the fat fox behind him. “It looks like Brushtail is back for another year, ready to take home that prize money for the seventh year in a row! Or is this the year he finally meets his match?”
 
“Not bloody likely,” Brushtail grinned to himself as he continued to trot along, a little skip in his step as he circled the ring with the other foxes in tow. So many of his fans had come out to support him, he couldn’t help but bask in the glory of being so widely admired. The anthros reached over the barrier as he got close, their hands petting his ears and brushing his tail. He closed his eyes, reveling in the attention and praise that came with being a local celebrity.
 
‘So fluffy!’
‘What a handsome boy!’
‘Such a cutie, hope he makes it~’
 
“Can I get a kiss for good luck, ladies?” He grinned as he used his forepaws to prop himself up on the railing. A tall anthro fox leaned down and smooched him between the ears and gave him a playful scratch under the chin. “Mmmh, Oakvale Road, Flat 275. You bring the belly rubs, I’ll bring the beer.” he murred, much to the anthro’s surprise. He pushed off the railing and kept trotting before he could say no, passing by the announcer’s table as he continued his loop of the ring. He stopped to shake his butt at the canine, one of his hind legs lifting. “Hey Stu, still stuck in your crappy office job?”
 
“Better than getting eaten by a snake,” The announcer muttered, his hand covering the microphone as he glared down at him. “This is the year, you fluffy little shit. I can feel it.”
 
“I’ve got something else for you to feel,” the cheeky fox lifted his leg a little higher, only to feel Fatso bump into his backside. Brushtail quickly stumbled to regain his footing, then glared over his shoulder and slapped his tail across the fox’s face. “Ack, watch where you’re going!”
 
“You’re supposed to keep walking!” Fatso hissed at him as he gave his tail a quick nip.
 
“I’m having a conversation with my loser friend,” Brushtail replied only to glance back up at the announcer. “Enjoy the show, Stu. Watch me make in an hour what you make in a year~” he swished his tail before continuing to march.
 
“The Five Fox Challenge Foxes, ladies and gentlemen!” The announcer raised his voice to break the long silence from covering his microphone. The audience clapped and cheered as the foxes finally stopped in their starting positions. Several handlers stepped into the ring and began binding the other foxes, though being in the fifth position Brushtail got to just sit there and look pretty for his fans. “To prevent any early escapes, Fox 1 will have all four paws tied together. Fox 2 will have hindpaw restraints and a gag, fox number 3 will only have hindpaw restraints, and Fox 4 will have an apple gag.” He continued as the handlers continued to restrain the feral foxes. “And for the final hurdle, fox five won’t be restrained at all!” Stu glared down at him, “If he can keep his smart-aleck muzzle shut.” he added quietly.
 
“Aww, you love my banter really,” Brushtail blinked adoringly up at him as he stretched out as though he were getting ready to take a nap. He could see Houdini already working on getting out of his restraints, and he could smell how excited Horny was from his position. Fatso ate the first apple they shoved in his jaws, so they followed it up with a second. “So, you said it was a snake today, huh? Lil garden hose going to conquer the five fox challenge?” he grinned.
 
The predator’s tent rustled as the flaps were unfastened, gradually opened by two handlers who stood far back to reveal the ominous darkness that laid within. The serpent’s broad head gradually emerged from the shadows; green with bright blonde hair resting on its head. It continued to slither out, foot after foot of thick heavy coils. Brushtail stared in awe at the size of the feral snake, and glanced up at the announcer. The announcer smiled and took a long sip of his bottled water. “Introducing today’s challenger, FT, the Fox-Devouring Snake!”
 
Brushtail felt a wet tongue flicker against the white fluffy fur of his cheek, and he turned to see the serpent looming over him, casting a shadow with its body. “Mmmh, what a tasty little appetizer. I’m going to enjoy this~”
 
The fox’s fur stood on end as the snake’s jaws parted before him, opening like a vast dark chasm into his doom. He couldn’t speak, all he could do was whimper nervously and stare into the void. “B-b-b-b-b-but–” he stammered. “N-n-no, I’m s-s-supposed to be…” …untouchable, position 5 was meant to be a sure thing! Why wasn’t anyone saying anything?!
 
“Mmmh, bye bye, ‘Brunch’tail~” The snake slurped over his face and exhaled hot, steamy breath over his snout before gradually bringing his maw closer to the fox’s trembling ears. “Time for you to finally retire~”
 
“Hey, you start at the other end,” A handler said, causing the snake to swivel his head over to the bound fox on the other side of the ring. “Start at 1, work your way up to five.” The anthro repeated with a broad gesture around the circle from Houdini all the way to Brushtail. “Get going, we’re running late as it is.”
 
“Y-yeah, I’m not the appetiser, you’re supposed to eat me last,” Brushtail flicked his tail, his ears flattening as he gestured to Houdini. “Go eat that scrawny twerp, see if you’ve still got the stomach for me when you’re done.”
 
“Oh, I absolutely will! I’ve been waiting a long time for this. See you in five bites, dessert~” FT hissed down at Brushtail before slithering away. The proud fox was still recovering from his close encounter with the food chain as the handler attached the rope from his collar to the peg, preventing him from escaping. His ears twitched as he heard something; two anthro women giggling to themselves.
 
‘Look at his fur, it’s all fluffed out!’
‘So much for being fearless.’
‘Why’s he being such a scaredy-cat? I thought he’s meant to be a big shot.’
 
Brushtail narrowed his eyes and stood up, “Y-yeah! You better run!” he shouted after FT, determined to regain his clout. How dare the snake make him look weak in front of his fans? He was going to showboat harder than ever to show them all how little chance the predator had of laying one fang on him!
 
WIth FT in place, the contest could finally start. The claxon blared and the crowd began to cheer as FT worked his jaws up the starting chain towards the squirming scrap of a fox, still struggling to escape his restraints before the predator could reach him.
 
“One foot of chain each, each fox is about 3ft from snout to tail, plus an extra half a foot for my tail,” Brushtail muttered, doing some quick mental math as he watched the snake slither its way up the chain, each gulp dragging Houdini back towards his jaws. “So that’s… that’s like 20ft of food to get through before he even reaches me. That’ll be enough, right?” the fox nodded to himself, “Yeah, nothing to worry about. Just have to sit back and enjoy the show, play up the fans and get as many of these dimwits eaten as possible so I get a big bonus.”
 
FT’s jaws reached Houdini’s tail and bit down on it, marking the first checkpoint in the long feast ahead of him. The fox squirmed and thrashed in his bindings, the muzzle on his snout muffling his indignant yells. He wiggled his hips, his hind paws rubbing rapidly together as if he thought the friction could break his bindings. Whether it did or didn’t wasn’t for the audience to find out; the snake guzzled down the fox’s hind legs and rapidly continued his ascent up his body, slurping and hissing in delight at his flavour.
 
“Sucks to be you, first-placer,” Brushtail grinned as he casually laid down and started to groom himself, getting a few chuckles from the crowd at his blasé attitude. It was good to have them back on his side, and even better to see the fox who had given him so much trouble earlier disappear into the hungry jaws of the serpent challenger.
 
It wasn’t long before FT had reached the fox’s shoulders, his forked tongue curling up from under his chest to wrap around his muzzle. Houdini wriggled his forepaws frantically, panic in his eyes as he gradually sunk back into the slick, warm embrace of the hungry predator’s throat. His eyes lit up as he managed to get one paw free, only for FT to toss his head back, dragging the rest of his upper body into his long slender form in a single gulp.
 
“One fox down, four to go! Will this predator reach the end of the chain?” The announcer called, getting a cheer from the crowd as the snake continued gulping his way up the chain towards Cash.
 
“Yeah FT, are you gonna have dessert or are you going home after the main course?” Brushtail joined in with a grin, raising his hindquarters and shaking his thick bushy tail in the air. The snake narrowed his eyes on him and took a pronounced heavy gulp as his response. [i]‘He’ll never make it,’[/i] Brushtail thought as he maintained eye contact with the snake, his ass held proudly in the air. [i]‘Enjoy filling up on losers, you’ll never get a taste of my tail.’[/i]
 
A wolf whistle from the crowd caught Brushtail’s attention and he turned to pick the source from the crowd; a tall blonde-furred anthro fox. He grinned and gave it another couple of shakes before trotting towards the barrier to flirt with her, only to feel the sharp tug of the chain pulling him back into his position. “Later, baby. I’ve got a challenge to win,” he reassured her with a sensual swoosh of his tail. She giggled bashfully as he turned to return to his spot on the grass, laying down to watch as FT slurped on the soft tip of Cash’s tail.
 
The crowd cheered as the serpent made his way up the vixen’s tail in a few short gulps, the last slurping her butt back into his jaws. She let out a muffled yell of surprise, her forepaws scrabbling at the grass to escape. She eventually started to pull the chain, dragging Horny back towards her, though Fatso kept himself and by extension Brushtail anchored in place by digging his paws into the ground.
 
“Looks like we’ve got a climber, folks! Will she be able to squirm her way back out of the snake, or is she just dragging her fellow foxes to their demise?” The announcer called out, getting another cheer from the crowd. The vixen pulled desperately, her blue eyes widening as the snake’s jaws rose to her midsection, then her upper body.
 
Brushtail felt a pang of guilt tricking the others into giving her such a low number, but he knew she would have done the same to him given the opportunity. He instead turned his gaze to Horny, who was staring wide-eyed and blushing under her fur as she watched the vixen behind her gradually get turned into nothing more than a lump in the snake’s throat. FT seemed to notice her excitement, leading him to raise up his body until she could see the bulge of the vixen’s body trailing down his underbelly. WIth a gulp he closed his jaws around Cash’s head, leaving the bulge gradually moving down; other than for the occasional squirm that held her in place for a moment before another gulp sent her on her way.
 
The snake breathed out a sigh of relief once his throat was cleared of the vixen and patted his gut, his jaws opening in a silent belch as he looked down at the snow white fox ahead of him. “I just loooove foxes~” he drooled, his yellow eyes slowly scanning the stadium until he made eye contact with Brushtail. “Especially boy foxes with big bushy tails~”
 
“Let’s see if your appetite will last another two courses!” Brushtail shot back with a confident smirk and a swish of his tail. The crowd let out another cheer as FT returned to laying on the grass and gulping up the chain that led towards his next prize.
 
“Two down, three to go! We’ve seen a lot of hungry predators over the years, but I’ve got a good feeling about this one, ladies and gentlemen!” The announcer called out, only to narrow his eyes at Brushtail. “A [i]very[/i] good feeling.”
 
“Maybe if you ask him nicely he’ll eat you after the show,” Brushtail winked back at him as he playfully stuck his tongue out. He could feel his confidence rising as the crowds cheering overpowered his worries or concerns. This was his show, there was no way he was going to lose to some nobody snake from the woods!
 
He looked back to check on FTs progress and saw Horny was already squirming in anticipation, knowing it was finally her time to experience her most lurid fantasies. Her fluffy tail swished invitingly to the snake, biting her bottom lip as she looked back at him with her best bedroom eyes. “O-oh no, I guess I’m next~ What am I going to do?” She panted, her forepaws clawing restlessly at the grass while she shook her hips seductively at the serpent.
 
[i]’Oh Horny, you have no idea what you’re in for.’[/i] Brushtail thought as he watched the snake’s jaws part once again to take in her tail, leaving the vixen squirming in ecstasy against the grass. As he looked down FTs body he could see the snake starting to slow with the weight of the two foxes he was dragging along behind him, their individual bulges shifting under his scales as they gradually moved to become one portly lump in his midsection.
 
[i]’He’ll probably stop after this one,’[/i] he thought, catching a glimpse of Fatso. The hefty fox waved at him, smiling broadly around the apple in his muzzle. [i]’I could probably still trick him out of his share of the winnings,’[/i] Brushtail grinned as he waved back to his 'new friend' with a single paw. [i]’Big idiot might be useful to have around next year too. No one could swallow that boulder of a tod and still have room for more…’[/i]
 
The vixen let out another excited moan as the snake finished swallowing up her tail, his tongue slurping between her legs as he advanced up her body. "I-it's so slimy and warm," Horny whimpered, her toes curling in bliss as they entered the snake's maw. FT went slower on this one, slurping over her soft fur and drinking in her flavour with a delighted hiss, making eye contact with Brushtail all the while.
 
"Keep dreaming, you overgrown garden hose," Brushtail muttered under his breath, only to quickly perk up again as he heard another cheer from the crowd. He started to trot around in a circle again, flexing and performing as the snake slurped and drank in the white vixen's delicious flavour. With another gulp he dragged her hind legs in, leaving her digging her paws into the grass to stay in place.
 
"W-wow, you're really going for it. Hff, f-feels like this throat goes on forever," Horny giggled nervously, timid whimpers beginning to emerge from her whines of arousal. She tried to pull herself forward, but FT took a gulp that dragged her back instead. Her slender body was rapidly disappearing into his jaws, and the fox's expression turned to panic. "W-wait, I-I don't know if I want to go all the way yet!"
 
"You didn't think he'd spit you out if you said the safe word, did you?" Brushtail called from across the field. "Look at it this way; you're finally going to see what really happens at the end of all your horny fantasies~" he winked, "And you just made me a little richer~"
 
"Th-that's– this is different, aaah! Help!" She yelped, shaking her paws rapidly to try to get a hold of the slick grass. Her face disappeared behind the tight threshold of FT's throat, her paws flexing and twitching as she tried to hold them out ahead of her. If even one of her paws were outside and he gave up, he'd have to spit her out, right?
 
Gllrk! In an instant those dainty snow white paws were pulled back into the throat, dragging a few inches of the chain that lead to Fatso with them. "Fox 3 is in the bag, folks! Two more to go and FT is going to be slithering home with the grand prize, and a five course foxy meal!"
 
"Yeah, congrats on making it this far. Most preds are full after eating three foxes, no matter how small and skinny they are," Brushtail taunted him with a smirk as he gestured back at Fatso with his tail. "But this is where the real challenge begins, you're going to have to get past Fatso before you can get to me!"
 
"Mmph?" Fatso let out a muffled response to the nickname, his eyes widening in alarm as the snake rapidly gulped his way up the chain towards him. The fox lowered himself to the ground and curled up nervously; a huge fat boulder of fur. Brushtail could see FT's eyes sparkling as he approached that fat rump, drool dripping from his jaws.
 
"Enjoy the main course, if you can even finish it!" Brushtail laughed as the crowd around the pen erupted into a cheer. The fox started showboating again, waving his tail and strutting for the crowd as the snake readied himself to start on his toughest challenge yet. Fatso started to sweat nervously, his teeth digging into the apple enough to pierce its skin and cause the juices to dribble down his white cheek fluff. Brushtail couldn’t see FT, but from Fatso’s sudden squeak he had just started on his tail.
 
“Don’t worry, Fatso. There’s a reason I picked you to be Fox 4, and it wasn’t just so you’d give me the 5th collar,” Brushtail reassured the chubby fox, his tail still high and waving for the crowd as he looked over his shoulder at his nervous dim-witted companion. “There’s no way he’s going to get past your big fat butt, and even if he does he’s going to be way too full to eat me after.”
 
There was a flash of anger in the fat fox’s eyes as he jerked his head back, causing the chain to pull on Brushtail’s tail. Brushtail let out a yelp of pain and narrowed his eyes, tugging at the chain with his tail to try to pull back, but he couldn’t get the hefty fox weighing down the other side to budge. “Don’t trip me up in front of my fans!” he whisper-growled at the tod, “maybe you ought to focus on staying out of the snake’s belly instead of embarrassing me!”
 
Fatso growled around the apple, only for his eyes to widen in alarm as FT came into view around his wide hips. The snake had an expression of ecstasy as he guzzled the fox’s ass down, drool splattering down his prey’s chubby haunches. Fatso wasn’t so pleased; his heavy paws digging at the grass as he tried to drag himself away from the hungry snake who had already taken his tail and hind legs.
 
Now that FT was closer Brushtail could hear how heavy his breathing was. The bulges of the three foxes he had already eaten were clearly weighing him down as they trailed down his long body to settle in the pit of his stomach. Houdini was still squirming and pushing at the walls, and Cash was rapidly batting her forepaws against his sides, leaving clear pawprints pushing out of him. Horny was bouncing left and right, either rubbing herself against the walls or thrashing to escape… either way, it was leaving FT looking tired and queasy even with the delicious mouthful of fox butt in his jaws. He took another wheezing gulp, desperate to at least finish the juicy treat in his maw… but he was slowing to a crawl.
 
“Called it,” Brushtail smirked, sticking out his tongue at the snake. The crowd’s applause and cheering dropped to murmuring amongst themselves. Maybe they just didn’t want to hurt the loser’s feelings, they’d be cheering for Brushtail again in no time once the snake was out of earshot. “Come on judge, call it a loss, he’s clearly done!”
 
“FT has thirty seconds to take another gulp or he’ll be disqualified,” The announcer called out. “It appears that Fox Four might’ve been too big a feast to handle for our hungry competitor. Will FT manage to get over this mountain, or were his eyes too big for his stomach?!”
 
“Awww, no dessert for you, dumb snake~” Brushtail taunted him with a wide swish of his tail, his ass shaking. He even took a couple of steps backwards, as far as the chain would allow to get his rear as close to the snake’s face as possible. “So close too, but it looks like the only place you’ll be tasting my tail is in your dreams.”
 
The snake let out a frustrated hiss, his jaws widening around the fat fox’s midsection… but he made no progress getting him any further down his throat. Fatso let out a sigh of relief, glad to be saved from his impending demise. Brushtail smirked and kicked some grass at the snake with his hind paws before trotting back to his original position, pointedly wiggling his butt and sitting down. [i]’Another year, another victory.’[/i]
 
The announcer started to count down the remaining seconds. FT’s eyes narrowed in determination before closing in bitter defeat, his jaws slack and his belly letting out a pained grumble. Brushtail smirked and turned his back to the snake, just waiting for the final bell to ring.
 
“Don’t give up, FT!”
 
Brushtail perked his ears, his eyes scanning the crowd. Before he could even find the source of the voice another joined the call, and another. Soon the whole crowd was calling out words of encouragement to the snake.
 
“You can do it, don’t give up!”
 
“You’ve come so far! You’re so close to getting the trophy!”
 
“Just get over this fox and the last one will be easy! He’s just a little pipsqueak with a big tail!”
 
“P-Pipsqueak?!” Brushtail’s fur fluffed out. “H-hey! You can’t talk about me like that, don’t you know who I am?!”
 
But no one heard him; the cheering crowd was too loud. Why were they turning on him all of a sudden? Didn’t they know how much danger he was in? As he turned to check on the snake he found him rapidly guzzling down Fatso, his yellow eyes blazing with determination as he swallowed up the fat fox’s chubby gut and rapidly snaked his way towards Brushtail.
 
“Mmphh! Mmmph!” Fatso called, his voice muffled by the apple. The snake’s jaws rose around his neck until finally they were framing his head. He looked back, his green eyes widening in a panic at the sight of his body as nothing more than a bulge in FT’s bottomless throat. FT held him in place with his tongue and started to gulp again, dragging in the chain under him. His eyes weren’t on the fox in his maw; they were on Brushtail.
 
“Looks like he’s just about done with unlucky number four!” The announcer called, causing the crowd to burst into applause as the snake closed the gap between himself and Brushtail’s fat fluffy tail. The fox curled it up against his backside, starting to sweat nervously under his fur as FT’s jaws opened just enough for Fatso to finally slide into his cavernous throat. “But can he make it past the final hurdle and be the first to conquer the Five Fox Challenge?”
 
“F-T! F-T! F-T!” The whole crowd was chanting for the predator! Brushtail couldn’t believe his ears, though he hardly had time to worry about their betrayal right now. FT closed his mouth, lifting his body to take one last gulp of the chubby fox who had provided him with such a filling meal. Brushtail watched with a shudder as the heavy bulge gradually made its way down the snake’s long body, his eyes trailing from it to each bulge of the former foxes in turn.
 
“Aaaaah, satisfying~ I almost want to call it a day,” FT breathed out, his tail curling to pat the boulder-like bulge as it finally joined the others in a single mountainous lump in his belly. His gaze returned to Brushtail with a slurp of his tongue. “Mmmhh, but I have been SO looking forward to dessert. Time to see if you squirm as big a game as you talk~”
 
“A-ahh!” Brushtail gasped, his mind racing as FT started to gulp the chain again. He curled his prized tail away from the snake, but another gulp of the chain pulled it out straight, tugging mercilessly at his rear. [i]’P-please let my tail be enough to fill him up![/i] the fox pleaded in his mind, shutting his eyes tightly as he awaited the bite of the snake’s jaws. [i]’Tail, don’t fail me now!’[/i]
 
He felt the tongue tickle the fluffy white tip, and gradually the snake began to slurp at it. Brushtail dug his paws into the grass, any attempts at looking brave for his fans lost the moment the snake let out a hiss of approval and took his first bite of the fox’s namesake. His maw was so much wetter and slimy than Brushtail had ever imagined, the only thing worse was the tight embrace of the throat as the snake took his first deafening gulp.
 
“It’s looking promising, folks! I’ve never seen anything like it! After seven years of competing, Brushtail might finally be getting put in his place!” The announcer riled up the audience, getting cheers of encouragement as they clapped a rhythm for FT to gulp to. “He’s almost out of time on the clock though; can he really finish the job in only two and a half minutes?!”
 
Two and a half minutes? How could it feel like both a short amount of time [i]and[/i] an eternity? But if FT only had five minutes to start off with, that meant he had already spent less than a minute per fox; even Fatso! If he had taunted him less he could’ve probably tricked FT into running out the clock, but there was no way he could talk himself out of this hole now that he had made himself such a big target.
 
The tail strategy would never work either; FT was already halfway through and he seemed to be slowing down to soak it with copious amounts of drool, just to add insult to injury. [i]’There has to be something else, come on, I’m never out of tricks! There’s something I haven’t thought of!’[/i] Brushtail thought desperately, his eyes darting around the stadium for anything he could use to hold onto his career, and his life.
 
Suddenly Brushtail felt the snake’s twin fangs dig into his ass, plump and juicy from his spoiled lifestyle. “Oooh, and there goes the most famous tail in the forest!” The announcer teased, leaning over his desk to make sure Brushtail heard every word. “It’s going to make one heck of a hairball later, but for now FT’s just half a fox away from winning the prize money! Anything you want to say to your fans, Brushtail?”
 
The fox stammered a response, though another gulp from the snake caused him to let out a pathetic yelp of fear. The audience were leaning in close, but the fox finally understood they weren’t here to see him win. They were there to see the predator finally accomplish the feat others had only dreamed of; he was just a goal post in the way of that dream… and now FT was gearing up to finally demolish him in a couple of gulps.
 
Finally he spotted something he could use; the rope holding him to the last goal post. All foxes had to be secured for the duration of the challenge; if he broke it then the contest would be void and he’d be freed! Banned for life, sure, but freed! The fox scrambled at the rope with his jaws, cutting strings away to weaken it as the snake gradually moved up over his haunches, pinning his hindlegs to his side.
 
Finally the rope had frayed enough to break with one last yank. Hope filled Brushtail’s heart as his claws twitched at the final string, FT’s hungry jaws rapidly rising up his back and towards his chest. “F-Forfeit! Disqualified! P-Penalty!” He shouted as he clawed desperately at the rope. The rules state that foxes must all be secure, but this rope isn’t up to contest stand–”
 
SNAP! The rope broke, and Brushtail suddenly realised how much work it had been doing holding him in place. The weight of the four foxes and the snake’s powerful throat launched him backwards into FTs maw like a catapult. He quickly moved his forepaws back to brace himself against the snake’s jaws, but the serpent had already parted them enough to simply trap them inside against the white fluff of his chest. The snake’s maw gradually closed again, leaving only the fox’s head outside his mouth. The crowd held their breath as they watched.
 
FT slowly lifted his upper body, the bulge of the fox’s form clear in his spotted green underbelly. Brushtail held his breath, not daring to move in case he sank any lower in the snake’s throat. He could feel it pressing against every inch of his fur; tight and warm, smooth and so, so wet. He stared out at all his fans; the women he had flirted with, the announcer with his smug grin. He could see the anticipation in their eyes as they awaited FT’s final sentencing of the fox in his jaws. In the corner of his vision Brushtail could see the timer hanging above the ring: 30 seconds left on the clock, maybe if he squirmed just enough–
 
GLLLRP! The snake’s final verdict came loud and fast, submerging Brushtail’s head in an instant. He could still hear the muffled cheers of the crowd from the outside, growing steadily more distant as each gulp brought him closer to the end he had been shaking his ass at for the last seven years, his ‘rightful place’ as Stu had put it before.
 
“You are witnessing history, ladies and gentlemen! Brushtail has finally been BULGED! And we have FT the snake to thank for it!” The announcer’s mic echoed through the thick walls of fat around Brushtail as he sank towards the snake’s humid stomach. “For completing the challenge FT will be going home with a trophy, as well as five thousand dollars, cash!”
 
“F-five thousand? That’s bullshit! That’s nothing!” Brushtail’s eyes widened as he started to push against the snake again, feeling the world turning around him as he gradually returned to the ground. “H-hey! I’ll give you ten thousand to spit me out right now! I’ll give you twenty!” [i]Gllrrk![/i] [i]Grrggglle![/i] “F-fourty! Fifty!” Brushtail shouted louder, his paws hammering against the walls as his hindlegs were squeezed together by the stomach sphincter. Suddenly he felt several familiar paws dragging him, for a moment it felt like every fox he had ever doomed was pulling him down into the stomach to join them. “C-Come on! We can work out a deal!”
 
“URRAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHP!” It was FT’s only response, but it was the only one he had to give. With the help of the other foxes Brushtail finally slipped the rest of the way into the stomach. His muzzle got caught in the sphincter as his head passed it, squeezing tightly as FT was telling him how glad he was to finally shut the fox up. The sphincter relaxed again, just long enough for the last of the fox to slip in before closing again and allowing the stomach walls to smush him into the pile with all the other foxes, all of which were pushing and struggling for space in the tight humid gut.
 
“I knew it, I knew from the start we shouldn’t have trusted you!” Cash snarled as she batted him with her hindpaws, her soaked tail splatting at his face as she squirmed to get closer to him. “You were going to just leave us all here, weren’t you?!”
 
“Of course he was, what kind of challenge do you think this is?” Houdini growled, his voice muffled by Fatso’s thick fur. “Get your ass out of my face, I’m trying to get to the idiot that got us all in this mess!”
 
“W-wait, hold on a second!” Brushtail yelled, his forepaws raised to keep the other four foxes at bay. “W-what if we work together and figure out a way out of here?” he suggested. The four foxes fell silent, he could feel their eyes watching him in the dark. Good; he had them under his control again. “For starters, we should try to get the least digested fox out of here first,” he began matter-of-factly as he reached his paw above his head to search for the sphincter he had come through. “So whenever you’re ready you can all start pushing me back up the throat and I’ll get some help to rescue the rest of you.”
 
For a moment there was silence, nothing but the gurgles and groans of the snake’s digestive tract filling Brushtail’s ears. Finally Cash spoke. “I have a better idea; let’s reverse the order of the collars. Fox number five is the first one to get digested.”
 
“S-sounds good to me,” Horny whimpered, “My fur is getting [i]really[/i] sticky, I’m not sure how long I’m going to last in here.”
 
“I like that idea a lot too,” Fatso agreed, gradually shifting himself around in the stomach until his fluffy rear was pressed firmly in Brushtail’s face. “Sorry Brushtail; it’s not like a scrawny fox like you is going to last long in here anyway, right?”
 
“So, we’re all in agreement,” Houdini added in. Brushtail struggled to get his muzzle free as the other foxes started to shift in unison to face each other. “Anyone opposed to the plan? Brushtail?”
 
“Mmmph! Mmph!” Brushtail replied as he was forced between the fox’s butt and the surprisingly firm stomach wall. No matter how he tilted his head he couldn’t get his muzzle open enough to give a response!
 
“Sounds like we’re all in agreement, let’s start repositioning ourselves,” Horny murred faintly. The foxes started to clamber over each other and Brushtail found himself getting pushed further and further towards the back of the stomach, until finally he was wedged into the darkest, loudest, wettest part of the snake’s guts. He could hear the others trying to escape by pushing Houdini up the sphincter, but he knew they’d never make it; the contest wasn’t about the foxes, after all, it was about the predators who competed to eat them.
 
He gave one last struggle against the stomach wall, thinking of the raging party he would have had if he had made it. But instead he was going to spend his night sweating under a big fat fox butt, his luscious fur gradually turning to goop until he and the other four were indistinguishable from each other. He could feel his former fans rubbing the snake’s bulging belly, trying to pick him out among the pile of squirming foxes within. But unlike him FT wasn’t a showboater: the snake slithered away from the anthros after he had taken a moment to rest. He had a trophy and prize money to accept, after all.
 
And five delicious foxes to digest.
 
The End