Note: This story was dynamically reformatted for online reading convenience. Cannibal 4H Chapter Six: Evaluations and Judgments by Eurytion LINDA SUE CAST A CRITICAL EYE over her nude reflection in the fitting room mirror. Well, she thought to herself, there's no question I'm not a classical beauty. My face, even with makeup, is too plain for that. I may be stocky but I'm not Rubenesque. I guess I'm just that good ole' well-scrubbed, apple-cheeked home-spun farm girl everyone talks about. She had ventured into town to buy a new outfit at Fripperies for the time-honoured Cannibal Cotillion, traditionally held on the last night of the fair after all the awards had been announced and bestowed. Unlike the fair itself, where visitors never wore clothing, the ball allowed the ladies to parade in their finest outfits. Linda Sue was determined, if not to shine, at least to not be embarrassed. Ignoring the several outfits hanging on the wall, none of which met her needs, she continued her self-examination. Her auburn hair was shot full of natural curls which flipped up from her brow and, falling below a mini-bun which hinted at the farm's trademark hairdo on the back of her head, cascaded down until they reached her shoulders. Even under the best of circumstances my hair could only be described as "unruly" and working on a human cattle ranch never provided the best of circumstances. It's a good thing I've got an appointment at Stacie's to have my hair done. I couldn't go to the dance with this mare's nest sitting on my head. Maybe I'll even get a full bun, like one of the farm's cows. That would certainly surprise Joey. Linda Sue's russet ringlets framed a pleasant face; thin when presented in profile, more rounded when viewed from the front. Her eyebrows were a dark black; her eyes shaded by long, thick lashes. The colour of her cheeks did resemble the skin of ripe Snow apples, smooth ivory domes interspaced with irregular soft pink areas. Full, maroon lips sat above a small cleft chin. As she smiled she could see her even white teeth grinning back at her. A thin gold necklace hung around her neck, a present from Joey after he won his first blue ribbon. At 5' 5" inches and 138 pounds, Linda Sue was solid without being stout. Her hips were a little wider than she would have liked, but even the strenuous chores at the ranch hadn't been able to take an inch of her waist. Sometimes there was just no fighting genetics. Maybe she should start eating just a little of the special fodder the farm used to lean out their stock's meat. It was worth thinking about. She sighed as her hands reached down to cup the underside of her breasts, lifting them off her chest. Three years ago her bra size had been 32 C. Today, thanks to Joey's dad, it was 36 D. Mr. Geryon had required her to take the supplement the farm used to increase breast size as part of the original deal that allowed Joey to raise his first human cattle. Once she'd started snacking on the bars she'd become hooked. Not only had the size of her tits increased, they had become much more sensitive. Sometimes all it took was the feel of teeth clamping down on her nipple to get her off. She wondered what might have happened if she hadn't been afraid of needles and had allowed Joey's dad to give her the monthly injections. It was probably just as well she hadn't. Most of the stock only received the injections for a year. Three years worth of injections coupled with the supplement most likely would have required her to use a wheelbarrow to haul her milkers around in. Turning in a small circle, she clenched and unclenched her buttocks. Although her waist was a little wider than she liked, there was no denying the fact she wasn't a fat ass. This butt was nicely rounded and firm but not hard. It sat nicely on a well proportioned pair of shapely legs. If I was stock, I'd grade out well at the fair she thought. Definitely a "whole roaster." In the aftermath of one of their "negotiations" Linda Sue had, in fact, asked Al Crenshaw, the owner of Crenshaw Superior Meats, how she might do in a competition. Raising himself up on one elbow and throwing back the sheet covering Linda Sue's body, Al's demeanour turned from passionate to professional. "I couldn't give you any final determination until I saw your carcass. That's really the only way I could judge your meat. We check for marbling; colour and brightness; firmness and texture; the colour of the fat, lustre and quality. You'd be marked down for any damage done during the slaughtering such as muscle bleeding; muscle edema; inflammation of the muscle or fat infiltration; external wounds or missing parts. That's what we look for when we grade meat at the store. "Now if you were up for sale at the auction, I'd use different standards, at least about whether or not to bid on you." He reached down to pinch her side just above the waist. "Your body/fat ratio seems to be acceptable. I can certainly vouch for the firmness of your meat. How tender it might be I'm not sure." Al's hand continued to prod at Linda Sue's body. "Your legs would make nice round steaks and you've got an excellent rump roast in you. Good development in the shoulders so we'd get decent chuck roast from there. "Your breasts are still a little smaller than we'd like so we might sell part of those as brisket and save the nipples for shish-kebab. Depending on how we decided to carve you, we'd get a good number of slabs of ribs, maybe some short ribs, possibly even some rib steaks. "Those calves would yield some high quality steaks and we'd get several pounds of stew meat from your arms. Overall, I'd guess you were above select, maybe in the mid-range of choice. I'd put you near the top of my second tier when it comes to bidding. You'd barbecue nicely. I'm not sure if I'd sell you as an whole roaster though. I think my best bet would be to dismember you and sell the individual cuts." Sensing that Linda Sue had turned colder with this pronouncement, Al sought to backtrack. "Hey, that's a pretty good rating. Remember, you're not a human cattle. You haven't been bred and raised to be somebody's Sunday dinner. You haven't had any of the care and attention they get, no special foods, no designed exercise program. Most of the women I know would grade out as select or lower and if I did bid on them, I'd have to send them to Joey's for finishing. I could slaughter and sell you tomorrow." Slightly mollified, Linda Sue let her head slide down Al's chest and stomach until his public hair scratched against her cheek. Like an adder, her tongue flicked quickly from her mouth to strike at the leaking tip of his cock. Her thighs were slick from her crotch midway to her knees due to the lubrication she had produced while Al was giving his pronouncement. Her last thought before resuming their carnal play was of the work that still faced her. Linda Sue would be satisfied with nothing less than a prime rating. The second tier wasn't for her. Linda Sue was shaken from her revery by a soft knock on the fitting room door. Startled, she pulled a pair of panties up over a hairless pussy made moist by her recollections. "Is everything ok in there," asked a salesgirl? "I thought I heard you groan. Do you need any help?" For a second, Linda Sue considered her response. If Sallie had been on duty she would have asked her in. The rumour around town was that young Sallie would help a girl out with more than just a fitting. Lord knows that I could use some release, she thought. Pushing her sexual needs aside for the moment, Linda Sue responded "I'm fine. Thanks. Just can't seem to find the right outfit. Could you bring me that strapless emerald dress again? It think they're still holding it at the counter." While she waited for the salesgirl to return with the frock, Linda Sue surveyed her surroundings. That's odd, she mused, this dressing room is about the same size as the veal cage would be if you stood it up on its end. Suddenly the door to the tiny enclosure opened and a hand thrust itself in. Startled by the hand reaching in toward her, cow 701 bumped her head on the top of the cage. Although her sense of time had almost completely disappeared, a result of the never-ending twilight in which she now lived, she retained enough cognizance to realize her full stomach meant it wasn't time for her feeding. And meals, along with her bath, were the only reasons she ever left the cage. Fully responsive to Joey's system of hand signals, the human cattle entered the less confined space of the veal pen. There she should stood waiting uncertainly for what might happen next. Her master indicated she should squat. She did. In the room with him was an older gentleman holding a herding rod. The still human recesses of her mind identified the man as Mr. Geryon, Joey's father but her cow mind pushed this thought away. To 701, this was another herder who she must obey. The older man approached and, as he did, the young cow routinely reached out her hands towards the upper joining of his legs to his waist only to have the staff move her arms back to her side. The herder walked slowly around to the crouching cow. Reaching into his back pocket he took out an object and placed it on 701's head. It was a pair of goggles with dark almost opaque red lenses. This was something new, the cow thought, wondering what it meant. After fitting the goggles in place, Mr. Geryon nodded to his son who walked to the wall and turned a switch. Slowly to allow for human eyes to adjust, the faint rubicund light was replaced by a bright white illumination, revealing for the first time since it began to be used for its intended purpose, the room in its natural colours. Both Joey and his dad examined the squatting animal. Her skin, a pale white when she had arrived at the ranch, was almost translucent. Her hair had faded from its original straw blonde to a nearly pure white, a side-effect of the special liquid diet. If, at this moment, she was unfettered and set loose on the street the former neighbour girl would be mistaken for an albino. Only the colour of her green eyes remained unchanged. Joey gave the hand signal for the girl to stand. As she rose, both the ranchers observed her muscle tone. Again the special feeding regimen had done its job. While still visible, her body's definition had softened like an inexpensive plastic doll left out in the hot sun. Her arms and legs were fuller yet less sculpted; more rounded with just a hint of sag. Joey indicated that the cow should walk to the scale. A glance at the chart after weighing showed that 701 had put on 13 pounds during her stay, most of it distributed to her legs and buttocks. After she had stepped off of the scale, Mr. Geryon took the bipedal cattle's head in his hands. A tender application of pressure at the point where the jaw met the skull induced the girl to open her mouth. Joey's dad tilted her head back and, placing a finger inside of her mouth, attempted to press on her gums. 701's first reaction to this invasion of her oral cavity was a natural one, to suck. She had been conditioned to suck on anything put into her mouth, be it the feeding bucket teat, a man's cock or even a woman's tit. She was surprised then to receive a sharp rap on the nose. Another squeeze of her jaws reopened her mouth. Again a finger was inserted but this time the cow remained still as the digit pushed firmly against both the upper and lower surfaces. The pallid gums became even paler, showing almost no trace of pink where the finger had been. Joey's dad smiled at this sign of anemia. Joey had been right. There would be no need to bleed this cow before the fair. His examination over, Joey's dad stepped back behind the cow. A nudge of the staff told 701 that this herder wanted her to bend over while a second indicated that she should spread her legs. Mr. Geryon was beginning to undo the huge silver buckle on his belt when Joey spoke out. "Wait a minute Dad. If you're planning on taking this cow, please don't. At least not like that." The old rancher turned to look at his son, incredulity on his face. Before he had a chance to say anything Joey continued to talk. "If you want some of the best head you'll ever have, that's great. But this cow is still a virgin and that's the way she has to stay. Other than her mouth, she's never had a cock enter her body. Mr. Crenshaw told me that veal from virgin cattle is highly prized and will bring us a better price. And you can't fuck her in the ass because of the liquid diet. A penis as big and long as yours would tear her a new asshole, so to speak. She needs to keep control of her bowels otherwise this liquid diet would just pour out as fast as she took it in." Joey's dad nodded and then, for the first time since entering the veal pen, spoke. "You know Joey, when Linda Sue came to me three years ago and suggested I let you start running your own herd --- well, I thought she was doing it because she was your girlfriend and not because you could really do the job. You're a good boy and I love you. But you've always been a bit disinterested and lackadaisical. Instead of doing your chores you'd be off in the woods with Billy building a fort. I never really felt you wanted to run the farm. It took a lot of hard work by Linda Sue to convince me you had what it takes. "Sometimes a father is too close to his son to see what's really there. I was wrong and Linda Sue was right. These past three years you've matured in more ways than I can mention. You've learned the business and learned it well, not only how to raise cattle but the financial end too. "More importantly, you've got the mental toughness needed to run a successful cattle ranch. Al told me you had a rough time deciding to claim Valerie at the fair. I understand why. A friend's sister, someone you knew well and then the fact that she had that schoolgirl crush on you. It wasn't easy to put the farm before sentiment or friendship. "Your mom probably never told you this. I know I never have. But I had to make a similar decision. Only in my case, she wasn't just an acquaintance. She was my girlfriend and I might even have asked her to marry me. But she got into some trouble at home and her folks made the decision to sell her as human cattle. Your grandfather sent me to the auction to bid on her. Left it up to me whether or not to make the purchase. It was one of the hardest decisions I've ever had to make. The farm wasn't doing as well as it is today. We needed a breeder and I knew that Marie sure had the hips for it. I bought Marie and had her converted. She was the start of our Coleman line of human cattle. If I hadn't done what I did, well who knows if there would even be a Geryon farm today. "You made the right decision about buying this cow. But that didn't tell me enough. I knew this cow hadn't been touched and I knew why she hadn't been touched. What I wanted to see was whether or not you'd stop me from spoiling this project. I needed to know whether or not you'd stand up to your old man for the sake of your project and the farm. You did and I'm proud of you for it. "Joey, I'm going to tell you something now that I was going to save until after the fair. I don't want you to tell Linda Sue what I'm telling you. Let's both let it come as a surprise." Joey nodded his agreement. "After the fair, whether or not you win that third blue ribbon, I'm going to make you a full partner in the Geryon & Son Cattle Farm." "Dad, do you really mean that?" "Damn right I do.You've earned it." Joey broke out in a smile. "Now son, I'm going up to the house and get your mom. You put this cow back in her cage, get cleaned up and we'll go into town to celebrate. Sound ok?" Again, Joey nodded still grinning from ear to ear. "Great," said his dad, slapping him on the shoulder. "We'll be waiting on the porch." Joey shook his head in disbelief as the door shut behind his father. Reaching for the switch to return the pen to its normal lighting, he could only think how lucky he had been that he hadn't told his dad the truth about the real reason for maintaining cow's virginity, the last thing that had happened between Valerie and Joey, just before she entered McCain's plant for her conversion. "Joey, I know this isn't your fault," she said looking deep into his eyes. "I'm scared and I don't want to be meat. But I know it's going to happen. But I want you to promise me two things." At this point, Joey would have promised the little girl almost anything, except her freedom, just to get away from her. "What is it you want me to promise?" "I know I'm only 13 but I love you. I know you like me and if you didn't have Linda Sue as a girlfriend you might even have gotten to love me. I've been on a couple of dates and I've done some things. Jason Warner and I petted in his barn. And Stevie van Dine got me to kiss his thing because I wouldn't let him put it up my butt like he wanted. But I've never done anything more. I never let any boy stick his thing in me because I wanted to be a virgin when you & I got married. I guess that's not going to happen now. "When we went on that field trip to your farm, we saw one of the hands rogering a cow. The teacher tried to get us not to look but I did. Afterwards all I could think about was you and I doing that kind of stuff in bed after we were married. Please promise me that I'll stay a virgin. That when I'm a cow, nobody, not even you, will try to do it to me." "I promise Valerie." "Bless you Joey." "What's the other promise?" "I told you I'm scared. I've gotten over being scared of being a cow. The drugs they gave me at the fair helped. Being a cow; even being eaten doesn't scare me as much this does. I remember what happened to Melissa Hamilton when she ran away from home and her parents disowned her and she got caught and changed into a cow. I was at the picnic and they roasted her alive. I saw her eyes as they put her into the roasting pan and shoved her in the oven. I couldn't eat any of her after I saw her eyes. Please Joey, please even if I'm not a human anymore, I used to be one. Please don't let them cook me alive." Joey meant to keep his promises to Valerie.