FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

"Alright, everyone, remember that this is a group assignment! You're all responsible for finding your partners outside of class. Anyone who turns in solo work will receive a failing grade! If you have any questions, talk to me before you leave."

Tyler lifted his head from his arms which had been resting on his desk. The sound of rustling bags and furs rising from their seats had awoken him from his light slumber. The wolf blinked sleepily and stood as well, dumping his books into his bag and slinging it over one shoulder. As he made his way out of the lecture hall, he overheard some students attempting to partner up already or discussing the project with the professor, but he couldn't be bothered. Right now, he just needed some damn caffeine.

The sleepy wolf on his mission appeared as a typical college freshman. His rather average grey fur looked slightly ruffled, as if he had simply rolled out of bed and given it a quick brush. His slouching gait made him look much a bit shorter than he actually was, a modest five foot nine inches. The wolf had haphazardly thrown on running shoes and khaki shorts with a random t-shirt. The purple baseball cap on his head was worn backwards and angled slightly to the left, a vain effort to appear "gangster" or "hip." His ears that poked out of the two holes he had cut into the cap still drooped a little, further contributing to his appearance as a drowsy college student.

Tyler finally reached his destination and stood in line at the campus cafeteria. The small coffee counter at the cafeteria didn't necessarily serve the best coffee, but it got the job done. The wolf shook his head lest he simply fall asleep standing right there. A couple times, the person behind him had to tap him on the shoulder to remind him that the line was moving, to which he uttered a weak apology and took a few steps forward. Partaking in an all-night gaming spree with his friends had never been a worse idea...

"What can I get for you, mister wolf?"

With a start, Tyler realized that he had reached the front of the line. The otter behind the counter regarded him attentively, patiently awaiting his answer.

"Um...a vanilla latte, please," he stuttered. "Large."

The otter nodded and rang up his total. After paying for the coffee and waiting for a couple of minutes, Tyler finally received his cup of heavenly caffeinated goodness, giving the barista his genuine thanks. Once this coffee was cool enough to drink, he'd be able to cross one problem off the list - until he crashed later, anyway. But he'd deal with that later. Normally, he wouldn't care about being tired this early in the morning, but he did have another class in an hour. After that, though, he could just relax...

Wait a minute...do I have homework due tomorrow? Do I even have class tomorrow? What day is it?

Tyler quickly fished out his phone. Thursday. It was Thursday. And that meant...what? It meant he didn't have class tomorrow. But was tomorrow a Game Day? The football team had just had a home game last week; surely they didn't have one this week, too? The marching band instructor hadn't said anything about a game this week; at least he didn't think so. He'd have to check the schedule later.

The wolf was so absorbed in his slight panic attack that he hadn't been watching where he was going. Before he knew what was happening, he abruptly collided into another fur who had been standing at the napkin display. The collision roughly knocked the fur's drink out of his paw, the victim giving a startled yelp and swearing as his coffee spilled all over the counter and onto the floor.

Suddenly very awake, Tyler gaped at the catastrophe he had caused. The other fur, who happened to be an arctic fox around his own height, had stepped away from the mess with his paws in the air, a shocked expression on his face. Not only had the drink made a huge mess on the counter and floor, but it had also splashed onto the fox's shorts and shirt. Some of it had also gotten onto his forearms, creating light brown stains on the fox's otherwise off-white fur.

"Oh. My. GOD. I'm so sorry!" Tyler exclaimed as he grabbed a fistful of napkins and offered them to the fox, ignoring the staring eyes of everyone else who had seen the incident. He gladly accepted them, immediately trying to soak up the coffee that had gotten into his fur.

Tyler grabbed more napkins before stepping away from the mess, allowing an approaching staff member to clean it up. While he dabbed at his own fur, he gazed apologetically at the fox, who was now focused on getting the stains out of his clothes. "Are you okay?"

The arctic fox looked up, clearly very annoyed. "I'm fine, just...watch where you're going, yeah?"

The wolf's ears lowered. "I know, I'm sorry," he whined.

The fox took saw the wolf's apologetic expression and sighed. "Look, let's just forget this ever happened, alright?"

"...Okay..." Tyler said, unsure of how to deal with this situation. Not knowing what else to do, he asked, "What did you buy?"

The fox flicked an ear in confusion. "What?"

"What kind of coffee did you buy? I'll buy you another one." Tyler offered, eager to make it up to the poor fur whose morning he had probably singlehandedly ruined.

The fox's eyes widened. "Oh no, I can't make you do that! Besides, you probably want to buy another for yourself."

The wolf glanced back at the counter where his own half-empty cup of coffee sat.

"Nah, I'll be fine." Tyler offered a friendly smile. With his cap on backwards and his nervousness in the situation, thought, it just made it look goofy. "C'mon, let me make it up to you."

The fox couldn't keep a straight face. He gave a small chuckle. "Okay, fine, if you're so determined. Soy latte. Medium."

Maintaining his friendly demeanor, Tyler went back to the coffee counter and took his place at the end of the line while the fox waited patiently off to the side. It was during this brief period of silence between them that the wolf properly noticed his companion's features for the first time. His entire body was covered in fluffy off-white fur, a little disheveled from the incident. He had a rather average build; he sported a little bit of a belly, but the fox definitely had some defined musculature. He was rather short for his species, standing at about the wolf's own height; maybe slightly shorter. Bright blue eyes accentuated his handsome face and made him all the more approachable.

He's cute.

The fox must have noticed him staring because he caught his eye and gave him a warm smile. Tyler blushed and looked away, embarrassed at having been caught. He quickly ordered the fox's drink and joined him off to the side of the counter. In an effort to avoid the awkward silence, he attempted to strike up a conversation.

"My name's Tyler," the wolf piped up, offering a paw to shake. "Tyler Mooney. My friends call me Ty."

His new friend grinned, capturing his paw in a firm grip. "I already know who you are. Well, sort of. You're the guy who always falls asleep in English."

Tyler blushed again as he shook the paw. "You're in my class?"

The fox nodded. "Yup, sure am. You probably don't notice me since I sit in the back. I'm Roderick Erichsen. Although Rod or Roddy is fine."

"Nice to meet ya, Rod. Oh, one second..." Tyler held up a finger as he momentarily stepped away to retrieve his friend's coffee. Handing it to him, he said, "Well, Rod, here's your coffee. And sorry again for spilling your drink. It didn't stain too bad, did it?" After another inspection, the was relieved to see that the stains on the fox's fur were nearly gone. They were visible only if one went out of their way to look for them.

Rod waved a paw dismissively. "Nah, don't worry about it. It's nothing one wash won't fix. And hey, I really appreciate your generosity. It means a lot." He assumed a thoughtful expression. "Say, you have time before your next class?"

The wolf tilted his head in curiosity. "Yeah, about an hour. Why?"

"Well, I was wondering whether you'd like to hang out for a while." Rod took a sip of his drink, licking his lips in approval. "It's not every day you make friends with someone who denies you your six dollars' worth of caffeine."

"Six dollars..." Tyler muttered in confusion. "You got a large? You told me medium!"

"Oh, hush you," the fox retorted, sticking out his tongue. "So, is that a yes?"

The wolf shook his head in disbelief. "Well, I can't say no."

"Good," Rod turned and began walking away. "Follow me, if you don't mind. I know the perfect place to sit."

Tyler followed him, retrieving his half-full cup from where is still stood at the napkin display. The wolf became curious when Rod led him not to a seat within the cafeteria, but through the double doors leading outside to the courtyard.

Rod settled at a bench facing a large fountain at the center of the area. Tyler sat down with him, taking note of his surroundings. The courtyard was a small area seemingly only accessible through the cafeteria, although no one seemed interested enough to enjoy the place this early in the day. The exterior walls of the cafeteria formed a crescent shape around the courtyard, several benches and tables arranged in the same formation. Everything was centered around the fountain, which provided the soothing sound of rushing water to add to the placid ambience of the morning environment. The view ahead was mostly of trees and vegetation with cars and traffic just barely visible beyond, but it certainly fit the scene.

"This...is a really nice place," the wolf observed, clearly impressed. "It's a shame people aren't often here to enjoy it."

"It is, isn't it?" His friend agreed. "It's a great place just to relax. And write, if I feel like it." The fox pulled out a notebook and pencil from his bag. "I'll be doing that now, if you don't mind."

"No, go ahead. I'll just enjoy the scene for a moment." Tyler closed his eyes and remained silent.

Being a music major, noise was the wolf lived for. It brought a kind of energy and passion within the wolf that nothing else could. But sitting there in the courtyard, experiencing this peaceful setting, was something else. He could hear the water from the fountain, the pleasing melody of morning birdsong, even the bass tones his own heartbeat. It was hard to believe that a place this perfect could exist on a college campus, somewhere one could simply relax and listen to nature's music. He was beginning to feel sleepy again...

But then a soft scratching sound made his ears perk up. Glancing to his side, he saw the fox beside him furiously scribbling in his notebook. Curious as to what he could be writing, the wolf tried to subtly lean sideways so that he could see the words more clearly. Whatever he was writing appeared to be formatted mostly into decent sized paragraphs with some single lines in between. These were accompanied by many notes written in the margins, some with arrows pointing to a different area of the page, others referring to a single word. At the top corner of the page, he could barely make out the words "The Mercurius Express."

"History report?"

Rod paused his scribbling, looking up in surprise. He gave a small grin. "Of sorts." He went back to writing, at a slower pace this time. "It's actually a creative project of my own I'm working on."

He writes, too?!

"You write your own stories?" Tyler blurted with a wide grin, ecstatic to have met another writer. "So do I!"

"Oh?" Rod regarded him with curiosity, his blue eyes shining with interest. "What genre do you write?"

Tyler thought for a second. "Um...science fiction, I guess? Most things I write tend to fall into the 'science fiction - fantasy' category."

The white fox nodded in approval. "That's certainly a popular theme these days. Although I don't usually write to that kind of setting."

Nodding as well in understanding, the wolf gestured toward the notebook on the fox's lap. "So, 'the Mercurius Express,' huh? What's that about? It's the title that got me thinking you were writing a history essay..."

"Yeah, I can understand that," Rod responded, chuckling. "It's actually a murder mystery set on an express train in the nineteen twenties to thirties era."

Tyler let out a whistle in awe. "A murder mystery...I don't think I could ever write anything like that."

"It's not too bad. You've just got to pay a lot more attention to detail, that's all." Rod said, making another note on his paper.

"I know. And it's exactly that part of it that makes me think I can't do it." The wolf shifted his attention back to the fountain, observing the ripples in the water. "How do you even begin writing something like that anyway? It doesn't seem like something where you just suddenly decide 'I want to write a murder mystery!'"

Rod shrugged, putting down his pencil again. "Well, I can't speak for everyone, but for me it came from TV shows and novels. Ever heard of 'Murder on the Orient Express?'"

Tyler shook his head. "Can't say that I have."

"Well, it's a movie," Rod explained. "Made back in 1974. Then there was a TV movie episode in 2010 of Agatha Christie's Poirot that I really enjoyed. Both murder mysteries. After also reading the novel, that's when I got fully inspired to write 'Mercurius Express.'" The arctic fox grabbed his pencil again, jotting down a few more notes. "Also, I guess I could say I've always been kinda fascinated with twentieth century travel. You know, luxury trains, ocean liners and the like. In fact, a lot of the shows I watch or games I play are set in that kind of environment. So it's that obsession that kind of drove me to start writing this."

Tyler, still staring into the water, nodded slowly. "Yeah, that makes sense I guess. I've just never felt that way about anything."

Rod set aside his notebook, now giving the wolf his undivided attention. "What about you, then? I imagine someone who writes sci-fi would have a slightly different motivation?"

The wolf drained his cup in one last gulp before shrugging. "Not exactly. I mean, yeah, most of my inspiration comes from watching movies and reading other people's stories online, but it's nothing like your long term fascination. In my head, I'm kind of low-key about everything."

His fox companion nodded. "Makes sense. Most authors seem to get their inspiration from books and movies. But it works, so I'm not complaining."

Tyler shifted his gaze to the trees once more. This really was a great place to relax. He'd have to come here more often...

A thought suddenly occurred to him. "Hey, do you post online?"

Rod hesitated for a moment before responding. "Er...yeah, I do. But I try to keep quiet about it because the site I post on...isn't exactly...school appropriate..."

Throwing caution to the wind, the wolf popped the question. "Is it SoFurry by any chance?"

The fox started, blinking in surprise. "Uh, yeah, it is!"

Goofy grin back in place, Tyler exclaimed, "Hey, that's so cool! What's your username?"

Rod was blushing a little now. "It's...Rod_Erich. With an underscore in between." He chuckled. "I'm actually surprised someone hasn't found me out by now. What's yours?"

It was Tyler's turn to blush now. "Um...it's...Lupine Catastrophe."

The fox snorted. "Oh, you have to tell me the story behind that one."

"I don't know...I just wanted a really cool title; something that people would see and think 'hey, that's a pretty cool name, his stories must be awesome, too.' And so that's what I came up with." In an effort to change the subject, the wolf then asked, "Who's your favorite writer on the site?"

Rod smiled widely. "You know, I'd say my favorites are Gruffy, Sisco, and Nex Canis. They're great."

Tyler gaped. "Oh my god, I totally agree! You know, I think they should do a collaboration. It would be totally epic!"

"I agree, but," Rod replied thoughtfully. "Nex's style is very different from that of the other two. I'm not sure if it would work."

"True, but it would be cool if they could pull it off."

Both furs were silent for a moment. On the inside, the wolf was ecstatic. What were the chances he would meet another SoFurry author in person?! And in his own class, no less! His ears perked, however, as he realized that an opportunity had just presented itself.

"Hey, Rod? How do you deal with writer's block?"

The fox in question took a deep breath, ballooning his cheeks out and let it go slowly. "Ah, that's a tough one. Well, I do one of two things: either I force myself to keep writing or I just go do something else to refresh my brain. It really depends on the person. Why, are you having trouble?"

"Not currently," Tyler stated. "But it happens a lot. I was just wondering if there was an easy way to deal with it. I mean, I get over it eventually, but it gets really annoying sometimes."

"I hear you," said Rod. "It's a struggle we all have. All I can really tell you is this: just keep going. No matter what, just don't stop writing. If you have to take a break, fine. Just don't give up entirely. That's the absolute worst thing you can do as a writer because then you'll never get anything done. Keep reading or watching movies or whatever you do to keep the inspiration flowing. And don't be afraid to ask for help or advice. Although it seems you've got that last part down just fine."

Tyler paused to think about what he had just heard. After a moment, he gave the fox a warm smile of gratitude. "Thanks, Rod. That helps a lot. It really does."

Rod easily returned the smile. "I'm glad. Now, let me ask you a question." He leaned in a little closer. "You wanna be partners for this English project?"

The wolf blinked in surprise before chuckling. "Was that your plan all along? Just to ask me about the project?"

Sitting up straight, the fox grinned in response. A hint of mischief flashed in those blue eyes. "Not exactly, but I won't act like it wasn't a deciding factor."

Tyler chuckled again. "Well, it's just as well. I was going to ask anyway if you didn't. I was starting to think I wasn't likely to find a better study partner than you."

Rod stood up and stretched his arms in the air with a groan. "Hehe, I'm not sure about that, but I'll take the compliment. Wanna trade numbers? It'll make arranging study sessions easier."

Tyler complied, taking out his phone and navigating to his contacts. Rod did the same and they traded phones to enter their numbers.

"Thanks for doing this," Rod said as he returned the wolf's phone. "I know you were asleep for some of the class today, but I know you're a smart guy and you'll actually do the work. I was afraid I'd have to just write something random at the last minute because my partner was too lazy."

"Heh, no problem. I got a new friend from it!" Tyler replied with a smile. "And I'm sure you would've been alright. With a writer as experienced as you, randomness can be..." The wolf trailed off, a thought having just occurred to him.

Rod raised an eyebrow in concern. "Something wrong, Ty?"

Tyler grinned wide. A great idea had just sprouted in his mind. "Nothing...just something I'll have to do later..."

And that's that! This brings us to the end of the first entry of the Interview Series! If you're interested in reading Rod's stories, go ahead and click the link at the top of the page. He's got some pretty cool stuff over there! And Rod, thanks so much for agreeing to do this. Sorry for messing up your fur! D:

If you have any suggestions as to who else I should interview, go ahead and leave a comment below! (Yes, you can suggest yourself! XD) Remember that interview candidates are not restricted to just SoFurry. It can be any writer on either SoFurry or FA:As long as they have at least one submission, they're fair game. Also, do keep in mind that I will not be announcing the next candidate until I publish the next entry. If I do happen to pick you, I will notify you via PM.

If you don't have any suggestions, then...leave a comment anyway because that shit makes me happy! XD

And until next time...I think that's it!

Ty out!