FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

• "Which one would suit me better, the black one or the gray one?"

Keith shook both suits in front of my nose, his gray eyes staring at me, waiting for an answer.

• "Are you searching for a suit or an invisibility cloak?" I answered in a mocking tone. "If you wear one of these at the graduation, it will be indistinguishable from your fur"

He laughed and looked at me, giving me a joking look.

• "Then, what are you suggesting, mister artist?"

• "Would the blue suit right there fit you better?"

• "Hum! Not a bad choice, actually. I'll try it."

• "Alright, I'm waiting for you."

I took a look at my watch. I had to hurry, or I would be late. My parents, in whose house I was living until the end of the summer, in a couple of weeks, had asked me to come back home earlier today. They told me that they had something important to tell me.

Keith came out of the fitting room, wearing the beautiful suit, that suited him like a glove. It's blue was smooth but captivating and it had beautiful silver buttons. He turned around slowly, a shiny smile on his face.

-"Well?"

-"It fits you perfectly. You suddenly became handsome wearing it."

-"I'll take that as a compliment," he said, laughing.

I laughed too as he went back to the fitting room.

We went to the counter of the little shop and he paid his new suit, still smiling happily.

-"It's expensive, but it's definitely worth it if you find me so handsome in it," he said, blinking, while we were walking out of the shop.

-"Don't take that as a victory, the only handsome thing here is your clothing," I answered.

We walked together for a moment, talking and laughing. Then, we separated, with a promise to see again the next day.

When I met Keith, six months ago, it felt like my life had finally found its purpose. At first, I was ignoring him, but he had not surrendered. After some time, I had finally opened to him, finding in him an inseparable and precious friend.

I arrived in front of the little house where I lived with my parents. I took another look at my watch and sighed. I was late. What did they want to tell me so much? Was it so important? Once inside, I walked to the kitchen, from which I could hear the usual coughs of my father and the noise of our little TV, displaying news about two young males murdered in a near city.

-"Ah! There you are. Late, as I predicted." my mother said, leaning against the counter, arms crossed when she saw me.

My father, silent, turned his chair towards me, obviously trying to hide his corner smile. He was a small and handsome red and black fox. I had a lot of respect for him. He was this kind of man who breathes confidence and happiness as if his life was exactly where he wanted it to be. Despite the eternal cold haunting him, he was always smiling, always ready to place one of his numerous puns in every conversation as soon as he had the chance. My mother was... different. She was a tall white fox with piercing green eyes. As opposed to my father, she was severe and centered on herself, but it was possible to find a lot of life in her when we searched well enough. Both were completing each other very well, and they seemed inseparable.

I sat at the table, in front of my mother, and I looked at her, afraid of anything she could possibly say.

-"Do you remember the young fennec girl you invited last week to work on a project?"

-"I know who she is," I answered carefully, "why?"

-"As you look like you don't know how to make the first steps with her, your father and I decided to help you."

Her words hit me like bullets. Did they really...?

-"Uh... Ok..."

-"We organized something for you two: you'll watch a movie at the cinema." she declared, laughing almost sadistically. "It's a romantic movie just for the both of you."

-"B-But she was only a co-worker! Because I invited her doesn't mean I'm interested in her!"

-"Jason," my father cut in a calm tone, "I had your age once. You're twenty and you're still alone. And, even if you don't match in the end, you would at least know each other better, which is a good thing. I'm sure you'll like her; she has this pair of b..."

-"Honey!" my mother warned in an irritated tone.

-"... b-beautiful eyes." my father finished, winking at me.

I sighed. Really? What were they thinking? Why would I even care about this girl's breast size? And I didn't want to have a partner. The way that my parents were trying to force me as if I was just a feral they could reproduce as they wanted, disgusted me. But, on the other side... I did not have any good excuse not to go, and I did not want to cause drama with my mother. I sighed again.

-"When is the movie starting?"

-"At seven thirty, in half an hour," she answered in a tone that was oscillating between satisfaction and severity, "so you'll have to hurry. You don't have time to eat here. Here, take this money, spend it as you want in the cinema."

I thanked her vaguely while taking the money, and I climbed the stairs as fast as I could, went to the bathroom and started removing my clothes. I had to, at least, wash, if I didn't want to get some bad comments that could follow me to school... As I why removing my clothes, I looked at the tall mirror on the yellowish wall. On the other side, a flaming red coyote was staring at me with his purple eyes.

My red fur was covering the majority of my body, my back, and my legs. My chest, from the neck to the crotch, was pure white, as well as my cheeks. The inside of my short ears was white, and their tip was a deep black. A thin black line was separating the red fur from the white fur on all my body and was ending in curly patterns on the tip of my short but fluffy tail. Long black hair was falling on each side of my ears down to my shoulders. My body, weak but well constructed, looked perfectly symmetric. I had, in fact, a rather handsome look, and many ladies had tried to approach me already, in vain.

I was pulling the shower's curtain when I heard a conversation from the first floor.

-"You're right," my father said, "when I was twenty, I would have been so happy if my parents did this. Do you think he could be..."

I shivered when he stopped talking. I didn't want to hear more. I activated the shower just in time to hide his last word.

Clean and well dressed, I pushed the door of the cinema a few minutes before the beginning of the movie. Inside, some people were still paying their ticket or buying huge bags of popcorn. As the little town in which I was living had just enough population for a cinema, this one was tiny, composed of only two rooms. The ticketing was very small, so I instantly saw the little fennec waiting in front of the bathroom door. She was completely gray, had very long ears, a tiny pointy nose and an excessively huge and evident breast, that she was showing way too much. I couldn't help but think that she had probably passed through multiple relentless surgeries. She looked at me and smiled. Repressing a disgusted expression, I smiled too.

-Jason! How are you? Hurry up and buy the tickets, the movie's about to begin.

-Hi, Tina.

Obviously, I had to buy the tickets. Why would she spend her precious money?

The movie went well, excepting the unceasing coughing of a griffon in front of me, the gross mastication noise of a young blue hedgehog behind me, the intimidating looks of a big white bear who was probably loving Tina's look and her annoying giggles every time a predictable romantic scene appeared on the screen. Near the end of the movie, when the main characters kissed after an argument, she turned towards me and leaned in my direction, obviously expecting something. An unpleasant shiver ran down my spine as she was waiting and as the kiss of the movie's characters was lasting way too long.

It was absurd. I didn't want to be there. They forced me to watch a movie I didn't like with a girl I didn't like and now the said girl wanted me to kiss her? What was wrong with them all? No... What was wrong with me? Anyone would be happy in my situation. Anyone normal. But I was simply disgusted.

-"I..." I started, hesitant, as she was suddenly leaning a little more. "I have to go to the bathroom, I'm back in a moment."

-"Oh!" she said with a corner smile as if she had perceived some non-existent hidden sense in my message.

I ignored her and tried to make my way betweens the seats, going as far away from the bear as possible. I shivered as I passed in front of the ticketing employee who was perfectly ignoring me, staring at his watch. I didn't want to be followed by Tina, so I went through the back door and got near a parking lot. Desiring to put as much distance I could with her as fast as possible, I went in that direction. I felt tired, disgusted and irritated. Tina would certainly tell all her friends how I escaped this rendezvous, and the story would spread like a plague through the university's campus. I didn't need all of this. And my parents were sure they were doing the right thing.

Lost in my thoughts, I realized I had walked to the center of the parking lot. Weird sounds from behind the way to the second floor caught my attention. Young people whispering, a thud, a cracking noise, someone crying in pain. Fear ran through all my veins, and I stayed paralyzed for a moment. I had no idea what was happening, but I had to call the police. I hid behind a car and tried to take my phone out of my pocket with my shaking fingers, but it slipped from my claws and fell on the ground in the shards of my hope. A loud pop resonated in the parking as the screen was breaking in pieces. Paralyzed, I held my breath. The whole parking lot was now silent. I leaned against the vehicle behind me, trying to catch my breath and my phone. Damn the police, I had to find a way to exit the parking as fast as possible without being seen. I was slowly getting up when I suddenly heard a click just behind me.

-"Move an inch," threatened a baritone voice behind me, "and I kill you."

I slowly finished to get up and I raised my paws. I was terrified, but a strange feeling of confidence was also taking place, inexplicably, acting as a protection between the man and me.

-"If you kill me, they will find you. You'll live the rest of your life in jail."

The criminal, whose face I couldn't see, laughed slowly.

-"One more murder would fit very well on my list."

A wave of fear flew through my veins, washing away the fragile confidence I was trying to build. I had to find a way out. What could I do? I wished there was not more than one criminal...

-"Oh shit, Delta," said another voice behind me, "we don't play with potential witnesses. He's dangerous; kill him.

-"Useless," said the first voice, apparently called Delta, "he can't see our faces."

-"Look at him. He's a target. Kill him.

Suddenly, I turned around and violently hit the canon of the criminal's weapon, but he didn't move an inch. Not very impressed by my movement, he kicked me strongly in the stomach. Unbalanced and confused, I fell on the ground. I tried to get up, but another criminal kicked my chest and left his foot on me. I was unable to move. I was unable to catch my breath. A third murderer approached me, pointing a gun right at my face. They were all wearing masks.

-"I am Alpha, the Deadly Thunder," said the one with the gun in a superior tone. "And you, who are you?"

I tried to say something, but I just coughed, unable to breathe.

-"That's what I thought. You are nothing. Nothing but dead.

I tried to scream, but I just coughed more. Was this really the end? I had so much to live for... Why me? I closed my eyes and thought about Keith one last time, as the criminal in front of me was pressing the gun's trigger.