FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

The splash of sunlight was what roused her. It bathed her lids and made them glow like a red-hot ball of molten metal. She turned over, her slogged brain hoping to evade the terrible bright that threatened her sleep and disturbed her sensitive eyes. But when she turned, she bumped against something soft and warm.

Lazily she opened one eye, and then squinted it. The light was just terrible; she felt like a rat beneath a laboratory lamp. Soon, her eyes became used to it and as they did she could make out the thing she had stumbled upon.

And then she felt a million bubbles fizzle beneath her skin.

He was facing her, his nose half-buried in the camping pillow, as he'd fluffed it up to one side. His breathing was smooth and somnolent, a self-hypnotizing rythm that matched the rush of the ocean.

His face lacked expression, all the muscles beneath completely relaxed such that his cheeks were flat, his lips ajar and his left-brow twitched. He had slept without the sleeping bag, or had kicked it off in the night. His left arm was in front of him, palm down and fingers toward his chin. His right arm disappeared somewhere behind his pillow, the hand sprouting forth with fingers half-curled and butting against the wall of the tent. His left knee was bent and rested in front of his right, like he was a little chilly and trying to keep warm. The toes of his left foot were hooked around his calf, and his right foot disappeared beneath what remained of his sleeping bag, swallowing it up to the knee.

Cute. Adorable. Precious. Sweet. Fuzzy-wuzzy. Cuddly-wuddly. Snuggly-buggly. Every word that he would absolutely despise being associated with were the only ones that ran through her mind as she watched his twitch-twitchery face and ears. She just wanted to wriggle as close as she could and hold him like a life-sized plushie.

And as she thought so, she did so. Carefully so as not to wake him she laid an arm across him and, as if they were magnetically attracted, began moving toward him. She also scooched upward so that her chin could rest on his nose, his breath and whiskers tickling her Adam's-apple. She slicked his ears back and kissed his little brow, her insides fizzing and bubbling like a shaken up can of soda.

As his eyes opened, the bottle-cap was unscrewed and the soda exploded.

Ket woke to see Emeral staring over him, her cheeks burning red with embarrassment like she just got caught stealing the whole cookie jar. The glimpse lasted only a second before her head fell on his and she darted an arm beneath him, and he felt the squeeze of a hug.

"Morning," she said softly.

"Morning?" He responded, still gaining his bearings.

"How did you sleep?"

The little rock that jutted into his side had left a raw ache. "Good," he replied, beginning to warm to the hug, and returning some of it back.

Wind rippled the wall of the tent, no doubt carrying with it the pungent odor of the ocean foam. The rainfly crackled and whipped about above them, like a flag on a high mast. Outside were the sounds of people talking and laughing, the warbling shout of a kid running heavily down toward the sand. A world outside that was alive and breathing.

But Emeral was just fine where she was, holding and being held. She matched his breathing, and if she could do so she would have matched his heartbeat. Having only been awake for just a few minutes, she began to feel the fog of sleep carry over her again, the quietness of their little bubble so shady and trainquil.

Vvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvrt!

"Are you two still asleep?"

Emeral was up on her palms, staring at the opening of their tent. Her instincts were still flaring, Ket rubbing his nose. She had nicked it when she violently tore from him at the sound of the zipper.

"Jeez mom!" Emeral hissed, her hair settling about her like spider-silk. "Don't scare me like that! I thought someone was gonna attack us!"

Momma B. giggled. "It looks like a tornado went through here. Did you two have a wrestling match or something?"

Her daughter huffed and crossed her arms. "You try sleeping in a tent barely bigger than your own bed." She grumbled, and then kicked the top of her sleeping bag as she got up. "We're awake now, I guess."

"Good. Get dressed cuz we have to go the store to get some grub."

At the mention of food both their stomachs grumbled and gurgled. Momma B. zipped the tent door back up and her footsteps crunched away. Emeral lied back down and looked over at Ket, who was now fully awake, yellow eyes staring at her from behind the pillow.

"How's your nose?"

He smiled. "It's fine. I think you dislodged a booger though."

She stuck her tongue out. "Ew. You know I hate snot and boogers," she said with a giggle, and rolled a quarter-turn to face him. She patted his side. "Tonight... We're sleeping closer. Got it?"

His lower eyelid twitched up a couple times. "What if a mom walks in on us like that?"

She took a deep breath, and exhaled it out her nose. He did the same, but out of his mouth. "Ack!" She turned up, holding her nose.

"What?"

"Your breath kinda stinks," she said, waving her hand in front of her nose. "C'mon, let's get ready. I wanna get this grocery shopping out of the way as fast as possible."