FSE

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I shuddered, almost slipping off my elbow. Shadow's paw on my back tensed.

"Do you mean... like the one a few days ago...?" Shadow asked quietly.

Burt nodded a heavily horned head. "The one that felt like dying... that one."

Jenny whimpered unhappily, and Howard fiddled with the edge of his rumpled suit.

I closed my eyes and whined softly. I wished I could be sick again to rid myself of the new feeling of doom. Any joy of finding furs alive suddenly paled.

Shadow's paw rubbed my back firmly. "It didn't go well for him last time..." Shadow growled.

"Maybe it'll skip," I whispered, not wanting to open my eyes.

"Don't think so. Don't want to risk it either." Howard slipped his watch back into his pocket.

I groaned and managed to sit up, sagging against Shadow. I did feel better, and the room appeared normal again. I just needed a few minutes.

Jenny stood and looked around the office. "Let's get out of here." She didn't say why, but her slim white paw waved in front of her muzzle.

My ears flattened in embarrassment.

"You boys coming with?" asked Burt as he got the bat from under the desk. He passed it to Shadow who swiped it with a mild glare.

Shadow shrugged. His fur tickled my nose, and I nuzzled a little deeper, seeking comfort. I stared around the room at the three from where I sagged safely against Shadow's chest.

Dared we go with these strange furs? Three new unknowns in our little world of chaos. Possible threats? Possible friends? Even leaving out the easily dangerous bull, would we have any safety among them?

I did feel better as I sat with Shadow in the station office. He was buried in his thoughts for a moment. With his past, I understood how joining any group would seem dangerous. To him, a mixed group of furs posed any number of risks.

Finally, with a quick look to me, he replied with a wary, "Maybe...."

Well, we both had the same feelings on this, then.

Burt grinned like we'd said "yes" and had leaped into his arms.

"Burt, can you get this door? It's stuck!" Jenny called from the door. She'd pulled the tape off and was trying to unlock it.

Burt stood, and suddenly, his bulk seemed huge above us. Shadow held the bat and let out an uncertain noise. Burt's happiness deflated, but only a little. He turned to the door.

Shadow quickly managed to stand. He gripped the bat to his chest; I sagged against his knees.

Burt grunted, and he leaned against the door. Finally, with a -snick- the bolt slid back, and he slowly opened the door.

"It's because these zombies were piled against it," Burt said, leaning out cautiously into the store. He turned to us, glancing worriedly at me, the only fur still sitting. "You'll want to at least leave this spot. It's trashed out here, and when they wake...."

I shuddered and struggled to my feet. Shadow held my waist with a firm paw and stepped us to the door as the others left.

The store was a mess. Zombie bodies were piled on the floor in front of the door. More bodies littered the store, converging on our "safe" place.

When we exited the office, we had to step on inert zombie bodies. There was nowhere else to place our footpaws. The front of the store was a ruin of sharp-edged glass. Burt had to break the remaining glass on the door to get everyone out safely.

Again, every pane and shard of glass was rimed on the -inside- with strange, slowly retreating frost. Every drink in the refrigerated cases sparkled with withdrawing frost. Whatever the stuff was, its slow retreat into itself, into the interior of the clear substances defied everything I knew.

I shuddered, clutching Shadow's t-shirt in my sweaty paw. Shadow eyed the trails of zombies leading to the store across the pavement.

Burt, Jenny and Howard stood together, talking about something in hushed tones. They seemed eager to take us with them. Burt waved to us, his thin white shirt revealing his muscles. Jenny nodded to us, but a frown marred her pretty, white face.

One paw raised the bat higher, even as he held onto me. He had also been watching the trio. "We need to leave anyway. Tyler? You feel like going with them for a bit?"

I stared at the masses of zombies. Even lying still, with darkened eyes, they were threatening.

I turned away from the amassed dead... undead. Three live furs stood to the side of the store, quietly discussing something we couldn't hear. They lived. They breathed. What was stopping me? Nothing... but I was suddenly wary of yet another change. Another thing to test.

"It is worth a try..." I said slowly, staring at them. "I don't know if we'd be safer or not with them. They seem... good-intentioned."

"But that means nothing, right?"

I nodded slowly; any fur can thoughtlessly hurt another. "I think we need to try, though. We need to affirm that there are more furs alive. Somehow I think it's important we have more than just each other. Together, we'd drive each other nuts."

"Speak for yourself. I like your company just fine!" he stated, tail wagging. We had space outside, and the other three had kept a respectful distance while we discussed. At the very least, we could probably outrun them if we had to.

I straightened, easing my weight from Shadow's support, but I still held onto his shirt. My ears perked, and my tail slowly wagged for the first time since earlier that morning. "We should join them, then. Let's try?"

He nodded carefully. He still seemed worried, distracted.

Together, we approached the little group.

"If we go, we're free to leave at any time, right?" Shadow asked.

Burt nodded with a smile. "You'll come with us?" He pulled at the leg of his shorts.

"We'll try it," I clarified. My tail wagged hesitantly behind me.

"Okay," said Howard; his short tail flicked. "Go get anything you want to take and come back out. The zombies don't start moving for about an hour after midday. We have a little time left before they start."

Shadow turned. "Backpack," he whispered to me.

I smirked. Everything in there was replaceable, but there was some attachment or safety associated with it. "Give us a minute!" I called as we hurried inside again, stepping on rotting flesh. It seemed nastier than when we had come out. Eeeeewww. One zombie's ribs shifted wetly under my footpaws.

Once inside, I glanced around. The office seemed roomy, empty without the cramped furs.

My arm was seized, and Shadow pinned me up against the wall. My ears flattened, and a little yelp left me before his lips sealed to mine, his tongue urgently seeking entry.

I let him enter easily in my shock. I closed my eyes and moaned in confusion, but my arms came up to his shoulders, steadying him against me. His tongue dug through my muzzle's entry. I relaxed, letting him in deeper.

His paws grabbed at my hips and hauled them into his. He moved his weight forward towards the wall. My rear bumped the wall, bruising my tail, and I was again fully pinned. I felt his waking hardness and tried to say something around his tongue as it pressed in.

No use. He growled softly and pushed even deeper. He had better leverage with my head pinned to the wall. Was he trying to reach my tonsils?

His tongue pressed the length of mine even as his body tried the same. The wet, writhing tongue rippled over mine.

I tasted him. Shadow. The life, our survival. I sucked gently on his tongue, and the desperate intensity I'd felt from him slowly calmed.

He pulled away from the kiss and looked at me for several minutes. We were still pressed against each other. I could feel his chest move against mine with his breaths, his chestfur failing to reach mine through his brown shirt.

He pulled me close, pulling us both away from the wall. "I still need you," he muttered desperately in my ear.

I sighed in relief as he nuzzled into my shoulder; he was inhaling deeply. My paws came up to hold him close too. "I need you. Whatever they offer us...you.... You still might find someone more suited to you." I sniffed, sagging against him, my ears drooping, "I'll always welcome you, okay?"

"I'm not leaving you to them," he growled possessively. I could feel the edges of his teeth as his muzzle pressed close. "You're not leaving either, right?" He gripped me closer, paws moving restlessly along my back.

I turned my muzzle, managing to reach his ear. I snuffed in it, smelling him, then licked the edges I could reach. "I'm not leaving you. Are you leaving me?"

"Hells no!" he growled. "Remember what I said? I said whatever we do, we stick together." His paws moved lower, grasping my buttocks as he slipped a long, black leg between mine.

I clung to him. There was no movement for a moment... just two furs seeking more contact.

He slowly separated us.

I smiled shyly, my ears perking forward. "I think that was the first time I've kissed standing up...."

He held me by my shoulders, gazing intently at me with bright eyes. We needed the closeness, and more. But we had furs waiting for us outside.

Shadow finally relaxed, reassured for now, and he went over to our sleeping area. He slung the pack over his shoulder, tail wagging.

I picked up the tangled mess of shirt and cord from that morning. I offered the set to him with a smirk. He batted it down to the floor with a grin, his tail wagging hard. I shrugged, smiling. Shirts just weren't meant to fit over hips and tails. He could survive in his boxers and t-shirt.

He was still grinning. Whatever had been worrying him, it seemed to have resolved.

I gathered up the roles of tape and slung the sleeping bags over my shoulders. I took a look around; the office was empty and devoid of life. The undead crowded the doorway. The sense of safety was gone.

Shadow left the office and grabbing bags from the counter, began bagging all the air freshener cans he could. He passed me one as I fumbled with my own load. There were lots... must be a popular product with smelly RV owners.

I managed to grab another ice scraper near the shattered glass door. We made it outside with our burdens.

The fresh air hit my nostrils as we left the station. Birds were singing; at least some of them had survived. Three furs waited for us in the bright light. So bright after the fierce storm last night.

"You can't carry all that with you," said a frowning Jenny. Her clean white fur showed everywhere her skimpy, fashionable clothes weren't.

"Don't know about you," said Shadow, smiling at the three as we turned together towards the car, "but I don't want to walk."

I nodded, then shyly said, "My car works.... We drove over from Furnonn."

Howard gaped at us, "Really? I didn't think any of them worked anymore...." He shook his black-marked head, making his horns swing.

Burt shrugged. "Sorry boys... it's just hard to believe that thing ever ran. I thought it was part of this place's decorations," he said, rubbing a horn sheepishly.

"That's okay," I replied. "If we're to go together, we need to get it cleared out." The little Frankenstein car had four doors and seating for five, but was packed with supplies from my house.

Burt stared. He shifted a white-snipped foothoof uneasily. Probably thought we'd lost our marbles. "Furnonn? Are you sure? We need to leave this area quickly."

"Then help us unpack if you want a ride." Shadow turned his golden eyes to me, "What do you want to keep?"

I suddenly realized we'd have to leave almost everything. My little Frankenstein car had only a narrow trunk space behind the seats. Shadow and I started to pull all the stuff out. Best to get everything out first, then put the furs in. Biggest things first.

After a long pause, Burt stepped forward to help. I passed him boxes of food and gear from the back seat and he put them aside. He still looked doubtful, but seemed willing to help.

"We have a while, yet," chimed in Howard. In the daylight, I could see he was wearing a dirtied business suit. "Zombies won't stir for another thirty minutes or so. After that, it's another half hour before they're active enough to be very dangerous."

Burt nodded, but still moved hurriedly. I understood why. If the car didn't work, he needed to make sure the little group was far away from here when the zombies became dangerous.

Shadow finished by taking everything off the roof, save the gas cans.

"Everything out?" I asked, taking charge. "Furs in!"

Jenny snickered at me, her whiskers twitching, but she got in the front seat. Her summer clothes seemed to have fared better than Howard's.

"No," I said, "Burt needs to be in the passenger seat. Only place he'll fit. Stoats can fit anywhere, right?"

Burt shrugged and replaced a prettily puffed white stoat.

She glared at me. "I prefer 'ermine'," she stated flicking a black-tipped tail. "It's more elegant."

I shrugged at her. "Shadow," I whispered in his ear, "Can you sit in the back and keep an eye on them? I don't want one of them behind me, where I can't see them."

His hurt look from when I'd asked Burt to take the front faded into understanding. He slipped into the back seat behind the driver, forcing a grumbling Jenny into the middle. After claiming his spot, he left his pack in the seat to hold it for him. He glowered silent warnings as he left his pack.

It really was both reasons. Burt was too large to fit in the back.

Burt sat in the front, poking at my mish-mash console with hoofed fingers. He gave the pink zombie kitty dangler a prod with his hoof and watched in some dismay as it swung around.

Shadow and I stood over our piled gear.

"What do we bring?" Shadow asked.

I poked through the stuff. It was all from my house... I wanted to take it all. I had to leave it behind.

I pulled out a change of clothes and left the rest of my personal gear. If Shadow could manage with his limited wardrobe, I could come close too. I wanted more of the camping gear. Our two fur tent, the kiddy lamp, the little stove, and some basic gear I also set aside to take. Flashlight from my house, the jam from the farmhouse, folding shovel... anything else? Nothing seemed worth the effort.

I shrugged, trying not to feel mournful about leaving my family's stuff behind. Shadow wrapped his black arm around my shoulder; the paw squeezed my arm.

The tent, stove, and my one change of clothes crammed the little space behind the back seat. The sleeping bags were stuffed in the remaining space; they spilled over the back seats and covered the rear window. We kept enough food and water for the day, but left the rest. It fit, but barely. My family's camp gear box, lightened to our few choices, sat on the roof with the gas cans.

Shadow passed bags, clinking with air freshener cans, to each passenger. One for each furry lap and another stuffed Burt's legroom with my stacks of duct tape.

The three made sounds of dismay, and Burt shifted his white-snipped foothoof uneasily.

"We're taking these. Don't ask why." Shadow growled and gripped his bat, making his point clear.

I shrugged and smiled when they all looked at me.

"Let's go," said Shadow, staring at the surrounding zombies. Did one twitch? He clambered into the back seat, placing his pack on his lap.

Burt was nervously looking out his open door. "Either start the car and go, or let's start running."

I looked around. Zombie eyes were glowing in snarling, contorted faces. They followed our movements.

I shivered and hopped into the driver's seat. I set my ice scraper next to the door. I tapped the head of Kaylee's cat angel for luck, still wrapped in my family's photo, then shoved the key in.

Howard asked from the back, "You? Aren't you too young to drive?"

"Nope." I replied simply. I turned the key, and the engine came to life. It's alive! Frankenstein's monster awakens when shocked!

Burt sat stunned, "I don't believe it...."

Howard laughed from behind him, "I didn't think it would even turn over!" I could see him trying to shake his curved horns in the confined space.

Burt closed his door and the space in the car felt too close.

I showed my teeth nervously and leaned away from him. I felt Shadow's reassuring paw on my shoulder, squeezing gently. He was here. I eased my tensed lips and shifted the car into gear.

"Let's leave," said Burt, relaxing into his seat.

I pulled away from the station going where Burt pointed.

Burt looked in his bag, "So why the air freshener? Fire doesn't scare these guys away. A flame-thrower with air freshener won't work."

"Guess we forgot to test that one," mumbled Shadow as we crossed the bridge over the major highway.

Cars and bodies appeared to be strung out for miles of highway. Some corpses had been pulled out of cars and feasted on. Or maybe the furs had died trying to escape.

"The cans do have a use," I said quietly. "But with everything changing, I don't know if it even still works." I shifted the car into a higher gear and continued into the countryside.

Burt nodded solemnly.

From the back, I heard Jenny say, "This is amazing! I forgot how much faster driving is!"

"How far are you out?" I asked.

Burt rubbed a horn in the narrow space. "I don't know exactly, but it can't be very far by car. It's one of those big box stores they put away from a city, where the land is cheap."

"Wasn't that hard to secure?" asked Shadow, moving his paw to my side. He stroked gently.

Burt stared mutely out the window at a car wreck. Creatures that had been furs were rousing and trying to drag themselves up.

Wait. We were in a car... going fast... moving noisily....

"Burt, we're going to draw zombies in like this!" I yelped.

"What?" said Howard from the back, pulling his head in from the open window.

"They're most attracted to movement and noise," said Shadow. "This car makes a fair show of both." His paw froze and gripped my side until I could lightly feel his blunt claws.

I wanted to be closer to him than this. He wanted to be closer to me than this.

"They're up!" called Jenny, leaning too close to my large ear.

I winced, but kept driving. Shadow's paw dug slightly deeper, and he growled, probably at Jenny. Burt leaned his head out the window as I drove on.

"How much further?" I asked, feeling nervous. Undead furs were crawling, and a few were even on their feet.

"I think we're getting closer..." said Burt.

I wove around a slowly grasping and snarling fur... undead fur.

I couldn't build up speed for long before I had to dodge cars and corpses - moving and unmoving.

"Why don't you just run them over?" complained Jenny.

"Running into them would be like running into a feral deer in the woods. The car may be too damaged to drive," Burt leaned over to tell her, his slim tail flicking towards his window.

I smiled at him gratefully.

"As long as we get there, I'll be fine," commented Howard.

I wove between a few crawling zombies. They were snarling and glaring with bright, glowing eyes. I didn't think I would ever get used to that.

Shadow's paw relaxed, blunt claws easing away from my ribs.

"There it is," sighed Burt in relief.

"You weren't sure?" I asked worriedly.

"Well... I'd never driven from this direction.... And everything looks different on foot."

Well, at least we were here.

It really was a big store.

...and so was its parking lot... and it was absolutely riddled with cars and waking zombies. I stopped the car at the lot's entrance. There were cars littering my path to the store.

"How do we get in?" I whispered, craning my head to look around.

"My first time here," said Howard.

We rolled up the windows, staring at the mass of zombies. Shadow's bat clunked against his door.

Burt pointed to the store's wide back, where zombies clustered. "Park close to the FurShopper, then wait to go around back. There should be someone to distract them." He looked uncertain.

Should? What other choice was there? We could wait through another Curtain. Wait until the zombies were again immobile. What if it was a "bad" one again? Would we be able to come here in time?

I drove the car into the lot, nudging aside unsteady zombies. Some made a sick splat when they fell. Nasty.

"Do some of these guys look... fresher to you?"asked Jenny quietly. Through my mirror, I could see her trying to lean over an uneasy Shadow.

Shadow's eyes flicked to my eyes in the mirror. Whatever he saw in them, he held together better.

"I don't think the dead get any fresher," Burt said in a deep, low tone.

As we crossed the large parking lot, I saw a few furs on the roof. Hopefully they were the living kind. I pulled into a parking spot close to the side of the store. My driving instructor would have been proud. There was another empty spot in front of this one, so I could pull through to leave.

I turned off the car nervously, removing the keys. What if the next time was the -one- time it didn't start?

"What now?" Jenny squealed. "They're coming right at us."

I heard Shadow fumbling around behind us. Through my mirror, I saw him pull out a sleeping bag. He passed it to a dumbfounded Burt and started to pull out the other one too.

"Everyone hide under these! I don't know if it'll work, but we can't be recognized as living food."

One zombie reached the car with a smack and rubbed gore over the windows. Well, my Frankenstein car was already a dirty rust-bucket.

Burt shook his head, but opened the bag up for more coverage. It barely fit over him. I had to crawl in close to him from the driver's side to be hidden.

The three in back pulled theirs around them. I could see Shadows eyes peering at me desperately from under their bag's edge. My eyes anchored to his beneath the edge of ours. We couldn't see anything outside the car.

Smack.

Squelch.

Bang.

Some undead fur must have hooves outside too.

They were gaining strength. The car would not last.

I could feel Burt's breathing chest against mine as we huddled close. Warm... but not Shadow. Black... but not deep fur.

I saw Shadow nod to me slowly from under their bag. I heard the rustle of a plastic bag, and a can of air freshener appeared. He held it up.

I shrugged to him, slowly. It might work... it could very well not.

He sprayed the air.

A long hissing. Ugh. it reeked. Some sort of melon scent. After long sprays, his arm disappeared beneath the sleeping bag.

I wanted to gag. It was too strong. It fouled the air.

But after a few minutes, the zombie noises slowed. There seemed to be more of them, but they didn't hit with much dedication.

They couldn't see us. They couldn't smell us. They couldn't hear us.

Was it enough? How long was a waking zombie's memory?

Bang!

Bang!

Wheeeeee-iiiiisssss!

... it sounded like firecrackers?

More bangs and whistles. A long screech....

No more zombie sounds outside the car. Was it safe to move? How long had it been? Jenny coughed. Howard coughed harder. The air was getting hard to breathe.

A clunk. There was a draft behind me, slipping under the sleeping bag. Some paw wrapped around my ankle. A zombie had me!

I yelped loudly, grabbing at Burt, kicking behind me. Even a stranger was better than any zombie.

"Be quiet and get out of the car, all of you. Quickly!" some fur loudly whispered.

Burt flung the sleeping bag off us, grinning.

There was a large male rabbit leaning into the car. I gaped at him, but he changed his grip from my ankle to my arm and hauled me out of the car. I heard Burt exit the car behind me.

Plans changed, I guessed. My car would have to sit at the side of the store, not get pulled around to the back. I saw Kaylee's cat angel still standing safely in its cup.

Shadow ran up to us as the rabbit hauled me towards the store's rear. He wrenched me away by my other arm, growling and showing the strange rabbit his gore-smeared bat.

The rabbit nodded and waved us to follow him. We began to run.

Burt and Howard came next, each carrying a sleeping bag. Jenny came up last, holding back coughs.

We hurried across deserted asphalt. Where were the zombies? I looked back and saw a glimpse of zombies thronged around a few flashing, screeching firecrackers. Some turned our way, interested and stumbled toward us.

Fireworks. That was a good idea.

I was hurried forward by Shadow. You can't run fast looking behind you.

We rounded the corner to the back.

Fewer zombies there, and they were easily dodged in their "waking" state.

The rabbit led us around the back. A dog was holding the door open for us.

Inside.

We'd made it. Shadow was still attached to my arm as we stumbled to the floor, panting.

A door closed firmly somewhere behind us.

Burt was near me, I could see him hunched over his knees. Even his panting sounded deep. A sleeping bag slipped to the floor from his hoofs down to his foothoofs, pooling on the concrete.

"You made it!" said a voice. I lay on the floor, still panting. Trying to sprint and dodge zombies... while recovering from bad air... not so healthy, I concluded.

"Where did you get a running car?" asked the rabbit, giving Burt's back a firm rub as he recovered.

At least the big bull was still on his feet. The rest of us were sprawled on the floor.

Burt gasped a few times, but managed, "Belongs to this kid." After a moment, he gained more breath to speak with. "Tyler's the fox, Shadow's the wolf. The goat over there is Howard."

Howard managed to mumble a greeting from somewhere behind me.

"Hi," said the rabbit, picking up the sleeping bag from the floor. "I'm Steve Kajinski. Catch your breath while I talk to Burt, okay?"

As if we could do much else right now.

Maybe I hadn't recovered as much as I'd thought from the Curtain earlier that day....

Shadow sighed next to me, his paw flexing on my arm. Our gazes met and we both smiled. Together.

Would things be okay? As long as he was here, it would turn out.

He reached over me, pulling me closer and we hugged each other on the floor in relief. He laughed a little in my ear. The concrete was cool and hard beneath us, but it didn't matter. The bat lay next to us.

We finally stood. I was unsteady, but Shadow was there to support me.

"You stay here?" asked Howard, looking around the large storage area. His ears flicked, and he pulled a sleeping bag up higher over his shoulder.

"No. Oh, no! Everyone stays in the main store."

"Wouldn't that have been hard to clear out?" I asked, regaining my voice.

"Oh, it was! There were a lot of furs shopping here that first day."

"Isn't it too much space to defend?" asked Shadow. He eyed the newest furs warily.

"Nah," piped in Jenny. "There's lots of us! Come see!" She snagged a dismayed Shadow's paw and dragged him towards the store.

"Is it really okay?" I asked Burt, following a confused black wolf. I wasn't willing to let Shadow out of my sight.

"Yes, little tod. Go ahead. We keep this place safe." The black bull smiled reassuringly, returning his attention to his rabbit friend.

I followed the struggling duo out into the main store. Shadow was stronger, but Jenny was lithe and flexible. Somehow, whenever Shadow got a good pull, she'd redirect it. He couldn't seem to get away.

I chuckled to myself, quickening my steps to catch up.

The store. It was a massive, dark space. I assumed, though I couldn't see the ceiling well in the gloom. But there were candles and lamps burning, lighting a nearby area.

And there were furs waiting, looking excited to see us.

A few... several.

No. More than a dozen.

My muzzle hung open in shock.

Then I saw someone in the crowd. Not a fur I recognized, but a fur whose sight made my heart halt for an instant.

In the dim light, I could see a subtle mix of grays, whites, and tans. A very attractive female.

She stepped forward through the crowd of onlookers; her eyes locked onto Shadow. Focused. Her eyes widened, and she smiled appreciatively at him.

Beautiful... female... young and strong... wolf.