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Always so dark. It might have seemed scary to some, though I couldn't care less as I lay in the dark closet with Shadow. Finally, I made the first move. I reached past Shadow's shoulder and fumbled around in the supplies until I found the towel I had used earlier. I sat up to kneel over Shadow, and toweled our mess up. Shadow sighed his content as I wiped us clean.

"Did I get it all?" I asked, feeling around with a paw.

"Think so," Shadow mumbled.

I already missed his warmth, kneeling above him. He was already reacting to the loss and reaching for me. The towel in my paw dropped somewhere to the side. Following his welcoming arms, I wiggled in close on top of him, avoiding bandages. I slipped my leg between one of his and settled my weight down.

My mind wandered in the silence. I remembered the searing light from the doorway and my fight with Bradley. My favorite moment these past hours was when Shadow woke up and said my name. I couldn't ask for more completion to a day. I got to keep Shadow. He had said my name again only a few minutes ago, but I couldn't quite recall what else I'd heard.

"Wait. What was that?" I mumbled. It was hard to pull any sense from the impressions I had. That space of time we were coming down from our high.... What had he whispered just a short time ago? My stumbling mind went back to the moment when he removed his fingers from my tailhole.

"What?" he mumbled into my neckfur.

"You whispered something. I thought you said...." What had I thought I'd heard in that moment?

He shifted beneath me, and mumbled, "Ummm...."

Shadow had said it was nothing. It probably wasn't important.

No, his words had seemed important. "Inside"... something. I mulled over what I'd heard. Had I heard right? I thought a moment. A strong blush stung my skin.

I mumbled, "You want to be inside me? Is that what you said?"

Shadow froze for an instant, then made some movement beneath me. A nod? A no? Maybe it was a shrug.

Ah, I remembered. "You whispered something about how badly you wanted to be inside me. Was that it?"

Shadow put gentle paws on my back and pulled me in. "Don't be scared or mad. I just..." he faded.

"I-" I what? How did I feel about that?

"I'm not expecting anything," he said softly near my ear. "Um, I've been wanting to try playing... further with you. Don't feel like you have to. I like this just fine, too!"

I thought a moment, lost in thought, while I could feel his paws fidget in my backfur. "I wouldn't mind trying something like that with you."

"Really?" he whispered, stilling. "I- I didn't want to ask you when you were all worked up and not thinking straight."

"Honestly, it makes me a little nervous," I admitted, "but I know you can make it feel good. I want to... I want to-" How could I say it? "I want to be closer to you, but I don't want to bind you to me when you might enjoy an experienced fur more."

His words were brighter, as he said, "I enjoy being with you more than any fur I've ever met. I won't mind being with you that way too. No. I want to be with you in every way." He nudged his nose into my cheekfur.

I blinked in the darkness, wishing I could see his face. I didn't have to lie and wonder. I fumbled around on the floor, just past the sleeping bag's edge. Finding the flashlight, I flicked it on.

Ooouch! The light stung. I angled it away and half-hid it under a bag of snacks. The muted light was a little easier to take as my eyes adjusted.

I was lying on top of a familiar black wolf. He was looking at me, golden eyes blinking rapidly in the light. What was he thinking? I hoped it was something good about me.

I was greedy. I wanted him to think about me. I wanted him to want me. "I want you," I said, staring into his yellow eyes. "And... I want you to take me. I want you to be in control, because you've been without control too many times."

He licked his lips, staring intently at me.

"Besides, I don't want you hurt any more. Especially if I screw up." I bent down and gently kissed him. My lips placed to his, but I waited for him to respond first before I used any tongue. I wanted to give him the feeling of being free and in control.

He withdrew his muzzle, looking up at me. "I've held back so many times," he admitted with a sigh. "You have no idea how hard it is with you. You respond so easily to everything I do."

"So why haven't we done this already?" I asked. "I don't mind. I've gotten used to things better, but I think I wouldn't have minded too much if we'd moved quickly."

"It- It hurts. Being taken the first time hurts because you don't know how to handle it. I couldn't stand the thought of you in pain. I didn't want to see that face in pain," he finished, stroking my cheekfur with his paw.

"I can manage some pain if it means we can get closer. Really," I reassured him when I saw him get apprehensive. "I trust you to find a way that won't hurt too much."

He held me close with paws on my head and back. I could hear him breathing. His breathing increased and he sounded scared.

This was going to be a hurdle for him, I realized. "Ah, we don't have to. I don't want to see you scared." I drew him closer by his shoulders.

"No!" he said loudly. "I... Ah... I want to. I have wanted to for a long time, but I couldn't ask right when we were playing." He let out a long breath, "I wanted you to decide when your head was clear."

"I feel pretty clear now, and I'm telling you how I truly feel."

He broke into a laugh, "Tyler, I'm finally going to make you mine!"

"Finally? We haven't known each other that long," I said, rolling my eyes.

"Do you want to wait longer? I don't mind," he replied, quite serious.

"No, I don't want to wait. I can't wait. Each time we play, I feel I want to be closer to you." I paused, "But not in this closet. It feels too dangerous here. I want to be somewhere safer."

"Why? Aren't we safe?"

I had let my tongue loose. We were safe from the Curtain here, but I wasn't sure about the furs outside, in the store.

"Well," I began, "I don't want to be in here... smelling cleaner while trying to focus on you." Not very smooth.

"Later then," he agreed, "I need some time before we play again anyway."

"Well, It'll be a while before we try playing again, right? We should relax a while," I stated. I needed time to find an escape from my worries too.

He slipped from under me and guided me to lay on my side. The sleeping bag was all rumpled from our movements. In the dimmed light, I felt him lie behind me, edging in as close as he could. I heard the slight crinkle of bandages, but he didn't make any pained noises.

It was still, dark, quiet. His comforting presence behind me kept me away from any worries.

He sighed into the fur at the nape of my neck. He snuffled and licked there... then froze.

I tensed too. Had he heard something?

"Tyler?" he asked, carefully sniffing. "What is this?"

"What?" I whispered.

"I thought when I smelled blood earlier, it was from my injuries. Why is there blood on your neck?"

Blood? Oh, that. I stiffened as I realized.

"I, um... I got hurt," I said vaguely.

He snatched the flashlight from under the package. I could tell he shone it on my nape. He drew back a little to see, but gripped me close with the other paw.

No chance of avoiding this, huh?

I felt strong vibrations as he growled loudly. "What is this!" he demanded. "It looks like a, grrrrr, bite!" he snapped on the last word.

I sagged in defeat. He would find out. I was marked. Marked as a violent fur. "I'm sorry," I whispered, barely making myself heard over the growls. "It's fine though. It closed up right after. I'll clean it. There's just dried blood, right?"

He choked on a growl, "What happened, Tyler?" He sounded upset.

"I was bad... and I got bit. I'm sorry." I snuffled into my paws.

"By a... zombie? Bitten like I was?" he asked, stroking my neck.

I shook my head, unable to reply.

He dug into the fur with his tongue, licking at the sore areas. He growled and whimpered in turns, digging his wet nose down to my skin.

My ears drooped in sorrow. "I'm sorry," I whispered.

I could feel his tongue licking, cleaning away the remaining blood traces. "Use the towel with some water, Shadow."

He growled in response and kept licking. Neither of us spoke for long minutes as he methodically licked away all traces of dried blood.

When he was done, he nuzzled in, sighing. This felt right. With him, I could relax, even after I had been bitten by a "civilized" fur.

He seemed to be gathering his thoughts. After a long moment, he shifted and said, "Tyler...."

Clunk-clunk.

I startled before realizing some fur was knocking at the closet door. I had been getting tense, anticipating Shadow's questions.

"You okay in there?" asked Burt's muffled voice.

"Y-Yeah!" I called. "We're fine. Shadow's awake too." I nudged behind me with an elbow, bumping his ribs, "Say something, Shadow."

Shadow sighed, then called, "Hi, Burt."

"Good," he called through the door. "Curtain's coming soon. I just wanted to give you warning."

We had messed around in here a while.

"Just stay in there for now," Burt's voice returned. "Things have settled down out here, but it's crowded in the bathrooms. We've got a lot of furs."

"I want to talk to you after!" barked Shadow.

"I'll come this way after it's over," agreed Burt. "I need to gather up everyone. You have a little bit of time, maybe ten minutes."

I listened to Burt's hooves clip-clop away. In the distance beyond the door, a whistle blew, signaling every fur to come in somewhere safe.

I felt Shadow breathing behind me. Our bare fur mixed.

"Should we put on our clothes?" I asked.

"Wait until after," Shadow mumbled.

I could hear worry in his voice. He fidgeted and growled unhappily behind me. His worries must be building, but this was a bad time to bring up a new subject.

Something was needed to relieve the silence. "Shadow?" I started. "After this Curtain, let's set up on the roof. I feel like I haven't seen the sun in years. I don't want to be down here forever."

He licked into my neckfur, rousing more of my scent. After a long sigh, he said, "Yeah. I miss the sun. And I honestly don't like to be confined by walls all the time."

I nodded my agreement. The dim light from the half-covered flashlight couldn't compete with my memories of a greater light outside.

Shadow's paw slipped over my waist and held me close. His questions didn't matter in this single moment before the Curtain dropped.

A hum.... I felt it before I heard it, causing me to twitch. A hum and a shiver coursed through the building as the Curtain approached.

Shadow nuzzled closer, humming contentedly, and I focused on that feeling. Quiet contentment, and Shadow. I relaxed under his arm.

The Curtain dropped.

It dropped with a whisper, which grew into a scream. A scream that crawled over every inch of my skin. The vibrations were so fine, they slipped through my pores. They scoured every sense like sand-paper.

But the vibrating scream that invaded every sense had a pattern. One I was beginning to recognize. I could dance around it, avoiding the worst and enhancing the good.

But there was no good in such a thing. There was only the lesser torture.

Even though I recognized the pattern, there was no way to follow it. I was swept away with the vibrations.

It stopped.

And for a brief instant I stopped existing too.

But the backlash of my senses, pursuing the vibrations, smashed into me. I shuddered hard, but pulled away, trying to remind myself what I could actually feel. Separate the real from the Curtain-produced feelings.

Shadow, behind me, shivered and breathed hard. I could feel his fur shift against mine. I could feel his paw holding me close.

He sighed hugely, shifting me forward, "That wasn't too bad, huh?"

I shook my head, "If only they were all so ordinary." I felt numb and distant, but I was okay. It was too early to move, but I could speak just fine.

He nuzzled deep in my nape with his nose. "That's better. I didn't want you smelling like blood."

I didn't know what to say. After a moment of silence, I sat up and gathered my clothes.

He watched me pull my shirt on as he wiped, propped up on one elbow. "You going to tell me what happened while I was out?"

I sighed, trying to avoid looking at him. "I-" my voice trailed off. Clearing my throat, I tried again, "Some furs heard you'd been bitten and they came here."

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw him nod, "Okay... and?"

"And I ended up getting bit, but you were unharmed." I looked at him as I pulled up my shorts, avoiding the meat of the question.

He was biting his lip in thought. It looked cute, really. Finally, he grinned and said, "Well, let's get out of here."

"You get dressed first."

"What?" he complained, wagging tail giving him away. "You can't appreciate a 'natural wolf'?"

That got a laugh out of me. "Yes, I see you're very natural."

He gave a chortling laugh as I tossed his boxers in his face.

"Sorry," I explained, "it looks like you're shirtless again. They had to cut it away when they treated your wounds."

He would have to show off all his bandages and muscles until we could get more clothes for him. I started to gather up the supplies Burt had left us. Shadow started on the sleeping bags.

We were almost finished when Burt's knock came at the door. "Hello?" he called.

"I'll let him in," I said, finding the key.

When I opened the door, I suddenly wondered if the closet smelled like us... playing. If it did, Burt gave no indication of having smelled anything unusual.

Smiling and trying to look behind me, he said, "Shadow's all good?"

"I'm here," Shadow waved from the interior. He passed me the blanket-bundled supplies and flashlight. He hefted the two sleeping bags with minimal wincing.

Burt grinned and scratched his chin, "Glad to hear it." He held up a small green bundle of cloth, "Shadow, I got you a shirt on my way over. I hope it fits." Burt passed it over.

Shadow quickly put the bright t-shirt on. It fit.

Burt nodded in satisfaction. "Yeah, that's not bad." He looked around the dim closet, "It's a bit crowded at Camp, but we'll find you somewhere to set up." Burt turned to me, "Tyler, is your tent still in your car?"

I nodded as I flicked the flashlight off. "Yeah, my camp gear is all in my car. And don't worry about the space, we want to set up on the roof, where it's sunny."

"Right," Burt nodded his big, black head. "I'd move everyone up there myself, but most furs here don't want to listen to those zombies. I can't leave them to Steve and Sally right now. Also, we ran out of tents last night, and let's just say there were some complaints. We have to find even more places for those idiots who came here last night."

"Hey, Burt. About that. Tyler won't say anything about what happened." He stopped Burt with a sleeping bag-laden paw, "I want to know how he got hurt. Who hurt him?" he growled.

"I'm fine, though," I insisted.

"Ah," said Burt, eyes darting around the store. "Some idiots thought you might turn into a zombie, and they came here... thinking they'd 'take care' of you."

Shadow stared wide-eyed. Even after the event, the idea was frightening.

"Tyler..." Burt began, rubbing a horn. "Well, Tyler held them off and made a lot of noise until Steve, Sally, and I could get here."

Shadow frowned, growling under his breath. I dropped my gaze, and my ears in embarrassment.

"Here, let me take that," Burt took the sleeping bag from Shadow's paw. "You're still injured," he insisted.

Shadow shrugged as he gave up the sleeping bags. He glared at Burt, "And?"

"And I thought he was fine. He'd injured a fur and was being held still. No... I thought that fur Bradley had bitten him on his neck to subdue him, but Tyler insisted he was fine."

"Bradley," Shadow sounded out the name.

"He and Isaac were at the forefront of this," Burt continued walking, leading us towards the back of the store.

I could see the lights of Camp nearby, but we angled away from it.

"We'll drop this stuff off here," said Burt, setting down the two sleeping bags by the roof access stairs.

I set down the flashlight and my bundled blanket. Looking around, it seemed mostly quiet. A few furs were making noise at Camp, but they sounded pretty mellow.

"Tyler got in a fight," Shadow gazed at me with a little bemused wonderment.

"Got himself in a fight protecting you, I'd say," Burt said as he headed through the loading area for the exit.

Shadow paused, looking at me for an instant longer. He grabbed my paw with a grin and pulled me after Burt. "Tough little guy, aren't you?" he teased, still grinning.

My ears lay back in embarrassment. But I had to admit I preferred a cheerful Shadow. At least Burt hadn't said anything about-

"Tyler even went after that big honey badger with his teeth, as I understand it."

I drooped, even as I hurried along after them.

Shadow stopped and looked at me. I couldn't tell what expression was on his face as I glued my eyes to the floor. He turned to Burt with a growl, "A honey badger?"

"Yeah, why?" asked Burt stopping.

"Not too many honey badgers around this part of Furdom," said Shadow growling under his breath, "but they have pretty short fuses. Once you get them going after you, they tend to not give up."

I shivered. Suddenly, I wished the big lion, Isaac, had gone for me instead.

At least Shadow had not seemed to care that I had bit someone. The knowledge was comforting and reassuring.

"Well," said Burt looking over his shoulder as he walked, "I don't know if it was enough for that particular honey badger. He didn't look too displeased to get out of the closet after we came."

Shadow glanced worriedly at me, and I forced a weak smile to my muzzle.

When we came to the exit, Burt paused, "Okay, we need to get to your car quick. Who knows how fast they'll recover this time."

Burt cracked the door open, pausing to carefully examine the silence outside. With a nod to us, he slipped out the door.

There was a cloud in front of the sun, and the day was quiet. Insects were recovering, but no sound from the birds yet.

Where had I parked? I groaned inwardly. Almost at the front of the store. I patted the pocket of my dirty clothes. They were mine, but my keys were in the car, right? Had I left the lights on?

We made our way across the parking lot, covered in motionless creatures. The eyes of zombies were dark and empty of any sign of life.

No trusting a "dead" zombie. They would be up soon.

The corpses which had never risen had been stripped to the bone. There was a pile of rotting corpses to the far side of the store's parking lot; they were the bodies from inside the FurShopper. Blood and fur, there were a lot of them. They appeared to be rotting too fast for any but a few stunned crows and vultures around them. I could see many more carrion birds in the trees past the parking lot.

Were the birds next to the pile dead? They were upright, but unmoving. As if nesting, their feet were tucked under them; their birdy heads resting sightlessly against their shoulders. No real point in checking, we needed to get to my car.

Frankenstein! My heart leaped when I saw its rusty hide.

"Get your stuff from the car, I'll keep watch," whispered Burt when we got close.

Shadow and I nodded.

"Should I just try to drive my car close in to the door?" I asked.

Burt looked serious, "Don't bother right now. Also, I don't know how much I trust some of these new furs."

I nodded my agreement and returned my attention to my rust bucket.

Frankenstein! I tried my best to ignore the much diminished frost inside the windows. I was in my mental celebration mode. A breath of familiarity, a memory of a time when things had been safe.

Smiling, I took the camp gear box from the roof. The contents were safe and dry, so it had not rained. I put the box near Burt, who was ignoring us and focusing only on the collapsed zombies scattered around us.

Shadow was already at the rear passenger door, pulling out his backpack with a relieved sigh and gathering clinking pawfulls of air-freshener bags.

I opened the front door and rescued Kaylee's cat angel and my family photo. Sticking them in my pocket, they were joined a moment later by my car keys. I wanted to take the ice scraper this time, even if I could find others in the store. I wanted it, so I took it too. I grabbed the jar of jam and gave the zombie kitty a "farewell for now" poke.

I hurried the to rear hatch of the Frankenstein car and pulled out the two fur tent. Everything appeared to be untouched. I closed the hatch firmly, then looked around.

"Any zombies twitching?" I asked.

"Don't think so. It's a bit early for them yet." He eyed a still husky a few pawlengths away.

Nervously, Burt shoved at the husky corpse with a foothoof. It rolled over, exposing a grimacing face and old wounds covered in translucent flesh. That must have been the stuff Peter had wanted to show me yesterday.

Absently, I wondered what had become of the zombies out front which burned. Curious, and not feeling the urgency of time, I knelt down to get a closer look at the husky.

"Tyler," Burt warned with his deep voice.

With a little wave in his direction, I leaned in closer. Slowly.... If this zombie started to wake up, I didn't want to be caught unawares.

The translucent flesh did look strange. Sort of a pale bluish color. I picked up a small rock and dropped it on an area of knotted and pale flesh.

Nothing. Even though the rock landed without incident, I was nervous. The flesh was pale, bluish, and completely furless. It seemed stiffer than the regular zombie flesh when I dropped another rock there.

What was it? Now I was curious. Peter had said it felt funny when touched. I reached and brushed the surface with a fingertip.

Mmmmmm.

I yelped.

Burt looked alarmed, but hushed me softly. I nodded, feeling shaken.

I recognized that vibration... that pattern. The Curtain was somehow a part of the flesh. A horrified shudder rippled down my spine, and I jumped to my footpaws. The sooner we were back within the FurShopper, the better.

I grabbed a few bags of duct tape and air-freshener from the pile Shadow had pulled out. After shoving the ice scraper and jam in a bag, I nodded my readiness to Burt.

"Got everything?" asked Shadow, sparing the husky corpse a brief glance.

I nodded again.

Burt picked up my family's camping gear box and the tent. With a quick nod, he hustled for the door. I couldn't find fault as I joined Shadow in following him.

I opened the door and we all slipped inside without any zombie knowing. With my tail sagging to the floor in relief, I set my bags down for a moment. Even though no zombie had stirred, I kept having the feeling they were watching.

Shadow took the opportunity to retrieve his bat, which was lying near the door in the shadows. Burt set down the tent and box for a long stretch. We didn't speak, only took the opportunity to not feel threatened.

We started the long walk through the loading area to the roof-access ladder.

"I don't like it out there," I mumbled, shifting my grip on the bags. My paws weren't nearly as sore today, I noted.

Burt nodded at me, "See? I couldn't have left you two out there on your own."

Shadow shrugged. Everywhere must seem dangerous for him.

And here was no exception, I thought bitterly as I watched Helaina bounce up towards us.

"Shadow!" she called happily. "You're alright! I was so worried when I heard you got bit."

"Hi, Helaina," Burt said with a smile, shifting the camp gear box in his arms. He stopped us as Helaina neared.

I noticed my teeth were bared. Consciously, I relaxed them. I didn't have to be hostile, but I needed to make myself clear. I had found my path in this matter. I was through being polite. Even after she grew to know him a little, she had no inclination of fighting for him. She only wanted to fight for herself. I had made my decision regarding her.

Stepping close to Shadow, I dropped my bags and faced Helaina.

Pretty wolf that she was, her face took an unattractive grimace when she saw me in her way.

"We've got things covered here, Helaina," I gestured to our loads. "We don't need your help, but thanks for checking in."

Helaina turned to the dark wolf behind me, "Shadow, let's-"

"No," I stated, moving to interrupt her gaze. "You've made your motivations as well as your intentions clear. This is where it ends. You can't have Shadow. Back off. He's mine," I finished with a low growl.

I could feel the other two males' stares as my hackles rose in response to Helaina. I tried, but I couldn't hold it back. I let a little of the red anger from last night seep into my gaze. Even my tail puffed out.

Helaina took a step back, "Er.... Why you savage, disgusting little fox! You'll- you'll-" she gripped her paws into fists. "You will regret this!" she snarled at me.

With a casual flick of her tail, she turned away. Her back to me, she said, "Shadow, if you ever grow tired of this brat, join me. I'll show you how a real female can treat a male."

Shadow coughed back a chuckle as she left.

Burt stood, muzzle agape. He looked confused and shocked, as he watched Helaina leave. His lower lip flapped as he tried to recover.

Shadow grinned at me. "Well, I guess I'm unavailable to date now."

Burt's muzzle snapped shut, but he still appeared too shocked to speak. He was looking at me with a mixture of shock and new appreciation.

Never knew I had it in me.

I finally relaxed my rigid ears. I felt... refreshed. I turned to Shadow with a grin of my own.

He snickered, "Good going, pup. Let's head to the roof, eh, Burt?"

We made it to the ladder, while Shadow occasionally snickered to himself. Burt went up first, while Shadow and I passed him bags and boxes from below.

It looked so bright outside. I wanted the sun on my fur without having to deal with the fear of zombies.

"Okay, everything is up there," said Burt. He nodded to the roof hatch as he came down. "I need to head back now. You pups be careful up there."

"Thanks, Burt," I said.

"Always glad to help," he deflected, blinking at me.

Shadow climbed up the ladder and I followed. The bright light welcomed me. Where a shadowy, bright-eyed wolf waited for me.

We left the dark realm in favor of the light.