FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

The entire place was quiet; something Tom wasn't used to. The sun was up, but everyone but him was still sleeping. He decided against waking up Ren or his parents and instead decided to explore his new home a bit.

He softly crept out of the room and looked to his right. The closed door at the end of the hall on the left was his parent's room. Across the hall from his and Ren's room was the bathroom. That left the room next door. He slowly walked across the carpeted floor until he was able to turn right into the next room.

The room was quite a contrast from his and Ren's room. The walls were painted pink instead of white, there was a variety of furniture, and there were many things hanging from the ceiling and on the wall. "A nursery..." Tom muttered as his gaze focused on the crib set against the wall. The orphanage had a nursery, though theirs was much more packed and lacked the personality this room had. Tom chuckled when he thought of all the times one crying baby Hund had caused the whole nursery to light up. "At least handling just one will be easy..."

Tom went back into the hallway and headed towards the stairs. At the bottom he was at the edge of what they called the "living room". It had a few pieces of furniture that he wasn't aware existed like those two wide chairs. He figured maybe three or four kids could sit side-by-side on those things. He recognized the television. He knew the director and other members of the orphanage had them in their own rooms, and occasionally the kids were able to watch a movie on them. This one was very huge though. Tom stood in front of it and stretched out his arms. Nope, this television was wider than his entire reach.

Adjacent from the living room was the dining room. He had the chance to eat a small meal here last night. Tom gazed at the wooden table that had six chairs. He smiled at the thought of there not being turns for who gets to eat.

The kitchen was next to the dining room. It was so small compared to what he's seen before. The size of everything he's seen in the house so far gave him the impression of "personal". This home wasn't just meant for anyone and everyone; it was for his family and him.

"Good morning, Tom"

Tom turned around and smiled. "Good morning... um..." The next word was one of those few words he thought he'd never have to refer to someone by. "... mom."

"Did you sleep well?" Her smile turned into an apologetic frown. "The bed we ordered should be arriving soon."

"It wasn't that bad" Tom said with a smile.

"That's good" Tom's mother said as she slowly walked to the fridge. "Is there anything special you want for breakfast?"

"Um..." Tom thought about for a moment. "Can you make french toast?"

"Oh!" his mother remarked at the suggestion. "I haven't made that in months." His mother looked around in the fridge for a moment before taking out a few eggs. "Tom, could you do me a favor and grab the milk on the bottom shelf. I can't bend down quite that well right now."

Tom quickly walked up to the fridge and grabbed the carton. As he handed it to his mother he looked down at her tummy. "Um, mom, how long until she's born?"

"How'd you know it was a girl?" his mother smiled as she started cracking the eggs.

"I saw the nursery." Tom replied.

"I see..." she said as she poured a little bit of milk into the eggs. "Well the doctor says I should be due in about three weeks."

"That soon!?" Tom said with a bit of surprise as he watched his mother beat the eggs.

His mother laughed. "It's been a long wait for us..." She walked over to the pantry and grabbed a pack of sliced bread. "Could you go wake up Ren for breakfast, please?"

"What about..." Tom paused again. "...dad?"

"He's probably getting out of the shower now and drying off. He should be down in about twenty minutes.

Tom disregarded caution as he rushed up the stairs. He opened his bedroom door. Inside Ren was still lying on the floor. He was on his side and clutching Tom's pillow to his body as he continued to breathe slowly in slumber. Tom thought to himself what was the best way to wake his brother up? He knew the senses of Hunds were much keener than his own. A grin crept across Tom's face as he knelt next to his brother. He lifted the blanket near Ren's feet and slowly drew his right hand closer.

Laughter filled the entire house. Ren tossed and turned while his brother kept ahold of his right foot and kept tickling his foot paw without mercy. "Stop!" Ren said between laughter as his body continued to twitch. "Please!" Tom smiled and quickly pulled his hand away. Ren was lying on his back, catching his breath, letting out an occasional giggle.

"What's going on here?" Both of them looked towards the door to see their father. His fur was dark and damp, but not to the point of dripping. One towel was wrapped around his waist while another hung over his shoulders. A look of amusement filled his face as he inquired about the laughter. "I've never heard you laugh like that, Ren." His father said as he continued to dry his head fur.

"Tom was tickling my paws..." Ren said with a giggle.

"Is that so?" their father said with a chuckle. "Don't you even think about trying that on your mother or myself, alright?" His father said as he walked back towards his room.

Tom looked at Ren. "You think he's ticklish too?" Ren shrugged his shoulders. "I'll find out someday then..." Tom said with a smirk as he stood up. "Breakfast should be ready soon." Ren's ears shot up as he quickly grabbed his linen and placed it back on his bed. When he turned around he saw Tom already walking through the door.

"Wait for me!" Ren said as he quickly chased after Tom.

Tom and Ren sat next to each other as their mother continued to cook french toast. Tom smiled when he tasted something sweet besides the syrup. "What else did you put in here, mom?"

"Just a little bit of cinnamon" she replied as she flipped over another slice.

"I like it!" Tom said before placing another slice into his mouth. His gaze travelled to his brother's plate. Instead of having the syrup drizzled over his slices he had it in a separate bowl. He watched as Ren dipped a small piece of french toast into the syrup and carefully guided it to his mouth. A thought occurred to Tom as he wiped some syrup off the corner of his mouth; syrup probably doesn't bode well with Hunds and their fur.

As they finished their last bites their father walked in. His fur was now dry and bright. "Did you clean the body dryer, dear?" Their mother asked as she placed a serving for him on the table."

"Yes dear" he replied as he started cutting his breakfast into pieces. "Is there anything either you boys want to do today?" He asked as he continued slicing.

Ren remained silent, not having anything particular in mind that he wanted to do. Tom stood up. "Can we... um... go to the beach?"

Their father looked at him. "You want to go swimming?"

Tom shook his head. "I don't want to swim; I was to just see the beach."

"Are you fine with that, dear?" Their father looked over his shoulder at their mother.

"You boys go have some fun." She replied as she placed the frying pan into the sink. "I'm just going to take a nice bath."

"Alright boys..." Their father said as he looked at them. "We'll leave in ten minutes." Tom walked out of the kitchen, quickly followed by Ren.

"What cha doing?" Ren asked as he followed Tom up the stairs.

"Getting my shoes." Tom replied as he reached the top of the stairs.

"Shoes?" Ren asked curiously as he followed Tom into their room. He watched as Tom as grabbed two items stacked up against the wall and placed his feet in them. "What are those for?" Ren asked as he gazed at the dirty and worn-out shoes.

"I'll cut my feet without these" Tom responded as he tied the ragged strings. "I don't think I can walk on my toes all the time..." Tom said as he looked down at Ren's foot paws.

"Toes?" Ren asked he looked down at his feet.

"Put your foot next to mine." Tom said as he straightened himself and extended his left foot towards Ren. Ren slowly placed his left foot next to Tom's. "See how much of my foot touches the ground compared to yours?" Ren nodded. "I'd have to walk like this..." Tom said as he stood up on his toes and started moving around. "I tried doing it for a while at the orphanage, but my toes started to hurt so bad after a while." Tom smiled and lowered his voice. "These are also my secret weapon."

"For what?" Ren asked, trying to mimic the volume of Tom.

"Think of what I did to you earlier..." Tom grinned as he walked out of the room, leaving Ren to think about it.

Ren's ears shot up. "That's cheating!" Ren shouted playfully as he quickly followed behind.

==============================

"Are you sure you don't me to drive us there, Tom?" His father asked as they left the house.

"But it's right there!" Tom said with a smile as he pointed at their destination downhill.

"It's a twenty minute walk, though." Are you sure you won't get tired?"

"I'll be fine!" Tom laughed. "You'll be fine, right, Ren?"

"I think..." Ren said as he stood next to his father.

"You'll be fine!" Tom shouted as he started walking ahead.

"Stay together, Tom." His father said as he and Ren went to catch up."

The walk downhill was a quiet one. Tom kept his gaze on the ocean the entire time as they drew closer. Behind him his brother and father were looking from side to side. Ren kept close to his father as he looked up and asked "Dad... why is everyone looking at us?"

Ren's father let out a sigh as he watched many of the neighbors' reactions. "Was seeing Tom for the first time a shock for you?"

"Yes." Ren shook his head.

"Well... like you, there are many who have never seen a human in-person before." He gazed at the neighborhood children who exhibited curiosity and amazement. "And then there are those who haven't seen an actual human in years." He focused on the adults who showed shock and disbelief. "Most Hunds can only see humans in old movies and TV shows now."

"We were lucky to find Tom then. " Ren smiled.

"Yeah..." his father said with a smile. "We sure were..." He ruffled his son's head fur as they continued to let Tom lead the way.

Ten minutes passed before they stood at the edge of the beach. Tom was transfixed on the sight. "Looks like we've got the beach to ourselves, Tom." His father said as he looked around.

"Do Hunds not like the beach?" Tom asked without shifting his gaze.

"Well it's the beginning of winter; not really an ideal time for going to the beach. Not to mention getting sand in one's fur is..." He shook at the idea. "It's a real hassle to clean out."

Ren walked up besides Tom. He tried looking at whatever Tom was so transfixed on. He couldn't understand what Tom was amazed at. What was he missing? He looked back at Tom who was bent over fiddling with his shoes. "What are you doing?" Ren asked as he watched Tom take off both shoes and socks off of his feet. "I thought you said..." Ren looked at him with confusion.

"I don't want shoes for this..." Tom leapt forward and stood still as he stepped onto sand for the first time. He gazed out into the horizon as his hair was continuously blown back by the wind. He watched the waves collapse over themselves and coated the surface white. He giggled as he felt the sand shift between his toes. He lifted one of his feet and watched as the sand fell off, leaving some between his toes. He dug his foot back into the sand before walking towards the ocean.

Tom's father sat down as he watched Tom walk away. He looked at Ren who was still standing. "What are you thinking about?" he asked, getting his son's attention.

"Dad, was I like Tom the first time I came to the beach?"

His father let out a chuckle. "You cried the first time you touched the water." He watched as Ren's ears flattened against his head. "Ren, you were only three years old then." Ren let out a huff and dashed forward to catch up with Tom. "Wait!" his father shouted in surprise.

Ren's body instinctively slowed down when he heard the command. He looked back at his father and then back at Tom. Without even thinking about it, he increased his pace.

His father smiled. "You'll be taking a bath when you get home." He looked past Ren and saw Tom. He let out a sigh of content. "Very lucky..."

Tom froze for a moment when he stepped into hard sands. He forced his foot down and lifted it. He smiled at the imprint that was left there. He looked forward; the water was only a few steps away from him. He counted down in his head how many steps he took. "One... two... three... four... fi-!" Tom cut himself off as he felt his feet submerged in water. His body shivered from the sudden temperature change. He looked down and watched as the water receded away, revealing his feet, and then flowed back over them.

Behind Tom, Ren ran onto the hard sand and lost his footing, falling face-first into the sand. He let out a scream of surprise that caught the attention of Tom who turned around and quickly approached his brother. "Ren! Are you alright!?" Tom asked as he knelt down in front of Ren.

Ren slowly pushed himself up. "I think I got sand in my nose..." Ren said as his nose twitched. He looked up at Tom, whose face seemed to be contorting. "What?"

"Your face..." Tom said he looked at all the sand matted into his fur. Those large eyebrows and beard reminded Tom of someone he knew. He tried his best to contain his laughter, but it constantly moved past his lips. "You look like... you look like..."

"It's not funny!" Ren pouted as tears started forming in his eyes.

Tom's laughter ceased. "Are you crying?"

"No!" Ren said defensively. "There's sand in my eyes!"

"Let me help you with that..." Tom said as he moved his right hand forward. "Keep your eyes closed..." He started brushing out as much of the sand out of Ren's fur as he could, but many grains seemed lodged deep.

"I want to go home..." Ren said before letting out a sneeze, clearing his nose of most the sand.

"Are you sure?" Tom asked.

Ren nodded his head. "I don't like the beach..." He looked away from his brother.

Tom let out a dejected sigh before standing up. "Let's go then..." He said as he offered his hand to Ren. Ren sniffled as he reached out as was pulled to his feet. They walked back together.

Their father was waiting for them. He had Tom's socks and shoes in his hands. "What happened?" He asked.

"Ren fell." Tom replied.

"I saw that" his father replied. "Is he hurt?"

"I just want to go home..." Ren replied without looking at either of them.

"Alright..." they're father said as he handed Tom his shoes. "Try to wipe off as much sand as you can Tom." He pointed at Tom's feet that were matted with sand. "There'll be another time to come back."

"I don't want to come back..." Ren said stubbornly.

Their father could see the look of disappointment on Tom's face. "Alright... then next time just Tom and I will go. Are you alright with that, Tom?"

Tom looked at Ren for a moment. "Yeah... that's fine." After brushing off most of the sand Tom put on his socks and then his shoes. He looked back at the beach momentarily before heading back home. They were silent the whole way back.

==============================

"Go upstairs and take a bath, Ren" his father said as they went inside. Ren didn't say a word as he headed upstairs. Tom watched his father let out a sigh before turning his attention to him. "A wet towel should be enough for your feet... Come on." He motioned his head towards the kitchen. Tom followed his dad.

Tom sat on the counter as his father wiped off the small bits of sand from his feet and between his toes. "So what actually happened?" he asked as he ran the towels under water again.

"Ren fell..." Tom said.

"I saw that clearly, Tom." His father said as he reached for a dry towel. "What happened afterwards when you went to him."

Tom hesitated. "I... laughed at him..." Tom looked at his father and saw a furious face.

"You laughed at him!?" he shouted. Tom suddenly felt scared from the sudden shift in his father's personality. "You find it amusing when something bad happens to my son!?" His face came closer to Tom's, his teeth bared.

"No!" Tom said, tears forming from the fear he was feeling.

"Then what was so damn funny about it!?"

"The sand!" Tom cried.

"What about it!?"

"It made him look like the director!" Tom's body was shaking.

"What!?" His father shouted before pausing for a moment. His eyes widened when realization hit him. He quickly backed away from Tom, his breathing was heavy. "Tom... I'm..." When's Tom's eyes opened he saw the opportunity to jump off the counter and run away. "Tom! Wait!" his father pleaded. He thought about chasing after him, but figured that would just scare him even further. Moments later he heard a door slam shut. His legs felt weak and placed his elbows on the counter to steady himself. He grinded his teeth and clutched his head on both sides. "I'm so sorry Tom!"

Tom lay back against the door as tears rolled down his cheeks. He hadn't been a part of the family for even a day yet and already everything seemed to be falling apart for him. "What did I do...?" Tom sniffed as he walked forward. "What if he comes up?" Tom's body shook from the idea of being yelled at like that again. He gazed at the window in front of him and quickly shuffled towards it. He looked out. The roof slanted below the window, but there was still a one story drop. Tom looked from one side to the other. He noticed the tree in the front yard and how some of its branches stemmed towards the roof.

Tom looked down at his bare feet and his body shook from the thought of what he was about to do, but to him it seemed the better option than sticking around waiting for what might happen. Tom cautiously lifted one leg outside the window and placed it gently on the shingling. The texture was rough and allowed for his foot to stick. Tom slowly lifted himself out of the window. He held onto the windowsill as he steadied himself. He started taking small steps towards the tree until his grip on the windowsill was withdrawn. He held his arms out to steady himself, taking small steps so not to shift the shingles. Perhaps after twenty to thirty small steps across the slanted roof he was within an arm's reach of the branch. Tom carefully reached out and grabbed hold of the branch. Without thinking about it he leapt off the roof and grabbed the branch with his other hand.

Tom breathed heavily as he looked down. The drop was three times his size. He quickly shimmied across the branch until he was able to get his foot on a lower branch. Tom let out a sigh of relief as he slowly climbed down the tree trunk. A small giggle escaped his throat when he touched the ground. He looked down and wiggled his toes against the grass blades. He looked up and asked himself what he would do now...

Mrs. Renoir slowly walked down the stairs as she combed her dry fur. She looked down and saw her husband lying back on the couch staring at the ceiling. She smiled and sat next to him. "How was the beach?" she asked as she shifted herself against him.

Mr. Renoir let out a strained sigh. "I... I yelled at Tom..."

Her eyes widened. "What kind of yelling? Please tell me it wasn't your..." She stopped herself when she saw the look of shame on his face. "What happened!?"

"He was laughing at our son..." he started. "You know how defensive I am of him..."

"No!" she shouted, cutting him off. "Tom is not an adult you can use that voice on! AND! He is our son now! Go upstairs and apologize to him!"

"He's afraid of me dear..." he closed his eyes. "You didn't see his face..."

"Avoiding him isn't going to solve anything! We'll go together!" she didn't give her husband a chance to respond and instead grabbed his arm and pulled him along.

"Tom?" she said as she knocked on the door. There was no response. "Tom, can we come in?" Again there was no response.

"He knows I'm here..." Mr. Renoir said as his ears flattened against his head. His wife didn't respond, and instead slowly opened the door.

"Tom?" she said softly as she peered through the door. She pushed her head through and looked around. "Tom?" she asked again with more urgency as she completely opened the door. There was no sight of Tom. She went to the closet and opened it. "Dear!" she said with worry. "Tom's not here!"

"What!?" Mr. Renoir said with surprise. He quickly entered the room and scanned the room, hoping that Tom was just hiding somewhere. Like his wife, though, he couldn't find Tom. "Perhaps he's in another room..." he didn't seem confident in his suggestion.

"Let's check!" she said quickly.

Mr. Renoir went to check their room while Mrs. Renoir went to check the nursery. Both met back in the hallway with no success. "The bathroom!" Mr. Renoir said as he approached the bathroom door. He quickly opened the door and peered in.

"Dad!?" Ren said, startled, as his fur danced in all direction under the body dryer.

"Ren! Has Tom been in here?" Ren shook his head. He cursed under his breath and closed the door behind him as he went back to his wife. "He's not here..."

"How could he have left? You were downstairs the entire time, right?" she asked, panic filing her voice.

Mr. Renoir looked over his wife's shoulder into the boys' room. "The window..." he said as he dashed past her. He quickly leaned his body outside and looked around, hoping Tom would be sitting on the roof or something. He looked down at the shingles. It was faint, but the dirt on some of the shingles had been wiped away. He looked to his right and noticed the pattern continue. "He climbed down the tree..."

"Dear... he could be anywhere now!" Her breathing became shallow.

"Dammit!" Mr. Renoir shouted as he started to panic as well. "This is my fault!" he said as he slammed his fist against the window frame. He looked outside as he thought of what to do. "I'm going to look for him!" He said as he turned around to face his wife. "Stay here and watch after Ren."

"Shouldn't we call the police?" She asked as he walked out of the room, but she didn't receive a response.

Mr. Renoir shook as he sat behind the wheel of his car. "Where do I start?" he asked himself aloud as his breath shortened. "He's been here less than a day... either he's wandering aimlessly or..." He immediately backed out of the driveway and drove off with a screech. "Please be there..." he pleaded as he drove through the neighborhood well over the speed limit.

The drive took less than three minutes before he came to a halt. He was met with a powerful gust of wind when he opened the door. He left it ajar as he quickly ran forward. The ground below his feet turned from concrete to dirt and then to sand. He came to a halt, kicking some sand in the air. He looked to his right and then to his left. His gaze focused on someone sitting near the water. A sense of relief washed through him. "Thank you..." he blurted out as he slowly walked forward.

He slowly approached Tom from behind. Tom didn't seem aware that he was coming. Every step he took filled him with anxiety until he froze only a few feet behind Tom. A fear filled his mind as he contemplated what to do next. Tom had been so scared that he ran away. Was it really best for him to be the one to confront Tom? In his mind he could hear his wife's scolding remarks from earlier. He took a deep breath and slowly sighed, calming his body as he slowly approached Tom.

"Is it alright if I sit here?" he asked gently as he stood to the side of Tom. He noticed Tom's body flinch from realization of his presence, but he stayed sitting with his feet submerged in the water. Though he wasn't given a response, he still sat down next to Tom with a decent gap between the two of them.

Neither spoke as they only gazed across the ocean surface. The sounds of waves crashing and wind were the only things either heard for many minutes. "So... what do you think of the beach?" he asked, gazing over to Tom. Disappointment filled his mind when he noticed Tom was looking away from him. He let out a sigh. "Tom... I didn't mean to yell at you like that." He thought about it for a moment. "I shouldn't have yelled at you period..."

Tom didn't show any reaction. "Tom..." his father said with desperation. "I'm sorry, alright? You didn't do anything wrong and I overreacted. I didn't mean to scare you like that. I'm just... I'm just very protective when it comes to family... but in doing so..." he closed the gap between them and placed an arm around Tom. "I ended up hurting one of my family..." Tom gazed up at his father. "I can't forget that you're my son too." He let out a chuckle. "Some father I'm turning out to be, huh?"

Tom still remained silent, saddening his father. "Tom... what do I need to do to show you how sorry I am?"

"Close your eyes..." Tom said without changing his expression.

"My eyes?" his father asked with confusion. Tom nodded. "Alright..." He slowly closed his eyes and waited. Seconds passed by without anything happening. All of a sudden his body jolted backwards, hysteric laughter escaped his mouth. His eyes flew open to see Tom abusing his foot pads. "Tom!" he shouted with laughter. "I told you...!" He cut himself short when realization hit him; this was his punishment.

Tom let up after about a minute of abuse. His father stayed on his back, collecting his breath. As he sat back up he noticed Tom was smiling. Relief filled his mind as he took another deep breath. "Clever..." he joked. "You know that I'm going to have to get back at you!" He playfully reached for Tom's legs.

"No!" Tom screamed with fear.

His father began to fell crestfallen from his son's reaction. He quickly retracted his hand. "Sorry, sorry...I'll keep my hands away from you..."

"No..." Tom said as he pulled his left foot out of the water. "Look..."

His father focused on his foot. Shock and fear filled his face as he gazed over the cuts and red skin on his son's foot. "What happened!?"

"I didn't have shoes..." Tom chuckled as he placed his foot back into the water.

"We need to get those bandaged up..." his father said he stood up. He walked in front of Tom and knelt down. "Grab hold" he said, looking back with a smile. Tom reached out and firmly gripped his father's shoulders. "Hold on..." he said as he slowly raised himself, lifting Tom up. When Tom's feet were dangling in the air his father reached back and supported his legs, making sure not to disturb his feet. "Feeling alright?" he asked as he steadied himself.

"Yes." Tom said as he lightened his grip. He looked down and noticed some of the fur on his father's back was wet and matted with sand. "I think you're going to have to wash your fur again."

His father let out a playful sigh. "Life is so cruel..." He turned around and started walking back towards the car. "Tom..."

"Yeah, dad?"

"I'm glad you're alright..."

Tom smiled as he rested his head on his father's left shoulder.

==============================

Chapter 2 of Black Blood comes to a conclusion.

Comments and critiques are welcomed.