FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

Sitting on the front porch of the old family cabin Lucian rocked gently in his favorite chair watching the birds flutter from tree to tree. They were making short work of any bug in the open making short work of their food. Summer was in full swing and it seemed that some small bit of peace had finally settled on Hare Gardens. Watching the birds through his ruby tinted spectacles Lucian felt the warm flower scented breeze on his short whiskered face and it made him smile. This particular summer morning was shaping up to be a good one. From the porch where he sat Lucian could see down the Peach tree lined dirt trail that lead to the cabin. Mixed throughout the various fruit trees that made up the orchard, small flowering bushes or equal mixes dotted the woods. In the surrounding acres that made up Hare Garden, squirrels and chipmunks darted from one spot to another never seeming to sit still very long. It all seemed like far more work than Lucian was willing to do at that moment and he finished his thought with a sip of spiced cider.

On the far edge of the trail and just inside the line of forest trees an odd shadow passed onto the trail. Lucian sat forward in his chair squinting to see if his eyes had played a trick on him. Pressing a small thread of will into his short rounded claw he tapped the glasses and let the thread loose. The alchemy in his glasses responded instantly and through the lenses he could see the hues of raw energy, the colors of life. Lucian could see a warm almost orange glow outlining the figure that walked slowly onto the trail towards the cabin. Over the years he had learned how to tune his vision and peer deeper into the elements than he ever thought he could. He could see the glow of young healthy female life. As he concentrated on the approaching figure Lucian could tell she was not particularly tall and over her shoulder was a parcel satchel. Lucian rarely had visitors when he stayed at the cabin and ever rarer so did he ever get a package delivered. As the courier passed the Peach trees she pushed off the hood and Lucian instinctively closed his paw around his Willow Staff. Setting the cup down at the same time he used it to help him out of the chair he watched the short female fox approach the porch. Lucian stood at the top of the five steps that lead from his porch to the lawn and kept his grip firmly on his staff. Down along the length of his arm he wound a thread of will and kept twisting it in on itself, holding it at the ready. "Lovely day." Lucian kept his tone controlled and pleasant for the moment always careful around a fox he kept his eyes fixed on the vixen. The young fox looked up and Lucian could almost swear he saw a blush tint her already red cheeks. "Would you be one, Lucian T. Hare, of this being so named, Hare Woods?" Her tone was nervous as she recited the words like she was reading them from a note she had hidden on her palms. "Indeed you are correct." The fox seemed to instantly relax making Lucian wonder just how long she had been working as a courier. Brushing her palms on the front of her hooded sleeveless blouse she pushed a loose bit of hair behind her ear and closed the distance between them till she stood at the bottom of the steps. Lucian let the thread of will go gently and a warm summer breeze crossed the lawn and up over the steps of the porch. He took a slow measured breath and could smell cinnamon and grass on the breeze as it passed. Lucian smiled stepping away from the top step and waved her up onto the porch. "Call me Luc," he said as she climbed the five steps to the porch. "I wasn't sure if I was lost or not," the fox courier admitted with no small amount of visible embarrassment. "I know this sound funny but I didn't even know there was anyone living back this close to Old Mountain." Lucian leaned against the solid railing of the porch and watched the fox wipe her paws again on the front of her blouse. She was still nervous but trying to put up a confident face. "Hard place to find unless you know where to look." Lucian had heard his Grand Mother say those same words over and over every time she would take him to visit Hare Gardens when he was quite young. The fox courier snickered and Lucian noticed that the way the fur scrunched at the bridge of her nose was seemed almost adorable. "I have a package for you sir," she said as she pulled out a piece of parchment, "I just need you to state that you received it in good time and safely." Lucian took the note and glanced at it while the fox hunted for a vile of ink and something to write with.

It was a standard courier letter with a sealed note attached that had his name neatly inked in fluid almost feminine letters. He set the courier note down and glanced at the fox a moment as she rechecked pockets in search of an invisible pen. The wax seal on the note addressed to him resembled a ring of rose thorn vines surrounding the print of a hare foot. It was the same as the carving above the front door of the old cabin. "Who sent you miss?" She looked up from her satchel and gave him an apologetic look shrugging her shoulders. "I don't know honestly. My father runs the courier service and I just deliver the packages." The closest hamlet was a small place named Oakbridge and Lucian had been into town often enough to know a few names and faces. "Your father is Gilbert then?" The young fox beamed with pride and nodded her head sticking out her red furred paw straight as an arrow. "Barbara Broughton at your service!" Lucian smiled and shook her paw politely wondering if all Broughton's shook the same way. "I see now, was there a package with this note by chance?" Barbara managed to flush a shade deeper of red as she fumbled horribly at the strap of her satchel. "Oh by the gods yes, I am so sorry." She muttered on a moment trying to apologize as Lucian set the note down on the end table leaning his staff against the rocking chair. After a moment the package was handed over and Barbara folded her paws neatly in front of her, after wiping them off, and waited for Lucian to inspect the package.

Lucian glanced up at the patient fox and could not understand how such a short stocky figure like Gilbert could produce such a lovely daughter. In the few times he had meet her father he had learned that her mother had passed, he knew not how. Only that she had died just shortly after Barbara was born and her father had never remarried. "Thirsty?" he asked. She blinked a few time as if she had not understood his question in the least. "Are you thirsty Barbara? It's a long walk to the cabin and equally a long walk back. Would you like something to drink?" She cast her eyes towards her leather covered feet a moment as if gathering courage and nodded. "Yes. Yes, please." He turned taking the note and package with him and nodded to the open screen door. Manners remembered he waited a moment waiting for her to enter and she stood stock still as if rooted to the porch wood. "Um, Pretty ladies first." She looked flustered as she stuttered something that passed as a thank you and entered his cabin as he followed her. He knew better than to let his self control slip and prayed the gods forgive him for memorizing the way her hips shifted and the swish of her long red tail as she entered his ancestral home.

The cabin was fashioned from wood that grew around the surroundings and it smelled of spices and herbs everywhere. Barbara stood inside the kitchen looking at all the odd trinkets resting on shelves. "Curious?" "What?" she said turning her attention from one shelf to another. He crossed the small kitchen to set the package on the small island table that framed the half wall between his kitchen and common room. Lucian had chosen the spot to place the package carefully and it put him almost against the side of the young fox. He smiled as he reached around her and when he spoke his pink nose passed close enough to take in her cinnamon scented fur deeply. "Are you curious?" Barbara froze when she realized how close he was to her and he could practically feel the flush that flooded her cheeks. "I, um, my father told me about your place." The package safely on the table top, note tucked under, Lucian nodded slightly towards a shelf on the wall not moving from her side. "What did he tell you?" His tone had a bit more warmth in it than he intended but her scent was unique and it had his over fluffed tail twitching. How long it had been last he had been this close to a female he could not sadly recall. Barbara turned slowly till she was facing him but held her ground brushing her paws on her blouse before she answered. "He described it as something you just had to see." Lucian chuckled staring at her past the ruby tint of his spectacles and let his gaze slowly travel the length of her body. Even through the loose blouse he could see the curves and lines of her well toned form. When he returned his eyes to her he could easily see she was flustered by his slow inspection of her. "Yes it is," he said in a low soft tone making it unclear what he was referring to exactly. She did the scholars definition of squirm where she stood and it made Lucian's tail flick. He doubted she could find any way to be more adorable than she already was even if she didn't realize her adorableness. Lucian watched the edge of her lip tuck between her teeth the moment he finished his words and had doubted wrong. He waited a moment before he continued and noticed how her tail was flicking anxiously. He drew in her scent again savoring the cinnamon spice and detected a heat to her scent. She was in season. Somewhere in the back of his thoughts he heard a chuckle and it made his left ear twitch as if someone had whispered in it. 'Does she taste like cinnamon Lucian?' The tone in the voice gave Lucian the impression that it was smiling and he felt his self control slip just a step. Id always delighted in reminding Lucian just how much he needed companionship in his life. Lucian's other self had impeccable timing when it came to test of willpower and this one was one the hare feared he not win. Handing her a fresh glass of spiced cider Lucian watched her lean just a little toward a shelf looking at the small silver pin shaped like a butterfly. He watched the slight lift of her calves as she shifted her weight to her toes leaning to get a better look at the pin. Self control found itself taking another step down as he gently leaned to reach the pin. She shifted her weight back surprised at how close he suddenly was to her and the full length of her back meet his front. Lucian could feel the warmth of her through the silky fabric of her blouse. He lifted the pin off the shelf and whispered in her ear knowing her keen fox hearing would pick up his every word. "I found it years ago in a gypsy camp. Was told it would make a lovely gift for a pretty lady." He could feel Barbara trembling against him as she held mostly still while he turned it over in front of her so she could see the whole pin. Her hips shifted against him as he stood his ground savoring the feeling of her body pressed to his. "She was right." The last step of his self control slipped when he ran his nose along the nape of her neck adding the scent of hot cinnamon to the sound of her whispered moan.

-The End?