FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

An old stallion nickered behind his stable. I replied hastily, "Yeah, yeah, hold your horses, Sampson." Out of all the horses and animals living in these large stables, Sampson was always the impatient one. It was typical, but sometimes I wonder if he listens to me when I'm busy giving out feed to all his friends. Gripping the handle on the bucket, I swung it back and forth when I carried it to the needy horse. I dumped the feed over the space near his gate into the trough and the stallion immediately went for it. I commented, settling down the bucket near the gate, "There ya go, you greedy old fart." I huffed out a tired sigh, dusting my hands together in accomplishment. There. All done. My last job done in the stables. Now I can just relax the rest of the afternoon...And get out of this village tonight. My lips formed a smile when I stared at a opening on a wall above me while another horse snorted. I was so anticipated for this night to come it wasn't funny. It's a bit hard to contain myself while I eagerly wait when it is so close. I know I cannot just walk out of the village now, so I put up with it. That didn't mean it was easy though. Luckily for me I haven't had to deal with Gunther today, or any sort of trouble. But I guess I shouldn't hold my breath. Trouble can come unexpetedly. But I know when Gunther does pull something with me today, it'll be the last time. I won't have to put up with him anymore. I lowered my gaze to my feet. I am thinking about talking to Heather for the last time and say goodbye to her, even when it'll feel hard, but I should talk to my father first. I still didn't get a chance to apologize to him for yesterday. It wasn't like I totally avoided him this morning. I did eat food with him and mom this morning before I took off for the stables. We only shared a few words with each other, but no apologies. I should do that soon before it gets dark and he goes to bed. I'll be leaving him tonight. I don't want to let anything go unresolved. It's just too bad that I won't be able to say goodbye to him and mom like Heather. But I know I couldn't. They'd stop me if they knew. It's best to keep it to myself. A familiar voice carried through the echoey building, "Hey, kid." I shot surprised eyes at the unexpected visitor standing at the wide entrance of the stables. Just when I was now thinking about him, my dad shows up out of nowhere. I responded in a unexpected tone, "Dad...I just got done." He nodded with a small smile, "I figured you were. Say, how about we do something together?" He held out two fishing poles, "In the mood?" With a smile I knew what he had in mind. I accepted, nodding in reply and strolling to meet him, "Sure. Why not? I got nothing else to do." That wasn't exactly true, Heather and all, but I figured a moment of fishing with pops was the right moment to make amends. Dad chuckled and handed one pole to me. He said when I grabbed it, "Good. Your mother's expecting us to bring back a salmon." "Then I guess we shall not come back empty handed." We both walked out of the stables and left the horses behind. One did say goodbye to us in the form of a neigh while the others were not as caring. Me and dad strode through the village together till we ended up at the river outside it. We both hooked our lures to our fishing lines, and then the two of us stood side by side, awaiting capture of a fish. Standing with him, I thought back to the past. The only times me and dad ever did spent any alone time together, as father and son, was when he would tell his stories about his adventures in the outside world and his battles with every dragon he fought, and when we fish. This particularily was our natural way of bonding. He told me once he never got a chance to fish with his dad, my grandpa, when he was a kid. That was because grandpa always trained my father to fight dragons. It was just his way of making up all that lost time he didn't have as a kid with me. He didn't want to leave me deprived of that. That I can appreciate, other than his cares he shares with mom for me, even when he doesn't ever train me to fight. And that makes me feel all the bad for calling him a loser yesterday. It was certainly stupid. Me and dad haven't spoken to each other for a long time. We were just staring intently at the water and waiting to see if we'll get a nibble. After several minutes of silence, dad finally broke it with a giggle, "Hey, Dart." I looked to him, and he continued, "Did I ever tell you this one story about fishing?" I smirked. I answered, "That you were camping at this delta and you decided to try to have a gamble of fishing at that spot. But then after a while when you finally caught something you almost got pulled in because that sucker was abnormally strong." Dad chuckled in amusement, "That's right I did tell you." He looked up at the sky, memories flowing behind his eyes, "That really surprised me. I was getting sleepy. I did make a long trek that day. At first I thought there was a dragon swimming around in it and it accidentally caught my line and was trying to pull me in. Then I thought it was a whale. It was strong enough to be one. But no, it turned out to be a regular-large-size fish! Not abnormally huge!" I playfully pointed out, "And it was a rare species no less!" Father laughed loudly. He remarked, "And I still cannot believe that I was almost beaten by that thing! I was always fishing in peace and then this slick thing tried to best me! Kinda taught me a lesson that not all fish will want to lay around and be eaten. I know from experience." I was laughing a bit under my breath. Then a long pause passed between us. Then I finally turned to him and began, "Look, dad..." I said with a apologetic face, "I'm sorry for what I said yesterday. You were never a loser." Dad sighed, "Ah, well...Even I can have flaws. Everyone has them. You know that." I countered, "But I think you're far less than a loser. I shouldn't have said that to you." I looked down at my feet, "You're nothing like me." Dad held a pity look for me. He assured, "We both aren't losers. You don't ever stand on the same level as that Gunther kid. You don't bully others around just to make yourself feel powerful. I've seen people that were like that in the past, and you're not one of them. I know you better. You're the son that I raised. I know that cause we're both alike." He shook his head, "I know I can't stop you from feeling adventurous and want to see the world. I always know what that's like. I've waited for a long time before I took my first step away from home. But things were different then. I didn't have much to lose then than I do now. I wasn't afraid to lose anything." I tried not to show any nervousnous on my form. Does he suspect I am trying to do something tonight? Is that why he's having this conversation with me? Dad went on with a serious look, "You know by now the world is not as safe as it is here. And neither are dragons. They really are not to be trifled with. You shouldn't bother trying to beat them in a fight. I did tell you their weaknesses, if that time you ever meet one ever came again. But even it's not that easy. I am sorry for not letting you go, even when you feel ready, but it's just too dangerous. I almost lost you once, and I never want that to happen again. You never went through what you went through again for years, and I wanted to keep it that way." I let out a breath. I replied, "Dad...I'm not a kid anymore. I just get so tired of dealing with the same stuff. There's nothing else to do here." Dad giggled deeply, "Even I get that part. Makes me wish I didn't retire my dragonslayer days." Then I went on, "But I just want to prove to everyone that I can do all the things you always tell me. Not to be like everyone else." "You don't have to prove yourself. There's no need to fight something to prove you can do anything. You just have to be yourself." I looked away. Be myself, huh? You don't call wanting to save people from dragons and seeing the world being myself? Give me a break already. I don't feel like I'm myself here. He let out a long drawn out sigh. Then he shortly said, "...I don't want you to make the same mistakes that I made." I eyed him in shock and curiosity, "What do you mean? You never told me you've made mistakes." He looked directly at me, with that small hint of an odd look on his face. Thinking about it, I did see that look on his face a few times in the past. Sometimes he held it during times when he told me stories of his past. I can never figure out what that look means. He revealed, "We all make mistakes sooner or later. There were times before I met your mother that I wish I could've done something different." Then he said his next statement glumly, "But...Things don't always work out that way. I don't want you to go through them too." Oh wow... I stated, "I didn't know that. What mistakes did you make?" His only response was bringing his gaze downward. I wrinkled my brow. I guess even my dad can make a mistake. Wonder what mistakes he made? Was Sapwood one of them? Come on, that wasn't your fault. There were too many dragons for you to fight. Not like there was just one destroying the damn village. It was all way out of your control. It's not your fault. That might've been one of them, but what other mistakes did he make? I was curious enough to press the question, but I decided against it. I don't think he wants to talk about them. Instead I only muttered, "Sorry..." Dad returned his gaze back to me. He formed a smile and responded, "It's ok, kid." Then his expression turned back to serious, "But you do understand what I'm trying to say, right?" Sorta. But I'm not gonna make mistakes. No way. I'll make sure of that. I didn't dare say all that to him. Shortly, I just only said one word with a couple nods, "Yeah." His smiled reformed. He advised, "Good. Always remember what I said. Just be yourself, and don't be something that you're not. And don't let anything else get you down. Besides, you belong here." He chuckled, "Who knows, maybe you might start a family here someday." My eyes went wide at the claim. I demanded, "Whoa, where did THAT come from?" He let out a laugh. Then he waved me off with a shake of his head, "Never mind." I rolled my eyes. Screw never mind. I wanna know! I wondered if he knew I liked Heather and that was why he said that. Who knows? Then he said with pride in his voice, "But hey, if anything else does get you down, or if you feel like you are lost in the world..." He looked off to a distance behind me, "Always look toward-" I finished after making a sigh, "Look toward Horizon Peak, I know, I know." This was something that he does tell me almost all the time. It's like he was telling me to look towards hope than let anything bring me down. I think that's the meaning behind it. But I asked myself, how can I gaze upon a mountain if I can't see anything past the freakin trees? We are living in a forest after all so I can't help but ask that. One time I even pressed the issue with dad, but all he said was, 'you can still see it even when things are in the way'. That didn't help me at all. Heck, I don't think Horizon Peak exists anyways. I did ask Heather and her dad about it, even asked a teacher at the school what that was, but nobody had heard of it. Pretty much figures. But father always thinks there is something like that that exists. If only I had the same hopeful imagination like he does. He said proudly, "Exactly. Always keep that in mind." About another minute later, I laid the fishing pole down beside me on the grass. I announced, "I gotta get going." Dad looked skeptical. He said, "To do what? I thought you said you didn't have anything else to do." I confessed after putting on a grin, "Well...I already told Heather that I'd see her after working at the stables today. So I'm gonna go see her." I thumbed at the river, "Besides, the fish here aren't really rushing things for us and they're wasting my time." Dad shortly replied, nodding, "Alright, you go ahead. I can handle this on my own. I am a professional at this." I rolled my eyes, "Then maybe you should've called out to them or something. That might help speed things along." Dad laughed a bit at that, then patted my shoulder. He urged, "Get out of here. Just don't be late for dinner." "I won't. See you back." I walked back to the village, leaving my dad alone. I had a determined expression on my face as soon as I begun strolling away from him. Don't worry...I'm not missing my last family dinner. Upon entering the village, I was heading for the direction of Heather's house. I thought of her face, shedding a few tears as she embraces me after hearing me say goodbye to her. I have a feeling it's gonna be a bit tough on me. I can still remember that kiss she gave me last night. It partly still made me reconsider my decisions, but I still wouldn't give in. I shouldn't stop this today when it's so close. Oh, Heather...You just had to make this hard on me, did you? Along the way, I did catch glimpse of a man that's older than me with a very thick beard. He was watching me go by, bearing a disgruntled expression. I knew who that man was, and why he stared at me like that. That was Heinrich. He was one of the survivors from Sapwood that started living here along with me and my parents. But, according to my parents, he, along with a couple other survivors of that village that also started living here, bear a grudge against my dad. The explanation was that father didn't save the village from being destroyed by dragons, because he was supposed to be a dragonslayer and stop them from happening. I knew that it wasn't his fault one bit. After all, there were a lot of dragons when that happened, and he is just one man, along with several people that didn't do a good job at helping him out. But that didn't stop word from spreading around about him back then, although I don't think the people of this village were listening to their words and took them literally. Dad is part of the village council, and most of everyone here trusts him. Well, I think, except Gunther and his buddies. Sometimes I think that's why they're always picking on me and calling my dad worthless and everything else. Why else would they start that crap? I was ignoring Heinrich and kept on pacing with my eyes ahead. But I didn't care anyways. I never did. And I won't have to listen to their crap anymore. Tonight, I am leaving. Whether my parents like it or not. ***** I quietly peeked through the crack, seeing the coast is clear in the hallway. I strained my ears to check for any sounds of movement or conversation. No one was awake. My parents were asleep. Just as I thought. All right, time to get out of here! I felt like I have been stuck in my room for ages, since I was a little boy, but it felt so great to finally set myself free. I had been waiting for my parents to tuck themselves in their bedroom, since the night had arrived and my time has come. I even got myself pacing back and forth in my room, impatiently waiting for them to get a move on. It made me wonder if they actually DID know I was planning to leave this village and were just waiting around to see if I'd do something. But eventually, I knew they'd be in bed... And it looks apparent I don't have to wait any longer. I made my way back quickly to the bag on my bed that was filled to the brim with clothes and apples, and swung it over my shoulder. Then I snatched a little object that was beside it and stared at it in my hand for a moment. The red dragon scale my dad gave me. Don't wanna forget this. I stuffed in it my pocket. I knew there was a risk that I might lose it in my journey some way, but I thought I just couldn't leave without it. Besides, even though I wasn't exactly sure of it, but it might make me feel like I won't totally be alone. Since it was dad's gift, I thought maybe he'd always be there for me with this. Whether or not that'll be the case, I was about to find out. I went back to the bedroom door and lightly pushed it open, trying not to have the hinges make any noise. Soon as it was wide enough, I began tiptoeing on the wooden floor in the hallway. I eyed at my parent's room on my right, mentally hoping that the door suddenly wouldn't pop open in front of me and I'd be caught. But luckily it did not. I tried my hardest not to have my weight make any sort of creak as I slowly made way to the stairs. But it was as hard as it appeared. The floor still made a groan or two, but thank god it wasn't loud enough to attract attention. Most people would probably think of just jumping out of their window instead of sneaking through the house for the door, not like my bedroom was so high on the ground. I could climb out the window and jump out and land without a broken bone in my body. But I needed to head downstairs to get something else important. I couldn't get to it before because my dad was still awake. Guess I had another good reason to wait for them to go to bed. I finally made it to the stairs, and quietly took them one step at a time. When I made it to the bottom step, I went to the biggest room in the house, and found the one thing I was looking for hanging on the wall like a trophy. My dad's sword. The sword that had been passed on through many generations of my family. I nodded with a big grin. Right where it's at. If I was gonna leave this village, I definitely needed a weapon to defend myself. There was no way I'd get one from a blacksmith here, since the guy was friends with my father, and perhaps the guy would've declined if I told him the reason why. This was the only weapon that I could think of. I haven't thought in a million years that I'd steal from my famous father, but it's not like he's ever given me a choice in the matter. I didn't want to leave this place defenseless. I grabbed the hilt and the blade, and carefully lifted it off the hooks on the wall. Sorry about this, dad. It felt a little heavy surprisingly, but I managed to not drop it. That'd be a big disaster. I looked upon the weapon in my hands. I chuckled in amusement. I never held this thing before. It feels...Incredible. Then I gazed at the insignia right on top of the hilt. This was my family's seal. My dragonslaying family's seal. The symbol of a dragon's enemy. It only depicted a creature that looked like it had a body of a lion with a hawk's head. It was raising its claws with fiery eyes. I can't believe I am holding this... I shook my head out of this trance, not letting all this glory go straight into my head. I formed a look of determination. Celebrate this later. You've got to get out of here. I whirled around, heading for the front door. I pulled it quietly open and stepped out into the dark. There were lanterns that were lit on outside the houses on the street, but nobody in their houses seems to be awake, like my family. The lights inside were out. It was perfect for me. No one would stop me. I gazed above the village. The cracks in the canopy showed that a full moon is out, having some of the illuminating rays through the cracks. I took a deep breath, trying to slow my heartbeat. I stepped away from the house, then after taking a few strides, I glanced back at it. I blinked at it a few times, giving it one last look. Goodbye, mother. Goodbye, father. I'll come back one day. I'll show you guys that I can take care of myself. You'll see. Then, I turned and casually walked through the village, shooting glances at every familiar angle as I went by, till I made it outside stepping on the bridge over the river. I peered over it to see my reflection, grinning a toothy smile at it. Can you believe that I'm finally free? Well, I'm close, but I'm getting there. I shot my attention back at the village of Clear Sight, taking one last look at it. I took a deep breath and let it out. I'll see you later...Clear Sight. Don't go up and leave here before I get back. I shifted the bag on my shoulder, gripped the sword in my hand, and strode off the bridge back on the grass. I headed for the woods...To finally begin my own adventure. ***** I groaned in frustration, laying on my back on the grass as I tried to get some sleep. My wings splayed on the ground, my tail swishing along the ground. My eyes were directed towards the moonlit sky through that little crack of the limbs above me. I huffed. Why can't I get some sleep? This is getting annoying. That is because of Dart, that's why. I had been going out of my way to try to keep an eye on him all day long, try to see if there was any damage on him, or see if he was being picked on again at the same spot like the other day. But I have been going over to watch that village over and over again with my invisible scales intact and waited around each time, and never saw a sign of him. It's like he has disappeared and nobody seems to care. Except me...Which is something I'm now regretting. If he was wandering around outside it, I probably missed him. I gotta hunt sometime. But not seeing him today pretty much put me in this rut that never occured to me before. Since I didn't exactly spot him one time today, this has been interferring with my tonight's sleep. My brain keeps whacking me to get up like it had a tail of its own and check out the village one more time and see if he's in trouble. But what was the point in that? Everyone is asleep, so is he, as I also oughta be. I growled to myself. What am I doing?! This is getting ridiculous! I swear, if I get up and go to the village ONE MORE TIME, and if I don't see him, I'm literally flying off this rock! This is driving me crazy. I can't take this anymore, and I haven't been here for long! This is NOT something I want in my life! But then I was thinking about Dart's small battle with another human from yesterday. I moaned, shutting my eyes tightly. Oh ancestors, Dart is probably fine! You need to stop worrying about him! Besides, he's a human, and you're a DRAGON! He probably won't like you if he met you! Even if he was being picked on, what could you do about it? Walk up to the perpetrator picking on him while invisible and then take them down yourself? You'll get found out right away and then trouble will come to you! And he probably wouldn't appreciate you for it anyways, so why bother? But then I was thinking back to my past, comparing myself to the young human again. I opened my eyes and let out a sigh, staring at the night sky again. Oh...This is hopeless. I can't leave him alone now, not without knowing that he'll have a good life...It'll drive me crazy. If this hasn't drove me crazy enough. Surprisingly, I guess that was more of my stupid part of my brain telling me something crazy, and maybe it had been telling me this from the beginning...A part of me telling me that maybe Dart was different than everyone else and that's why he seems sorta, somewhat like me. And I just don't totally know him, and maybe I'm wrong about him, and maybe he would appreciate everything I did for him, if that moment happened. Somehow...I both believed and doubted it. A human liking me isn't very likely. I sighed. I mean, geez, if I really want him to have a good life, without being screwed by that Gunther jerk, then maybe he needs to leave his village. But hey, it's not like he can just WALK AWAY FROM IT. It is his home. Where would he go? My ears caught wind of a distant sound. I twisted my neck to gaze at that direction. What is that? Another deer? I rolled to my fours, standing on full height. I peered directly through the trees. My good sight in the darkness showed it wasn't a deer. It was a person. DART! I frowned, following his movements with my eyes, swishing my tail and fluttering my wings. Where's he going? Isn't it late to have a stroll? Or is he doing a late night hunt? It looked like he was holding a sword and carrying a bag on his shoulder. What is he up to? I had a feeling what was going on here, but I wanted to find out myself. Maybe I better follow him a bit...See if I'm right. I was tailing him through the woods, being totally careful of my movements. I did my best not to make any strange noises that would attract his attention. I didn't want him to think he was being followed. Luckily for me he didn't notice. I followed him along for a long time, till I realized we'd ended up at the edge of the woods, gave away by the open landscape that I flew over a couple nights prior. From a bit within the trees, I watched him stand out there, taking in the sights I would guess. Turned out I was right all along. He must be leaving his home...During the night. Is he running away? Where's he going to go? My snout made a smile. Who cares? You're free of this guardian angel crap! He can do whatever and go wherever he wants, it's not your concern! You don't have to watch over him anymore! He won't get picked on by Gunther or anybody in that village ever again! You won't have to worry about him ever again! And you can finally get out of this hole you've stuck yourself in! I stood and waited for Dart to do something. Even upon knowing this, I didn't want to leave straight away. I still wanted to make absolutely sure that he goes. And as soon as he starts walking away from the forest, I'll wait around a bit till he was far away and take myself to the skies. He was still standing there, like he was contemplating his decision. He acted confident with his strides earlier, but I think now he must be nervous. Somehow I think he hasn't seen what's out there before. Maybe it's not far fetched. It is possible he's never been away from home before. Maybe took walks in the forest, but that's it. I'm hoping he's not changing his mind. I do want to get out of here too. As my stupid, crazy, pity mind's saying...It's better that he goes. I was silently urging the boy. C'mon, human...Go. What are you waiting for? Then after a small amount of time has passed, he began padding forwards without taking a glance back. My nose took in a deep, proud breath. Good...You made the right choice. Now everything can go back to normal. But then, my ears swiveled. I was hearing the sound of wingbeats. I saw Dart stopping in his tracks after strolling a few feet away from the woods. He must've heard them too. What is that? Then suddenly, before I can look up and see, a fiery blast erupted between us. I gasped, quickly shielding myself with my wings from the blast radius. What in the world?! As that violent rush of wind ended, I eyed where the blast happened, just as the dust and smoke begun to clear. There was a round depression in the ground where the explosion occured, and there were some little fires burning on the grass around it. A few limbs on the couple trees in front of me were caught on fire too. Then I noticed the young man I watched over has been clearly knocked forward and had already fell on his stomach. Most of his stuff from his bag had toppled out, clothes and apples I think they were. I was getting worried for him once more, wondering if he was dead. But then he was getting on his hands and knees, groaning, pushing himself off the ground. I let out some whooshed air of relief. Phew, he's all right. But my heart was still beating and despite my relief my mind still raced from the explosion. But what's going on here? As Dart was standing on his feet, probably in shock to what happen, I shot my attention up towards the sky, where I can still hear the wingbeats I heard before. Through the canopy, I can see several figures flying in the sky, flapping their wings towards and above these woods. I realized what they were. They're dragons. I let out a slight audible gasp. Uh oh. This can't be good.