FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

I sat in the back of the Greyhound bus as the vehicle's motor growled in effort, propelling the huge old vehicle up a hill. A heavy backpack sat next to me, with a single leather-bound book on top. I picked it up again, turning so I laid along the seat with my legs up on the backpack. Just as I got comfortable, the phone in my jeans pocket vibrated strongly. I jumped a little, startled by it, and fished it out.

"This is...uh..." there was the sound of rustling papers in the background of the call. "Derek Witt, right?"

"Yessir," I said. "What can I help you with?"

"I'm just calling about the paperwork for your money transfer." The rustling again. My caller was looking through papers, probably my bank statements for the past few months.

Oh, joy. One of those calls.

"Look, I'm gonna stop you right there, sir. If you're with Fleming Collections, I've already told yo-"

"No, I'm not with them, sir. I'm just calling to confirm that you did transfer something along the lines of...five hundred dollars to First Central Bank in Isaiah, Michigan."

"Yes, I did." I said, my voice still nervous. The collections guys had been harassing me for the last two days, even though I was already on the bus out of the state.

"Alright, just wanted to check. Our policy is that we have to confirm all transactions above fifty dollars." I thanked him and hung up, leaning back against the window behind me. I had left California because of the staggering amount of debt an ex-boyfriend had accrued on me when he stole my wallet, and no matter what I said or did the credit companies didn't hear my case.

I snorted. It was all because he was a human, and I'm not. Typical, though, according to some of the research I did this wasn't an uncommon occurrence nowadays. I opened my book again, an old battered copy of Shakespere's 'Tempest'. There was something calming about Shakespere's prose, and calming is what I needed right then. The small seed of anger at Terry's betrayal was eating away at my health, and I could feel it.

A few hours passed, and the driver called out the stop. I stood, hefting my backpack onto my back and slipping my book into it. It had begun to rain outside, a soft but steady drizzle of cold rain. Immediately I began to shiver, the cold penetrating straight through my sweatshirt and passing right into my bones. I hurried to the side of the bus, where the driver stood. He nodded and asked for my ticket, and after I showed it to him he opened the baggage compartment. I dragged out my large suitcase, rolling it behind me as I walked into the warmth of the bus terminal. My ass ached from sitting on it for three days, and even though I had showered quickly in the terminals on the way here, I could definitely stand for another.

Against the wall opposite a line of snack machines leaned a feline wearing a black tanktop and tight shorts, fishnet covering the parts of her legs the shorts didn't. In front of her kneeled another feline, grumbling annoyance.

"Stupid thing's...stuck..." He grunted as he tugged on something in the dispenser part of a Coke machine.

"Need help?" I asked, walking over. The male feline's head snapped up, almost whipping his glasses off his face. I smiled a little as he stood.

"I thought you didn't get here for another half-hour?"

"Apparently we made better time than the driver thought we would." I shrugged. "Hey, Natasha." The female nodded to me, and the male offered me his hand, which I shook. He suddenly pulled me into a tight hug, patting my back.

"Nice to see you again, bro." He said. I gasped in response, as his grip around my chest was a little...constricting.

"Logan, let him go." admonished Natasha, smiling and tapping him on the back of the head. He did, and I caught my breath.

"Goddamn," I said, "I might be bovine, but it don't mean I'm immune to your strength."

"Sorry, dude. Hey, what do you think about getting some food before we head home? Natasha's royalty check just came through, and she sai-"

"Logan!" Said the female, her hands on her hips. She had a playful smile, though, and I found myself smiling as well.

"What?"

"Don't you think it's a little rude to be speaking for my money?"

"But you said we were gonna take him out anyway!"

"Still!"

"Hey, you two." I said, extending a hand in a gesture of peace. "You don't have to feed me specially. I mean, you're housing me and all..."

"No, we're going to treat you. It's been three years, dude." Logan said, straightening his glasses. He wore a faded black t-shirt and jeans a few sizes too big, held up by a belt with more pouches than I could count. An inventor by trade, he made a pretty good living for both himself and his fiancee. He and I had gone to high school together, and had been close friends since high school. We headed out to the parking lot after I dislodged Logan's Coke, and as Logan hefted my bag into the trunk of their SUV I felt my hand taking my cigarettes out of my pocket. Logan eyed me, and I frowned.

"Sorry, bro. Automatic reaction." I said. He nodded, and we climbed into the car.

"So, how far along are you, Natasha?" I asked, as we drove.

"Only three weeks." She said, her hand on her bare stomach. I blinked.

"Jeez, only three weeks? It feels like a lot longer." I shrugged, the nagging want for a cigarette in the back of my mind continuing. "Hey, I know I've said it before, but thank you."

"And I've said it before, don't mention it." Said Logan.

"If you guys would put together a list for me of the groceries you guys normally get, I'll..."

"Let me put it to you like this, Derek." Natasha said, turning around in her seat to look at me. "You're not going to pay for a damn thing until you get your feet under you." She paused. "Hooves, whatever. But until you get a job, don't worry about it."

"But..."

"Oh, wait, he doesn't know about the deal I got with DuPont." Logan said. Natasha blinked, then nodded. "Yeah, dude. DuPont looked over those schematics I said I sent in for their plastics recyclers. They paid me for the design, and paying me for rights. Money isn't an issue right now."

"Well, damn. Congratulations."

We pulled into the parking lot of a diner just off the highway, and went inside. As we sat down, a blue-scaled dragon entered, glancing around the diner. Logan waved and called out to him, and I turned to look.

"...Derek?" Asked the dragon, hurrying over to sit next to me. "I thought you lived in California!"

"Uh, well...things happened. I moved up here."

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"I sent you like three emails, and a bunch of offline messages on Facebook." Logan explained.

"Well, I was out. Dad had some sort of family board meeting because of stock options or something." I nodded. "'No, Halazarn,'" the dragon mimicked his father, "'you have to make an appearance at this!' So I did."

"Well, at least we got to see you before we headed home." Natasha said. The waitress came up, and we placed our orders.

"So, Derek...care to tell us what happened? I know things were bad, but..." Said Logan. Natasha shot him a glare, but I nodded.

"Well, I ended up going out with a human by the name of Landon. He seemed fine enough for a few months, and he ended up moving in with me. Eventually he just became more and more...unstable." I explained, gesturing. My free hand rubbed my temple as I spoke, as if to massage away what happened. "I'd heard him talking to himself several times, so I..." I shook my head.

"If you don't want to talk about it, it's fine." Said Natasha reassuringly. I nodded, but continued.

"I called a psychologist. Landon must have gotten wind of it, because he freaked out when he got back from work. Well, he must have, because when I got back the place was trashed. My wallet was gone, too."

"Shit." Said Halazarn, frowning. "Did you freeze your bank account?"

"Not before he nearly got everything out of it, and racked up shittons of debt on my credit cards. I managed to pay most of it off with what was left in the account, and transferred my savings up here, but..."

"Look, Dad's looking for people for a new division of the business, with what you were doing before you left, you could be pretty well qualified." Halazarn said, as our drinks arrived. He sipped eagerly at his coffee, and a look of pure joy spread over his reptilian features. I glanced at him at the mention of my work.

"I'd...rather not talk about that in public, dude." I grumbled. Halazarn blinked at me, then nodded. "But yes. I'll...call him in the morning."

We ate, and Halazarn headed back home, saying he'd come over later tonight. The drive to Natasha and Logan's house was quiet, the steadily intensifying rain filling the car with the comforting sound of rain. The house itself was set back in a dense pine forest, almost like a fortress of foliage. It was a two-story affair, with a large deck overlooking the backyard. A trio of animal feeder sat in the backyard, but no animals attended the buffet. Logan and I carried my bags in as Natasha hurried inside, and as I passed the threshold a feeling of peace and comfort washed over me. I blinked, confused. I had no idea they were...

"Derek?" Logan said, from behind me. I turned around, as Natasha stood at the railing at the edge of the split-level part of the room.

"Yeah?"

"What was Halazarn talking about earlier? Your 'work'?" I heard a slight tenseness in his voice, and I frowned.

"I'd rather not-" I said, but Logan cut me off.

"Derek, if you're hiding something, we need to know." I sighed deeply. "Natasha had a dream-vision a few days ago, of a deep night. Please, tell us."

"I..." I began, turning to face Logan and leaning against the pool table in the center of the room. "I took up the study of magic while I still lived up here, before my dad passed. When he did, I found his tomes, and kept them." I breathed deeply. "So...yes. In a way, I am a wizard."