FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

Winter winds wake me as, I lay dormant in the cold. The frosty breeze flowing through my fur, and onto my skin, sending chills down my spine. As I slowly open my eyes, I begin to feel the cool sensation of snow on my legs, and I rub my eyes, for a more swift focus. As I rub my eyes, I can feel small formed icicles on my paws, causing a burning sensation of frost bite.

"Wh-Where am I?" I say to myself, in a still tired, and somewhat hushed tone.

After a few seconds of rubbing my eyes, I remove my paws, and open them once more. I am in the downtown area of my suburban city, it is snowing, though things are not right. As I look around, I do not see color. No pigment to be found, just shades or white and black. As I look to the sky, I feel the soft touch of snow flakes as they land on my fur. They sky is cloudy, though these clouds are dark, and broad, very contrasting to the snow falling from them. I see flashes of light emerge from the thinner patches of clouds, though do not see a source.

As I'm laying down observing my surroundings, it hits, me. It is silent. There is not pitter patter of snow flakes falling, nor the crackle of thunder, or even the slightest howling of the wind. It is complete and udder silence. It's the silence that can deafen someone, because no one has ever experienced true silence. Even my highly sensitive ears, though very cold from the wind, could not detect the slightest sound.

I lower my head, back to a level state, and further more observe my surrounds. As I do so, a glimpse of movement catches my eye, and I turn swiftly toward the target. I then realize, I am surrounded by furs. Not a lot of them, but enough to make the sidewalks crowd a bit. Though something was different about them. They look familiar to me, though un-recognizable. And they too have no pigment, just the same bland shades of black and white that make them almost fade into the back ground. As I observe them closely, I realize, they are transparent, as if they were all ghostly apparitions. They too are completely silent, not a word spoken, not a pawstep heard. They just continue to walk down the side walk, their heads down. I stand up swiftly, and spot a near by, what appears to be a male husky, and approach him as he walks away.

"Sir! Please help me! I don't know what's going on!" I say in a panic, worried voice, as I get closer and closer to the figure.

After no response from the apparition, I take a more physical approach. I lift my paw, as to gently tap the furs shoulder, and in doing so, my paw goes straight through the furs torso, as he continues walking. I instantly stop dead in my tracks, as a shiver goes down my spine, that shakes every bone in my body, and I go numb. I lose it.

I begin to run frantically through the streets, as tears slowly start to accumulate and run slowly down my face. I feel the wind start to pick up, as it blows me around, and the icy gusts begins to burn my face. As I run, my back paws, barepaw in the snow, start to go numb as well from the lack of warmth, and after a few blocks of running through the now desolate ghost town, I collapse into the snow on the street. The only thing I see besides snow is a flickering light from the pole on the corner.

As the anxiety begins to set into me, and I begin to lose hope as to my survival, I hear something. It is faint, but it is there. My eyes open once more, and my ears perk up as an attempt to hear the distant sound. As I sit still, and the cool winds flow through my icy body, chilling me at the core, I hear a howl. My eyes are wide now , as I get the strength and courage to find the source, and hopefully find my savior. I stand up in a swift motion, and begin to run through the empty streets and allies, following the deep, saddening howl. My tail, once stiff from the coldness, is now beginning to wag a bit, as I am rejuvinated with hope.

After countless blocks of running through the frozen blanket of snow that lay untouched by furs, and cutting through numerous allies, and running through the empty streets, seeing a few of the ghostly apparitions as I run, but chose to ignore them, and continue my final push to the source, I come to the edge of a meadow. The source of the howl is now visible. Though hard to see, I immediately realize who it is. It's Jack...

"Jack? Jack! Over here!" I call out as I begin to dash toward the target.

The snow fall begins to pick up, causing the heavy snow to land on me, slowing me down a bit as I am overcome with shivers. My spine is now tingling, and shaking to no end, and my body is burning with a mixture of wind burn, and frost bite. And as I run, I begin to feel myself become weaker and weaker, as I fall 10 yards short of my target. I reach my paw out as one last desperate attempt at reaching safety.

As my body becomes chilled, and slowly starts to shut down, I let out a lone whimper. My eyes begin to slowly close as the cold puts me into shock. I can feel my heartbeat start to slow down, and my lungs fill with the icy air, as snow begins to cover my white fur, and seep into it, freezing my body. As I take my last breath, my final moment of life, I feel a force grab me and pick me up. The source of this force was warm, and is holding me tightly, and I feel my lungs fill with air once more, and my skin begins to thaw, as warmth fills me.

*********************

"J-Jack?" I say as I slowly open my eyes.

"Jack? Who's Jack?" The familiar voice rang into my ears.

As my eyes come into focus, I look around. There is no longer darkness, and I can hear sound. There is no longer the icy death that preluded me. It is just warmth that now fills me. I am in my room. The familiar white walls, with one black ascent wall come into my view, as I realize that it was all just a horrible dream, well other than the fact that Jack was in it.

After a few seconds, I realize that someone is there with me, in my bed, and I quickly turn to the voices sources. Laying down in my bed, in between the wall and I, is a white snow leopard, with purple spots. His eyes are the same vibrant, metallic purple that his spots are, and his tail lay across his leg, the end thumping on my bed, as he stares at me with a devilishly cute smile. All while having a half eaten twinkie in his paw, and the other half he is chewing as he looks at me.

"Leo! What the hell are you doing here?! How The hell did you get in my room!?" I say in a loud, angry tone.

"Good afternoon to you too sunshine," the cheetah purred as he looked at me, "nice to see you."

"Uhhh, what time is it?" I whimper as I roll back over, and pull the covers over my head.

"It's time to get your ass up and go to the football game."

My eyes open again, and I was now suddenly awake, "The football game?"

"Yes dumby, it's the last game of the season, and my boyfriend is at work, so come on! Let's go, get up, get up!"

Leo Lara was is another very close friend of mine. He has always been there for me, whether it was just friendly advice, or advice on life situations. I especially admire him because he is openly gay, which in my opinion takes great amounts of courage. I know that he takes verbal attacks by people every day for his sexuality, and he still stands tall at the end of each day. Leo and I have known each other since 7th grade, and we were really close for a while. We spent a lot of time together, and we shared secrets with each other as young furs. I was the first one that he told about his sexuality, which made me question mine when he told me. It's not so easy being a gay fur, but I think that I can handle the hatred that others will pursue me with. I'm just not sure if it is the right time yet is all.

I let out a yawn, followed by a stretch, "Leo, I can't, I have work. And since when does Ryan work on Fridays?"

"His boss called him in last minute," he stated with a bit of a sad tone, "so damn, guess I'll have to find someone else to go with."

After checking my phone, and seeing that it's 5:35 P.M. I take a brief pause, "Hey Leo, mind giving me a ride to work?"

"No, I don't mind, but hurry that cute ass up, I still have to find someone to go to the damn game with," he says playfully. I knew he didn't mean it, but it still made me blush.

I roll off of the bed slowly, and land on my back paws. After stretching my arms once more, I stand up fully, and begin to slide off my shirt. After my shirt was removed, I bend over to my dresser, and dig through the middle-right drawer, until I find my standard issue "The Grind" shirt. It was a simple black shirt, with "The Grind" in brown, on a coffee mug, and steam rising off of the rim. The Grind is the coffee shop that I have worked at for a few weeks now. Since I've been lonely, I thought that getting a job with other fur interaction couldn't be the worst thing. Plus, I love coffee.

Five minutes of swift preparation pass, and I am ready to go to work. I'm wearing my standard issue "The Grind" shirt, a pair of tight black jeans, and of course my overcoat, and a black and white stripped scarf. Leo is waiting impatiently on my bed, laying on his back, holding the crushed up twinkie wrapper in his paw as he glares at me, but in a non-serious look.

"You take longer than I do to get ready, damn. And I'm gay!" he says to me with a snicker.

"Ahh, hush, I'm ready, I'm ready, now lets just go so I'm not late again. My boss with kill me if I'm late today, she has plans with her hubby."

He stands up, "Good! Any longer, and I would have had to drag your ass out of here by your tail!"

Leo and I walk out of my room, and through my house, passing my mothers bedroom door as we exit my room.

"Bye mom! I love you! I'll cya when I get home!" I call out in a cheerful tone, though there was no response. She was probably taking a nap, she has always been famous for her afternoon naps. After all, she did have to go into work early today.

My mom is an accomplished computer engineer that works as head of hardware programming at HP headquarters. Though the job pays well, her hours are very unpredictable, and we never spend any time together like we used to. The thought of this made me kind of sad, but there was no time to be sad right now. I have to be nice and cheerful for work! I mean, who wouldn't love saying, "Welcome to the Grind? What would you like to order?" for 6 hours straight. But it is still a great job.

Once arriving at Leonardos' car, I examine it thoroughly.

"Leo! Whose car is this?!" I say as i gaze at the brand new 2011 mini coop. The car is sleek, very clean, and the sun shines off of it like metallic. It was all white, with a cream interior, and definitely looks comfortable.

"My uncle let me borrow his car for the night."

I quickly get into the already running car, and sit on the heated leather seats, feeling my butt get nice and toasty as I examine the interior more thoroughly. It's very clean, and looks quite luxurious. Leo joins me in the car, and puts it into gear as we reverse out of my driveway, and off through the side streets toward the downtown area of our city. As we pass specific landmarks, I begin to recall memories of my recent nightmare, and I get a bit scared. 'Maybe its a sign, that something bad is going to happen,' I thought to myself as I silently gazed out the window. Leo could tell something was on my mind by now, I was sure of it.

"So who is Jack?" Leo asks suddenly, in a soothing tone.

I turn my head slowly, and I feel my head start to get a bit warm, "Wh-What?"

"You know, Jack, I heard you call his name in your sleep. Who is he?"

"Well, uhm, Leo..."

"Yes Sky?"

"I uhm, don't really know how to say this.... But.... I'm, well, gay."

I turn to Leo, expecting a shocked look on his face, but only find a smile.

"Don't worry Skylar, I've known for a while.'

"You WHAT?! How!?"

"Sweetheart, I'm Gay, I can sense these things."

I feel kind of embarrassed, and confused, and in shock myself.

Leo turns to me, looking at me with a caring, loving face, "Don't worry, I won't tell."

"Th-Thank you, Leo," I lean close to him, and give him a hug to the best of my ability for being in a car.

"You know you can tell me anything right? I mean, we're like brothers," he says in a heart-filled voice, "So back to the matter on hand, who is this Jack?"

"Well, you probably know him.... Jack Fisher."

Leo lets out a day dream like sigh, "Ahh that Jack, I can see why you were dreaming about him. He sure is one hot furr, though I love my Ryan much much more."

"I know you do Leo, but ya, I kind of have a crush on him, to say the least," It is a bit awkward talking to Leo about this so suddenly, but it helps ease the tension, "And how the hell did you get into my room in the first place?"

Leo smiles, "Mumma let me in," he says in a cheerful tone.

I roll my eyes slightly, "Of course she did.... thanks mom."

I begin to feel the car slow down, as I look around and notice that we are in front of my work now, "Well here we are Sky, and hey, if you ever need someone to talk to, or just anything at all, please call me," he says with a reassuring smile.

"I will Leo, and thanks for the ride, and for everything, you're the best." I take my seatbelt off, and then reach over, and give him a proper hug. "Bye Leo, we will talk more soon, I promise," I say as I quickly exit the car, noticing that my shift starts in 2 minutes.

As I walk into "The Grind" the sweet smell of coffee and baked goods ransack me, filling my nose with the amazing scents, almost making my mouth water. My tail begins to liven up as it sways side to side as I make my way to the counter. My work isn't a big place by any means. It's just a small coffee shop in between two buildings. There's only enough room for about 5 or 6 couches, and a few single person chairs, and a very limited amount of coffee tables. But, "The Grind" had one element that many coffee shops didn't. It felt like home, from the homemade art on the walls, made by local artists, to the cute decor that was on the tables, and of course, the comfy couches that made anyone sleepy almost instantly.

The Grind wasn't as busy as I anticipated. There is only about 10 or so furs, scattered around the shop, most in pairs, having soft conversation, while others by themselves doing homework or just surfing the web. The faint glow of several apple laptops caught my eye as the White apple logos lit up with high power, and illuminated the room. All other light in the grind came from small lamps placed in corner table, and on central light piece, where a few pieces of silk draped from it, giving an artistic feeling.

As I approach the counter of the shop, I spot my boss, a short, female snow fox, who stood cheerfully at the counter as she sees me. She is only about 5'4" but she is sure feisty for her size, as most female are. She is 23 years old, yet she is my boss, because he parents are owners of the shop, and bestowed the power to her. She is nice for the most part, but getting on her bad side is not a good idea. She has long silver hair that flows down to her mid back and black and ears that contrast to her her hair and fur. She stood nice and straight, and with a lot of confidence, probably because she was quite gorgeous.

"Good evening Shannon," I say to her softly as I walk past her and behind the counter, where I hang my coat off to the side, and take place beside her, both of us behind the counter.

"Gosh! Finally you showed up! I was getting worried you weren't going to show!"

"Really Shannon? Have I ever let you down?" I ask in a questioned toned.

"Well... no... but," she starts.

"Exactly..." I say with a smile, "You know you can always count on me."

"That I can Skylar, that I can. Anyways, I have to run! My Hubby and I are going out on a date tonight." her tail looping excitedly as she tells me small details about her date night.

"I hope you have a great night, and tell josh I said hello. Oh and I am working till closing tonight right?"

"Yes, I will, and ya, you are, hope that's not a problem."

"It's never a problem. Anyways, have a good night!" I say to her as she is already half way through the cafe, and swiftly moving toward the door.

She turns around to give me a wide smile, and followed by a wave good bye, and exits the door of "The Grind" as the bells on the door jingle and chime.

********************

*It's now 11 O'clock P.M.

The day at the grind has gone by slowly, and the maximum amount of people never reached above a dozen. The store is now empty, and the soft jazz music playing in the cafe is the only thing that's keeping me from going completely insane. I've cleaned the counter twice, and it's spotless. The glass of the baked goods display case has been cleaned as well, and I have gone around and swept the whole shop, and cleaned up all the trash left by those lazy furs that leave their cups and plates on the tables. Unfortunately, "The Grind" is open till 12 on Friday. The shop is dead.

As I sit at the counter, waiting for any sign of life, I grab my phone, and check to see if I have any missed alerts. I have a few, but the one that stands out is Leos' text. I open the text, 'SKYLAR WE LOST!! But damn your boy looked hot at the game ;) hugs and kisses, Leonardo <3'. I smile at his blunt comments, and begin to think about how hot Jack really did look. I could just imagine him now, his tight pants on, and his jersey and pads on, and his face paint, and the beads of sweat that dripped off him as he threw perfect passes.

Just as my dreams are starting to get good, I am interrupted by the familiar chime of the bells on the front door. My head slowly peeks up over the dividing wall which lets me oversee the whole shop. Shock settled in as my eyes see the target. My mind can not believe my eyes, as they spot Jack, walking toward the counter. My heart begins to pound. 'Oh my god what is he doing here?! And why today of all days! For god sake, we just started, well, conversating for the first time, not 15 hours ago.' My paws begin to shake as I look at him, and he smiles at me. I build up the courage to give him a smile back, as my knees become uneasy.

Jack arrives at the counter, standing only feet from me looking straight at me.

"Hey Skylar! I didn't know you worked here!" he says to me in a happy tone, his fur looking well groomed, and he looked freshly showered, his tail sways with perfection, and his head fur is combed down so perfectly. He's Wearing a cute black fleece sweater, with a pair of faded blue jeans. He looks better than I could ever imagine.

"H-Hi Jack," I say manage to say, sounding like im out of breath.

"You okay? You look like you've just seen a ghost."

I shake my head, and snap out of it, "Ya sorry, w-what brings you here?"

"Well, we had a game tonight, and we lost, and well, a nice cup of hot chocolate never sounded so good."

"Would you like me to fulfill your request?" I say with a cute grin.

"Uhm, yes please, make it a large, it has been snowing all night, and damn it's cold out. I still cant feel my paws all that well."

I get out all of the ingredients to make a fresh hot chocolate. I never like to do anything half ass, and I make mine from scratch, and hey, why not do it for my crush? I pull out 2 bars of chocolate from a box under the counter, and open them slowly, and put them in a sauce pan, and turn the heat on low, making sure not to burn the chocolate. I turn back to Jack and try to make small talk as I prepare his drink.

"Wh-what was the score?" I ask, trying to act like I know something about football. Which I do not, what so ever.

"40-27," he says in a soft tone, almost embarrassed by his defeat.

"Hey, hey, it's a team sport, don't take it so hard. I'm sure you did your best," I say in a happy tone as I pat his shoulder.

"Th-Thanks, it means a lot Sky." 'God does everyone call me sky?' I thought to myself.

The chocolate is now fully melted, and I pick the sauce pan up, and poor the molten chocolate into a cup of warm milk, and stir it thoroughly, making sure that the chocolate is dispersed and not lumpy. Once the drink is done, I place a candy cane on the rim of the cup, and hand the pipping hot cup to Jack.

"Now be careful, I made that from scratch, so it's going to be really hot."

He takes a sip of the chocolate drink, and lets out a big sigh, as if the beverage was warming his lungs, and making him feel better.

"How is it?" I ask him.

"This is.... the best hot chocolate I've ever had..."

I smile to myself, glad that I was able to impress my crush with my drink making skills. "I'm glad you like it, haven't made it from scratch in years."

"Don't you make it from scratch every time?"

"Well, no, usually we just use the hot chocolate machine, but it's not that good. And you looked like you could use some real hot chocolate, not just some fake powder stuff."

Jack looks down into his cup of hot cocoa, then looks back up at me with a smile on his face, "Thank you.... that's really nice of you. So how much do I owe you for the cocoa?"

"Don't worry about it, I'll just say I made it for myself, it's 1/2 price for me."

"Wow... thanks Sky, this is just what I needed to cheer me up after our loss."

"So what brings you here anyway?" I ask him, due to the fact that I've never seen him here.

Jack looks back down into his hot chocolate, "Well, when I was a pup, my dad would bring me here after a long day of practice, and we would get hot chocolate."

'That is so cute!' I thought to myself as he continues with his story.

"And, after todays loss, I started to think about it, and decided that I really missed coming here, and thought I would come here again, to recall memories, I guess. But running into you here is a pleasant surprise," he looks up at me and smiles as he says this.

My heart begins to melt away, 'I wonder if.... does he... like me?' I ask myself as I become more and more relaxed with Jack, as we talk longer and longer. I start to feel a warm sensation as I talk to him. I'm not sure if it's from the heat of the running coffee machine, or just me blushing, and my heart racing, but either way, it feels good. And of course, every chance that I got, I was looking at the shepherd, and just thinking to myself, 'His looks are so perfect. It's like he was made by angels.'

"So, uhm, what time do you get out of here?" Jack asks me out of no where.

"Well, I have to stay here till 12 O'clock, and then close up."

"What are you doing after?" Jack asks me. As he says this, I feel my heart skip a beat.

)()()()()()()()()()()()()()(

Thank you to all my readers for the feedback, I tried to make sure that this one was longer, more descriptive, and much more clear. Give more more feedback so I can get better for my fans. Love you all. <3 -PoeticFox