FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

Written to get me out of a slump. Comments and the like will encourage me to write more this fandom (or maybe continue with this storyline)! Drop me a message at [email protected]

All standard GTFO rules apply. Also note that, while this story has all kinds of stank tags, the overall mood of it is positive, though not very sexy. This is a long one, folks.

---

O'reef's was pretty much the same as any other bar Karn had been to, not that he was a connoisseur. After rough days at work, he always found kicking back with a novel and drink to be the perfect way to relax, and he'd found out tonight that this place had just the kind of music he liked: jazz, a soft ballad at the moment, never any of that techno that always gave him headaches. So far today, though, the novel hadn't been doing a very good job on him--what captured his attention was the fox that was darting around the patrons.

Karn had seen prostitutes before and had no doubt that this fox was one of them, but something else about him caught the husky's eye. Something he couldn't quite place. He tried to tear his gaze away, but it kept drifting back despite his best efforts, and as he brought up his glass for another sip, he realized why.

There was something familiar about the fox.

Karn set the glass down and marked his place in the novel. It took a few minutes of staring and subtle motioning before he was able to get the fox's attention. When he came into view, Karn could see that he wore exactly what the husky had expected to see: tight pants, tight shirt, tight fur, tight everything. Karn had difficulty wrapping his mind around the notion that there were people out there that thought something like that looked good, especially because he could see that underneath the clothes, the fox looked stunning. His coloring was no different than that of the average red fox, but all of his features seemed sharp and distinct.

"Yes?" The fox's tail curled and his eyes flitted over the husky's body. "What can I get you?"

He didn't say anything for a moment, just taking a sip out of his drink. If he were wrong about this, he was going to feel like one hell of an idiot. "What're you offering?"

"Whatever pleases you," the fox said.

"How much?"

A chuckle. "Oh, we can discuss that later."

Karn shuddered at that. "Rooms in the back?"

"Mmhm." The fox extended a hand and gestured for the husky to follow him.

Karn almost started walking the other way, but couldn't make himself do it. He took a few long strides to catch up, then trailed behind the other through the crowds. He eventually came to a door, which the fox held open for him. That led him to a dark hall abound with more doors, one of which the fox opened and gestured inside.

Karn was inside in a matter of seconds, laying on the bed, the only other piece of furniture inside the small room save for the chair on the opposite side. The fox sauntered into the room, tail still flinging about. Karn watched with amusement, resisting the urge to laugh, but when the fox grasped his pants as if he was about to pull them off, the seriousness of the situation hit Karn anew.

"Whoa, hang on a second," he said. "What are you doing?"

The fox's eyes widened, his hands glued to the top of his pants. "You want something else?"

Karn blinked. "Maybe. But for now I just want to talk."

The corners of the fox's mouth turned down. "That's gonna cost you, you know," he said.

"I know," Karn said, keeping his voice even. "But I think it's worth it. Tell me, why are you doing this?"

Another flinch and what looked like a tremble. "What do you mean?"

"This," Karn said, waving around the room. "Selling yourself. You're better than this."

Karn could practically see it playing on the fox's face now: what have gotten myself into I need to get the hell out of here who is this guy? After a few seconds of waiting, the husky continued, hoping his guess was right:

"George Anson. Are you going to answer me, George Anson?"

The fox's ears laid down against his skull, and Karn could've sworn his eyes darted to the door. "How do you know me?" The words came out in a rush.

"You were first in your class, right?"

Silence, eyes downcast, features drooping.

"What happened, man? Why are you throwing yourself away like this?"

For what felt like several long minutes, there was no response, no indication that George had even heard him, and when the fox looked up, Karn could see tears in his eyes.

The husky didn't protest when George fell on the bed beside him; he moved over to give the other more room and placed a comforting paw on his shoulder. They stayed like that for a long while, the only sound in the room the fox's quick breathing and sniffles. The feeling of the warm body against Karn's was comforting, and now it seemed like the fox from one minute ago was an entirely different person.

"I didn't have a choice," George said, making Karn jump.

Karn waited a while before speaking. "What do you mean?" When there was no response, he said, "You can talk to me. I won't tell anyone, I promise. Hell, we'll probably never even see each other again."

The fox sighed, and with the release of breath the tension seemed to release itself from his body, and he smiled faintly. "I haven't been George Anson in forever, kid."

Karn laughed. "You're calling me kid? I'm three years older than you, pup." He paused, eyes scanning over the other's body. "And for the record, you look pretty ridiculous when you're putting on a show like you were. No man in his right mind would ever look like that."

"I know," he said, maroon eyes staring at the husky. "It's stupid, it's ridiculous, but it's how he wants me to act, and so I gotta do it."

"He?"

Karn thought he felt George's body stiffen, and the fox sent him a furtive glance. He was silent for a while, and when he spoke, his voice was quiet, withdrawn. "You don't know anything, do you?"

Karn shook his head, which made George laugh, an almost musical sound. "Who am I kidding? Of course you don't. But..."

"But?"

Another furtive glance. "It's... not something I want to talk about right now, I don't think."

"You don't sound very certain. Maybe it would be best if you just let it all out."

There was no response.

"Look," Karn said, lightly jabbing a claw at the fox's shoulder, "I don't know what happened to make you like this, but it must have been pretty bad. If you let it sit there inside and fester, it's going to kill you. Trust me. I know."

"It's not something I like to think about," George muttered. "I don't even know if I can."

"And how are you ever going to get it off your chest if you don't confront it?"

The fox frowned, cast his eyes over Karn and rolled them back up at the ceiling again. "Maybe you're right... but still..." George blinked, and Karn thought that he could make out tears welling up inside his eyes. "You don't know."

Karn snorted. "Of course I don't know. Now, are you going to tell me or not?"

George opened his mouth once, then closed it. "You know Gray O'Reef, right?"

No, he didn't. "He owns the place?"

The fox nodded, blinked a few times. "Yeah. Maybe I should start from the beginning, though..."

"Yeah, sure. Take your time, there's no rush." He reached out a paw and patted the fox's shoulder.

It seemed to work, because George cleared his throat. "Well, when I was a senior at Vance, I figured out I was..." He sent a glance over at Karn.

"Homolicious."

George gave him a strange look, then chuckled. "Yeah... hah, that's one way to put it. But..." His features became more stern, the tension from earlier returning. "Well, my parents..."

Karn felt his ears flicker. "Don't tell me you got yourself kicked out."

"No! No, I mean... they never found out. I was worried about what they would think, though, so I kind of... broke off from them, you know?"

"You ran away?"

George's ears went down again. "Well, not really," he said, his voice becoming higher. "Okay, yes. Sort of."

"Then what?"

"Well, I went around looking for work and I couldn't find any, so..." He gestured around at the room.

Built-for-success fox runs away from home and becomes a prostitute the next day because he can't find work. Unlikely, Karn thought. "How does O'Reef tie into all of this?"

George looked as if he was biting his lip. "I was hoping you wouldn't go there."

The husky grunted. "I know, but I did it anyway."

"I can see." He gazed around the room, as if he was searching for answers or reassurance. "I hope you're comfortable with me telling you this. I know I'm not."

Karn nodded. "But you're going to do it anyway."

The fox frowned at him for a while before saying, "I don't think you're going to like me very much by the time I get to the end of this."

"Try me."

George took a deep breath, letting it all out in a shaky wheeze. "Okay..."

--v--

Oh my god what have I gotten myself into?

The three of them had George cornered in a dark alley of the metropolis, and he knew that the twilight would be enough to bar anyone from the streets from witnessing the scene. His heart was pounding faster than he thought possible, his back pressed against the wall as far as it could go without crushing his tail. Although, from what he gathered, his tail was going to be crushed tonight in one way or the other, and that was what scared him the most.

One of them, the jackal, had a knife. The other two, a hyena and an ocelot, were weaponless, but didn't look any less intimidating. All three of them wore piercing gazes that tore into him, lewd smiles, and bulges in places that George would rather not look. He'd tried to tear his eyes away, but... jeez, it was impossible with these freaks.

(impossible with anyone)

The jackal advanced, the grin never leaving his muzzle. "Ya know, it's not every day that someone as fine as yourself ends up on the streets."

George responded by whimpering and cowering up against the wall.

"Hey, stop all that crap, Park. Let's just do it and get out of here, kay?" the ocelot said, followed by the sound of zipping.

His fur stood up on ends, a prickling sensation spreading through his entire body as it sank in. Up until now, he had never considered the consequences of being alone, but they hit him with full force when he realized that nobody was going to hear him if he called for help, nobody was going to come to save him, and nobody was going to care for him when this was over.

Just as he was processing that, as if some kind of divine force was trying to prove him wrong, there was a voice, gruff and unmistakably male:

"I'd get the hell out of here if I were you, boys."

The trio's heads flipped around in unison, and in the moment, George could see the newcomer: a burly, grizzled wolf, rough enough to pass as a beggar but regal enough to pass as a king. What truly set him apart, and gave George both hope and despair, was the gun clutched in his paws, held out towards the trio.

The jackal and ocelot had their hands in the air immediately after seeing him, the hyena rolling his eyes and complying not soon afterwards. "What's it this time?" he said.

"You're trespassing on my property," the wolf said, moving the gun from person to person. "And I don't appreciate that very much. The way I see it, you have two options: you can get the hell out of here like I told you to in the first place, or I can drag your carcasses out of this alley on my own."

The three of them exchanged glances, then skittered out of the alley, passing right by the wolf, who kept the gun locked on them the entire time. There was the clink of metal as the jackal's knife landed on the ground.

George leaned against the wall now, eyes taking in the wolf. He appeared to be the image of distilled masculinity, from the way he held the gun, to the way he walked, to the way his voice sounded. And just then, he was perfect in George's eyes.

"Thanks," the fox said. "You have no idea how much I appreciate that."

The wolf sent him an amused glare before chuckling, nothing but a deep rumble. "I don't think you should be so thankful. Not yet." He started walking away from George, heading towards the street.

The fox took a few long strides to catch up, shoving his hands in his pockets. "Why not? And... hey, you said this is your property, right? Does that mean you work here?" He pointed to his left, at the big building that he knew had the big neon sign reading O'Reefs facing out at the street

"Yeah, I guess you could say that."

"Do you think you could get me a job working there? I'm kind of out here alone and everything, you know..."

Another laugh, and a flash of white teeth. "Yeah, cub, that's pretty obvious. Why do you think those guys cornered you so quickly, eh?"

George felt his ears wilt. "Well, I thought they were just being nice at first, but then.... hey, you never answered my question."

The wolf seemed to think about it for a few seconds, bringing up a claw to scratch at his chin. "Well... now that I think about it, I do have an opening that I could use you to fill."

George smiled, a feeling of lightness surging through his body. This wolf was a godsend. "Hey, that's great! I don't have an application or resumè, though, but if there's anything you--"

The wolf waved a hand. "Nah, it's all cool. Trust me."

They were at the neon sign now, he realized, and that meant they were at the door to O'Reef's. A few seconds later, George was inside the place, which stunk more of alcohol than any other place he'd been--but he told himself that he hadn't been to many bars before, so thinking something like that was natural. He blindly followed the wolf, and when the fox entered the dark, door-speckled hall, a feeling of unease started to settle in his stomach.

The wolf led him into one of the small rooms, and it was then that he paled. Okay, there's a bed in here, he thought. That's... no big deal, he's just giving me a place to rest.

But when the door closed behind him and he the scent of wolf still permeated the room, he knew something was wrong. The scent itself was what gave it away--every nerve in his body seemed to freeze when he realized that he was alone in a bedroom with one very aroused wolf.

"You know, you made this way too easy."

George bit his lip, still unable to move despite his tremors. He didn't find the strength to resist when the wolf tackled him from behind and pushed him on the bed, pinning him down with his chest pushing into the mattress.

Some source of defiant strength poured into him, and he was thrashing with all his might. "Get offa me, you--"

"I don't want to hear it." The wolf's breath was on the back of George's neck, humid and hot. "I'm doing you a favor, cub. Instead of three, now you only have to take one." A pause, a deep breath, an exhalation of heat. "Though none of them were probably as big as me."

Oh, God, he'd actually said it. Somehow, when the trio had been standing in front of George, there had been some surreal factor to it that had blurred how serious it really was. But now, with the wolf leaning over him and talking to him like that, it was undeniably real.

When George felt his tail being lifted and a finger planted between his still-clothed cheeks, he let out a stifled gasp and began struggling again, trying to kick the wolf off of him, but only getting a strong force pinning him onto the bed in response. Every time he would thrash, he would get a stronger grip, his flesh stinging as the wolf's claws dug in. Eventually, he got to the point where he couldn't take it anymore and he had to just sit there like a helpless animal, gritting his teeth, taking deep breaths. He had never been touched there in that way, not even by his own paw, and to have it forced upon him--he shuddered.

"That's a good fox," the wolf said, voice so deep that it was almost incomprehensible.

There was a tug on George's belt, and, after a bit of tugging from the other, cold air hit his legs. And then--

He couldn't help himself. He threw back his head and moaned, pushing his rump backwards towards the wolf's maw. He had to take a glance over his shoulder to be sure that he wasn't thinking the wrong thing, but when he saw that the wolf's muzzle was buried between his cheeks, that just caused him to whimper even more, especially when the tongue dipped down and tickled his orbs.

He gritted his teeth, trying to ignore the tinglings that were coming from between his legs. Just don't think about it, he told himself. Just keep thinking you're not here, keep pretending you're back at home with Amanda and Mom and Dad, and it'll all be over soon...

The wolf withdrew his muzzle with a wet pop, and George could've sworn he heard the sound of him licking his lips.

"Mmm, you taste good."

He closed his eyes, thinking for a moment that it was ludicrous that anyone could enjoy doing something like that, when he was interrupted by another finger, this one wet with something, teasing his ring.

The sensation of bare fur against flesh introduced a whole new dynamic of sensations, and he was just about to get used to it when the wolf rammed the digit inside him, eliciting a gasp. It was soon followed by another finger, and he didn't think he could take any more after that when it started to burn, but then in went another, ever-so-slowly thrusting in and backing out. In and out, in and out.

Just as soon as it started, the feeling was gone, replaced by the feeling of something much larger than a finger probing at his entrance. He shuddered at the feeling. This wasn't what it was supposed to be like; his first time should be with someone he loved, done out of mutual consent. It should be a time of exploration, not savage dominance, which was exactly what he got when the thing shoved in and he cried out, tears coming to his eyes.

The world became hazy, everything a blur as the wolf stabbed into him, the only break between thrusts coming when the wolf changed positions. George was on his back now, legs held in the grasp of the wolf. Each thrust felt like a stab into his identity, wearing him away and ripping him apart from the inside. By the time he got used to the feeling of having it inside of him, he was burning so much that it felt like his bowels were on fire.

He could feel the knot pressing against him now, wanting entrance. He swallowed, sweating, knowing that there was no way it was going to fit. He was stretched to the limits already--wouldn't be surprised if he was bleeding--and there was no way the wolf couldn't tell that, but George also knew that the wolf could keep going for half an hour if he didn't tie.

Despite that, it was a bit of a surprise when the wolf pulled out with another, louder pop. George was surprised at how empty that left him feeling, and he found himself clenching several times and marveling at how loose he felt. He was so absorbed with himself that he hardly noticed the wolf had move until he was sitting on George's chest, straddling him, one paw jerking across the length of his shaft, the other squeezing at the base of his knot, the lupine stench becoming so strong that it overwhelmed the fox.

It was the first time George had seen another male exposed like this. At first, it didn't appear nearly as big as he'd thought it was after all that, but when the wolf scooted closer and it was right in front of his muzzle and he realized exactly what was happening, that didn't seem to matter anymore.

The wolf's tongue lolled out. "You--," he said between breaths, "want this, don't you?" He brought his hand down in a firm stroke, gliding across the long red shaft and gripping the base of the knot.

(yes, master, give it to me)

"No!"

When the wolf squeezed his knot, a spurt of thin liquid hit the fox on the muzzle, and he flinched, which made the wolf grab George's muzzle and force it to look forward at the lupine shaft again. As if in punishment, the wolf smeared the tip around George's face, pre squirting out and soaking into the the fur. The fox spat as some of it entered his muzzle, hating the salty stink, but managed to hold his head even, eyes closed.

Soon enough, the fur on his face was matted with the stuff. He smelled rather than saw the wolf retreat, since his eyes were still closed, and he didn't need them to notice the wolf's pawing speed up and his breathing deepen.

George knew what was coming. Parts of his body that he didn't even know he had were trembling, his heart pounding.

(you want this, don't you?)

No. Make it stop, please.

(you dreamed of this for so long, you liar; why can't you accept it?)

I don't want this. I never wanted this.

(then why are you getting aroused?)

George's eyes snapped open. He saw his rapist in front of him, one paw squeezing on the knot, the other twirling circles around a stub of a nipple. Then, George blinked, and the scene transformed.

"Do it," he muttered, inaudible to anyone but himself--but in reality, that he heard himself say it was all that mattered.

A sharp intake of air from the wolf, then a deep growl and howl that seemed to vibrate the very planet, and--

--v--

"Hey, take it easy," Karn said.

George whimpered and pressed his body more tightly against the husky's. Karn could feel the slight dampness seeping into his fur, so he made soft soothing noises and gently stroked his paw along the other's fur. They stayed like that for a while, during which Karn ran the story through his head a few more times. With the way the fox had been acting earlier, the story didn't surprise him that much, but it hadn't been very pleasant to hear either.

He expected himself to feel a bit awkward now, especially considering that there was a prostitute in the bed with him, one that had been so willing to lift his tail ten minutes earlier. But what surprised Karn was how relaxed he felt, as if he was reacquainting himself with an old friend rather than letting someone cry on his shoulder--though to some degree, he realized, he was doing both. This was a different person, he reasoned; the prostitute from earlier was dead, or at least superseded for the moment.

The next thing he had, he decided, to do was figure out how this tied into what had became of the fox prior to his arrival. He didn't think that very many rape victims worked as prostitutes and served under their rapists, and he was almost sure that was happening, and... well, thinking back on the story, Karn thought he had the answer. He felt like a goddam detective.

"Okay, first things first," he said. "Stop lying to yourself by trying to convince yourself to believe that you enjoyed it."

George looked up at him, dabbing at his eyes.

"Look, no sane person enjoys being raped, and seeing how you're acting now I can see that you didn't like it. No question about it. So what I think you've done is convinced yourself that you liked it in order to make you feel better about it--or maybe you thought that it felt good because you had no clue what it was supposed to feel like. Would I be correct?"

The fox hesitated, nodded, then said, "Yeah," and he was a mess again, pressed up against the husky. "I dug myself into this hole, but I couldn't live with myself if I didn't."

"I know, you poor creature." When George's sniffles died down and his grip on Karn's fur loosened, the husky eased George's head out so that he could look into the fox's eyes. "Did you tell anybody about it?"

A sniffle and a blink. "N-no."

"Why not?"

George flushed with embarrassment. "Um, well... I couldn't."

Karn paused a minute for safety before continuing, trailing a clawtip through the other's fur. "Could you explain what happened after that?"

The fox brought up a hand to dab at his eyes, sighed, then said, "I'll try." He licked his lips and his eyes seemed to roll upward for a few long seconds. "He gave me money for it. I didn't want to take it, but I didn't have a choice. I tried to run away after that," he said, frowning, "but I couldn't get far. Nobody would hire me, since I looked like crap and didn't have any papers. And then there were more mobs of people like that last one. None of them did anything, but the way they eyed me..." He seemed to shiver. "I never felt safe on the streets again."

"Mmm. You are a very beautiful fox, you know. Has anyone ever told you that?"

George recoiled a bit, then seemed to realize that it was just an honest compliment. "Yeah," he said. "Too many times. I think it's more of a curse than anything else... but thanks." He curled back his lip and exposed a few teeth. Karn guessed that it was supposed to have been a smile.

The husky flashed him a grin. "Continue?"

"Yeah, sure... Well, that wolf found me again. He cornered me and told me that if I came to work for him, I would make more money than I'd be able to make anywhere else in the city."

"And?"

George shrugged, looking guilty. "I did what I had to do. It's not like I rushed into acting like this. He started small, and--" The fox looked away. "I don't think I realized how far into this I'd went until today."

Karn thought he could make out George's eyes glossing over, so he put a paw on the fox's shoulder. "Well, now that you do know, you can stop, right?"

"It's not that simple."

Karn winced. "What do you mean it's not that simple? You stop letting random people bang you for cash, end of story."

"What would I do?"

He hadn't thought of that. "I dunno," Karn said. "I could help you out for a while until you can find a job, maybe. And don't you still have some money?"

"Well, yes... but he has it."

"Who is he, exactly?"

"The wolf, my pimp," he said, almost spitting the last word. "Also Gray O'Reef, owner of this bar."

Karn blinked, though he wasn't surprised. "Jeez. Do you have to ask him the money or something?"

"I've never had any need to ask for anything. He's given me food and drink and give me all these skanky clothes." He gestured at his outfit, the skin-tight clothes that would break any high-school dress code. "I never saw a reason to ask for anything else. I didn't want to get raped again."

He winced at how casually the fox tossed the word around. "How many times has he... done that to you, exactly?"

George held up one finger, and that relieved Karn, but then the fox put up another finger, then another, then another, and the husky realized that he was counting. By the time the fox was finished, he had seven fingers up.

"He did it to me every time I didn't listen to him," George said slowly. "The fifth time, he tied. It was the worst pain I had ever felt in my life."

Karn's eyes went wide and he shook his head. He recovered quickly, though, resolving not to let it unsettle him. He didn't want to think about that--no, he had to be in control. Instead, he stared at the fox with new-found intensity, and said, "We've got to get you out of here. I don't care if I have to pay for everything. I can't leave here with knowing what's going on."

George brought up a paw and scratched at his neck. "I can't just leave, though. It's more complicated than that."

Karn growled, clenching his fists. "You keep saying that, but what does it mean?"

"Think about it. We've been in here way too long, and they're probably already suspicious."

Karn nodded. "Yeah, I get that, but what's it to them? Will they track you down?"

George shrugged. "I don't know. Maybe. But... if I had another day, I might be able to find where O'Reef hides his money. And I can take some of it--no more than what he owes me, mind you. That'll make things a lot easier and make me feel a lot less guilty."

Waving a paw at the fox, Karn said, "You have nothing to feel guilty about. You are the victim here. Gray is the one who should be guilty."

Karn's thin lips pursed together, and he regarded Karn strangely for a few seconds, then let his eyes wander the room for a few seconds before saying, "Look, today's Friday, okay? Come back Sunday at one and I'll be ready."

"Why not Saturday?"

The fox shook his head as if he were thinking that Karn was silly for even suggesting it. "Because it'll be too soon. They'll be more suspicious. Believe me, I know how things work around here. You'll be better off if you give them a while to forget your face."

Karn thought about it for a while, mulling it all over it in his head. It didn't seem like he had much of a choice in the matter, and would have probably been coming here Sunday anyway, so it fit right in with his schedule. His only dilemma was going to be finding a way to sleep soundly for the next two nights. But then he weighed his burden and George's burden against each other, and decided that if the fox could live with himself for two more days, Karn could do the same. Still, he had to try something...

"Hey, promise me that you'll be good, okay?" Karn said.

That got him a quirky look from the fox. "What do you mean?"

"I don't want to come here Sunday and find out that, while I was asleep in my bed Saturday, you were being..." He trailed off.

The fox smiled, and he actually laughed. "I'll try my best. Don't worry about me." His eyes locked with the husky's for a few tantalizingly-short seconds before he spoke again. "I think we're pushing it as it is. It would be best if you left as soon as you could."

Realizing the gravity of the situation, and that George could very well be abused again if he stayed too long, he nodded his head grimly. "Alright... I'll go then. But you better be ready when I get here Sunday," he said, then added, "I don't like this at all. The waiting, I mean. But... I guess I have to do what's best for you."

"Yeah." There was the creak of the bed as George got up, stretching out his lithe body. "I'll you see you later, then?"

Karn was up by then, standing behind the fox. He decided that he was feeling exceedingly brave, so he wrapped his arms around the fox, clasping his paws across the other's stomach and resting his chin on the other's shoulder, which he was just tall enough to do. When he spoke, it was just a whisper. "Yeah..."

George put a paw over Karn's joined ones. "Thank you. You don't have any idea how much you're doing for me."

The husky chuckled. "Maybe not, but I'm doing it anyway." He slowly let himself out of the embrace, though dragging it out as much as he could, savoring the soft feeling of the fox's fur. He had to force himself to start towards the door, because he knew that if he stayed that close to George for too long, he might do something he would end up regretting. "If anyone asks," he said, reaching for the doorknob, "tell them I have a thirty-minute tie."

The laughter that came from George was so loud that it sounded almost unrealistic. When it was over, he was grinning, a big, stupid, contagious grin, and his teeth were so white it almost hurt to look at them. "Alright. I'll see you later, then." He raised a paw to wave, and that was the last thing Karn saw of him that day.

It certainly wasn't the last time Karn thought of him.

--v--

Ravencroft, a good distance away from the main part of the city, was like an island of nature intruding on the metal-and-concrete sprawl of the city. More than anything, it looked like a park that had been bought out and been redesigned for housing. The place was usually bright and vivid, tinged with green, but now, the eight-o'clock darkness cast a shadow over everything, muting the colors and making the houses appear gloomy. Here, the silhouette of a basketball towered above the landscape; there, a playhouse loomed next to the road, empty at night but busy at day. It was the kind of community that Karn had always wanted to be in, but he would be understating it if he said he had only paid an arm and a leg for his house.

The house itself wasn't that big when compared to the rest of them, but that didn't matter too much to Karn. Single and self-sufficient, so why bother wasting space? Somewhere deep down, he wondered what George would think of the place, and that made him chuckle at himself for a few seconds before he realized that it was a legitimate question. He figured that it wasn't right to worry about that now, though. If he got thinking about the fox, he would never be able to sleep.

He could see the house dimly in the distance now, but with this kind of speed limit, it would still take a while. He drummed his fingers against the steering wheel as he approached the driveway, humming to himself. In just a few minutes, he was out of the old Buick; had his binder in one paw, keys in the other; and was headed up to the door.

He let himself into the sitting room, and managed to make it to the other side of the room, collapsing in the couch and throwing his binder on the small coffee table that was set up right in front of it, being careful not to hit his laptop. He lay there for a few minutes before sighing and dragging himself into an upright position. He went into the kitchen and made himself a cup of decaf coffee before sitting back down on the couch, opening both the binder and the laptop. Jenkins was going to kill him if he didn't have that report ready by Monday, and even though he knew he could probably do it at work tomorrow, he needed a distraction.

He typed away at the computer until he had it almost completed, and when he got to the last section, he began to slow down. The realization that he couldn't produce a coherent thought was the last thing that he remembered before snapping awake, panicking because he realized he was supposed to be at work in twenty minutes, and the drive there alone took thirty. that, and he still had to shower, and his fur took forever to dry.

When he pulled up into the driveway of Tiscinco Enterprises, he was twenty minutes behind schedule. He saw Jenkins on the way in and got a piercing eye that said You're late, Bradford, but nothing more. Despite knowing that nothing bad would come out of it, he still felt like a bumbling idiot. Being behind schedule always drove him insane, but at least, he reasoned, he'd already done the majority of the report.

He realized later that the report was crap. He'd made some kind of calculation error somewhere along the lines and now half of the work he'd done last night had to be scrapped. He spent most of the morning on that, and after lunch was delivered, he had a new client to work with, and that kept him busy up until it was time for him leave.

As soon as he was out of the parking lot and had started navigating his way around the towering mass of the city to find somewhere different to dine, he remembered George. More accurately, he'd seen a fox walking down the road that matched George's coloration (though not his figure), and he hadn't been prepared for what came. Now that it had started, he couldn't stop the wave of memories from flooding in.

Karn still remembered the first time he saw George Anson. It had been during his senior year of high school, during the first math academic bowl practice of the year. Karn, the only senior, had been captain, and he had marveled at the younger fox. He had only been a freshman, but he was damn sharp, both physically and mentally. If there was ever a problem he didn't know how to work out, he would either figure it out on his own or ask somebody. Most of the time, he had asked a teacher, but one time, he'd asked Karn.

The husky remembered looking into those maroon eyes, noting the shy look on George's face as he'd shown Karn his work during practice one day and asked, "Is that right?"

"Yeah. But if you work it out like that, you'll never be fast enough." Karn had produced a pencil and made a few markings on the paper. "When you take the harmonic mean of two numbers," he'd said, "you can just take the product over the sum, and that's your answer." He remembered looking over at the fox, expecting confusion.

What he'd gotten instead was a nod. "I think I got it." George had written down two numbers on the paper and had their harmonic mean in a few seconds. "This right? Harmonic mean of 4 and 6 is 12/5."

Karn had blinked a few times, thinking that most people were blessed with either brains or looks, and this fox seemed to be the exception with both. "Yeah. That's exactly right. And if you can work with that, there are a lot of other shortcuts that I've found for other stuff."

And then George had smiled, a flash of blinding white. "Sure."

And that had been the start of a good, though short-lived friendship. They became a great team in the meets, neither one playing without the other, and by the time the season was over with, James Lewis High was grand champion in math.

But after that, Karn never saw the fox again, save for a few times in the halls, where they'd exchanged waves. Karn had never had the time to stop and chat, and he'd expected that George hadn't either. That had been the end of George Anson, at least up until their encounter in O'Reef's. It had seemed silly to think that such a skimpy prostitute could be that same bright kid, the same one that had competed with him to see who could memorize the most powers of two. The kid that he had liked so much, the kid that had first made him question his sexuality.

Only when the road became blurry did Karn realize that his eyes were wet. He reached up a paw to dab at them, and sniffed once. He needed a glass of wine or shot of bourbon more than anything right now, but the only place he wanted to go was O'Reef's, and he couldn't do that. Sighing, he resigned himself just to eat at the nearest steakhouse, maybe get some wine with it. It would help him sleep more easily, at least.

Only when he lay in his bed that night did he realize that on the next day, he might not be coming home alone.

--v--

Even though he hadn't set an alarm, Karn still woke at his normal time. He lay in bed for half an hour, trying to go back to sleep, before he dragged himself out. Getting a cup of coffee from the kitchen, he went to the sitting room and started up his laptop, and was a bit annoyed to find that he had a bit less mail than he usually did.

The husky browsed around a few of his favorite sites and watched a few shows he didn't understand on television. When he had all he could take of that, it was around ten o'clock. Grabbing his keys, he walked out to his car and went on a quick drive around town, wishing that time would hurry up and pass so that it would be time to get lunch.

When lunchtime did arrive, though, he wasn't hungry anymore. It was twelve o'clock, and he had entire hour to find something to do with. He pulled out the novel he had been reading earlier, drove into a supermarket parking lot, and started reading.

His fingers were trembling so much that he had to put the book in his lap and stare down at it. Every time he would start to read a page, he would lose focus halfway through it, remember that he was supposed to be reading again, and start over from the top of the page. After thirty grueling minutes, he couldn't take it anymore--he'd only gotten through six pages and didn't have any clue what had happened in any of them. Growling to himself, he cranked up the car and started towards O'Reef's.

When he arrived at the bar, he was still twenty minutes early, so he waited for a few minutes in the car before deciding that if he delayed it any longer, he was going to go insane.

He wasn't sure what exactly he had been expecting when he opened the door, but what he saw certainly wasn't it. Compared to the busy club that had been here Friday, the place looked like a ghost town. There were only three people at the bar, and two others sitting together at a table, probably a couple.

None of them were foxes.

Karn took a deep breath, closing his eyes and telling himself to calm down. He was still early, and maybe George hadn't been expecting that. But now that Karn was here, he didn't to arouse suspicion by standing around and waiting. He didn't usually drink this early in the day, but he made his way to the bar nonetheless, eying the bartender, an older doberman, a different one than had been here Friday.

"Don't think I've seen you here before," the bartender said as soon as he was in front of Karn. "I'd of remembered a husky as fine-lookin as you."

Karn blinked at him. "Not interested."

He actually looked a bit disappointed, ears dipping down a bit. "Oh. Well, can I get you something to drink, then?"

"Crown and Coke," Karn said, fishing out some money and laying it on the table, telling the doberman to keep the change and noting his reaction to the tip. When the drink arrived, it was about twice as strong as he was expecting it to be--probably done on purpose, he guessed--so he took small sips, pretending to be drinking more than he actually was. The bartender tried to make small talk with Karn, but the husky gave quiet, one- or two-word responses until the doberman gave up and started talking to another customer.

Karn drummed his fingers against the countertop, occasionally glancing around the room or taking a sip of his Crown. When it was half gone, he realized that he'd had too much already and decided that he should stop. He sat there for a few more minutes before pulling out his phone and checking the time.

Five more minutes. Just five more minutes until George would arrive. Karn could do this; just sit back and relax, wait for him...

Three minutes and several time checks later, he was less sure of that. The George he had known was never late for anything, and considered himself tardy if he wasn't fifteen minutes early to every match. Karn tried to tell himself that George had probably changed a lot since then, but there was this nagging suspicion that something was amiss. Who would be late for freedom?

When one o'clock rolled by, Karn knew that something was wrong, and the bartender must have noticed it too. Karn had been looking back at the door, and when he faced forwards again, the doberman was standing there, paws on the table.

"Need a refill?"

Karn shook his head. "No."

There was a moment of silence before the bartender said, "Are you waitin on someone?"

"What makes you think that?"

A shrug. "You don't see many people other than drunks comin in here at this time, and from the way you're sipping on that it don't look like you're a drunk."

A bolt of paranoia ran through Karn. Could it be that all of O'Reef's staff was in on what went on in the back rooms? Judging from the way the doberman had acted earlier, maybe he was even a part of it. Maybe O'Reef's was nothing but a giant hub of prostitution masquerading as a bar. It seemed like the only people who were here now were regulars, and now that he thought about it, that would make a bit of sense. That couple at the table--one of them was probably a prostitute.

If that were the case, then he would have been marked as suspicious the moment he had entered the door. He had already lost the battle on trying to be inconspicuous, then, but now that he knew how things operated around the place, he could use it to his advantage. He only prayed that he was right.

"Well," Karn started, laying his ears down and slouching in his seat, "I came here for the first time Friday, and I met this fox, and I was hoping he would be here..."

The doberman took quick sideways glances and leaned closer before saying, "You talkin about Jase?"

"Jase?"

"Oh, he never did tell you his name, did he?"

"I guess not..." Karn took another sip of the drink, even though he didn't really want to.

"Well, he's real popular round this place, if you get my drift. People'r askin about him all the time." The bartender paused, scratching the fur on his chin. "How was he?"

"Oh, he was very, very good."

"Heh, yeah. I remember my first time with him. Man, he took me around the freakin world. Nothin's ever been the same since then, I tell you."

Karn actually lost his a bit of his composure at that, feeling his fur bristle. He tried not to imagine what had happened, but could pull it off only because he knew that if he lost control of himself here, he might never see the fox again.

"Where is he?" Karn said, scooting forward a bit in his chair, hoping he could mark off his reaction to the bartender's comment as a surge of desire.

"Well," the doberman said, "I can't say for sure. He's usually here all the time, but maybe he's just not accepting calls right now."

Something about the way the words came out, about the way the doberman didn't quite make eye contact, made Karn realize it was time to try a different tactic.

Reaching into his wallet and pulling out a twenty-dollar bill, the husky said, "I get the feeling there's something you're not telling me." He made eye contact and slid the bill across the table.

It was gone before Karn had even realized that the bartender had moved. "He's here," the doberman said, his posture stiffening, "but he's occupied with someone else right now, and it's bad luck to talk about him while he's in there. Come back later."

The husky slid another twenty across the table. "I don't think that's true. Are you sure you don't know anything else?"

The bill disappeared. "I might," he said. "But it's real bad luck to talk about it, if you get what I mean."

This time, Karn slid two twenties over to the doberman. "I'm sure. But I really want to know."

The response was not immediate. The doberman's eyes flitted back and forth between the husky and the two bills on the table, as if he were weighing the consequences of what O'Reef might do to him. Karn secretly hoped the wolf would tie with him, and he imagined that was the same thing giving the doberman pause.

"He's in the back," the bartender finally said, pointing a finger at the door to the back hall. "But I didn't tell you he was there. And you probably won't like what you see."

Karn looked over at the door before addressing the doberman again, swallowing. "Right. And I didn't ask you any of this." He considered giving the guy another twenty, but figured that the last thing the bartender would want to do is tell O'Reef.

"Right." The doberman nodded, then turned back to the other customers, and it was as if Karn had never existed to him.

( "You probably won't like what you see." )

All of the husky's muscles trembled as he approached the door. The knob seemed like it was much more difficult to turn that it should have been, but Karn knew it was all his imagination. Still, that knowledge did nothing to easy him; it made things seem even worse.

He walked down the hallway, not even sure where he was going. After a while, he stopped, and realized that he was facing the door into the room that he had been in the last time he had seen George. There was nothing remarkable about the door, and nothing about it had given it away as the entrance to that room. But somehow, Karn knew that it was the right one, much in the same way that he knew he was going to get a response when he rapped against in three shaky times.

"Leave me alone!"

The voice was muffled, high-pitched, and distraught--nothing like the voice Karn had heard relate that terrible story to him on Friday. It was the same voice, though. Of that he could be certain.

The husky drew in a deep breath before muttering, "Hey. George? This is Karn."

A few seconds of silence, then the hurried sound of footsteps. The door cracked open, and the pale glint of a vulpine eye appeared in the crack.

"I've come to get you," Karn said. "Why weren't you out there--"

Karn tried to regain his breath as the fox threw his arms around the husky and squeezed, clinging to Karn as if he was the only thing keeping him in this world. At first he thought it was a gesture of affection, and it made him feel all fuzzy and warm like he had just drank a gallon of Crown, but then he realized how soft George's fur was--and how much of it there was--and that was when he realized that George wasn't wearing any clothes. Wetness started to seep into the fur on Karn's shoulder, and the urgency of the embrace finally sank in.

"George," Karn said, running his hands through the fur on the fox's back and having to make a conscious effort not to go down any farther, "what's going on?"

There was no response.

"George. George!" The husky broke the embrace, grabbed the fox by his shoulders and shook him. The fur around George's eyes was matted with tears. "What happened?"

"He... he caught me. In the stock room." George sniffled. "I found drugs there, and he..."

"Don't tell me he--he did that to you again."

"No. Not yet, at least."

"What do you mean, not yet?"

"He beat me," George said. "But he doesn't know that I took the money yet."

Karn stared at him. "You... took it?"

"Just a grand," George said. He started walking back into the room, and Karn had to pull his eyes back upward from the fox's tail. "And that's not even close to what he owed me."

"Well, it doesn't matter now. Get dressed. We're getting you out of here."

George smiled, and his ears stood straight up. "Alright, but let's hurry before he comes back. I--" His ears fluctuated a bit, then flinched and pointed towards the door before settling against his skull.

Karn heard it too: footsteps. Heavy, pounding footsteps, getting louder with each step.

"Get under the bed," George said, his voice hushed. "Hurry."

The husky almost argued about it, but decided that he didn't have time for it. He did as the fox said and climbed under the bed, and was met with total darkness. His breathing seemed abnormally loud, and his heart pounding to the point that he almost felt it would give him away. Karn had no doubt in his mind that the footsteps came from Gray O'Reef himself, and that they were coming to this room.

The newcomer stopped at the door; Karn could tell that much. The held his breath, thinking that it would be pathetic if he gave himself away through his breathing.

"Jase, why is there a discrepancy between the amount of money on file and the amount of money in the safe?" The voice was deep and gruff, exactly as the fox had described it.

In comparison, George's was nothing but a high-pitched whine. "I don't know, master."

Karn had to resist snarling. One of his knees snapped up and rammed into the bed.

There was a cold silence, and Karn held his breath, praying for the first time in years. After what felt like several minutes, the other drew a breath and spoke. "If you don't find out why in the next five seconds, I'm going to have to teach you a little lesson."

"I don't know anything about it!"

"Then you'll get the lesson." There was a jingle and a clink of metal, which Karn realized was the sound of the wolf's belt being undone. Just the thought of that made him break out into a nervous sweat, and when the smell hit him...

He'd always read that there was nothing as strong-scented as a wolf, but he had never thought about exactly how potent they were. Sitting underneath the bed, safely out of view of what was going on, it smelled as if he had a sweaty jockstrap stuffed into each nostril. The musk soon overrode every other scent in the room to the point that it and the fox's fear were the only two things he could smell. It was so strong it was making him dizzy, and under any other circumstances, he would be so aroused it would hurt.

But now, all that mattered was George. He could only imagine it now--the wolf would be nude, plump sheath and balls exposed, the former maybe showing a bit of red at the tip. And then he'd--

No, he told himself. Don't imagine. Just sit back and tune it out. Which, in practice, was actually very difficult. For a few seconds, there were only deep grunts and light whimpers from above, though he was sure the actual deed hadn't been done yet. If they kept on like this, it was going to drive Karn insane.

The next thing he heard was another deep rumble: "This is your last chance. You know, I really don't want to do this. I'm tired and I've had enough fun today with that collie bitch. If you give me the money, I won't have to do this. But if you make me do it, it might make me really" -- a yelp from George -- "really angry."

"I don't have any money! Please, just let me go."

Karn had always thought that the noises of good sex would be exceedingly pleasant to listen to. He'd thought that if someone were to record an honest couple making love, the resulting sounds would be beautiful and relaxing, something he could play as a sleep aid and not feel any guilt from. When George's first scream reached his ears, it came as a complete surprise.

He couldn't think of any better way to describe than as a scream. It would be something that a sado-masochist would use as an alarm. The first thought that leaped into his mind was, You poor fox; he didn't even use lube. The second one was more complicated. It made tears spring up in Karn's eyes, and he had to fight to control himself from sobbing.

The husky could hear each thrust, punctuated by a burly grunt, a terrified gasp, and a soft, wet pop. He could map out what was going on: the wolf was pulling out each time, slamming in each arrhythmic stab like the first one. Every stab George took, every time he made a noise, it sent a rush of feeling through Karn.

George could have given O'Reef the money and avoided this, but in the fox's eyes, that would have made him a burden on the husky.

The fox was doing this for him.

Later, Karn couldn't remember why he did it. Maybe it was because the rush of feeling was so strong it spurred him to action, or maybe it was just because he was too high on the stench of oversexed wolf to give any thought to logic. Regardless, he did it.

Karn crept out from under the bed and stood up at his full height, looking down at the scene in front of him. George was on his back, his legs up in the air, and the huge black wolf was crouched on top of him, massive red member pounding into the fox. The wolf's dirty tailhole winked at Karn, disappearing and reappearing as O'Reef's cheeks clenched while he pounded. The wolf was so involved with what he was doing, he hadn't noticed the husky yet.

Perfect.

Karn did the only thing he knew how to do; he grabbed the burly wolf's sweaty testes and squeezed as hard as he could, letting his claws dig into the flesh.

The feminine yelp that came from O'Reef was nothing like what Karn had been expected. At first, he collapsed, falling onto the fox, then he snarled and turned around, his member popping out of George and bobbing a few times while the wolf clutched himself, visibly gritting his teeth.

"I'm gonna kill you, dog!"

Up until then, Karn hadn't considered what would happen if it came to a physical confrontation, which, in retrospect, had been pretty stupid. The wolf was much bigger than him, and George couldn't even compare. He didn't let that stop him, though. His response was a growl and a frenzied "Get away from him!"

That led to the wolf tackling him and sending the both of them falling off the bed, landing in a tangle on the floor with O'Reef on top. Karn reached behind the wolf and grabbed his tail, yanking as hard as he could. The wolf punched him in the jaw, making stars appear and block out his vision.

The next thing Karn knew, the wolf was sitting on his chest, his thick, wet member right in the husky's face.

"You want some too?" O'Reef said. "I'll be glad to share."

If he thought he was fooling anyone, Karn thought, he was pretty stupid. If the wolf's knot hadn't emerged, he would already be back in his sheath by now. Now that he thought about it...

Karn knew this was a life-or-death situation, and if the wolf overpowered him, he could very well be killed. So he didn't give much thought to what his survival instinct was telling him to do. He just did it; reached forward and bit into the wolf's dick with all the strength he could muster.

If the wolf's yelp earlier had been uncharacteristic, this one qualified a new word's invention to describe it. Karn had a brief flash of pity for the wolf--and a long flash of disgust at the taste and having to do it in the first place; it had been about as pleasant as eating pecan hulls--but he found that he couldn't feel sorry for the guy who had been raping his friend.

While O'Reef recovered, Karn dragged himself out from underneath the wolf. Now, he was on top of, and was just in time to feel the wolf's resurgence of strength and see every one of O'Reef's furs stand on end.

"So you like to play dirty, huh? I can show you dirty." The wolf snarled, then drew his head back and rammed it into Karn's, making stars appear for the second time. This time, the husky kept control of himself, and tried to keep the wolf pinned down as he struggled to break free.

The creeping sensation of impending doom swept through him, prickling at his skin like a thousand tiny needles. He couldn't hold this for long, and as soon as O'Reef broke free, he was going to die, and George...

But where was George? he thought. He hadn't seen the fox in a while, had been too involved in his fight to care.

Both he and the wolf were surprised when George appeared beside them, holding a knife to the O'Reef's throat.

"You move," George said with surprising firmness, "you die."

O'Reef growled and gave a barely-recognizable nod, but said nothing.

As the reality of what was happening sank in with Karn, he found himself grinning. "Where did you get that?"

He gestured at a pair of dark jeans that must have been O'Reef's pants. "He always carries a switchblade with him, but was probably too stoned or sexed up to think about it." He motioned for the husky to come to him. "You hold this. Don't let him move. I've got to get dressed."

Karn did as George bade, surprised at how commanding the fox was being. He watched O'Reef like a hawk, noticing the way the wolf's eyes followed George. In a few seconds, George was (more or less) fully clothed, looking extremely out of place in his skanky attire.

"Are you ready to go?" Karn asked.

George nodded. "Definitely. Thank you so much for this. I think he would've killed me if he tied..."

The husky shood his head. "No. Don't worry about that. It's over now, and we should probably never speak of it again." He looked down at O'Reef. "I say let's leave him here. He can't follow us when he's like this, especially since his knot's still up."

"Agreed. Let's go."

Karn gestured at the door. "You first. Freedom after all this time." He grinned, and George grinned back at him.

"Yeah." He took one final look at the room, as if he was saying farewell to a part of his life, albeit one that was very unpleasant, then he was out of the room, shoes making soft clicks on the tile.

In a single fluid motion, Karn retreated from the center of the room to the door, keeping the blade ready the entire time in case O'Reef made a move. To his relief, the wolf didn't--given, he did send the husky a nasty glare, but outside of that room and into the relatively fresh and clean air with George by his side, Karn felt renewed, and found it easy to turn his thoughts away from the wolf and more towards the fox.

Of one thing he was certain: the first thing he and George were going to do was go shopping for clothes

--v--

The ride home had been enjoyable, something unfamiliar to Karn. He usually saw driving as something he had to do, and didn't like or hate it one way or the other, but with George's bright smile beside him, he felt that he could do anything and love it.

The midafternoon soon was as its brightest when Karn pulled up into his driveway in Ravencroft. The house cast a shadow over the parking area and walkway, though, and the breeze felt quite pleasant.

"So this is your place, huh?" George said, shutting the car door.

"Mmhm." Karn began walking towards the door, fiddling with the keys. "It's not real fancy, but I like it."

When Karn got to the door, he felt a gentle paw on his shoulder, and he turned around to see George looking him in the eyes.

"I think it's beautiful," the fox murmured.

Before he could stop himself, Karn leaned in, put his arms around the fox, and gently touched his lips to the other's. George reciprocated, making the same small motions as Karn, but making no move to deepen it. It went on for longer than any other kiss Karn had ever had, and despite the lack of intimacy, it still left him with a warm, tingly feeling. He drew away slowly, noticing the fox doing the same thing, and smiled.

"Wow..." George chuckled, keeping his eyes on Karn.

"What's so funny?"

"It's just," he said, "that felt ten times better than any sex I've ever had."

Laughing, Karn said, "Yeah. It was pretty nice. Now, come on, you've got a new house to get lazy in."

As they walked in, George's paw found Karn's, squeezed once, and lingered there for the rest of the night, not letting go even when they both fell asleep on the couch.

And sometime during the night, Karn realized that he wouldn't have it any other way. There was no need for anything more. The fox needed someone to guide and share with him, and Karn could do just that. The process would be slow, he knew; but for George's sake, it was one the husky was willing to weather.

--v--

~Possibly to be continued.