FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

Author's note: This is mah fist stoyr, hope ya licke it :3

Anyway, I really like _ mutual attraction _ and the _ affection that comes through friendship _, and decided to go with a _ swords-and-daggers setting _. It is rather long and filled with _ lots of fun _, so don't say I didn't warn you!

Comments and criticism are more than welcome. Gentle or rough, I can take it like a good fox.

---

Horc the Brave

Having walked over the rocks and the rough dirt of the open path for several cycles of the sun without much rest, Horc's footpads were too numb to alert him of the fallen branch he tripped over until he had landed face-first on the ground.

Raising himself with one paw and wiping the dirt off the white fur of his face with the other, the small hare felt a growing lump in his throat. He wanted to cry.

He staggered to his feet, brushed his cape back, and grabbed the hilt of his large sword. Holding it gave him comfort. Gripping it strongly, he fought away tears forming around his brown eyes. The sword was his father's, the strongest and bravest fur he had ever known. He was his hero.

The small hare realized the thought wasn't helping as a tear stained his cheek. He missed his father. His father could hold the sword with one hand--he struggled to swing it with two. He wasn't a child anymore, but he was still a hare, and a rather short one at that. His father had been a powerful wolf.

***

He marveled at the small fur's determination and stupidity. He had been stalking the white hare for a few shades of the sun now, long enough to know the fur was lucky to still be alive in the open country. But not for long, he smiled inwardly.

The hare did look to have powerful hind legs, but that was about it. Though, he couldn't tell much else due to the fur's cape which concealed most of his body. He'd have to be quick and catch him before he had a chance to run.

***

A flat rock at the edge of the trail made for a nice seat, or bed, Horc thought, as he drifted in and out of consciousness. Looking up, it was only around high noon. His entire body felt sore from hard walking, but he wanted to walk more. He didn't care where he was going, so long as it was far away from where he had came from. He had no friends, and now that his father was gone, he had no one. Sniffing back his tears, he wrapped his arms around his legs, holding them close for warmth and some sort of feeling of being with someone.

He sighed and closed his eyes. One of his ears twitched at the sound of a twig snap somewhere behind him. With his eyes closed, his sense of hearing and smell came into focus and it overwhelmed him. He could hear all sorts of animals in the surrounding forest, and the smells formed too strong a mixture for him to pick out a single one. He sniffled; maybe running away from his village wasn't the smartest idea after all.

***

He stopped several breaths behind the now sobbing hare. Everything was perfect--he was upwind, there were plenty of distractions to confuse his prey's senses--but something wasn't right. He couldn't push himself to do it.

The feeling in his gut was terrible. As if his hunger wasn't painful enough, he clenched his teeth and fists. The poor creature looked how he felt. He couldn't do it.

With a sigh, he pocketed his daggers and stood up.

***

Horc had his head tucked in his arms and he couldn't focus on anything but his sobbing and sniffing. He felt a warmth to his side which gave him a strange comfort and something patted him softly on his shoulder--

He jumped from the rock and landed a good distance away, paws ready to draw his sword. The figure blinked, but it did not move. Clearing his head and shaking himself to focus, Horc squinted his tear-soaked eyes to see his would-be attacker.

Beneath the cover of trees sat something darker than the shadows which masked the dense wilderness around it. It was a wolf, a black wolf, with the oddest eyes he had ever seen--they were a deep red. He was about a head taller and he looked to be stronger than himself by far, though he looked lean, almost to the point of seeming like a twig compared to his father's size. He wore a cape and tunic too, but his cape wrapped around and draped behind his shoulders. There were several belts wrapped around his body, most of them carrying pouches and pockets, but two around his waist caught the hare's eye: they were lined with daggers.

Horc struggled to draw forth his sword from its scabbard. He pulled with all his might to sling it out, stumbling forward with the sword in the air. He couldn't keep his balance, and the blade fell to the ground before him. Without losing his grip or flinching in his determination, he assumed the fiercest stance he could.

The black wolf laughed, "You're not very good at this, are you?"

"I'm good enough for you!" yelled the small hare, showing his teeth. "I'm Horc the brave! Be you friend or foe?"

The wolf shook his head. "Do you really expect to defend yourself with that thing? You can't even hold it, let alone swing it."

Horc swallowed, but maintained his angry stare. The wolf was right.

"Here," the wolf produced one of his larger daggers and twirled it in his hand for show. The hare tensed up considerably as the wolf took a few steps closer. "Oh, come now. I'm not going to hurt you." The twirling stopped abruptly, his paw holding the blade with the handle extended to the frightened hare.

Horc looked confused as the black wolf offered his weapon with a slight bow and smile. The fur seemed friendly enough, but his dark coat and predator's eyes made him weary.

"Come on, try it," the wolf coaxed.

He tightened his lowered brow and shook his head "no".

"Good grief, you're really headstrong for a little bunny."

"I'm not a bunny!" yelled Horc, "And I'm just short for my age, that's all."

"And you've got a temper," giggled the wolf.

"I do not!" Horc shot back, flustered.

"Fine, have it your way," the wolf said while sliding his dagger back into his belt. He swung himself around, facing away from the little hare. "I'm sure you can handle yourself just fine. I'm sorry for doubting you." He waved his hand goodbye and began to walk down the dirt road.

Horc let out a breath he did not realize he had been holding. He felt like he was on his toes, and looking down, he saw that he was. Wiping the soft fur of his forehead with a paw, he stared at the well-traveled dirt beneath him. He was acting foolish, he silently scolded himself. The wolf probably thought him a child, too weak and nervous to travel with. It wasn't everyday someone of the predator's species talked so kindly to what they usually viewed as their lesser.

The little white hare raised his head and with some effort he sheathed his giant blade; his mind was made up.

He yelled, "Hey, I didn't catch..." the wolf was nowhere to be seen. "Your name," he finished quietly.

His shoulders slumped as he felt even more empty than before. His stomach groaned, or so he thought until his ears placed the source of the sound behind him. He realized in one brief moment that someone was there, who had just jumped at him, and there was no way for him to get out of the way in time.

Tumbling across the dirt road and into nearby foliage, Horc held tightly to the furry figure as the world spun around him. Once they slowed down, he tried in vain to push the dark figure away, but he was pinned down. He blinked as his dizziness faded and his eyes adjusted to the darkness of the forest, to see something even darker over him: it was the black wolf!

"Lurott," the wolf said with a wide smile.

"Lurott?" Horc asked in confusion. "What's that?"

"My name, silly," he giggled.

"Oh!" Horc giggled a bit too.

They smiled sheepishly at each other, with the sound of their hearts quieting all the noise around them. Horc could feel Lurott's wagging tail brush against his knees, and he realized the larger fur was straddling him.

Lurott could see a blush forming around the white fur's cheeks and found himself quickly becoming lost in the soft face of his new friend.

"So, um..." Horc began, wiggling his arms to find Lurott's paws wrapped around his wrists, "You going to let me go or you going to eat me?"

The dark fur of the wolf concealed a blush of his own, as his smile disappeared and his ears fell back. He quickly stood off and to the side of the hare, quietly offering, "Sorry for seeming creepy."

"Oh, hey, no problem!" Horc bounced up and beamed innocently, "That was fun! I'm sorry for treating you like a foe before, I know I'm new at this and you were right, I don't really know what I am doing, but I want to learn, and I thought that maybe we could team up? We don't have to but I think it would be great. I'm on an adventure and maybe you are too? We could travel together--hey, where exactly are you headed, anyway? Me, I'm heading toward--"

"Sush, Horc," Lurott covered the fur's muzzle with his paw and lowered him with the other behind a thick berry bush.

Lurott removed his paws from Horc and put one finger over his mouth, "Shh."

Horc gave the wolf an expression that asked, "What?" The wolf's red eyes pointed down the dirt road and looked back at him in answer. He slowly turned his ears in the direction and could hear a dull thunder coming their way.

"What's that?" Horc asked in earnest and wonder.

"Quiet!" Lurott's teeth were exposed and clenched tightly. His expression made Horc worry.

They waited silently, huddled next to each other, until they could feel the earth shake and hear the clanking of metal and wheels make its way down the road.

Horc glanced at Lurott to see his eyes shut and a fist clawing a clump of dirt. The hare's nose wiggled, picking up a familiar scent, and he rose enough to see over the hedge. His nose had been correct; he saw an army of wolves and foxes spread as far as he could see up or down the path.

They marched in rough lines, with large horse-drawn wagons splashed liberally throughout. None of them uttered any sound. Talking would be fruitless; the noise covered their advance like a thousand lightning storms. Their eyes looked forward in a dead gaze--wherever they were headed, they expected intense combat.

Horc squinted at a passing wagon to see a strange symbol painted on the side: a triangle pointing down with two smaller triangles at the top pointing in the opposite direction. Half of the crude face was painted orange, and the other, black. He knew this symbol--it was the mark of the Sacred Way!

The hare emitted a low growl and stood up completely, fiddling with his sword. Before he could take it out, two arms pulled him down.

He heard whispered harshly into his ear from a muzzle across his shoulder, "Are you out of your yiffing mind!"

He struggled to free himself, but Lurott had both his arms and legs around him, holding him from behind. He yelled, "Let me--"

Lurott muffled his mouth with a paw, "You're no good to anyone dead, bunny."

They crouched together beneath the cover of trees until the forest around them was filled with complete silence.

Lurott let go of Horc and fell to his back, exhausted. "What in the world got into you back there? You could have got us killed."

The hare sighed, and made to reply but a low moan from his stomach and the wolf's cut him off. They looked at each other.

"I'll get us something to eat. You set up camp," ordered Lurott.

"Okay!" Horc glanced back and forth. "Um, how do you set up camp?"

Lurott's annoyed stare morphed into a chuckle. "I'll show you, just wait here for me."

Horc could hear the wolf dash off into the wilderness. He found himself in a small clearing and took a seat on a nearby log and watched the sky burn as the sun slowly set.

He tapped his feet in boredom. That awful feeling of loneliness crept over his thoughts and he stood up to brush it off with a flick of his stout ears. His new friend would be back; he tried not to worry. With a sheepish grin, he had an idea that made him giddy. He hopped behind a patch of bushes on the other side of the clearing.

***

Lurott returned with two fish in paw, looking for his friend. There was no mistake, the hare's scent was there, but he couldn't find him. He heard something stir, to quickly feel something pounce him from behind--Horc had jumped on his back, causing him to stumble forward. He fell to his hands and knees.

"Gotcha!" exclaimed the hare as he bounced on his back, scratching his neck fur.

Lurott turned to tackle the hare back and they giggled as they rolled over dirt and scattered leaves.

It was clear to Horc that the wolf was holding back, but their struggle was much more playful this time around. He managed to pin the wolf down. Both panted, too tired to continue.

Horc grinned like an idiot. He hadn't had this much fun since he was a child, when he would play with his father. The thought unsettled him a bit, and it must have shown because the wolf's expression showed concern.

"What's wrong?"

The red eyes of the wolf pierced Horc's concentration. They were the kind that he could imagine seeing in the shadows of nightmares. The entire wolf was a shadow under him, except for those eyes that were like blood-soaked daggers. Yet, he found that to be deceptive; the white around the pupils made the red a more gentle color. His dad had always told him one could see the soul of someone's character through their eyes, and Horc knew this wolf was a good person, just like his father was.

Lurott made a goofy face, "what are you staring at, bunny? Are you going to eat me?"

They had a warm laugh, watching their breath turn to clouds and vanish into the cool air of the woods.

Horc could feel the temperature dropping around him, but felt a warmth from his wolf captive. He shifted to get up but stopped, feeling something odd beneath his rump, a mound of some sort, like the wolf were wearing a protective groin cup. The wolf seemed to have noticed his discovery too, and he quickly pulled himself out from under the hare and faced away, adjusting his equipment.

"That must come in handy," said Horc in awe, "I would have never guessed you were wearing armor down there. My father used to hide a lot of his armor under his clothes too. They were too big for me, though, and I'm too poor to buy my own."

Lurott looked at the white hare like he were a complete idiot. "Uh, sure..." He took a deep breath and searched the ground for the fish he had dropped during their horseplay. He picked up the food a few paces away, but quickly realized something upon looking back at the smaller fur.

"You eat meat, right?" Lurott asked, chuckling inwardly.

Horc blinked at the question. "Oh, yeah," his voice was slightly shaky, "All the time! I'm starving."

"Don't lie to me, bunny."

"I'm not a bunny, dog-face!" Horc shot back.

The wolf laughed, "There's that temper of yours again!"

Horc looked furious, madly thinking of something to say to show he wasn't.

"I'm sorry," Lurott sighed, "I'll find some carrots or such for you."

"I can eat it, come on!" Horc moaned. Lurott looked like he didn't believe him, so he continued, "I'm Horc the brave! I can do anything. This is nothing. If I can't eat fish, I have no right to call myself a warrior!"

Lurott laughed through his nose, the hare having caught him off guard with his outburst. "Fine, Horc, we'll eat fish. First time for everything, I suppose." He scratched his chin fur, "Speaking of which, this seems like your first time out on your own. What exactly are you doing out here?"

"Quit stalling!" Horc yelled, still willing himself the courage to try and eat the fish, "Or do you want me to find you some carrots!"

The wolf had a bout of snickering that was like hiccups while he prepared a fire and their dinner. Every time he glanced at Horc, who sat nearby with his face bunched up in extreme concentration, his snickering renewed itself.

Once he finished, Lurott put out the fire and handed Horc's fish on a stick. He watched with much amusement as the hare sniffed cautiously, looked at him like they were in a fierce contest, and opened his little mouth to take a small bite.

Horc chewed for several lengthy moments, becoming familiar with the taste, and swallowed. Lurott stared at him, holding back laughter. Once it made its way into his stomach, Horc locked his eyes with the red of the wolf's and took another bite, much larger than the last one, and munched very slowly for show, as if saying: "Who's laughing now!" Lurott burst into laughter.

After filling their bellies, the cold of the night had made its way over them, and they decided to sleep.

Horc could see Lurott curled up and shaking. "You okay?"

"I'm fine," answered the wolf, "Just a little cold, that's all."

"Why not start another fire?"

"Yes, let's tell the entire world where we are so they can kill us in our sleep," replied Lurott, sarcastically.

Horc scratched his head fur. "Hey, how about we sleep next to each other for warmth?"

Lurott rolled over to look at him, his expression sad. "You don't want to do that, Horc."

"Why not?" he asked, tilting his head.

"Because I'm... I don't want to creep you out." The hare still looked at him in curiosity. Lurott shivered and sighed, watching icy smoke leave his mouth. "I suppose it's colder than usual. Fine."

The white hare took off his cape and used it as a blanket like the wolf, laying down next to him. He understood what the wolf had meant, it did feel strange at first, but the awkwardness quickly passed once he began to feel the wolf's added heat to his own.

The wolf didn't look as relaxed though; he didn't even look like he were breathing. Horc snuggled closer to the wolf and felt the soft fur of his tail between his legs. With a yank of the wolf's tail to get his attention, he yawned, "Loosen up! I don't bite. I'm not going to let you freeze to death."

Lurott let out a breath and began to breathe more comfortably. "Sorry, I'm just... I'm not used to..."

"Shh," Horc poked his back. "We'll have all day to talk. Let's sleep."

"Okay..." Lurott replied weakly.

The sound of the wolf's last drawn-out word made Horc's ears twitch. He wanted to ask why the wolf was acting so timid all of the sudden. The thought lingered as he drifted to sleep.

***

With a yawn and a quick stretch, and a few empty bites of his mouth, Horc found himself in a misty blue forest. Feeling a bit cold, he rolled over to snuggle against his friend to find he wasn't there. He shot up on his hind legs in panic, to hear grunts nearby.

Lurott was doing pushups. He watched in awe at the wolf. His shirt was off, and he could see the fine lines of toned muscle on his back and shoulders through the black fur. An idea giggled its way into his head.

He hopped on the wolf's back and Lurott's chest promptly hit the floor as his arms gave way to the new weight.

"Hey, don't stop because of me, you can do it!" giggled the hare.

Lurott couldn't help but laugh too. "I'm not that strong yet. Would it surprise you if I said I was the runt of the litter?"

Horc bounced on his back, giggling, "Not at all! I bet I could lift you with one paw."

Smiling, the wolf rolled his eyes. "Oh, and good morning. I see you slept well."

"A lot better than you did, I bet," Horc's mind wandered. "You work out a lot? You don't look bulky."

Lurott slid the hare off his back and propped himself up with an arm. "It's a habit of mine. And," he grinned, "It figures a light-weight like you wouldn't know the difference between toning and bulking."

"Pfft," Horc showed him his tongue, "My father told me only weaklings have to work out like that. Real men grow strong through action and don't have to worry about it."

"Whatever," Lurott put on his shirt, belts, and cape. "You ready?"

Horc nodded, and he twirled his cape over his shoulders and clicked a clasp beneath his neck. He made his way back to the open road but Lurott stopped him.

"Let's travel unseen this time, okay? It's a lot safer."

"Coward," stated Horc matter-of-factly, "I've nothing to hide from."

"Oh, for the love of..." Lurott dragged Horc by the arm, away from the well traveled path and onto the lesser.

They made their way past countless trees, following the open road closely to the side, but not too close.

Eventually Horc broke the silence: "Lurott."

"What?"

"It's a funny name."

Lurott rolled his eyes.

"Can I call you Lu for short? Or do you prefer Rott?" giggled Horc.

"Call me whatever you want," Lurott muttered, "It doesn't matter to me. I didn't choose my ugly name, it was given to me."

"You know what," Horc said thoughtfully to cheer up his traveling buddy, "You need a title like mine. They're great!"

"I suppose you're right," Lurott pondered aloud. "How about: Lurott the unstoppable, or better yet, Lurott the mighty! No, Lurott the perfect!"

"Lurott the sneaky," Horc laughed as he slapped him on the back.

"Oh, we have a funny bunny now," said Lurott in mock amazement.

"Well, it's true," shrugged Horc.

"Fair enough," exhaled Lurott.

They made their way across the countryside until right before nightfall, where they had another fish dinner, and a few vegetables and fruit this time as well.

Lurott folded his cape and they used it as a pillow, with Horc's cape as a blanket. Horc laid his head down and waited for a suddenly shy Lurott to lay next to him, their shoulders and legs touching, and their heads a couple breaths apart. They stared at the sky, neither one feeling quite ready for sleep.

"So," Lurott gulped, shifting in the awkwardness of the moment to feel Horc's soft fur rub against his own, "What're you running from?"

"I'm not running from anything! Who do you think I am: Lurott the sneaky?" Horc chuckled softly.

"Very funny," Lurott pushed him away, but the hare quickly moved back, closer than before beneath their shared cover.

"Well, I guess I am running away from something, but not like you may think." Horc sighed and looked at the stars through a small clearing above. "I hail from a place that was like a prison, full of people full of nothing. No dreams, no ambition, just fear and a love of simple boring things, like washing clothes and gossip."

"Enough to put me to sleep just hearing about it," Lurott yawned with a grin. Horc gave him an angry look. "Joking! Continue, please."

"I just wanted more out of life, you know? That's why I left. I want to go on an adventure, save people, get rewards, find treasure... you know, be a hero," Horc closed his eyes, "Like my father."

"He sounds like a great fur."

"He was. You should have met him; you look like a younger version of him."

"I look nothing like a rabbit."

"Neither did he."

"Oh," Lurott understood.

"What about your father?"

"Never knew him," Lurott paused. "Well, I know who he was, but I never met him. All I know is that he gave me my red eyes, along with a few other things..."

"And?"

"And what?" Lurott looked to Horc.

Horc was already looking at him. "What're you doing out here?"

"Oh," Lurott looked back at the night sky. "I'm just running away."

"From what?" Horc wasn't allowing him to let the topic disappear into the cold air.

"From things... you wouldn't understand."

"Try me," Horc smiled, "You can tell your best friend!"

Lurott thought for a moment and chuckled, "I suppose you're right. Let's see..." He counted his breaths while thinking of how to explain it. "Where I come from, people are set in their ways, and... they expect you to follow these strict guidelines about how to act. And... well, there's one I didn't want to follow, and so they kicked me out."

"What one was that?" asked Horc.

"Well, uh..." Lurott struggled with how to word it.

"You really are sneaky!" Horc teased him.

"I'm just not sure if your virgin ears can handle the topic, that's all," he sighed. "Before I was born, my mate was already selected for me, and when it came time to be together with her, I didn't want to. It made my mother disown me, and the elders furious."

"I'm sorry to hear that," offered Horc, losing his playful tone.

"It's okay," Lurott felt Horc rub his arm in comfort and it made him want to cry. Holding back his tears, and the desire to touch him back, he switched topics. "If you want to be a hero and all, you really need to lose that sword of yours. It's too big for you. I could show you how to use my long knife tomorrow, it's big enough to be a short sword."

"Sounds like a date," joked Horc, "I'll look forward to it."

"Yeah..." Lurott watched as Horc snuggled closer and fell asleep. He stared at his friend through teary eyes and slowly floated away into another world where he was brave enough to tell the hare the complete truth--to tell him everything he didn't know how to say when he was awake.

***

Rubbing his dry eyes, Lurott woke up with a slight cramp in his tail. Horc must have been laying on it, he thought. He then noticed the hare was missing. He stood up and scanned the area.

He was too drowsy from waking up this time to break his fall when the hare tackled him to the ground.

"I hope this isn't becoming a habit," moaned Lurott with a grin.

"Oh come on," Horc laughed above him, "You know you love it."

Lurott thought for a moment, and said in a more serious tone, "Yeah, I suppose I do."

Horc sat on him with his hands on his bare chest, and a funny thought came to him, that maybe the wolf likes him like boys like girls. He giggled at the idea.

"What's so funny?" smirked the wolf.

Those eyes--he could not take his own off them. It was a funny enough idea to entertain, he thought. He placed a paw on the side of the wolf's muzzle and marveled at the contrast, the wolf's fur acting as an outline, surrounding his white fur in a fuzzy warmth.

"Hey, don't tease me," the wolf said, unable to restrain a wide grin, but able to push the hare's paw away.

Horc rose and put on his cape, and Lurott did the same, along with his shirt and belts. He could feel the wolf eyeing him throughout the entire morning routine, and it made him feel awkward, mostly due to the thought he was now trying to toss out of his mind like an annoyingly-catchy bard's song that would sometimes become stuck in his head.

***

While they continued their hike, Lurott made good on his offer to teach Horc how to use his long knife. It did not take long until Horc was slashing and stabbing like a veteran. The intense willpower of the smaller fur continued to amaze the wolf.

They hopped and dashed through the woods, which was becoming less and less thick, pretending to fight each other and invisible enemies, both of them grinning madly at their antics.

Lurott stopped suddenly, and Horc rushed to his side. The wolf motioned to the open road. Horc could hear what sounded like faint whimpering. They crept closer to take a peek.

They saw a vulpine soldier clad in a light, leather armor outfit grabbing and groping a brown bunny of about equal height with pink headfur tied above her head.

Battle scars and a battle axe made the soldier seem clearly dangerous. The fur whose crotch he had his paw pasted to looked the opposite. She had a creamy brown pelt, pink hair between long floppy ears matched by a pink nose, and a tight blue top and a looser skirt with a slit exposing a smoothly toned leg.

"Let me go!" she screamed in an oddly tenor tone. This only seemed to drive the fox further into his lust as he became more forceful in his probing.

Looking at the white of her exposed bellybutton, the picture didn't look right to Lurott. She wore blue makeup around her eyes and what looked to be a pink blush on her cheeks, and one of her long floppy ears had several girly earrings, but there was something about her that the wolf couldn't place.

"I said no!" she screamed again.

The fox had a dirty smirk. "Don't be that way, babe. I know you want this."

The bunny squirmed in his embrace, but was no match for the stronger fur.

She seemed extremely tomboyish in Lurott's judgment, and she had a figure to support it. Her chest was flat, her shoulders slightly broader than they should be, and there was only a faint curve around her torso. A necklace over her collarbone and gold bracelets around her arms seemed placed to hide slender, yet defined muscles.

"Please?" whined the fox, "I just want a little fun before the fight, that's all."

She managed to push away a paw that had found its way over her throat to spit, "I'll have your captain give you so many lashes for this!"

Eyeing a small bulge on her throat, the wolf became alarmed and red in embarrassment.

Lurott shifted uneasily and was about to whisper caution to Horc until he noticed the hare had already left his side to confront the soldier. He cursed softly to himself in frustration, but stayed his ground, watching intently as the scene unfolded.

The white hare stood boldly out in the open, long knife in hand. The fox did not seem to notice, but the bunny did, her expression changing from annoyed to speechless.

Wondering why his captive had stopped her protests, the battle-hardened soldier followed her gaze to the small white flake of a fur a few dozen footpads down the road, and he laughed. "What the yiff! Go away kit, you might hurt yourself with that butter knife."

"Unhand her and I'll let you live, foul knave!" declared Horc.

"No problem," the soldier threw the bunny to the ground. "There, anything else I can do for you? Brush your fur? Lick your tail and beg you not to hurt me?"

Lurott groaned behind his cover; he wondered why foxes always seemed to act like such smartasses.

Upon seeing the fox draw forth his battle axe, Horc charged. He closed the gap between them in a beat of Lurott's heart, and the wolf saw the fox raise his axe in the same moment, ready to strike. The hare didn't have time to dodge!

In one smooth motion, Lurott rose from his cover and threw a swift dagger into the fox's paw causing him to drop his weapon, while Horc ran his long knife through the fur's leather and into his stomach, jumping to his chest to kick off of it, crushing the creature's ribcage with a sound like snapped celery.

The soldier's defeated carcass kicked up dust as it hit the floor next to the bunny. She screamed.

Horc squatted on legs that now frightened her. "I'm sorry you had to see that, mam. It's okay, he won't hurt you anymore."

She looked at the white hare, completely terrified, until she saw a dark figure appear behind him. Her expression slowly faded into a more neutral one.

She rose to her feet with the help of Horc's paw and asked, a bit aggravated, "Who're you?"

"I'm Horc the brave, mam," he bowed, "It was an honor to--"

"No, I mean you," she said, pointing at Lurott.

The black wolf watched as he could see her blue eyes locked on the red of his own.

"That's really none of your business," Lurott finally spoke, with a hint of warning in his voice. "Come on, Horc, he'll be fine." He motioned to his friend to leave, but the hare suddenly found himsef being hugged by the taller bunny.

"Thank you so much, my hero!" She cooed, staring across Horc's shoulder at Lurott with an expression that looked like she did not mean it. "The name's Trixie. Is there any way you fine gentlefurs could escort me the rest of the way? I'm too scared to walk this..." she glanced at the dead soldier, "dirty road all by my lonesome."

"No--"

"Yes, of course!" Horc cut off Lurott.

***

They made their way down the open road, with Horc in the middle, Trixie close to her hero, and Lurott off to the edge of the path.

"What's tall, dark, and handsome's name, Horc?" asked Trixie coyly after awhile.

"That's Lurott the sneaky," he grinned.

"What a silly name!" Trixie giggled along with him.

Horc waited for his friend to respond, but upon looking at the wolf, he seemed oddly indifferent, almost annoyed. "Perhaps he's still mad at me for bringing the girl along," he thought.

After a breif silence, Trixie resumed the topic, "So what's a red eyes, black wolf doing out here," she could hear Lurott groan. "With such a cute rabbit?" She could hear him groan even more.

Horc began to feel uneasy between the two furs. He decided to change the subject into a more pressing issue. "Who was that fur, anyway?"

"A Sacred Way clown," hissed Lurott. Trixie found him staring at her. "We'll probably find a few stragglers along the way, Horc. That army can't be too far ahead."

Seeing Horc's angry face for the second time in the day, Trixie asked, "You boys following them? Whatcha plan on doing?"

"We're not following them," replied Horc, "They more or less found us. If scaredy-pants over there wasn't such a coward," he teased Lurott, "I'd have put every last one of them to the sword myself!"

Trixie looked at the hare as if he were an idiot as he proudly smiled, walking face forward, completely full of himself.

"Sure..." she drew out the word, snapping out of her bewilderment to continue, "What do you have against them, anyway?"

"They killed my father."

Trixie held his paw as they walked, "I'm so sorry to hear that, dear."

Horc looked to his other side to see Lurott walking closer to him, the wolf showing concern and sympathy.

"Well, they didn't exactly kill him," he corrected, "It's, well..." He looked above to the cloudless sky to clear his thoughts. "They killed his spirit. He used to fight for them, but he left along with the rest of my village. He never told me, but I think it had something to do with them killing my real parents. I'm not sure."

"You mean to tell me," gasped Trixie, "You not only know where the traitor village is, but you grew up there?"

"Never heard it called that before," said Horc thoughtfully, "We just called it home."

"I'm sure it's a lot better than living in the midlands," Lurott said, to see if the bunny was familiar with the headquarters of the Sacred Way.

"It's not all that bad," she said earnestly, losing herself in the topic, "Sure you don't treat us like equals, but we get by," she waved her cottontail rear for emphasis.

"I'm not one of them," Lurott corrected her. Upon seeing her face react to the words, he answered her next question: "We have disagreements."

She scrunched her nose at that. "You have to at least like the idea they were founded on, to bring culture and morals to other furs--"

"At sword-point," he moved a finger across his throat, "Killing their own citizens for choosing to act outside their accepted cultural practices. I'm surprised you would defend them, given how they treat... uh, women and your species."

Before Trixie could respond, Horc called them from ahead, having ran to the top of the hill they were walking up, "Hey, you have to see this!"

They jogged to meet him. Trixie had a difficult time keeping up in her skirt, causing Horc to laugh.

At the top, they had a bird's eye view of the surrounding countryside. Down the hill far away into the distance, the road led to a large walled city with various patches of farms surrounding it, with a view of a sparkling ocean to its side as the setting sun danced across it. On the other side, the forest covered the landscape, except for a large clearing within it. They could make out tents and wagons, hundreds of furs the size of ants scattered about, and several columns of smoke from cooking pits.

"Good grief," uttered Lurott.

"Looks like they set up camp," whistled Horc. "Think they plan on sacking that city?"

"It would seem likely," the wolf mused, scanning it. Squinting, he could make out that the main gate of the city's wall was shut, and looking up, he noticed it was almost nightfall. "We'll check it out tomorrow. I don't think we'll be able to get in as it stands."

"It's been forever since I've been off the road!" exclaimed Trixie. "I could really use a bath," she pouted.

"I think I saw smoke from a hot spring awhile back--we'll set up camp over there!" Horc bounced into the forest, followed by the wolf and bunny.

***

Relieved to see the smoke Horc had seen was in fact a hot spring and not an enemy's camp, Lurott set up their own nearby and pardoned himself to gather their dinner.

Once the wolf was out of sight and smell, Trixie moved to sit next to Horc as closely as she could without sitting on his lap. She rested her head on his shoulder and draped her long ears across his back.

"What's wrong?" asked Horc.

"You're a real cutey, you know," she tapped his nose with an outstretched finger and traced the lines of his muzzle.

"Uh, yeah, I think you look good and all too," he replied in anxiety, smelling an out of place male musk coming from the bunny, "But I hardly know you, mam."

"Stop calling me that," she rubbed her paw across his chest, "And we can get to know each other real quick, if you want to."

Horc gulped. Her voice sounded a lot less ladylike, only a few notes higher than his own. He sat as rigid as the trees around them, feeling uncomfortably stiff while the slippery bunny switched between stroking circles into his face and into his chest, her other paw around his hips, dangerously close to a growing tent between his legs.

"So tell me, Horc," she lowered her paw to rub his tight stomach, "How long have you two been traveling together?"

"Not very long!" his words quickly raised in pitch in tune with her lowering paw as it gently touched the tip of his arousal. He jumped up with a squeak, crouching away from her.

Trixie grabbed her sides as she laughed, "Am I moving too fast for my little brave hero?" She wiped a grin off her face and adjusted her pink headfur, but a thought surfaced causing the grin to find its way back onto her lips: "Don't tell me this is your first time with someone, honey. Is it?"

Horc willed himself back down next to the bunny. His mind screamed and scolded himself for acting weak in front of the beautiful fur. He tried his best to compose himself, but Trixie had found her way back onto him, and this time on his lap!

She wrapped her arms around his neck and played with one of his stout ears, whispering into the other, "You know, if your wolf friend found us like this, he'd throw a fit."

His expression showed concerned, and he asked, "You don't like Lurott?"

"If we want to fool around later, we'll have to do it while he's asleep," she tapped his nose and ran her paw up his face and played with his short headfur, "Because he totally hates all the furs around you." She wiggled her butt and felt something poke her, and added with a giggle, "I think he's gay."

Horc began to think about his friend in a new light, or as best he could with the distraction of Trixie's firm cheeks rubbing his aching malehood. It would explain his shy behavior the past couple of nights. "What else could he be hiding from me?" he thought.

Trixie smiled upon seeing the desired look on his face. She lifted her leg and moved it to straddle him, covering between her legs with a paw and raising his chin with her other so that their eyes were level.

"You better watch out around him, he seems like trouble. Just follow my lead," she gyrated her hips, eliciting a strained moan from the hare's throat, "And you'll be okay, my little cutey."

Horc felt light-headed and followed her finger as she drew it away from his nose, causing her to giggle at how easily he could be led.

Her oversized ears picked up the sound of someone headed their way, and she pouted, reluctantly giving up her seat. Before Horc could ask why, he heard the sound too, and focused all his energy into willing his erection away.

***

Having to find food for himself was easy, and finding twice as much for his new friend had been bearable, but dinner for three had been a tiresome chore.

"At least we should be able to dump that trash in the city tomorrow," thought Lurott, "And it'll be back to me and my hare."

After some thought, he had decided he did in fact love Horc.

The moment of truth for him was when he had stopped the soldier from striking him. He didn't think about it at the time, because he didn't have the time, but he came too close to tagging the back of his friend's head instead of the beast's paw. He simply reacted in instinct to seeing his love in danger, he rationalized the moment to himself.

It didn't feel right, though. Playing the scene in his mind, he could see how Horc wasn't in the danger he had seen him in, but he had not wanted to take a chance. He felt horrible about it. He knew the feeling would be a problem for him if they ever found themselves in any future fights.

Brushing off the thought, he returned to camp.

There was an odd odor in the air, which did not smell unpleasant to the wolf, only out of place.

He unhooked a line of fish that was hanging from one of his waist-belts to hear Trixie protest, "Ew, yuck! I can't eat that."

He gave her a smug look as he opened a pouch to produce a handful of freshly picked fruits and vegetables.

Horc was giving him a suspicious look.

"What," he stated more than asked.

"How're you able to find all that food so fast, hm?"

Lurott formed a circle of rocks and placed a bundle of sticks in the middle, taking two flint stones from a pocket and made sparks, completely ignoring Horc's question.

"You're too secretive!" yelled Horc angrily.

"Look," Lurott pointed to his wet tail, his tone slightly ashamed. "That's how."

The idea of the wolf fishing with his tail danced in the hare's mind, and he giggled, "I'm coming with you next time--I have to see that!"

Trixie shot him an angry look, and Horc swallowed his giggles.

Lurott saw the exchange from the corner of his eye; he could tell something was going on, and he liked it as much as he liked the bunny.

***

They ate their food in peace, besides a heated argument between Lurott and Trixie about Sacred Way's politics, which moved into a discussion on ethics and later: a breakdown of species-specific subcultures and their corresponding aesthetics qua metaphysics.

Horc concentrated on eating his fish. They sounded really smart to him.

Once they finished, he could see Lurott was exhausted, and Trixie looked tired too. Before he knew it, his two friends were laying down on opposite sides of the fire. He looked to the wolf to see his back turned to him. He looked to the bunny to see her wink with a smile.

He took off his cape and tried to sleep by himself. He couldn't.

Staring into the night sky, his mind wandered through his entire life. He felt like he was finally going somewhere, and that something great was coming his way. He had found a wonderful new friend in the wolf, even if he was gay. It only made the wolf awkward around him at times; it didn't affect him at all, he thought. Rolling to his side to stare at the black wolf's back, he found it flattering more than anything. And he had a new and exciting bunny friend too.

At that thought, he felt a tap and a pinch on his stubby leaf-shaped tail. It was Trixie.

"Come on, stud," she whispered over him in a watery voice, licking her lips, "Time for our midnight bath."

***

Lurott cringed internally at the sound of the bunny whispering to the hare. They thought he was asleep. He followed their footsteps with his ears as they slowly padded their way in the direction of the spring.

He rolled onto his back and stared at the stars. What did the stars have in store for him? It was a silly thought, he knew, but he nonetheless indulged himself. His life has been one nightmare after another, until only recently. And only recently still, he felt like his newfound happiness was already being stolen from him.

There was something about that white hare that gave him a sense of purpose, a sense of meaning. The idea of it seemed absurd at first--a little white, pure and naive rabbit who acted like he was a giant, wolf berserker hero--but he had seen the fur in action. He had a strong conviction in himself and a bravery that grew naturally from it; something the dark wolf himself had been struggling with.

He sighed and watched his breath turn into a cloud and disappear into nothingness.

"Horc'll be able to take care of himself," he yawned. That cross-dressing bunny probably underestimates him, like he once did, he reasoned. "He'll be fine," he assured himself, unable to hold the weight pushing down on his eyelids. He missed his friend's warmth.

"He'll be fine..."

He had enough energy left to realize his eyes were wet with tears as he quietly cried himself to sleep.

***

"Don't be shy, hon," Trixie chided Horc for undressing down to his underwear and stopping. "We can't play with that in the way."

Horc was blushing madly. "I can swim just fine with it on."

She slowly walked to him, making sure to swing her hips, smiling to see Horc's gaze far below her eyes.

"Like what you see, handsome?" She pressed against him with her hands between their chests to quickly drop to the floor, taking Horc's undergarment with her, his rabbit-meat flopping out into the cold air, painfully erect and exposed. The realization then donned on Horc that they weren't here to swim.

She planted her nose into his crotch and took a deep sniff. "Mmm," she ran fingers through his coarse pubic hair, tickling him, and slowly backed her head away to smile as he looked down in shock.

"I like what I see," she almost purred.

He stood paralyzed, not knowing what to do, waiting for her to make the next move.

Her grin seemed almost sinister as she rose to her feet. He could hear her say underneath her breath, "I love breaking them in."

"Turn around and get in," she commanded, her paws resting over her skirt-covered crotch.

Horc did as he was told.

He tested the spring water with the tip of his footpad. It felt good. He slowly waded into the pool, watching his steps over pebbles through the clear water. He saw a nicely sized stone that would make a good seat and made his way to it, inhaling the hot mist rising from the spring and finding it very relaxing.

Sitting himself up to his neck in the warm water, he noticed Trixie hadn't budged.

"Some privacy, please!"

He looked the other way and waited patiently for her to undress. He wanted to stroke his rabbithood, but forced his hand away--he already felt close to climax and he didn't want to disappoint the pretty fur.

Wet ripples bounced around him; he could feel Trixie dip into the spring. He controlled his breathing as an extra warmth brushed against his side. He could feel hot breaths softly patting the side of his face and he closed his eyes to feel a foreign paw stir the water below, wrapping around his stiff member. The fingers delicately squeezed his length and stroked it at a leisurely pace, which caused his toes to extend and legs to wiggle in unabashed excitement.

"Mmm," moaned the brown bunny while she licked the side of his snowy face to the bottom of his ear and gently gave it a nip, sending a wave of pleasure up his spine, "I've never had a rabbit before... you taste very good, Horc, like a dessert covered in whipped cream."

She nuzzled his blushing cheekfur with her pink nose. "You have no idea who your friend is, do you?" A few laughs mixed into her seductive humming.

"Who what is?" Horc was confused. "You mean Lurott? Or..." he felt her squeeze his shaft, "You?"

"Both," she murmured as she played with the tip of his cock, sliding a furry leg over his own. "Do I make you hot, honey?"

Horc could see through his glazed vision that her other paw was rubbing between her own legs. Before he thought to answer, his eyes closed and his mouth opened in pleasure as he felt a finger slide into his sheath and rub around the underside of his throbbing cock. He regained his senses and tried to speak again, but her paw fondled his balls, sending his own paws around hers reflexively.

"You really are a virgin, wow!" she exclaimed. "Would have thought he of all furs would have tried something with such a cutey like yourself." She grabbed his paws and guided them to her furry nipples, which quickly hardened as he played with them. "He hasn't done anything queer around you? Not even shown some strange power, or anything? That's really hard to believe."

Her chest felt strangely muscular. He responded while exploring her flat breasts, "I don't know what you're talking about. Why are you so interested in--"

She pressed her lips to his, prying open his mouth with her tongue. He resisted, taken aback by her abrupt kiss, but gave in to her advance. Her tongue mingled with his own, rubbing and teasing it. He tried to take in her scent, but could only smell a hazy musk through the hot air. She pressed him back against the side of the spring as she forced her tongue further into his mouth. He tried to push into hers, but felt something snake down his back and around his tail. His eyes opened in panic as the tip of a finger thrust into his sensitive pucker.

He tried to pull away to find her paws quickly around his head, keeping their lips locked. Breathing hard through his nose, he screamed, only to hear himself moan into her mouth as she moaned in response.

She finally released the kiss and they both panted wildly.

"Wow... that was one hell of a kiss, Horc-honey!" she exclaimed between catching her breath. "You deserve a special treat for that."

Trixie slowly rose and crept around him, trailing a finger across his muzzle. "Get up and sit on the edge, hon," she voiced through a growing grin.

Horc used his seat as a step and hopped onto the side of the pool. The cool air gave him a brief chill, along with the feeling of placing his exposed hindquarters on the cold mossy grass of the ledge, but he quickly adjusted to the new temperature. With a shiver, he placed his powerful hind legs back into the spring around a brown bunny whose muzzle was precariously close to his crotch.

She gave a seductive lick of her lips and lightly touched his tender flesh with a paw, her other reaching down into the water hidden from his view. He gasped as she admired his rod, seemingly worshipping it with soft, gentle strokes from her fingers and her breaths.

"You know, Horc," she breathed in his watered down scent with a hum, "I was really scared of you at first, but you're really just a little harmless cutey."

"I'm..." Horc moaned as he felt her give his tip a tentative lick, "I'm close... I don't know if I can hold back much longer..."

His words caused the bunny to speed up her strokes and she encouraged him, "Give it all to me, I want your cream in my mouth and all over my face!"

He bit hard with his eyes closed, straining his face in deep concentration--he took her words as a challenge to his willpower.

Brown lips pressed against his pink shaft, sending his paws to his sides to grip the dirt of the ledge with tight fists. He could feel the slippery tongue swim its way up and back down his length while fingers played with the tip, flicking it this way and that, sometimes teasing the slit of his head by rubbing over it deliberately. Holding his breath, he felt the rough pads from her palm grind into his crotch fur and around the base of his cock. She placed her mouth around the head and held it there, coating it in her saliva--he released his breath in response with a wheeze like someone had jabbed him in the belly.

"Don't be shy, hon," she said through sucking lips, brushing back a dangling line from her pink headfur, "Mmm, give it to me..."

Horc could feel himself on the edge, struggling to keep himself from shooting. Trixie was not making it any easier as she swallowed his shaft to the base, sliding her tongue along the underside--he could feel the insides of her mouth contracting, slurping--it was driving him over the edge. He again fought back the urge, whipping his arms around to grab the bunny's head, feeling her moan around his cock, as she slid and sucked with increased passion. Her moans grew, vibrating his sensitive flesh in the warmth of her muzzle, and she stopped unexpectedly right before he could no longer contain himself, his tip touching what felt like the back of her throat.

She drew her head back and splashed in the spring, shaking, her shoulders crouched forward with the arms slung down across her front to somewhere below her in the water. Horc watched, having no idea what was happening as she titled her head up, with the most unladylike grunting he had ever heard, before she slumped into the side of the spring before him, panting against his cock. Her breath was enough to cause his groin to twitch, and having lost his concentration during her spasms, his cock shot his seed across her face in several bursts of his hips, some of the spooge creeping into her panting mouth.

"Mmm," she licked his salty cream and twirled it with her tongue, "That was amazing... I didn't think I'd get off before you. You're just full of surprises, hon."

Horc fell to his back, breathing hard. He could see a few snowflakes begin to trickle down from the sky, and he felt one land on his sensitive member, which was still standing to attention despite the bunny's best efforts.

"So that's what being with someone feels like..." he quietly voiced, the black nighttime sky sending his mind to an old thought he once had stuck in his head about an equally dark wolf.

The bark bruised his fist as he punched into it. He didn't consider himself a violent fur, but seeing the hare intertwined with the bunny made him hit the tree again. Some snowy powder fell on him from its branches. His eyes felt hot with anger. He tried to better control his feelings.

The sun was almost a quarter of the way up, and Horc and Trixie were still asleep. He thought he could run through his morning exercise routine again, for the third time, but he didn't want to tire himself, knowing the day would be a long one.

He put some snow on his sore knuckles. It had snowed during the night, covering the landscape in an icy blanket. He chuckled to himself; he hadn't realized how white Horc was until he woke up in a panic, unable to spot the fur in the snow for longer than he cared to remember.

At least the city's gates were open, he thought. He had walked back to where he could check while waiting earlier, feeling more sad than angry at the time. This meant they likely had no idea of the mass of furs camped outside their walls. He had decided they'd try to inform the local militia of the threat, if the city had one.

He leaned against the tree and waited patiently for the two to wake up.

***

Horc stirred in Trixie's sleepy embrace. He could see her eyes were half-opened and he wondered why she hadn't got up yet.

"Hey, sleepyhead! Time to get up."

"I don't wanna," she moaned.

He made to grab and shake her awake, but he felt something odd as his leg brushed between her's, which caused her to wakeup instantly.

"What was that?" he sat up, stunned.

"Oh, just some..." she fished around behind her back until she found a stick and showed it to the hare as if it had been between them beneath the cover of his cape, "Morning wood!" She laughed. Horc didn't seem to understand, and she could hear someone groan nearby.

Horc rose to his feet and saw Lurott by a tree, and giggled, taking in the snowy scene before him with a deep breath, "You're really dark--you stand out like a sore thumb out here!"

"Thanks for that insightful bit of information," replied the wolf in sarcasm, "I appreciate it."

Lurott lifted himself away from the tree and said more seriously, but just as playfully, "It's about time you two woke up. I've been waiting all day."

"Have not," said Horc teasingly, "The sun's barely up."

Trixie scratched his headfur and added with a wink to the hare, "Cut us some slack. We had a busy night, wolfy."

Lurott's immense frown at her comment pierced Horc's heart; he looked incredibly sad to the hare. He didn't know exactly why, but for the first time in his life he felt ashamed, as if the wolf's frown was his fault.

***

The snow had mostly melted beneath the midday sun, falling back to cling against the sides of walls and hide in clumps beneath shade. Horc also had noticed a few mice working in the fields as they passed several farms on their way closer to the city's gate. He had only seen a couple in his lifetime and the city would likely be full of them, he thought. Lurott seemed to have noticed it too, and he hadn't heard him talk since. He looked to be in deep contemplation over something important, so he didn't bother him.

He could hear Trixie complaining about the weather, but he blocked out her voice. He still felt bad from before, and he now had an idea why. He had always wondered what his first sexual encounter would be like, and he somewhat regretted who it had been with, even if they hadn't gone all the way. It was a silly idea, but he did like the wolf. He had tried to cheer him up, but he would not respond, or Trixie would interrupt him.

He sighed, taking out the long knife Lurott had given him, watching it flash as the sunlight washed over it.

"We'll need to get you a new blade, Horc," he heard Lurott finally address him, "I'll see what I can find in the city."

"With what money!" laughed Trixie. "Or am I wrong to not see the great career one can have wandering the woods aimlessly?" She was seeming rather cheerful.

Lurott sounded unusually dejected, "I don't know, I'll figure something out."

"Probably have to take the pauper's discount," she smirked.

"I'm not a thief."

"Then how?" she said, not letting the conversation die.

"I said I don't know. Maybe find a job or something."

Horc thought about it, and asked, "How long are we going to stay here?"

"No longer than we see fit," answered Lurott.

"Speaking of which, we'll need to rent a room," Trixie patted a small satchel she was carrying and smirked at the wolf, "Don't worry, you won't have to be an alley beggar. I got it covered."

"Alright, but first," he said as they were in sight of the main gate into the city and could see a few tiny guards posted around it, "We should inform the locals of their approaching doom."

***

"That's preposterous! You mean to tell me they'd send a legion all the way over here, just to fight us? We have good relations with the Sacred Way--we have nothing to fear."

Horc didn't like the old fur's tone, but he did like to finally stand taller than someone, if only by half a head over the shorter mouse.

"We saw them with our own eyes, they're camping right out there in the forest," Horc pointed in vain, "Go see for yourself!"

The captain of the local militia paced around the stone walls of his office. "Look," he began, "You're welcome to stay in our city so long as you respect the rules and all, but please don't waste my time anymore."

"You're not listening to us!" he shot back desperately at the stubborn gray mouse, and looked behind him to his two friends, "Tell him! He doesn't believe me."

Lurott shook his head and Trixie shrugged her shoulders.

The old mouse sighed, and called his guards to escort them out from the inside of the wall and back into the city.

***

"That went well!" Trixie laughed with a grin Horc found unnerving. "Should we even bother to find a room, seeing as it's only a matter of time before this city is slaughtered?"

"May as well," Lurott replied, unable to conceal his disappointment. "Not much they could do even if they wanted to. This place doesn't stand a chance."

Horc didn't like the sound of that, in actuality or spirit.

"Ah, this will do," Trixie stopped, seeing an inn that looked clean. They followed her inside.

Wooden floors and walls greeted them as they entered. A few chairs littered the floor near a fireplace. Horc noticed a staircase that led to a second floor hall with doors spaced across it. He also saw a scantily clad mouse maiden hanging over the banister, smiling at him, with breasts so large they made him feel queasy.

While Trixie sashayed over to the innkeeper's desk, Lurott pulled Horc to the side, finally having a chance to talk to him without the bunny.

"What's the matter, Lurott?" Horc whispered.

"I don't like him," he whispered back.

"Don't like who?"

Lurott wiped his face with a paw, not believing what he had just heard. "Trixie."

"She's a she," he corrected.

"Look, whatever," Lurott gave up on the trivial detail, "I think that bunny is up to something. You'll need to keep an eye on him--her while I'm away."

"Where're you going?"

"To find you a new sword, silly."

"Oh yeah, I forgot."

"Anyway," he checked to see the bunny leaning over the counter and what looked to be her flirting with the innkeeper, "I don't know what you two did last night, but you should be more careful around him."

"Why," Horc said sheepishly, play-hitting his friend in the gut, "Are you jealous?"

"I'm just saying it would be wise to keep your distance." Lurott lowered his voice even more, "I would think it would be rather obvious to you that he's--" Horc's face bunched up, "That she's a whore."

"She is not!" he replied in a loud whisper. "Just because she likes me more than you for saving her, it doesn't mean you should call her things like that!"

"Shh, you need to watch your temper."

"I don't have a temper!" he almost yelled.

Lurott groaned, and whispered, "Did it ever occur to you that maybe she wasn't being raped? That maybe she's some prostitute following a bunch of lonely soldiers, or maybe even an agent of the Sacred Way?"

Horc was too mad to respond at first. He took a step back, and said, "You don't know that!"

"And how well do you know her?" The wolf paused, unsure if he should continue. "Did she tell you anything while she yiffed you in the hot spring last night?"

The hare felt something sink inside him. He tried to hide how much the remark had hurt, and replied, "You know, she told me to be weary of you too." He turned and walked to her.

Lurott's mouth curled into a snarl and he left the building in disgust, his eyes burning in rage at his first squabble with the hare he loved.

***

The room was small, but reasonably furnished with a double-sized bed, a table and chairs, and a sofa.

Trixie yawned and laid on the bed. "It's so nice to be on a mattress again."

"Shouldn't you have bought a room with another bed for Lurott?" Horc asked.

"Pfft," she waved her paw away, "Dogs can sleep on the floor."

"He's a wolf."

"Close enough," she yawned, "Look, honey, I'm going to take a beauty nap. Watch the door and protect me from any monsters, my little hero," she softly chuckled as she tucked herself underneath the bedspread and covers.

A familiar feeling of loneliness slowly crept into him. He sat down on the sofa, not knowing what else to do. He had ran away from his village to escape this kind of boredom.

He tried to push it away, but the thought of the wolf forced its way into his mind in the silence of the room. He wondered if Lurott had left for good. He didn't know, he hadn't even said goodbye if he did. The thought made him miserable.

A growing sadness weighed down on his heart and he rested his back on the sofa. It felt good. He decided to take a nap too, feeling unable to lift himself from his sudden depression.

***

The thought of never returning had crossed his mind, but he had quickly dismissed it. He loved Horc too much. "Far too much for my own good," he thought. Almost enough for him to consider it a great weakness, but he dismissed that idea too. He wasn't like his brethren, he reminded himself.

He could tell the locals found his figure menacing--especially when they would close their shutters or carry their children away as he passed--except for a local blacksmith whose shop he was in currently; he didn't seem to mind the black wolf browsing through his wares, though he did keep his distance.

"Is this all you have?" he motioned to a rack of swords, unimpressed.

"That depends, fine sir," said the gruff ball of a mouse with a suspicious tone, "How much you willing to spend?"

Lurott sighed; part of him hated to do this, but the other wanted to see the biggest smile imaginable painted across the hare's muzzle. He took one of the daggers which lined his two belts around his waist and showed it to the blacksmith.

"This is pure silver, weighs five and a half bits, and bears the crest of the Sacred Way. I have twenty-five of them."

The haggard mouse smacked his hands together as his face lit up. He lifted a curtain and waved for the wolf to follow him into a hidden backroom.

***

Horc woke up to an awful snoring sound coming from the sleeping brown bunny across the room. Listening to the gut-wrenching noise, he could understand how Lurott might think she was a he. Looking at her sleeping peacefully with her pretty pink hair placed neatly to lay above her pillow, he couldn't see it himself.

He stood up and stretched, and scratched his stubby tail through his cape. He wondered where the wolf was. With a sudden rush of anxiety, he wondered if the wolf wasn't coming back!

He rushed out of the room and down the stairs in a panic. His heart racing, he stopped before leaving the inn. He could feel a warmth in the lobby, looking to see the walls bathed in a gentle flickering light. His eyes soon found a figure leaning back in a chair facing a lit fireplace.

Approaching the fur, he thought to ask if he had seen a black wolf, until he came close enough to feel a smile racing across his muzzle.

The figure's head turned to look at him with a red eye.

"Oh," Lurott smiled back, "Hey you."

"Don't hey me!" Horc pounced him, unable to knock him off the chair but hugged him madly nonetheless, "I thought you'd never come back! You had me so worried! I'm sorry, I didn't mean to yell at you. I know I have a temper, you're right, and I'll control it better, I promise! Promise me you won't scare me like that again. Please! You're my best friend, and... and..."

Lurott was laughing, clenching a package wrapped in coarse paper that rested on his lap. "You sound like one of those babbling squirrels!"

"What's a squirrel?" he asked, before seeing the package, to quickly ask again, "Hey, what's that you got there?"

The wolf rose and presented it to him: "It's for you."

The hare held it in glee with a hint of uncertainty.

"Go ahead, unwrap it."

Shredded paper flew through the air as Horc found himself holding a shiney new sword in his paw!

"Wow!" he exclaimed, swinging it around the room while he admired it, "This is so awesome!"

"I'm glad you like it," Lurott turned the chair to face Horc as the hare bounced about the lobby, and he sat himself. "It's made from a light, durable composite that shouldn't chip easily, and provide a consistently fine edge without having to be sharpened as often as lesser metals. You'll notice the weight is centered slightly above the handle, allowing for a more balanced feel which should make the sword more flexible to sport in combat. I also made sure to have the grip freshly wrapped with leather and..." Horc was now thrusting and parrying around a support beam, "You're not even listening to me."

"I am!" he yelled from across the room.

Lurott folded his arms. "Then tell me what I just said."

"You said this sword is awesome!"

He chuckled, "Only the best for my hare."

Horc stopped and walked to him with a funny look. "What did you just say?"

Lurott shifted in his chair, feeling his cheeks become hot. "Only the best for you..."

"No," Horc corrected him with a devilish smirk, "You said 'for my hare'."

"Um..." a laugh escaped the nervous wolf's muzzle, "Yeah, I suppose I did."

"It's okay, Lurott," Horc patted his friend's shoulder, "It doesn't creep me out."

Lurott couldn't move or speak. His instinct screamed for him to run, but he couldn't take his eyes off the hare's glowing face, the fire behind him painting a soft pinkish tint across it.

"You look like you think I'm too stupid to notice things like that," Horc tried to calm the wolf. "It's okay, really."

"I don't think you're stupid," he swallowed to clear an odd feeling from his throat, "I think you're brave, and you have a strong will, and a sense of life that makes me..."

He could see it was Horc's turn to blush.

"Anyway," he continued, looking away, "I'm sorry. I hope it isn't too much of a problem..."

Horc sat down on the floor and looked up to him, his jovial face having disappeared and replaced with a more serious one. "You're missing a belt."

"I don't know what you're talking about," the wolf lied.

"You didn't have to do this for me," he said, looking at the sword in his lap.

"I didn't have to," he forced the words out of his mouth with closed eyes, "I just wanted to. Here, it came with this," he moved his head to the side as he lifted a strap over it and handed a belt and scabbard to Horc.

The hare looked at it and the sword for awhile. The occasional cackle from the fire marked the passing of time. With a nod of his head, he settled an inner dialogue.

Quietly unbuckling a belt, he gave the wolf his father's large blade, scabbard and all.

Lurott accepted it, acknowledging the weight of Horc's decision by placing his paws over the hare's before he lifted it from them.

"About last night," Horc began, not knowing exactly where he intended to go with his words, "We did visit the hot spring while you were asleep, but she didn't..." he didn't like the word, but he couldn't think of a better one, "Yiff me or anything. Though she did--"

"It's okay, Horc. If she makes you happy, I'll bear her company."

"It's not like that, Lurott..." Horc could feel an emerging realization deep within him and it made him tremble. He wasn't ready for it and it made him afraid and uncomfortable.

The wolf grimaced at seeing Horc's emotions strip him of his spirit. He thought of something to say to make him feel better, and he remembered a deal he had made with the blacksmith.

"So," he exhaled, "What're you going to name it?"

"Name what?" Horc replied, which sounded almost like a sob.

Lurott smiled, "Your sword." Upon seeing Horc's face perk up considerably, he added, "I know you like titles, and the fur who made it agreed to etch the name onto the blade. We can have it done tomorrow morning, if you like."

"Wow..." the hare looked at the wolf in awe, "I hadn't even thought about that!"

Before Horc could begin to run his list of ideas by Lurott, the wolf yawned, "I'm exhausted. Where's our room?"

***

They entered to find Trixie working her pink hair with brown paws. She heard the door close, and turned to see the wolf and hare. She returned her gaze to the mirror on the wall, to quickly turn back to see what she thought she had seen but couldn't believe: Lurott was smiling at her!

"Is everything alright?" the wolf asked in concern.

"Yeah," she replied shakily, "Is everything alright with you?"

"Of course," he stated, "Though I am a bit sleepy. Mind if I use the bed?"

"I just finished with it, go ahead," she offered, regaining her composure from the shock of his new attitude, "Try not to get your dog hairs all over it though."

She turned to Horc. "Care to escort me outside, hon? I have business I must attend to."

Horc looked at Lurott, who nodded back at him as he slipped into bed.

"Okay, I guess," he answered.

Lurott listened to the floor creak as they left, and unlike the night before, he felt completely at peace, quickly falling into a pleasant slumber.

***

The moon cast an eerie light around the two as they walked at a brisk pace by various buildings that looked squashed together. The streets felt cramped to Horc, but they soon parted to reveal a large open dirt plaza of sorts. His eyes followed the horizon marked by the city's giant stone walls and he noticed they were headed in the direction of the main gate.

"Where're we going?" he asked.

Trixie huffed, in a voice that definitely sounded more male than female, "Those damn fools have shut the gate."

Before Horc could respond, a guard approached them and saluted him. "You were right, noble fur. Our scouts confirmed your report. Sorry about the captain not believing you earlier."

He could hear a guard from atop the wall shout something, another fur repeat the shout, and then all the furs in sight scrambling every which way, shouting the same sounds.

A young mouse ran to the guard facing him, and relayed the message between pants, "Enemies... outside... the walls..."

The guard immediately ran to the wall, yelling "Sound the alarm! Sound the alarm!"

"I can't believe this!" Trixie huffed, running as best she could to the gate in her skirt.

Horc followed her, and asked, "What're you doing?"

Her eyes darted about madly, settling on a small room next to the wall which had a large pole extending out of it holding gears locked into gears attached to the side of the gate.

Horc ran after her as she pushed away a much smaller fur guarding the entrance. Once Horc made it inside after her, she shut the door and lowered a wooden beam to lock it. She found the handle to open the gate and began cranking it with strained muscles. Horc rushed to stop her, but she quickly took him in an embrace, catching him off guard.

"Don't try to stop me, honey," she licked his nose. "Be a good boy and I'll keep you as my slave, though you'll probably want to fight and have them kill you anyway, so I guess it's really just wishful thinking on my part."

"Who are you?" He asked, looking at her as if he had never seen her before.

She leered into his shocked face, quickly stealing a kiss, and grabbed his paw to place it between her legs and over her crotch. Horc's face twisted in complete surprise.

Trixie laughed at him, "Oh, Horc, you're so naive..."

He fell to the ground in a painful thud and shot his paws around his stomach before he realized he had punched the wind out of him.

"Sorry, but a bunny's gotta make his money," Trixie apologized, spinning the handle with extra force.

Horc's mind reeled as sirens screamed outside. He struggled to his feet, feeling disoriented in more ways than one. The earth shook beneath him as he heard the gate slam against the outer wall, having been opened completely.

Trixie turned to him, and said soothingly, "Don't worry, honey, I once was a slave too. You're lucky you'll be mine instead of some--"

Horc slammed his fist into the bunny's jaw so hard his knuckles felt broken.

"Better naive than evil, bitch," he growled, before running outside completely consumed in a berserker's rage.

***

Lurott woke in alarm, hearing screams from outside and a dull thunder in the distance.

He quickly grabbed Horc's father's sword and scabbard, slinging the belt over his shoulder, not bothering to put on his shirt or cape. Rushing into the streets, he ran past mice running in the opposite direction.

He could see that the gate was open, and through squinted eyes, he could make out some fur standing beneath the massive arch of the vulnerable city.

***

Horc stared dumbly at the sight before him.

Beneath the moon's gaze stood more furs than he had ever seen before in his entire life. He felt the ground rumble again in delayed reaction to them pounding their weapons into the earth, accompanied by a terrifying sound that made his neck fur stand on end. In one long line they formed their own wall, and he could see smaller lines after lines behind the first.

He swallowed hard.

Fear gripped his shaking legs like death itself held his ankles through the cold dirt below. He willed his feet forward with all his might in vain. His mind raced as he thought of another tactic. Closing his eyes, he imagined his father by his side. The giant wolf placed a black paw onto his forehead and rubbed his headfur affectionately. He remembered something he had told him once when he was a small child after he raged at the story of how the wolf had left the Sacred Way, vowing to take revenge for him with every ounce of his soul. His father had rubbed his headfur and said, "Don't fight for me, son. Fight for yourself."

He opened his eyes to find himself several dozen steps from the city's walls.

***

Lurott ran faster as he watched Horc slowly march out of the city, seeing mice hurriedly closing the gate behind him.

He barely made it through before hearing a loud thud signaling the city was again secured, and that Horc and he were now alone in a place that seemed very empty in contrast to the massive crowd of furs watching them from a field several hundred feet away.

Horc was picking up his pace, already in a jog to meet the mass of soldiers, as the wolf slammed his feet harder into the earth to catch up with the hare. Closing the distance between them, he saw his chance and tackled him before the hare could break into a full sprint.

"Have you gone completely insane!" he yelled at his angry friend who struggled to free himself from his pinned position.

"Let me go!" Horc shouted in stubborn determination.

The hare had his hind legs ready to push the larger wolf off him with enough force to--he felt the ground tremble again and could hear that terrifying noise follow it. He opened his eyes to see Lurrot's black head eclipsing the moon above them. The red of his eyes were much paler than normal, giving Horc an unexplainable sense of calmness. Coming out of his rage, he could feel the wolf shaking and he could see that Lurott was deathly afraid of whatever his pale eyes sighted ahead.

A volley of arrows soared into the air behind the first line of the horde--enough arrows to kill them both a hundred times over!

Lurott knew this was the end. There could be no more running away from it now. He held Horc in a protective embrace, making sure he was completely concealed underneath him, and with a tear, he whispered, "No regrets, Horc. I love you."

Horc could hear the arrows shriek around them, pricking the earth like needles to flesh. The wolf's body engulfed his own as if his fur were the moon's light and the wolf his shadow. The arrows continued to fall like rain until a ghostly silence fell, drowning out all sound.

The wolf's body felt limp above him.

He froze, feeling a growing lump in his throat. He reached his arms around the wolf's back in a fierce hug, as he tasted the salty tears from his own matted cheek fur. He found himself unable to move anymore, until he realized something.

Stroking the wolf's back, he didn't feel anything but his father's scabbard.

He gently rolled Lurott over onto his back and was stunned at what he saw. The ends of arrows littered the ground, except for a small circle centered around them. It was as if his father's weapon had protected them, he thought, not knowing how else to explain it.

Horc checked to make sure Lurott was still alive and okay, before he rose to face the lines of soldiers who were now in a slow advance toward him and the city. He could feel a new power surging within him; he wasn't afraid anymore, nor was he in an uncontrollable rage. He felt like the world was within his fist.

He could see a few eager furs breaking ranks to run in his direction. Reaching a paw across his shoulder, he drew the nameless blade Lurott had given him, and ran to meet them.

***

Lurott laid on the battlefield completely oblivious to his surroundings. He didn't know how, but he had been able to protect Horc. Sitting himself up and feeling around his body, he seemed to be undamaged as well.

He surveyed the field until he found a small figure leaping back and forth between several heavy-looking soldiers. Running and tripping over the arrows that covered the ground to reach him, he had never known Horc, let alone any creature, could jump that high. The soldiers seemed shocked too, as they fell one after the other to the hare's skillful blade.

Additional soldiers were charging from the enemy's slow moving line as he sprinted to help his love. Horc looked like he was out of breath as he stood waiting for them to reach him. Lurott quickly drew two daggers from his belt, one in each paw.

One... he tagged the lead soldier in the small groups' charge. Two, three... he picked off the next two. Horc turned to look at him with fierce, slanted eyes, his mouth panting. Four... another soldier fell. He could see the hint of a grin form on the hare's muzzle. Five, six, seven... the group was almost close enough to engage Horc and he was running out of daggers. Eight, nine... the hare leapt at them, causing them to slow down momentarily. Ten... he managed to take advantage of their pause to send his last throwing dagger into the head of what looked to be the worst of the remaining lot.

Drawing forth Horc's father's sword he rushed into the skirmish. The sword was heavy, but he found it manageable as he swung through a soldier's blade which had tried to block him, cleaving the poor fur into two. He looked for his next target to find Horc had already dispatched the rest of them.

Horc's face had streaks of blood painted across it. Lurott felt slightly dizzy, and he had a random thought about hot springs and warm fires. He didn't want to see Horc like this. He quietly promised himself that if they somehow survived, he would never leave his side again... and to never allow the stubborn fool to ever put themselves into another mess like this!

The hare hopped next to the wolf and they stood side by side as they watched the approaching army halt less than a hundred feet before them. The middle of their ranks parted, making way for a fur dressed in flowing orange robes of varying shades with intricate designs stitched into them.

The fur continued past the troops out into the open space between them. He wasn't stopping. The entire battlefield stood still as if in quiet respect and fear of the creature.

Horc tightened his grip; Lurott took in a deep breath. It was a black wolf, who had two short horns sticking out between his ears and eyes on his forehead.

"No regrets."

Horc looked to Lurott and winked before he dashed ahead.

Lurott shouted in vain for Horc to stop.

The black wolf in orange robes did not look amused or even slightly interested in the hare speeding his way. His deep silver eyes were on Lurott, accusingly, the lines of his muzzle somewhere between disgust and a smirk.

The hairs on Lurott's back rose in fear. He knew this fur, and worse yet, what he was capable of--the thought made him wince. His mind whirled around the memories of the vile fur's displays and around the stink of the hundreds of soldiers so close he could hear them quietly grunt what sounded like a small laugh--they too knew the hare didn't stand a chance.

Lurott found himself on his knees, facing cold, uncaring dirt. He wanted to howl at the universe for bringing him the misfortune he was about to witness, but all he could do was cry in misery.

Horc could not hear Lurott's tears--nor could he hear anything as his ears held tight to the back of his head as he ran in a blur to his strange new foe. He managed to squint through the wind that whipped around him enough to see what looked like the wolf bending forward in a crouch, swallowing, preparing for an attack. Suddenly the darkness of the night lit up with a fiery orange flash around him.

He leapt forward in a slant out of the way and rolled in an uncontrolled ball, coming to rest on his back in a dizzy stupor. His hand! He gripped it in pain, wheezing hard through his teeth. Suddenly his head recoiled, his nose twitching from the strong stench of burnt flesh. It was coming from him. From the paw up to and across the forearm near his elbow, his white fur was now a crisp charcoal texture.

The deepest fears clawed their way up Lurott's throat as he had watched the wolf spew a pillar of fire at his love. The feeling did not stop at seeing the hare still alive, holding his burnt forearm to his chest with a scream that made his heart sink--but it grew, faster, choking his already uneven breaths. Yet, somehow, he managed to shout from the depths of his lungs in a teary rage:

"Leave him alone!"

The wolf sneered, his orange robes sliding across the ground as he walked to the defeated wolf, stopping a few feet before him.

"Well, well... if it isn't old queer-eyes," the wolf said as if he were scolding the wolf beneath him. "I'd be lying if I told you I expected to see you out here--and fighting with a damn rabbit of all things!" he quickly scoffed, to add, "You're an embarrassment to your entire breed."

"You can take me--just let him go!" Lurott pleaded in reply.

"I'm sorry," the wolf sneered again, "But you're in no position to tell me anything, you faggot," he spat, squatting to look into the red of the wolf's eyes. He grabbed his muzzle around the sides, squeezing, causing an alarming pain to scream throughout the wolf's jaw, and he forcefully turned his head in the direction of Horc.

"Is that another faggot, queer-eyes? Someone to raise their tail for you?" He pushed Lurott's face backwards, followed by a quick slap from his paw. "I bet it's the other way around, you yiffing pussy, I bet you're his slave, the little bitch in the relationship. You make me sick, always have."

Lurott fought through the growing numbness throughout his body to quietly beg, "Bilebin, please... don't hurt him..."

"Oh, I'm sure you hurt him enough, ass-yiffer," Bilebin silenced him. "You were given a gift, and look what you've done with it!" he kicked Lurott hard in the chest, knocking the wind out of him. "Mother's still in tears over it, and damned if I have to suffer it every yiffing day I'm back home--made me jump at the opportunity to lead an army out into the middle of nowhere... and look what I find! I think mom herself will want to take the axe on you when I bring you back."

Horc had listened long enough, and he rose to challenge the wolf, holding his sword in his one good paw, the other held close to his side. He knew he wasn't in any condition to fight, but he wouldn't allow the wolf to speak down to Lurott while he could still feel the pounding of his heart.

Bilebin noticed the hare's resolve and decided to humor it, wanting to draw out Lurott's pain.

Seeing the wolf's robes twirl to meet the hare, Lurott shot him a laugh, adding, "I wouldn't underestimate him; he's larger than he appears..." It sounded as if he had finally snapped, unaware of his previous doomed thoughts.

"Oh really," Bilebin took the wolf's words as a pathetic attempt at a bluff, "Is that supposed to be some thinly veiled gay humor? Come now, Lurott, you can do better. Look, I'm shaking in my--"

Horc's blade only managed to cut a small gash across the wolf's cheek as Bilebin ducked away instantly, drawing in his breath in response for another fire attack. Horc knew what was coming this time, and he promptly kicked the air out of the wolf's lungs, sending the fur sprawling backwards. He made to persue the flailing wolf, but he stopped as Bilebin fell to the ground with a deathly-limp thud.

Running his good paw over black fur, Horc had already rushed to the side of the wolf who loved him. He held Lurott's face to his, having come to an acceptance of his feelings toward the black wolf, wanting to say everything he was not comfortable saying before when he first had realized that--something wasn't right with the wolf's eyes. Horc's nose twitched and he glared at them, frightened. They were glowing. He sniffed again to recognize something that smelled like a heated smoke. He then realized the wolf's gaze was aimed at the other wolf whose chest he thought he had smashed in.

Lurott quickly moved to protect Horc from the fire which spewed from Bilebin's depths. He winced as he felt his fur become damp in sweat from the intense heat. Wondering why he was still able to feel anything at all, he opened his eyes to see what seemed like an invisible barrier diverting the flames around them.

The fire died out and Bilebin wiped oil-like drool hanging from his muzzle. "Impossible!" he half-screamed and half-gargled, his voice turning into an almost childish whine, "You've never had any powers! You're not one of--" he stopped, his face dropping into a dry panic.

Lurott's eyes felt like they were burning. A throbbing headache overtook him as he felt his entire face heat up around his eyes. A red haze quickly formed over his vision before blocking out his sight completely. The pain was unimaginable.

His mouth screamed in silent agony as his vision quickly returned. He could feel someone holding him and brushing his face, which comforted him slightly as his body felt ready to faint. The last thing he saw was a seared line across his brother's face.

The sun's light spilled down through leafy holes above to bathe the cold forest below in a warm auburn radiance. The air felt loose and worn, like the end of a day that was filled with chores and obligations. A soft breeze brushed through the hare's fur and dried his nose as he sent a tongue to wet it. He took in the deepest breath he could manage of the air and feeling all around him, straining his lungs as they puffed in his chest.

Finally, within less than two seasons since leaving his quiet village in search of adventure and to find his place in the world: he was a hero.

"Tell me again!" Horc beamed with a hop as he playfully weaved through the trees in his path.

Lurott groaned. "You defeated an army, defended a city, and..." he lowered his voice to where the hare's ears strained to catch it, "You saved my life."

"And you should have seen the battle after that!" Horc pretended to pout, "Too bad you were out of it."

"You're lucky," Lurott noted, his voice growing louder, "If I wasn't confined to a bed in all those bandages, I would have killed you for being so foolish!"

"We won, didn't we?" Horc smiled and play-hit the wolf's arm.

"Ouch!" Lurott only half-joked, to add, "How's your arm?"

Horc frowned, "Still stuck in these wrappings. It feels really sore."

"You shouldn't have ran off like that," the wolf stated under his breath, trying to hide the true extent of his concern.

"I didn't fight them by myself, wolfy!" Horc defended himself, "I told you the mice had called in a lot of help--oh, hey, did I tell you I saw my first squirrel? A whole bunch of them! They're fierce warriors--and you were right! They talk-talk-talk and I had trouble keeping up with them--and no! They don't sound anything like me! And their teeth--that clicking sound could send me into a berserker rage by itself! Like, *click-click-click* hi, how-are-you-me-I'm-great-how-about-yourself-great-great-great," Horc stopped, to smile at the wolf gently laughing at him.

Lurott waited until his last few chuckles died, and said, "Wait... did you just call me 'wolfy'?"

Pacing next to the wolf with his paws held behind him thoughtfully, a wide, sheepish grin stretched across Horc's muzzle as he continued, "And there was a funny fox on our side too. I didn't trust him at first, but he turned out to be a great ally. He was more sneaky than you!" he laughed, seeing Lurott roll his eyes, "And do you know what he called me at first? He called me 'snow crotch'. I kicked him to the floor so hard, you should have seen it!"

They filled the woods with their laughter, walking close together into the forest as night slowly crept across the sky above them.

***

It was the best dinner he had ever had, even if it was leftovers. They were the leftovers from a feast in celebration to his heroics and victory. The entire city had attended, along with many from neighboring villages, all in honor to him and his lupine companion. They had wanted them to stay, but Horc had declined, wanting out from a place that was beginning to feel more like a cage to him.

Horc swallowed another piece of cheese and reclined against a fallen tree next to his friend, arms stretching in a cozy fullness. "This is the life."

Lurott smiled as he felt one of the arms boldly resting across his back. "Too bad they didn't have any meat," he noted. "Their cheese is great, but it isn't something I could live off of."

"Yeah, I kinda felt the same way," Horc said with a pause, adding, "And I still want you to show me how you fish with your tail! I have to see it!"

Chuckling along with the hare, an uneasy feeling crept up Lurott's spine. "It isn't as interesting as it sounds..."

"Of course it is," Horc shot back, turning to wag his short tail at the wolf's face. "I can't do anything with this! You're so lucky."

Lurott gulped as he watched the snowy underside of Horc's raised tail tease him to then feel the fuzzy hare slide back down much closer than before.

Horc wiggled until he found a comfy position against the wolf's side, to then rest his head on his shoulder, blushing at his own bravery.

They sat together in the soft nocturnal air, watching the last few embers of their fire flicker and fizzle into ash.

The wolf found the smell intoxicating, his head feeling light but not quite sleepy. Enjoying the simple pleasure from the warmth of the hare resting beside him, everything in his life settled into a peace that made him uncomfortable, having spent countless cycles of the sun wandering alone and in miserable spirits.

He wanted to hug the hare, but his arms would not obey him, instead hanging uneasily by his sides. He wanted to describe how he was feeling to him, but his muzzle remained firmly shut, and his throat felt scratchy, like some creature had found its way into it with sharp claws. A growing urge to raise and wag his tail made him sweat in his dark fur; he dared not move it from beneath the hare, liking where it lay and liking how the hare was so fond of it.

He loved Horc.

Horc could sense Lurott's rising heartbeat through his dark fur. The wolf remained oddly still and quiet. He pressed himself into the wolf's side, finding one of his paws to hold it in his own, and breathed in his sweaty scent. He gripped his fingers with the wolf's for what seemed like nights within itself, listening to the light music of the forest and the rustling of leaves, sending shivers across his fur that made him snuggle further into his lupine pillow.

Finally ready to push himself again, wanting more than the long moment had given him, Horc forced his mouth open, "Lurott..."

Lurott swallowed, but found his throat still dry. He replied in a choked voice, "Yes?"

"I like you, a lot."

They sat in silence, counting their breaths.

"It took me awhile to accept it," Horc's soft words filled the emptiness around them, "But I like you. At first, as a friend. Then, I was unsure of myself..." he stopped, squeezing Lurott's paw for support, "But even then, I felt like, that I was attracted to you. I just didn't feel comfortable with it."

He turned to face the wolf, brushing his muzzle across his shoulder to rest his nose against his cheek, whispering, "Until now..."

"I can't!"

Lurott jumped to his feet, his mind reeling from the hare's affection. He felt like he did not deserve it.

Horc rose slowly, unsure as to what he had done wrong. Dismissing his self-doubt, he slid his arms around the wolf's chest and rested his head on his back. Black paws landed on his own, gently removing his embrace. Lurott turned to face him, his eyes a pale, watery red, and he bit his lower lip. Not allowing the wolf to let go, Horc held his paws between them, waiting for him to speak.

Eyes closed, Lurott exhaled, "I haven't been honest with you."

Seeing the wolf was too afraid to continue, Horc asked, "About what?"

Lurott looked to the sky above and felt lost in the darkness between the stars. Although he couldn't see the hare, he could feel him glowing, casting a soft white light over his black form. He closed his eyes again; he had to tell the hare the truth.

"My father was an evil creature, Horc, unlike yours."

"So?" Horc thought he was making a big deal about nothing. "What does that matter? You aren't your father."

Shifting in the agony of the moment to come, Lurott knew of no other way to tell him. "I had wanted to eat you."

"What?" Horc asked, thinking the wolf was joking.

Lurott wanted to run away, but Horc held him firmly.

"It's okay. Talk to me."

"Horc," the wolf said, sobbing, "I had wanted to eat you, you stupid fool! When we first met, I had been stalking you. I tried to control the urge but I have been out here for so long... you wouldn't understand. Where I come from, they raised me on the flesh of... and I didn't like it, but it was a hunger given to me by... I hate who I am, but I love life too much to... and when I met you... I pushed it... away... and..."

The wolf was crying too hard to continue. He had fallen to his knees. Horc hugged him.

Lurott let out a lifetime of guarded emotions into the hare's shoulder, soaking the fur with his tears. He felt heavy, like his body would fall through the earth if it were not for the white arms around him. Horc had a bravery he did not have, and he could not live with himself if he might ever lose control and damage it.

He broke free of Horc and turned to leave into the blackness of the woods.

"I think it best if we separated and went our own ways. I love you too much..."

He stopped his mouth and concentrated on walking away, trying desperately to empty his mind of the white hare behind him, focusing on the darkness before him. It was where he belonged, he sobbed, and it was for the best. The dirt felt colder, and the air more stale as he breathed it in between sniffs. He wasn't a coward, he told himself, he was intelligent and had a strong moral code. He didn't belong in the hare's world; he didn't belong anywhere but in the shadows. He tried to discount his love for Horc as nothing more than a shared loneliness, recalling how they had first met.

He was too lost in his thoughts to hear the crunching of leaves in front of him, until he found his back slammed against the ground and a panting white hare above him.

Horc smiled. "You can eat me any day you want, wolfy."

Tears blurring his vision, Lurott looked at the hare on top of him, not finding his joke funny in the slightest. He felt Horc shift his rear over his crotch and watched him lean down to wipe the water from his salty eyes.

"Horc, I'm sorry--"

He had tried to apologize, but Horc silenced him in a kiss.

The hare's smaller muzzle met the wolf's, with just the tips touching. He drew it away, but let it linger close, softly panting. He looked at the wolf, curiously, as the wolf helplessly stared back, caught beneath him. He lowered his mouth in another kiss, this time with a wet trace of his tongue over and into the wolf's slightly opened muzzle. The wolf responded with his own tongue and lifted his head into their shared connection. He tasted particularly canine to the hare, with a faint oily texture over his smooth gums which mixed into their shared saliva that he found enchanting.

Horc released the kiss with a wet slurp, holding himself up with paws placed to the sides of Lurott's head.

"I bet," he whispered, "You could breathe fire if you wanted."

He watched a tiny smile creep across the ends of the teary-eyed wolf's mouth which made his heart pound in his chest, filling him with a happiness that reminded him of the time Lurott had pounced him when they had first met.

"Was your father a dragon?" he asked, feeling an indescribable emotion swelling within him. "Or a demon? You can tell me, Lurott. I think it's awesome. I think you're awesome--and I never want you to try and leave me like that again! Lurott the sneaky... I like you. I want you to be with me. I don't care about your past as much as I care about us, I mean, you... and me. I'm not afraid--I know you wouldn't hurt me--please, Lurott! I want you--"

"Sush, Horc."

Lurott lifted himself to sit with Horc sitting in his lap, arms rubbing the hare's sides beneath his cape. Their snouts met in a wet nose-kiss. Horc wrapped his arms around Lurott's neck, taking in his scent with tender, yet deliberate sniffs around the wolf's face. The wolf smelled worn, but in a well-traveled sense, his odor distinctly male and strong as Horc consumed it with deeper breaths, wanting the smell permanently etched into the very foremost part of his memory, so that he could recall it on whim for the rest of his life.

With a snap, Lurott undid Horc's cape and let it slip down to the dirty forest floor, soon followed by the nameless sword he had given him with a click of its belt buckle across Horc's chest. Horc quickly caught on, and mimicked the wolf's actions while still burying his face into the black fur of the wolf's. Brushing away his cape, sliding off belt straps to feel them crawl down the wolf along with his exploring fingers, rubbing and undressing him as the wolf probed and traveled through his clothing, they both raised their arms one after the other to remove tunics.

A few quick flicks and tugs later, they kicked off their boots and pants, holding each other in only their fur, the slightly smaller hare's legs wrapped around the wolf's waist, his toes playing with the fur of a black tail, rubbing himself into his lupine seat like a bunny had once showed him.

The thought made the white hare feel impure, as if he had been tainted by a foul beast's touch. He hugged the wolf hard, pulling them together with his powerful legs, and buried his head into the side of his neck and face, exchanging the night for a furry blackness across his now moist vision.

Feeling his shoulder soak with Horc's tears, Lurott squeezed him with equal force, stroking along the hare's back, tracing over faint bumps down his spine. The moment renewed his own tears, and he nuzzled his white fur with a damp cheek.

As soon as the wolf had started to cry, Horc willed his own tears away by concentrating his strength into his fierce hug. Swallowing his shame, he quickly realized he had no reason to doubt himself. He had remained faithful. And, he wanted to give himself completely to the wolf. He then felt something between them, something in addition to the emotional bond they shared, something definitely physical. Lurott felt it too.

Their hardened sheathes were pressed together.

Horc felt a tingling sensation tickle his insides, that made him push his hips into the wolf's. A pressure against his member and balls rewarded his effort, and he gently rubbed himself along the wolf's warm and stiff rod. Lurott returned the strokes, wiping a bit of pre from his throbbing erection over their cocks and into their crotch fur. They rubbed themselves against each other, their sticky members sliding over the other's waist, trapped between their fuzzy bodies.

They remained in the other's arms, enjoying the erotic pleasure of their slippery shafts rubbing over one another. A strong and potent musk rose into the air as they dabbed their wet noses together. Horc's rubbing sped up sporadically, to slow down when Lurott would lick his face affectionately with puppy-dog love.

Horc felt his chest vibrate, trying to swallow his clumsy rabbit moans that made Lurott's heart jump; the wolf found them irresistibly cute, trying his best to force them out of the hare's throat. And even still, the wolf found tears huddled around his eyelids, but the feeling was different, gradually morphing from a sadness into an emotion he could only fantasize about in dreams before.

Listening to the sounds of their fur brush together, and losing himself into the sensation of having his maleness rub along the hare's, Lurott felt his heart drop when Horc stopped moving. He opened his eyes and drew in his tongue to see him looking at him with a childlike innocence that warmed him to the core, especially after his firsthand knowledge that they were anything but children anymore.

"Lurott..." Horc blew the word onto the wolf's face.

The wolf's red eyes answered him, saying everything he did not have to say.

Horc controlled his breathing through his nose, willing himself the courage to continue.

"How are we..." he began to ask, unsure of what to say, "What are we supposed to do? We're both, you know... how is it supposed to work?"

Lurott looked at him blankly for a moment, until a smile and a few giggles betrayed him, completely changing the mood they had created moments ago. Horc was too cute, and incredibly naive. But he was honest, and he could see a loving trust in his face, and feeling the hare press his hips into him, he saw a hidden lust behind his snowy appearance, wanting a way to physically express and seal the bond between them.

The wolf smirked; he had a sneaky idea to toy and play with the hare's temperament.

"I don't know if you're ready for it, Horc," he stated with a grin, holding back a laughter at his own genius. "There's a way, but it's not for the weak of heart."

Horc looked furious, and he pulled Lurott to him in anger. "Don't tease me, wolfy! Anything you can do, so can I!"

Laughing, Lurott brushed the hare's fur to calm him, feeling as if he might have overdone it. "Sorry, I didn't mean it like that," he said, seeing the hare's expression unchanged, still looking at him as if he had slapped his face with a gauntlet to issue some challenge of character. "Really, trust me!"

It was Lurott's turn to feel uneasy, as Horc gave him an uncharacteristically devilish smile.

The wolf quickly recovered his composure, a toothy grin forming across his muzzle, and he leaned back to rest his arms behind himself. With his eyes, he motioned Horc to his canine member, resting at a slant on his crotch. Horc nodded in determination and lowered his face to Lurott's throbbing flesh.

Horc marveled at Lurott's wolfhood, holding the rubbery appendage in his pads. Even though it was the same fleshy color, it looked a lot different than his own, and it was slightly larger, with what looked to be a round swelling at its base. He touched the fuzzy hair of its sheath, combing it with the dull claws of his fingertips, to feel Lurott's body shake. Looking up, he saw him breathing hard with the tip of his tongue hanging from his jaw, his eyelids strained shut in an intense pleasure. He returned his attention to the canine's meat, trailing a finger across its pulsating veins, becoming familiar with the most private area of the wolf.

Sniffing the head of Lurott's cock, Horc licked the creamy tip to have his first taste of pre. He rolled it around in his mouth, becoming accustomed to its tart flavor, before he decided he liked it enough to open his muzzle and slide the wolf's member into his mouth.

Lurott felt his entire body tense around the hare's intimate touch. He curled his toes and dug his fingers into dirt, breathing through his teeth at the hare's bold move. Horc slid his tongue under his cock, slowly moving his head back to move it forward again, building up a brisk pace. The sound of wet sucking filled their ears, as Horc found himself unable to hold back his rabbit moans, sending vibrations around Lurott's meat, causing his balls to tighten in ecstasy.

Black paws moved the hare's head away, leaving a rope of saliva mixed with pre dangling from the wolf's cock to Horc's lips. Horc wanted to continue to milk his cock, but Lurott held him firmly, waiting for the hare's brown eyes to meet his own.

"This might..." Lurott could see his words would be wasted, but he spoke them nonetheless, "Hurt."

Horc gave him a look that seemed to say he would have to see it to believe it.

Pushing the hare to his back, Lurott lifted Horc's strong legs and positioned himself to pierce his pink tailhole. Sending his black digits to Horc's mouth, the hare sucked on them with a look of defiance at the wolf's warning. He knew what was coming, and he wanted it. Even if his body wasn't ready, he thought, feeling Lurott's fingers leave his mouth and poke through his anal ring as it tensed involuntarily, he would will his body to accept his wolf.

Seeing Horc wiggle in discomfort, Lurott didn't know if he should push the hare this far this fast. Feeling the walls of the hare's hole, he couldn't stop. He wanted to be inside Horc as much as Horc wanted him inside him. He drew his fingers out and returned his grip around the hare's legs. Watching Horc's face scrunch up in anticipation of the pain, he waited for him to relax. Horc's eyes slowly opened, and upon seeing Lurott looking down at him concerned, he slanted his brow in determination. Lurott closed his eyes and smiled, the image of Horc's face lingering in his mind.

He realized at that moment that there was nothing he could do to destroy what made Horc who he was, besides not doing what they both wanted to do.

Lurott slowly slipped the head of his wolfhood into Horc and stopped. Checking if he was okay, his normally brave and adventurous companion looked fragile and in pain, his eyes tightly shut and his mouth opened in a silent scream. The sight was almost enough to restore his crying from earlier. He slowly pulled what little he had put in out, but felt Horc's anal cavity grip his cock and his legs squirm out of his paws to wrap around his waist, pushing him completely inside the hare up to his knot.

The wolf's cock throbbed in Horc's tight ass. Lurott felt the hare squeeze his shaft to then feel a weight over his knot as Horc pulled himself up to embrace him in a lustful kiss. Their mouths worked over each other, tongues slashing and slinging saliva across their muzzles, while Lurott gripped Horc's rear to buck his hips into the hare's depths. Horc bounced on the wolf's lap, quickly becoming used to the feeling of being filled, his passage stretching to contain Lurott's girth. Meeting the wolf's short thrusts, he found he could better rub his own need through the hairs of Lurott's furry stomach.

His mind screaming in pleasure though a dreamy haze, Lurott focused his thrusts harder against Horc's rump, becoming consumed by an animal lust to take his rabbit, to claim him completely and thoroughly. Madly pushing his meat in and out of the warm and wet tailhole, craving the friction of his shaft inside the hare's guts, he seized Horc in his arms and clamped his teeth to the white scruff of his neck in a loving bite. Humping from below faster, high-pitched rabbit moans encouraged him to press his knot against Horc's hole.

Lost in the passion of the moment, Horc chose to focus on his cock sliding across Lurott's stomach instead of the knot pounding his ass. Moving his hips to meet the wolf's thrusts, Horc rubbed harder into Lurott's abs, feeling the wolf hairs scrape his shaft and scratch his furry sack, sending a warm fluid racing from his balls and out his rabbithood. He arched his back as Lurott continued to ram his ass with his knot, squirting his rabbit juice onto them both.

The strong smell of Horc's release hit Lurott hard, clouding his mind in an almost uncontrollable lust. Sending his arms to push the hare down onto his knot, he stopped himself and instead gripped it with one of his paws and squeezed. It was enough to send him beyond his limits, and he planted his seed, filling Horc's tailhole with his gooey wolf spunk.

After the last few jerks of his cock, he pulled himself out with a wet pop and landed on his back, completely exhausted.

Horc didn't look as tired, as he crawled over Lurott giddily, rubbing the wolf's hyper sensitive cock with one paw, and his sore tailhole--dripping with the wolf's cum--with the other. A whole new side to life had been shown to him, and Horc wanted more.

Murmuring playful sounds into Lurott's ear, he whispered, "My turn."

Before the wolf had a chance to defend himself, Horc had flipped him onto his hands and knees, already pressing an eager rabbitcock against his tailhole. He rested his head on the ground and smiled back at the hare, who was determined to show him just how much stamina he had. Feeling lightheaded, Horc brought him back to full attention with a forceful thrust--sending his red eyes open in shock--piercing his virgin hole.

Feeling Horc buck wildly into him, he felt an odd but welcomed pleasure as his erection swelled beneath him, already near the edge of another burst. It would be a long night, he smirked, but he deserved it. And so did his mate.

***

Spooning Horc beneath the cover of their capes, Lurott's sleepy eyes wandered to the nameless blade he had given him.

He could hear Horc sigh, and asked, "So, did you decide on a name for it yet?"

Horc wiggled closer into Lurott's lazy embrace. "I did."

"I'm sorry I forgot to take you by the smith before we left. Maybe we could head back later."

"We don't have to," Horc giggled. "He came to me while you were out of it."

Lurott's ears sprung to attention. "He did?"

"Yep."

"Well, what did you name it?"

Horc shifted his head to look at the smiling wolf. "Promise not to laugh."

Lurott said nothing, his funny expression saying everything.

"I named it Lurott's Love."

Horc laughed as the wolf rolled his eyes and groaned.