FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

The market was bustling and full of other individuals, all browsing the various wares set up in the various stalls, manned by shopkeepers shouting over the din in an attempt to attract potential buyers. It made sense that everything was this way. While not close to the main roads, the town of Forest's Edge (named, quite obviously, for its location - the colonists during the settlement era hadn't been that imaginative) was the location many traveling merchants visited on their way to bigger cities, many miles down the road, or even the capital, which required travel beyond one's feet to achieve in a reasonable timeframe. The populace tended to be more welcoming than other isolated places, and willing to barter and trade for the offered goods, which made it a hotspot for both new and old to hawk their wares.

All this meant little to Luvian as he moved through the crowds, ears folded flat against his skull to minimize the noise. While definitely unhappy, he forced himself past the issues of noisy crowds and merchants to come here as soon as the events involving the unnamed shark wore off. Several weeks passed before the last of the signs regarding that lost week pinned under a shark, impaled on his dual cocks, finally vanished. The lake was not as good at getting scent out of his pelt, but the river was off-limits until he could find a solution. The time it took for him to stop coughing up white, and hearing a subtle slosh from his gut, was better left not thought about. He had donned a pair of soft drawstring shorts, and a leather vest with his wings carefully threaded through slits in the material in order to avoid punishment for being essentially naked. While they were the only clothes the hybrid would ever force himself to wear on these trips, rare as they were, they were self-made, and fit perfectly. Stuff made for sale at stalls never seemed to last anyway, what with shoddy stitching and material that already felt damaged despite being sold as 'brand-new'. The only other addition was a satchel, secured tightly to his side. He'd need it to transport the potions if today's venture went well, after all. Plus it was the only way he could carry the necessary currency for said potions. Luvian's reason for this current trip, despite his general dislike of the crowds and noise about him, was that he needed potions. Namely, potions that would prevent such situations like those experienced at the river from happening to him again. He didn't know exactly WHAT potion would accomplish this, but he was aiming to head for the shop here that actually had its own building, and not a stall, to find out.

The store, in tradition with most buildings in the town, didn't have an actual name, just a sign showing multiple potion bottles clustered together. A good way to solve people's inability to read words, as well as their unwillingness to learn how, but it had a good reputation, and besides, Luvian wasn't exactly the most fluent reader in existence to begin with. Squaring his shoulders, preparing himself for a conversation with a merchant that would probably take every opportunity to squeeze him out of the slivers of coin quietly clinking in his pocket, the wolfbird pushed open the door and entered the building, only to freeze as he saw who (or more accurately what) manned the counter.

.....Shit.

A dragon. The one species he was most concerned about, the species giving him the most trouble, was the same species he now needed to get potions from. Holding back a grumble, the hybrid slowly pushed his thoughts to the back of his mind, and stepped up to the counter. Luckily, despite the bipedal drake before him having a good two or three feet on the average-sized person, the counter was low enough he didn't feel like a child begging for a cookie.

"Hello, and welcome to my potion shop! I'm Kyzyr. How may I assist you today?" The deep bass voice, with the typical draconic growl of power emanating from his chest, sent a thrill of panic down the wolfbird's spine before he did his best to ignore it. Not all dragons were out to get him. Thinking so wouldn't be healthy for this interaction. Besides, he was already giving the dragon a tentative mental checkmark, as he had not immediately had to bolt out the door, being chased by a drake who had vaulted over a countertop and attempted to stuff his rump full of dragon dick. The second check was given with the use of the greeting itself.

A standard greeting, that was the third check, and a confirmation he'd be generally fine negotiating. The dragon smiled down at him (showing few enough teeth to be polite, but still too many for the nervous wolfbird.) Following the trend of most in the town in wearing just enough clothing to be polite, but not so much that it felt suffocating, the sapphire-scaled drake wore a leather apron over his front, a small rope wrapping around his waist denoting shorts or a similar covering. The scent of the species, thankfully, did not burn his sinuses like it did with feral dragons out in the wild, covered by the scents of the town and the various potion ingredients that Kyzyr apparently used. Blinking, the wolfbird focused on Kyzyr's face, and thought he saw a flicker of lust. A widening of greenish-gold eyes and a deep inhale of scents. But he put it aside as the fear mongering of his imagination, putting it aside to rely on his nose and ears to determine trouble. He needed his full vision on the drake's face to determine basic shopping tricks.

Finally, though only a couple seconds after the introduction, the wolfbird spoke. His own voice trembled, barely hiding a chirp of nervousness beneath his own quiet growl of speech,"Yeah, I've got an issue, hope you can solve it. Have you got any potions to reduce......desire? Lust?" Honestly, his question itself was mostly based on a rumor, with a bit of truth sprinkled in. He'd heard of the potion type before, had explored the option through exploration. But he'd never had full confirmation, probably due to social stigma, the same annoying reason for the clothes covering his body. Which was why he'd not taken the concoction before the incident with the shark. No need to embarrass himself and shop owners over potion rumors just because he had to deal with the occasional chase. Of course, the fact that the river he used for bathing was now off-limits had made him reconsider.

Face bright red, the wolfbird stomped on his body's own want to avert his eyes, keeping his own golden orbs on the greenish-gold of the dragons. He needed the potion, being shy wouldn't help him. Even if any teasing occurred from the shopkeeper. Who did not disappoint on that front, a throaty chuckle leaving his chest as he folded his arms, looking down. Another flash of what looked like lust, another push on his subconscious to stop sending him panic-inducing hallucinations. The potion was paramount. Just keep the fear under control for the moment, get the potion, get out. Have any fear-induced paranoia later after potion was ingested.

"Gonna have to be a bit more specific than that, little guy. You need to stop going out for dates? Or you got somebody pounding that tail of yours?" Kyzyr replied, turning around, as he began began to rummage through his shelves of colored vials, continuing to tease even as he examined labels and shifted potions. Luvian's brain pointed out another fact to his subconscious as the dragon did so, finally managing to shut it up. There was no bulge. The loincloth laid flat, no distinct shape beneath the fabric. Nor was there any hint of draconic musk beyond the basic scent that Kyzyr carried. Overall, it was obvious the dragon had no interest in impaling him on his shaft.

"Not that you're the first to come in with such an issue. Kinda surprised though, usually the ones we get asking for these potions are a little on the... larger size, if you catch my meaning, at least for those looking for a way to reduce their own lust. As for reducing other's lust, I rarely sell those. Most people seem to be fine with that kind of attention." Turning back around, and ending his tease with a wink, the drake returned with a small armful of potions in hand, each glowing softly. "Not that I judge," he amended, smirking at the mortified wolfbird before him. "Everyone is different, after all!"

Luvian shook free from the majority of his embarrassment, though the blush on his face remained firmly in place for the moment. "The... second one. It's started to become scary how often I'm being targeted." He ended his parted of the conversation with a half-serious joke. "Feels like I can't even leave my house sometimes!" Getting a nod and another chuckle, the dragon looked down at the potions he had put on the counter, skillfully separating two of them from the collection, and waving the hybrid forward. "Got just the thing then. Just take both of these together, order doesn't matter, and you'll be set for about two lunar cycles." Draconic greed glinting in his eye, Kyzyr concluded the interaction. "That'll be 8 silver pieces, and a name for who I can assume is a returning customer."

Normally Luvian would inquire about the exact ingredients of the potions, but faced with the bulk of the crystal-blue dragon looming over the counter grinning toothily down at him, the wolfbird's instincts kicked in. He had to get out of the shop quickly. The wolfbird nodded and pulled the required silver from the pouch on his side, handing them over with a quiet "Luvian." The hybrid proceeded to, after a small nod from the dragon potioneer, pull the two vials towards him, and nestle both in the same pouch he'd pulled his coins from. The price was low enough that it didn't feel necessary to haggle, as he still had silver left over, as well as the ability to gain enough to pay a similar amount when he came back in two months. As long as the part about giving him a name wasn't some sort of unspoken discount, that is, but he would come to that when the time to refresh the potions rolled around. And with a final nod to Kyzyr, the wolfbird backed out of the shop, and turned to leave the loud crowds of Forest's Edge behind him, and exchange them for the quiet comfort of home.

Several hours later, Luvian closed the door of his tree-home behind him, taking in the carved interior of his custom-created dwelling. It had taken many, many cycles and tools to carve this massive pine tree out enough for a decent living space, and yet keep it alive. Making sure to stop at layers containing the actual living sections of the tree, and keeping contaminants free from him to avoid poisoning his home took some doing, . There were outward additions as well, a small forge, a shed, etc. But his real home was this tree. And he wouldn't change that for anything.

The scent of sap overpowered his own, and if he stayed inside long enough would even cover it for awhile should he go on a trip. Hence the reason he'd never been tracked back to his home. This wasn't the only pine of this size, and he'd made sure the door blended decently well with the surrounding bark. Inside, however, he'd made each floor a room, the first being his general living quarters, the second, a bedroom, and the third floor just being storage for anything he wanted to keep safe from scavengers and pests. At one point he'd considered windows, but had finally decided against it. It would do more damage to the tree, and more easily reveal his home, something that was a carefully guarded secret.

Finished with his reminiscing, the hybrid took out the two vials, holding them carefully. The dragon had said order didn't matter, so with a small shrug, he quickly gulped them both down. The flavor was sharp, yet not unpleasant. Like cold springwater, or the scent of spearmint.

The contemplation of flavor only lasted a minute, unfortunately, before he began to feel strange. Hot, despite the cool weather of the day. Stuffy, despite the constant flow of air and water through the wood of the tree surrounding him. Panting, the wolfbird couldn't stop a small whimper from leaving him as he peeled his clothes from his body, wings flapping in an attempt to cool off. But no matter what he did, nothing seemed to work. Sweat began to mat his fur as the heat reached an apex, one that clouded his brain and made everything... foggy. Unsteady, he collapsed on the wooden floor, sanded and worn from use. A groan left him as he weakly flapped his wings again, eyes beginning to glaze.

And there the wolfbird lay, a sweaty, matted, hybrid unable and unwilling to move due to the feeling of heat permeating his body and mind. Not even noticing as his door creaked open, and a scaly foot stepped through the entrance...