FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

The door didn't stand out. Between two shops on a back street, it looked like a normal door that would lead up to a flat above, but Claire walked up and knocked in a tight pattern.

"T-This is the place?" I asked, standing under the streetlights. The rest of the street was deserted and dark, and I could feel the night heavy above us.

"Yes," she replied. Her vulpine muzzle twisted up into a sly little smile. "Why so nervous? Nothing's going to happen to you, Jeremy!"

I didn't like the emphasis she put on my name. "I wasn't expecting it to be so... clandestine..."

"There's nothing illegal about it!" She rolled her eyes, as if she'd gone through this before. "Everyone involved is not just consenting, but into it! So what if a bunch of people get the wrong idea?"

I breathed in. "I'm here, with you, aren't I? I'm not saying there's anything wrong with it!"

"Well, good-"

The door clicked and opened a crack. One eye showed in the darkness, then it swung open and revealed a rabbit girl who looked like a hostess, as she was wearing a white shirt and a knee length black skirt. She glanced at me before focusing on my- well, girlfriend. "Oh! Miss Claire!" she said, smiling. "Right this way, if you would."

We both squeezed past her, into the narrow staircase that lead up to the hidden restaurant. There was an alcove in front of a second door, and the rabbit apologised as she went past us to take our coats. She gave a slightly strained grin and said, "Not much room up here!"

The main room was dimly lit, divided into booths. It was small, for a restaurant, but it was difficult to make out any of the other diners - probably by design. The setting we were led to wasn't set up like a regular table would be - the space between us was was empty, ans instead of a table there was a ledge that ran along the wall. I looked around nervously. Claire smiled. "They need the room, so there's no table," she explained.

I tried to think what that meant. Claire could see my puzzlement, but just smiled. "So," said the hostess brightly, "Can I get you some drinks?"

"I'll have the house red."

"And, uh, I'll just have water." I shrugged. "I'm driving."

"Great! I'll be right back with those."

She turn on her heel and walked away. There was something odd about the way she walked - reaching out to tap the edges of the bench, as if she wasn't quite sure where it was. I put it out of my mind, and leaned forward and spoke in a low voice. "This is... are there menus? How do we pick what - and who - I mean, is she one of the..."

I trailed off. Claire smiled at me, putting her handbag on the shelf. "Well, you'll have to wait and see!" She sat back and chuckled. "If you're really this uncomfortable, why did you agree to come with me?"

I sputtered for a second. "I just - I just don't know what to expect! I'm fine with this, as long as everyone involved is having fun, so can you not- go on about it?"

"Oh, okay," she said. "I'm just having a little fun. Isn't that why we're here?"

There was a moment of silence between us. Then our waitress was back, stepping into the space between us and placing a tray on the shelf. She put our glasses on the shelf, along with a couple of plates, then stepped back. "So, I don't know if you've had a chance to look at the menu, but I can go through-"

"What's today's house special?" Claire interrupted.

"Noodle soup! With beef, chicken or vegetables, served in-"

"I think we can find out how it's served as a surprise, don't you? We'll have that."

The hostess smiled broadly, and tilted her head to the side in a very cute way. "Of course! Will that be with-"

"The beef, please."

"Okay!" She jotted that down on a notepad. "While we get that, would you like a some bread to get you started?"

She didn't wait for a reply. She just reached up to her face - and then her fingers dug into her eye socket, tugging at the eyeball. I gasped in shock and sympathetic pain, but she didn't even flinch as her eyeball came cleanly free, and she placed it delicately on Claire's plate. She turned to me, one eye empty and blank, and asked, "Would you like some too?"

"Of course he will," said Claire, picking up the eyeball. I shrank back a little as the rabbit went for her other eye. "It's bread. They dye the outside of the roll to make it look like an eyeball."

The hostess held her hand before me, her other eye resting on her palm. Slowly, I picked it up and examined it - the crust felt just like bread, and now that I was closer, the image wouldn't have passed for an eye, if it wasn't dark, and if I had been staring at her eyes. My voice shook a little as I asked, "How are you seeing?"

"My real eyes are in the back, in front of the CCTV cameras. I'm the kind of modular where I can still interact with my body parts once they're removed, so I can see where I'm going from there!"

She smiled, tilting her head again. Her eyelids were flat over her empty sockets. I had never realised just how the bulge of eyeball was natural, and how focusing on that was so weird. "Don't worry, the inside of my head's been sterilized and in food safe."

The bread was bite-sized. Obviously I was supposed to eat it, and it was warm - like it was freshly baked. I slipped it between my teeth and bit. The crust was firm, and the inside soft and fragrant - tasting of nothing more than bread, thankfully. "'s good!"

"It's acceptable," said Claire. "But no-one comes here for the food."

Our hostess gave a snort. I got the feeling she would have rolled her eyes if there were any in her head. "Well, we're pretty proud of what we make here. I'll be back with you meal shortly."

She turned and walked away. I realised why she'd been touching the bench - she was looking at herself from the outside, and the tactile sensation helped guide her.

"Dinner and a show," I muttered.

"Yes, they like to make a big deal of it. Not that I complain."

I shuffled uncomfortably. "What do you think they get out of it? Why do they do it? I mean, becoming modular, yes, you can like swap out body parts when they wear down, always be ready for any situation, but.. serving food inside yourself? What's that about?"

Claire sipped her wine. "You could ask them. But I think it's performative. They are the centre of attention, and we focus on them, their service. And some people like to be of use." She grinned, showing her vulpine teeth. "And some people like to be used."

"Is that why you came here? Because you like using people?"

She fixed me with a stare that made me uncomfortable, forcing me to look away into the darkness of the room. "I know what I am and what I like. So long as that makes everyone involved happy, I can live with that. You would never have come here, if I hadn't pushed you, would you?"

"...No."

"Do you regret it, so far? Getting a new experience? Something you would never have tried?"

"...Not so far."

"Good." She took another sip of wine. "I'd hate to think you were really uncomfortable, and were just going along with it for fear of what I'd say. I do tend to push people, but - only where I think they need to go. I'm not always right. If you don't like it, tell me."

She put a lot of emphasis on the last two words. "And you'll stop?" I asked.

"And I'll stop," she confirmed.

"...Good."

We were interrupted by our hostess returning, still eyeless. She wasn't alone though, two men and a woman were with her - I looked away, feeling my cheeks flush. The woman, a grey squirrel, was topless, giving me a glimpse of her breasts before I turned my head. I glanced quickly at Claire, and saw she was looking, not concerned about her nakedness. She was staring at one of the men, a cheetah, who was also topless, showing off his slim, toned physique. I turned back to the squirrel, who waved and said, "Hi! I'm your serving suggestion for today!"

I gulped, trying to keep my eyes above the neckline. "Oh! Uh, how, uh, how do we..."

But my question was already being answered. The bunny server was helping the other man, a large bull in a plain white shirt, push strange upright caddy - style trolleys into the space between the benches. When they were in place, the half naked servers knelt into place, leaning against the upright backs. They were held in place with a couple of straps, and the bull pushed the squirrel closer to me. Up to my knees. Her head hung forward, between the handles, like she was ready to -

I tried not to think about that.

Opposite me, the cheetah was closer to Claire. She had turned side ways, so he could be pushed closer to her.

Well, if she wasn't getting freaked out by this...

The bull stepped back. "All ready?" asked the hostess. The squirrel and cheetah nodded, giving an 'mm-hm!' of assent. I stared wide eyed as the rabbit moved behind the squirrel and placed her hands on either side of her head. She pressed slightly, and a thin crack appeared in the head of the squirrel, running all the way round, until she lifted the top of her skull off in a cloud of steam and the scent of beef broth.

"All ready!" said the squirrel. "Tuck in!"