FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

---

Walking on a trail by a dense forest and through hills, me and my partner, Choe, look for our next bounty: a den of warg wolves. That was a mission beneath our skill, I had told him, but he insisted on taking that target over many others back at the tavern.

We left town just after lunch, and by now it was a good deal into the afternoon. As he leads the way, I grow impatient.

"Are you sure this is the right way?" I ask the traveling companion in front of me.

"Oh? You doubt my skilled hunter's nose?" the bear says, proudly pointing to his snout while brandishing a smile.

"Once I didn't. Remember that?"

I said that in a tone of jest, but the muscular bear hunched. He did that sort of thing often, and I always cave in and apologize. Before I could, however, he retorts.

"By the way, Maddie, what did you think of that quest giver back there?"

"What do you mean? The owl?"

"Oh, you know," he snaps to face me, the broadsword on his back and his protuberant belly swinging. "How handsome was he?"

"What!" my answer was fraught with hesitation.

What kind of question was that? Is he trying to embarrass me? Once I recover from the daze of the question, I look at him. A sly smile decorates his muzzle. He definitely is trying to embarrass me. Worst, it worked.

Laughing, he makes his way to me. Once he does, he puts his arm around my neck, pulling me closer to him.

"Answer the question, Maddie," he teases. "How handsome was he?"

My face burns and I'm sure the inside of my feline ears are as red as they can get. Truth is, he was quite attractive, for an avian anyway. I remember he hadn't fastened all of his shirt's buttons; I could see parts of his pecs.

I'm taking too long to answer, I realize. So I shove the grinning Choe.

"Can you just focus on the mission!"

He breaks away, laughing.

"Yeah, yeah. You'll tell me later, I get it."

My embarrassment worsens before subsiding. I adjust the bow and quiver on my back before I follow the amused bear in front of me.

We proceed further for nearly an hour on the trail before the bear stops looking at the forest.

"There," he points. "Their den is that way."

Trusting his sense of smell is not something I'm completely on board with, but I figure it's better than just wandering around.

We follow their supposed scent for another hour. Dusk is coming soon. Choe is sweating and mumbling something under his breath. I want to tell him to drop the search for the day, try to think of another method, but I know how much of a blow to his confidence that would be. Still without the words to address it with tact, I speak.

"Hey..."

Just then he motions for me to shush. Not long after, we hear a piercing howl. The wargs are close. Choe shoots at me a proud smirk, awaiting some response. I am proud and a little embarrassed for doubting him. It's better not to boost his ego right now, though.

"Not now! Focus!"

We proceed towards the noise. The closer we get, the more frequent the sounds grow.

We finally make it behind a shrub where we can see the cave where they are located. A single dark colored Feral wolf paces about by the entrance.

"What's the plan?" he asks in a whisper.

Choe has encyclopedic knowledge on the Ferals, but isn't as gifted with making plans. So, in our coalition, I'm the one who plans based on what he tells me about our target.

He had told me once how wargs, Feral wolves act. They live in packs and are wanderers; just like regular wolves. However, they take up residence in caves or dens while their cubs mature. So we will fight up to twelve developing wargs and at least one parent warg, likely a mother. Their fighting style involves part of the pack drawing a target's attention while others circle around, attacking from behind or from the sides. Their strategy is to overwhelm the enemy.

With that information, the plan forms in my mind. Choe would go ahead, have them focus on him. Whatever wargs tried to circle him, I'd take out with my arrows from afar. To ensure they wouldn't target me, I would use a repellent we had gotten on the last mission. Save for older warg, he could take out one of them with a single swing and I with one arrow. Simple, below our skill level.

Out of one of my satchels, I bring out the vial of Feral repel and shake it lightly where he can see.

"Distract them," I say.

He gives me an assured nod and then unsheathes the weapon on his back. I follow, drawing my bow and preparing arrows.

"Madison," he says.

"What?" I snap my head to him.

"Be careful."

That takes me by surprise.

"Yeah," I say. "You too."

I return to my concentration, popping open the vial.

"Ready?" the bear says.

I pour the liquid over my head. I feel it coating my head and much of my clothes and armor. It has no smell to us, but I bet Ferals don't like it at all. I draw a single arrow and aim at the wolf guarding the entrance. Inhale, exhale.

"Ready."

I fire at the Feral. It speeds towards fledgling and hits them. A clean shot, a clean kill. The beast falls, and won't be getting up.

We both proceed to the dark cave. The bear draws his magic lantern, lighting it with a basic incantation; one of the few Choe knew. This isn't a big grotto, wide but not long.

I can hear now some growling as we delve deeper. Here they come. My companion takes the front like we planned. Out of the darkness, come five wargs.

Three of them go for Choe's front, taking turns lunging at him. The other two try a flank attack from either side, but I'm faster. One shot to the one going for his left. My target is down. The other takes notice of me, but the repellent paralyzes them. I use that brief time to fire a second arrow. My shot wasn't as precise, leaving the warg whimpering and limping.

The cry seems to draw the attention of the bear, who snaps his head to face me with a worried look. While he did, the wargs he hadn't defeated took their chance to lunge at his body. Their fangs graze the bear's torso, causing him to grunt in pain.

I take notice of what happened and exclaim to the bear.

"Choe! Focus!"

He goes back to fighting the adolescent Ferals. My second shot is far more precise, and I put my mark out of their misery. Soon, all targets are down.

I rush to Choe to check on him.

"Madison, I..."

"Hush!"

I inspect his stomach and chest under the low light. None of the injuries are deep at all; I can treat them after all of this is over.

"Good. Nothing serious," I say and then release a sigh of relief. "Pay more attention next time."

"Right..."

I know he did that out of worry for my safety, but he put himself in danger over nothing. What's his deal? Now it's time to get hung up on this. We proceed further down the cave.

Another wave comes out, six of them this time. We can expect these to be the last of them, except for the parents.

It goes down the same, three attack Choe directly, three others try to flank him. I'm more fixed to take them down this time, firing two arrows in succession at each of them. A pair of shots is all they take apiece, however my quiver lies mostly empty on my back.

The bear seems to have taken down a foe, and another one now occupies him. A different one still seems to have snuck behind him. Not wanting to waste any more arrows, I draw my dagger to ambush the warg. A single strike on his neck and he is down.

The warrior in front of me finishes off the last of them and only then notices behind himself. I look at Choe with a serious expression; face half covered in Feral blood. When I try to clean it with my paw, he offers me a piece of cloth. My glance shifts between it and his face. The tired man huffs, but still tries to make some amicable face to me.

I nab the piece from his grasp and wipe my face with it.

"Thanks..."

After a brief respite, I stand and again. Time to examine the man's body. He received no additional damage. Relieved, I unintentionally leave my paw where I last checked. His fur under my paw feels warm. A thousand thoughts rush through my head. How, even if this mission is easier than the ones we have done, it could all go south. If they hurt him beyond my healing skills, I won't know what to do...

"Madison?"

It's a while before his voice brings me back to reality. Inhale, exhale. I remove my paw.

"Sorry I got carried away," I say, repositioning his armor. "C'mon, let's finish this."

There isn't much more cave to explore. Thus, after some 30 steps, we reach its end. From behind a single rock in the back of the cave, jumps a single warg. It's young like the rest, so I keep my eyes peeled for the parent still.

Unlike the previous wargs, this one tries to circle Choe on his own, making it hard for the bear to slay them with his weapon. The Feral scrapes his body many times. I decide it's best to kill them before they injure him.

I draw my arrow and prepare to fire at my mark. Their moving bodies make it hard to aim at the Feral with certainty I won't fire at my partner. This is taking all of my concentration.

Suddenly, I feel a presence just behind me; a growl follows. I turn my head to face whatever it is. A larger warg, nearly the height of my hip on four legs, approaches me; the wolf parent is here. I watch them closely, expecting they will avoid me. A sudden cry from deeper in the cave draws my attention, breaking my concentration.

I fall to the ground, dropping my bow and arrow. The warg pounced on me. In surprise, I scream as I fall.

The wolf is now on top of me, fangs near my face. I'm quick enough to push their muzzle away with my forearm. That gives me enough time to draw my dagger.

The thing tries to snap at me again; this time those teeth meet my blade. I'm able to keep it just inches from me. It's enough that I can see their saliva, it's greenish and stenches; a venomous adult warg. The goo dribbles on my armor; I'm terrified it will hit my face. I can't keep it up.

Air rushes over me. Something big and heavy hits the wolf above. It sends them flying with a whimper. I hear a thud, the Feral hit a wall.

I take some seconds to focus my senses into something comprehensible. I notice Choe, kneeling to aid me.

"Madison! Are you okay!"

I'm still too dazed to respond. I babble his name, hoping he will understand.

A whoosh of air scrapes over me again, in the opposite direction to last time. Choe's massive frame vanishes from my sight. All I hear is grunting and growling.

I'm finally calm enough to assess the situation. On my knees I see, beyond the dropped magic lantern, the bear struggling beneath the warg. He pushes the enemy away from him well enough, but he just can't throw them off.

I stand up, dagger ready. The battle in front of me makes me plan how to approach this situation. I can come up with a clever solution to this; but that doesn't happen.

Instead, my body moves on its own. Rage consumes my free-will. I'm sprinting towards them, madness alone on my face. My dagger cleaves the side of the Feral who in tow, whimpers. That's not all. With strength not even I knew I had, I'm able to carry the impaled monster towards the closest wall of the cave.

Now I'm by that wall, enraged. I unintentionally hiss and growl myself at the squirming fiend. As much as they try to free themselves, I give them no quarter. I drive my weapon further into their body, eliciting a counterattack from the warg.

Before the struggling monster can do anything, however, a sudden wind flows vertically beside me. I could tell by the following glint; it was Choe's broadsword. He decapitated the beast, its foul head rolled on the icy floor.

He's quick to take the bloody part and put it in a linen sack. Quivering me is still impaling the wolf's corpse in front of me.

What just happened at last crosses my brain. I can't fully grasp it, and that scares me. What triggered it? Where did that rage come from? I aim to keep calm and collected at all times. Many other thoughts cross my mind in an instant.

"Madison?"

A big, furry paw lends on my shoulder and I'm once again brought back to the real world. I finally let go of my weapon and slowly turn towards Choe.

"Mission complete." Amidst pained grunts, he raises the sack so I can see it.

"Yeah, good job."

As I pick out my weapon from the fallen body, glance back at Choe, who is picking up the lantern. His moves look pained, I can also hear him grunting under his breath. I approach and call him.

"Yeah?" He turns while he speaks, movements pained as before.

"Stand still."

I snatch the lantern off his paws and, for the third time, investigate his torso. It's terrible. The scrapes from last time are still there and don't seem to have worsened. The fresh injuries are the most troublesome; two bite marks. From the variation in size, one must be from the parent; the venomous warg.

Many thoughts invade my mind. This time, I can control myself to the point of performing a thoughtful action.

I take the weapon from the bear's back and attach the sack with the head to my belt. The confused bear tries to plot a question, but I stop him.

"Don't overdo it."

The man goes back to huffing. I force his arm around my neck, grabbing his right wrist with my right paw. With some difficulty, I place my left arm around his waist and grasp the belt holding his leather pteruges.

"C'mon. Let's get out of here," I say in a monotone voice.

I'm able to drag Choe to the entrance of the cave. He grunted with pain all the way here. We need a place to put down our tent, then I'll be able to heal him properly. However, I realize, in the middle of the dark forest, that I don't have a place in mind to camp. As I stop to think of something, the heaving bear raises his arm, pointing towards the forest.

"Clearing," he says.

"Got it."

I carry that body into the trees, trusting my companion.

It isn't long before we actually reach a small glade. We didn't pass through here on our way to the cave, so I assume he noticed it among the trees. I make a mental note to praise him on that later.

I lean Choe against a tree and tell him to wait still; he obeys. I pull out of a belt satchel a folded piece of leather. With an incantation, I toss it in the middle of the glade. The packet bursts with magic and I watch the tent appear.

Five poles support it, the shelter has the size and height of a bedroom. It was quite an expanse; but it provided enough comfort and storage space to compensate for it. After tossing the bounty and the sword in, I go back and carry the bear inside.

The inside of the tent is as cozy as it is practical. Two pole-mounted torches by the entrance and one in the back provide enough light for the tent itself and its surroundings; illuminating without drawing attention. Close to the entrance to the right there is a chest full of survival essentials and miscellaneous items. To the left, logs, a simple wooden cupboard with food, and several canteens with water. At the back there are two straw beds with simple pillows on either side; Choe's was larger and more used. Canvas covered the walls, ceiling and floor.

I lay down Choe's body on his back in his bed. Next, I remove his belt satchels, strip his leather breastplate over his head and his leather braces from his arms. I tell him not to move before standing up.

I remove my own gloves, armor and weapons, tossing them in the general direction of my bed. I spontaneously light the torches, get some healing herb powder and soap from the chest, small pieces of cloth from the cupboard, and take a canteen.

I sit by the lying bear and start working on his body. Thankfully, he had already stopped bleeding. The healing method for this type of injury is nothing special; first rinse it with water and soap, apply the herbs, and finally cover it with a bandage if needed. I do as they taught me.

The bear cringes with pain with every move. I can do little but reassure him as I continue treatment. Most scratches are on his belly and easy to deal with. My automatic behavior stops when I finally have to deal with the bites.

I can see now in the light. Two injuries were close to each other, near his belly button. The gashes made aren't merely holes made by fangs, thrashing by the beasts did quite the damage.

Once again, bad thoughts flood my mind. The pain he felt, the one he's feeling now, the possibility that I can't heal him, what will happen then, how to respond to all this. Darkness consumes my senses, I can only hear the shaking of the objects I clasped.

A sudden warmness replaces the item in my left paw. I feel a pressure compressing it. My daze fades as I look at my mitt. The large bear's paw grasps it.

"Maddie..." A look of worry on his face.

I have nothing to say back. My senses have returned, but doubts cloud me still. He rubs my paw pads and calls me again.

"It's okay," he says with a grunt. "You can do it."

That suddenly brings me back to normal. I am not fully free of fear, but right now Choe needs me. I caress his paw before talking to him.

"You're right, sorry." I wipe my teary-eyes. "You shouldn't move, you know?"

He chuckles and lets go.

"Alright, doc," he answers.

Inhale, exhale. I can finally continue.

The treatment is no ordeal. Sure, he squirms with the soap and the herbs, but that is to be expected. Now for the last part: dealing with the poison.

We don't have antidotes available, nor can we wait to get to town. My healing magic will have to do. My master taught well, but often my anxieties get the better of me when dealing with more serious injuries.

I extend my paws, putting them just above the larger wound. I shake again before I even get the chance to recite the Detox incantation. I look for a way to calm myself, eyes dart all over the room. My vision lands on Choe's face. He has a pained expression, but gives me a sheepish nod. I calm down enough to concentrate.

I recite the incantation and a warm glow beams from my palms. Good memories and feelings intensify healing magic, so I try to focus on that. The rest of the world falls away as I remember good times I had; ones I had with Choe. I reflect on the three years we spent adventuring together, and the time before that.

Those thoughts make me blush, and I lose concentration. It should be fine, though. I spent more time chanting than needed because of my daydreaming. I sigh and turn to the bear.

"How are you feeling?"

"Better. The pain isn't as intense."

"Good. Let me just wrap you up."

I lay the pieces of cloth over the bite wounds, which have mostly formed their scabs thanks to the spell. I bring from the chest bandages to wrap them. Thanks to their location, I can get them both at once. I help the bear raise his massive frame, then I roll the gauze around his belly and tie it at the end.

I let the bear rest for a while. I suddenly remember to check his lower body. I imagine it's all fine, but "a healer leaves no stone unturned." Is what my teacher used to say, anyway.

I make my move to the lower body, that causes the bear to jump a bit.

"Hey now. I thought I was supposed to stay still," he says through a lustful grin.

I shoot at him a deadpan expression and intentionally tear one of his leather boots from his foot. The force I put into it causes the bear to yelp. Now I'm the one grinning.

I remove the remaining boot with care this time, and finally I tug off the pteruges belt. The bear now lay flustered only in his loincloth. With my paws I survey his legs, trying my best to ignore the noticeable bulge between his legs; and mine. Just as I thought, he has no injuries down there.

Eased, I return to my previous spot, gazing at the body beneath me. Sure, I'm glad he's recovered, but to see him in such a state really hurt.

"So, how is it looking, doc?" he says, breaking my trance.

"You'll make it this time, bear," I answer with a smile.

He looks dejected for a second. Before I can interject, he talks.

"I put myself in danger a lot, huh? I know how you feel about having to heal me like this, and I still endanger myself."

I turn my head to his face. Where did that come from?

"I just wish you had a better partner." he says, looking away from me.

There he goes again. I have to do something this time. I slide myself closer to his face. Once there, I call him so he looks at me. I pull my sleeves so he can see my arms beneath.

"See? Not a scratch!"

I pull my shirt next, exposing my stomach to him.

"Nothing! And it's all thanks to you."

I put it back down, looking at how his eyes fixate on me.

"You're always like this," I tell him. "One bad thing and you believe the worst of yourself."

I catch myself close to tears and as embarrassed as I can be. I cannot keep my eyes on him as I face the mitts on my lap.

"You are so caring and brave... I wish I didn't need to remind you every time."

My senses fail me again and I'm pulled back to that darkness. Then I feel a warmness on my cheek. In my moments of anxiety, the bear had crept his paw there and his face close to mine.

"Too bad," I feel his breath toast my muzzle, "I need you."

He puts his mouth to mine, his slick tongue invading my muzzle. It shocks me, but I really want this. I respond by pulling the back of his neck and letting my tongue meet his. Intense is the sound of our wrestling mouths; neither one really wants to let go. We carry on for a minute before we can stop.

Our noses meet and I look into his brown eyes as he retracts his paw.

I push him gently back to a lying position. He thuds to the bed, letting out a fake yelp. He looks up at me.

"You're still not supposed to move, you know."

"Right, right," he answers.

"I think we both needed that, though," I smile at him.

"Yeah..."

"Now, seriously stay still. I'll prepare some food."

I make a small fire using the logs on the cabin so I can prepare some salted meat we have inside. I also put some savory herbs between a cut loaf of bread. I put it all on a wooden plate once they're done.

I sit again next to the bear, offering the plate. The bear, however, only responds with a naughty smirk.

"Something wrong?"

"Well, I can't move. Doc's orders."

That devious bear. Part of me wants to deny him this, but he's been through a lot today. I'll spoil my bear companion this time.

"Open wide, then."

He looks wide-eyed at me. I don't think he expected that to work. He obeys and I'm now feeding a very flustered semi-naked bear. Adorable. He finishes up and I bring him a canteen of water. He drinks it whole as I finally get to eat.

I do a check-up around the tent and outside before I get ready for bed. Choe's mostly silent in this interval. I douse the torches by the entrance, then sit on my straw bed.

As I remove my boots, I feel like someone is watching me. I look to Choe only to find him yanking his head away from me. That sneak. I keep going, though. It's not like he hasn't seen it. I remove my other boot, my socks, and my cuffed pants. I'm left only with my short braies and my long-sleeved shirt. I know he looked this whole time.

I drop one last time by the bear and examine his body. All seems in order. Even as I slide my paw through his fur, he doesn't seem to grunt.

"How are you feeling?" I say while turning to meet his face.

"Pretty good. It barely even hurts."

"I'm glad... Well, good night."

"Wait," he says as he puts his paw on my shoulder, caressing it.

I let him do that for a while, I quite like it. However, he must rest. So I reach to stop him.

When suddenly, I fly over the bear's body. I land gently beside him on the bed. I just realized what happened.

When Choe needs to subdue someone but doesn't actually want to hurt them, he'll use this crazy grappling move. He puts an enormous amount of brute force into it, but the target lands softly on the ground. I'm always impressed when he does it, and sometimes he will do it just to show off. That's what he just did.

"You shouldn't be doing that!"

"C'mon," he says, forcing me into a spooning position. "Let me do this."

The healer in me wants to push him away and go to sleep in my bed. However, I fear I'm too dazed and, frankly, aroused to protest.

His body feels so warm behind me. I feel his head creep in between my shoulder and neck. He kisses around the area repeatedly. I moan a bit, since I'm still surprised.

Next he puts his paw under my shirt, caressing my belly; I feel it drift in circles. I instinctively put mine over his left arm. My paw pads gliding over the bumps of his muscular limbs. He lifts my shirt and I can now feel his hot belly and virile pectorals against my back.

Without noticing it, I started purring. I'm quite ashamed of it. Try as I might, I can't contain it right now. He switches to rubbing my stomach in an up and down motion before he whispers.

"Gods," he says. "You are so handsome."

That's the compliment I can never take. I don't think I'm ugly per se, but I never thought of my physique as particularly attractive. Only in intimate moments with Choe would I believe it. Right now, I'm the most handsome man in the world.

"Yeah?" I babble between purrs.

"Yes... Way more than that owl in town."

"You sure? He was hot."

He snickers.

"I knew I'd get the answer out of you."

I realize what I had just said. I fell right into his trap. My embarrassment stops my purring. He chuckles again before talking.

"Yeah. Want me to show you?"

Before I fully understand what he means, his paw moves through my body, stopping at my waist. He now holds my braies. I see where this is going.

I'm unable to tell him to stop because of his condition again. He tugs my undergarments until he exposes my backside.

"Here," he says as he works his palm all over my rear. "Aren't they perfect?"

He slides his mitt all over my cheeks again and again. Often he gropes one of them, often he spreads them and lets his dry fingers hover over my hole. I'm left moaning and gasping, unable to do anything else about the situation.

"Oh, Choe."

"I see you agree." He kisses under my chin.

Just as he started, he stops. He moves those paws to my front, where my shaft now lies stiff, bulging the little underwear I have left. He just lays the fingers over it before putting his muzzle to my ear.

"You're probably trying to tell me to stop," he whispers. "But please let me do this."

I can feel his hardness pressing against my butt. We are aware of the circumstances, but I think the situation aroused us too much to stop right now. Being a lousy doctor, I nod and let him continue.

"Thank you," he whispers. He returns his head to the previous position.

He finally frees my member, it bobs around as he does. He puts the tip of his index over the head and circles it around. I moan and gasp with his moves. The bear toys around a bit more, running a single finger up and down my length, fiddling my foreskin, even reaching my ball sack groping it.

At some point, I lost control of my upper body. I grunt and whimper while holding the back of his neck, torso half-turned. I call his name repeatedly, and he calls mine. Once he feels I start to leak some pre-cum, he grips my penis; he is ready to finish this.

"May I?" he says.

I can't even form words to answer. Between gasps, I hum a confirmation, in hopes he can understand it. He lips under my chin once more and then he begins.

He jerks my dick at a slow and gentle pace. I feel it all. Not just the motions on my rod, but his large body behind me, his hot breath against my chest, I can also feel the individual straws that form the bedding. It all hits me at once, making the entire experience even hotter.

His momentum increases. I'm beyond moaning at this point; I scream with pleasure. I become self-aware for a second, imagining how far someone can hear me. The thought evacuates my mind as the bear's speed rises further.

"Choe! I'm so close!"

"Good. Cum, I want to feel it."

He wasn't as loud as me, but I could feel that he was enjoying it as I was. The way he said that too, it was so sensual. I reach my limit and moan loudly one last time.

He stops once he feels me shoot. I shut my eyes as I release, but I can imagine what's happening down there. I think of the white liquid firing the bursts that paint the canvas ground, the bedding and the bear's paw.

I'm now sweating and panting; we both are. I feel him stroke my sensitive cock one last time; he slides it clean with his paw. My sights return as I see him bring that mitt to his face. He licks his palm pads and everything in between.

He puts his limbs around my abdomen, giving me a tight bear hug. He also moves his head to behind mine so he can lay on the pillow.

I'm suddenly reminded of his hardness, now wetness as well. I try to reach for it, turn my body, anything that will allow me to reciprocate; alas, my strength fails me.

I reserve myself to cuddling Choe for the night. I lay barely awake, nestled in the bear. I babble something resembling "good night."

"I love you." he responds.

That takes me aback. He never said that before. As much as I want to talk about it, I'm taken by slumber.

Light flooding the tent forces my sensitive eyelids open. I'm usually much quicker to wake, doing so as soon as there is any sunlight. The emotions of the previous evening took their toll. My heavy sleeper partner seems out cold still.

In the night, he broke our spooning formation. He lies now on his back, his snores echo while drool oozes off his open mouth. He looks absolutely adorable. I best check his condition once again; a good night's rest does wonders for healing.

I look around his torso before inspecting with my paws. It all seems in order. Soon my scanning touch turns to affectionate fondling. My fingers kneading his fur, my paws groping his pecs and shaking that belly. Through it all, the bear remains unconscious.

"At least he's not in pain," I think to myself. That's not the only thought I have, though. Since he did not wake from any of my previous actions, I get a little more adventurous.

I sit on my knees, placing myself by the slumbering man. I think many times over what I'm about to do. Ultimately, I decide to just do it before I get too self-conscious. I lean in, my muzzle hovers over the fur in the middle of his chest.

I sniff a little. His scent only pops into my nostrils. We haven't bathed in a while, so layers of actual filth hide his natural smell. I have no other choice. If I want to feel it, I need to get closer.

I now bury my nose in Choe's fur. Awkwardness takes over my thoughts; if he catches me like this, he'll laugh for hours. I best give up. This is beyond silly, anyway. I inhale so I can sigh; I completely forgot my position.

Then it all hits me at once. The dirty smells are still here, but a deep, virile musk overpowers them. It sings, dominates my nose. In a strange way is like getting one of his warm bear hugs.

I recoil to get some fresh air. Then jump back in to nuzzle the fur again; I don't even care about subtlety any more. Every sniff brings memories of him to the front of my mind. All the good times, bad times, and even mundane ones feel condensed in this odor; all so special.

I snap to face Choe; he looks irresistible right now. It could have something in his scent, I have to be with him right now.

I mount his body, my knees around his waist, face-to-face. Even if his mouth gapes, I put my fingers beneath his chin and bring our lips together. I plant the kiss deep in his muzzle; that seems to rouse the bear.

He's shocked at the situation in front of him, pleasantly so. Once I feel him reciprocate, I become surprised as well.

He goes further still, hugging me with one of his meaty arms while raising his upper body. We carry on for a good while, tongues wrestling, lips smacking. Once we part I can only look into his eyes as does he. He breaks the silence.

"Well, good morning to you too." He follows with a wide smile.

That's the breaking point. My mind is still a bit scrambled from earlier. Coherent thoughts escape me. There's only one thing I want to say to the bubbly bear in front of me.

Inhale, exhale.

"I love you."

That's the only possibility. Embarrassing that, after all this time we spent together, only after doing such deviance, I am truly made aware of this truth.

The bear's expression shifts. I thought it was confusion, as if he couldn't make out what I said. The bear blushes, his eyes dart away from me. He tries to face me and say something, but only stutters instead; this happens many times.

I can't tell how long that goes on for, but it feels like hours. Based on what he said last night, I thought I'd get an immediate response, but now I fear the worst. Whatever his answer is, what his feelings truly are, I don't want us to part. So I attempt to make as if none of this ever happened.

"I..."

"I love you too, Madison."

He interrupted me. I notice my fluster. It doesn't take long for tears to form in my eyes. I sniffle, a silly smile forms in my muzzle. Many tears droop.

"Hey now," he says with a teary voice. "Now it's not time to be crying."

"Likewise."

I clear the streaks from his eyes with my pads. After I finish, he drags his paws across both my cheeks.

"My Maddie. My beautiful Maddie. You make me so happy."

I grab one of his mitts and caress its back for a while. My vision plunges deeply into his eyes, I feel him do the same. We smile the entire time.

I give him a quick peck; he turns it into a longer deal. As much as I'd like to remain here like this, with him, we have a bounty to collect.

"C'mon, we'll have time for more of that later," I say while standing up.

"Please? Just a little more?"

I dare not look at the bear. A battle against his pleading looks is one I can't win.

We take our time checking the tent, its contents, our equipment and, of course, the bounty. Once I store the tent in its compact form, I turn to Choe.

"You good?"

"Yup," he exclaims. "The road is that way. We'll be back in town in no time."

I look at the direction he pointed to. With a nod, I proceed. As I do, however, I feel two large furry arms embrace me from behind, a wet nose nuzzling the back of my head.

Devious bear. I draw his arms close to me. Nestled here, only now I feel ready to face the day.