FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

Warmth was the first thing I felt coming out of that dreamless sleep. It was the quickly ruined by the pounding in my head. I rolled over onto my side, groaning from the pain. It reminded me why I usually never drank too much; especially after... No, I wasn't about to think about that or else other parts of my body might start to ache as well. God, to be young again I thought, sighing and trying to bury my face into the pillow.

"Welcome back to the land of the living," said the familiar voice of my roommate.

"Very funny, Troy," I grumbled as I turned to face him.

I went slack jaw when I saw Troy. Normally he wore jeans and a sleeveless muscle shirt, but not right now. His cinnamon, shoulder length hair was tied back in a pony tail and not at all wavy, like it usually was. A leather studded harness crossed over his defined, Spartan chest and shapely abs. It was definitely not something I had ever expected to see him wearing. The same went for the leather pants that hugged his lower half. I tried not to burst out laughing at the irony of a bull wearing leather, synthetic as it was. The material still felt and looked the same, but no cows were put to death to make it, much to the relief of what few cow herds were still around.

"Why are you wearing-?"

"Don't ask." Troy cut me off.

His green eyes looked at me sternly.

"I won't but...It does look good on you," I offered.

It actually complemented his mostly crème colored, thin fur very nicely, though I wasn't sure how he would react to the compliment. The black of the leather contrasted nicely and even helped bring attention to the few dark brown blotches that covered his body and left eye.

"I only do this because the pay is good and it's...well...Carla likes it," he said turning away. He might have blushed slightly but I wasn't sure.

"Carla?" I smirked despite my throbbing head.

Troy didn't reply and instead grabbed a white plastic bottle tossing it at me. It landed on the bed, the pills rattling inside. The noise made my head throb.

"That's Clearol. Kalus said you'd probably need some," Troy said. "Next time try not to drink so much."

He had a concerned look on his face. It was the look that always made me feel guilty. As a reporter I had to ask questions, it had become part of my nature to pry and it seemed to be one of my strengths professionally. Privately it sucked. I remembered a good dozen past interviews where I had asked the wrong questions. Heck one had landed me in the unemployment line. I reached over and touched the bull's firm fore-arm.

"Thank you for looking out for me. Did the Wolf Man tell you anything about what happened last night?"

"You mean other than you getting ridiculously drunk from a couple of beers and a mojito?" Troy grinned, almost laughing. "Of course you passing out on his bed was pretty funny, too. Expect some rather interesting photos to develop from that."

"What!? You didn't!" I exclaimed.

"No I didn't. But Ralph did." Try smiled, looking at his holo card. "Any-way, I need to get going if I don't want to be late for work."

Troy left me with a buzzing in my head that was different from the hangover. Who was Carla? I wondered if she was animalized as well. If she was human was it legally bestiality if they had sex? Oh I would definitely ask that one next time I went to The Den. I also wondered how I had made it home. Did I do anything at The Den that I would come to regret? I started sorting through it all as I got up and went to the shower.

"Good morning Michael. Your shower is prepared. Your mail box has one bill, two insurance ads, and one catalog from IKEA. Would you like to view them?" The droll female voice of my apartment's Ready computer terminal said.

"No, no, and shut the hell up for the ten millionth time!" I shouted back.

Every apartment in Kaldor City, if not the whole nation, had these infernal Ready terminals. They were supposed to help with the house-hold by storing your emails, news headlines, appointments, and so on. I just found the insincere, monotone voice so damn annoying; convenient, but annoying especially at...

"Ready console, what time is it?" I asked as I stripped and stepped into the glass, cylindrical shower.

"The current time is now 1800 hours," replied the calm, emotionless voice.

"Shit," I muttered as the warm spray of water splashed over my body.

I had wasted most of the day sleeping and had nothing to show for it. While the Ready terminal was active I quickly recorded the information from the previous night under my private login. I tried to remember as much as possible from the previous night, including my personal impressions of the Wolf Man. I had to have some sort of story by the end of the week and that was in three days. A sense of panic floated through my head. The last thing I needed was to lose my job. I should have spent some time writing the article but I decided to go back to The Den instead. There wasn't much I could do at six pm and a few Clearol pills should have been enough to get rid of this headache. Butterflies appeared in my stomach. Was I nervous about the article or seeing the Wolf Man again? Amy mind wandered as I closed my eyes, letting the water wash the soap away from my brown hair. I could almost feel that warm sensation of fur against my skin. The shower stopped suddenly and absence of warmth sent a shiver down my spine and snapped me back to reality. What the hell was wrong with me? I was probably just so wrapped up in the job that I was confusing myself.

I was curious; that much was certain. Was it more than professional? I stared at the foggy mirror as I toweled myself, the blurred outline of my trim beard and pale face looked back blankly. I thought back to when I took Troy in. It wasn't just the cash I wanted. No. I needed to know more about these people. You spend too much time watching those old holos films of wolves, Michael Jones. The memory of my mother's voice sent an emotional shiver through me. My parents had been hard, strict, and had grown up stuck in a way of thinking from a by-gone era. They made their disdain for the way "this country is going," well known. Animalized people in their eyes were blasphemous, "an insult to God." How I hated sitting in those stone pews in a sterile building, listening to some old man going on about the terrors of hell, how to avoid temptation, when to vote, what to wear, and never ever touch yourself. I smirked and scratched the crotch just to spite that memory.

Why was it that most religions seemed bent on denying pleasure? All it did was make people bitter, like my folks, bitter and always complaining about everyone and everything. What's worse was everything was always some-one else's fault and never their own. I was elated when I finally moved out. I couldn't stand the negativity around them and my own interests and world views were shaping up quite differently from theirs. I hadn't spoken to them in years and I had no desire to do so, after all I was now one of those "lost souls" they would always be blaming for the ills of the world.

I tried to get the thoughts of my parents out of my head. Instead I looked through my plastic drawers, looking for something to wear. I was conflicted on whether to try and dress to impress or just go casual. I didn't want to waste more time on a simple wardrobe change so I just popped a couple of pills into my mouth and pulled a black tank top over my head, sliding a pair of black pants up my legs. I tugged a pair of sneakers on, and threw my brown leather jacket over my shoulders. My wardrobe was not the most stylish around but it was comfortable.

I decided to take public transit rather than the car, just in case another repeat of the other night should happen. Fortunately the Red line had a stop near The Den and one near my home. For a Wednesday, the subway was more crowded than usual. I chalked it up to Rush Hour. I maneuvered around the other riders and took one of the few empty seats. A friendly chimed sounded and the twin doors to the car started to slide closed, but not before a large brown-furred hand stopped them. Bruce from The Den slipped between the halted doors, panting a bit as he grabbed one of the metal hand rails that ran along the ceiling of the car. The bear sat down in the only other free space next to me once the train started to move. I guess I hadn't noticed it last night, but he was large. Not in terms of bulk, though his ursine animalization would have added a little extra, but in terms of muscle. The black shirt that clung to his body like a second skin only accented his built physique. It was sleeveless and seemed to look more like a vest only it covered his rounded gut. A pair of black dress pants completed his wardrobe. His face was rounded with heavier, darker fur along his jaw line almost like a beard. It seemed silly but it made me wondered if animalized people had beards. Did they shave? How did they bathe? A slew of questions formed in my head and lost in my own head unaware that Bruce had even asked me something.

"Hey? You ok?" he asked in a deep, baritone voice as he looked at me with rather his small blue eyes.

"Oh, sorry about that lost. I was in thought for a moment," I apologized.

"You didn't respond to my question. I was a bit worried," he replied, adjusting is position in the seat.

"Is something the matter?" I asked, noticing he was fidgeting quite a lot.

"Yeah, damn subway cars aren't built for larger" He made a disgusted sound before standing quickly and grabbing a handle to balance him-self.

I looked over and noticed that the bruin had actually been sitting in two seats. The arch of the second one must have been too much of a pain to him. I couldn't imagine the problems that someone of his size would have. He was rubbing his rather rounded ass with one large hand. He almost had to hunch over in the train just to stand up. One of the other passengers snickered softly, but we both ignored them. I wondered how many problems an animalized person had to go through. Did tails get in the way? Did reptilian people need to maintain their temperature and take care of their scales? I imagined fangs were a bitch to get used to. More and more questions popped into my head and I became more determined to get them answered.

"You're the reporter from last night right?" he asked, eyeing me a bit more carefully.

"How did you know?"

"I read your ID, remember? That and the big wolf told me. Heading back to get more answers or more liquor?" He asked with a grin. "Those photos were quite humorous."

My stomach turned into a cauldron of embarrassed rage and I couldn't stop the flood from erupting out of my lips.

"Is that what you people do? Take embarrassing photos of your patrons and post them for all the club to see!?" I shouted.

"Whoa, whoa! You were the one who got piss drunk in the manager's lounge," Bruce shot back. "The photo's aren't anything too bad anyway and they're only in the manager's office. It's not like they're posted up behind the bar or something."

There was a small sense of relief to know that the general public wasn't seeing the mysterious photos. Still, it was troubling that strangers could see me in what might not be the most professional of circumstances.

"I take it this means I'm pretty well known by the staff now?" I sighed, regretting that my cover had been blown so quickly. I preferred anonymity.

"Only those with access to Kalus' office which includes Troy, Ralph, Cassandra, and I," admitted Bruce. "By the way my name is Bruce."

The bear offered his hand towards me. I grasped it and shook it. The hand was easily twice the size of my own. The warmth of the thick brown fur caused a shiver to creep down my spine again. Bruce shook hands rather gently; given his large stature I was almost certain he could rip my arm off with little effort.

"Michael, but Mike will do." I smiled back. "So you're on your way to work, then?"

"Nope, I have the night off. I'm just going to hang out. Where are you heading?"

"The Den. I still have a job to do and from what I found out last night there are still a lot of unanswered questions," I explained curtly, still fuming at the idea of the photos.

"What sort of questions?" he asked, quirking a brow.

I couldn't help but notice his pectoral muscles flex as he held onto the hand rail.

"My boss wants to know how animalized people are going to vote in the coming elections. Plus he wants me to find out what animalized night life is like. The public has a lot of questions about The Den."

"And what do you think of The Den so far?" he asked as the train came to a stop.

'It seems interesting," I replied as we both exited. "To be honest, last night is still a bit of a blur. I got some answers from the Wolf Man but most lead to more questions."

"Yeah Kalus can be a bit of a mystery when he wants to be."

We came out of the subway station and into the cool evening air. Even here, in the south, it had been unseasonably cold. I didn't have winter clothes because I had sold them before moving out of Meridian City. Most likely it was snowing up there and that was the one thing I missed. This far south, I was lucky to see an inch a year never mind an old fashioned northeaster. What I didn't miss was the family bickering over the coming holidays. I jumped in surprise as Bruce pulled me next to him. His blue eyes seemed to have a sense of worry about them. Were all animalized humans so physical?

"Uh...Hi," I said uncomfortably.

"Sorry. You just looked cold. There are some advantages to having fur all over, you know," he replied.

"Yeah I can imagine. Tell me is it common for animalized humans to be so relaxed about personal space?" I asked.

Bruce dropped his arm from my shoulders and he backed off a little bit. I turned to look at him but he was avoiding my gaze. If I didn't know better I would have guessed the big brute was embarrassed. Someone so big being embarrassed amused me even if I did feel a bit bad for causing it. Perhaps it was normal for animalized people to be so forward.

"Sorry," he said, clearing his throat sheepishly. "I guess some of us do forget about personal boundaries. I'm used to hanging around some people who are less cautious about their space."

"So, do most animalized people see themselves as animals rather than humans?" I asked.

"Not sure. Kalus certainly does but he was born animalized. For most I would say yes," he said. There was a twinge of sadness in his voice; almost regret. I dismissed it. Bruce was no doubt a well of information that I could tap into for this job. A deadline was a deadline after all.

"Why did you choose to be animalized?"

"I'd rather not get into that," he grumbled.

I decided to shut up. I didn't want to risk the possibility of pissing Bruce off. I was afraid he might actually tear me limb from limb. It was that same sense of fear and nervousness that had arisen in my gut when I met Kalus face to face and it made me back away slightly from the large bear. Bruce stopped before we reached The Den and scratched his head

"Listen Mike, we kind of got off on the wrong foot here. I just came here to relax, to talk to friends, and, well you're here for a job right?"

He had me there, but sometimes answers were easier to come by with a bit of social lubrication. Maybe he would be more forthcoming if I humored him and bought him a few drinks. It would be a dick move, but I needed this story.

"The job comes second," I lied. "I always value good friends over business."

"Nice motto, well then let me buy you a drink. Let's make it non-alcoholic this time around," Bruce laughed.

There was no problem getting into The Den that evening. A rather lean looking Doberman was the bouncer and he ushered us in without even so much as looking at our IDs. All Bruce did was tell him I was with him. There were no recriminations from the line of people waiting to get in either. Once inside, things were quieter than the night before. There were a few dancers out on the dance floor. There was no sign of Kalus anywhere.

I did see Troy, though, with and a rather nice looking female, for a rabbit at least. She had white fur and she was wearing a red cocktail dress. His eyes occasionally went from the dance floor to her as she fingered his chest and harness. They seemed to be carrying on a conversation. The rabbit laughed occasionally. Most likely, that was Carla.

Bruce led me to an area beyond the bar. It was a section of the club that was tucked away in the opposite corner from where Kalus's deck. Inside the room was a small bar manned by Ralph, the fox. He was far too busy to notice us as we entered. There were several round tables where a small group of patrons were watching the latest game. Others were drinking and eating a meal. The big bear sat down at a booth in a corner of the room. The round backside was raised higher so the rest of the room was cut from view for the most part. I rounded the booth to see Fred, the lion, wearing a black leather jacket and nursing a drink.

"About time you showed up mate," Fred said, smiling. "Ah Michael right? Didn't get enough last night, eh? Did you come back for more?"

"Yeah, Kalus wasn't totally forth coming," I said, taking off my coat.

"That sounds like Kal alright. Still nice to see he didn't scare you away." He grinned, bringing his tall glass of beer to his lips and made a face at the taste. "Bleh American beer is never as good as the old Irish."

"So Fred would you mind sating my curiosity for a moment?" I asked. Perhaps the lion would be more eager to discuss his animalization than Bruce was.

"Depends on the question, guv."

"Alright, how did we get a British lion, then?" I hadn't heard much about animalized people in other parts of the world.

"I was one of a few members of the military to volunteer for genetic enhancement. I guess being single with no family made the Parliament think I'd be perfect for the procedure It wasn't as much of a hassle if I was sacrificed for the betterment of the technique, you see."

"Ah..."I said, shifting in my seat. I should have been used to getting uncomfortable answers by now, but the thought that a government would even consider human experimentation in this day and age was still unsettling.

Fred laughed as he lifted the half drunk beer towards me and then downed it.

"Relax, mate, I'm just pulling your leg mostly. I wasn't the first to go through with it after all."

A bouncy female otter came by picking up the empty glass. I saw the lewd look in Fred's eyes as he stared at her. She left the table and his eyes followed her like a predator. He rose with a lusty grin on his feline's features, a look that turned my stomach in disgust. I lost almost any respect I had for any personal sacrifices Fred had made in the course of his duty.

"Excuse me, yanks, I need to go relieve some tension," he said grinning as he left the table.

"Don't worry. Fred won't even get to first base," Bruce said," Jen is dating one of the bouncers, but he'll probably just pass out first. Poor guy hasn't been the same since he was animalized. The U.K. just abandoned him after he was proven ineffectual in combat, too from what I have heard."

I felt a pang of guilt about my assumption. It was a shame that he decided to treat others like he had been treated, but I couldn't really blame him I supposed. Bruce slid a bottle of cola over to me that seemed to appear from nowhere. He also had a bottle of beer in his hand. The waitress had probably dropped them off. I wondered if Bruce was just defending Fred so that The Den wouldn't be slandered by any stories I would publish. A crash suddenly filled the room and I looked over the tall back of the booth to see a thin looking German Sheppard checking on Fred's unconscious body. He had fallen onto an empty table, breaking it under his weight. A few waitresses and patrons were attempting to clean the area around him.

"Does that happen often?" I asked turning back to Bruce.

He idly cupped the glass and nodded his head. "Enough that we don't really bother calling the hospital anymore. He'll wake up in a few hours in the Wolf Man's lounge.

He cleared his throat in the brief silence that followed.

" By the way you're pretty handsome dressed like that."

Heat rushed to my cheeks, which would have been cute if I hadn't choked on my soda. "Wha...What?" I asked, barely managing to swallow properly.

Bruce simply smiled. Great. A male animalized person had just hit on me. An uncomfortable feeling began to rise with-in me. I felt like I was going to be sick just from it.

"Excuse me, Mike I'm going to use the rest room," he announced leaving me to stew in my discomfort.

I wondered if this was a joke. It would not have surprised me if Kalus or Troy had put Bruce up to it. It probably was another prank, just like those photos. Holy shit the photos! I had nearly forgotten about them and remembering made the feeling in my stomach worse. Were they nude photos? How much had Bruce really seen? I was so lost in thought that I didn't notice that Ralph had left the bar and was standing in the entry way of my booth. I looked up, startled and realized I was sweating.

"Well now what has you so flustered?" The fox asked as he sat down next to me, taking a white towel from his apron and dabbing my forehead.

"THE PHOTOS! THE GODDAMN PHOTOS! I bet you had a fun time taking them didn't you?"

The fox cowered from my loud voice and I checked myself when I noticed that the patrons in nearby tables were staring.

"I- I didn't mean to offend you," apologized Ralph as he shifted to sit across from me nervously.

He was being honest. Something in his blue eyes told me that much. There was sincerity there. I wondered just how old he was when he decided to become animalized and if he really understood the consequences of his choice. He seemed too young and naive. Maybe I was just being cynical.

"So what did you do to me while I was passed out?" I said, sulking.

"You haven't seen them? Well, trust me we didn't do anything damaging. It was rather funny, though, when you think about it. One moment you were about to walk out the door and the next you were face first in the Wolf Man's chest, snoring." He laughed.

"I snored?" I blinked.

"Yep," Ralph grinned.

I couldn't help but chuckle at myself. He was right. The whole situation last night from his perspective was completely ridiculous.

"So was that what was bugging you?" he asked.

"Um, yeah, that and I just got hit on." I looked over at Bruce as he came out of the restroom and headed to the bar.

Ralph looked over the booth's back and shook his head slowly.

"Don't worry you can take the photos with you if you want. As for Bruce? Sad story there," he sighed.

I looked at him perplexed at the statement.

"Remember what Kalus said last night about people choosing this life? Well Bruce chose to become animalized for only one reason. He had a boyfriend who was animalized, a cheetah. He got caught up with this guy, thought they were the real deal," the fox explained, sitting back in his seat heavily. "That's why Bruce became a bear. It was what the cheetah wanted. So Bruce sold his home and changed his life for good just to move in with him. That's when everything went to hell."

"What happened?" I asked after he paused for a moment.

Ralph looked over his shoulder to make sure Bruce was still at the bar.

"The cheetah got involved in some seedy stuff: parties, drugs, and other crazy shit. Before Bruce could even try to stop him he left for Meridian City with some drugged up teen in his arms."

"Why doesn't Bruce just get the procedure reversed?" I asked.

"Are you kidding? There's no reversal method that's been proven safe and effective. But needless to say, Bruce-"

"Let's talk about something else," I said as the bear in question left the bar and started making his way back towards the booth.

Ralph stopped talking and nodded.

'Keep it hush-hush." He said.

Bruce came back with two more drinks. One looked like a frozen daiquiri and a mug of beer. He handed me the frozen drink with a smile.

"It's a non-alcoholic strawberry. I hear they're some of the best here."

He looked nervous. I supposed it was because of my reaction to his earlier comment. I couldn't believe that he had gone through it just for a boyfriend. Of course I had seen love do crazier things than change your whole genetic code, so I guess it was possible.

"Thank you for the drink and the compliment. It was just unexpected," I replied sipping the daiquiri. "Hey, this is pretty good."

"That's right, you're just here for professional reasons. I should have kept my fat mouth shut."

"Getting hit on by your interviewee is something new," I said, smiling as I put down the drink. "But I came here to have fun tonight so..." I got out of my seat and stood next to him offering my empty hand. "Let's go dance."

"Really?" he arched a thick brow at me as if he were trying to decide if I was joking.

"Yes I haven't been to a real club since I was a teenager. Come on, let's just have a good time."

He looked stunned as he stared at me like I was a ghost. I had to admit my actions were probably strange, but I wasn't going to get any real answers out of him unless I buttered him up a bit. The large bear's hand gripped mine as he rose. It didn't surprise me that he took the lead as we made our way back to the main room of the club. The dance floor was full now and we had to squeeze by the other patrons who were thrusting and jumping to the beat. I thought I would get lost in the crowd given that most everyone there was taller than me. The thunderous beat of the base was again pounding in my ears as I tried to move and dance with the crowd. Thank goodness I had taken those pills because there was no way I would be able to stand the pounding otherwise. I probably looked like Frankenstein's monster trying to dance. Everyone around me seemed to be moving with more grace by comparison. I nearly felt my heart stop when I realized that Bruce was nowhere to be found. I tried looking for him but every creature seemed to be a blur of different animals and none of them resembled a bear.

I had to get out of there. I wasn't going to get any information this way. Before I could find my way out of the cramped quarters, two large arms criss-crossed over my chest and stomach. I jumped as a hot, humid breath blew over my ear and neck. I instinctively tried to wiggle my way out of the arms but I was clearly over powered.

"You dance way too stiffly. Loosen up,"Bruce's calm voice whispered into my ear. There was a hint of beer on his breath.

"Next time, warn me when you are going to do something like that," I said.

"It's much more fun seeing you squirm."

I could feel his round stomach rubbing into my lower back, as he moved my waist like a puppet, slowly gyrating it in time with the music. His hands started to move to my hips, swaying them with just a bit of his strength. The warmth of his fur tickled my bare arms. Something in me clicked. This wasn't all bad, but something about it was wrong. The speed of it bothered me. I had barely met this guy and here he was, clutching me like his beau on the dance floor. I had to do something to slow him down.

"Bruce, Ralph told me about the cheetah," I told him after the music died down a bit.

The arms loosened on me and I could feel a cool air go down my back as he pulled away.

"That jackass," he grumbled.

"Hey, don't blame him. I just wanted to tell you that I knew, that's all," I lied turning to face him.

His face was filled with rage and pain. If I didn't know that deep down he was still a human I would have fled, but fleeing was something that I wasn't sure he could deal with a second time. I stood my ground, but he dropped his arms and seemed to lose interest. Fuck. I wasn't about to make him feel the same sadness as before. Maybe it was me being a sap, but I didn't want to be the cause of his pain. He had been so kind to me. If he had treated the cheetah with the same respect then Bruce really didn't deserve to be ditched. At the very least I could offer him something. I reached out and grabbed his forearm.

"I'm sorry I just...I wasn't coming here to find...you know..." I let go of his arm.

He lowered his head to a point where I couldn't see much beyond the thick back of his neck. I was making it worse. Why couldn't I just admit that I liked him? Was that so wrong? I blamed my parents' religious teaching. Before I could act further, Bruce was already moving through the undulating crowd.

"Bruce!" I shouted at the top of my lungs, trying to fight my way off of the dance floor. "Wait!"

The beat started up again and the crowd thickened around me. Son of a bitch! I pushed my way through, hearing more than a few protests and shouts, but I honestly didn't care. Bruce was already at the exit to the club as I finally left the floor. I kept shouting but he either couldn't hear me or didn't want to. Oh well. It was a lost cause. I would make it up to him at some point; probably buy him a beer. Ralph was suddenly standing next to me. Was this kid a gossip psychic or something?

"What happened?"

"Bruce got a little more physical than I wanted, that's all," I said

"He'll be alright, I am sure," the fox grinned slyly. "Want to see those photos now?"

"Damn right I do. You better hope they aren't too bad."

"That sounds like a threat."

"If the photos are as bad as I think they are, then it is." I said coldly, trying to sound menacing, if for nothing else than to make sure something like this didn't happen again.

He coughed nervously and lead me to the back corner of the club to a door marked employee's only. He slid a card through the reader next to the door and lead me into a rather nice office area. It had an old fashion feel to it. Wooden desks, lamps, and even a filing cabinet furnished the room and made me feel like I had stepped back in time. A computer on the desk was about the only thing that gave any sense of the present in the room. Another oddity that struck me was the number of wolf pictures on the walls. Ralph went over to a bulletin board and immediately my eyes shot to the photos pinned up to it. I raced over and looked them over.

The first photos simply showed me curled up on Kalus's bed with him next to me. There was one close up of me with my mouth open, apparently trying to show me snoring. One photo had me snuggling a wolf plush toy, another was a group shot of Troy, Ralph, Bruce and Kalus all around me on the bed, and the last one...It was of Kalus with his nose inches away from mine. I took that photo immediately from the board and stared at it, putting it away in my pocket.

"Just going to take this one, the rest seem fine just make sure that they get taken down eventually," I said.

"I am sure Kalus won't mind removing them," nodded the fox.

"Where is Kalus anyway?" I asked.

"He said he had to go away for a meeting tonight. Probably means a support group meeting up in his lounge," Ralph explained.

I raised a brow.

"So Kalus runs a support group?" Maybe tonight wasn't a total waste after all.

"Yeah he and a few members of the animalized community get together once a week and offer their time for people who are new to animalization, interested in it, and of course people having problems," Ralph said.

That sounded very interesting. I had been concerned that I might have had nothing to show for it besides a tiny bit of information on foreign animalization and a tragic love story. Now, there was a support group in a night club, which was definitely something readers would be interested in. No sense in wasting an opportunity like this.

"So the group is for people interested in animalization?" I asked. I had to use something as an excuse to get in. It wasn't a far-fetched lie anyway.

"Yeah those interested in becoming animalized, those with questions about the process, and those who support animalized interests in the community," Ralph answered.

He was uneasy about giving away details about this group. Was there more going on here than just a support group? If so then I was really interested in it now.

"Any chance I could attend the meeting?" I asked.

Ralph chuckled. "I don't think so, you have only been to the club twice and I am sure the last thing that Kalus and the others would want is a reporter in the group."

"You know my reasons for being here aren't just professional," I lied. "I am interested in animalization. I thought I had admitted that much last night."

Ralph seemed to be taking stock of where I stood when he looked me over. I was hoping my white lie would work. A wolf photo on the wall kept on looking at me over Ralph's shoulder. It seemed to be beckoning me, almost as if it knew what I was really after here. No I was here for the job, I tried to convince myself, but that same voice that told me otherwise the night before was back. Was I really interested in becoming something else? I looked at the wolf photo. I had always thought that wolves were beautiful creatures. It was something about their wild natures, the savage fury, and the social aspects of them. I thought about Kalus and how warm his fur had felt the night before...Yeah there was more than just professional reasons here.

"Follow me, I guess. I'll see if Kalus is ok with it," Ralph said, walking out of the office.

I looked back at the photos one last time and a curl on one of them caught my eyes. I folded back the plushie photo and saw a comment written in. "Cute," was all it said and the discovery made me curious. Who wrote it? I presumed it was Kalus, but I couldn't be certain. It did make me blush a little bit as I headed out of the office and followed Ralph up to Kalus's deck. He went into the room. When the door was open, I saw a couple of humans, Kalus, an otter, a grey wolf who looked rather nervous, a tiger in a business suit, and a bull The door closed, leaving me on the deck. I glanced down at the busy dance floor and took out the photo. I stared at it, my mind drifting back to last night's encounter. Was I really doing this for myself? I flipped the photo over and written in the same handwriting as the other was a phrase that made me think. A wolf in human clothing. Was this what Kalus thought? Did he write it? How did he know? He did look at me for a while as if he was searching for something, but how the heck would he know anything about me? More questions and I needed these answered. I heard the door slide open and quickly tucked the photo into my coat pocket and turned to see Kalus standing in the doorway. Ralph quickly walked down the stairs his tail curled between his legs. I noted that tails on animalized people functioned much like their natural relations. Kalus looked at me; his amber eyes still fiery as they were the night before. He seemed to gaze at me a bit colder this time.

"I've had some ballsy people in my club but you certainly have had the biggest so far," he said bluntly.

"Maybe I'm just curious." I said.

"Hmpf. If I didn't know any better I would think you were only after a good article, but..."Kalus walked over and looked over the railing. "There is a possibility that you're being honest."

"I'd be lying if I said that I wasn't after a good story, but I am curious. Why would I have come back here if I wasn't?"

"Infatuation." Kalus simply stated looking down at me.

"What does that even mean?"

Kalus grinned and stepped a bit closer bending down to be eye-level with me.

"You're obsessed aren't you? With wolves?"

I tried to hide the shame in my face because he had hit it on the head. I was obsessed with wolves. I even still had those old wolf movies back at the apartment, my desktop was a wolf picture, and I had a fair share of wolf paraphernalia.

"What does that have to do with this?"

"Everything, I have seen people obsessed with animals go through with the procedure and then realize that it's hell. I have one in there now actually. There is no going back. Genetic changes aren't like a fashion trend. You can't just take off the pelt once the fad is gone," Kalus said; his tone serious. "I am going to let you in, but not for your profession. It's not that I mind the publicity, it's that you NEED to make sure this is something you're serious about before you even consider the possibility of going through with it. I don't need you coming back here in a few months all furry and miserable."

"What makes you think I would become animalized?" I asked, wondering why he even thought I was entertaining the idea.

"You're curious. That's usually how it starts. It did with Ralph and many others before you," He replied as he turned to head back to the room. He turned his head back for a moment. "Besides if you aren't really interested, then you'll head right back down those stairs."

His statement was a challenge that I couldn't face and he knew that. For my job and myself, I had to get more information. Who else would know better about the process than those who had already made that decision anyway? I walked toward Kalus whose black lips curled into a grin as if he had just won a prize.

"Congrats, Michael, you're now truly near the edge," He said as he led me into the room.