FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

Matt slid to his feet as Jenny took a deep breath and slid along to the door. Well, not literally; much as her movements were now strangely fluid she was at least still upright. 'Gliding' could be considered a better term for her new gait. Regardless of the definition, her footsteps took her to the door, which she opened.

Stood on the steps were two expressionless men in sober suits. They appeared unconcerned about the snow and the small crowd of onlookers. Behind them, parked on the side of the road, was a van bearing the insignia of the British Event Board. It was likely that even if nobody remained on the street who had seen Jenny ungainly dash to safety, that vehicle alone would have brought them to watch.

Both men produced small leather wallets bearing BEB insignia. "We're here about your report," the one on the left. "We apologise for being late," added the one on the right. "The weather, you know."

Apparently done with their peasantries, the pair stepped inside, tapping snow from their shoes as they came. Jenny showed them through to the front room, where Matt was waiting, embarrassed by his new additions. However, neither men seemed to care about the fact they were in a room with two people displaying random animal features. Jenny considered that if you worked for a group that dealt with cutlery that began to scream when used on broccoli, mere bunny ears and horns were hardly something to get upset about.

Both agents were soon settled with cups of tea. Jenny cleared her throat and nodded. "So are you here to take us to a hospital?" she asked. The agents shrugged. "That depends on the answers to a few questions, miss," one replied.

With that, the agents began to barrage Jenny and Matt with seemingly nonsensical questions. They came one after the other, taking turns to ask. Matt and Jenny's head swivelled back and forth like spectators at a tennis match, stuttering out replies as best they could.

"Have you ever experienced a burning sensation when listening to the following music?"

"How many fingers could I be holding up?"

"How many types of cheese are you allergic to?"

"Do you ever experience a yellowish tinge to your vision after sneezing?"

"Have you ever been to any of the following coffee shops?"

"If your identity was stolen, what would be the likeliest method the thieves used to get hold of it?"

On and on the interrogation went. Jenny felt her head spinning a little as they came faster, almost overlapping. The agents took no notes; they simply asked and asked and asked...

Without warning the agents stood up and put their hands out. Jenny stood and looked at it dumbly before she reached out and shook it.

"Thank you for your time," the agent said, pumping her hand gently. "We'll see ourselves out."

"Eh? What? Really...but," Jenny shook her head, her ears perking up. "But what about us? Don't we need to go to hospital or into quarantine or something?"

"Yes! How are we supposed to go to work like this?" Matt indicated his ears. "We can't go outside, let alone just go on like nothing has happened!"

The agent slid a card into Jenny's hand. "Call your employer and tell them to call the number given on this card," he explained. "We will explain the situation. You can call the number too for further information." With that, the pair of them headed for the door. "We'll be seeing you, both," shot one of them over their shoulder before the door closed, and the agents left both Jenny and Matt confused, frustrated and a little angry.