FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

"Yowch," Flynn squealed and licked across the paper cut on his finger. Damn book. "Quiet please," the librarians voice tore through the never ending silence of the school library. "These books are so old," Ash whispered, the mock audible in his voice," they could be sold to a museum." Flynn rolled his eyes and continued reading his book. "Don't exaggerate," he replied without looking up. "I'm serious!" Ash insisted," Look at this!" He wiped his finger across a bookshelf and held it in front of his eyes. It was dark grey. "They haven't been touched in centuries!"

The door opened and someone strolled in with loud, heavy footsteps. Flynn liked that about the library. It was the most silent place he knew. Harry pretended to knock on a door by pounding his fist against a metal bookshelf. "Knock, knock," he said. "Quiet please," the librarian repeated, his voice as calm, and deceiving, as usual. "Oh jeez," Harry mumbled and leaned onto the table, flexing his biceps. Flynn knew that Harry was simply showing off, but he kept his mouth shut. He didn't want his 'friend' to get angry. "So," he continued," what have you been doing in your free lesson?" Flynn pushed the frame of his glasses back up his nose. "Studying," he replied," and Ash is complaining about the old library books."

"Oh yes," Ash cut in and pulled a wrinkled, dusty tome bound in leather out of the bookshelves. "Look at this badboy," he said, slamming it onto the table, a ring of dust bouncing of it," it looks like it was bound with rotting meat." He sniffed and stumbled back in repulsion," eugh, and it reeks like something died in there too." For once, Flynn looked up, only to roll his eyes again. "All your exaggerations," he mumbled, but he smelled at it just to be sure. And gagged in disgust. The book actually did smell of rotting flesh. And now where he had a closer look at it, it actually did seem out of place, even in this old library.

Beside the smell , it even looked like something sinister, a predator glooming in the darkness. It didn't even have a title. "Wow," Flynn and Harry whispered in unison, astonished. The leather was rugged and jagged, but it was still in one piece. "I wonder what it's about," Harry mumbled, which was an unusual thing to hear from him. He didn't read books, unlike Flynn and Ash," come on, let's find out." Flynn swallowed, feeling unsure about the tome in front of him. It was emitting this strange presence, almost as if it was alive.

Ash opened the book and the book creaked, almost whispering when he skipped through the pages. The writing was scattered across the papers, which had been stitched together, uttering rhymes in a foreign language. The paper was yellow and some pages were even torn and the boys turned the pages carefully. Finally they stopped at a random page, which clearly had the most readable verses.

"I'm wondering what language this is," Flynn muttered. Harry patted his shoulder with a strong arm. "Hah, if you don't know it, it must really be a strange language," he commented with a chuckle. Ash muttered and placed a finger on the first verse. "That's probably not even a language," he said," the entire book looks like it had been written by a madman." He cleared his throat and began to read. "Edim malek hostats-" Harry punched his shoulder. "What're you doing?" "I'm trying to pronounce this," Ash replied," sounds interesting enough." He started again.

"Edim malek hostats doram sibtah kalebo jontay," he read and he went silent, letting the words sink into their minds. Harry snorted and let out a chuckle. "Whole bunch of nonsense," he said. Flynn shrugged and continued reading whatever was scribbled inside the book. The verses didn't have any rhyme schemes or any resemblance to a language Flynn knew of. But yet they were words of power, Flynn could feel it. They conveyed a message, almost, only waiting to be deciphered.

Flynn closed the book, picked it up and walked to the bookcase. "I'll have a closer look at it after school," he muttered, shortly before the bell rang. "Come on," Ash said, tugging at Flynns shoulder," let's go." He nodded and pushed the tome back into its place. They left the library, Harry in front, and went to class.

//

One thing Flynn was thankful for was that Harry seemed to be in a good mood for once. Each time he was grumpy, he'd take his anger and frustration out on Ash and Flynn, bossing them around or simply just teasing them. But today he was cheerful, telling lots of jokes and they laughed along.

Flynn dropped his bag next to his table and pulled out his English books. Ash and Harry both sat to his right, Ash snickering softly. Flynn poked his ribs and Ash flinched. "What's so funny?" he whispered, but Ash just waved clumsily. "I don't know," he replied softly, suppressing another chuckle. Flynn shrugged and scratched his back with his pencil.

Their teacher, Miss Pennymarket, marched into the room, accompanied by a cloud of cigarette smoke. "Morning," she growled with enthusiasm. The class greeted her in odd unison. She sighed and dropped into her seat in front of the class, a deep frown forming on her forehead. She was about to snap, Flynn, and the entire rest, could tell. The entire class was silent, hoping to escape Pennymarkets wrath.

Ash began grinning and held a hand in front of his mouth. A high-pitched yelp escaped his lips, followed by a chuckle. Miss Pennymarket looked up in annoyance, staring at Ash, who had taken a deep breath. She rolled her eyes at him and continued marking something in her book. As long as everyone was silent, no one would get into trouble.

"Mwahahahahahaha!" it suddenly burst out of Ash. He laughed loud and hard, but it disappeared as sudden as it had come and he looked around uncertain. "What's so funny, Ash?" Miss Pennymarket said, almost shouted, placing her pen beside her arm. She had straightened up, expecting an answer from Ash. He moved uncomfortably in his chair, the cheerfulness suddenly gone.

"Nothing, ma'am," he admitted and stared at his desk. She snorted and eyed Ash furiously. Damn, Flynn thought, if looks could kill. But instead of shouting at Ash relentlessly, she took a deep breath and regained her composure.

"Will you please leave my class?" she asked/commanded him and pointed at the door. Flynn could see the shock and confusion in his friends' eyes, but he stood up nonetheless, picked up his bag and did as he was told to. He shuffled out of the door, his head hanging low, but as soon as he had left the class, another laughing fit rushed through him.

Miss Pennymarket muttered something beneath her breath, got up and closed the door. "How disrespectful," she said and got back to her chair," could the rests of you please take out your homework?"

Oh no, Flynn thought and his stomach cramped. He had totally forgotten about that! Unsure he stared at Harry, who smirked and flexed his biceps again. His book was open, all his homework was done. "How can it be that you for once haven't done your homework?" he whispered to Flynn, followed by a short chuckle. Flynn brushed through his shaggy, ruffled hair. He frowned. Usually his hair was neater than that. But he had bigger problems at the moment. If Pennymarket found out that he hadn't done his homework, she would most probably take her anger out on him this time.

His belly still cramped and he clutched it in pain. Flynn groaned softly and wiped the sweat off his forehead. He looked at the empty paper in front of him, when a drop of blood splashed onto it. More drops followed and Flynn wiped across his nose, only to see that his hand was covered in blood.

Oh crap, he thought to himself, _nosebleed._He stood up, his fingers clenched across his nostrils and he quickly stepped out of the class towards the bathroom. Miss Pennymarket saw the blood dripping from his face and waved her hand dismissively at him.

Flynn sprinted towards the bathroom and stopped at the sink, pulling a few paper towels from the dispenser and held them to his nose until the nosebleed subsided. He dropped the soggy towels into the bin and splashed cold water across his face. His belly was torturing him, stabs of pain shooting up and down his body. Flynn groaned and leaned against the sink, clenching his teeth.

Slowly the wave of pain lessened, replaced by slight nausea. Flynn looked at his reflection in the mirror. He was pale and sweaty and his usually fine hair was ruffled and messy. He ran his hand through it again. It seemed thicker and longer than normal.

Flynns back began to itch and he scratched it carefully. His skin was very sensitive to touches today. A laugh suddenly echoed through the bathroom, followed by a soft whimper. Flynn looked around unsure.

"Ash?" he asked. "Flynn?" he replied, his voice broken and desperate," is that you?" It came from a locked cubicle. Flynn walked towards it. "Are you ok?" Ash sniffed and let out a sound in between a laugh and a cry. "I don't know," he whimpered," something is wrong." Ash took a deep breath and unlocked the cubicle door, opening it slowly. He peeked outside carefully, to make sure that they were alone and looked at Flynn with red, swollen eyes.

His face was startling. It wasn't just the fact that Ash looked like that he had cried a lot, since Ash rarely cried in public, but it was his ear which was unnerving Flynn.

It stood off on the top of his head, round and covered in dark brown hairs. Flynn took a step back, stumbled and fell. He grunted, the wave of queasiness rushing through him one more time, making him gag.

"Oh no," Ash mumbled, eyes wide with horror," it's happening to you too." He got down beside his friend and began to explain. "First it starts with a cramp," he said and witnessed his friend groaning, clutching his foot," then the nosebleed kicks in, followed by nausea. And then-" his voice trailed off as he watched Flynn cry out in pain when his feet changed into a paw. He pulled his now loose shoe off and stared at the paw, wiggling it. Ash let out a chuckle. "I'm sorry," he said apologetically," I can't control this damn laughter." A tear rolled down his eye.

Flynn stared at his paw, shocked in silence. He tried moving his toes, but instead his paw moved. "Why is this happening to us?" he whispered, his voice trembling and barely audible. Ash chuckled again, slapping himself angrily for that.

"It must've been this book," he said, a short chuckle escaping his throat and he slapped his head in frustration," we must've brought a curse upon us or something." Flynn stared at him, his mouth wide open. "That's impossible," he mumbled. Ash yanked his ear. "This looks pretty real to me!" he shouted and laughed hysterically. Flynn pulled his shoe back across his paw. "Oh no," he said," that means that Harry is affected too." He got up, but Ash held onto his arm. "Wait, what're you doing?" he asked, his voice shaky. "I have to go back to class. I need to warn Harry and it would draw attention if I disappeared. You'll better stay here and don't let anyone see you with that," Flynn said and nodded at Ash's ear," we'll get the book and figure out a way how to stop this, ok?" Ash suppressed a chuckle. "Ok."

//

Trying to hide his limp foot, Flynn hobbled back to class and sat back down wordlessly. Cautiously he eyed Harry, who was writing something into his book. Occasionally he shifted in his seat uncomfortably and tapping his foot on the floor. "Psst," Flynn whispered and nudged Harry, who didn't look up. "Page 45," he whispered back. "No, that's not what I mean," Flynn told him," meet me after this in the library. It's important." A frown appeared on Harrys forehead, but he continued writing. Flynn opened his book and began to work like the rest.

He eyed Harry curiously from time to time. How could it be that he didn't seem to show any symptoms? Was he affected at all? Maybe this was just between him and Ash. A shudder ran down his spine, leaving a tingling sensation behind. Flynn scratched his back nervously, afraid that he might feel hairs sprouting on it. Luckily, his back seemed to be fine.

Miss Penymarket looked at her wristwatch. She cursed something beneath her breath. "Alright, boys and girls, finish the rest for homework."

BRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR

Flynn got up and swung his bag over his shoulder. "Ok then," Harry said, standing next to Flynn," what's so special about the library." Flynn began to walk. "Let's go." They left the classroom, Harry telling stupid jokes and stories, but Flynn was barely paying attention to them. Harry was laughing a lot, but it didn't sound like the unwanted laughs from Ash. Maybe Harry was alright after all.

"Ah hell," Harry growled and held his hand beneath his nose. It was bleeding. Flynn looked at him wide-eyed, somehow feeling relieved and shocked at the same time to see that his friend was affected too. Harry muttered something and ran towards the bathroom, but Flynn didn't follow. He turned around and ran towards the library.

He was out of breath when he burst through the door, having paced up the stairs and through the corridors in record time. Fellow students eyed him curiously when he made his way to the spot where he had studied. His spine hadn't stopped tingling and his belly was cramping again. Flynn got to the bookshelf, ignoring the awkward stares he got from the other scholars, and began searching for the tome.

The books were all untouched and covered in dust, except for a darker line where Ash had moved his finger across. But the spell book was missing. Fear began to bubble inside Flynn. It can't have vanished! Frantically he pushed the books apart, checking behind the row and on top. Nothing.

Flynn got onto his knees, crunching his teeth together, swallowing the pain in his stomach, and looked under the shelf, but all he found was more dust. In frustration he dropped his head onto the floor and groaned. He blinked when something caught his eye between his legs, swaying slowly from side to side.

Flynn shrieked and jumped up, bumping his head against the shelf, almost toppling it over. Bouncing over the waist of his jeans was a long, slender tail, covered in a yellow fuzz with a longer, darker hairs on the end. Flynn stumbled, twisting and turning, and crashed into a table. He fell down, landing on his sleek tail, crunching the delicate appendage. Flynn cried out in pain, squeezing his eyes shut, but a voice tore through the silence.

"Get out!" the librarian shouted, standing a few metres away from Flynn, extending one hand to the door. Flynn nodded and glanced down at his legs. His tail wasn't visible, his leg covered it completely. The librarian eyed him cautiously and disappeared behind a row of shelves, slouching back to his desk.

Flynn looked around carefully, making sure that he wasn't being watched and got up. His tail wrapped itself around his legs and he grabbed it gently. He forced it down one of his pant legs and pulled his pants up even further to make sure that his tail was hidden completely. Only a small tuft stuck out of the end of his jeans leg, but he was sure that nobody was going to notice.

The bell rang, indicating that the break was over and Flynn ran, making his way to the bathroom where he had left Ash and Harry.

//

"This can't be!" Harry shouted, starring at the round, brown ears on top of his head and smashed his fist into the mirror, splinters cutting into his fingers. He clutched his hand in anger, a laugh escaping his lips. He watched Ash, who was writhing across the dirty floor, cackling g and snickering. Tears were streaming down his muzzle, which he clutched with his clawed hands.

When his face had finished changing into that of a hyena, Ash got his voice back," It's getting worse." He rubbed across his sore throat, which was tired from the constant giggling and whooping. Ash closed his eyes and pictured himself hunting a small critter and found himself drooling.

"I can't... control my-myself," he groaned, moving the image out of his head. Instead he saw himself... scratching ticks out of his fur? Howling in frustration, Ash slapped himself again, trying to rid his head of his animalistic thinking. Harry grabbed him by the scruff and hauled him up.

"How did this happen?" he demanded angrily and Ash began to tremble. "It must've been this book, remember?" he answered quickly," it must've cursed us!" Harry slammed him to the floor, laughing again. He stood above Ash, flexing his muscles, attempting (successfully) to look intimidating," And that's all because you read it out loud, you idiot!" He kicked Ash between the ribs.

"Stop it!" Flynn shouted, who had ran into the commotion," it won't help if we turn among ourselves." Harry turned around, laughing in disbelief. "So you're part of this too?" Flynn hated to stand up against Harry, since he was naturally stronger and faster than him, but he had no choice. He could not let Harry take his anger out on Ash.

"Just leave him," he said," do you think he wanted any of this?" Fury danced behind Harrys eyes. "Oh yeah?" he remarked," but if he wouldn't have taken the book out in the first place, this would never have started." Harry glared at him," And you look really stupid with those glasses." Flynn frowned. He had forgotten that he was still wearing them.

"Fine," he said, took his glasses off and tossed them into a corner. Ash got up slowly, glancing at Harry carefully. "And?" he asked Flynn," did you have any luck?" Flynns head dropped. "No," he admitted," the book is gone. I checked everywhere. But instead this happened." Loosening his belt, Flynn reached behind his back and pulled his tail into view.

"Oh God," Ash mumbled," did anyone see you?" Flynn recalled that a few students were giving him odd looks. "Maybe, I'm not sure." Harry chuckled, clutching his belly and began laughing. His face distorted into a mixture of pain and laughter and his pants began to rip. Moments later a short hairy tail hung down between his legs and stubby, brown fur travelled across his back. His pelvis and half of his chest was now covered in brown fur, dotted with black spots.

Then the changes stopped and Harry leaned against a cubicle, panting. Ash had distanced himself from him and stood now behind Flynn, who was flexing _his_muscles this time.

Even if he never wanted this to happen, his new body came with new perks. He was much more stronger than before and he had this feeling of... authority over the two primitive hyenas. Maybe this wasn't so bad after all.

Flynn stumbled back, shaking his head in disbelief, groaning. He couldn't believe what had just infested his mind! For a moment he had enjoyed this and pictured this as, the word horrified Flynn, normal.

"Why," Harry began, pointing with his finger at Flynn. His facial expression turned from confused to angry," why do YOU get to be a lion? Why are we-" he snickered," hyenas?" Flynn gave him an irritated look. "Are you serious, Harry? I think we have bigger problems," he growled, but a cocky smirk spread across his face," and besides. I've been doing all the work here, so I deserve something better." Harry stared at him in disbelief, while Ash was glancing from Harry to Flynn and back again. With an outcry of fury, Harry hurled himself at Flynn and they both crashed against the wall. "You think you're better than us?!" he shouted and raked across Flynns shoulder. He howled in pain and pushed Harry away, punching him in the gut. Harry grunted and toppled over.

Then Flynns belly began to cramp again. He stumbled and lost his footing, leaning uneasily against the wall. Taking the opportunity, Harry kicked against his shin and Flynn fell onto his side. Harry got up and towered over Flynn.

"If anyone is in control here, it's me," he declared, kicking Flynn into his ribs. He cried out, his face growing, forming a feline muzzle. His teeth became long and sharp, a bestial instinct forcing itself into his brain.

Sometimes one must take control and show others their place. With a fierce anger fuelling his actions, Flynn sank his teeth into Harrys leg, who howled in pain and collapsed. Flynn drew blood in satisfaction, when he realised what he was doing. In horror, he pushed himself away from Harry, who was clutching his leg, screaming.

Licking the blood off his teeth, Flynn scrambled up, muttering apologies. Ash had watched the scene and seemed to be laughing intently. He grimaced and fell, his back crunching, making him permanently hunched.

With a groan, Ash pushed himself up, unsteady on his legs with his hunchback. "Guys," he uttered," we're running out of time." He took a deep breath in order to suppress his constant whoops," We HAVE to find the tome, it doesn't matter if anyone sees us. Otherwise we're doomed." They boys agreed in silence and Flynn extended his hand to help Harry up. He took it and Flynn patted his back.

"I'm sorry," he affirmed," that wasn't me." Harry nodded, groaning. "I know," he admitted," it happened to me too." He let out a growl, followed by another chuckle and grabbed his belly. The fur continued spreading across his entire body, covering his skin with short, speckled hairs.

"Quick," he yapped between gasps for air," we're running out of time." Flynn wrapped his arm around his injured friend and they hobbled out of the bathroom. Ash stood in the hallway, grunting. "Let's check the library again," he managed to say," maybe someone else just borrowed it." Flynn nodded and they began moving slowly but surely towards the library.

After a short while, Harry was dragging Flynn down. "Come on," he growled," move." But Harry only let out a yelp, his grip tightening around Flynns shoulder. In front of the odd pair, Ash began to cough and fell onto all fours. Another laughing fit started, the animalistic instincts pushing themselves back into his head.

In anger, Flynn dropped Harry onto the floor. His belly hurt. He was most probably hungry, so that lazy hyena could very well hunt something for him! That other hyena proved to be much more helpful.

The final stages of Ash's changes set in, when his entire body was covered in fur, similar to Harry, and a tail popped over his waistband. His humanity gave in, replaced by the bestiality that the curse had brought upon him. He stood back up, standing awkwardly on all fours, hopping and jumping around his new master.

Harry looked up at the two beasts, who used to be his friends, overshadowing him with dark glares. He began crawling away, but Ash, or the thing that used to be Ash, grabbed his foot and yanked him back, accidentally covering him in drool.

The beast placed his forepaws on Harrys shoulder and locked eyes with him. Harry squeezed his eyes shut, breaking eye contact, but there was nothing he could do. His face seemed to be splitting apart, when it extended into a muzzle. And then his mind was overwritten, overtaken as he longed for something new.

The thrill of the hunt, the freedom and the acceptance from his ruler. He looked up at him, the lion, who roared and tore off the scraps of his shirt. A loud, ringing noise cut off his powerful roar and prey flooded their hunting grounds. A smile spread across the lions muzzle as he ordered his pets to attack.