FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

A Slippery Identity

Part 1

For Taiko

By Draconicon

It was always interesting to come back to Novus Ager. While Thimas had a roving lifestyle, there was something about the wandering city that always pulled him back, almost like he was magnetically drawn to it. Perhaps it was the excitement of the city, or the way that everyone seemed to appreciate his style of music, getting into the classics in a way that the rest of the world did.

Or, perhaps more likely, it was the people. He had a number of friends spread throughout the sprawling metropolis, and the aging badger enjoyed visiting each one of them when he had the chance. Going there during the holidays merely meant that he had the chance to enjoy each one of them all the more.

At least, that had been the plan, right up until a different invitation had shown up like a slap in the face. If sound waves had hands, it might as well have done just that.

Thimas groaned as the passenger train sped off, rubbing his cheek as the vibrations from an electric guitar eight blocks - no, nine, and two over - faded from his cheekbone. The sensation was remarkably unpleasant, and he couldn't help but twitch his cheeks in annoyance as the itch took even longer to fade than the vibrations.

"Gus..."

The badger grunted his name with as much distaste as he could summon, the older male shaking his head and pulling at the cloak he wore about his shoulders. The multi-colored thing draped over him with a considerable amount of force, keeping his various instrument cases from flying off his person when he traveled. It also meant that he had a lot of digging to do before he could find his phone buried among the pockets.

Eventually, he pulled the old flip-phone out, tapping a few buttons before holding it to his ear. Ring-ring, ring-ring it went until someone picked up on the other end.

"Hello?"

"Could you explain the reason behind not calling me in the first place?" he asked.

"Oh, uh, Thimas. Good to hear from you. I thought that you might be on that train."

"Gus. If you needed me to visit...why...didn't...you...call?"

"Oh, come on. You're going to stand on ceremony now? It got your attention, didn't it?"

"I am not a superhero, and neither are you. You do not need a hyper-sonic, over-charged soundwave to get someone's attention in this day and age."

"Says the old man that won't upgrade his phone. Or answer it."

"Did you bother trying?"

"Yes! You didn't pick up."

The badger chalked that up to the cloak. It was meant to muffle as well as weigh down, so perhaps there was a fair point there. However, he would be damned before admitting it.

"Well, I'm here now. And unless you have something interesting to say, I'm hanging up in the next five seconds."

"Come to dinner with me and Kaito!"

"...Come again?"

"Not hanging up?"

"Not until you explain yourself."

The badger was on the move, slowly making his way away from the train platform and to the elevator that would take him down to street level. It must have been installed recently, perhaps only as long ago as last night, because he didn't remember the station being this high up last time. Then again, he didn't remember an amusement park being built inside of a banking skyscraper, either.

It carried him down quickly, so fast that his stomach felt like it was going to leap into his throat from the sudden drop. All the while, Gus continued chatting in his ear. Chatting strangely fast, for that matter.

"Look, Kaito's been missing you, and I could really use a chance to talk something through with you. You want to have a chance to lord your experience over me for a night? This is it."

"...Keep talking."

"I need some help. Some serious help. I can't tell you much about it now, but it's something big."

"And I need to come to dinner to find out what it is."

"Yeah. Stupid, right?"

"No less strange than anything else that happens in this - oh dear."

"What?"

"I seem to have run out of elevator."

"Where are you? AP Station?"

"Yes..."

"Well, guess it's time to see if that cloak works as a parachute."

"What are you talking abo-OOOOOOOUT?!"

Thimas screamed as the floor opened beneath him, an automated arm slapping a pack on him as he free-fell out of the bottom of the incomplete elevator shaft. The badger instinctively grabbed for the pull cord, unable to stop screaming as his heart tried to jump out of his chest.

Of course, due to raw shock, there was no way he was holding onto his phone. Probably for the best; he swore he could hear Gus laughing before it dropped out of reach.

#

Kaito wandered the halls of NABSC, otherwise known as the Novus Ager Bachelor Suites Complex, and as he did, he wondered why so many of his neighbors seemed to have closed their doors lately. The drake cocked his head to the side as he turned a corner, watching three doors close in sequence to one another. He paused, pushing his glasses up his snout with a shake of his head.

"How strange..."

Particularly as it was such a nice day. True, the night wind was rising, and there was a definite chill that implied that there were a few weather villains on the loose this evening, but that was hardly a problem in their city. The drake shook his head, moving to the railing to look out over the city. The communal balcony normally had at least half a dozen men taking advantage of the view, but tonight, it was only him.

It would not have bothered him if it wasn't the seventh night running that he'd had this problem. He was used to seeing his neighbors grinning at his approach. Of course, those grins were usually on security recordings, and they were more often given to his sleepwalking self rather than his waking one, but it was still a sign of hospitality and friendliness that he'd been missing the last few days.

Certainly, it would have been easier to deal with if he at least understood what was going on, and why they were avoiding him. Every time he attempted to talk with them alone, they would find an excuse to dart away, or pretend that they didn't see him until they were able to get back to their apartments. From then on, it was one door shut in his face after another.

Even his students had started changing their habits, no longer visiting him after school unless he was in his office on campus. It was strange, indeed.

Ah, well. At least I have the holidays with a friend or two.

The fifty-year-old drake smiled, pushing his glasses up again as he looked out into the sunset. The red glinted off his glasses as he watched the swooping heroes and their flaring capes. Green, white, blue, rainbow -

He paused, blinking. Rainbow?

Kaito blinked, standing up a bit straighter as he tried to make out the drifting, multi-colored cape. Now that he took a longer look, he swore that it looked more patchy, more like a quilt than anything else. It was also weighed down by an innumerable number of packages, or carrying cases...

Carrying cases that looked like they probably held instruments, now that he thought about it. And didn't the owner of that cape look familiar?

"Thimas? When did you get here?" he muttered.

"Oh, just a few minutes ago, actually."

Kaito turned, a smile already growing on his face at the familiar voice. The drake crossed his arms as he looked down at the lion standing at the end of the balcony hallway, chuckling as the feline blushed.

As well he might, considering he was completely naked. Oh, the vest covered some bit of the lion's chest, but the rest of him was completely on display, from the weighted cock with its silver Prince Albert all the way down to his toes, slightly dusty from walking outside. Kaito smiled, shaking his head as the lion blushed worse than a first-year in the drake's university course.

"You invited him, I assume?"

"Well, I thought you'd enjoy a bit more company for the holidays, what with your kid heading off and all."

"Yes, Taiko has been rather busy with his little melon farms."

"Particularly since that one turned out to be an alien colony..."

"Heh, what can I say? My boy is very talented with botany."

Gus nodded, but it was impossible to miss the way that the feline's eyes were darting this way and that, looking everywhere but at the drake. It left Kaito feeling disappointed, but not quite in the same way that the neighbors avoiding him did.

It was a very strange feeling, when he got down to it. Almost like there was something that he wanted, but wasn't getting. Not companionship, but -

"Anyway, uh, why don't you get comfortable? I'll go and get Thimas."

"Oh, no need for that. He knows the way."

"Yeah, but the city changes."

"Heh, is my company so difficult?"

"Oh, no, no, it's great. Super. Completely, undeniably wonderful, but I should make sure that he does know the way."

"Alright, alright. I'll get dinner ordered."

"Thanks," Gus said, nodding as he turned and ran off. "I'll be right back!"

And with that, the lion was off at a run. Kaito cocked his head to the side, watching as those tanned rump cheeks swayed back and forth for the few seconds that they were in sight. When the lion ducked around the corner, tapping the buttons for the elevator, Kaito made himself turn around, looking back at the sunset.

At least with Thimas coming around, Halloween would be a bit more interesting. More to the point, the two of them were closer in age, and he imagined that they'd get along much better than he and Gus did. Not that the lion was a problem, but he was a little -

"Oh god!"

The sound of another falling body made Kaito wince, but the sudden strum of an electric guitar told him that Gus would be okay. The lion had some sort of power over sound, and it seemed to keep him safe from the worst of the accidents he kept running into.

Maybe I should tie him up when he's visiting. He does seem to keep getting in trouble when he runs around loose...

The drake blinked as that thought occurred, shaking his head a few times. While he wasn't one to put down kink, he certainly wasn't the sort to tie up a guest against their will. What in the world...

#

The badger eventually touched down about three blocks away from NABSC, alighting on a horse and buggy, then on a food truck, and finally coming to a full stop on the top of a fountain. How he had managed to be bounced from one to another, he wasn't entirely sure, but he was fairly certain that the time and space dilation effects of a certain runaway callbox were partially responsible.

As he struggled to climb down, grumbling all the way, he spotted Gus rounding the fence that cut this particular park off from the rest of the city. The badger made his way down the fountain, getting a shower that he truly didn't need, and then hopped to the ground.

"There you are!" Gus called, the naked lion running over. "Do you know how hard it is to follow someone flying through the air?"

"Do you know how hard it is to fly when your parachute stops working?"

Thimas undid his cloak, shaking it out. Needles of water went flying from the different patches, and several animals and their owners dodged to the side to avoid getting hit.

"Look at this thing. It's drenched. I'm going to have to carry this until tomorrow."

"Suck it up. We have dinner to get to."

"Hmmph. At least I'm nearly dressed for it; I assume we're having it delivered in, in your current state?"

The badger and lion faced off as they always did when they met up, though this time with a little more venom than usual. He felt it was deserved, considering his welcome. Eventually, Gus took a deep breath and let it out, being the first to look away.

"Look. There's a laundromat around the corner. Or at least, there was when I was running after you. You can get it dried there and pick it up tomorrow."

"Thank you." Thimas hesitated, then sighed. "Not that I suppose I truly need it. Any place that I couldn't charm my way into without the cloak, you could probably get in by flirting. Not many would refuse a younger man like you if you turned on the charm and turned off the guitar."

"Well, same could be said of you, old man. If you stopped playing the fiddle for two seconds and just let them stare, they'd probably be giving you all kinds of goodies to get their hands on that ass."

"Fiddle? Old?"

His fingers twitched, the urge to reach for one of the cases hanging from his back and belt rising. Gus winced, his fingers doing a similar twitch towards the guitar that was slung over his back.

The standoff continued for nearly a minute before the badger was able to calm himself down, taking several deep breaths and forcing his fingers to relax again. They felt like they were on the verge of cramping up, and if he was going to be meeting with an old friend tonight, he wanted to keep them nice and limber. Not that he planned on using some of his music to charm the drake, but he wanted to be sure that they had the chance to talk - and maybe more - properly.

"I think that we're overdue for dinner," the badger managed to grumble out.

"Yeah...uh, yeah. We probably are."

"Let's stop at that laundromat on the way."

"Right, the laundromat. Uh...this way."

The badger followed behind his old acquaintance. He knew that they were going to have it out further later, but for the good of their mutual friend, he was willing to put his little grievance on hold for now.

But later? Oh, there would be notes exchanged...

#

Back in the apartment, Kaito had just placed the order for Chinese. He was putting the phone down when the door opened, and the older drake poked his head around the corner to see if Gus had collected their guest.

He had, and the drake smiled at the sight of the older badger. He rounded the corner, opening his arms.

"Thimas, good to see you!"

"And you, Kaito."

The pair hugged one another, patting backs and squeezing. Gus, for all that the lion had been more than willing to go and get the badger, seemed to slip into the background, the lion rubbing the back of his head and looking at the apartment door. For the life of him, Kaito still didn't understand why the lion seemed so fidgety, particularly after they had had so many good times since he'd come to visit the first time.

The first time...that was some time ago, he realized, and he knew that the lion was normally a traveler. The drake cocked his head to the side, trying to place the dates in his head. They kept slipping, almost like -

"So, what are we doing for dinner?"

Thimas's question threw him off, but Kaito smiled nonetheless.

"Sorry, what?"

"Dinner? Are we going out or staying in?" the badger asked, sitting down. "Are we getting comfortable, or are we going to be heading out to get a show?"

"Oh, comfortable, definitely. However you like."

"Heh, same as ever, old friend?"

"Same as ever."

The drake smiled as he looked down at the badger's crotch, getting his usual view of the large bulge that pushed the leather pants forward. Thimas's balls were always swollen, always large, almost like the badger kept stuffing balloons down there rather than proper testicles. It was a lovely view, though, and one that he always appreciated getting when the old musician came by to visit.

This time, though, there was a different feeling as he looked at those tight pants. The leather, the leather grabbed at his attention, and some part of the drake marveled at the tightness of those trousers, how they clutched at the badger's legs and balls and...

There was a definite stirring of interest, so to speak, but Kaito had felt that a number of times. Not quite this strongly with leather before, though. He shook his head, sitting down on one of the recliners in his room while Thimas got comfortable on the couch.

"So, who's going to be answering the door?" Thimas asked. "We don't want to scare the delivery boy too badly, do we?"

"I'll do it!"

Gus's shout was as quick as it was nervous, and both badger and drake turned to stare at him for the sudden outburst. The lion looked back, then shrugged.

"I mean, I'm already naked. It's not like you need to get worried about it."

"Heh, fair point," Kaito said. "You mind keeping an eye out?"

"Not at all..."

"Thanks, kitty."

As the lion's eyes went wide, Kaito blinked again. That was another strange thing. Kitty. He didn't think of the lion as someone that young, and the only way that could have been stranger would have been if he'd called Gus 'kitten.' He shook his head. He must have been more tired than he thought.

In an attempt to distract himself, he turned back to Thimas, putting a smile on his face as he addressed the badger.

"So, why don't you tell me what you've been up to? Find any new students lately?"

"Oh, a few. None of them with the appreciation that some of the students at the college had for the work that I do."

"University, Thimas. It's not much of a distinction, but there is something."

"Fine, fine. At the university, then. But let me tell you, there's been plenty of people that needed an...education in the finer things..."

The drake smiled, leaning back just enough to get comfortable and put his feet up as the elder badger started his story. It was good to listen to someone else that had a bit of dignity, even if it was a stranger form of it. The more he listened, the more comfortable he got, and the more he found himself attached to the leather that Thimas was wearing...

And how it would be rather hot if he were to wear a little bit more.

#

Conversation, then dinner, came and went. The packages of Chinese food were stacked up near the front door, waiting to go out with the trash the next time that it was full, and Thimas groaned as he stretched out a bit more on the couch. He'd borrowed a footrest from Kaito's other chairs, putting his feet up after taking off his boots, and he curled his toes to flex out a few stiff points.

All the while, he was aware that Gus was standing at the front door, looking out the window by it, looking back at Kaito, and then looking outside again. He seemed obsessed with the sunset, too, almost like something was going to come out at night.

The badger had been quite tolerant of the lion's strangeness during the evening, but this was getting to be too much. For all that Gus had promised that they'd talk over this whole thing at dinner, the lion hadn't said a word.

"Excuse me, Kaito," the badger said, stretching his arms over his head. "I believe me and Gus need to have a word."

"That's fine. I'll just take a moment to rest my eyes."

"Thanks for understanding."

Smiling until the drake set aside his glasses and closed his eyes, the badger got to his feet and walked over to the front door. He grabbed the lion by the shoulder and turned him around, narrowing his eyes.

"Alright. What is this about?"

"Shh-shh."

To his surprise, Gus covered his mouth, looking around his shoulder at the napping drake. Only when Kaito's chest had started rising and falling in the normal sleep pattern did he continue.

"I need to talk with you. Privately."

"You could have done that in the park."

"Not when he was alone. Come on."

He allowed Gus to lead him back to the kitchen, the lion looking around the corner back at the sleeping drake for a moment. There was actual fear on his face, Thimas realized, and that was enough to put him off his game, too. For all that the lion was an imbecile at times, he was almost never afraid of anything, really.

"Okay...here's the thing. Kaito has...changed."

"What are you talking about?"

"Is that the usual guy? The same sort of drake that you're used to dealing with?"

"...For the most part," Thimas said after a moment of consideration. "He certainly is a bit more interested in staring at me than he used to be."

"Yeah, that's part of the issue. But that's the tiny part of it."

"You're confusing me. What's going on?"

"He's been playing music all the time," Kaito said from the other room, almost sounding like he was sleep-talking from how faint his voice was. "Playing all sorts of different songs...all hours of the night..."

Thimas's eyes narrowed. He shook his head at Gus.

"I should have known. You started messing with everyone again, didn't you?"

"Not...not quite the way that you think," Gus muttered, looking over his shoulder again. "He's not telling you the whole story..."

"Oh, I doubt that he needs to. Metal Gus, headbanging all night long, showing the neighborhood just what is wrong with the latest style of music by keeping them up at all hours of the night."

"Shh. That's not what happened."

"Then explain it to me."

"Lots of tail...lots of leather..." Kaito muttered under his breath again.

Oh, that was explaining nothing and everything at the same time. More than likely, Gus was doing his usual thing of getting all sorts of playmates, people that would give him the sort of fun that he couldn't get on his own. The badger rolled his eyes.

"Okay, how many men have you been seducing then, hmm? How many people have you been getting all riled up?"

"None of them. Just him."

"You've been taking advantage of your host?"

"One, not like you wouldn't do the same damn thing -"

"Only with consent!"

"And two, you're still not getting it!"

The lion pulled him further into the apartment, further from the sleeping drake. Sure that it was just a way to keep from being caught out, the badger attempted to slow them down, but Gus was frightfully strong. It was like the lion was possessed by the spirit of fear, and he couldn't stand to be near the drake at that point.

What is going on? Thimas wondered. This isn't normal...

They came to a stop in Kaito's bedroom. It must have been a slow week, the badger thought, because there was no sign of the usual toy mess that was usually present. No bondage ropes, no toys, nothing that would have given away the drake's evening proclivities.

It was almost disappointing, but Gus's frenzy rather made up for it.

"Look, you have to listen to me. I didn't do anything to Kaito. Not on purpose. But things are...getting weird here."

"You'll have to do better than 'getting weird.' That's the definition of this whole city."

"Okay, does Kaito have magic?"

"...Not that I have ever seen him use, but I suppose that he must. Being a dragon and all."

"Then something's fucked up with it."

"That's a bold claim."

"Thimas...I can't do anything to him."

The lion pulled his guitar off of his shoulder, the bright red and purple instrument flashing despite the low light in the bedroom. The strings were tight and shimmering with an energy that they honestly shouldn't have, and the actual instrument itself had the sheen of something that wasn't just enchanted, but filled with the energy of some ancient being.

"You know how powerful this thing is. You know what I can do with it to just about anyone else. I can't affect him anymore."

"...And?" Thimas said, fighting his own sudden fear. "What's the problem with that, considering what you'd probably make him do?"

"He's changed. And I...I kinda think..."

"What do you mean, he's changed?"

"He used to sleepwalk, but he's not exactly sleeping anymore. He's...chasing things. Following them. Pinning them down. He's using them harder than he used to, and he...he tried to put a collar on me," the lion admitted with a blush.

"...Was this during one of your submissive phases?" the badger asked.

"Well, maybe, kinda, but...it's not supposed to last this long. That's your department."

"Well, thank you, I think."

"It's not a compliment! Things are messed up right now, and I need -"

"He's been a very naughty kitten..."

It wasn't too surprising to hear the sleep-talking again, though the fact that it had carried all the way to the bedroom was something of a surprise. That said, Thimas was fine with it.

"Yes, yes, he has," the badger muttered.

"Such a naughty thing...not just telling tales about me, but telling me stories about you behind your back..."

"..."

"Thimas, I swear, I'm not -"

"I find myself more willing to believe the sleep-talking ramblings of an old friend rather than my rival, here," the badger said, shaking his head. "What did you tell him? What sort of exaggerations have you been filling his ears with?"

"Nothing."

"A badger who is a bit too fond of leather, whose balls don't need to be drained so much as they need to be edged...grown...teased..."

Thimas's eyes went wider and wider as he listened. It had been a long time since he had allowed someone to do something like that, and the last time had been quite the intimate session with a very, very old friend. To have that sort of thing spread about -

He hissed under his breath, one hand going for the violin case at his waist. Gus grabbed him by the wrist, the lion's eyes wide.

"Thimas, Thimas, before you do that, I want to say one thing."

"And what's that?"

"Isn't he...isn't he supposed to be asleep?"

"..."

"Behind you. Please."

The badger slowly turned around, looking over his shoulder. Standing in the doorway to the bedroom was Kaito, alright, but...

But at the same time, it wasn't the same drake that had fallen asleep in the armchair. Not least because he hadn't put his glasses back on, nor for the sweeping black and white colors that were making their way across his face like a punk-rocker's make-up.

No, it was the way that the drake was looking down at them, the way that the eyes narrowed into a cocky sort of sneer, the way that his lips were pressed together in a smirk that didn't quite show his teeth. It was the gaze of someone that had just woken up to see two little toys talking out of turn with one another.

"My, my. Telling stories, are we, kitten?" the drake said with a chuckle. "I suppose it does no harm. After all, the pair of you are not going to be leaving tonight."

#

Kaito was asleep. Kami, however, was wide awake.

The glasses were the restraint during the day, he was aware. They limited the scope of what he could do, what he had available to him, keeping Kaito in charge. But once they were removed, then Kami was free to play, to surveil his domain, to remind those that he liked just where they belonged.

Kitten had brought a friend, tonight, and the badger looked as though he would be a fun one. Those leather pants needed some leather bands, some leather restraints to put those lovely orbs on display. They would be most fun to tease.

"Tell me, Thimas...how large can those balls of yours grow?" Kami asked.

"...You aren't Kaito."

"No, heh, no, I'm not. I'm something...better. Now...why don't you take a seat..."

Kami lifted his hand, and the leather straps and ropes and tools beneath the bed slithered free, the tips snapping and whipping for a limb to hold down.

"And we can get started?"

The End