FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

Sylvie stood at the door with her bags and turned to wave when Tiffany honked the horn and drove away. They'd hit up two stores and the tiger had offered her suggestions on what Sylvie should wear to work. Sylvie wasn't sure about a couple of the more revealing shirts but was satisfied with with the majority of what she'd bought. The fact Tiffany had taken her to IHOP afterward for an early dinner put the cap on a good afternoon, despite the troubled start.

Once inside, she couldn't see a reason to stay there. Unlike every other day, her back didn't ache and, unlike every other day, she had a positive attitude. It had been a long while since either had happened and so, instead of turning on her computer to watch another documentary, she changed shoes and went out for a walk.

The weather will was still relatively warm so she chose to walk up the river road. The sun was hanging low the sky, growing more pregnant as it fell, and had just touched the horizon by the time she made it to the park. Even on a Friday it managed to attract a fair number of visitors, and not just the elderly who came to feed the squirrels. Ball games were being played in the distance and she heard cheering a few seconds after hearing a ball bounce off a bat. She smiled and wondered if she might join that crowd one day. But that would entail finding someone. It wasn't likely but, if she did, he would be the most handsome, and brave, and....

"Stinkface, stinkface, it comes out of your poopy place!"

The chant broke her from her dreaming and she turned toward the sound.

"Yellow stink, green stink, blue stink, too. Because of how you smell, nobody's gonna like you!"

This time she was able to hear a whimpering after the chant ended. Rounding a tall hedge, she saw a small skunk girl cornered against a tree by three larger children, two leopards and a hyena. The small skunk was spotted by dirt where the bullies had been throwing clods at her and the situation pulled a scene from her memory she hadn't thought about in a long time.

"Why are you here, stinky?" she had heard someone say. It was her second year at camp and her mother had been more than happy to send Sylvie just to get her out of the house. Sylvie, herself, however, was filled with conflicting emotions. She had been writing to Rachel since the end of last camp until October, when she received a short letter from the opossum's mother that Rachel had been struck and killed on Halloween night by a drunk driver. Rachel's mother asked her not to write anymore and Sylvie's mother was hardly more receptive when shown the letter.

"And that's why having friends will always end up hurting you," her mother said, tossing the letter in the trash before walking into another room.

Sylvie took the letter and carried it back upstairs, where she put it with the other letters from Rachel. She allowed herself the night to cry and, by the next morning, she had buried her feelings deep, and the letters in the backyard.

"Booger face, stinky pants, now it's time to see you dance!" There was the sound of rocks hitting the ground and, occasionally, something softer.

"Stop! You're hurting me!" This received a round of laughter from the tormentors, only ensuring more rocks would be thrown. Indeed they came and, now that Sylvie was close enough to see, more were landing on the skunk girl across from her than the ground.

It was only when she was much older that she realized what she had done next was because of her mother saying she shouldn't have friends, not allowing her to have friends. Never a small girl, Sylvie ran across and tackled the fox who seemed to be ringleader, driving him to the ground.

"Leave her alone!" she shouted, her fists pounding into his chest and face. She was grabbed from behind and pulled off to face a bear cub leering over her. Instincts took over and she drove her knee into his crotch. With a wuff, the bear was laying on the ground, hands clutching his throbbing genitals. She tangled with a boar while a gazelle ran off to get help. The boar ended up not being much of a match and Sylvie tossed her to trip across the bear and land upon the fox.

She looked to the other skunk who, other than a few dirt marks, didn't appear to be in too bad of shape. No doubt there would be bruises later but black and white fur tended to hide such imperfections. "Are you okay?"

The other skunk nodded. "I was fine, you know."

"They were throwing rocks at you!"

"I was getting ready to fight back. I was getting ready to help you."

Sylvie didn't question the other's veracity and kept her opinion to herself. "What's your name?"

"Katherine. What's yours?"

"Sylvie." She stood up, dusted off her pants and shirt, and tried to think of a way to explain to her mother how they both got ripped. Walking over to Katherine, she stuck out her hand. "Pleased to meet you."

Katherine looked at the hand, up to Sylvie's face, then back down. There was a hesitation before they clasped hands and Sylvie wondered if it was because she was still dirty or if that's not how people greeted one another and all the television shows were wrong.

A sharp cry came out and now the skunk girl was curled into a ball with the leopards and hyena standing over her.

"Dirty skunk girl crawling on the ground. Why don't you get up, you baby? Why don't you try and spray us?" The hyena was laughing but didn't look sure of himself. The other two, however, Sylvie could see they meant trouble.

"Hey, you kids! What are you doing over there?"

The hyena looked the most terrified, and one leopard, a girl herself, was clearly startled. The other leopard, the one doing most of the shouting, seemed more sure of himself. She could tell there was something dangerous about him and didn't look forward to the day he would grow up.

"We're just playing," he said, unnervingly cool. "She just fell down and we were helping her up." He reached down to touch the skunk, seemingly to help her up, and she flinched away violently.

"Perhaps you should leave her alone," Sylvie suggested, taking a few steps toward them. Their roots were predatory, there was no doubt, but even they saw her size and age as a deterrent. Her being an adult didn't matter to the leader but it was evident the other two had some respect for their elders.

"Come on, Shawn. We should leave," the girl leopard said, pulling on his shirt.

"Shut up, Debbie." He pulled away from her touch to glare at her, then at Sylvie. "Fine. Let's go." He turned and stalked off, not bothering to see of the other two were following.

"I...I never hit her, ma'am," the hyena sputtered. "I threw the dirt like they told me, but I never hit her. I didn't mean for this to happen." Tears were in his eyes and his lower lip quivered.

"Come on, Tommy!" the girl leopard shouted back to him.

"You'd better leave," Sylvie said, crouching down beside the skunk girl who was now peeking out at her. "Find some new friends."

The hyena nodded jerkily while he tried to hold back sobs then took off after the leopards.

"Are you hurt?" Sylvie asked the little girl.

Wiping her eyes, the little skunk sat up and paused before shaking her head.

"Are you sure? It appears they hit you more than once." Sylvie brushed off some of the dirt from the girl's fur.

The skunk nodded, but which part of the statement Sylvie wasn't sure.

"Can you speak?"

Nod.

"Are you going to?"

Pause, then shake.

Sylvie chewed at her lip. The girl was obviously not minding Sylvie's help but refusing to communicate. Then it hit her. "You're not supposed to talk to strangers, are you?"

The girl grinned and nodded vigorously.

"I see. That's a good rule to have." She looked up and saw the sun was halfway to slumberland. "Would you like me to walk you home?"

The grin grew into a smile and the little skunk nodded again.

"All right, then. You'll have to lead, though, since you won't talk to me."

The girl took off and Sylvie had to jog to keep up. Oh, to be young again, she thought, feeling her heart beating faster.

At the edge of the park the girl stopped and looked to where Sylvie trailed behind. The smile hadn't subsided and she seemed to be taking stock of Sylvie's condition. Waiting for the elder skunk to catch her breath, she extended her hand to Sylvie. Now, holding hands, their going was slower and the girl was using Sylvie as a balance as she skipped over cracks in the sidewalk.

The neighbourhood grew progressively more disheveled and unkempt the further they walked and, after a while, the girl stopped skipping and pulled in closer to Sylvie. There was nothing to be afraid of that Sylvie could see but either the girl's actions or their surroundings lent an ominous air to their walk and their pace unconsciously increased.

Soon, they reached a rundown double house where one half appeared vacant. The girl detached from Sylvie and ran up the front steps to the door.

"Emily, where have you been?" a woman's voice sounded from inside once the little girl opened the door.

"At the park, Momma. Just playing."

"And what did I tell you about coming home this late?"

"It's okay, Momma. A nice lady helped me home." Emily pointed out the door.

"What lady?" Heavy footsteps walked towards the door "Who are you?" Momma asked, flicking on the porch light and opening the door further.

Sylvie squinted in the bright, new light and took a step back. "My name's Sylvie, ma'am. I was in the park and saw some kids picking on your daughter. I offered to walk her home to see she made it safely."

"And now she has, thank you." Momma looked at Sylvie for a moment. "We ain't got no money," she stated definitively.

Sylvie's brow furrowed before she comprehended what she was being told. "No, ma'am. I'm not looking for anything. I just wanted to make sure your daughter was safe. That's all. I'll be leaving now."

"How you gettin' back?" Momma's chin motioned towards the road.

"I expect the way I just came."

Momma's severe stare lessened and she shook her head. "No. It's not safe and I can't do that to you." She looked inside at something then back to Sylvie. "The bus should be along in about ten minutes. It'll take you to some place safer so you can get home. You can wait here. I'll leave the light on for you."

Sylvie was about to say it wasn't necessary, that she could walk, but Momma had already closed the door and, upon further review, Sylvie came to the conclusion the elder skunk lived here and knew what she was talking about.

Sitting on the front step, Sylvie now saw the broken street lights and watched as paper fluttered down the sidewalk in a slight breeze. From somewhere to her left she could hear sirens and, disturbingly, closer, there was the sound of popping she couldn't quite convince herself was only exploding fireworks. Momma was clearly correct in having Sylvie stay where she was, which is why Sylvie nearly jumped out of her skin when she detected movement next to her.

Emily stood there, holding out a glass of lemonade to Sylvie. "Thank you," she said just above a whisper before running back into the house, locking the door behind her.

Sylvie's tongue curled in response to the lemon and thought she'd become diabetic from the amount of sugar. That woman knows how to make lemonade, she thought, taking another drink. Looking at the glass, she could see seeds floating amongst the ice cubes. Her own mother had never progressed much beyond opening a pouch and adding water (never sugar) or scooping something out of a plastic container which never completely dissolved. Hearing the fireworks again, Sylvie could envy the little girl her mother but not her neighbourhood.

As specified, the bus came tumbling down the road on time, visible far enough in the distance that Sylvie had time to reach the bus stop. Previously unoccupied, a number of people were similarly making their way to the graffiti inscribed shelter, looking at each other warily. Further explosions drove away their suspicions and they crowded against one another while a police car screamed down a side street.

The bus pulled up and hissed as it came to a stop. Shoving allowed the larger and stronger individuals to board first, leaving Sylvie and an older raccoon couple to trail behind. The man was slow making his way up the steps but the woman seemed to be at the end of her strength.

"Can I help you, ma'am?" Sylvie asked, seeing the bus driver becoming anxious as flashing red and blue lights could be seen between houses across the way.

The raccoon stared at her, judging her, Sylvie felt, not for her species but for the simple fact someone had offered to help. The older woman's features relaxed as she made a decision and gave a nod. Sylvie helped the woman onto the bus and to her seat before digging into her pockets for the fare.

Settling into a seat, Sylvie looked out the window towards whatever action was happening and the bus began to pull away. From the shadows she could make out a figure staggering toward the bus holding its midsection. It was obvious the driver saw it as well as the old dog's lips pressed tightly together and the bus lurched forward with additional hurry.

Several stops came and went and soon Sylvie found herself almost alone on the bus. Checking the posted route map she saw her stop was coming up and moved to get up. The bus, however, showed no signs of stopping.

"Um, sir. This is my stop," she said to the driver.

"Do you live in this neighbourhood?"

"No, over in Campten Hills."

"Then you'd best take the 8A bus up ahead."

His answered left her confused. "But the 7C will take me directly there."

"Maybe during the day," he said, casting a glance toward her, "but you'd be lucky to get there this time of night. Take a look out the window, outside the rings of the overhead lights." Slowing slightly so Sylvie could do so, shapes huddled in small groups in the shadows, cherries from cigarettes flaring as they were passed around. "Those are the ?eytan Melekleri. They run this area at night and we've been told not to stop in the area. They keep the lights lit and the area clean to lure unsuspecting riders so the mug them. A pretty girl like you, though, I'm sure they wouldn't stop there."

Sylvie shivered at the trap in which she'd almost landed and tried to make out the colours of their gang, unable to do so in the gloom. "Thank you," she said, not taking her eyes off the bus stop as it faded away.

"No problem. I didn't think you were from around here and I've enough on my conscience without allowing your fool self to get raped. Give me another fifteen minutes and I'll have you where you need to be."

Sylvie marveled at the man's punctuality when they arrived at her stop at the time specified. With simply an upraising of his hand from the wheel, the old dog drove off, leaving Sylvie to wait at a relatively busy stop for the five minutes until the 8A came along. She hopped on and, knowing this ride would take her the long way home, leaned her head against the window to doze for the hour it took her to reach the stop a block away from her apartment.

Stepping on her heels and kicking off her shoes as she walked through the door, she pulled off her clothes on the way to the bathroom. A quick brush of her teeth, and a brush through her hair, she fell into bed. It was still early in the night for her but she'd had a long day and the dozing only seemed to feed the sleep beast. One blink of her eyes fought it off. The second did not.