FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

Rey put his paws in his parka as he made his way down a crowded sidewalk. Weaving in and out of the Friday foot traffic, the kangaroo turned down a side ally that appeared ahead of him. He was almost late for work and he didn't have time for the rush crowd today.

After a few more blocks and a detour down one other back ally Rey saw his destination. The back door to Beasties was always guarded by a bouncer. Tonight it was Terry, an albino tiger looking especially board as he pumped a barbell up and down with his right arm. Rey laughed silently to himself. Those guys were always doing stuff like that to make them look tough. Deterrent to the trouble makers, and it worked. No one messed with the Beastie bouncers.

Rey gave the tiger a nod as he walked up and through the door. Terry's only response was a huff through his nostrils. Once inside the back room the steady and repetitive thump of heavy house techno pounded in the background. Even the thick brick walls that composed the building did little to muffle the noise. Stepping over to his locker, Rey shrugged off his backpack and unzipped his parka.

Inside the metal hollow he found a new work uniform, neatly pressed, with a fresh packet of ear plugs, and his digital wrist swiper. The owner of the club, a reclusive white husky named Baitos never spared any expense when it came to his staff. Every night a new tailored wardrobe was provided for every employee, to Baitos's specifications of course. Black silk slacks, a white button up shirt, black silk vest, and a red tie made up Rey's designer labeled outfit tonight. The kangaroo finished dressing and straightened his cufflinks; the outfit was only one of the many perks of the job.

A minute later and Rey was stepping out in the crowded main room. All around him a mass of furs were dancing on the floor. Black lights, strobe lights, fog machines, you name it, they all added to the tangled mass of bodies that moved in unison with the repetitive beat. Rey was careful as he skirted the edge of the dance floor as he tried to make his way across to the bar.

One of Baitos's sick jokes was a company policy that if a patron could get an employee to dance with them it was free drinks for the night. It's fun the first time but many an employee has disappeared onto the dance floor, not to be seen till closing. Sometimes they would not even reappear until the next day. Plus you could either dance for minimum wage or serve for time plus tips, leaving most veterans to avoid the floor as much as possible. A Fur has to pay rent after all.

Finally making it to safety behind the bar counter Rey breathed a sigh of relief as he smiled to himself. At the other end of the serving area Cowboy jumped up and down energetically. It seemed Cowboy was going to be his bar mate tonight. ["Good."] Rey thought to himself, he and Cowboy worked well together and they always made bank with the tips.

Cowboy was a thin ring tailed lemur, about 5-6ish a little shorter then Rey, when he was not propped up on his tail. Tonight the lemur's rotating hair color had settled on blond highlighted with pink and blue. He wore the same silk pants as Rey but the rest of him was bare furred and covered in glow rings of various sizes.

Rey walked over and pointed at Cowboy's hair with a raised eyebrow, the lemur just laughed with a shrug before posing with his arms crossed in front of him. Rey shrugged back, a wide grin spreading across his muzzle. Over the months he had been working with Cowboy the two often communicated like this. The blaring techno music and ear plugs drowned out almost all attempts at regular conversation. And while sometimes subtle things were lost in translation both parties typically got their points across.

Giving the still posing lemur an exaggerated eye roll, Rey turned back and took his station. Already a small line had formed and was waiting to be served. The first patron of the evening was a petit husky who had her fur highlighted with special glow in the dark pigments. She brought her luminescent paw up to her muzzle in a drinking gesture and Rey smiled as he waved his paw across the bar top.

The surface under the kangaroo's paw was a digital display, another one of the spare no expense additions by the owner. Across the bar top pictures of a wide variety of drinks floated in every shape and size. The husky thought a moment as she danced in place with her finger in front of her muzzle then reached out and tapped on an image. Rey pointed to the device on his wrist and held it out to her. Then the husky smiled and swiped a card across the wrist swiper. Another company policy, no cash, kept down on theft.

A little green light flashed on the device and in one smooth motion Rey's paw went under the bar and a glass flipped up from behind the kangaroo's shoulder. The husky's eyes widened as Rey caught the glass in front of him without even glancing up. Next, setting the glass down on the bar, Rey spun around on his tail, grabbing two bottles from a shelf and started juggling them in the air. The kangaroo tossed the bottles effortlessly higher and higher, pouring a little from each one every rotation into the glass in front of the husky.

Once the glass was full he caught and returned the bottles then added a cherry mixer with a wink. Finally concluding with a small bow as over his head flew four ice cubs that landed with a small splash in the glass. ["Cowboy's aim was improving"], Rey thought to himself as the Husky jumped up and down clapping. With a wide smile she took her drink and hurried off back to the dance floor.

Most of the night proceeded the same way. Patrons would order a drink, and either Cowboy or Rey or both of them would make the beverage in an elaborate fashion. The bolder the two's performances the higher the patron's gratuities. Like a well-rehearsed ballet he and Cowboy put on a flawless show. Well almost flawless, Rey missed a bottle once with his paw but he bounced it on his tail and the otter ordering thought it was part of the act, so it worked out.

At around half past four in the morning things started to calm down. The floor was not as crowded and a few of the regular late nocturnes sat at the bar conversing with one another. Rey was pretty worn out, but still it had been a great night for tips. He looked over at Cowboy who was still bouncing around like he hadn't been there the last 6 hours. Honestly, Rey didn't know how the little lemur did it. ["Must have a doppelganger"], the kangaroo thought to himself as he covered the front of his muzzle with his paw and laughed.

A tap on his back brought Rey back to reality, and with a slight jump he spun around. Leaning slightly over the bar was a gorgeous white persian with the deepest blue eyes Rey had ever seen. She had a slim frame, with almost non-existent breasts, but what she had she knew how to use. A rainbow spandex tank top and matching short dress complimented her tail that arched gracefully over her back. Her immaculate white coat was only broken occasionally by glow rings that were laced throughout her tail and hanging from her wrists. The cat leaned back into her chair and made a drinking motion with one of her delicate paws.

["This will be my finest performance of the night"], Rey thought to himself as she went to tap one of the images floating on the bar. The kangaroo reached out and grabbed her outstretched paw before it hit the surface; it was warm and soft as he gripped it. She looked up with a puzzled expression at him, so with his other paw Rey tapped the front of his muzzle on his nose with a wink. He was pretty sure she got his message because the persian shrugged and flashed him an amazing smile as she shyly tucked her head down.

Reluctantly he released her paw and readied himself. Rey held his paws out in front of the cat and in one smooth motion pulled a long red handkerchief out of his right sleeve and sat it in front of her. Yanking it away a tall fogged class remained on the bar. The persian eyes widened in amazement and she leaned all the way back in her chair, clapping her paws. With a small bow Rey handed her the handkerchief and held one finger up before turning away and walking around the inner bar shelves.

When he returned he was carrying seven bottles in his arms, each a different color of the rainbow. One by one Rey started slowly tossing each of them up in the air, higher and higher. Until at last he managed to get all seven glass bottles flying in a long arch over his head. Once Rey was sure everyone at the bar was watching him he caught one of the bottles with his left paw and started pouring it into the glass, continuing to juggle the others with his right. He did this for a half inch of the drink before he would return the bottle to the juggling order and catch and pour the next. Rey went through all seven bottles this way before finally catching and placing them on the bar behind him two at a time, to the applause of everyone seated. Even Cowboy had stopped to watch and was now giving him a slow sarcastic golf clap.

The persian was on her feat clapping the loudest, the red handkerchief still held in one of her paws. Rey was sure the broad smile on her face was a mirror of his own as he bowed deeply. Standing back up straight he put an assorted fruit mixer in the layered rainbow beverage and picked it up, holding it out to the still clapping cat. She reached out for it and for a moment her paws wrapped around Rey's. Rey hesitated as he held onto the glass a moment longer than normal before letting go. He was not sure if she had noticed the lapse but if made Rey feel a tad bit awkward so he held his paws together behind his back as he propped himself up slightly on his tail.

The cat took a small sip and then rolled her eyes back in a gesture of bliss before closing them and taking a longer pull of the fruity beverage. When she opened her eyes again they locked onto Rey with a fierce intensity and the kangaroo felt his pulse quicken. The persian retrieved a plastic card from her tank top without shifting her gaze and held it out towards the bartender. Rey paused for a moment then reached out and encircled her paw holding the card with his own. Then he brought his muzzle down and kissed the soft fur on the back of her paw before looking back up shaking his head. This one was on him.

Normally Rey would never flirt with a patron, but he had a special weakness for cats, and well it was almost the end of his shift. The persian's full smile had turned to a mischievous grin as Rey let go of her paw. He wanted nothing more than to stay in her company, but there were still other patrons to attend to. So Rey gave one last small bow before grudgingly returning to his rounds. He had just refinished refilling all the regulars drink orders when he turned to look back at where the cat had been sitting. His heart sank as he saw the chair empty; those surreal blue eyes were nowhere to be seen.

Throughout the remainder of the night Rey would pause occasionally to scan the crowd, always returning with a disappointed frown. The last two hours of his shift drug by painfully and uneventfully slow, until finally the device on his wrist buzzed indicating 5:00 AM, closing time. The bar top flashed blue and shut off and the last remaining patrons stood up to make their way home before dawn break.

As the music shut off Rey started cleaning up the last of the leftover glasses when Cowboy came over and patted the kangaroo's shoulder with his paw.

"Great night aye' partner?"

Rey shrugged as he poured the remainder of a glass out in the sink. "Yeah, smooth as silk."

"Hey Rey! Look at that, big boss comin' down."

Cowboy had moved so he was leaning back on his elbows, propped up on the bar top. Where his muzzle was pointed Rey followed the lemur's gaze to see the clubs VIP elevator descending from the hawks nest. The name was given by the staff to the one way glass suite that overlooked the club from the top floor. Most fur's just thought the ceiling was mirrored but the staff knew the truth. Baitos might not be sociable but he always kept an eye out on his club and employees.

The elevator reached the bottom floor and two mirrored doors slid open. Out stepped Baitos, the husky wore a white three piece suit with gold buttons that matched gold piercings in his left ear. Rey's eyes didn't linger on his boss though because right next to the husky, with her slender arm wrapped around his was the persian. Her blue eyes locked intently on the kangaroo with that same mischievous grin he had last seen her with still spread across her muzzle. Rey felt like a deer caught in head lights under that unblinking gaze. Unable to move he remained petrified in place while they approached him from across the empty floor.

When they were right in front of them, Baitos cleared his throat and Rey finally broke his staring contest with the unblinking cat.

Standing backup straight, the kangaroo smoothed his vest. "Good morning Sir."

"Reighley, Leslie here has taken quite a fancy with you."

A smile touched Rey's lips, so that was her name, Leslie... beautiful.

Baitos paused as he leaned his head, letting Leslie whisper something into his ear.

"We were wondering if you would care to come with us this weekend to my estate. Just a small get together, few dozen people."

"Sure thing sir, it'd be a pleasure to serve you and your guests."

The husky chuckled and shook his head," Oh no Reighley you misunderstand. I would like you to be my personal guest and Leslie's escort. Not to work." At that last remark the gorgeous persian tucked her head down shyly.

Rey was speechless still trying to process what was going on, and Baitos took the lack of reply as an opening to continue.

"If you are worried about your shifts, I will compensate you double time for the short notice on the invite. Also I am quite sure Cowboy can cover this weekend without any problems. Right Cowboy?"

The lemur had been staring at them with his mouth slightly open. His vacant expression and wide eyes spoke volumes about the surprise of the invitation.

"Right Cowboy..."

Cowboy jerked up," Right! Yes sir! Piece of cake. This guy jus' slows me down anyways."

Finally Rey caught up with the conversation as everyone in the room stared at him," For the entire weekend? I'm not sure if I ca..."

Baitos cut him off, breaking out into a full pearly white grin," Nonsense! Follow us and we will have you back for your classes on Monday."

The kangaroo blinked in surprise," Now? I'm sorry but I really..."

"Have other plans for the weekend?"

Rey did not have an answer to that last question but still he protested, "But... but I would need to pack."

"Your wardrobes are already taken care of."

"Wow, well, I need to let my roommate know I'll be gone."

"No need, Terry has already been sent with instructions."

"I really need to spend the time studying for college?"

"Your test isn't until Friday, plenty of time to enjoy a relaxing weekend."

Rey wasn't sure if he should have been impressed or disturbed so he just nodded. Baitos reached out and squeezed Rey's shoulder, leaving his paw in place with a firm grip.

"Reighley I make it a point to know everything about my employee's. Relax, I can guarantee that this weekend will be one to remember for the rest of your life. That and I won't take no for an answer."

Rey let out a sigh and then gave a forced smile back to the husky "I guess you already know my answer then."

Baitos squeezed his shoulder again before letting go," Glad to hear it! Now let's head out. If we don't hurry we will miss our flight."

"Flight?" Rey blinked in surprise. ["Just where was this guys house?"] He thought to himself.

"Of course, I forgot you don't have a passport. No matter, plenty of time to take care of that little detail when we're in the air."

With that Baitos turned and started walking away, flipping a cellphone out of his pocket and bringing it up to his ear. His conversation was lost to Rey who had returned his attention to the persian still standing in front of him.

Now that Leslie was the only one on the floor, Rey could not help but be even more captivated with the white persian. She stepped closer and put her paw out towards Rey. Who took it again in his own, rubbing his thumb across the soft fur on the back of her paw.

"I hope you enjoyed your drink Leslie"

She replied with a soft rumbling voice that felines do only to well," It was good, but the show was better. You must be really talented with your paws?"

Rey was caught off guard by the complement, normally he was the one to steer conversations with women.

"Well..., what can I say, lot's of practice. You would not believe how many bottles I've broken over the years."

Cowboy coughed loudly into his paw beside Rey and the two turned to look at him.

"Sorry, dry throat", was Cowboy's only response.

Leslie smiled again and turned," Better hurry Reighley, Baitos isn't the kind to wait around." With that she turned and followed after the husky who had already left out a side entrance.

"What?" Reightly said once the coast was clear as he looked back at Cowboy.

"Man! You really did it now didn't ya'. Hittin' on tha boss's girl. Now you flyin' somewhere to an estate for the weekend. Gonna be Mr.White in the library with the candle stick all ova' again."

"Don't you mean a candelabra?... wait no, never mind. What you mean those two are... together?" Rey pointed over his shoulder towards the side door with his thumb.

"Shit... I dunno man. All I know is I ain't never been invited up to the hawks nest... or to a fancy weekend "Get Together."" Cowboy held his paws up and made a bunny ears gesture. "No one has."

Rey grimaced as he furled his eyebrows in thought," Well I doubt they they'd ask me to a party as an escort if they were together right? ....Right?"

Cowboy just shrugged as a horn blasted twice from somewhere outside. They both turned to look then Cowboy turned back towards Rey.

"Hey man, I'm just sayin' be careful. You ass better come back. Max can't juggle the drinks worth shit."

"Yeah if you don't hear from me, tell my roomie you can have my Xbox."

The two laughed as Rey paw bumped the lemur and started to head towards the door. He was not sure if he should have gotten his bag out of his locker but another two horn blasts made him decide to just leave it. It had a pad lock anyways.

The side door led to a fire exit that opened next to a side alley leading out to the main road. Immediately outside was a long white limousine, as Rey looked it over the side door opened and Baitos was sitting on the other side still on his phone.

"Yes, I know but I'm sure it can be overlooked just this once. Yeah... Hold on. Relighley, there you are. Hurry up and get in, we are almost late as it is. Anyways.. Yes I know that.."

Rey looked around one last time and the stepped inside, the door closing behind him with a soft click of an automatic lock. Beside him to his right was Leslie, to his left a bit was Terry, no longer pumping a barbell, and of course in front of him was Baitos, talking away on his cell. Leslie snuggled up next to him and Rey instinctively put his arm around her. For a moment his mind left the limo and was absorbed totally with the warm, soft, and purring form that was next to him. She rested her head right below his chin and stayed there. Rey hoped she was not listening to intently because he felt like his heart rate had doubled.

Her soft voice drifted up to Rey's ears, barely a whisper. "I'm glad you decided to come along with us. These social gatherings with Baitos can be so boring."

Rey swallowed hard and tried to whisper back," So, does that mean you two... are? Well you know? An item?"

Leslie slowly traced a claw down Rey's other shoulder as she twitched in a silent giggle," No. Let's just say Baitos is just a very good friend of the family." Rey let out the breath he was holding and she giggled again, this time loud enough the kangaroo could hear her.

The rest of the trip went by in silence. Except for Baitos, whose attention never left the conversation with his phone. Rey wasn't sure if Leslie had fallen asleep, but she stayed next to him with his arm wrapped around her not moving. Soft steady breathing and a soft rumbling purr resonated throughout her body as Rey struggled to fight the urge to run his paw through her soft white coat.

The limo came to a stop and Rey could faintly hear the driver talking to someone, then they started moving again. Rey was just about to ask where they were going win the limo came to a stop again and Baitos clicked his cell shut.

"Ah... finally, rise and shine people." Baitos said as the door next to him opened and he stepped out.

Leslie pulled away and stretched with a yawn. Rey felt a little saddened that the warm spot she had created on his side was already starting to fade to cold. Still he did not pause as he followed the perisan out of the door into a small hanger.

Rey looked around as his eyes adjusted. The sun was just starting to break over the horizon and in the small private hanger there were bright lights hanging from the ceiling. Over at the other side of the building a jet stood stationary, a ramp lowered from right behind the wing. Already Baitos was climbing up and waving to the rest of the party to follow.

Rey had never been in an airplane before, let alone flew anywhere. But, from now on he decided if he was going to fly somewhere it would be like this. The private jet had eight chairs that resembled large plush recliners, a television swiveled on an arm in front of each one; soft carpet, a mini-bar with a wrap around counter, and a few weirdly designed bookshelves finished out the interior.

He followed Leslie and sat in the chair across the aisle from the one she chose, and then waited as Terry and Baitos got themselves settled. A bat stewardess walked by and made sure the cabin was in order then closed the hatch on the side of the plane. The bat returned and whispered something into Baitos's ear, then disappeared back to wherever she came from as a voice came over the cabin intercom.

"Good morning folks, today's estimated flight time is 6 hours. Weather's givin' us a 15 mile per hour tail wind and a clear sky, should be a smooth ride. Please remain seated until the fasten seat belt sign has been turned off and we have reached a cruising altitude. Thank you, and thanks for choosing us for your flight this fine morning."

The intercom clicked off with a small electrical popping noise and Rey looked out his window as he heard the sounds of turbines revving up. With a sudden jerk they started moving. Rey had to shield his eyes with his paw as they taxied on the tarmac. Then after a pause the noise around him started increasing, louder and louder, accompanied by the feeling of acceleration. The new sensations made Rey feel uneasy as he looked away from the window and gripped the armrests of his chair tightly. One final bump and they were airborne.

End of Chapter 1