Finding a Broken Will
My head fell hard back against the pillow. Eyes closed, the softness of the cool pillow wrapping around my skull, a deep sigh escaped my lips. I ran my inky black paws through my matted mane, forcing myself to stretch in an effort to stay awake. All around me was silence; save for the whirring of a ceiling fan and the reliable _tick_of the white-plastic clock on the bedside table. And whilst nothing physical was stirring, my head pounded with an innate sense of dread. My eyes screwed themselves tighter, determined not to open. This seemed to help. But sooner or later my body would betray me and begin to drift into that weightless rest, all the while my brain would still blast me with thought, melding without form into dream.
Images flashed through my head, and in my groggy state I could scarcely tell memory from fantasy. The view from the height of a roller-coaster; the glare of a computer screen in the depths of the murkiest night; a flash of cyan fur...
Beep. Beep. Beep. Be-...
I pushed my heavy paw hard against my alarm clock, silencing it instantly. I let my head come to as my eyes, glued with gunk, spread themselves to welcome in the early morning light. I began to feel the result of last nights over-indulgence, my brain becoming a heartbeat. I figured I'd better get up. I slowly moved my legs over the sides of the bed and rubbed my eyes. Iry let out a groan beside me, before turning over in her sleep.
"The only time it is suitable to awaken a sleeping woman is the arrival of snow, or a dead celebrity". The memory surfaced, bringing a smile out to my otherwise truly miserable face. Moving quietly I slid myself into a pair of black denim jeans, and out the bedroom door.
After a brief time showering, eating, making a vain but fruitless effort to comb through my fur, I headed out of the apartment and descended down into the street. Hot air hit me with all the subtlety of a brick, smothering my breath in the damp. A heatwave had hit the town, and all around I saw furs doing their best to keep cool. Some had strategically shaved their fur, revealing blueish undertones on their skin. Others resorted to carrying small fans and the like. I tugged at the collar of my shirt, backpack around one arm and began the arduous walk towards the shop.
Stopping short of a set of traffic lights I found myself shoulder-to-shoulder with a dozen others; all sweltering in the morning sun. Although cooler beneath the shade of the buildings, Shucon town was famous for it's ability to switch between extremes. Situated in in the heart of three valleys, the settlement had impressive mountains surrounding it, two sprawling lakes at it's edge and a steep gulley which would often flood, causing mists to fall down into the streets. No such luck today.
My feet carried me onwards, pack weighing down my arms until I finally reached the centre of the town. Despite its quaint nature, here the buildings reached ten stories with ease, brushing away the history in favour of business. Through the rumble of life around me I could discern the scents of birds, shrieking their value-for-money prices at the masses; the blurred shape of a fox who coyly avoided eye contact as we passed, a small group of hyaenas laughing in unison. I would be hard placed to find a species who didn't find themselves at home here.
Eventually I found myself standing outside a lurid red-painted shop door. Unlit signs dotted themselves across the window, and through the glare of sun-on-glass the shapes of a multitude of instruments made their appearance. Above, painted on lacquer stained wood, was the name "Bear Strings". A smile flashed across my lips as my feet crossed the threshold to the chime of a bell. Air conditioning hit me with an equal subtlety to the heat; but this was more than welcome. Ahead of my, to the back of the shops, I could hear the familiar crash and bang of Kurt.
Now, being a seven-foot Bear with a coat so thick I once joked he survive the Arctic naked, Kurt did not deal well with the sudden arrival of a freak heatwave; and his mood reflected this. A dozen of so curses fell on my ears before I pushed back the staff door to find my boss flat on his ass surrounded by guitar strings. A light grin hit my face despite my best efforts.
"Morning".
Hello Folks. I hope you enjoyed the introduction. I'll be uploading the full story here, as and when I write it.
*This is for you, J*