FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

Marcus shivered in the cold afternoon air as he stepped out of the taxi. He had dressed in shorts and a thin hoodie for the flight, and despite his luscious fur, he felt frozen having become accustomed to a warmer climate. He glanced up and down the suburban street and felt a heavy, foreboding sensation in his stomach. He handed over some money to the Weasel who had driven him from the train station and hauled his suitcase out of the back. The street was comprised of smart but identical redbrick houses, all with neat, square lawns. Shining German and Swedish made cars sat on the driveways. The street was empty but Marcus' sharp nose picked up the scent of a bonfire from a nearby garden. Wheeling his suitcase along, he made his way toward a familiar wrought-iron gate that was set in a low and perfectly trimmed hedge. Behind it lay a large, Edwardian semi-detached house. Marcus had never imagined he would be back so soon. The gate gave a shrill squeal as he pushed it open. He made his way down the path, seeing the familiar but daunting sights; two pots of wilted flowers sitting by the front door and Ian's grey Lexus parked on the driveway. With his heart in his mouth, Marcus rang the doorbell. He had called Ian and Christine from Heathrow to let them know he had flown back to see them. The door was opened by Ian while Christine peered over his shoulder. "Did you have a safe flight?" Ian asked curtly "Yes, I did" Marcus replied as he lugged his suitcase indoors. Christine took a step forwards, coming out from behind her husband's shadow. She was a skinny Wolf and her muzzle was often fixed in a wrinkled expression of worry or disapproval. She put a limp arm around Marcus and awkwardly kissed the air near his muzzle "We made your old room up" Ian explained "Uh, thanks" Marcus said, taking his suitcase upstairs.

Marcus' old room faced over the backyard and a park that lay beyond the garden wall. As a pup, he had enjoyed the view, but now he felt no emotion gazing over it. His room looked plain and faceless. He had shipped his posters, books and bedspreads to Riley's apartment in Australia, and it seemed Christine had removed all his other belongings. Once he had unpacked his clothes, he made his way down to the kitchen to find Ian and Christine standing side by side "We've already eaten, so this is for you" Ian explained, gesturing to a ready meal sitting on a plate. In spite of the situation, Marcus was hungry so he ate while Ian and Christine sat in the living room reading newspapers. Marcus joined them a moment later, Christine excused herself and left the room in an awkward silence "So, did you watch the message on the disc?" Ian asked. Marcus sighed and nodded "What did it contain, and what do you think?" Ian continued "Honestly, I don't want to go into detail just yet, and I don't know what to feel right now" Marcus said "the whole thing is too bloody surreal for me" "I haven't told my wife about your mum's letter. I said you'd come back as you felt too isolated out in Australia" Ian explained "I don't want to shock her". Marcus suppressed a scowl, he had not been alone and had abandoned his friends to come back to England. He silently hoped that they had seen the address on his note. Marcus also felt unsure over telling Ian about the message on the disc, and decided to stay silent for now. He also knew that he had to find the list his mother had told him about before it grew dark "I need to get some air" Marcus claimed. He made his way back to his room, undressed and sprayed himself with deodorant to mask the pungent scent of his musk and the grimy feeling of long distance travel. He changed into a fresh pair of briefs and socks before putting on a thicker hoodie and jeans.

There was a gate in the garden wall that led directly into the park. Marcus closed it behind him and made his way along a concrete path that snaked through a copse of trees before ending beside a slow moving stream. In the summer, the park would be full of furs enjoying the sunshine, but in the gloomy afternoon of an English winter, there was no one to be seen. The path followed the stream until the concrete stopped and the ground became covered by stones and compacted grass. Ahead, Marcus could see the willow tree that his mother had described in the video. Ian and Christine had taken him on walks by the tree several times when he was a pup. As his mother had explained, the tree was odd looking since there was only one branch on the side facing away from the water. Marcus walked towards it but felt a growing sense of trepidation. There was a single hollow in the trunk at the same height as his muzzle. Marcus glanced around, checking he was alone. He couldn't see or smell anyone else, but there was a thick patch of bushes by the water's edge. Could a fur be hiding in there? Marcus' brain was screaming at him to look inside the hollow and get home. He sniffed at the hollow's entrance and was satisfied that there was nothing sinister hiding inside. Using the torch on his phone, he stood on his hind-paws and rootled around inside. His paw brushed against something plastic and he pulled it out. In the fading light, he could make out a sheet of paper sealed inside a plastic wallet. Stuffing the wallet in his jeans pocket, Marcus hurried off in the direction of Ian's house.

Marcus made straight for his room as soon as he arrived back. He shut the curtains, pulled the list out of the wallet and sat down on the bed to read the names.

Hector Fawcett

Benjamin Khaled

Olivier Blanc

Abram Slobov

Marcus frowned. He knew that the name of his father's company was Winters-Fawcett-Slobov, but other than that, the names meant little to him. To be safe, he lifted up the mattress and slid the list underneath. He then undressed and climbed into bed in his underwear, wrapping the covers tightly around his body. Even though he didn't want to tell Ian about the list, he thought of someone who could potentially help him. He would pay them a visit tomorrow. As the jet lag caught up with him, Marcus fell into a deep, dark and dreamless sleep.

Marcus was awoken by the pale rays of dawn creeping through a gap in the curtains. He stretched and rolled over, feeling disorientated for a moment when he saw that he wasn't in his room at Riley's apartment. Marcus showered and put on a change of clothes. He retrieved the list and made his way out of the house, walking towards the train station. He passed the rows of smart houses as random memories of walking down the street as a pup came flooding back. He slipped his headphones on, but with the grey, monochrome sky and the pleasant looking but sterile street, it didn't feel the same as his morning walks to the beach. He caught a train and rode it for two stops until he was in the city centre. He got off and made his way down a bustling street lined with leafless trees. The buildings in the city were a mixture of Tudor and Gothic Fifteenth Century styles. A few tourists were walking around and snapping pictures. Marcus knew the city was popular with foreign visitors, but to him, the place had always felt cold and oppressive. He also remembered with a lump in his throat that the walk would take him past his old school. Sure enough, he rounded a corner and saw a set of tall iron gates marking the entrance. Beyond them was a stretch of manicured lawn and an imposing, grey Victorian building. A motto in Latin was engraved above the gates. There hadn't been many Wolves at the school, so Marcus had been a source of interest, as well as a target from the start. Marcus shivered, he could see a patch of bushes near the gates where he had had his first fight. Archie Henderson, a snide Pitt Bull had called him a "fucking diseased queer and a stinking tail-licker". Being a hot-headed teenage wolf at the time, Marcus had decided to settle the matter with his fists and teeth. He won the fight easily, but was then suspended for a week, much to the chagrin of Ian and Christine. Marcus sighed and continued on.

Eventually, he reached a residential area off the main street. He turned down a narrow road named Parkway Village which was lined with regal looking townhouses. The road suddenly gave way to cobble stones and traditional Victorian streetlamps. The area almost looked like a set from a movie and it was one of the few streets in the city that Marcus had liked to walk down. He felt a warm sense of relief when he saw a white 1968 Jaguar XJ parked outside a small, yet elegant mews house. Marcus took a deep breath and pressed the doorbell. The door was opened by a middle aged, but athletic and youthful looking German Shepherd wearing a gym shirt and Nike shorts. The German Shepherd's muzzle broke into a smile and his tail wagged "Marcus! What a lovely surprise" he exclaimed. He reached over, hugged Marcus tightly and gave him a kiss on the muzzle "Oh it's great to see you too Harry" Marcus replied, feeling a rush of happiness course through him "Excuse my appearance, I went for a jog, but come in" Harry said, leading Marcus through the front door "this is rather unexpected, what brings you all the way back from Australia?" he asked. Marcus felt his ears splay and Harry saw his expression "Come to the kitchen, you look like you need a cup of tea" Harry said, his tone now concerned. The interior of Harry's house was both traditional and modern looking. The kitchen was fitted with hi-tech appliances and polished chrome, while an old copper kettle sat on the worksurface beside an Aga stove "I'm trying to track a list of furs down" Marcus explained "I was wondering if you could help me" "A list of furs eh? What's this for?" Harry asked as he filled the kettle with water and put it on the stove. Marcus sighed "You know I was adopted, right?" he began "You told me the first time we met" Harry replied. Marcus took a deep breath and recounted the story of his family past and his mum's message. When he finished he pulled out the list and slid it over to Harry.

Harry read it and sat in silence for a moment. His face conveyed the same expression that Riley's had, but then he slowly nodded "Winters-Fawcett-Slobov, yes I remember the government was keeping an eye on them" Harry mused. Marcus frowned "Hang on, you know about this. Did you see it in the news?" "I don't know a huge amount, and no, I didn't see it in the news" Harry said. There was another moment of silence as Harry sat down. "Did I ever tell you what I did for a living?" Harry asked "You're a businessfur, but you also do some work for one of the colleges here?" Marcus answered "You're half correct, that is what I do" Harry said "but I also worked as an MI6 informant". Marcus' eyes widened a fraction "Really?" He replied. Harry nodded. The kettle whistled and Harry filled two cups of tea, handing one to Marcus "Considering you told me more about your past, I guess it's only fair I return the favour" Harry said "back in the nineteen eighties, when I was your age, one of the strangest and most tragic things happened to me. While I was working as a sales executive, I'd been asked by my handler to snoop on a party of Soviet businessfurs meeting at a London hotel. There was a Russian Wolfdog there called Andrei, he looked similar to you in fact. He seemed a bit of a loner and we got talking. I sensed a spark between us, I couldn't put my paw on it, but there was definitely something different about him. Later, when I was in my hotel room, he knocked on my door. I had no idea how he'd got my room number. He was terrified, but came in and said that he wanted to defect to the West. Interestingly, he wanted to stay with me. He ended up staying the night and I made love to him. He was a big canine, yet in my bed he felt so small and vulnerable. It was a rash thing to do, but I guess I'd become bored of being in the closet. I could sense Andrei was in the same situation. He claimed he wanted to collect some things that might be useful to us, so I told him to meet me at Waterloo Station the next day. I showed up and waited, but Andrei never appeared. A few days later, my manager gave me a photo to go into the company newsletter. It showed Andrei and his colleagues at Heathrow airport. I was glad that he was alive, but then I felt incredibly stupid. He could have been a KGB agent or an MI6 plant to weed out easily corrupted agents. However, nothing happened and MI6 never found out. I could also sense by the way Andrei seemed scared and had shown pleasure during sex that he hadn't faked anything. But to this day, I have no idea why he never showed up. Maybe he thought he would miss his family or just wanted a one night stand, but I always think about him and hope he's safe and alive. You're the only fur I've ever told about this".

Marcus sat back in amazement as Harry finished "You never told your ex?" Marcus asked "No, I never told Gavin" Harry replied. They sat in silence for another minute. "I'll help you Marcus" Harry said eventually "if I can't find the answer to my story, then I want to find the answer to yours. Besides" Harry gave a playful grin "part of me has been craving an adventure" "Thanks Harry" Marcus smiled "you said the authorities were looking at my Dad's company?" "Yes, but sadly I wasn't assigned to that. The one thing I know is that MI6 believed it was connected to an international group known as The Link. They were a shady group of furs said to be involved in crime, embezzlement and funding terrorism. We'd best start by looking up the names on your list". As they drank their tea, Marcus looked up Hector Fawcett and Benjamin Khaled on Harry's computer, while Harry searched for the other two names on his tablet "It says Fawcett is a Whippet who still works in business, running some sort of eco-company, and he gives public speeches every now and again" Marcus explained "and Khaled is an Arabian Leopard and businessfur too, owns nightclubs in London, Paris and Berlin, but there's no pictures. That's all I found" "According to this, Blanc is a politician in Paris now, and Slobov died a year ago in Norway" Harry replied, "It also says here that Fawcett is doing a speech in London tomorrow, at The Crystal" Marcus added "It's a new skyscraper in London" Harry explained "figures, it's supposed to be very eco-friendly". Harry finished the last of his tea and set his cup down, "we'll make that our first port of call" he explained "I feel apprehensive about this" Marcus said "I left a note for my roommates back in Australia, I'm kinda hoping they'll fly over here and talk me out of it". Harry nodded "I understand. When I first met you, I saw a determined, but lost young wolf. It seemed like you were searching for something, I encouraged you to go out and seek it. It seems like you found it when you got to Australia. Whenever you emailed with news, you sounded really happy, and you've gotten more athletic too" Harry said with a wink "it's up to you whether you want to continue". Marcus sighed, Ian had used those exact same words "I want to" Marcus said eventually "my mum said these furs may still be planning evil things and the police couldn't help" "I know this is a personal quest, but you'll need all the backup you can get if you're to take on The Link" Harry asserted "I've still got my apartment in London. We'll use that as a base" "I need to get my things from Ian's" Marcus explained "If you can, get back to mine tonight at seven. We'll drive to London together". Marcus thanked Harry and made his way to the front door "It'd be best not to tell anyone else about the list, asides me and your friends. If word gets around, we could be found out" Harry explained "I understand" Marcus replied. Harry gave Marcus another hug before closing the front door.

Marcus took the train back home. Ian and Christine were sitting in the living room in silence, watching an old movie. Ian nodded a greeting as Marcus walked by. Marcus made his way up to his room and sat on his bed, mulling Harry's words over. He heard the doorbell ring, followed by someone getting up to answer it. A moment later there was a knock on his bedroom door "Marcus, some friends have come to see you" he heard Christine say, she uttered the word "friends" with difficulty. Marcus made his way downstairs, grinning and wagging his tail in excitement as he saw who it was. Ayden and Riley were standing in the doorway, clutching a suitcase each and looking bleary eyed after a long flight. Both of their muzzles spread into smiles as they saw Marcus and Riley's tail wagged happily "We got the right house!" the Dingo exclaimed as the three of them shared a hug "This is Riley and Ayden, my mates from Australia" Marcus explained to Christine as she watched them with an expression of bemusement "I see" she said awkwardly "You guys don't know how glad I am to see you" Marcus beamed "I wondered if you'd follow, but I was worried you wouldn't be able to pay for a flight" "We did some busking to raise money but Riley is an awful singer, so I convinced him to try prostitution..." Ayden began but was cut off by a dig from Riley's elbow. Christine looked as if she was about to faint "I actually borrowed some money from my dad" Riley explained, trying to reassure her "Yes, uh..." Christine stammered, retreating back into the living room.

Marcus led Ayden and Riley to the kitchen and explained what had happened that day "Harry says he can help me" Marcus finished. He suddenly felt that bringing Ayden and Riley to England was unnecessary and even potentially dangerous. He had done it on impulse without thinking. Riley seemed to read his thoughts "You don't have to do this" he asserted "we can all fly back together" "I'm sorry Riley, but I want to" Marcus said "Fine, but I'm coming too. I don't want you getting hurt" Riley replied "plus, I've always wanted to see London" he added guiltily "I'm also coming, serving cocktails to tourists gets old after a while. Plus, I've always wanted to beat up some bad guys" Ayden cut in with a grin "Ayden, you couldn't even hit water if you fell out of a boat" Riley muttered. Ian and Christine appeared at the kitchen door "Marcus, Ian and I have just been talking, and well, we'd rather your friends didn't stay here tonight" she said, avoiding eye contact with them. Marcus shrugged "That's fine, I'm not planning on staying either" "Yes, well, goodbye then Marcus" she said flatly, turning on her hind-paws and walking back to the living room. Ian gave them all a stony look and followed her "I can see why you wanted to leave" Riley growled "Get your stuff, I'll quickly pack mine. I said I'd meet Harry at seven" Marcus instructed.

They assembled in the hallway five minutes later. There was no sign of Christine but Ian appeared to say farewell "I want to see if my mother's theory was true" Marcus explained as he stood on the doorstep. Ian nodded "Marcus, I know we didn't always get on, but be careful. If the going gets rough, you have my number", for a moment, he looked as if he was going to follow them, but he sighed and gently closed the door. The three of them took the train back into the city and walked to Harry's house. Harry was waiting outside, the engine of his Jaguar running "Harry, these are the friends I told you about, Riley and Ayden. They want to come with us" Marcus explained. Harry shook both of their paws "The more the merrier I guess" he chuckled. They lugged their suitcases into the trunk and climbed into the Jaguar's wood and leather interior "Nice car man!" Ayden said, running his paw along a wood panel "but it smells like my grandad's house" he muttered, sniffing at the leather "Thanks, I always wanted a classic car, but I fitted it with a modern stereo system" Harry explained, ignoring Ayden's second remark. He connected his phone and the sound of "Hungry Like The Wolf" filled the car "Ooh I love this song" Ayden exclaimed, singing along. Riley gritted his teeth "A twenty three hour flight later and Ayden is still acting like a hyperactive kit" he growled "Heh, sorry, I like reliving my youth" Harry said, turning the music down "your fox friend reminds me of myself when I was teenager" he added to Marcus with a grin "He's mine and Riley's age, would you believe it" Marcus replied.

They drove through the outskirts of the city and joined the motorway as the sun started to set over the horizon. The music finished and Marcus noticed that Ayden and Riley had fallen sound asleep in the back. Marcus tried to doze off but the thought of getting to London and the bright lights from cars travelling in the opposite direction kept him awake. The mention of London had brought back another set of memories that he had suppressed in his mind. Harry sat in silence, keeping his eyes on the road. Marcus turned in his seat, listening to the purr of the engine as he closed his eyes. As the car gently rocked, sleep finally came to Marcus. As he drifted off, the piercing gaze of his mother's blue eyes filled his mind, and the words "mummy believes in you" echoed through his head.