FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

"You know," Mom says as we pull up to the school the next morning, "soon I won't have time to drive you to school every morning."

"Probably, yeah."

"You might have to start taking the bus."

"I'd really rather not, Mom."

"How do you think you're going to get to school? It's much too far to walk."

"Well..." Here goes, my first attempt at getting permission to drive, "I'm 16, I have my license. I could drive myself."

"Hmm, I might still need the car during the day while you're at school."

"What if I had my own car?"

"That would work, but...you don't have the money to buy a car."

"Nope, and no chance to get it. Dad doesn't want me to get a job while I'm in school, either. Says it'll get in the way of school."

"Hmmm..." she put a finger up to her mouth.

"It would make everything a lot easier if I could just drive myself. Plus, I could join extra-cirricular activities without having to worry if your guys' schedule could support it."

"You want to join a team?"

"Haven't even considered it because I don't know if I'd have a ride home."

"I know what you're doing, young man," she narrows her eyes at me for a second before smiling, "But I'll talk with your father about it."

"Thanks mom."

"I'll see you this afternoon, dear. I love you!"

"Love you too, bye!"

My morning classes go off without a hitch, but I can't help the sinking feeling creeping into my gut. The new material is distracting enough, but once I get to English class the looming threat of lunch period weighs on me. Is Bella going to take my dessert again? What if I say no, will she fight me? What if I just get two so I can hand one over like tribute? Dad and Mom won't mind if I say it's for my pack, I think.

Mr. Pelton doesn't let us out early today, so we get there after the lines have all formed. I can spot my pack's table near the middle of the giant lunch area, Bella and a few girls already seated. There's a couple new cats at the table, though. Guess I'll find out when I get there, but for now I'll go with the two desserts strat. A burger, some fries, a drink, and two brownies fill my tray. The capybara woman lunch lady gives me an easy smile when she adds a second one to my order. Thankfully my parents have given me plenty of money, but I'm sure they'll see this additional charge eventually. Just past her and inside the lunch room on the herbivore side there's a round table with a bunch of chairs around it, with what looks like a dozen squirrels. Their big poofy tails stick out the back of the seats, bouncing and twitching as they chatter quickly between themselves. The vegetarian lunch doesn't look too bad, mostly salads with cups of fruit and nuts. One of them stuffs a handful into his backpack and catches me looking. I don't know how long he stares at me but I head on out to Bella's table where Joseph is saving me a seat again.

"Hey man," he waves, "saved you a seat again!"

"...Thanks," I deadpan and sit down next to Becky. Joseph's wearing a pastel blue polo shirt with a collar and everything, definitely a step up from his graphic tee yesterday. "What's with the shirt?"

"Oh, you noticed!" Joseph tugs at the front of his collar with both hands, "I got this last year, but it still fits and Bella says the color goes well with me."

"You could learn from him, Alistair," Bella glowers at me from across the table. She's wearing a loose yellow shirt with a palm tree design on it that exposes her midrift, but her fluffy coat still manages to get rid of any slack in the fabric. There's two new girls next to her. On one side, a housecat with wavy blonde hair, a coat of black and brown splotches, and wearing a pink vest over a white shirt. On the other, a grey cat wearing a purple turtleneck. Her hair falls perfectly straight down the back of her head and covers one eye. Each of them look a little confused, or disgusted, and stare at me with those slitted yellow eyes. "Joseph actually listens to his pack leader and puts in the effort to look presentable. What about you?"

"What, did I get a stain on it?" I look down at my solid-color t-shirt. Brushed-metal gray over a pair of loose jeans.

"No. Did you even look at yourself in the mirror before you left the house this morning?" She crosses her arms in front of her, pressing up under her modest chest. I'd be interested in ogling her if she didn't already disgust me. "I thought I told you to dress better."

"Can't say I remember you saying that," I shrug, "You just kinda pointed to all of me and said I needed to fix it."

"Ugh, whatever," a fuzzy hand pops out from the crook of her arm and opens palm-up, the pink pawpads opening and closing a bit. Again I run through the possible scenarios that had been running through my mind all morning. "At least we can minimize the damage you're doing right now. Hand over your dessert, can't have you getting fat under my watch."

Deep breath, I can do this. Give her just one, like I prepared. I pick the bigger one of the two and hand it across the table to her. She raises an eyebrow at me, looking at the one still on my tray.

"Both of them."

"What?"

"I said your dessert. As in both of them." She snaps her fingers at me. Weird that she can do that with her furred hands. Guess I never really thought about it.

"Did...did you just snap your fingers at me?" I tilt my head. Deep breaths, I can do this. Just say she got her tribute or something, or maybe one brownie won't hurt. Just...something! If she keeps this up she'll be taking my entree soon or later too.

"Joseph, take that other dessert off his tray and hand it to Becky."

I turn to watch him. Joseph actually straightens his back a little, like he's proud of something.

"Guess that means you're below me in the pecking order, Alistair," he tells me with a smug grin, "Looks like I'm finally moving on up!"

"Don't you--" just as I get the courage to say no someone interrupts me.

"He-he-hey, Bella!" a dude behind me says before putting orange fuzzy hands on both our shoulders. I follow them up the maroon sleeves of a jacket to see a similarly orange and white striped smiling face. It's another housecat, and he's wearing a white polo underneath his letter jacket. "I see your pack is growing! Scooped up the other human, too. Nice!"

"Hello, Dylan," Bella responds in an almost sultry voice. Her face completely changes too, from the angry glare she was giving me just a second ago to all smiles. "Settling in well this year?"

"Sure am! Don't know how you manage being a pack leader, but I'm sure I can figure it out," he shakes our shoulders a bit as he speaks. "But enough about me, who's this new human transfer student?"

"Alistair," Bella answers for me in a flat tone, "he's having trouble adjusting to how things work here."

"Aww, what happened?" he leans down to get closer to me. His breath stinks. "Did no one teach you how to be a good follower? That's really," he shakes my shoulder even harder, putting more of his weight on it, "really important! You don't want to end up a loner!"

This guy is ruining all my carefully-planned responses.

"I...I already gave Bella my dessert," I say slowly, "but she wants both of them."

"Yeah, being a good follower can be tough," he sighs and nods his head, "but her pack, her rules."

"I'd really rather keep just one of them."

"Look, Ali," he takes the hand off Joseph's shoulder to motion at her, "look at that fine, fine cat over there. How can you say no to someone that hot? If you're a good boy someday you might move up from being her number-one chewtoy, like Joseph here!" Joseph lets out a little cough when Dylan pats his chest.

"Chewtoy?"

"What, don't like girls?"

"No, I mean--"

"Into men, huh? Wow, I thought that was just a rumor. Humans really will fuck anything!"

"No, that's not--" Dylan's nose gets uncomfortably close and I hear him take a couple deep sniffs.

"You don't even want her scent on you! That's pretty gay, dude."

Huh? That thing barely smelled like perfume, not a cat. I didn't even think about it this morning, it's still stuffed in the side pocket of my backpack.

"What?" Bella sits up straighter, "I gave that cloth to you to put my scent on you, Alistair."

"It's just a handkerchief," I sputter, "It doesn't even smell like anything!"

"Being a human must suck," Dylan sighs and stands up again, "I get it. Can't smell anything, can't hear anything, don't know anything, life is hard for you. Which is why you should listen to someone better, like Bella over there."

I struggle to form a response. Nobody had ever really said anything like this before. Well, no one except Melissa, but dad dumped her a few years ago. I couldn't say anything then, either.

"She'll take care of you, so long as your a good follower."

"I'll find you a nice boy to date, Alistair," she adds with a sneer, then snaps her fingers, "Joseph! Snap to it!" Joseph reaches for my tray, but when I try to stop him Dylan grips my shoulder even harder. Joseph just reaches over and takes the other brownie.

"Hey, isn't that nice? She might even get you connections to other packs, like mine! Now when I was a follower like you, sometimes I had to try really hard to apologize for stuff like this, but since you can't touch her, how about..." He presses my whole tray forward, "this? You'd be getting off easy."

"No." I reach forward and hold my tray in place. I am not going to be giving up all of my it. Doubly so if it's this asshole that's suggesting it. How can one person be so infuriating? I've never been so mad about something like lunch but this guy found a way to do it.

"You should do it," Bella says, "I might forgive you if you did."

"Forgive me for what?"

"Snubbing your pack leader, of course," Dylan answers, "Is it because she's a girl? How about a hot guy like me?" He chuckles while his hand pulls my shoulder towards and he presses up against him. I feel it slip between his legs and something soft hit the side of my head.

That does it. I hook a finger under the edge of my tray and flip it over onto the table, drink and all, while elbowing him away and standing up to face him. I've never been in a fight before, but I'm ready to beat the shit out of this cat. Bella shouts something and I can hear other people talking, but it doesn't really register.

"Get the fuck--" Dylan interrupts me with a smack across the face. It hurts less than I thought it would, but still makes me dizzy. I stumble forward and try to grab him in a tackle, swinging for his gut like I saw Blossom do to Rocky, but I trip over my chair. It slips right off his jacket and my arm just barely hooks around him. All the air leaves my lungs when I feel something hit my back hard and I nearly collapse. I feel like puking. Dylan hooks an arm under mine and spins me, pulling me up against him in a full nelson.

"Look what you did, you little freak!" Dylan yells into my ear, shaking me. Most of the table is covered in my spilled drink and Bella is standing up looking pissed. "Can't go around acting like you're tough when can't fight!"

"Alistair," Bella says in a low tone. She looks pissed, "submit."

"No," I wheeze back. I try to hit Dylan again, or at least kick him, but he steps back and leans forward. I can hardly breath and my neck fucking hurts at this angle.

"You will, one way or another," he growl-whispers into my ear, then rubs his head against everything that isn't already covered by his hands, "I'll mark you, everyone's gonna know."

"Alistair, submit now!" Bella yells again. I can't see her from here, though, and my eyes are starting to tear up a bunch.

"No..." Fuck her. Fuck Dylan. Fuck packs. I'd rather be a loner that deal with this bitch and her boyfriend. When I can't reach Dylan I just kick the table. I hear another drink spilling.

"Maybe I'll have Bella give you to me," Dylan growls in my ear, "I'll break you in and get my own little human bitch-boy like Joseph."

"Alistair!" Bella shouts again.

"You'd like that, wouldn't you," Dylan folds me forward and I feel him against my back. "Humans will fuck anything, you'd love to get some of this." His hips meet my ass as he thrusts forward, and my vision is starting to blur at the edges.

"Fuck you," my voice is nothing but a squeak, but I'll be damned if I give in to this piece of shit.

"Bet you're unsheathing right now, you little faggot," he thrusts a couple more times against me. I still can't get out of his grip.

"Release him, Dylan" a new voice says. Sounds female, in charge, and has a weird accent that I can't place.

"Not until he submits!"

"I said release him."

"Humie's gotta--guh-hoh!" Sounds like he got the wind knocked out of him, and his arms finally relent and let me go, spilling me forward in a fit of coughs and aches to my knees. Fuck, my neck and back hurt like hell. At least nothing spilled onto my backpack here on the floor. I turn to look who's saved me.

She stands about five foot nothing, but her short black fur does little to hide the muscles underneath. White hair stands up and curls forward over her nose in a type of wide mohawk, trailing back over her head and down her back to a short stubby tail. I'm surprised to see she lacks the prominent ears that all the other anthros seem to have, they're hardly visible except for the small holes on the side of her head. From each of her limbs sprout long, sharp-looking claws where a human's fingernails might be. She's got her fist clenched around Dylan's lower jaw, unconcerned at all about his fangs, keeping him on his knees. She speaks with an accent I can't place. Africa maybe?

"What have I told you," she tugs his head back and forth to keep him off-balance, looking bored, "about doing that thing during submissions, Dylan?"

"Awwah-ohl" he tries to answer. His eyes are wide enough to fall out of his head now that he's the one who can't do anything either. Every time he tries to stand up or even get his arms underneath him she tugs or pushes his head to undo it.

"You might be a pack leader this year, Dylan," she pulls his face up close to hers. He scrabbles to try and support himself, but winds up hanging off her arm not to fall over, "Look at me, Dylan. I am above you. You are beneath faculty, beneath me. Do you understand?"

Dylan makes more noises, but she just shakes him again.

"My patience has ended, Dylan. Sexually assault another student again and no one will see the injuries I will give you. Your parents will thank me for it, too. They like me, Dylan."

Dylan responds with noises that sound like "okay," and she tosses his head away from her.

"S-sorry Ms. Klerk," Dylan says before walking off gripping his jaw.

"Be gone, Dylan," she says before turning to look at me and the table behind me. "Bella, do you approve of Dylan's behavior?"

"No, Ms. Klerk," she groans.

"Then why did you let him do it?" Ms. Klerk puts her hands on her hips, tilting her head.

"Alistair wouldn't submit!"

"This looks very bad, Bella. Does the school need to step in where you have failed?"

"But he--"

"Silence. You must fix this, Bella. Repair your pack and earn your respect, or are you not fit to lead?"

Bella winces and lets out a hiss, then looks at me. "Go sit at the loners' table, maybe that'll change your attitude. Maybe I'll let you stay in my pack tomorrow if you ask for forgiveness." Ms. Klerk nods at her, then looks down at me too.

"Alistair, do you wish to die?"

"No," I cough. She raises an eyebrow at me. Fuck, I don't want to get the same treatment as Dylan. The other students make sure to address her, so I better do that too. "No, Ms. Klerk."

"Humans may share our sense of spite, Alistair, but it will be the death of you. If you cannot win, you must submit. If you cannot follow Bella, you must find another. Now go, listen to your pack leader. You still have time to eat if you are quick, Alistair."

"Yes, Ms. Klerk." I reach over and grab my backpack. My whole body aches, especially my neck, but I manage to stand up again.

"Ms. Klerk, what about the mess?"

"All of this is your mess, Bella. Clean it up."

"Joseph, get some paper towels..."

Damn, all that felt like it took forever, but it's only been like twenty minutes since lunch started. Lots of the other students at their tables watch me as I walk back to the kitchen, and I easily make it through the lunch line again.

"Oh, the strapping young boy needs more food, hmm?" The portly capybara behind the register asks with a smile, then puts a sugar cookie on my tray with a wink. "My treat today. Put some meat on those bones."

"Th-thank you!" I return her smile.

Fuck, what's wrong with me? That little act of kindness nearly made me cry after what just happened. I shake my head a bit and head back into the lunch room, past all the tables that rejected me, and follow Bella's outstretched arm to a table near the edge and at the back. She still looks pissed, but at least Dylan isn't around. The unusual distance of this table from all the rest, and the mish-mash of people sitting there, makes it obvious which one is the loners' table. None of them object to me, so I pick an empty chair and sit down.

"Hey," I say and get situated. Some of them are staring at me, but at this point I don't care as long as they don't try the same shit Bella did.

"Good fight, human," a squirrel dude wearing a trenchcoat and a...mafia hat says next to me, "I admire your spirit, but if you trained under me you could defeat them."

"Uh-huh..." I absently respond, digging into my new lunch.

"Don't listen to Billy," a possum girl on the other side of the table says with specks of food flying out of her mouth. Her fur is matted in places and there seems to be a few stains here and there from...something that never got washed off. The stretched-out graphic tee with 'I beat Anorexia' barely contains her girth and matches her fur. "He doesn't actually know any martial arts."

"I told you my name is Shadow!" he yells at his tray, shoulders hiking up beneath the coat, "and yes I do! I just don't want the whole school to see my secret techniques."

"It's not true, is it?" a short rat girl next to the with thick glasses asks me. Her tray is pushed in front of her and she's drawing on some sketchpad that looks a little too big for her, sitting next to the possum.

"What?" I'm feeling pretty exhausted at this point, so I keep my answers short.

"You know..." she bites her fingernails. Or claws. Whatever. "Will humans really...you know?"

I narrow my eyes at her for a moment. "Will anthros?"

"Y-yes."

"There you go."

"Hahhhh~" she lets out something between a sigh and a wheeze and flips over a new page.

"Don't do it in front of him," the last guy, some kind of Chihuahua, whisper-yells at her. His eyes look like they're about to bulge out of his head, and even though he's wearing a zipped-up hoodie and sweatpants he's still shivering. He scratches under his chin like a junkie. "Someone might see it again!"

"Do what?" I'm uncertain if I want to know what it is she's going to do.

"Nothing, don't worry about it. I'm Steven." the chihuahua answers, reaching over his tiny paw-hand for a shake.

"Alistair, and I'm eating." I don't take it.

"Right, right," his arm curls up into his hoodie, "well, welcome to the loser's club."

"Nice to see we're finally getting someone new at the table," the possum says, "I'm Rose, the rat's name is Martha, and the squirrel here is Billy. Not 'shadow' or whatever bullshit he's spouting today."

"*Baka,*" Billy growls.

"Are you guys a pack?" I ask. Maybe they formed one out of something like this, wouldn't be unheard of. I know at my last school all the weirdos hung out with each other at lunch.

"Hah!" her open mouth shows me what she's eating, "Fuck no! Not bein' responsible for these guys, I wouldn't trust these freaks further than I can throw them."

"Rose-*hime* is the most powerful amongst our kind, Alistair-san" Billy says in a grim tone, and I catch him stuffing a handful of his food into one of his coat pockets. "Tread carefully, *gaijin.*"

"So what caused that fight?" Steven asks. His mouth runs a mile a minute. "Territorial dispute? Courtship blunders? Housecats are notoriously picky in their mates, usually requiring sufficient aesthetics and social status. Dogs are usually more open to other mammals, but still require good social ettiquette."

"Like not spazzing out about every little detail," Rose snarks.

"Bella wanted my food," I answer between bites.

"Ohhh, I see," he nods sagely, "Food-sharing is very important in pack social dynamics, it's a rookie mistake. Best strategy is to lick all the food on your tray before you make it to your table. Makes them more hesitant, works every time."

"Nah, too hard to balance a tray while walking," Rose speaks around a sandwich she's munching, "Just spit on it like I do."

"Gross," I murmur. I don't try to imagine her doing that, I'm just going to eat my lunch.

"Exactly!" Rose points at me. I don't know if I've ever seen an anthro as fat as her. "No one in their right mind will ask for it then!"

"Steven might," Billy mutters.

"So which one of these match best?" Martha holds up her sketchpad and on it I can see an array of dicks in a grid. As I stare, dumbfounded and now uncomfortably self-aware of the situation, I have the misfortune of noticing that she's actually a pretty good artist. The photorealistic pencil sketches line up four series of slightly different cocks: human, horse, a pointy one with spikes, and a pointy one with a bulb near the base, all gradually lengthening as they go to the right.

"...What?" I can't actually formulate a response.

"Bah-ha ha ha!" Rose laughs, "You can't just ask him that, Martha! Gotta cop a feel first, do some hands-on research!" Her hand reaches forward and clutches the air palm-up.

"Let me see," Steven puts a paw on the corner to angle it down, "Row 3, option D, he's probably packing. Most humans are, but they stay within the four to eight inches range. No sheath, either."

"You saw his fighting spirit," Billy says, "He's clearly the *Seme.*"

"You just wanna see *uke* Dylan again," Martha tells him, "but you're right!" She pulls it away and flips to a new page. I manage to get myself together after that shock.

"What are you even drawing?" I ask.

"Best to just leave her be," Rose waves me off, "She ships one half of the school with the other, and draws all of it."

"Fine, whatever." Ships? Maybe I really don't want to know.

"And?" She raises an eyebrow at me, "Are you?"

"Am I what?"

"Packin? I could go for something exotic, you know."

"I'm exotic," Billy offers a bit too quickly.

"No you ain't, 'Bloodrazor,' there's like 50 squirrels in this school."

"My name is--"

"It's still no. How about it, Alistair? Best part of the loser's club is that we don't have pack leaders butting-in and saying stuff like 'he's no good for you' or 'you can't date him' or 'he's just a freshman.' Martha ain't interested in real boys, and I know you ain't gay."

"How about...what?" Is she asking what I think she's asking?

"You know, being my boyfriend." She is. "It's been a long while since we got a newbie here, and longer for me, if you know what I'm saying."

"It would be wise to take her up on her offer, Alistair-san," Billy whispers at me.

"Humans can go for almost half an hour each session, Rose," Steven speaks quickly, "well outside the average mating period of most other mammals. Mostly due to human women not having much grip, or low sensation in their extremities. Refractory period about fifteen to thirty minutes, two to five orgasms within a 24-hour period. Might be dangerous for someone like you."

"Well damn," Rose wipes her mouth on the back of her hand, "that was the worst warning I've ever heard!"

"They also can't smell," Marth add, "which is a plus for you."

I stop eating for a second and just stare at my food. Why can't I find any normal people in this school? Whatever happened to yammering on about sports or gossip or drama? What about engineheads and theater nerds and band geeks? Well they're all probably in those other packs that don't want me in them, and they exiled people like these, where I've wound up.

"Aw shaddup, you couldn't get a man to save your life, Martha."

"Can, but won't, skinner." She doesn't even look up from her sketching.

"'Skinner'? Like I give a damn."

Lunch period ends at the sound of the bell, saving me from more of whatever this is. Ms. Klerk was right, I had just enough time to finish before it ended, even with the interruptions.

"Well I gotta get to class," I stand with my tray and sling my backpack over my shoulder.

"See you tomorrow, hot stuff," Rose sing-songs at me. My feet rush me away from her and back to the kitchen to drop off my try. This hell is finally over and I get to go to Home Ec. I thought Tinsae was weird before but these people make her look bland and boring as hell, which is just fine by me.

At least until tomorrow, when I can do it all over again. Now that I've eaten and come down from my adrenaline high, I realize that I should have just handed the brownie over in the first place, Dylan wouldn't have had any reason to mess with me. Fuck, I might really have to go crawling back to Bella.

Home Economics starts day two with teaching all of us how to make macaroni and cheese. Guess some kids never learned how to boil water, or measure ingredients like milk and butter. Tinsae watches me from her seat at our little island as I do all the work. She assured me that she knows more about cooking that anyone else in this class.

"I saw the match at lunch today," she remarks with her head on her fist and elbow on the table, bored out of her mind, "Not the first time Dylan's tried to hump someone into submission. First time I've seen someone in Bella's pack say no to her, though."

"Eugh, don't remind me." I don't relish the idea of spending the next few days talking about this in every class to everyone who sees me. 'That guy that Dylan humped,' would be a really shitty way to earn a reputation here. Oddly enough I feel comfortable talking about it to Tinsae, for some reason.

"Don't use that measuring cup, that's for dry ingredients. Use the glass measuring cups instead," she pulls open a cabinet with her foot, not bothering to even get up. "Ms. Klerk is so cool, she's the only person in this school who can do that kind of grab without getting hurt. Did Bella kick you out already? I saw you at the loners' table."

"Not...technically I guess? Hang on a sec." I leave her for a moment to go get my measure of milk. Ms. Cain compliments me on using the right kitchen tool for the job and I head back. Wait a minute. She's a cow. Cows only come in the busty variety. They only sell cow's milk at the store. Are...are we...? Where does it come from?

"She told me to sit at the loners' table as punishment," I set the glass down and pull off the lid. It's still not boiling, I can't even see bubbles forming at the bottom. "Said she'd let me stay in her pack if I ask for her forgiveness tomorrow."

"Leave the lid on while it heats up," she reaches over with her free hand to put it back on, "I don't wanna spend all class waiting on it. Will you?"

"Yeah, I'll leave it on."

"No, I mean will you beg to be let into her pack?"

"I...don't know. She was right that sitting at the loners' table would change my attitude. That had to have been the most uncomfortable lunch in my life."

"There's a reason each of them are there."

"Well it's them or Bella's pack. That possum, Rose, basically asked to have sex within like ten minutes of meeting me."

"Yeah she's like that. She's been on the prowl since her last boyfriend dropped out."

"How'd that happen?"

"He's in juuvie. Rumor is she let him take the fall for her."

I let out a long, strained sigh. "Is your pack, uh..."

"What, recruiting?"

"No, I mean is your pack normal? Nobody's come off as normal here, compared to my old school."

"Why don't you try to find a 'normal' pack? Why stay with Bella's? You don't have a reputation yet, nothing even followed you from East High."

"None of the other packs want a human in it. Bella says she's taking me in as charity."

"None of them at all? You asked everyone?"

"I'm not gonna go vegetarian. Humans get kinda weird when they do."

"What does that have to do with anything?"

"A rabbit in PE told me he could smell it on me, says it stinks. Herbivore packs are a no-go for me."

"Pour in the pasta, give it gentle stirs with this." She pulls out a wooden spoon and hands it to me. I pour it gently, unlike the pair next to us who splash boiling water all over their stovetop. "So, what, gonna stay with her? Push Joseph up the ranks and be her new scratching post?"

I stand and stir the pasta absent-mindedly for a bit. Being the bottom rung of a pack of preppy housecats can't be worse than spending the next two years alone. Or dealing with that fat possum and the dick artist. I'll just keep giving Bella my desserts, convince her I'm not gay, and I could survive. "I guess. Maybe. I dunno. I just gotta focus on my studies and get into a good college, and I'm home free."

The two of us go quiet as we wait for the pasta to come back to a boil. Someone up front lets theirs boil over and earn a scolding from Ms. Cain. She had patiently explained this very simple procedure, and yet they still managed to mess it up. Guess this is why they offer it as a class.

"Let me have a bite," Tinsae speaks up, taking the spoon from me. It's odd to watch someone with a snout purse their lips to blow on pasta, but anthros apparently have the face muscles for it. Her tongue laps it up easy. "That's good, take it off and drain it. Don't rinse it.

"But the directions--"

"Don't rinse it, I have to eat it too you know."

"Fine, whatever." The little sink just barely holds the collander and I manage to get it all in first try.

"Shake the water out. And you had better choose a pack soon."

"Why?" I continue following her directions, "Because I'll have to do paperwork?"

"Now pour it back in, then stir everything together." She hands me the unwrapped stick of butter. "No, because next week they'll rearrange the homeroom classes so that you spend it with your pack."

I stop stirring. "What? They're gonna stick me with her?"

"Yep, you'll get another hour every other day with her and her friends, besides just lunch."

"What happens if I'm not in a pack by then?"

"You don't get homeroom. You get a special placement class where they give you counselling and basic life skills courses. Psychologists, social workers, paras, the works."

"Doesn't sound too terrible." I could deal with that. It would give me a free hour to do homework from my other courses. Maybe I could even pretend to be autistic long enough that they give me a special tutor or something.

""Hey, not bad for someone who's scared to leave the beaten path of the instructions." She reaches over with a fork and takes a bite. I follow suit and while she talks. "They also get your parents pretty involved, if they're around. The special class even gets special field trips to police stations and prisons as part of their 'scared straight' program."

Oh. I set my fork down and lean on the counter. Dealing with Rose and company was bad enough, but that? Mom and Dad would be heartbroken if they had to come in for that, and my summer would probably be spent somewhere like a 'rehab for teens' summer camp or something similarly stupid. I can see now why people deal with pack leaders like Bella.

"Hey, the mac and cheese is fine, no need to wilt on me over it."

"No, not that. I guess...I guess I will have to suck up to Bella tomorrow."

History goes by in a daze. By eleventh grade we've started to cover more recent history, as in the things that have happened in the last like three hundred years, but the old turtle Mr. Smith talks about it like he was there. It makes sense that he's old enough to have been alive then but I can't imagine him actually being present anywhere. I've never seen him out in the halls, and he moves so slow that it wouldn't be that much of a stretch to think that he just lives here.

By the time P.E. rolls around I've made up my mind to take Tinsae's advice and look for another. I'll just ask everyone in P.E., see if I get lucky. Rocky seems like an asshole who likes to pick fights so he's out. The bull from my homeroom suggested finding an herbivore pack, so I'll try that first.

The first day P.E. was short, like all the other classes on the first day, and now that we've got more time Mr. Skollson has set up a bunch of stations to run us through. Rocky's silent in the locker room today and his movements are kind of stiff as he walks around the locker room. He's probably still sore from yesterday, but his short coat hides any bruises he got.

The warm-up laps start and I stride up to the pack of squirrels. They're chattering and running casually so it's pretty easy.

"Hey dude," I start with the squirrel dude on the outside of the group. None of them are taller than my chest and all their big fuzzy tails bounce around behind them like a pack of fur balloons. Here goes nothing.

"Hey dude, what's up?" he responds with a smile. Nice, no immediate disgust.

"Oh I'm just getting used to being in an anthro-majority school, first time attending one."

"Yeah I bet it's pretty different. Must be hard without a bunch of other humans, huh?"

"Yup, no packs at my old school either."

"Wow, really? Sounds pretty messy to me."

"Not really. Anyway, I was wondering if I could join your pack."

"We might have--"

"Sorry!" one of the squirrel girls butts in and pulls him away from me, "but we're already full. There's so many squirrles in this school, so all our packs are already at the limit."

"Sorry, bud," the guy says, "good luck though!"

"Thanks anyway," I wave and move on. Just behind them is the group of cats so I slow down to talk to them instead.

"Hey dude," I start with the closest one of the three, a black cat that isn't actually sporting any hair on his head, just fur. Kinda weird to see it now after so many others have human-style hair.

"Sup?" he says with a disinterested look on his face.

"Well, I was wondering--"

"Hey, it's you!" the other guy in the trio points a gray-furred arm at me, "the guy that fought Dylan!"

"Oh yeah," the first one says, "Bella's pack, right?"

"Dude, I think he's in Dylan's pack now. He lost after Dylan humped him."

Please, no. Please don't let that become my defining moment of high school.

"Sounds pretty gay, dude."

"Better hope Bella takes you back, dude. Dylan's a prick."

"I saw him sitting at the loners' table," the striped orange cat girl adds.

"Dylan's a pack leader though."

"Ugh, I don't mean Dylan," she huffs and points at me, "I mean him."

"Whoa dude," he gives me a pat on the back that nearly causes me to tumble forward, "now you really gotta get Bella to take you back!"

"Good luck man," the first one says, "she can be a real bitch if you get under her coat."

"Th-thanks..." I sputter. Guess news travels fast around here.

"Here's a tip," he continues, "use food. She may look really thin, but there's nothing on this earth that she loves more than big, greasy meals or desserts."

"Kinda...kinda already new that."

"Welp, there you go. Get that 'sharing-size' they offer for the bigger species and bring it to her."

"Haha, yeah..."

At the first station I wind up in line behind a group of dogs. Mr. Skollson has laid out a rope ladder on the ground and we're supposed to be doing foot drills. The girl in front of me looks like an australian shepherd.

"Hey, I'm Alistair. Got room in your pack for one more?"

"No way," she shakes her head with a disappointed look, "not after Dan 'the Man.' We know better now."

"What'd he do?"

"That's a long, long story. Don't think any dog packs are gonna let you in, though."

"Why?"

"Humans are just bad news," she shrugs, then takes her turn through the ladder. Mr. Skollson stands at the end and points the students in different directions to go through the loop in different directions, and points me away from where she went.

Next up for me is the rope climb station, a big metal stand with a rope hanging off a plate. We have three minutes to climb to the top. One of the squirrel students stands next to it with a clipboard and a stopwatch, writing down our time. Right in front of me is Blossom, the monster of a hyena woman that beat up Rocky last class. Her arms rest on her hips while she yells 'encouragement' at the tiger girl climbing at the moment.

"Come on, get the fuck up there Xian!" her wagging tail nearly hits me in the face.

"Fuck...you...Blossom!" Xian yells down back at her.

"Get up their or I'll bite your tail, it's right in front of my face!" It actually isn't, Xian is nearly fifteen feet in the air at this point.

"I'll drop...right on top of you!"

"Me and you are the only hope for this class, Xian, don't let everyone down!"

"Hahh!" Xian's big paw baps the metal plate near the top, the drops to her feet in a pose with her arms out and knees bent. Looks practiced to me.

"67 seconds for Xian," the squirrel says and jots it down.

"Nice work, Stripes," Blossom grins with that mouthful of teeth and fist-bumps Xian.

"Let's see you do better, Spots," Xian bumps her back.

"Heh, hah-hah-hah!" Blossom belts out a laugh in that distinct hyena style, slapping and rubbing her hands together like she just spit in them, "Watch and learn! Hahhh!"

Those clawed meathoook hands reach out and tear the rope out of the air, those splotches around her hands looking like gloves, and she wraps the rope around one of her feet. Her arms start pumping and pulling, wrenching her massive body up into the air. I'm not exactly a beanpole, but those arms of hers might actually be just as big around as my slender torso. Her mouth hangs open as she climbs, exposing those chompers, letting out strained giggles with each heft. It's not until she reaches the top and drops with a thud that I realize I've taken more than one step back in fear.

"63 seconds," the squirrel says, sounding bored.

"Please, hold your applause," Blossom pants with her tongue still hanging out, "But I will be signing autographs." She looks right at me. "Want one, pinkie?"

"N-no thanks," my voice whispers and my head barely shakes in either direction.

"Leave the little guy alone, Blossom," Xian bumps her shoulder and they head off to the next one.

Bella might be a bitch, but I think I'll pass on asking Blossom. I might be able to actually take Bella in a fight, maybe, but that hyena girl would turn me into a greasy stain on the carpet without breaking a sweat. Well, canines don't sweat, but still. If that had been me on the mat last class her arm would have popped my head off my shoulders like a barbie doll.

I take all three minutes to get like ten feet up the rope. Whatever.

At the jump rope station I start already sweaty, so the other two rabbits in line cover their noses with their ears. Guess I'm out of the running for that pack, too.

Back at the start of the loop behind the rope ladder, I wind up behind a horse guy. They're worth a shot, I guess, seeing as how even though they're seven feet tall they're still herbivores.

"Hey," I say a bit out of breath and tap his back, "is your...does your pack have room for one more?"

"Oh hey there, looking for a pack still?" He sounds like he from the northern midwest. Minnesota maybe.

"Hahhhh, yeah. Still getting used to the whole pack thing."

"Yeah bud, we got space. What sport do you do?"

"What?"

He looks me up and down for a moment. "Track? Or cross-country? You look like a track guy. I hear humans are pretty good distance runners, and our school could use a good one after all these years."

"Never done those before."

"Oh. Are you a kicker, then? The football team is looking for a good one too."

"No."

"Wrestling?"

"Nope."

"Basketball?"

"No."

"...Lacrosse?"

"What's lacrosse?"

"Ah geez sorry bud," he pats me on the shoulder and looks genuinely sad, "but I don't think you'd fit in with our pack. Most of us are in track or football ya know, need things wide receivers, not library-lurkers. Good luck on finding a pack though, you can do it bud."

We all line up against the wall at the end of class, waiting for the bell to ring. I get there early since I still don't have the courage yet to shower here. It was easy to do at my old school, but with Rocky and the two horse dudes taking their time and talking casually while showering like it's no big deal I opted to skip it again. I'll just shower when I get home and remind myself that I'm perfectly average for a human being and shouldn't compare myself to anthros. Like the tiger in front of me, the one who was with Blossom today. She's almost just as tall as the hyena, probably like seven feet tall and built like a tank.

"Uh, hey," I start, feeling kinda small, "Xian?"

"Hmm?" her round fuzzy ears twitch and she looks around for who called her, then finally looks down to me, "Oh. What?"

"I was just wondering, uh..." it occurs to me just now that she might be in Blossom's pack. Better ask that first. "Are you and Blossom in the same pack?"

"No, I lead my own. The two of us are friends," she leans down a few inches from my face, "and nothing more."

"I...don't know what you mean by that, but okay." Despite leaning back away from her she maintains that close distance and I almost fall back. "I was just wondering if you, uh, that is...if you have space, right, if I could maybe join your pack?" She stares at me for a moment, those bright green eyes boring into me. Her individual whiskers are visible this close, and so I focus on them instead of her fangs.

"You really are clueless, aren't you?" Her body straightens up just before one hand grabs my wrist and the other sets itself on the top of my head. It tilts in the opposite direction of the arm she pulls up and shakes a little, letting it drop. "Small, no claws, very little visible muscle.." The hand on my head turns me away and I have no choice but to twist with it. She grabs the back of my leg and I let out a small yelp, then turns be back to facing her. "No hidden muscles either." Both hands move to my armpits and she lifts me a couple inches off the ground like a child and lets me drop. I almost fall over. "Poor coordination, too." A fuzzy thumb pinches my chin and opens my mouth, the other pulling up my lip like she's inspecting livestock. "No fangs. No snout. Small eyes..."

"Y-yeah, I get it," I throw up my arms and try to push her away, stepping back a bit. The strength in those hands and limbs tell me she deliberately let me get away. "I'm a pretty average human dude. My doctor said the same thing."

"Exactly. Two humans in the entire school and you're basically the same: small and weak. I've seen humans on TV and at tournaments, and you're a disappointment. The least you could do is set an example of what a human in peak condition looks like."

I've never bothered to lift weights or run or basically anything athletic. I figured not being fat and ugly was good enough and didn't really care to do more than that. She's taken thirty seconds and made me feel ashamed of myself.

"To join my pack you have to be strong, or quick, or have...something useful to contribute. Blossom is all of those things, which is why we're friends. What do you have?"

"Oh, uh..."

"Well? Speak up for yourself!"

"Good...grades?"

She lets out a growling huff in response.

"Guess that's a 'no,' then."

"You're right."

I can feel myself turning red, so I excuse myself and go back to the bathroom to get away from my own embarrassment. When I come back the line is longer, and Xian is talking with Blossom, who looks much fluffier than usual. Guess she took the time to shower. Xian spots me, then points a thumb back in my direction, and Blossom raises an eyebrow at me. She lets out a barking laugh and uses Xian's shoulder to steady herself.

Well, at least this day is almost over.

"Hey son," Dad says from the driver's seat. I managed to avoid Bella on her way out and found Dad's car. "How was your day?"

"Terrible," I sigh.

"Oh come on, it can't be that bad, it's still your first week!"

"Got into a fight today at lunch."

"Oh, you mean one of those 'match' things they do here?"

"Yeah."

"And? Did you win, son?"

"No, the guy put me in a full nelson, humped my ass, and called me gay."

"Why didn't your pack leader take care of it? From what your mother tells me, that's their job."

"Bella? She didn't do anything! She just stood there and egged him on! If a teacher didn't step in I would have passed out."

"Why'd she do that?"

"I bought two desserts today because she keeps taking them from me at lunch. I gave her one like she asked, then she wanted the second one. Then this guy Dylan comes up behind me and winds up fighting me for her."

"What species is he, a bull?"

"No, another housecat."

"That's when the teacher stepped in?"

"Yeah."

"Then what happened?"

"Bella made me sit at the loners' table to change my attitude. Says I can ask forgiveness tomorrow and she might let me back in."

"Well I'm sorry to hear that, Alistair," Dad lets out a sigh and taps the wheel with his fingers, "but getting along with your peers is an important life skill, you know."

"But she's--"

"Not finished. It's also important to learn to stand up for yourself, and when to back down. Choose your battles, son, not everything needs to be an all-or-nothing fight. Not just in school, but all the rest of your life. If you can't fight, find some friends who can. If you can't do that, it's better to go along to get along. If you don't learn to make compromises, life if going to be really hard on you."

I just roll my eyes and look out the window.

"Look, have you tried finding a different pack?"

"Yeah, but now I'm just 'that dude that Dylan humped.' People think I'm gay."

"Sounds like high school hasn't changed much from when I was there," Dad chuckles, "I used to get that all the time too."

"Yeah? How'd you fix it?"

"I just proved them wrong!"

I just keep looking out the window.

"You got to at least try finding another pack. Bella's can't be the only one in that school, not a school that large."

"Everyone I've asked turned me down."

"What? How many did you ask?"

"Like ten or something."

"They can't all say no."

"Well they did. I'm too weak, too tall, don't play sports, or stink, or it's just that I'm human."

"Son, if I could go in there and ask around for you--"

"Please don't." The thought of Dad going around and asking kids my age if I could join their little clubs makes my stomach twist in knots. He just chuckles again.

"That's what I thought. You're almost an adult now, Alistair. You're going to have to learn to make friends, connections, stand up for yourself, or make compromises to get along, and do it all yourself. It's just part of life."

Oh, I see. He's hanging me out to dry. I put on my headphones to listen to music the rest of the way home to give me time to think. No one wanted me in their pack, they all had some kind of excuse. Spending the next two years with the loners' group is totally out--at least Rose was sitting across the table from me instead of right next to me. Dating her makes me feel like barfing.

Mom makes baked chicken and pasta for dinner. Everything she makes tastes delicious and she could go a couple months without repeating anything. Maybe I could convince her to make lunch for me to take to school.

Nah. Someone would taste it and realize how good it is and take everything. I'll just stick with common school cafeteria food.

"So," Mom starts, "How was school today, honey?"

I shoot a quick look to Dad and he gives me a look back. Right, don't want to stress her out with worry over me when there's a baby on the way, but I can't straight up lie to her about it either. I'll just play it down.

"Eh, not that great," I answer. Dad's face gets a little more intense.

"Oh dear, what happened?" Mom asks. She seems oblivious to Dad's expression, but she also might be playing it up. Foxes are supposedly really clever and she's a special breed of fox on top of that.

"I got into a fight at lunch today."

"Oh, you mean a match, or an actual fight?"

"A match."

"Oh my, your very first match!" She gives me an excited smile. "What was it about?"

"I...didn't want to share my food."

"Alistair, what have I told you about food sharing? It's a very important thing with anthros, you know." The look of disappointment on her face twists my insides. Is this how she gets Dad to do whatever she wants? "It wasn't with your pack leader, was it? How did it go? Did you make them submit, or did you?"

"Uh, neither," I have to look away from her and stare at my plate instead. "It was with the leader of a different pack who was friends with mine. I didn't want to submit and a teacher had to step in."

"Look at me, Alistair," she sounds kind of sad but her face is caring, "You don't have to be the big, bad human who's gonna change the world, okay? You need to learn to make friends and get along with your pack, whoever that winds up being. Not every disagreement is worth a match over, either. Use this time in high school to learn what it is that's most important to you, then you'll know what is worth it and what isn't, and I'm sure it isn't food."

"Not even if it's your food?" I try to lighten the heavy mood. That gets her smiling, showing off her bright white fangs and teeth.

"No honey," she reaches over to pat my hand, "not even if it's my food."

"Alright, mom," I sigh, "but how do I get my pack, or any others, to like me? I'm like the bottom of the pecking order right now."

"Well besides being a good follower," I can't help but wince at the phrase but she continues, "you could also do things to support your pack."

"Like what?"

"You could help them with homework or tutor them, or when you start going on field trips or events, you can bring snacks or water bottles. Help them remember things they need to do, or just help out any way you can. And, of course, be kind, be caring, be there for them. Before you know it, you'll be the one everyone in your pack turns to."

"Thanks mom," I smile back at her, "I'll give it a try."

"That's my boy," Dad adds, "listen to your mother and you'll be the right-hand man of your pack leader in no time!"

Working on my homework is difficult. I can't concentrate while trying to think about how to go about tomorrow. Maybe I'll just offer up an apology, buy extra food or something. I was just humoring Mom at dinner, but now I think she's right, I'll just have to prove myself useful. Probably have to hit on some of the girls in the pack to get them to stop calling me gay. As long as I can steer clear of Dylan I should be fine. Instead, I start up a game or two of StarCraft to get my mind off things, letting the game pull my attention away from school drama, then schedule a couple album downloads to start torrenting when I head to bed. I'll figure something out tomorrow.