FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

Rain pelted down as I crossed off yet another job advertisement I had applied for. The list of jobs I had applied for, and not gotten, made for dismal reading. I heaved a sigh and sat back in the drivers seat of my old beaten up blue sedan. I had lost my apartment a few weeks before and had been reduced to living out of my car.

Looked outside at the public park I was at for the night, a strong gust of wind blowing leaves across the otherwise pristine landscape. My parents kicked me out when I had landed a well paying job, but it hadn't lasted more than a year and the company downsized, sadly I was one of the unlucky few. Out of stupid pride I hadn't returned to my parents, thinking I could tough it out and score a new job with ease.

As it turned out the job market was suffering a downturn, with jobs disappearing all over the place. Finding employment was near impossible, the employers able to pick and choose who they wanted. I was rapidly finding out that I had been lucky to get the job I had had before. I checked my bank account, looking to how much money remained.

I had just enough money left in my account to keep myself fed for a few more days and the car fuelled up for a couple more long runs. Once that ran out I would have needed to either sell the car, or some of my belongings. Either option I didn't look forward to, everything I owned resided in the back of my car.

A strong wind rocked my car and a wet splat on the windshield drew my attention away from my thoughts. Looking up at the offending article I blinked as I read it over through the thin glass.

“No way..." I muttered and wound the window down to quickly retrieve the flyer before it either flew off or melted in the rain. I read it over aloud to myself in the car, a little unbelieving that such an article existed.

“Need money? Need a job? Just need a change of life? Apply at Theriantrope Futuristics and become part of the future." I read out, spotting a number at the bottom of the flyer. I found it hard to believe that this kind of flyer even existed. I couldn't believe that science labs were even permitted to advertise for subjects like this. I shrugged those thoughts off and pulled out my phone, starting to dial the number pressing my phone to my ear.

“Better than the alternative I guess..." I mumbled to myself before they answered.

The next day I pulled my car into the 'subjects' section of the car park at the facility after a two hour drive. They had informed me to just leave it there, to leave all my belongings, including my phone, inside and hand the keys in at the front counter. They would move it to more secure parking and bring me my belongings later.

The facility was large, with multiple buildings, almost all multi-story. It was all spread out, with extensive gardens and long corridors connecting most of the buildings together. Everything looked new, freshly built and very professional.

I walked into the administrations building and handed my keys over to the receptionist after telling her what I was there for. I waited while she pulled out a stack of forms for me, then found a seat to fill them in.

The first was a non disclosure form, preventing me from disclosing any of the process I was to undergo. Second was a waiver that I couldn't sue them for any personal injury or complications due to the procedure. The last was a surprisingly extensive information gathering form. Age, height, weight, eye colour, hair and skin colour, gender, name, allergies, immunisations, any history of broken bones, any rashes or sexual diseases, even next of kin.

I pondered asking them if they really needed all this information but just filled it out anyway. I was sure they had their reasons for asking such questions. Once I handed it all over they handed me a form for my payment details. I filled that in quickly and returned it before just sitting back to wait.

A scientist appeared a short time later, ushering me to follow him and I was walked through to another room. It looked like a large locker room with roughly twenty people already undressing. None of them looked up or batted an eye as I walked in. I was told to strip fully, and then wait for when the light above the door opposite changed to green, then proceed through.

I undressed quickly and sat, nude, with everyone else watching the light above the door. Occasionally someone would glance around the room or try to spark up a conversation, but those attempts died quickly. There was a reasonable array of people, from various builds, to ethnicities and gender. It felt a little more like we were being treated like nought but test subjects instead of humans, however no one mocked anyone for anything.

It turned out I was the last person to join this group as the light flicked green after a few minutes. we all wandered through the door which opened automatically with a hiss like some bulkhead door on a Sci-Fi show. We entered into a long hallway, lights embedded into the walls and a grill covering the floor. The door behind us closed and locked on its own as the last person passed through, a couple of the females giving a squeal of surprise.

“Everyone please remain calm, we are beginning the mandatory sanitation process. This will take a few minutes and may be uncomfortable to some." a male voice announced over a hidden speaker system. Warm water immediately started to poor down from barely visible sprinklers above us. There was an odd taste to the water, but I assumed it was from whatever chemical they were using to get us clean.

The flow stopped after a couple of minutes before starting again, this time frigidly cold. A couple of the women squealed and tried to escape the downpour but it was impossible. I gave a sigh and rolled my eyes as I waited. It changed back to the warm water after a minute or two.

It cycled between hot and cold three more times before there was a rush of hot air from above, blasting down over us. The force wasn't enough to push anyone to the floor but it was still quite strong. Once we were all dry the door at the opposite end opened to a new room. It looked like a hospital waiting room, rows of chairs with white hospital gowns and slip on shoes awaited us resting on them.

“Please dress in the gown and shoes provided, then wait for your name to be called." the voice announced over the speakers. We all dressed and sat, waiting quietly for our turn. Every few minutes a scientist would appear, call out a name, and guide them through the door deeper into the facility.

“Arley?" A female scientist called out drawing my attention. I rose from my seat and followed her down another hallway. It reminded me of what I expected from a scientific facility. White, plain and boring with multiple doors that all lead to new rooms. I was escorted into what appeared to be a standard doctors consultation room.

“Lay on the bed please." she said simply and I nodded hopping onto the surface and laid back. She pottered around for a few minutes. Writing on a clipboard, then her computer before picking up a silver tray and walked over. She collected up a couple of vials of blood, marking them carefully before lifting up a syringe. She tapped it a few times before carefully injecting me, placing a band-aid over the site.

“So... what am I testing here?" I asked and she looked at me like I was dumb “No-one has even told me what you guys do here."

“Our experiments here involve genetics," she said simply looking to her clipboard “These specific experiments are looking into the genetics of different evolutionary paths taken by various other species, and the similarities between them and humans." I nodded listening, I felt she was hiding something about it from me, but I didn't want to press my luck and potentially miss out on the payment.

“I... I see," I said and suddenly felt a wave of tiredness wash over me. I moved to get up, trying to stay awake but found my body not responding how I wanted it to “Why do I feel so..."

I felt like I had only blinked, but next thing I knew I was floating in some tank. Wires and tubes hooked up everywhere. A thick pipe shoved down my throat and I could feel my lungs being filled with air through it. Panic quickly set in and I pressed my hands to the glass wall of the tank, trying to pound against it.

A door opened after a mew moments and two male scientists rushed in. One walked up to my tank and adjusted his glasses while he looked at me, pulling out a book from his coat and quickly wrote on it before showing what he had scribbled to me.

'Calm down, you are ok' it said and I stopped pounding, looking around in confusion before another note was presented.

'You've woken too early, stay calm we will fix this.' he turned away and walked over to his companion who was working at a large console. They spoke and argued as they poked at the console, mouths moving but I couldn't hear what they were saying. I had no way of seeing what they were doing, but after a couple of minutes I began to feel drowsy again, drifting off to sleep again, suspended in the tank.

When I next roused I was laying on a comfortable bed, a blindfold over my eyes. Yet something didn't feel right. My brain actually screamed that i could feel too much. I had no way to describe the feeling, yet I gave out a soft groan as I tried to move, finding my arms and legs restrained.

“Ah you are awake," a male voice said and I heard footsteps approach “Just wait, I need to explain a few things before I can let you up." I groaned out and nodded trying to turn my head in the direction of their voice.

“Now, there was a small batch of you from the cohort who suffered side effects from the experiment," he began, the sound of a chair being pulled closer before he spoke again “Sadly you were one of them. We did not foresee these side effects, and are working to see if we can find a cure. However as we don't know what caused it, for the time being, we are treating it like this is permanent.

“For some reason you are also only one of three that have had more... severe changes... Oddly all three of you are the only ones who awoke while you were tanked. Now, I have handled about fifteen of you so far and am starting to develop a headache. I am going to remove your blindfold, and then your restrains, if you scream, I will sedate you. Understand?" I nodded and he gave a sigh getting up from the chair he was sat on.

I felt the blindfold be removed and I blinked at the blinding bright lighting as I was granted sight. As I tried to blink away the blurriness, I felt him unbuckle my arms and legs. I gave another groan and rubbed at my face, stopping when my face felt... wrong.

My other hand flew up to join the first as I felt around, feeling a short muzzle on my face. It was covered in short downy fur and after a quick look at my hands, they were too. I sat up rapidly making the scientist take a step back as I looked at myself.

My hands were covered in short white fur which extended just past my wrists, it then turned to a deep grey colour, extending up my arms and over my shoulders. My chest was covered in thick white fur which continued down over my belly. I had never been built, muscle-wise before, but I found myself looking more svelte and had an almost effeminate build.

I looked to the scientist as he picked up a mirror showing me my refection. I looked like a rabbit, short buck teeth and long ears that extended from the top of my head. Most of the fur on my face and head was grey, with a white streak between my eyes that then covered my nose, chin and down my neck to meet with my chest fur. My eyes remained the light blue they had before at least, but had become quite a bit larger, granting me a wider field of view.

I pulled the sheets off of my legs to see my feet were different too. They looked more like a canines legs, four plump toes on my feet, covered in the same soft white fur up to the first bend. the rest of my legs were the same grey as the rest of my body. However what caught my attention most was between my legs. Or more so what wasn't between my legs.

“I see you noticed," the Scientist said grabbing my attention away from my self inspection “Thank you for not screaming, It was becoming quite tiring... I will get to that in a minute. We have ascertained that somehow, you have become hybridised with a Lagomorph, more commonly called a rabbit. We are uncertain why the change has occurred, but we have established that the change has settled and you have stabilised. We have found that unlike a normal rabbit, you do not possess open rooted teeth. This means they won't continuously grow like they would on a standard lagomorphs. We took the liberty of filing down your front teeth to a more comfortable length for you.

“We are unsure why you acquired a digitigrade stance, however we will assist you in learning to walk again if you require it. You may have some trouble on smooth tiles, as like most Lagomorph's you do not possess pads on your feet or hands. There has also been some lost in height, instead of 5'11" like you were before, you are now 5'2". As for the... other.. change that you noticed, we have confirmed the complete conversion of your sexual organs. However you remain male, if a little more effeminate than before. We are unsure how your body has managed to establish this balance, we didn't want to poke or prod anything in case we triggered something. "

“I...I'm not going to grow boobs am I?" I asked then gripped at my throat and tried to clear it. My voice sounded lighter, a few octaves higher than it had before “I...Is that really my voice!?"

“Indeed it is, and no you will not," he confirmed with a light chuckle “We at least can state why you had the change to your sexual organs. It appears that the sedative that was used on you when you awoke during the test is to blame, although we are not fully sure why. The most common theory right now is that it interacted with the experiment in some way and caused the additional change."

“S...So what will happen to me now?" I asked looking down to my body.

“Well, for the time being we will be housing you, and the rest of the affected, here at the labs," he answered simply “We will need to see if there are any further possible complications that could arise from this. So for a while you will not be permitted outside or contact with those who have not undergone sanitisation. This is to protect you as we are unsure how strong your immune systems are just yet.

“We have prepared a dorm room for all of you and most of your belongings have been brought in after being cleaned. Your phone I am afraid to say was damaged accidentally upon transport from your vehicle. However we have replaced it and transferred most of the data. You may need to set it up again though. We sadly can not permit you, yet, to contact anyone outside the facility. We will make arrangements for that when we are able to."

I nodded and sighed, sitting quietly as I listened. My mind drifted off after he finished speaking, getting lost in my thoughts. He held his hand out to me gaining my attention. I looked at it then to his face, he had a confident and comforting smile on it, genuine care reflecting from his eyes.

“Don't worry, we were responsible for this, and we will take care of you," he said reassuringly. I nodded and took his hand, letting him help me to my new feet “I'll escort you to your room. I'm sorry to say you will be sharing it with three others, rooms of four was the best we could arrange."

My bed was a single, with four others in the same room. The clothing that had been in my car was piled on the foot of the bed, washed and folded neatly. My new phone was plugged in and resting on the pillow, a sticky note telling me the code was my birth date. As soon as the scientist left I dressed quickly, pulling on underwear, shorts and a shirt. All of which was way too large on me.

When the door opened next it was my three roommates. The first was a tall, chestnut coloured stallion who had to be reaching six and a half feet tall. He walked on hooves which had been covered with rubber souls, probably to avoid damaging the floors and reduce noise. His stance almost screamed that he was always apologising for being taller than everyone around him or potentially imposing.

Next to him was a female ocelot. She didn't seem bothered at all by the changes that had happened to her. A smile on her spotty face and a bounce in her step. Her striped tail wagged lazily behind her, its sway keeping pace with each step she took, managing to keep up with the tall stallion despite being much shorter.

Lastly was a female pangolin. She was the same height I had been before and had thick scales that started on her muzzle and progressed over her head, down her back, over her shoulders, arms legs and along her thick tail. She wore a medical gown and looked up in surprise when she spotted me in the room. A smile bloomed on her muzzle as they all looked in my direction, their conversation stopping.

“Oh hi there!" the Pangolin greeted “You must be Arley, I'm Sofia."

“I'm Gata! Nice to meet you roomy!" The Ocelot announced giving a wide grin, showing off her teeth.

“March." The stallion introduced himself nodding his head.

“We were wondering when you would be turning up," Sofia said with a smile “Don't worry, you are in familiar company here."

“Familiar company?" I asked tilting my head and they all gave a soft chuckle.

“Sofia was one of the other ones who had an... additional change... during the procedure." Gata said still smiling and made her way to one of the beds, probably her own, and sat down.

“So was I." March mentioned with a soft chuckle

“Wait so that means..." I started and Sofia gave a slight, embarrassed chuckle.

“Yeah.. I'm the only one in the room who has a penis," she said “How did you guys live with one? So uncomfortable." I just looked at March and we shrugged.

“You just... do" I said getting a nod from the stallion.

“C'mon, we will show you the dining hall, you must be hungry." March said “But first, I recommend a belt, those pants look a little too big on you." as if to confirm his assertion, my pants slipped off my hips to the floor, earning an embarrassed squeak from me and entertained giggles from the others.

Time passed, every few days we were taken for another array of tests. Those days became weeks, till finally we were permitted to meet with a single person. It would technically be face to face, but it was more like the visitation room in a prison. Booths side by side, the visitor and us separated by a plexiglas window, only able to talk via a phone intercom.

We had the option of a draw down blind we could, if we liked. I opted to have the blind down and it turned out that I was the only one who did. When the phone rang, signalling that someone was on the other side, I hesitated. I knew who it was and I dreaded talking to them.

When I finally picked it up and placed it to my head I was near tears. The others were having happy, loving conversations with their loved ones. All being supportive and comforting and I feared I wouldn't get that.

“Arley?" the deep voice queried and I shivered a bit.

“H...hi Dad." I replied.

“You sound different..." he replied and I gave a sigh “But then guessing by what I have seen of the others on that side of the wall... it's probably the least of my concerns... how you holding up?"

“Alright I guess..." I answered “I've made some friends, and my roomies are good fun... everyone is kind here."

“Sorry your mother couldn't come," he said trying to keep a conversation going “She was called into an emergency meeting."

“At least one of you turned up," I replied, grateful that he didn't ask about the screen or why he couldn't see me. I just wasn't ready for him to see me yet... or for me to see the disappointment on his face, the judgement, the anger... the pity.

“I...I really fucked up this time Dad..." I finally broke after a moment of silence. letting out a sob and let my head fall forward to bang against the divider, pushing the screen against it a bit.

“Hey now..." he started but stopped when I gave another sob.

“I'm... I'm sorry... I'm so... so sorry..." I added before hanging up and rushing out of the room. I could feel the eyes of the others on me as I left. Some out of pity, some concern, some confusion.

I ran into March in the hallway, falling on my ass after hitting, effectively, a brick wall compared to my own build and stature. He was concerned and confused but helped me to my feet and back to our room.

There I explained everything to him. My mothers constant 'success or nothing' attitude. My fathers 'be strong and make us proud' behaviour with me as I grew up. The fact that both of those outlooks had driven me to even applying for the work for the lab. My determinism not to look bad in their eyes so I never turned to them for help, even when I was at my lowest point.

“Hey," he finally interrupted me as I was telling him about the event in the visitation room “The fact he was here should tell you something. He dropped everything and drove how far just to see you? To speak to you? Your parents aren't heartless, they love you, they have a funny way to show it, but even they wouldn't..." he stopped and gave a chuckle making me look up at him in confusion.

“They wouldn't kick a horse when it's down." he finished before giving a chuckle. I smirked a little and gave a sigh nodding.

Three more times we were granted the chance to see our loved ones in that way. Each time my father turned up, but I didn't. From what the others told me he sat for hours waiting, patiently, before getting up and leaving one saying he looked depressed each time.

The third time, March spoke to him. Telling him that I just wasn't ready, and that it wasn't him, it was definitely me that couldn't face him. They spoke for some time, although March didn't tell him father about my changes. He did ask my father about my childhood, the two of them discussing it and much more at length. I was left with the feeling that they had become friends, bonding over their mutual concern for me.

In the mean time, I had become close with another changed. A beagle named Lowell. He was sweet, had cute moments, and always seemed willing to help others. The others around us could see we were getting close, and some already considered us to be a couple.

Sofia, March and Gata kept an eye on him when we weren't together. They were acting like overly protective siblings, making sure he wasn't some scumbag deep down where I couldn't see. He eventually admitted to them that he was bi, with a male preference. His interest in me was a pure one, built on mutual respect and genuine interest. He also admitted that while he did one day want to have children. That was not the driving force behind his growing attraction.

I had never considered myself to have a preference, although I had always thought I was straight. Yet I couldn't help but find myself more and more drawn to him. The scientists said the chances of children were slim to none, but they admitted they did not know that for sure and would not step in the way of any of us seeking happiness or love amongst ourselves.

Lowell and I still weren't able to sleep in the same room, but we knew that eventually we would hopefully get out of the facility, and be given a chance to get some time together. It was just a matter of when, and how we would do that seeing as neither of us had a place to call home.

After six months past, the scientists finally permitted proper face to face and contact visitations. There was an air of jubilation from everyone except me. Finally my parents would get to see just what had become of me. The though terrified me, keeping me up some nights.

The day it finally happened, I hid behind the door frame to the new visitation room. Whenever I peeked around it I could see my father, sitting, waiting, at one of the tables. He wasn't in one of his expensive suits, just normal street clothes. A shopping bag sat on the table, like he had just come from the shops. His face held a hopeful, yet sad look, like he expected me not to turn up.

“He's come all this way to see you, hasn't he?" I heard March ask from behind me and after a look over my shoulder I saw both him and Lowell standing there, a soft smile on both their faces. I just nodded, staying quiet.

“Doesn't that tell you anything?" Lowell asked softly and reached out to take my hand softly in his own and rubbed his thumb over the back of my hand.

“Which do you think will hurt him more?" March asked “Seeing you like this?"

“Or thinking you don't love him because you won't see him?" Lowell asked. I gave a light whine and they just chuckled before they looked to each other. I didn't have time to think before March had grabbed me and shoved me through the door.

I gave an eep as I tumbled to the floor, looking up as they closed it to trap me in. Everyone in the room had turned to look at me, although it was only momentarily before they returned to their conversations. All except for my father who held his gaze. When our eyes met, his face seemed to light up, eyes widening. He rose from his chair and walked over, helping me to my feet.

“Arley?" he asked softly and I nodded a little, eyes downcast, looking his chest.

“Hey dad..." I replied. He pulled on my arm sharply, pulling me in to a tight hug, his arms wrapped tightly around me, holding me firmly to his chest. I gave a sniffle, face looking over his shoulder with some shock. I finally gave a sob as the emotions inside of me his their tipping point and I buried my face in his shoulder as I started to cry. All the concerns I had of him outright rejecting me, all my fears of never seeing them again, rushed out with a torrent of tears.

We stayed like that for a few minutes until I finally settled down on my own. He pulled away, rubbing a hand over the back of my head with a loving fatherly gesture. He guided me over to the table he had been sitting at before, his hand holding my own. He didn't let go of my hand till I was sat at in the chair. His grip was unrelenting, but not rough. Soft enough that he wasn't hurting me, but tight enough that it told me he was afraid that, if he let go, I would disappear, like smoke in the wind.

Once finally seated, he handed me his handkerchief to dry my eyes and face. He never stopped watching me, his face studying my own as we sat there. My own eyes barely left the table, occasionally flicking up to his face but I couldn't connect my gaze with his.

“So..." he started slowly once I finished wiping my face “I finally get to see the new you hmm?" I gave a soft chuckled and sighed giving a shrug.

“Yeah... I...I'm sorry..."

“You needed time, I understand that. You only need to be sorry for one thing Arley," he said softly, voice turning firm but I could pick up it wasn't filled with anger “That you didn't turn to us when you needed us... That is what hurt the most, Arley, that somewhere along the line... we lost the trust you should have had in us to be there for you."

“I..." I started but hesitated trying to think of just what I wanted to say “I just didn't want to let you down, disappoint you... or be a failure to you."

“Arley, you could never be a failure to us, or let us down," he affirmed comfortingly “We never expected you to be a great success. Not to say we didn't want you to be, every parent wants great things for their children, but do you think your mother and I got to where we are right from the start? We had our share of failings before we finally made it, but we always had support, we always had others there to help pick us up when we stumbled. Your grand parents, each other, friends."

“Then why has Mum never come to see me?" I asked “Why was it always... just... you?"

“She has been busy trying to find a way to help you," he answered with a smile “Even if we thought you would never accept it, we have been trying to find you a job in our businesses."

“But Mum is a P.R. executive and you run a line of hotels... I... I can't be seen like this in either line of business... it would ruin your image."

“If you think that is all we care about, you have forgot everything we taught you growing up, and the most important foundation of our businesses..." he accused firmly with a slight grumble in his voice that lifted quickly “Love always comes first. Whether that is love for your employees, your customers, yourself, or your family. We don't care what people will think of you or having you work for us. You are our son, that is all that matters to us."

“Your parents have actually been very busy since I spoke with your father," March said making his presence known and causing me to jump. Looking over my shoulder to see him and Lowell slowly walking towards us “They have entered into an agreement with Theriantrope Futuristics that they will provide a job to any of us who wish to apply."

“Your father is opening a new hotel here in town, and he is going to need staff," Lowell said with a smile “And your mother is offering positions too, after all, once we are released, we are going to need some good P.R. too aren't we?" I looked back to my father who had a smile on his face, seemingly proud of himself. I couldn't blame him for it this time, the amount of strings he and Mum had to have pulled must have been impressive.

“Here, this is for you," He said sliding the bag on the table towards me “The shirt is from your mother."

I opened the bag and pulled out the shirt, giving a chuckle when I looked at it. It was hot pink, with 'Family isn't important. It's Everything' printed on it. I then pulled out two jewellery boxes and blinked in confusion at them.

“This one, is from both of us." Dad said simply and opened the larger of the two, pulling out a necklace. One thing my parents, and even my grandparents had once both had was an identical necklace, made in the Figaro style. He smiled and handed it to Lowell to put on me while he picked up the other box.

“This... is from me," Dad informed me and opened it. Inside was a ring, identical to one my father wore, a family Signet ring “I never got a chance to give this to you before you left home, but you are an adult and family, you should have one of these on."

I took it and, after confirming with him, slid it carefully onto my finger. Looking up from the finger as a smile spread on his face.

“Wait till your mother sees you."