The Trouble With Furries

by David Sharp

  Daniel zoned out, restructuring the Fur Meet conversation with Adam in his head, a mansion off of Memorial filled with anthropomorphic scenes of debauchery. The idea was compelling and pulled at Daniel's animal spirit. He pondered this on a seat in a middle row next to Chad and Patrick who were snickering about someone, most likely Jeff, who was sitting nearby.

  Daniel shook off the self-made images of the Fur Meet and scanned the magic bus. In the front was Stina chattering away to Rory (oh, how he disliked that sycophant bastard). Ned had Marie corralled in another seat a couple of rows back and she espoused unhappiness, even resentment, in her body language at being trapped between him and a window. Some other guys that Daniel did not recognize sat here and there, filling space. He was introduced to some of them earlier as somebody's boyfriend or friend, but Daniel was bad at remembering names.

  He blankly stared at them and his thoughts drifted to the present. Perhaps I don't want to know everybody, he thought. It's better to have a small pack or be a lone wolf than to be popular.

  Daniel looked behind, over the seat, toward the back of the bus. Yolanda spun her usual web of double talk, this time with another drag queen named Vanessa, who wore the look of a nineteen forties dame.

  It seems like half of them are called Vanessa, Daniel chuckled at the thought and realized he had remembered that name.

  Ethyl was much sweatier than her usual freshly out of the Sauna look she owned at her front door post. She talked to Darren about God knows what as he drank shoulder to shoulder with loud-mouthed Freddy. From the seat across from them, Gustavo laughed out loud at some unheard joke told by cowboy George.

  On another row, Eddie seemed stoic, arms folded behind the back of his head as if daring people to stare at him, when in fact, he invited it. Next seat up, Jeff looked particularly hyper as he ranted to a strung out buddy with the look of the streets about how the world was out to get him.

  All in all, it was difficult to tell who some the others were with, but that didn't matter to Daniel. The only interesting one to him was Adam, who was busy in conversation with a handsome guy. Daniel's heart sank when he realized it was probably his boyfriend and also that he went unnoticed. Freddy, on the other hand, did notice and motioned toward him with a waving hand. Daniel looked away, hating having made eye contact.

  "What's doing, dingo?" Chad grabbed Daniel's thigh hard and caused him to jump.

  "Don't do that. I ain't doing nothing but chilling." Daniel grabbed Chad's hand and put it back on his leg. "Why are you calling me dingo?"

  "Because you are a dog without a voice," Chad moved his hand further up.

  "Hey, do you boys want another drink?" Patrick took control, putting a strong hand with a firm grip on each of their upper legs.

  "Yeah," Daniel and Chad said together and then elbowed each other for saying it at the same time.

  "I'll get us some." Patrick ventured into the aisle toward the back where a makeshift bar of ice chests, plastic cups, and loose bottles were stowed.

  "I got your dingo right here." Daniel cusped his crotch with a hand and briefly shook it.

  "Bring it, wolf boy." Chad jumped into Daniel's lap.

  They busted up laughing at their stupidity, aware that they were the center of attention, or at least it felt that way to them. Chad gently rocked back and forth, putting on a show for anybody interested.

  Daniel put his hands low, helping Chad grind back and forth. "Who was that guy you were talking to at the club?"

  Chad slid forward and back. "He's just a friend."

  Daniel enjoyed the sensation but got to the point about what was bothering him from earlier. "Don't bullshit me. You didn't want me to meet him."

  Chad looked up to gauge how far along Patrick was in making drinks and found him distracted by George. "Okay, his name is James. He's one of Paul's friends."

  "Oh, did you do him? That's weird."

  "No, not like that, dude."

  "Then like what, Chad?"

  "I used to work with him, doing things for Paul."

  "You were a runner?"

  "Something like that, runner or guinea pig, whatever he needed."

  "So you only buy from them now?"

  "Yeah...but," Chad tried to distract with more movement.

  "Come on, what is it?"

  "I don't want to talk about it. It's all past."

  "Fine, be mysterious."

  "I'm not a mystery." Chad was turned on, "not at all."

  Daniel rubbed his hand down the front of Chad and lifted his lithe body, repositioning it on the right spot. The fox tail fell loose to the side.

  "I suppose you're not going to tell me about the Fur Meet either."

  Chad breathed heavier and grinded more. "Oh no, I will - not right now - but I definitely will."

  "I almost have enough for my fur suit." Daniel was incredibly horny.

  "That's what I've been waiting for, Danny boy!"

  Grinning, Freddy reached over the seat and placed a hand on each of their chests. "Can I get a bump from either one of you?"

  "Dammit, Freddy," Daniel pushed the hands off.

  "Please, I don't want to get too drunk tonight." The lines in Freddy's face made a maze of tired desperation.

  Chad reached past his stiffness and pulled out a baggy. "It's Tina girl."

  "I don't care at this point." Freddy snatched the bag.

  "Hey, be careful with that," Chad warned.

  Daniel watched Freddy do some. "We're not going to baby-sit you all night, not at all, buddy."

  Gustavo slowly rose into their line of sight as if he had crawled over, which somehow would not have been surprising considering the group. "I see that you have discovered Ka-tee."

  Chad's shoulders slumped. "Yes, you can have some too, but make it quick."

  Patrick returned. "Scat, you bar trash," he half joked to their offense.

  "Well, I see how you are, missy." Gustavo wiped his nose and waddled off.

  In an antsy manner, Freddy said, "Thanks, I'll get you back," as he handed back the bag.

  "You two better behave. I don't want to get a reputation."

  "Oh, please." Chad put away the dope and returned to grinding on Daniel's lap. He would have wagged his tail if possible.

  "I think we are your reputation now," Daniel mocked and got into the moment.

  "Oh yeah, then kiss each other," Patrick demanded.

  Daniel and Chad complied and heated up to a rowdy make out session that Patrick could not resist to lay hands and lips on. Insatiate, the threesome halted when the bus stopped outside of Straps.

  *

  Daniel was pumped about being inside his boyfriend's club, Straps. The club was a leather / Levi bar, which meant men only, and real men at that. The dress code kept out the women and the cross dressers. The music was darker than Trade's - more industrial, with a rare remixed disco anthem thrown in. Relief poured over Daniel at not having to pick up the glasses or dump the ashtrays at the bar.

  Ministry's The Land of Rape and Honey blared out of the ample speakers, killing the prior anthem. Patrick took both Daniel and Chad by the hand and led them to the sunken wooden dance floor. He was showing them off, but they did not mind. The looks received were two-fold, one for their looks, and the second for the animal tails. The hard groove was danced out in a different style by each of the threesome. Patrick wriggled his hips, Chad bounced, and Daniel tried to imitate the best dancer in view.

  Daniel almost succeeded, but the leather boy slid with ease as he styled his body to the beat. Daniel understood the agility when he saw the white talcum powder under the boy's feet. Disillusioned, he pried his eyes away toward the two black metal cages that crowned the small inset stage. In each one, an oiled muscle man in a t-back flaunted and teased for dollar bills.

  "Do you think I could do that?" Daniel looked hopefully at his partners.

  "Sure, with that thing you have, you could make a lot of money," Chad coyly said as he twisted to music.

  "Na
h, I disagree," Patrick cut in, "You're too nice."

  "Are you kidding me?" Daniel felt insulted.

  "Those dirty old men would take advantage of you."

  "You're one to talk," Chad dared.

  "Hey, watch it." Patrick's eyes flared with a flash of suppressed anger.

  "Maybe you're right, but it looks fun," Daniel dreamily said as he watched the glistening muscles of the male dancers in the cages.

  "Hey boys, I've been meaning to tell you something."

  "What's that?" Daniel tried to keep with the dark groove of the music.

  "Are you kicking us out?" Chad was wide eyed in feeding his own paranoia by speaking out loud.

  "No, I have to go out of town tomorrow night."

  "For how long?" Daniel asked as he lost the beat.

  Chad stopped dancing too. "Yeah, how long and where?"

  Patrick gave them both a weary look. "I'm visiting my family in Missouri," his eyes drifted to Chad's, "for a week."

  "Are you cool with us staying at your place?" Daniel wondered out loud.

  "Sure, just don't get into any trouble." The lights flashed a dark blue across Patrick's face.

  "No, not us - no trouble at all," Chad got the words off with a slight rise of his lip.

  "That's what I'm afraid of." Patrick danced fiercely.

  Daniel and Chad found their rhythm and danced just as fiercely, both unaware of the stares at their forgotten tails.

  Chapter Eleven:

  The light hurt Daniel's eyes as he lay next to Chad on Patrick's soft king-sized bed. The feeling on his back was so comfortable that it took him a few minutes to rouse when stirred by Patrick's voice.

  "Hey you, I have to go."

  Daniel opened his eyes and wiped the sleep away. "I thought you were leaving tonight."

  "I have to run errands before, so I wanted to say goodbye."

  Daniel groggily kissed him. "Everything is going to be fine."

  "It better be, or else." Patrick raised his eyebrows. "Tell Chad that I will know anything he does."

  Chad shifted slightly and spoke muffled into the pillow. "Tell Chad what?"

  "I will know." Patrick gave them both a look as if he were leaving two wild animals alone instead of his partners.

  "How is that possible?" Chad mumbled.

  "I have my ways." Patrick tossed a stray pillow at Chad's head.

  "Cut it out." Chad wriggled to reposition his body on the bed.

  "Don't worry, Patrick, it's only a week," Daniel tried to soothe him.

  "It's funny, you never call me Pat."

  "I'm not everyone else." Daniel rose up on his elbows. "You could have told us you were leaving sooner than last night."

  Patrick fumbled with the handle of his suitcase. "I know."

  "Then why didn't..." Daniel didn't finish his thought or sentence.

  Patrick ended the conversation with a kiss, and out of fairness he kissed Chad too. "I'll call to check in."

  "See you," Chad returned to sleep.

  Daniel closed his eyes and listened to the sounds of Patrick's departure: the carpeted footsteps, the door, suitcase wheels on the tile entryway, and finally, the click of the lock.

  He opened his eyes again and shook Chad. "Wake up, it's time."

  "Leave me alone." Chad tried to roll over and burrow under the sheet.

  "You promised."

  "Dammit, Dan," Chad woke up a bit changed in demeanor, his irritation fading at Daniel's eager expression. Giving in, he yawned with a slow smile. "Alright, let me get my pants on."

  Daniel jumped out of the bed and made two circles, spinning his tail around. He pulled back the blanket and crawled on top of Chad, instantly wrestling him. "We have to go somewhere tonight and take the fur suits."

  Chad freed his fox tail from underneath his body, rotating on top of Daniel. "Don't worry, I got it all worked out."

  "Where are we going?"

  "It's a surprise. Trust me."

  *

  The furry shop was hidden in the back of Boots, a local leather store. Daniel dragged a still groggy Chad through the collection of whips and bondage accessories. A sign announced the back room as The Fur Pit. A wide smile grew across Daniel's face at the sight of so much fur paraphernalia. Tails of all varieties lined a portion of a wall and Daniel ran his fingers across the soft tips. Furry cloths, bandanas, and hats lined another portion. The grail was opposite in the form of full body suits, including paws and heads. A literal zoo was represented on the walls. Canine, feline, equine, bovine, ruminant, and marsupial were all accounted for in colors from natural to surreal. Daniel looked at each one. Some piqued more interest, like a roan colored horse and a grey sheep. Then he stopped in his tracks. The one that caught his eye was a blue wolf, almost cartoonish, but striking just the same.

  "That's the one - right there," Daniel confided in Chad.

  "You like it, huh? Try it on."

  A giant koala walked out of the storage room from behind the counter and tilted its head as if judging them, its form bizarre in the store setting. "Welcome to the fur pit. Do you see something you like?"

  Daniel was astounded by the koala fur suit. The body was still a man's underneath the cloth, but the face and paws were intricate and quite detailed.

  "Your suit is amazing."

  The koala head came off and was set upon the glass counter, revealing an awkward blond in his early twenties.

  "The name is Wesley. You do see something you like."

  Daniel could not contain his joy. "I do - the blue wolf."

  Wesley glanced at the wolf hung on a hook, paused at Chad, and then continued, "You know they are not cheap?"

  "I filled him in." Chad absently caressed his fox tail. "What's with the koala? It's different for you."

  "I was just trying it on for size. Sometimes bodies change." Wesley pulled off the paws and the nails clacked on the counter. He wiped the sweat away from his brow and pushed back his bangs.

  "That they do," Chad changed course before angering Wesley, the koala. "So are we going to do this, or what?"

  Wesley squinted at Chad, wanting to say something in response, but instead was enamored by Daniel's passion. "Do you want to try it on? It looks about your size."

  "Can I?" Daniel's lip twitched. "I mean, where do I change?"

  "Back there," Wesley pointed to the storage. "Hang on a second and I'll get it down for you." Wesley scooped up the paws, grabbed the bottom of the koala head, and went out of view.

  Daniel walked over to the blue wolf and stroked his fur. "How long have you known Wesley?"

  Chad took a step back. "He turned me on to the scene, well, at least the mainstream part."

  Daniel focused his attention on Chad. "What could possibly be mainstream about the fur scene?" Daniel laughed.

  "There are conventions and stuff where people who like to dress up go and hang out."

  "I don't get it."

  "When you see a football game, who is it that gets the crowd going?"

  "The cheerleaders," Daniel flatly answered.

  "Yeah, but who else does it?"

  "The mascot, oh my God - those are furries too. So wait, they dress up in front of fans and perform."

  "Exactly, for fun in public, and not all freaky and twisted," Chad tried to explain.

  "I don't know about that." Daniel could not fathom a scene without desire. "Is Wesley cool?"

  "He's as cool as they come."

  As if called on cue, Wesley came back to the counter in jeans and a Dr. Pepper t-shirt, looking quite abnormal for a gay man working fur in the back of a leather store.

  "That's much better. Those suits can be hotter than a full kennel at the dog pound in summer."

  "I want to try it on," Daniel reasserted, ignoring the odd attempt at humor.

  "No problem." Wesley walked around and lifted the blue wolf carefully off of the wall hook. "Be gentle with the animals." He handed over the fur suit, but before letting go he screwed up his pale bookish feature
s, "I know that one, but who are you?"

  "Daniel - I have been saving up for this."

  "Here you go, Daniel." Wesley let the fur go.

  Daniel practically skipped to the back, nearly knocking over a rack of make-up used to blacken the eyes under an animal head. A last look over his shoulder and he saw Wesley and Chad talking, but none of that was important with his prize in hand. Past cardboard boxes and assorted unpacked leather gear, Daniel found a changing alcove with a black curtain on a rod. Inside, he confronted a full body length mirror. He paused at his reflection, reminded of the past, yet he was glad that he still found himself attractive, at least at the right angles.

  One leg at a time went into the luxurious softness. Then Daniel felt the snugness as the zipper was pulled up his torso by his hand. The fur suit fit well, as if it was meant to be. The paws were a little tight, but the grasp from inside was much better than he had hoped. The final piece, the head, was handled with reverence. It pleased Daniel that on further inspection it was surreal, but edging in it looked more like a real wolf than an animated one. He put it on and found something strange yet desirous in the mirror.

  Daniel, the wolf, peeked out from behind the curtain and then boldly stepped out of the shadows of the backroom. He caught the tail end of a conversation.

  "You have to tell him there is more than sex," Wesley's voice prompted.

  "There isn't. All of this is a kink, and nothing more."

  "No, it is a lifestyle, a respect of nature, an understanding of the beast within."

  "And the beast is sex," Chad's eyes emphasized a certain kind of wildness, one of lust.

  "Not always...oh hey," Wesley paused, his eyes taking in the details of a transformed Daniel. "It fits you well."

  Daniel turned and pranced, showing off his new lupine self. He spoke through the mouth hole. "How much is it?"

  "The wolf is custom made. We have it marked for one thousand dollars."

  "Whew, that's more than I paid for mine." Chad disagreed right off the bat.