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", "count": "26", "submission_right_submission_id": "45875", "submission_right_file_name": "1731979_KichigaiKitsune_tais_story_chapter_2_com.doc", "submission_right_thumbnail_url_huge": "https://nl1.ib.metapix.net/thumbnails/huge/1731/1731979_KichigaiKitsune_tais_story_chapter_2_com.jpg", "submission_right_thumbnail_url_large": "https://nl1.ib.metapix.net/thumbnails/large/1731/1731979_KichigaiKitsune_tais_story_chapter_2_com.jpg", "submission_right_thumbnail_url_medium": "https://nl1.ib.metapix.net/thumbnails/medium/1731/1731979_KichigaiKitsune_tais_story_chapter_2_com.jpg", "submission_right_thumb_huge_x": "300", "submission_right_thumb_huge_y": "151", "submission_right_thumb_large_x": "200", "submission_right_thumb_large_y": "100", "submission_right_thumb_medium_x": "120", "submission_right_thumb_medium_y": "60" } ], "description": "At long last, I get around to posting this on InkBunny. This was my most popular story on FA, and the longest running novel I'm still writing today. \n\nThis is the tale of a small fox boy, Tai, who finds friendship, hope and love in the last place he expected. New York City.\n\nBut his life, before and now, is merely an illusion. The history and truths he never knew are determined to destroy everything he loves, and he has to face the trials of his own fears, a bloody past he is forced to inherit and even himself if he's to have any hope of happiness. Any hope of finding answers...\n\nContains scenes of coarse language, explicit sexual themes and violence, oftentimes involving \"cubs.\" It's also a novel and contains actual plot. Enjoy!\n\nNote: I'm just checking to see if the way InkBunny \"previews\" the story is alright. The block paragraphing and complete lack of formatting is not how this story is intended to be presented. I'll likely only have part of the story displayed, and I ask that you download the actual document to see this novel as it was intended.", "description_bbcode_parsed": "At long last, I get around to posting this on InkBunny. This was my most popular story on FA, and the longest running novel I'm still writing today.

This is the tale of a small fox boy, Tai, who finds friendship, hope and love in the last place he expected. New York City.

But his life, before and now, is merely an illusion. The history and truths he never knew are determined to destroy everything he loves, and he has to face the trials of his own fears, a bloody past he is forced to inherit and even himself if he's to have any hope of happiness. Any hope of finding answers...

Contains scenes of coarse language, explicit sexual themes and violence, oftentimes involving "cubs." It's also a novel and contains actual plot. Enjoy!

Note: I'm just checking to see if the way InkBunny "previews" the story is alright. The block paragraphing and complete lack of formatting is not how this story is intended to be presented. I'll likely only have part of the story displayed, and I ask that you download the actual document to see this novel as it was intended.", "writing": "**********************************\nTai’s Story\n\n-- By Krazy Kitsune/Kichigai Kitsune\nCopyright 2005 onwards.\n\nTedious disclaimer:\nThis story contains content of a sexual nature involving two male anthropomorphic foxes, ages 8 and 10; if such a story is likely to offend you, or you are not legally allowed to read this material according to the laws you are subject to, do not continue. I do not condone the reading of, or the emulation of, the material contained herein, nor any acts otherwise hinted or alluded to in this document, especially by minors.\n\tIf you are under the legal age to read this, or it is likely to offend you, do not read beyond this disclaimer. This warning is explicit, so don't complain to the author or the host of this document if you get in trouble for reading it, or you dislike this type of story, or if you are an irresponsible parent and can’t control what your children read online. It is not unrealistic to assume that either you monitor your children's use of the internet or that you raise a child honest and decent enough not to read sexual stories on the net, or if they do, to view it harmlessly as fiction. All of that is on your shoulders, not mine.\n\tIf you read beyond this disclaimer, it is your choice to do so. You also indicate that you have fair knowledge of the content and made the choice to view it without any encouragement; so you take full responsibility and agree to hold nobody but yourself responsible for any consequences that arise from your continuing to read. If you don’t agree to that, cease reading this document now. \n\tAny political opinions voiced herein are best considered the opinions of the characters that voiced them. This is a work of fiction. The political/cultural opinions voiced by the characters, therefore, only apply to this fictional world; in short, I’m not trying to convert people. Though if it gets a few people thinking, then that’s their decision.\n\n--DISCLAIMER ENDS. FURTHER READING IS MADE UNDER FREE CHOICE WITH FULL UNDERSTANDING OF ALL IMPLICATIONS, LEGAL, EMOTIONAL, PHYSICAL, LINGUISTIC, GRAMMATICAL AND METAPHYSICAL. AS MERELY THE AUTHOR OF THIS STORY, YOU UNDERSTAND I AM NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR ANYTHING YOU DO OR SAY OR EVEN FEEL AFTER READING.--\n\nA quick foreword: \nQuite some time ago, I started to write a short story purely to convince the owner of Cub Central to let me have a membership—it was my first ever attempt at writing erotic material of any kind, and I used to have such trouble just writing certain words. It has since then become something very different. Though I’ve had to take time off writing for various reasons, I’ve still spent a very long time working on this piece, and as of now it is one of the things dearest to my heart. \nOnce again, I thank everyone who supported me through the years as I wrote this and my other stories for keeping me sane despite this issue and that trouble. The end is near, I promise. I know I’m as slow as a drunken snail, but eventually even the snail arrives at the cherry tree. And I can see the leaves now.\nLove for all my fans and supporters,\nKichigai Kitsune.\n \n\n\n\n\n\n\nDedicated to my friends, fans and supporters of all ages and nations. Many of you taught me so much more about this world, about mankind and about myself that this story would not have been the same without you. I wouldn’t have been the same without you.\nRemember, everyone has a story to tell.\n\nThanks all! \n\n\tChapter 1 \n\n\tIt was a frigid winter's day in the city of New York. Intricate snowflakes glided lightly down from the overcast, yet still bright, afternoon sky, dancing with haunting elegance between the towering buildings before settling gently down on the layer of cottony snow that already smothered the outlying streets. \n\tA small car, old, dilapidated and slightly rusted from the touch of the sea breeze, turned off the highway bridge into the city, and the two passengers noticed with mixed feelings how the surroundings suddenly changed from the lush greenery of the hinterlands to the harsh concrete structures of a city. \n\tLeafy green eyes wide with anxiety and not a little awe, was a young fox boy. Mild dread had been unsettling his stomach for the last few days, and beholding the massive city and the twisting, busy road they were now upon had caused that dread to increase two-fold. He slowly tore his gaze those away from the intimidating skyscrapers looming on the horizon and the claustrophobia-inducing alleyways and looked straight ahead. There was a gaping maw in the road- a tunnel, lit by dirty orange lights that they were heading straight for. He looked instead at his mother. \"Um, mom?\" he said softly, leaning forward slightly. Speaking for the first time in hours.\n\t\"What is it, Tai?\" she replied absently, focusing on the road. All about them, hundreds of obnoxious drivers were blasting their horns with impunity, often seemingly for no reason, and the horrendous cacophony commingled in the city sky along with the delicate designs of airborne ice.\n\tThey had driven all the way from Alaska, the longest time either of them had been confined in their cramped vehicle. Until now, the pair had lived together in relative isolation, miles from any real town, in their small rural home. Today, that was set to change. Drastically.\n\tTai sighed heavily and pulled his soft, tawny tail to his chest, feeling slightly frightened and overwhelmed by the unnatural activity all around him – countless vehicles of all kinds and throngs upon throngs of furs. He hugged the furry mass against himself and briefly found himself thinking about his father, whose face he barely recalled. Today especially, he missed him. \n\tThe small family had lived in San Francisco for several years after Tai was born, but a ‘disagreement’ with an unscrupulous realtor forced them to move to the cold, remoteness of Alaska to work for a relative, and hopefully save up enough money to buy their home back. However, that simply never happened. \nTheir house was auctioned, and it finally sold for nearly three times what they had expected. As if that wasn’t enough, half the family’s savings vanished from their accounts in a puff of smoke. They were stranded, living miles from the nearest city in their adopted state, struggling from day to do just to eat and keep a roof between their heads and the oftentimes fierce weather.\nTai was only four at this time, and he had almost no memory of the abject squalor they had lived in for a whole year before the catastrophe was finally resolved. Trying to remember it even now was difficult. Even after they discovered what had happened to their money, they were so deeply entrenched in debt that it made no difference. However, despite their poverty, Tai had grown to love the chilly hinterlands of Alaska, growing up under the majestic shadow of the permanently snow-capped mountains. \n\tUntil disaster struck again. While working on a fishing boat off the Aleutian Islands, Tai’s father was taken from him.\n\tThe boat had collided with an ice breaker; a gigantic seaborne monolith that smashed the smaller vessel to pieces. Everyone on board the trawler was dead within a minute, except Tai’s persistent father, who died on board the breaker; they’d barely managed to rescue him, only for him to succumb to shock and hypothermia. The trawler itself sunk to the bottom of the churning sea, lost forever. It was all blamed on poor visibility and unreliable navigation equipment and stuff Tai simply did not understand, especially at the time… all he knew was his dad had gone. He didn’t care for the details. It was all irrelevant. At nearly five years old, the fox-boy only understood that none of it would bring him back. Knowing wasn’t changing, and it wouldn’t bring his dad back.\n\tHis father had been his confidant, the one closest to him in the whole world, and losing that anchor was just the start of another world of trouble for him. As the massive buildings surrounded him, Tai wondered if this would be yet another world. It certainly looked like one, but not an improvement.\n\tAs per usual, his mother was totally oblivious to her kit’s maudlin mental wanderings. Tai was a quiet boy most of the time, unless someone managed to somehow get him worked up, which wasn’t easy at all. It was like he was hiding in a little shell, waiting to be coaxed out, but recently he’d been less and less likely to respond to attempts to draw him out. He had erected a shell for himself and it was nigh impregnable. A frustrating shell made of deception, taciturnity and surprisingly skillful deflection that drove his mother utterly wild.\n\tDespite it all, she quickly learned how to manage him alone quite easily. He was polite, considerate, and shy; on the rare occasion he managed to upset her, a punishment was nearly never needful: his mother's good opinion was so important to Tai that merely glancing sternly at the little fox could almost reduce him to tears. When he said he wouldn’t do something again, he meant it. For all the irritation he gave her, Eraline knew her son was desperate to please her.\n\tA beautiful vixen – still quite young – Eraline remained single out of choice only. Slender and attractive, her comely muzzle and sharp ears gave her a kind of alluring angularity, while her deep, icy blue eyes could chill anyone's heart. But there was more than just beauty in her face; a cold sadness haunted those blue eyes, making them appear all the frostier. With those very eyes, she gazed up at the rear-view mirror, briefly catching her son’s eyes at last.\n\tTai assessed his mother's mood in a glance and sighed quietly. Anything he said would be lost on her right now; she was sunk into one of her moods again. Busy. Wouldn’t appreciate his question.\n\t\"Nothing,\" he murmured finally, settling back into his chair. As he expected, his mother didn't perceive the emptiness in his voice. She didn’t even seem to notice anything was amiss. \n\tIt was pointless. His mother just wasn’t listening. There was no point in trying to tell her anything, verbally or otherwise. As always. Despite the fact Tai came home almost every school day with tearstains on his face, she never asked him about it once.\nTai hated school. The last year or so had just been dreadful. Always alone for some reason, wanting others to like him. He just could never fit in, and, all of a sudden, nobody would ever let him forget it. Things changed.\n\tTai was a small little fox even for his age. His slight frame was by no means muscular, and he knew it. In fact, he had even mostly stopped taking offense whenever people thought he was a girl or younger than he really was. \n\tHe personally didn't see anything wrong with it. The fur on his head was far longer than your average boy’s, just a bit over collar-length, covering his head and part of his face with straight, tawny-yellow bangs—loads of fun in the shower or bath! He was a fast runner for his size too.\n\tBut he knew there was more to it than that. He was neither assertive nor strong. Always in plain clothing, unable to keep up with trends or even afford his own stationery. Worse, he didn’t know why, but he didn’t get along with other boys. Especially not when it came to sports; Tai knew just about everyone was stronger than he was, so why bother?\nMoving to this new, unfamiliar place wouldn’t change anything important like that and he knew it.\n\t\"Here we go again,\" Tai mouthed silently as a feeling of dread crept up his stomach. The car moved slowly past an elementary school at a veritable crawl, as if his mother was trying to taunt him. On the surface, all one could see the happy children running around, squealing in delight as they chased each other playfully throughout the playground in innocent fun and games.\n\tTai, however, saw other things. His young, sharp eyes knew what to look for, and they instantly picked out the desolate child sitting alone on the swings... and the gang of jerks about to make her sit elsewhere. He quickly spotted a little squirrel child surrounded by a pack of school bullies. \n\tCity or not, nothing important would change.\n\tFinally, Tai decided he didn't care if his mother was in a cruddy mood. \"Mom, do we have to live here?\" he groaned plaintively. \"Can't we please go back to Anchorage and my friends?”\n\tEraline blinked in surprise – at least it seemed to be surprise. \"Are you kidding me?\" she asked, chortling emptily. \"What sort of question is that? We belong here, in the city; not in some backwater.\" Her voice had a strange edge to it, as if she were angry or embarrassed by Tai’s audacity. \"Besides, you don't have to hang around those bullies now, do you? Just take a look at that.\" She gestured towards the school they were passing as if Tai hadn’t already been looking.\n\tIn despair, Tai shook his head. That wasn't the way it worked. He'd finally gotten used to dealing with the torment and teasing from those in his current school, made a few– if distant and fair-weather- friends, worked out how to avoid this jerk and that jerk... and his mother brashly decided to move to New York, a strange city he’d only ever heard about. “I can see it fine,” he said moodily.\n\t\"This isn't some pathetic excuse of a town in the middle of nowhere,\" Eraline continued. \"This is a city. Furs are much nicer, more tolerant here. It’s called ‘civilization’ for a reason. Trust me, this is going to be better. For both of us. I promise.\"\n\tTai nodded submissively.\n\tFrom the way his mother was acting, her being a city-fox and everything, he wasn't so sure about that. Besides, even if furs were, kids aren't furs... are they?\n\t\n\tTheir apartment wasn't so bad, conceded Tai when he walked in through the door. In fact, it was more than just not bad. “Opulent,” Tai eventually settled on after groping through his vocabulary for a few moments as he quietly trailed along behind his mother. Though cramped, the apartment was of a level of luxury he simply wasn’t used to. Everything just looked so fancy and expensive.\n\tAn exceedingly polite weasel bustled ahead with his mother, drawing the vixen’s attention to the soft, burgundy carpet and allowing her to explore their new bathroom. Eraline paid particular attention to that. Tai hoped she hadn’t started to wonder when he’d last had a bath; if she started counting days, it’d be a pain in the tail. He slipped away to continue his inspection alone, just in case.\n\tTai's eyes widened as a thought hit him. How much was a place like this going cost them? Were they renting it? He didn’t understand how they could. How was his mother setting them up in a place like this?\n\tThough young, Tai was painfully aware of his mother’s indigence. It impacted him too, in ways she didn’t even seem to notice. He never asked for anything. Never expected anything, not even consistent meals. He understood.\n\tThere were quite a few rooms. In fact, this supposed apartment rivaled their old homestead’s size easily. Two of the rooms were capacious bedrooms, one was a dining room, another was a 'games room' –Tai paused to reflect upon the absurdity of that notion; whoever confined games to one room? - a laundry and a large kitchen. He padded quietly into the games room, crossing to the massive window on the other side of it, curiosity compelling him to peer through the venetians. The view was impressive. They were quite high up. The kit found himself getting giddy, so he turned away.\n\tThe walls were papered a warm cream color, while the lighting was soft and warm, almost as if instead of electrical lights the apartment was being illuminated by gently flickering candles. It made Tai slightly drowsy.\n\tBut it was going to take more than sleepy-lighting to make Tai's eyes any less wide when he wandered at last into the open games room. \n\t\"Wow...\" he whispered to himself, gawking . The large cabinet on the side housed a large plasma screen television Tai reasoned absolutely must have cost twenty thousand dollars! Or something like that! He’d never seen a television that large, or with that peculiar flat screen. Two rounded, velvety couches created a semi-circle around it.\n\tWith a grin, Tai reckoned he'd find the soft couches much more fun than the TV, no matter how big it was. He’d never seen such curiously shaped sofas before. They were large and offered great opportunities to play on top of. They might even be a little bouncy. \n \tHe plopped down on one of the couches with a great sigh and an appropriate lack of decorum, limbs flopping down beside him like rubber tentacles.\n\tHis eyes closed automatically, either from his near exhaustion or thanks to the lighting, and he relaxed immensely. He was safe here, at least for now. Then tomorrow would come, and he'd be left alone when his mother went to her new work; that was all he knew about what was to come.\n\tHis mother had planned everything before she'd gotten here, he guessed. Perhaps that’s why she as always on the phone before they left – maybe she was organizing everything. They'd just arrived yet they already had a luxurious new home and Eraline had work. Maybe everything was alright. Maybe he was worrying when he didn’t need to.\n\tThe weasel gave a polite, cheerful farewell and left at last. The moment the door shut beside him, Eraline slumped into the couch next to her son.\n\tTai's eyes opened when he felt his mother collapse unceremoniously onto the velvety cushions adjacent to him. He looked over at her, questioningly.\n\t\"Well, it's good to be here at last,\" she commented, reclining with a great smile on her face. “It’s going to be wonderful here.” She sighed. “Oh it’s good to be out of the car… I feel terrible.”\n\tTai scratched behind his ears and leaned forwards to free the tail he'd been sitting on. He absently swished the fluffy mass behind his back and frowned with thought. \"Mom, how much will staying here cost?\" he asked her finally, giving her a direct question at last.\n\tTo his surprise, his mother answered. \"To rent? It would probably cost about thirteen-hundred a month,\" Eraline replied, shrugging without bothering to open her eyes. \"That doesn't matter, hon. Don’t worry about it.\"\n\t\"Does that mean… you've already paid for it…?\" The kit’s expression grew confused.\n\tShe nodded evasively before suddenly getting up and striding to the blinds. With one hand she opened them, revealing the crimson-drenched vision of a sprawling city at sundown. Leaning against the window, she sighed in satisfaction. \n\t\"Where did you get the money, mom?\" insisted Tai, flicking his ears in exasperation. She hadn't told him anything about all this, and it was just making no sense. \n\tEraline completely ignored him, staring out at the silhouetted skyscrapers in the distance. She knew she was being terribly cold towards her son. She hadn't asked him what his feelings were on the sudden move, and she ashamedly admitted she didn't truly care; at least, not enough for it to have influenced her decision. There were more important things… \n\tShe'd wanted nothing more than a return to civilization for the longest time. No matter what her naturalistic son claimed, she could find none of the vivacity or beauty he saw in that desolation of the Alaskan hinterland. They had teetered on the verge of destitution, living in poverty. It was not a life she wanted to continue, for her or her gentle son. That, and Alaska was so cold.\n\tThere was no way her son would understand her reasons. He could not understand their situation, so why should she explain it? It would merely be a source of irritation for them both.\n\tIn fact, suddenly she wanted to be away from him for now. \n\t\"I'm going out for the night,\" she announced in a bland tone, trying to appear totally absorbed in her city-gazing.\n\tTai's ears perked up, alert. \"Where?\" he demanded incredulously.\n\t\"I haven't decided yet.\" Eraline flashed her son a weak smile.\n\tThe kit's entire body drooped in dismay. Out? Without him? \"What about me?\" This was his first night here! Wasn't she even gonna help him settle in?\n\t\"You'll be fine.\" Tai watched in sadness and disbelief as his mother picked up her coat which she had draped over a chair earlier. \"The address is written on the wall at the entrance. Order some pizza. Or something. I’ll find the number for you before I go.\"\n\tEven the promise of a cheesy pizza, a rare treat they could almost never afford, failed to lighten Tai’s mood. She had to be joking. Why was his mother leaving him like this? Why tonight? Tonight?!\n\tGiving her puzzled son a quick lick on the side of the muzzle, Eraline snatched up her purse. She fished around in it, handing Tai some notes and quickly heading over to the phone book in the kitchen. In only minutes she was ready, and she immediately headed for the door.\n\t“M-mom!” Tai exclaimed, trying to follow her.\n\tBut Eraline was already outside before he could reach her. The front door slammed shut in his face. Stunned, Tai stared at the door, unable to hold back a pathetic sniffle. \nBut it all quickly changed to indignation and resentment. She was always leaving him on his own and now she had abandoned him in their new home on their first night. \n\tHe angrily tossed the twenty bucks his mother had given him to the floor and stamped away from the front door to explore the apartment again, first stopping by the ornate French window of the games room. \n\tWith a shudder, he noticed how the city exuded about as much warmth as a cemetery. It was all washed out grays. Everything looked too busy, too intimidating… too dangerous. He tingled with desire to be back in the quiet wilderness again, shutting the curtains resolutely.\n\tHe placed his paws in the pouch of his oversized green and grey hooded sweater and continued looking around.\n\tHis sneakered paws made no sound in the thick carpeting, while his cheap, gray track-pants made up for them, producing those faint rustling sounds that baggy pants often do. \n\tAs he explored, he noticed a slightly unpleasant odor. Gingerly, he plucked at the front of his hooded sweater and sniffed at it. That was a surprise: as a young fox, Tai wasn’t used to discovering he had made his clothing stink, but after several days trapped in the car with nothing to change into and the heating turned up, it seemed even he could make his clothes a little ripe.\n A fastidious child, he felt, well, icky too. Stuffy under his clothes – he suddenly wanted to take at least his shirt and hoodie off, to bare his chest to the warm air. Not only would it get the irritating stink away from his sensitive nose, but after so long in the car, he felt almost suffocated by all the clothing he hadn’t been free of for several nights in a row.\n\t“Yucky,” he commented aloud.\n\tA bath would be necessary soon, but he wasn’t going to take one without his mother’s urging. Fastidious, yes, but he wasn’t crazy.\n\tThe two bedrooms contained identical beds. In fact, the rooms were identical in every aspect. He bit his lip uncertainly as he looked them over; he shouldn't mess up those queen sized, thickly covered beds. Who knew which one his mother would want? Neither one was discernible as a child's room. He decided to leave them alone. The thought of having his own bed this size was more than a little cool though.\n\tHe reminded himself cynically to not expect his mother to let him have either.\n\tThe kitchen was fairly big. A bit excessive really, for such a small apartment. The room was roughly a dozen feet cubed, already stocked with an oven, microwave, seven foot refrigerator and a spice rack that was nearly as long as Tai was tall. The white topped counter was too high for him to pull himself onto to inspect it without wasting time finding something to give him a boost. \n\tHe didn't bother with the laundry. The smell of detergent made him dizzy and nauseous.\n\tEventually, the kit grew bored. He was still feeling a little hurt by his mother’s abandonment, and he was exhausted after the long, monotonous trip. Normally, alone, he’d find plenty of fun things to do – but tonight his solitude felt more like betrayal and he was wiped out. Starving too, he noted, placing a paw on his empty tummy. They’d last eaten miles outside of the city at a truck stop, hours and hours ago, and that had been the only time in the last twenty-fours.\n\tHe returned to the dining room where the front door was and went straight for the phone, withdrawing the card his mother gave him from his pouch. The phone rang on and on, before a grumpy voice grumbled an almost unintelligible greeting.\nTai didn't sound too surly, he hoped, as he outlined his usual meal to the guy on the other end. He gave them the address and promised to have twenty dollars- precisely- ready for the delivery-boy. He also promised that this wasn't a prank call and that he really did want a pizza... and he was in fact willing to hand over the money for it. Several minutes later, after he stretched forward and gently replaced the handset on the receiver, he blinked and idly bit his lip.\n\tWas everyone here so suspicious?! Were they actually serious? Or just messing with him because he was a kid?\n\tThe pizza arrived no more than twelve minutes later; twelve minutes of boredom and impatience he’d passed by trying to see how long he could hang upside down from the couch by his knees. The stupid couch’s backrest was too soft and he could only hold himself in place for a few seconds before he had to slither to the floor. There was a soft, yet insistent knocking on the door, and Tai bolted to open it from the other side of the small apartment, eager for food and something to do. Someone to talk to.\n\tSo when he reached the door, he yanked it open energetically.\n\tThe delivery dog, a young alsatian, blinked in surprise as the door flung open and a lithe young kit smiled charmingly at him. He hesitated, appraising the excited fox boy.\n\t“Um, e-evening, sir,” Tai said pleasantly, the promise of pizza, and the dog’s humorously surprised expression at his buoyancy, helping him bury his natural shyness for a few moments. However, he did find himself grinning sheepishly.\n\tThe pizza and the money changed hands, and the canine dug out a small pouch to get the change. Tai, always observant, noticed the pizza boy glancing over at him warmly as he did so. \n\tUsually shy beyond measure, Tai decided on a whim to do something very unusual for him. It was warm indoors, and the ripe smell was making his nose itch; not to mention the curious appraisal of the older boy made him wonder about the reaction he’d get.”Um, hold on please.” \nWith a silly, nearly imperceptible grin, he pulled his sweater off over his head, taking his green T-shirt along with it, and flinging the bundle of cloth behind him. \nThe alsatian coughed to cover his shock and he dropped a few coins. Abashed, he tried to hastily pick them up. \n\tHe handed the change to Tai. \"Lookin’ good there,\" the delivery boy muttered softly, barely loud enough for Tai to hear. He grinned at the kit.\n\t\"Thank you,\" Tai replied quietly, butterflies in his tummy. He wasn’t even sure himself if he meant the thanks for the pizza or the compliment.\n\t“Don’t mention it,” the teenager chortled. “Uh. You’re not going to take anything else off are ya?”\n\tTai shook his head. \"Oh, um, n-no it’s just because those stink,\" he said bashfully, though he took great delight in the dog's efforts to conceal a crestfallen expression. The canine laughed and just looked him over. As shy as he usually was, Tai felt strangely pleased. \nThe kit knew, vaguely, about the concept of ‘checking someone out.’ Mostly from television and the lewd comments of slightly older boys at school – it brought a gentle flush to his cheeks when he realized that somebody was doing it to him.\n“How about next time?” joked the dog, grinning.\n“M-maybe.” Tai squirmed shyly, a grin blooming on his features too. “J-just my boxers?”\n\tThe teenager laughed graciously. He couldn't have been more than seventeen. \"The name's Jake,\" the delivery-boy said amiably, reaching out with a paw. \"I work deliveries Monday and Tuesday evenings and Sunday after mid-day to late night.\" He shrugged wryly. “It makes much better money than you might think. If you order on those days, you’ll be stuck with me delivering it.”\n\tThe little fox hesitated for just for a moment, then he took the larger fur's paw. Jake gave him a kind of playful shake, eyeing him curiously. \n\t\"I'm Tai,\" replied the pup quietly. \"Um, I'm new here. We just moved in.\"\n\t\"You're a strange one,\" laughed Jake, releasing the topless fox's paw. “Nice meeting you. I think you’ll like it here. These apartments are pretty good - I know someone else in this building. I think my dispatcher thought you were him, actually.”\n\t“Thanks again,” piped Tai, his heart beating fast. “M-maybe I’ll see you again soon. I really like pizza.”\n\t“Who doesn’t? Good night, Tai! Enjoy your meal.”\n\tWith that Jake walked away, whistling as he made his way back down the oddly austere corridor to the elevator. Seemingly happy.\n\tTai shut the door quickly, bolting it securely, and marched into the dining room with his pizza, drink and garlic bread. He undid the cap of the bottle of sparkling apple juice, easily his favorite beverage, and settled onto the soft fluffy carpet to eat, not bothering with such customary inefficiencies as a table. \n\tHe paused for a second and reflected. It seemed he’d just made a new friend. The impromptu decision to bare his chest was a brainless, playful reaction to Jake’s mere few seconds of looking at him. The much older boy didn’t appear to be fazed; was his mom right about furs in the city after all? \n\tBut the time for deep thoughts was not now, not with perfectly good pizza sitting before him when it should be getting devoured. \n\tAfter his dinner he walked sleepily back into the games room and closed the blinds. A good meal made him very sleepy.\n\tHe settled lengthwise onto the couch nearest the window and shifted around until he was comfortably on his back. He placed his paws behind his head and stared at the ceiling, contemplating his loneliness this night. It felt like his mother was getting even farther and farther away from him. They’d always been slightly distant, as long as he could remember anyway, but in the last few months she’d been… distracted. \n\tShe said more words over the phone, apparently to some old friend, in preparation for the move she kept secret from her son than she had said to him. When he worked up the courage to ask her who she was speaking to, she brushed him off infuriatingly.\n\tDidn’t seem to realize or care that he was afraid. Not knowing what was happening… \n\tFor some reason, his mother was leaving Tai alone more and more, forcing him to rely on himself. She listened less and less, and seemed to resent his efforts to pry information from her. To even just be with her. Was she just sick of him? Could parents just get sick of their cubs? Was she upset with him? Stopped loving him?\n\tWhat had he done? He just wanted to know…\n\tTrying to distract himself with noise, he turned on the TV and stared listlessly at the screen for nearly half an hour before deciding there were better things he could be doing. There was nothing on that was remotely interesting to him anyway, so at the press of a button, the screen flickered and died obediently, once more leaving Tai alone in a silent apartment. He wished Jake had stuck around or something. He was alright with being alone most of the time, but this was a totally new situation for him. \n\tThe lighting was still dim and warm, his eyes felt heavy. Tai's ears flicked slightly as he leaned forwards to look around for peeping-toms, as if someone could’ve just snuck in, or was flying level with the fourth-storey windows. He was so tired; he just wanted some comfort before he could drift off to slumber.\n\tHe slowly removed his sneakers and slipped off his cotton ankle socks – which were also oddly a little malodorous, another new thing to him. With a sigh, he pressed his paw against his taut, skinny belly and slowly slid it down to his waist. It lifted the waist band of both his boxers and his track-pants. He sighed again as he firmly slid it over his sensitive, fluffy pubic area and onto his plaything for such lonely nights as this.\n\tTai stroked and rubbed his small penis gently at first, becoming firmer and faster, until it soon stiffened to its full two and a bit inches. \n\tHe loved doing this. He didn’t know what it was called, only that he had to keep it a secret. When he was alone or tired, he would either remove his clothing, or simply work around them, casually enjoying the warm sensations, so pleasant and strangely comforting.\n\tIt wasn’t just the feelings, though. His mind would drift, fluttering from daydream to fantasy. He would happily let them carry him to sleep, or at least occupy him for a time. Often, though not always, his fantasies came to the same thing, over and over: somebody holding him. Caring about him. Touching him all over, giving him the contact and affection he pined for so badly.\n\tOddly enough, one of things he found himself suddenly thinking about this time was the meeting with Jake. He liked that teen, he seemed to be nice guy… and he thought the teen liked him too. For some reason, his mind wandered and it came to the notion of this teenaged canine holding him, talking with him and even doing this to him suddenly made his body tremble and breathing turn ragged. \n\tTai held and expanded the fantasy in his mind, continuing to firmly rub his dick against the insides of his legs, the smooth, downy flatness of his groin and between his fingers; he took the tip of his index finger and ran it up and down over the urethral opening. His other paw began to stroke his chest, seeking out the sensitive light pink nubs under his fur which made his legs twitch merely by being brushed.\n\tIt took him only a few minutes, even moving at as slow a pace as he was, before his breathing suddenly became labored and he started squirming involuntarily. He didn't have any plans to stop however. In fact, the strength of the sensations, bringing him to the very edge of what he could withstand comfortably and pushing at that limit… well, he liked that. But tonight, he was going on for even longer than normal, his movements firmer and more urgent. He clung to this new daydream, unwilling to let it stop.\n\tHe felt a tension build up while the steadily growing bliss started to overrun his entire body. The strange feelings were new and even slightly frightening, but Tai didn't want to stop them. They may be new, but they felt too good to stop; and dimly, he knew that if he kept going it’d get better and better.\n\tThen the phone on the cabinet by the couch exploded into an annoying, tinny ring. Tai jumped up, wrenching his hand from his satin boxers. He felt his little heart freezing, then starting to thump like a machine gun. He even screamed from surprise. Only for a split second, but he still worried someone would bash down the door wondering what was wrong. \n\tHe waited until he was more or less confident he could talk without his voice shaking, he answered the phone. \"H-hello?\" he asked softly. His voice shook anyway, and he squeaked silently. Would they guess what he’d been doing?! Was there some way they could tell?\n\t\"Oh, hello there!\" the tinny voice apologized. \"I'm, uh, from Carter National Marketing. Are your parents at home, kit?\" It was a telemarketer.\n\t\"No, I'm sorry, my mom's not home,\" Tai said quietly, still trembling slightly. No longer from surprise: the tingling remnants of the wonderful feeling he was giving himself earlier were rippling through his body, tantalizing him. Urging him to return to his earlier entertainment.\n\t\"I see,\" the voice said. \"Sorry to trouble you, kid. Have a good night.\"\n\tTai hung up after she did. He always waited for the other person hang up before doing likewise, he insisted on it. Once, he hung up on someone; he still felt horrible about it.\n\tResignedly, he decided he'd better sleep. It was nine already – that was quite late, wasn’t it? If his mother came home soon, he would get in trouble for staying up beyond bedtime. He was tired anyway.\n\tHe wistfully wished he could keep masturbating- not that he knew the name for it- but it would keep him awake, and he had tried innumerable times to trick his mother into believing he was asleep when he wasn't, but he never succeeded. It was as if she could read his mind, so there really was no point in trying. \n\tSliding a paw into his waistband again, this time Tai removed his track-pants and laid them neatly over the couch back. Eraline was fairly firm about the \"don't wear clothes overnight\" rule. Pajamas, underwear or nothing, depending on what Tai felt like doing. Eraline didn’t like having to wash clothes too often. She said it damaged them.\n\tHe found a neatly folded soft cotton sheet in the laundry, taking up space in a basket and took it back to the games room. There he unfolded the sheet over the couch and clambered under it. He drew it up to his neck and hugged a back-pillow tightly for comfort.\n\tWith a lot of sleep to catch up on, the nearly-nude little fox was asleep in less than two minutes.\n\n\tEraline returned to her new home at five in the morning. She'd just spent the entire night at a night-club, drinking and carousing with amorous males of all types. She'd made a few promises, none of which she intended to keep, naturally. She also neglected to tell any of her 'suitors' that she had a beautiful, young son. Not because she was deliberately deceiving them... she'd genuinely forgotten Tai that night. \n\tDimly she knew what she had done was wrong. Tai was a resourceful, mature boy, and she knew with unshakeable certainty that each time he was left alone, he would be fine. But that didn’t excuse this. Leaving him alone in a strange new place all night while she went to a bar for the first time in years.\n\tBut the truth was, she felt she deserved the relaxation. She didn’t care. Tonight, she wanted to get away from her son and the stress of being a mother. Everything was just far too much for her, and was set to get worse.\n\tSo much worse.\n\tAll she had wanted, for the past few years, was a chance to be a normal fur again.\n\tWhen she entered the apartment however, her motherly duties slapped her in the face. She suddenly felt guilty... not very guilty, but a little. \"Where is he?\" she murmured, searching the bedrooms, dining room and the game room. She had begun to panic before she realized that she'd completely overlooked her little boy. He was fast asleep on the soft couch in the games room. \n\tA smile touched her muzzle. Tai was such a good boy. He'd ordered apple juice with his pizza, not worn his day-clothes to bed and even taken the initiative, procuring a blanket from the laundry all by himself. \n\tBut the blanket had been kicked off during the kit's sleep, and it lay in a bundle on the floor. Her tawny-furred son lay on the couch in his blue, shimmering boxers, with an oddly sad expression still on his somnolent features. His eyes were slightly tight. Was he dreaming?\n\tEraline lightly laid a small hand on her little cub's backside and bent forwards. She delivered a soft lick to the muzzle, and Tai's small lips drew back almost imperceptibly into a smile. He gave a little sigh in his sleep and snuggled even tighter to the pillow. Eraline lovingly drew her hand up to his shoulder, then lifted the blanket and covered him with it again.\n\tShe’d been selfish. Again. But maybe that kiss made some of it up… somehow. It would have to do for now.\n\tNow she had to see to her own sleep...\n\n\tTai had been bored for the entire morning as his mother slept interminably. She didn't get up until three PM, and she was already busily getting ready for what she said was a night-shift. Somewhere. Tai realized quite quickly he didn’t know anything about his mother’s work. At all. \n\tHe hated not knowing anything – his mother was always secretive, but Tai could usually pick things up. He needed that. He needed to know what was going on. But everything about the sudden move to New York was a mystery to him. He didn’t even know the name of the school he’d been enrolled in.\n\tAt last, his mother opened her bedroom door and bustled into the dining room, where Tai was sitting in a corner, bored. His toys and books were still in their suitcases, and his mom had only gotten the ‘important’ things out of those.\n\t\"Good evening, mom,\" Tai said sincerely. He went over to her and gave her a hug, which she returned, albeit perfunctorily; she was still wondering where the hell her watch had gone. She’d worn it last night.\n\t\"Good afternoon, Tai.\" She snatched up her handbag. “I slept in. Now I have to rush.”\nTai noted with disappointment that she was fully dressed, and his nose detected perfume… \"Are you going already?\" he asked plaintively. \"Can’t you stay with me for a few hours?\"\n\tShe shook her beautiful head and adjusted her new business suit. Tai had to admit it suited her, even if it did seem so strange to him. \"Sorry, Tai,\" she told him. She sounded genuinely apologetic – Tai honestly thought she was going to snap at him instead. \"I've got to be at my new job a few hours before I start. First day. Oh, almost forgot!\" Once again she dipped into her handbag, handing him a twenty. \"Get whatever you want. We can afford it now. There's a Chinese restaurant that delivers around here. Or there's pizza, again.\" \n\tBut food wasn’t what concerned Tai. \"Will you ever make me dinner again?\" sighed the little fox, ears and shoulders sagging.\n\t\"Of course,\" Eraline absently responded, totally missing the sadness in her kit's voice, yet again. \"OK, I’m off. I’m going to be late as it is.\" The vixen threw open the door and started down the corridor almost immediately.\n\t\"Mom!\" Tai cried, urgently. He darted out the front door after her, skidding to a halt on the hallway’s pale-blue carpeting. \"What time will you be back?\"\n\tEraline turned around, her manner impatient. \"It’s a night-shift, Tai!\" she said as if he should already know the details that she hadn't given him. \"I'll be back early tomorrow. You’ve got the apartment to yourself, so have some fun! Don’t stay up too late though – you have school soon.\" She spun on her heels and entered the steel doors of the elevator. She missed Tai’s gob-smacked expression in so doing.\n\tWhen she was gone, Tai felt inexplicably upset and lost. Today was even more abrupt than yesterday was. Two days in a row… \"Bye, mom...\" the sad boy whined, staring at the empty hallway in front of him, his entire body slumped.\n\tWhen he recovered, almost a minute later, he turned back to his apartment… and jumped in surprise. Scarcely a few paces away from him stood another fox-boy; older, around ten-years-old or so, and his fur was a light tree-bark brown. His wavy head-fur was long, though not quite as long as Tai’s; merely neck-length. Grinning cordially, he met Tai’s startled gaze with a pair of curious hazel eyes. \n\t\"Sorry!\" The newcomer said quickly. \"Didn't mean to frighten you.\"\n\tTai shook his head nervously, backing away a step. \"It's okay. I just, uh, didn’t know you were there.\" No kidding? He mentally kicked himself.\n\t\"My name's Mike,\" the older pup said, stepping closer. \"I live a few floors above.\" He was much taller than Tai, about an extra head taller, and that made Tai nervous.\n\t\"I'm Tai,\" Tai introduced himself, avoiding the older kit’s eyes. \"I live... um, here.\" \n\tMike smiled and his eyes danced mischievously. Atop his head, his furry ears pointed directly at the ceiling. \"There's never been another kid around here!\" he said in an excited voice. \"I heard you talking as I walked past, so I stopped and waited around outside your door.\"\n\t\"Oh.\"\n\tThis new cub eyed him speculatively. \"You look fun,\" he said seriously. \"Do you wanna head to my place?\"\n\tTai's mouth fell agape and he was nearly bowled over by the simple offer. He'd never been invited to someone else's place! \"Uh... um, I c-can't,\" he said. A brief second later he added, \"My mother would want me to stay at home,\" by way of explanation.\n\t\"Well, how about I come to your place?\"\n\tThis shocked Tai just as much as the previous idea. He'd never taken a friend home either, let alone someone who he'd just met. But then, he'd never encountered a person willing to walk right up to him and instantly try to make friends with him. It was almost like being hit full in the face with an explosion of friendliness.\n\t\"I-I guess,\" he replied, stepping back inside. Was this even safe? Was it what he should do? He didn’t really want to, but it’d seem rude… \"What do you wanna do?\"\n\tThe fox kit called Mike shrugged indifferently. \"I'm sure there's something we can do together!\" he said confidently. \"Do you have a game console, or a computer?\"\n\t\"No, sorry.\" Tai blinked his large expressive emerald eyes. \"We can't afford one.\"\n\t\"TV?\"\n\t\"Yeah, but I don’t like watching that...\"\n\tYet again, a shrug. \"That's not important. We'll find other things to do just by sitting in front of the box! I'm not a fan of TV either, you know.\"\n\tDespite himself, Tai found himself liking this older kit. He'd come out of nowhere, was pleasant and instantly wanted to be friends. He was kinda cool too, in an outgoing way. Curiosity eating at him, the younger kit eyed this “Mike.”\n\tTai had simply put back on his clothes from yesterday. He had to. However, Mike was wearing a red t-shirt with some totally incomprehensible, probably meaningless, tribal designs on it, black cargo pants and white cross-trainers. He gave off an air of confidence and capability, while his appearance and fashion was not what Tai was used to. Around his neck was a necklace of small beads and metal icons, while his medium length head-fur did sort of tumble in that messy, neglected like all the surfers Tai had seen on the television. He thought the older kit looked kinda cool, though that merely worried him more. But he was trapped now. He had accepted, and he didn’t have the guts to backtrack.\n\tTai led his new friend into his home, trying to conceal his shaking paws. \"Would you like a drink?\" he asked politely, heading to the fridge. \"All I have is apple juice. Oh, I guess water too.\"\n\t\"Yeah, please. Apple juice sounds cool.\"\n\tTai obliged and brought in two cups of effervescent apple juice; the last of last night's meal. He handed the larger cup to the other cub.\n\t\"How come my cup's bigger?\" Mike asked curiously.\n\tTai shrugged. \"Mom always tells me to be nice to guests,\" he explained. \"I'll probably get more later.\" Truth was, Tai could only find two glasses in the bottom cabinet; he was pretty sure there were more, but they were probably in the shelves above the oven; placed there by someone who didn’t consider a small fox kit needing a few cups.\n\t\"’Kay.\" Mike had that speculative look on his face again. He took a mighty gulp of his apple juice. \"Hey, after this, do you wanna go for a walk? Scratch TV!\"\n\tTai blinked in surprise again, but recovered quickly. He observed the other kit cautiously; could he trust this fur? He'd made mistakes before, and he wasn't fond of the prospect of making one again. \"Why?\" he asked bluntly.\n\t\"Something to do.\" Mike drank half his large glass of juice in one swig. He pointed out the massive games room window. \"We should go now rather than later, while the sun is still up. I can show you the area. A guided tour!\"\n\tTai stilled, uncertain. He glanced sidelong at the older kit. \n\tThere was a brief, awkward lapse in conversation.\n\t\"Have you ever been mugged or anything?\" asked Mike, his massive grin returning to him completely out of the blue, with his eyes intently boring into Tai's. “Is that why you’re not keen on going outside?”\n\t\"No...\" The younger boy suddenly felt a chill in the pit of his stomach.\n\t\"I have...\" Mike stood up, placing his cup on a small coffee table, and advanced on Tai. “Kinda.”\n\tTai's eyes widened and he backed away, suddenly fearful. What was he doing?! \nMike grinned wider...\n\t\"He got me alone in my apartment,\" the brown furred fox continued, inching forwards at a painstakingly slow rate. Tai put his drink down and backed away even more. \"Just downstairs. I was real afraid... the guy spoke very softly. He told me not to fight back, to let him have his way and I'd be alright. Then... he pounced!!\" With that, eyes glimmering mischievously, Mike leaped forwards on powerful, athletic legs.\n\tTai stumbled backwards and was instantly flattened to the soft carpet, with Mike straddling his slight abdomen. Mike’s paws were just above the little fox’s shoulders and his fur-framed face loomed menacingly over those wide, frightened eyes. The larger boy bent down closer, and Tai was petrified into silence, unable even to scream, his breathing quick and whimpering softly. Mike growled, baring his teeth. \n\tThen he leaned in closer yet. \"He pinned me down.\" Quickly, he took and pinned the little fox's limp arms above his head, with Tai too scared to fight back against the clearly stronger boy. \"He was so much bigger, stronger, older, and I was too scared to move. He lifted up my shirt with one hand...\" He did so unto Tai, \"and he spoke so, so softly when he said...\"\n\tTai was now trembling violently, still unable to get his body to respond to his wish for flight, even as Mike lifted his pullover and t-shirt up to his neck, baring his skinny belly and ribs. His eyes were totally wide and wild. His stomach was clenched tightly.\n\tWhat was going to happen to him now!?\n\t\"He said...\" Mike lowered his voice to a whisper, lowering his head even further, so their noses were nearly touching. “He said…” the boy smirked, “....tickle time....”\n\tHe artfully paused a few seconds for the quietly spoken phrase to sink in. When he saw Tai’s eyes widen, he released Tai's wrists and immediately launched a ferocious tickle attack on the slighter fox's lower ribs with amazing speed, way too fast for Tai’s fear-frozen body to react at all.\n\tTai's scream was instantaneous, though it soon changed into shrieking laughter. \"NO!!\" The fox-boy cried shrilly, wriggling and kicking to the best of his ability, but Mike's much greater weight meant he was helplessly pinned to the floor, with his sweater and t-shirt pulled up to reveal his vulnerable ribs and the small dip of his stomach. \"Please, n-n-no!! Ahahaaa!\" He shrieked again as Mike slid his hand further up his writhing chest and mercilessly assaulted his armpits.\n\t\"No way!\" Mike told him firmly, still tickling him. \"I'm mugging you, remember?!\"\n\t\"I-I'll give you whatever you want!\" responded Tai, face suddenly wet with tears. Tears of laughter. \n\tThe older kit grabbed the younger's wrists with stunning speed and once more pinned them above his head. \"Anything?\" His eyes twinkled.\n\t\"Anything! Stop tickling me, please!!\"\n\t\"How about you be my friend?\"\n\t\"That's fair. Anything! Please get off!\" Tai giggled. His face was flushed and painfully hot, and he was fighting for breath.\n\t\"Oh, gosh, no, that’s not part of the deal.\" Mike folded his arms and settled onto Tai’s hips, an exaggeratedly haughty expression on his face. “It’s comfortable like this, right?”\n\t\"Well...\" Tai quickly changed the subject. \"Were you really mugged?\" he asked quietly.\n\tThe brown fox shook his head, getting his long, fine, bark-colored hair out from his mouth. \"Yeah. Actually, it happened really like the way I just said. I wasn't really planning from the start to tickle you, but when you looked so terrified, I just had to do it!\" He chortled. \"I won’t hurt you, you know!\"\n\tTai giggled, his heart still beating out of control. In a strange, scary way, that had been fun.\n\t\"Cool!\" Mike rested his paws idly on the area between Tai’s navel and waistband, touching the kit’s bare fur. He still wouldn't let him up, but at least he wasn't pinning his arms. \nThe smaller fox leaned forwards, placing his hands behind him for support. His shirt and sweater slipped back down into place slightly, but not enough to cover his belly button, besides which sat Mike’s paws. Slightly unnerved, Tai looked down at them. The fur on his chest, belly, throat and lower jaw was a dreamy, cloud-like fluff, puffed up by Mike’s tormenting fingers. A wavy lock obscured the sight from one eye as it flopped down his face, his head-fur now a frazzled mess.\nPart of him, however, was okay with it all. Somehow, he knew Mike would do nothing more than maybe another tickle attack. Those gentle paws just rested on his tummy, intimate but not invasive. It even felt nice just to have the heavier boy sitting on him. Weird…\n\t\"So, what happened when you were mugged?\" insisted the disheveled kit.\n\t\"Well, um… I don’t know.\" Mike looked at him dubiously. \"Um, do you know what 'rape' is?\"\n\tTai blinked his green eyes. “Nope.” He’d heard the term, but his mom never answered when he asked it to be explained.\n\t\"It's where a person touches you down there without your permission.\" The older boy grinned. “Like this.” He briefly rubbed the front of Tai’s cottony track-pants. \"Whoops? Did I have permission?\"\n\t\"Maybe.\" Tai grinned, only slightly surprised. Though the little jolt of sensation made his heart skip a beat, it wasn’t unpleasant. This older boy seemed to like touching him; that wasn’t what Tai was used to, but he found himself surprisingly okay with it. It felt good, to get some contact other than the rare hugs from his mother. \"So that's what they call it when someone touches your…?\"\n\t\"Well, sort of,\" Mike elaborated, flicking his tail idly. \"There's a bit more to it. That's rape. You know, doing stuff to someone’s body they don’t want.\"\n\tTai nodded. That made sense.\n\t\"What about you? You ever been touched down there?\"\n\t\"No… Only by me.\"\n\t\"Oh, well, I have.\" There was no trace of sadness or embarrassment in Mike's voice. \"It happened like I said earlier. The guy took off my clothes, tied my arms behind my back, yadda-yadda, all that stuff. He even sucked on it.” \n\t\"What was that like?\" Tai looked at him bemusedly. He’d never heard of sucking it.\n\tMike's face went distant. \"Ahh… I could, um…\" He trailed off, looking slightly ashamed. \"Uh, never mind. The cops never caught him. I told 'em to forget about it, I just wanted to forget about it. He didn’t really hurt me.\" Now it was Mike's turn to look baffled. “What he did was wrong, but at least he was nice about it. Does that make any sense to you?\"\n\t\"Nope... I think you’re nuts!\" Tai grinned. Suddenly, he realized that he liked this older boy...\n\t“It’s a common misconception,” drawled the older boy, grinning as well. His expression became exalted, as if an experiment had gone very well. “Let’s go for a walk!”\n\t“Okay,” Tai said. “But you have to let me up first!”\n\t“I’ll think about it.” \n\nChapter One – Fin. \n\n-- By Krazy Kitsune/Kichigai Kitsune\nCopyright 2005 onwards.\n\n\n", "writing_bbcode_parsed": "**********************************
Tai’s Story

-- By Krazy Kitsune/Kichigai Kitsune
Copyright 2005 onwards.

Tedious disclaimer:
This story contains content of a sexual nature involving two male anthropomorphic foxes, ages 8 and 10; if such a story is likely to offend you, or you are not legally allowed to read this material according to the laws you are subject to, do not continue. I do not condone the reading of, or the emulation of, the material contained herein, nor any acts otherwise hinted or alluded to in this document, especially by minors.
\tIf you are under the legal age to read this, or it is likely to offend you, do not read beyond this disclaimer. This warning is explicit, so don't complain to the author or the host of this document if you get in trouble for reading it, or you dislike this type of story, or if you are an irresponsible parent and can’t control what your children read online. It is not unrealistic to assume that either you monitor your children's use of the internet or that you raise a child honest and decent enough not to read sexual stories on the net, or if they do, to view it harmlessly as fiction. All of that is on your shoulders, not mine.
\tIf you read beyond this disclaimer, it is your choice to do so. You also indicate that you have fair knowledge of the content and made the choice to view it without any encouragement; so you take full responsibility and agree to hold nobody but yourself responsible for any consequences that arise from your continuing to read. If you don’t agree to that, cease reading this document now.
\tAny political opinions voiced herein are best considered the opinions of the characters that voiced them. This is a work of fiction. The political/cultural opinions voiced by the characters, therefore, only apply to this fictional world; in short, I’m not trying to convert people. Though if it gets a few people thinking, then that’s their decision.

--DISCLAIMER ENDS. FURTHER READING IS MADE UNDER FREE CHOICE WITH FULL UNDERSTANDING OF ALL IMPLICATIONS, LEGAL, EMOTIONAL, PHYSICAL, LINGUISTIC, GRAMMATICAL AND METAPHYSICAL. AS MERELY THE AUTHOR OF THIS STORY, YOU UNDERSTAND I AM NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR ANYTHING YOU DO OR SAY OR EVEN FEEL AFTER READING.--

A quick foreword:
Quite some time ago, I started to write a short story purely to convince the owner of Cub Central to let me have a membership—it was my first ever attempt at writing erotic material of any kind, and I used to have such trouble just writing certain words. It has since then become something very different. Though I’ve had to take time off writing for various reasons, I’ve still spent a very long time working on this piece, and as of now it is one of the things dearest to my heart.
Once again, I thank everyone who supported me through the years as I wrote this and my other stories for keeping me sane despite this issue and that trouble. The end is near, I promise. I know I’m as slow as a drunken snail, but eventually even the snail arrives at the cherry tree. And I can see the leaves now.
Love for all my fans and supporters,
Kichigai Kitsune.
 






Dedicated to my friends, fans and supporters of all ages and nations. Many of you taught me so much more about this world, about mankind and about myself that this story would not have been the same without you. I wouldn’t have been the same without you.
Remember, everyone has a story to tell.

Thanks all! 

\tChapter 1

\tIt was a frigid winter's day in the city of New York. Intricate snowflakes glided lightly down from the overcast, yet still bright, afternoon sky, dancing with haunting elegance between the towering buildings before settling gently down on the layer of cottony snow that already smothered the outlying streets.
\tA small car, old, dilapidated and slightly rusted from the touch of the sea breeze, turned off the highway bridge into the city, and the two passengers noticed with mixed feelings how the surroundings suddenly changed from the lush greenery of the hinterlands to the harsh concrete structures of a city.
\tLeafy green eyes wide with anxiety and not a little awe, was a young fox boy. Mild dread had been unsettling his stomach for the last few days, and beholding the massive city and the twisting, busy road they were now upon had caused that dread to increase two-fold. He slowly tore his gaze those away from the intimidating skyscrapers looming on the horizon and the claustrophobia-inducing alleyways and looked straight ahead. There was a gaping maw in the road- a tunnel, lit by dirty orange lights that they were heading straight for. He looked instead at his mother. "Um, mom?" he said softly, leaning forward slightly. Speaking for the first time in hours.
\t"What is it, Tai?" she replied absently, focusing on the road. All about them, hundreds of obnoxious drivers were blasting their horns with impunity, often seemingly for no reason, and the horrendous cacophony commingled in the city sky along with the delicate designs of airborne ice.
\tThey had driven all the way from Alaska, the longest time either of them had been confined in their cramped vehicle. Until now, the pair had lived together in relative isolation, miles from any real town, in their small rural home. Today, that was set to change. Drastically.
\tTai sighed heavily and pulled his soft, tawny tail to his chest, feeling slightly frightened and overwhelmed by the unnatural activity all around him – countless vehicles of all kinds and throngs upon throngs of furs. He hugged the furry mass against himself and briefly found himself thinking about his father, whose face he barely recalled. Today especially, he missed him.
\tThe small family had lived in San Francisco for several years after Tai was born, but a ‘disagreement’ with an unscrupulous realtor forced them to move to the cold, remoteness of Alaska to work for a relative, and hopefully save up enough money to buy their home back. However, that simply never happened.
Their house was auctioned, and it finally sold for nearly three times what they had expected. As if that wasn’t enough, half the family’s savings vanished from their accounts in a puff of smoke. They were stranded, living miles from the nearest city in their adopted state, struggling from day to do just to eat and keep a roof between their heads and the oftentimes fierce weather.
Tai was only four at this time, and he had almost no memory of the abject squalor they had lived in for a whole year before the catastrophe was finally resolved. Trying to remember it even now was difficult. Even after they discovered what had happened to their money, they were so deeply entrenched in debt that it made no difference. However, despite their poverty, Tai had grown to love the chilly hinterlands of Alaska, growing up under the majestic shadow of the permanently snow-capped mountains.
\tUntil disaster struck again. While working on a fishing boat off the Aleutian Islands, Tai’s father was taken from him.
\tThe boat had collided with an ice breaker; a gigantic seaborne monolith that smashed the smaller vessel to pieces. Everyone on board the trawler was dead within a minute, except Tai’s persistent father, who died on board the breaker; they’d barely managed to rescue him, only for him to succumb to shock and hypothermia. The trawler itself sunk to the bottom of the churning sea, lost forever. It was all blamed on poor visibility and unreliable navigation equipment and stuff Tai simply did not understand, especially at the time… all he knew was his dad had gone. He didn’t care for the details. It was all irrelevant. At nearly five years old, the fox-boy only understood that none of it would bring him back. Knowing wasn’t changing, and it wouldn’t bring his dad back.
\tHis father had been his confidant, the one closest to him in the whole world, and losing that anchor was just the start of another world of trouble for him. As the massive buildings surrounded him, Tai wondered if this would be yet another world. It certainly looked like one, but not an improvement.
\tAs per usual, his mother was totally oblivious to her kit’s maudlin mental wanderings. Tai was a quiet boy most of the time, unless someone managed to somehow get him worked up, which wasn’t easy at all. It was like he was hiding in a little shell, waiting to be coaxed out, but recently he’d been less and less likely to respond to attempts to draw him out. He had erected a shell for himself and it was nigh impregnable. A frustrating shell made of deception, taciturnity and surprisingly skillful deflection that drove his mother utterly wild.
\tDespite it all, she quickly learned how to manage him alone quite easily. He was polite, considerate, and shy; on the rare occasion he managed to upset her, a punishment was nearly never needful: his mother's good opinion was so important to Tai that merely glancing sternly at the little fox could almost reduce him to tears. When he said he wouldn’t do something again, he meant it. For all the irritation he gave her, Eraline knew her son was desperate to please her.
\tA beautiful vixen – still quite young – Eraline remained single out of choice only. Slender and attractive, her comely muzzle and sharp ears gave her a kind of alluring angularity, while her deep, icy blue eyes could chill anyone's heart. But there was more than just beauty in her face; a cold sadness haunted those blue eyes, making them appear all the frostier. With those very eyes, she gazed up at the rear-view mirror, briefly catching her son’s eyes at last.
\tTai assessed his mother's mood in a glance and sighed quietly. Anything he said would be lost on her right now; she was sunk into one of her moods again. Busy. Wouldn’t appreciate his question.
\t"Nothing," he murmured finally, settling back into his chair. As he expected, his mother didn't perceive the emptiness in his voice. She didn’t even seem to notice anything was amiss.
\tIt was pointless. His mother just wasn’t listening. There was no point in trying to tell her anything, verbally or otherwise. As always. Despite the fact Tai came home almost every school day with tearstains on his face, she never asked him about it once.
Tai hated school. The last year or so had just been dreadful. Always alone for some reason, wanting others to like him. He just could never fit in, and, all of a sudden, nobody would ever let him forget it. Things changed.
\tTai was a small little fox even for his age. His slight frame was by no means muscular, and he knew it. In fact, he had even mostly stopped taking offense whenever people thought he was a girl or younger than he really was.
\tHe personally didn't see anything wrong with it. The fur on his head was far longer than your average boy’s, just a bit over collar-length, covering his head and part of his face with straight, tawny-yellow bangs—loads of fun in the shower or bath! He was a fast runner for his size too.
\tBut he knew there was more to it than that. He was neither assertive nor strong. Always in plain clothing, unable to keep up with trends or even afford his own stationery. Worse, he didn’t know why, but he didn’t get along with other boys. Especially not when it came to sports; Tai knew just about everyone was stronger than he was, so why bother?
Moving to this new, unfamiliar place wouldn’t change anything important like that and he knew it.
\t"Here we go again," Tai mouthed silently as a feeling of dread crept up his stomach. The car moved slowly past an elementary school at a veritable crawl, as if his mother was trying to taunt him. On the surface, all one could see the happy children running around, squealing in delight as they chased each other playfully throughout the playground in innocent fun and games.
\tTai, however, saw other things. His young, sharp eyes knew what to look for, and they instantly picked out the desolate child sitting alone on the swings... and the gang of jerks about to make her sit elsewhere. He quickly spotted a little squirrel child surrounded by a pack of school bullies.
\tCity or not, nothing important would change.
\tFinally, Tai decided he didn't care if his mother was in a cruddy mood. "Mom, do we have to live here?" he groaned plaintively. "Can't we please go back to Anchorage and my friends?”
\tEraline blinked in surprise – at least it seemed to be surprise. "Are you kidding me?" she asked, chortling emptily. "What sort of question is that? We belong here, in the city; not in some backwater." Her voice had a strange edge to it, as if she were angry or embarrassed by Tai’s audacity. "Besides, you don't have to hang around those bullies now, do you? Just take a look at that." She gestured towards the school they were passing as if Tai hadn’t already been looking.
\tIn despair, Tai shook his head. That wasn't the way it worked. He'd finally gotten used to dealing with the torment and teasing from those in his current school, made a few– if distant and fair-weather- friends, worked out how to avoid this jerk and that jerk... and his mother brashly decided to move to New York, a strange city he’d only ever heard about. “I can see it fine,” he said moodily.
\t"This isn't some pathetic excuse of a town in the middle of nowhere," Eraline continued. "This is a city. Furs are much nicer, more tolerant here. It’s called ‘civilization’ for a reason. Trust me, this is going to be better. For both of us. I promise."
\tTai nodded submissively.
\tFrom the way his mother was acting, her being a city-fox and everything, he wasn't so sure about that. Besides, even if furs were, kids aren't furs... are they?
\t
\tTheir apartment wasn't so bad, conceded Tai when he walked in through the door. In fact, it was more than just not bad. “Opulent,” Tai eventually settled on after groping through his vocabulary for a few moments as he quietly trailed along behind his mother. Though cramped, the apartment was of a level of luxury he simply wasn’t used to. Everything just looked so fancy and expensive.
\tAn exceedingly polite weasel bustled ahead with his mother, drawing the vixen’s attention to the soft, burgundy carpet and allowing her to explore their new bathroom. Eraline paid particular attention to that. Tai hoped she hadn’t started to wonder when he’d last had a bath; if she started counting days, it’d be a pain in the tail. He slipped away to continue his inspection alone, just in case.
\tTai's eyes widened as a thought hit him. How much was a place like this going cost them? Were they renting it? He didn’t understand how they could. How was his mother setting them up in a place like this?
\tThough young, Tai was painfully aware of his mother’s indigence. It impacted him too, in ways she didn’t even seem to notice. He never asked for anything. Never expected anything, not even consistent meals. He understood.
\tThere were quite a few rooms. In fact, this supposed apartment rivaled their old homestead’s size easily. Two of the rooms were capacious bedrooms, one was a dining room, another was a 'games room' –Tai paused to reflect upon the absurdity of that notion; whoever confined games to one room? - a laundry and a large kitchen. He padded quietly into the games room, crossing to the massive window on the other side of it, curiosity compelling him to peer through the venetians. The view was impressive. They were quite high up. The kit found himself getting giddy, so he turned away.
\tThe walls were papered a warm cream color, while the lighting was soft and warm, almost as if instead of electrical lights the apartment was being illuminated by gently flickering candles. It made Tai slightly drowsy.
\tBut it was going to take more than sleepy-lighting to make Tai's eyes any less wide when he wandered at last into the open games room.
\t"Wow..." he whispered to himself, gawking . The large cabinet on the side housed a large plasma screen television Tai reasoned absolutely must have cost twenty thousand dollars! Or something like that! He’d never seen a television that large, or with that peculiar flat screen. Two rounded, velvety couches created a semi-circle around it.
\tWith a grin, Tai reckoned he'd find the soft couches much more fun than the TV, no matter how big it was. He’d never seen such curiously shaped sofas before. They were large and offered great opportunities to play on top of. They might even be a little bouncy.
 \tHe plopped down on one of the couches with a great sigh and an appropriate lack of decorum, limbs flopping down beside him like rubber tentacles.
\tHis eyes closed automatically, either from his near exhaustion or thanks to the lighting, and he relaxed immensely. He was safe here, at least for now. Then tomorrow would come, and he'd be left alone when his mother went to her new work; that was all he knew about what was to come.
\tHis mother had planned everything before she'd gotten here, he guessed. Perhaps that’s why she as always on the phone before they left – maybe she was organizing everything. They'd just arrived yet they already had a luxurious new home and Eraline had work. Maybe everything was alright. Maybe he was worrying when he didn’t need to.
\tThe weasel gave a polite, cheerful farewell and left at last. The moment the door shut beside him, Eraline slumped into the couch next to her son.
\tTai's eyes opened when he felt his mother collapse unceremoniously onto the velvety cushions adjacent to him. He looked over at her, questioningly.
\t"Well, it's good to be here at last," she commented, reclining with a great smile on her face. “It’s going to be wonderful here.” She sighed. “Oh it’s good to be out of the car… I feel terrible.”
\tTai scratched behind his ears and leaned forwards to free the tail he'd been sitting on. He absently swished the fluffy mass behind his back and frowned with thought. "Mom, how much will staying here cost?" he asked her finally, giving her a direct question at last.
\tTo his surprise, his mother answered. "To rent? It would probably cost about thirteen-hundred a month," Eraline replied, shrugging without bothering to open her eyes. "That doesn't matter, hon. Don’t worry about it."
\t"Does that mean… you've already paid for it…?" The kit’s expression grew confused.
\tShe nodded evasively before suddenly getting up and striding to the blinds. With one hand she opened them, revealing the crimson-drenched vision of a sprawling city at sundown. Leaning against the window, she sighed in satisfaction.
\t"Where did you get the money, mom?" insisted Tai, flicking his ears in exasperation. She hadn't told him anything about all this, and it was just making no sense.
\tEraline completely ignored him, staring out at the silhouetted skyscrapers in the distance. She knew she was being terribly cold towards her son. She hadn't asked him what his feelings were on the sudden move, and she ashamedly admitted she didn't truly care; at least, not enough for it to have influenced her decision. There were more important things…
\tShe'd wanted nothing more than a return to civilization for the longest time. No matter what her naturalistic son claimed, she could find none of the vivacity or beauty he saw in that desolation of the Alaskan hinterland. They had teetered on the verge of destitution, living in poverty. It was not a life she wanted to continue, for her or her gentle son. That, and Alaska was so cold.
\tThere was no way her son would understand her reasons. He could not understand their situation, so why should she explain it? It would merely be a source of irritation for them both.
\tIn fact, suddenly she wanted to be away from him for now.
\t"I'm going out for the night," she announced in a bland tone, trying to appear totally absorbed in her city-gazing.
\tTai's ears perked up, alert. "Where?" he demanded incredulously.
\t"I haven't decided yet." Eraline flashed her son a weak smile.
\tThe kit's entire body drooped in dismay. Out? Without him? "What about me?" This was his first night here! Wasn't she even gonna help him settle in?
\t"You'll be fine." Tai watched in sadness and disbelief as his mother picked up her coat which she had draped over a chair earlier. "The address is written on the wall at the entrance. Order some pizza. Or something. I’ll find the number for you before I go."
\tEven the promise of a cheesy pizza, a rare treat they could almost never afford, failed to lighten Tai’s mood. She had to be joking. Why was his mother leaving him like this? Why tonight? Tonight?!
\tGiving her puzzled son a quick lick on the side of the muzzle, Eraline snatched up her purse. She fished around in it, handing Tai some notes and quickly heading over to the phone book in the kitchen. In only minutes she was ready, and she immediately headed for the door.
\t“M-mom!” Tai exclaimed, trying to follow her.
\tBut Eraline was already outside before he could reach her. The front door slammed shut in his face. Stunned, Tai stared at the door, unable to hold back a pathetic sniffle.
But it all quickly changed to indignation and resentment. She was always leaving him on his own and now she had abandoned him in their new home on their first night.
\tHe angrily tossed the twenty bucks his mother had given him to the floor and stamped away from the front door to explore the apartment again, first stopping by the ornate French window of the games room.
\tWith a shudder, he noticed how the city exuded about as much warmth as a cemetery. It was all washed out grays. Everything looked too busy, too intimidating… too dangerous. He tingled with desire to be back in the quiet wilderness again, shutting the curtains resolutely.
\tHe placed his paws in the pouch of his oversized green and grey hooded sweater and continued looking around.
\tHis sneakered paws made no sound in the thick carpeting, while his cheap, gray track-pants made up for them, producing those faint rustling sounds that baggy pants often do.
\tAs he explored, he noticed a slightly unpleasant odor. Gingerly, he plucked at the front of his hooded sweater and sniffed at it. That was a surprise: as a young fox, Tai wasn’t used to discovering he had made his clothing stink, but after several days trapped in the car with nothing to change into and the heating turned up, it seemed even he could make his clothes a little ripe.
 A fastidious child, he felt, well, icky too. Stuffy under his clothes – he suddenly wanted to take at least his shirt and hoodie off, to bare his chest to the warm air. Not only would it get the irritating stink away from his sensitive nose, but after so long in the car, he felt almost suffocated by all the clothing he hadn’t been free of for several nights in a row.
\t“Yucky,” he commented aloud.
\tA bath would be necessary soon, but he wasn’t going to take one without his mother’s urging. Fastidious, yes, but he wasn’t crazy.
\tThe two bedrooms contained identical beds. In fact, the rooms were identical in every aspect. He bit his lip uncertainly as he looked them over; he shouldn't mess up those queen sized, thickly covered beds. Who knew which one his mother would want? Neither one was discernible as a child's room. He decided to leave them alone. The thought of having his own bed this size was more than a little cool though.
\tHe reminded himself cynically to not expect his mother to let him have either.
\tThe kitchen was fairly big. A bit excessive really, for such a small apartment. The room was roughly a dozen feet cubed, already stocked with an oven, microwave, seven foot refrigerator and a spice rack that was nearly as long as Tai was tall. The white topped counter was too high for him to pull himself onto to inspect it without wasting time finding something to give him a boost.
\tHe didn't bother with the laundry. The smell of detergent made him dizzy and nauseous.
\tEventually, the kit grew bored. He was still feeling a little hurt by his mother’s abandonment, and he was exhausted after the long, monotonous trip. Normally, alone, he’d find plenty of fun things to do – but tonight his solitude felt more like betrayal and he was wiped out. Starving too, he noted, placing a paw on his empty tummy. They’d last eaten miles outside of the city at a truck stop, hours and hours ago, and that had been the only time in the last twenty-fours.
\tHe returned to the dining room where the front door was and went straight for the phone, withdrawing the card his mother gave him from his pouch. The phone rang on and on, before a grumpy voice grumbled an almost unintelligible greeting.
Tai didn't sound too surly, he hoped, as he outlined his usual meal to the guy on the other end. He gave them the address and promised to have twenty dollars- precisely- ready for the delivery-boy. He also promised that this wasn't a prank call and that he really did want a pizza... and he was in fact willing to hand over the money for it. Several minutes later, after he stretched forward and gently replaced the handset on the receiver, he blinked and idly bit his lip.
\tWas everyone here so suspicious?! Were they actually serious? Or just messing with him because he was a kid?
\tThe pizza arrived no more than twelve minutes later; twelve minutes of boredom and impatience he’d passed by trying to see how long he could hang upside down from the couch by his knees. The stupid couch’s backrest was too soft and he could only hold himself in place for a few seconds before he had to slither to the floor. There was a soft, yet insistent knocking on the door, and Tai bolted to open it from the other side of the small apartment, eager for food and something to do. Someone to talk to.
\tSo when he reached the door, he yanked it open energetically.
\tThe delivery dog, a young alsatian, blinked in surprise as the door flung open and a lithe young kit smiled charmingly at him. He hesitated, appraising the excited fox boy.
\t“Um, e-evening, sir,” Tai said pleasantly, the promise of pizza, and the dog’s humorously surprised expression at his buoyancy, helping him bury his natural shyness for a few moments. However, he did find himself grinning sheepishly.
\tThe pizza and the money changed hands, and the canine dug out a small pouch to get the change. Tai, always observant, noticed the pizza boy glancing over at him warmly as he did so.
\tUsually shy beyond measure, Tai decided on a whim to do something very unusual for him. It was warm indoors, and the ripe smell was making his nose itch; not to mention the curious appraisal of the older boy made him wonder about the reaction he’d get.”Um, hold on please.”
With a silly, nearly imperceptible grin, he pulled his sweater off over his head, taking his green T-shirt along with it, and flinging the bundle of cloth behind him.
The alsatian coughed to cover his shock and he dropped a few coins. Abashed, he tried to hastily pick them up.
\tHe handed the change to Tai. "Lookin’ good there," the delivery boy muttered softly, barely loud enough for Tai to hear. He grinned at the kit.
\t"Thank you," Tai replied quietly, butterflies in his tummy. He wasn’t even sure himself if he meant the thanks for the pizza or the compliment.
\t“Don’t mention it,” the teenager chortled. “Uh. You’re not going to take anything else off are ya?”
\tTai shook his head. "Oh, um, n-no it’s just because those stink," he said bashfully, though he took great delight in the dog's efforts to conceal a crestfallen expression. The canine laughed and just looked him over. As shy as he usually was, Tai felt strangely pleased.
The kit knew, vaguely, about the concept of ‘checking someone out.’ Mostly from television and the lewd comments of slightly older boys at school – it brought a gentle flush to his cheeks when he realized that somebody was doing it to him.
“How about next time?” joked the dog, grinning.
“M-maybe.” Tai squirmed shyly, a grin blooming on his features too. “J-just my boxers?”
\tThe teenager laughed graciously. He couldn't have been more than seventeen. "The name's Jake," the delivery-boy said amiably, reaching out with a paw. "I work deliveries Monday and Tuesday evenings and Sunday after mid-day to late night." He shrugged wryly. “It makes much better money than you might think. If you order on those days, you’ll be stuck with me delivering it.”
\tThe little fox hesitated for just for a moment, then he took the larger fur's paw. Jake gave him a kind of playful shake, eyeing him curiously.
\t"I'm Tai," replied the pup quietly. "Um, I'm new here. We just moved in."
\t"You're a strange one," laughed Jake, releasing the topless fox's paw. “Nice meeting you. I think you’ll like it here. These apartments are pretty good - I know someone else in this building. I think my dispatcher thought you were him, actually.”
\t“Thanks again,” piped Tai, his heart beating fast. “M-maybe I’ll see you again soon. I really like pizza.”
\t“Who doesn’t? Good night, Tai! Enjoy your meal.”
\tWith that Jake walked away, whistling as he made his way back down the oddly austere corridor to the elevator. Seemingly happy.
\tTai shut the door quickly, bolting it securely, and marched into the dining room with his pizza, drink and garlic bread. He undid the cap of the bottle of sparkling apple juice, easily his favorite beverage, and settled onto the soft fluffy carpet to eat, not bothering with such customary inefficiencies as a table.
\tHe paused for a second and reflected. It seemed he’d just made a new friend. The impromptu decision to bare his chest was a brainless, playful reaction to Jake’s mere few seconds of looking at him. The much older boy didn’t appear to be fazed; was his mom right about furs in the city after all?
\tBut the time for deep thoughts was not now, not with perfectly good pizza sitting before him when it should be getting devoured.
\tAfter his dinner he walked sleepily back into the games room and closed the blinds. A good meal made him very sleepy.
\tHe settled lengthwise onto the couch nearest the window and shifted around until he was comfortably on his back. He placed his paws behind his head and stared at the ceiling, contemplating his loneliness this night. It felt like his mother was getting even farther and farther away from him. They’d always been slightly distant, as long as he could remember anyway, but in the last few months she’d been… distracted.
\tShe said more words over the phone, apparently to some old friend, in preparation for the move she kept secret from her son than she had said to him. When he worked up the courage to ask her who she was speaking to, she brushed him off infuriatingly.
\tDidn’t seem to realize or care that he was afraid. Not knowing what was happening…
\tFor some reason, his mother was leaving Tai alone more and more, forcing him to rely on himself. She listened less and less, and seemed to resent his efforts to pry information from her. To even just be with her. Was she just sick of him? Could parents just get sick of their cubs? Was she upset with him? Stopped loving him?
\tWhat had he done? He just wanted to know…
\tTrying to distract himself with noise, he turned on the TV and stared listlessly at the screen for nearly half an hour before deciding there were better things he could be doing. There was nothing on that was remotely interesting to him anyway, so at the press of a button, the screen flickered and died obediently, once more leaving Tai alone in a silent apartment. He wished Jake had stuck around or something. He was alright with being alone most of the time, but this was a totally new situation for him.
\tThe lighting was still dim and warm, his eyes felt heavy. Tai's ears flicked slightly as he leaned forwards to look around for peeping-toms, as if someone could’ve just snuck in, or was flying level with the fourth-storey windows. He was so tired; he just wanted some comfort before he could drift off to slumber.
\tHe slowly removed his sneakers and slipped off his cotton ankle socks – which were also oddly a little malodorous, another new thing to him. With a sigh, he pressed his paw against his taut, skinny belly and slowly slid it down to his waist. It lifted the waist band of both his boxers and his track-pants. He sighed again as he firmly slid it over his sensitive, fluffy pubic area and onto his plaything for such lonely nights as this.
\tTai stroked and rubbed his small penis gently at first, becoming firmer and faster, until it soon stiffened to its full two and a bit inches.
\tHe loved doing this. He didn’t know what it was called, only that he had to keep it a secret. When he was alone or tired, he would either remove his clothing, or simply work around them, casually enjoying the warm sensations, so pleasant and strangely comforting.
\tIt wasn’t just the feelings, though. His mind would drift, fluttering from daydream to fantasy. He would happily let them carry him to sleep, or at least occupy him for a time.  Often, though not always, his fantasies came to the same thing, over and over: somebody holding him. Caring about him. Touching him all over, giving him the contact and affection he pined for so badly.
\tOddly enough, one of things he found himself suddenly thinking about this time was the meeting with Jake. He liked that teen, he seemed to be nice guy… and he thought the teen liked him too. For some reason, his mind wandered and it came to the notion of this teenaged canine holding him, talking with him and even doing this to him suddenly made his body tremble and breathing turn ragged.
\tTai held and expanded the fantasy in his mind, continuing to firmly rub his dick against the insides of his legs, the smooth, downy flatness of his groin and between his fingers; he took the tip of his index finger and ran it up and down over the urethral opening. His other paw began to stroke his chest, seeking out the sensitive light pink nubs under his fur which made his legs twitch merely by being brushed.
\tIt took him only a few minutes, even moving at as slow a pace as he was, before his breathing suddenly became labored and he started squirming involuntarily. He didn't have any plans to stop however. In fact, the strength of the sensations, bringing him to the very edge of what he could withstand comfortably and pushing at that limit… well, he liked that. But tonight, he was going on for even longer than normal, his movements firmer and more urgent. He clung to this new daydream, unwilling to let it stop.
\tHe felt a tension build up while the steadily growing bliss started to overrun his entire body. The strange feelings were new and even slightly frightening, but Tai didn't want to stop them. They may be new, but they felt too good to stop; and dimly, he knew that if he kept going it’d get better and better.
\tThen the phone on the cabinet by the couch exploded into an annoying, tinny ring. Tai jumped up, wrenching his hand from his satin boxers. He felt his little heart freezing, then starting to thump like a machine gun. He even screamed from surprise. Only for a split second, but he still worried someone would bash down the door wondering what was wrong.
\tHe waited until he was more or less confident he could talk without his voice shaking, he answered the phone. "H-hello?" he asked softly. His voice shook anyway, and he squeaked silently. Would they guess what he’d been doing?! Was there some way they could tell?
\t"Oh, hello there!" the tinny voice apologized. "I'm, uh, from Carter National Marketing. Are your parents at home, kit?" It was a telemarketer.
\t"No, I'm sorry, my mom's not home," Tai said quietly, still trembling slightly. No longer from surprise: the tingling remnants of the wonderful feeling he was giving himself earlier were rippling through his body, tantalizing him. Urging him to return to his earlier entertainment.
\t"I see," the voice said. "Sorry to trouble you, kid. Have a good night."
\tTai hung up after she did. He always waited for the other person hang up before doing likewise, he insisted on it. Once, he hung up on someone; he still felt horrible about it.
\tResignedly, he decided he'd better sleep. It was nine already – that was quite late, wasn’t it? If his mother came home soon, he would get in trouble for staying up beyond bedtime. He was tired anyway.
\tHe wistfully wished he could keep masturbating- not that he knew the name for it- but it would keep him awake, and he had tried innumerable times to trick his mother into believing he was asleep when he wasn't, but he never succeeded. It was as if she could read his mind, so there really was no point in trying.
\tSliding a paw into his waistband again, this time Tai removed his track-pants and laid them neatly over the couch back. Eraline was fairly firm about the "don't wear clothes overnight" rule. Pajamas, underwear or nothing, depending on what Tai felt like doing. Eraline didn’t like having to wash clothes too often. She said it damaged them.
\tHe found a neatly folded soft cotton sheet in the laundry, taking up space in a basket and took it back to the games room. There he unfolded the sheet over the couch and clambered under it. He drew it up to his neck and hugged a back-pillow tightly for comfort.
\tWith a lot of sleep to catch up on, the nearly-nude little fox was asleep in less than two minutes.

\tEraline returned to her new home at five in the morning. She'd just spent the entire night at a night-club, drinking and carousing with amorous males of all types. She'd made a few promises, none of which she intended to keep, naturally. She also neglected to tell any of her 'suitors' that she had a beautiful, young son. Not because she was deliberately deceiving them... she'd genuinely forgotten Tai that night.
\tDimly she knew what she had done was wrong. Tai was a resourceful, mature boy, and she knew with unshakeable certainty that each time he was left alone, he would be fine. But that didn’t excuse this. Leaving him alone in a strange new place all night while she went to a bar for the first time in years.
\tBut the truth was, she felt she deserved the relaxation. She didn’t care. Tonight, she wanted to get away from her son and the stress of being a mother. Everything was just far too much for her, and was set to get worse.
\tSo much worse.
\tAll she had wanted, for the past few years, was a chance to be a normal fur again.
\tWhen she entered the apartment however, her motherly duties slapped her in the face. She suddenly felt guilty... not very guilty, but a little. "Where is he?" she murmured, searching the bedrooms, dining room and the game room. She had begun to panic before she realized that she'd completely overlooked her little boy. He was fast asleep on the soft couch in the games room.
\tA smile touched her muzzle. Tai was such a good boy. He'd ordered apple juice with his pizza, not worn his day-clothes to bed and even taken the initiative, procuring a blanket from the laundry all by himself.
\tBut the blanket had been kicked off during the kit's sleep, and it lay in a bundle on the floor. Her tawny-furred son lay on the couch in his blue, shimmering boxers, with an oddly sad expression still on his somnolent features. His eyes were slightly tight. Was he dreaming?
\tEraline lightly laid a small hand on her little cub's backside and bent forwards. She delivered a soft lick to the muzzle, and Tai's small lips drew back almost imperceptibly into a smile. He gave a little sigh in his sleep and snuggled even tighter to the pillow. Eraline lovingly drew her hand up to his shoulder, then lifted the blanket and covered him with it again.
\tShe’d been selfish. Again. But maybe that kiss made some of it up… somehow. It would have to do for now.
\tNow she had to see to her own sleep...

\tTai had been bored for the entire morning as his mother slept interminably. She didn't get up until three PM, and she was already busily getting ready for what she said was a night-shift. Somewhere. Tai realized quite quickly he didn’t know anything about his mother’s work. At all.
\tHe hated not knowing anything – his mother was always secretive, but Tai could usually pick things up. He needed that. He needed to know what was going on. But everything about the sudden move to New York was a mystery to him. He didn’t even know the name of the school he’d been enrolled in.
\tAt last, his mother opened her bedroom door and bustled into the dining room, where Tai was sitting in a corner, bored. His toys and books were still in their suitcases, and his mom had only gotten the ‘important’ things out of those.
\t"Good evening, mom," Tai said sincerely. He went over to her and gave her a hug, which she returned, albeit perfunctorily; she was still wondering where the hell her watch had gone. She’d worn it last night.
\t"Good afternoon, Tai." She snatched up her handbag. “I slept in. Now I have to rush.”
Tai noted with disappointment that she was fully dressed, and his nose detected perfume… "Are you going already?" he asked plaintively. "Can’t you stay with me for a few hours?"
\tShe shook her beautiful head and adjusted her new business suit. Tai had to admit it suited her, even if it did seem so strange to him. "Sorry, Tai," she told him. She sounded genuinely apologetic – Tai honestly thought she was going to snap at him instead. "I've got to be at my new job a few hours before I start. First day. Oh, almost forgot!" Once again she dipped into her handbag, handing him a twenty. "Get whatever you want. We can afford it now. There's a Chinese restaurant that delivers around here. Or there's pizza, again."
\tBut food wasn’t what concerned Tai. "Will you ever make me dinner again?" sighed the little fox, ears and shoulders sagging.
\t"Of course," Eraline absently responded, totally missing the sadness in her kit's voice, yet again. "OK, I’m off. I’m going to be late as it is." The vixen threw open the door and started down the corridor almost immediately.
\t"Mom!" Tai cried, urgently. He darted out the front door after her, skidding to a halt on the hallway’s pale-blue carpeting. "What time will you be back?"
\tEraline turned around, her manner impatient. "It’s a night-shift, Tai!" she said as if he should already know the details that she hadn't given him. "I'll be back early tomorrow. You’ve got the apartment to yourself, so have some fun! Don’t stay up too late though – you have school soon." She spun on her heels and entered the steel doors of the elevator. She missed Tai’s gob-smacked expression in so doing.
\tWhen she was gone, Tai felt inexplicably upset and lost. Today was even more abrupt than yesterday was. Two days in a row… "Bye, mom..." the sad boy whined, staring at the empty hallway in front of him, his entire body slumped.
\tWhen he recovered, almost a minute later, he turned back to his apartment… and jumped in surprise. Scarcely a few paces away from him stood another fox-boy; older, around ten-years-old or so, and his fur was a light tree-bark brown. His wavy head-fur was long, though not quite as long as Tai’s; merely neck-length. Grinning cordially, he met Tai’s startled gaze with a pair of curious hazel eyes.
\t"Sorry!" The newcomer said quickly. "Didn't mean to frighten you."
\tTai shook his head nervously, backing away a step. "It's okay. I just, uh, didn’t know you were there." No kidding? He mentally kicked himself.
\t"My name's Mike," the older pup said, stepping closer. "I live a few floors above." He was much taller than Tai, about an extra head taller, and that made Tai nervous.
\t"I'm Tai," Tai introduced himself, avoiding the older kit’s eyes. "I live... um, here."
\tMike smiled and his eyes danced mischievously. Atop his head, his furry ears pointed directly at the ceiling. "There's never been another kid around here!" he said in an excited voice. "I heard you talking as I walked past, so I stopped and waited around outside your door."
\t"Oh."
\tThis new cub eyed him speculatively. "You look fun," he said seriously. "Do you wanna head to my place?"
\tTai's mouth fell agape and he was nearly bowled over by the simple offer. He'd never been invited to someone else's place! "Uh... um, I c-can't," he said. A brief second later he added, "My mother would want me to stay at home," by way of explanation.
\t"Well, how about I come to your place?"
\tThis shocked Tai just as much as the previous idea. He'd never taken a friend home either, let alone someone who he'd just met. But then, he'd never encountered a person willing to walk right up to him and instantly try to make friends with him. It was almost like being hit full in the face with an explosion of friendliness.
\t"I-I guess," he replied, stepping back inside. Was this even safe? Was it what he should do? He didn’t really want to, but it’d seem rude… "What do you wanna do?"
\tThe fox kit called Mike shrugged indifferently. "I'm sure there's something we can do together!" he said confidently. "Do you have a game console, or a computer?"
\t"No, sorry." Tai blinked his large expressive emerald eyes. "We can't afford one."
\t"TV?"
\t"Yeah, but I don’t like watching that..."
\tYet again, a shrug. "That's not important. We'll find other things to do just by sitting in front of the box! I'm not a fan of TV either, you know."
\tDespite himself, Tai found himself liking this older kit. He'd come out of nowhere, was pleasant and instantly wanted to be friends. He was kinda cool too, in an outgoing way. Curiosity eating at him, the younger kit eyed this “Mike.”
\tTai had simply put back on his clothes from yesterday. He had to. However, Mike was wearing a red t-shirt with some totally incomprehensible, probably meaningless, tribal designs on it, black cargo pants and white cross-trainers.  He gave off an air of confidence and capability, while his appearance and fashion was not what Tai was used to. Around his neck was a necklace of small beads and metal icons, while his medium length head-fur did sort of tumble in that messy, neglected like all the surfers Tai had seen on the television. He thought the older kit looked kinda cool, though that merely worried him more. But he was trapped now. He had accepted, and he didn’t have the guts to backtrack.
\tTai led his new friend into his home, trying to conceal his shaking paws. "Would you like a drink?" he asked politely, heading to the fridge. "All I have is apple juice. Oh, I guess water too."
\t"Yeah, please. Apple juice sounds cool."
\tTai obliged and brought in two cups of effervescent apple juice; the last of last night's meal. He handed the larger cup to the other cub.
\t"How come my cup's bigger?" Mike asked curiously.
\tTai shrugged. "Mom always tells me to be nice to guests," he explained. "I'll probably get more later." Truth was, Tai could only find two glasses in the bottom cabinet; he was pretty sure there were more, but they were probably in the shelves above the oven; placed there by someone who didn’t consider a small fox kit needing a few cups.
\t"’Kay." Mike had that speculative look on his face again. He took a mighty gulp of his apple juice. "Hey, after this, do you wanna go for a walk? Scratch TV!"
\tTai blinked in surprise again, but recovered quickly. He observed the other kit cautiously; could he trust this fur? He'd made mistakes before, and he wasn't fond of the prospect of making one again. "Why?" he asked bluntly.
\t"Something to do." Mike drank half his large glass of juice in one swig. He pointed out the massive games room window. "We should go now rather than later, while the sun is still up. I can show you the area. A guided tour!"
\tTai stilled, uncertain. He glanced sidelong at the older kit.
\tThere was a brief, awkward lapse in conversation.
\t"Have you ever been mugged or anything?" asked Mike, his massive grin returning to him completely out of the blue, with his eyes intently boring into Tai's. “Is that why you’re not keen on going outside?”
\t"No..." The younger boy suddenly felt a chill in the pit of his stomach.
\t"I have..." Mike stood up, placing his cup on a small coffee table, and advanced on Tai. “Kinda.”
\tTai's eyes widened and he backed away, suddenly fearful. What was he doing?!
Mike grinned wider...
\t"He got me alone in my apartment," the brown furred fox continued, inching forwards at a painstakingly slow rate. Tai put his drink down and backed away even more. "Just downstairs. I was real afraid... the guy spoke very softly. He told me not to fight back, to let him have his way and I'd be alright. Then... he pounced!!" With that, eyes glimmering mischievously, Mike leaped forwards on powerful, athletic legs.
\tTai stumbled backwards and was instantly flattened to the soft carpet, with Mike straddling his slight abdomen. Mike’s paws were just above the little fox’s shoulders and his fur-framed face loomed menacingly over those wide, frightened eyes. The larger boy bent down closer, and Tai was petrified into silence, unable even to scream, his breathing quick and whimpering softly. Mike growled, baring his teeth.
\tThen he leaned in closer yet. "He pinned me down." Quickly, he took and pinned the little fox's limp arms above his head, with Tai too scared to fight back against the clearly stronger boy. "He was so much bigger, stronger, older, and I was too scared to move. He lifted up my shirt with one hand..." He did so unto Tai, "and he spoke so, so softly when he said..."
\tTai was now trembling violently, still unable to get his body to respond to his wish for flight, even as Mike lifted his pullover and t-shirt up to his neck, baring his skinny belly and ribs. His eyes were totally wide and wild. His stomach was clenched tightly.
\tWhat was going to happen to him now!?
\t"He said..." Mike lowered his voice to a whisper, lowering his head even further, so their noses were nearly touching. “He said…” the boy smirked, “....tickle time....”
\tHe artfully paused a few seconds for the quietly spoken phrase to sink in. When he saw Tai’s eyes widen, he released Tai's wrists and immediately launched a ferocious tickle attack on the slighter fox's lower ribs with amazing speed, way too fast for Tai’s fear-frozen body to react at all.
\tTai's scream was instantaneous, though it soon changed into shrieking laughter. "NO!!" The fox-boy cried shrilly, wriggling and kicking to the best of his ability, but Mike's much greater weight meant he was helplessly pinned to the floor, with his sweater and t-shirt pulled up to reveal his vulnerable ribs and the small dip of his stomach. "Please, n-n-no!! Ahahaaa!" He shrieked again as Mike slid his hand further up his writhing chest and mercilessly assaulted his armpits.
\t"No way!" Mike told him firmly, still tickling him. "I'm mugging you, remember?!"
\t"I-I'll give you whatever you want!" responded Tai, face suddenly wet with tears. Tears of laughter.
\tThe older kit grabbed the younger's wrists with stunning speed and once more pinned them above his head. "Anything?" His eyes twinkled.
\t"Anything! Stop tickling me, please!!"
\t"How about you be my friend?"
\t"That's fair. Anything! Please get off!" Tai giggled. His face was flushed and painfully hot, and he was fighting for breath.
\t"Oh, gosh, no, that’s not part of the deal."  Mike folded his arms and settled onto Tai’s hips, an exaggeratedly haughty expression on his face. “It’s comfortable like this, right?”
\t"Well..." Tai quickly changed the subject. "Were you really mugged?" he asked quietly.
\tThe brown fox shook his head, getting his long, fine, bark-colored hair out from his mouth. "Yeah. Actually, it happened really like the way I just said. I wasn't really planning from the start to tickle you, but when you looked so terrified, I just had to do it!" He chortled. "I won’t hurt you, you know!"
\tTai giggled, his heart still beating out of control. In a strange, scary way, that had been fun.
\t"Cool!" Mike rested his paws idly on the area between Tai’s navel and waistband, touching the kit’s bare fur. He still wouldn't let him up, but at least he wasn't pinning his arms.
The smaller fox leaned forwards, placing his hands behind him for support. His shirt and sweater slipped back down into place slightly, but not enough to cover his belly button, besides which sat Mike’s paws. Slightly unnerved, Tai looked down at them. The fur on his chest, belly, throat and lower jaw was a dreamy, cloud-like fluff, puffed up by Mike’s tormenting fingers. A wavy lock obscured the sight from one eye as it flopped down his face, his head-fur now a frazzled mess.
Part of him, however, was okay with it all. Somehow, he knew Mike would do nothing more than maybe another tickle attack. Those gentle paws just rested on his tummy, intimate but not invasive. It even felt nice just to have the heavier boy sitting on him. Weird…
\t"So, what happened when you were mugged?" insisted the disheveled kit.
\t"Well, um… I don’t know." Mike looked at him dubiously. "Um, do you know what 'rape' is?"
\tTai blinked his green eyes. “Nope.” He’d heard the term, but his mom never answered when he asked it to be explained.
\t"It's where a person touches you down there without your permission." The older boy grinned. “Like this.” He briefly rubbed the front of Tai’s cottony track-pants. "Whoops? Did I have permission?"
\t"Maybe." Tai grinned, only slightly surprised. Though the little jolt of sensation made his heart skip a beat, it wasn’t unpleasant. This older boy seemed to like touching him; that wasn’t what Tai was used to, but he found himself surprisingly okay with it. It felt good, to get some contact other than the rare hugs from his mother. "So that's what they call it when someone touches your…?"
\t"Well, sort of," Mike elaborated, flicking his tail idly. "There's a bit more to it. That's rape. You know, doing stuff to someone’s body they don’t want."
\tTai nodded. That made sense.
\t"What about you? You ever been touched down there?"
\t"No… Only by me."
\t"Oh, well, I have." There was no trace of sadness or embarrassment in Mike's voice. "It happened like I said earlier. The guy took off my clothes, tied my arms behind my back, yadda-yadda, all that stuff. He even sucked on it.”
\t"What was that like?" Tai looked at him bemusedly. He’d never heard of sucking it.
\tMike's face went distant. "Ahh… I could, um…" He trailed off, looking slightly ashamed. "Uh, never mind. The cops never caught him. I told 'em to forget about it, I just wanted to forget about it. He didn’t really hurt me." Now it was Mike's turn to look baffled. “What he did was wrong, but at least he was nice about it. Does that make any sense to you?"
\t"Nope... I think you’re nuts!" Tai grinned. Suddenly, he realized that he liked this older boy...
\t“It’s a common misconception,” drawled the older boy, grinning as well. His expression became exalted, as if an experiment had gone very well. “Let’s go for a walk!”
\t“Okay,” Tai said. “But you have to let me up first!”
\t“I’ll think about it.”

Chapter One – Fin.

-- By Krazy Kitsune/Kichigai Kitsune
Copyright 2005 onwards.


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