To those who have read my other stories, there's a nod to one in here for you!
~~~~~~~~~~~~
Tucker rolled out of bed with a low growl. He stretched his furred arms high above his head before dropping them and lumbering towards the kitchen for breakfast. He grabbed a semi-clean bowl and filled it with milk and fruit loops. He pushed some stray papers off the table and sat down in one of the rickety chairs that hardly held his weight.
"Man, I really need to get someone in here to clean all of this," he said out loud. He finished his breakfast and headed for the shower. His large form took up most of the room and the claws on his feet often scratched the bottom of the tub.
Though most of his mass was muscle, a lot of it was fur. He had been a big guy before the mutation, and now he was even bigger. Being mixed with a grizzly bear only increased his furriness and his stature. He stood at probably 6' 3" and weighing in at 220 pounds. His body was lined with muscle. The small rounded ears on the top of his head completely contradicted everything else about his body. He had developed the teeth of the large bear, which he wasn't completely upset about. He stepped out of the shower and dried himself off. After pulling on a pair of jeans and a shirt, he began cleaning up around the house.
He worked as a contractor and was paid surprisingly well. Not to mention he believed in getting by with only what he needed, so he didn't waste money on lavish things. He could have afforded to hire someone to clean up his small apartment, but he wasn't that lazy. He picked up the clothes and started the laundry. The dishes were done quickly and he vacuumed up the small amount of hair he did shed. He opened the windows to the small apartment, letting in some air. It smelled like it was about to rain. He stretched and looked around the now clean home. He nodded in satisfaction before closing up the windows, grabbing his wallet and stepping out the door.
The streets were beautiful. They were lined with Infected after Infected, not a human in sight. Not 50 years ago Infected were enslaved and treated lower than animals. Now they were the top dogs. Humans served as slaves, if they were still around. Most had died off or were scurrying about the streets like rats. A few years ago, another outbreak of the virus hit, turning even more of the humans into Infected. This time the virus had mutated, and Infected could reproduce. Their offspring bore resemblance to only one of their parents, usually the Infected. As more and more humans started to dwindle off, Infected began to reign supreme.
Tucker walked down the street, comfortable among his own people. He stopped at a store and stepped inside. The clerk that greeted him was a poodle. Her voice was high pitched and just as annoying as the dog itself. He gave her a friendly smile anyways, before looking through the racks of clothing. In the back of the store there was a section labeled 'Humans' He hesitated, before walking over to the few aisles designated for the dying species.
"Do you have one at home?" the poodle clerk asked.
"No, just looking," Tucker said.
"I hear they make great slaves, hard to find though. Most of them know better than to be outside, especially with the catchers around," she said.
"I guess." Tucker mumbled. He didn't really agree with how the Infected treated their human cohabitants. Sure, humans had enslaved them and tortured them for years. But not these humans. The ones who were around when everything had first started were either dead or too old to be any harm. It wasn't fair to treat this generation of humans like this. In Tucker's eyes, this made them no better than the humans all that time ago. He picked up a shiny collar and examined it for a moment before putting it down. The clothes in the section were few and far between, but the leashes, collars, gags, and blindfolds were plentiful. He shook his head before walking back to the section labeled 'Large Mammals'.
He picked out a new jacket, a pair of pants, and a shirt. After ringing up the items, the clerk smiled cheerfully at him and waved goodbye as he walked out of the store. It had started raining when he was inside, but the rain didn't bother him. He had only been walking for a few minutes when he heard a shout. He turned to see what was going on. and felt a light tap against his chest. He heard a small 'oof' and looked down to see a thin human staring up at him with wide eyes.
***
Luka fought his way out from under the newspapers he'd been using as a blanket. The rain must have just started and already the papers were a soggy mess. He stood and started peeling it away. The ink ran off the paper and added yet another greyish stain to what had once been a white T-shirt. He ran his hand through his hair and immediately regretted it. His blond hair was knotted and disgustingly dirty and greasy.
He sighed and looked around his alley. There had been a time when others shared the spot with him, but they were all long gone and he didn't know what had happened to them. It was an unspoken thing that all bonds were temporary. They had to be. Still, he'd liked them and he hoped they'd found a nicer place, but he knew that was unlikely. He didn't even know if there was such a thing anymore.
There was a loud crack above him and one of the gutters broke loose from the building. A stream of water poured down into the alley. Luka went over to it and tried to rinse away some of the grime that he'd acquired.
Once he felt that he was as clean as he was going to get, Luka left the alley. He walked with his head down, eyes focused on the sidewalk. He tried to make himself as small as possible, an easy task considering he was about 5'4" and rail thin. The last thing he needed was trouble.
After about few minutes of walking, Luka found his destination. He darted into the alley behind Franklin's Bakery and grabbed the cinder block he kept hidden behind the dumpster. He used it as a step stool and landed with a thud on the pile of trash bags. He reached forward and tore open a bag. After a few seconds of searching, Luka found a donut with pink frosting and sprinkles. There was only one bite taken out of it. Luka silently celebrated and peeled the napkin off his breakfast. He ate quickly so as not to allow the embarrassment of his situation to ruin a good find.
He licked his lips and smiled for the first time in a while. Luka loved sweets and that was the first one he'd had in a long time. He decided to take it as a sign that it was going to be a great day. He stood with new-found confidence and tried to ease himself out of the dumpster. However, the slippery conditions made it hard for him to get out and soon he found himself landing hard on his ass.
He let out a whimper, but didn't allow himself any more than that. He didn't want to get caught dumpster diving. At best, that would lead to getting yelled at or maybe a beating. The worst possible outcome would be the police getting involved and possibly going to jail or slave training.
As soon as he had that thought, he heard a shout. He turned in horror and saw a red faced hog hybrid dialing a phone.
"Shit," he muttered. Luka forced himself to his feet even though he was still sore from his fall. He started to run. A flying projectile struck him on the back of the knee and he fell again, but quickly scrambled to his feet and ran more. His worn sneakers slipped on the wet sidewalk and he stumbled when he lost one, but kept going. He had no destination in mind. All he knew was he couldn't get caught.
He could feel a cramp starting to form in his side and he coughed a bit, but he didn't stop running. He turned a corner quickly, hoping that he could make his trail more difficult to follow. He crashed into a solid, fur covered form.
***
Tucker stared down at the thin, blond headed human. He looked so scared and young. Tucker felt immediately protective.
"What are you-" He heard a shout and looked up to see a pair of police officers turn the corner and begin running towards him. The human looked back before scurrying behind Tucker.
It seemed like the human was crying and having some sort of asthma attack. "Please," he squeaked. "Please help..."
"What are you doing, kid?" Tucker asked, but the police reached him before the human could answer.
