"Ryan? What are you doing here?" I was completely confused at what all was going on. How did he know I was here? I mean I was happy that he was here, but, I mean, this was a big surprise. Stepping back to Michael, I wrap my arms around him to bring him into the group. He, unlike Tay and I, had grown into the background and I wanted him to meet Ryan.
Ryan was beaming a smile off his face as well; happy to see me in what had been over 3 months. Had it really been that long? I wish I could have hung out with him more at the Frisbee competition but given everything that had happened, I missed out on talking with him. Apparently I made an impression on him though, he still recognizing me, even without the costume and cast.
Even with his mop sweat drenched hair, Ryan still looked cute; the husky suit adding to the allure even more. Holding the head in his left arm, Ryan explained himself, "I'm HuskRy, as your friend already knows. I have a booth here that I am working." His expression switched to a slight confusion as he finished. "What are you doing here?"
Tay interjects himself into the conversation, sticking out his hand to shake Ryan's free paw. "We are here for the convention. This is our first time. I'm Tay by the way. How do you know Chris?" It was a quick blurt out but watching Tay was amusing, his enthusiasm a sight to see. It was interesting to see Tay's smaller figure try to match up to Ryan, the fur suit on Ryan overshadowing Tay's slender body.
Blushing at my forgetfulness, I make the introductions, "Ryan, sorry I should have introduced my friends. This is Tay, my best friend and the actual reason we are here at the convention. And this," holding his hand, "is my boyfriend, Michael."
Michael extends out his hand and shakes Ryan's paw, "Hi." He isn't shy, more reserved, which is strange but given the situation, I guess it is understandable. "So how do you two know each other?" He squeezes my side slightly, making a slight squeal from me.
Wiggling away from Michael, I tell of how I know Ryan. It feels like so long ago as I bring back the memories, including Kyle. "Remember when I had my broken arm? Well at our Halloween Frisbee Competition, I met Ryan. He was playing for the Santa Monica Pirates?" I leave it as a question to make sure that I have his team right, and when he shakes his head, I continue. "Well he and I talked a little and while we both wanted to chat more, we never got around to exchanging phone numbers or contact information. It was a fun competition." I think back to it, trying to think less about Kyle's role in it and more about how much fun the actual competition was.
Ryan looks at Michael, then back at me, and even though I can sense what he wants to ask, I am glad he doesn't, instead moving onto talking about what all he is doing here. "It was a fun competition. Hey do you guys want to join me over at my stall? I need to get over there because the event organizers might get a little testy if I don't show up."
Tay looks over to where he just came from and become giddy with excitement. "Yea that would be great. Are you showing off some of your work?"
Ryan starts to lead the way towards the cloakroom instead, catching Tay off guard. Tay, not saying anything, points towards where Ryan's booth is but Ryan just smiles, informing us all that he left his box at the cloakroom. After picking it up, he answers Tay's question, "Yes I am showing off some of my work, but not all of it. I couldn't bring up as much as I wanted, so there is a possibility I might run out." With his head in one hand and the box in the other, Ryan leads the way, weaving through some furs in the process. By now it is midday, so the convention is starting to pick up.
Tay, sensing Ryan's need for help, offers to take the box from Ryan so he can get back into his fursona. It is cute watching them interact, Tay taking a liking to Ryan and, if I had to guess, Ryan to Tay. Ryan puts back on the husky head, HuskRy now standing before us. The suit looks amazing on him, and had I not known it was Ryan, I would have been interested in getting a picture with him just because. Thinking about it, I made the mental note to get one with him as a memento of the trip.
When we finally get to the stall there are a few furs hanging around, not a huge crowd as seen by other booths. These few furs apparently only want his autograph; I overhearing it was some scavenger hunt that was going on. After they had left, the four of us helped him out to set up. He had multiple copies of his story "Broken Youth" laid out, the front over a Husky and Lion standing with their backs faced to the reader, a youth center off in the background.
As Tay helped Ryan set up, Michael and I glanced through his chapters, me falling upon the first sex scene unexpectedly. Reading it over, I was impressed with how well it was written, even though I hadn't seen many others. Analyzing it over in my head, I scanned the words for each detail I caught.
"Reaching his groin, I lick around the outline of his pants, the jeans tight enough to stop from falling down but loose enough for me to reach my tongue under and outline the waistline. Taking pleasure in the encounter, Tyson grips the bed, his paws extending the claws out to dig into the sheets.
The happy trail, if you want to call it that, started up near his belly button, the patch of red fur expanding out, slow at first into a deep pocket of fuzz, running under his pants, the rest seeking cover near his penis. Kissing his thighs gently, I start to remove the denim, unlatching each of the buttons tying it closed seductively, looking at him with a mischievous glint in my eyes."
Flicking through some of the pages, I noted that it was the Lion and Husky from the front page that were doing the dirty, and man it got heated. Closing the chapter before I got too turned on, I looked over to Michael and saw that he had read some of the story and had been impressed as well. Debating on whether to stay around or not, I saw how much Ryan and Tay were getting along and thought it best to leave them be. Tay needed to find someone here to talk with and even though he could talk with me, I felt Ryan was a better fit.
Coughing slightly to get their attention, I let them know that Michael and I were going to walk around. I was happy when Ryan was ok with it, especially with Tay staying there. Moving away from Ryan's bench, Michael and I worked our way through the animalistic crowds, weaving from one side of the hall towards the other and, as we got closer, smelled food. My stomach turned at the thought, or smell of, food, and without even needing to say anything to Michael, we both raced towards the dining hall.
Reaching it, we were surprised at the names and styles of some of the food; the furry community furthering to impress and amuse us. A hot dog called Sam, the poor food item giving up its life so that we may eat. A ham sandwich from a pig that felt our lives were more important than its own. A veggie salad made from all natural California grown vegetables for vegetarians who can't stomach eating other furs. They were mostly tongue in cheek food items, stuff that actually fit the convention pretty well.
Michael and I both got ham sandwiches and, as we were eating them, it made us actually wonder about the whole food that furs eat. Our conversation the entire lunch was what meat do they eat? Would it be considered cannibalism? Do the lower ones on the food chain give their bodies for the carnivores when they need meat? It was something we had trouble wrapping our heads around, as the whole concept just felt weird.
As we were ending our carnivorous ways, a message rang over the speakers all around us, "The introduction for Further Confusion will commence in 5 minutes. For all interested, please start making your way towards the small hall." Looking around us, a few of the furs started moving, their handlers helping guide them towards the hall. Taking the cue that this might be something big to check out, Michael and I got up and followed the group, hanging near the rear so we don't get too enveloped into it, not that it helped too much as another large group came up from behind us and enclosed us in.
Moving into the hall, it may have been called the "small hall" but this place was huge. There were hundreds of fur suits and fans sitting down, all lined up looking at the stage. Right as we got into our own seats, the chairman, or in this case, chair-otter as the fur was an otter, came out; his introduction getting a standing applause from the crowds. The introduction was a great show, lasting about an hour long and providing a variety of mini-skits. One that really caught my attention was the wolf dance where, in the series of a few minutes, wolves had enacted a native tribal dance done by one of the local Californian Native American Tribes.
Apparently, and this caught me by surprise, there were over 2,500 fans in attendance, and this was only the first day. Ticket sales, as informed to the audience by the Otter, had been just over three thousand! That was insane for this type of a convention. As I looked around, the magnitude of everything set in; this was a community where everyone came to hang out. I suddenly felt very out of place. Off in the distance I saw Ryan and Tay sitting together, Ryan constantly having to swivel the husky head around to get a better look at things. Tay was holding the forms, moving them over in front of Ryan every so often to inform him of something.
After the introduction, the furs went back to whatever they were doing, a few leaving to go eat, others hanging around to look at some of the artwork. Michael and I got to wander around a bit more, a few of the comics catching our eyes. We didn't get to look at them for too long, mostly because people were vying for them as if they were hot merchandise.
Around 5:30/6 I got a text from Tay, informing Michael and I if we wanted to meet him and Ryan up for dinner. Moving towards where Ryan's booth was, I was surprised to see him working on his laptop, Tay reading over some of the packets he had picked up. "All the fur fall off the convention?" I try to make the joke but it doesn't come out as intended, hanging there with Tay and Ryan wondering what I was meaning.
Ryan catches the pun first, raising his paws up in submission. "I don't know. I think, like us, they wanted to get some dinner. Some of the other vendors are packing up as well so I think it is a good time." The lack of people wandering around allows for us pack up easily, Ryan having apparently sold a few of his short stories and books.
Heading out with Ryan in the lead, we all move towards the cloakroom, where Ryan stops to drop off the box and grab his clothes. Heading out to the hotel lobby, which I was happy to learn was conveniently connected to the convention center; we followed Ryan up to his room, him happy to show us his short stay humble of home. While Ryan was showering, which I felt a little awkward about (him inviting us up while he showers then to head out to food, I don't know it just felt weird), the three of us all searched for adequate food, trying to figure a good place to eat.
Locating a good deli down the street, we waited till Ryan came out, and then headed down. He looked completely different in his street clothes, a slight skater style to him. The mop style hair fit him well, his big frame rocking the simple Black Sabbath t-shirt. His pants were faded, a small hole emerging out near the kneecap, something that tied the style all together.
Ryan, having come here for a few years now, led the way; knowing exactly what deli we were talking about. It was one that he liked to frequent, the service apparently good in his book. Crossing the street outside, we worked our way across a park and towards the Museum of Arts.
The deli was surprisingly empty, something that all four of us had not expected given the convention. After being seated and deciding upon our food, I wanted to ask Ryan some questions about his work, something that had been on the back of my mind since I read his story. "So Ryan, if you don't mind me asking, what got you into writing? And furthermore, writing furry related stuff?
Ryan looks around, thinking it over in his head on how to word what he wants to say. "Well writing has always been one of my hobbies, been doing that for quite some time now. As for writing Broken Youth, that was something that I started when I moved down to Los Angeles. I am majoring in child development there and after reading everything that the children go through, I wanted to express that through writing. I mix a little bit of fiction in with real life situations. Like Ryan in the story, I work at a youth center and while some of the names have been changed, the characters are loosely based off some of the children I have encountered."
Ryan looks out the window as he reflects on his life down in Southern California. I can see that he has a strong connection to the kids he helps, and given his look, he probably connects well with them. "Anyways, some of them are gay as well and the story gives them some hope that there is a better life out there."
Tay is slightly surprised at this, him asking a question, "So you mean that Wilson really is a real kid? Man that guy has been getting on my nerves." Tay, even though he is sitting next to Ryan, turns to get a better look at his reaction.
Ryan just laughs, "Yea Wilson is based off one of the kids I work with. He was a hard kid to deal with at first but after getting through his friend, I was able to make a connection to his world as well. But yea Wilson is just as bratty as the kid in real life. Maybe a little more for the flair effect."
Before Ryan could go any further, our food arrived, changing the subject to the coming dance party tonight. Tay mentioned that we needed to get back to change but he did want to come out. It would be fun to dance alongside the furs. By the time we finished it was seven, night already in full effect.
After dinner, we made a quick goodbye to Ryan, promising to meet up with him for the dance. We exchanged phone numbers (for the first time too) so that we could stay in contact with each other and parted, the three of us heading back to Tay's to change. After moving into some more comfortable dance clothes, we all headed back out, the hour's drive granting us entrance at 9 at night.
The dance was a blast, a mix of popular songs with some of the furry community's songs, local artists getting recognition for their works through the playing of their tracks. While most of these songs would stay underground, I made note of some of the artists, promising to look them up on Spotfy later on. Michael and I got a few good dances in but he was not much of a dancer, something that grew to let me down from time to time. I don't know if he just didn't like to dance or didn't know how but I found him wanting to leave the floor at times.
We stayed till 1, allowing Ryan and Tay to dance their paws off, well paws for Ryan and socks for Tay. The more I watched them dance, the more I grew happy he had found someone. I just also got a little worried for him as well, hoping he wouldn't get too attached to Ryan, especially since Ryan lived down in Los Angeles.
The entire drive back was listening to some fur singers, Tay surprising us with his collection of (what was unknown to me) fur singers. With the first day over, I was happy that he was happy, and it only just beginning.