LIGHT MY FIRE

>Be Anon.
>You were 27 years old, standing at a height of 5'11".
>You were employed as a fire lookout, stationed in the middle of a Wyoming forest.
>It was no Yellowstone, but it was still pretty massive.
>The area was also home to a fair amount of Tribal Anthros, specifically Wolves, Bears, and some Mountain Lions.
>They didn't really bother you much. Sure, sometimes you would catch one or two around your tower, but mostly they seemed too skittish to get any closer. That or they just stared up at you until they got bored.
>Too bad they never really seemed in a talking mood. Not that they could probably even speak English. Maybe that was a good thing though, as you've heard stories about what an upset Anthro could do to a guy.
>Unfortunately, it could get pretty lonely out here, as you had nobody else to talk to. Your phone had no reception out here, and you were only permitted to use the radio in case of a fire or other emergency.
>The fire tower you worked and lived in stood 50 feet off the ground, high enough to see miles in each direction.
>There usually wasn't much to see, unless you really liked trees. At least the view of the sky at night was fantastic. You were far away from any town or city, and there was no light pollution of any kind blocking the stars at night.
>The fire tower was furnished with everything you needed to do your job, along with some simple amenities, such as a twin bed, a mini-fridge, a desk, and a small bookcase.
>At the bottom of the tower sat a power generator to keep the lights, radio, and water pump on. There was also an outhouse, of course.
>Instead of an electric or gas heater, you had a wood-burning stove that was handy for both cooking food and keeping the place warm.
>You had been working this job for almost a year now. Even though it barely paid anything, it gave you a place to sleep for most of the year, and food was provided free of charge for you in weekly shipments. Well, free in the way that the cost of it was deducted from your salary.
>Overall, you'd say that it was well worth the boredom.
>Right now it was late Summer, the cool weather of Autumn slowly creeping in. Luckily, it had been pretty cool and rainy recently, so the fire danger was pretty low. Still though, you had to keep a constant lookout.

>Currently, you're sitting at your desk, gazing out the windows at the miles and miles of trees.
>You were dead bored. You've already read the dozen books that you took with you up here. Twice.
>You had also brought a small little personal radio, but of course the stupid thing didn't work. Didn't even catch a signal.
>It wasn't quite late enough to justify eating dinner yet, and you were struggling to find new ways to kill time.
>Uuuugh. Jesus, if only you were more of a nature person. You were sure that a nice walk through the forest would clear your head, but there was no way in hell that you were going to risk an encounter with some tribals.
>Sure, they seem friendly enough, but sometimes they still give you the spooks. Especially when you hear them howling at night. And not to mention the size of their claws! You could gut a man with those things...
>Yeah, there was a reason that your ranger's guidebook advised that you steer clear of the native populations.
>You knew that there were plenty of humans who preferred the company of an Anthro species, but personally, you had never seen the appeal.
>Why would anyone want a lady covered in fur? Jesus, it would be like hugging a very hairy woman. Gross.
>All of a sudden, you sit up, hearing some loud noises in the distance. Yelling?
>You move to the door, stepping outside onto the overhang. You could hear what sounded like shouting, but you couldn't make out the words. Probably just some tribals. You've heard that they could get antsy sometimes around this time of year.
>Whatever, as long as it isn't on fire, it isn't your problem. Let the furballs duke it out, who cares.
>Stepping back inside, you shut the door. Damn, and you thought something exciting might be happening for once.
>You groan, sitting back into the creaky wooden chair.
>Maybe you'll try to fill out a few of those reports you've been neglecting. They're boring as hell to do, but atleast the kill time.
>Just gotta write down "Yep, the forest has -not- burned down" a few dozen times. Fun.
>You might as well get started...

>A couple hours later, you reach your breaking point and drop your pen onto the desk. It was now 6'o clock, and the skies were already starting to darken.
>Fuck it, you might as well get started on some dinner. Sure, you may not be eating any gourmet meals out here, but at least the food was halfway decent.
>You stand up, slowly moving over to the wood-burning stove. It was already fueled up with some scraps of wood, so you quickly light it using a match and a bit of newspaper.
>Within minutes, the room is already starting to heat up. You make sure to pop open a couple windows to let some of the heat out of the room. You really only used the stove for heating when it was late at night, as it could make the room get pretty damn hot.
>Opening the window, you sigh, feeling the breeze of the chilly air outside. It had to be in the high 40's today, not extremely cold, but certainly not warm.
>You toss a pan onto the stove-top, pouring in a can of corned beef hash. Ahh, nothing better than a nice greasy plate of meat and potatoes.
>Soon enough, the smell of cheap canned food fills the room, a scent that you've become particularly accustomed to over the past several months.
>Yep, it might not be the tastiest thing, but it sure kept you filled. You were glad that your employers made sure you wouldn't starve to death out here.
>Within a short time the pre-cooked food is heated up nicely, all crisped around the edges just how you like it.
>You don't bother with a plate, just preparing to eat it straight out of the pan.
>Sure, the serving size may say "Serves Three", but who was gonna stop you? You liked to treat yourself once in awhile.
>Just as you're about to chow down though, you hear a noise outside. Something on the stairs up to your tower, it sounds like.
>You choose to ignore it. Probably just some animal smelling your food and trying to get inside.
>Or that's what you thought it was, right up until you hear the door behind you open.
>Dropping your fork and whipping your head around, you see a large figure standing in the doorway. Oh fuck.
>Its cold blue eyes are locked onto you, taking a couple steps inside and letting the door slowly swing shut behind it.
>It was a large tribal wolfess, around six and a half feet tall, with gray fur. She was wearing tribal garments made from pelts, covering her waist and chest. She seemed to look at you with an cautious look, almost seeming like she was sizing you up.
>This is the exact reason why you wish they let you bring guns up here. But noooo, you had to follow the laws they said, you couldn't bring guns into tribal territory without a special license they said.
>Sure, you have a knife, but then again the wolfess also has claws built for slicing through flesh. Best not to get close.
>Not like you could even get to your knife, seeing as it was currently hanging on a hook next to the door. Behind her.
>You back up, bumping against the wall as the wolfess advances another couple steps towards you. She mumbles something in her language, sniffing the air before taking a look at your food.
>Disregarding you entirely, she makes a beeline for the skillet, literally wolfing down the whole thing in seconds.
>She licks her lips, suddenly turning to you with a twinkle in her eye.
>She smiles, showing off her teeth as she walks towards you.
>Before you can even scream, she hooks her arms behind you and grabs you.
>To your surprise though, you don't feel her sharp teeth sink into your neck.
>Rather, your face sinks into her fluffy chest.
>"Hullo, Human! Thank you for food!"
>What.

>She lets go of you, your shoes thudding against the wooden floor as you drop down.
>You lean back against the wall. A minor amount of extreme terror is still flowing through you, and you shakily ask her what she wants.
>She just tilts her head at you in a classic show of canine confusion.
>"Hm? Oh! Ayashe was hungry! Smelled food... Tasted good!"
>She grins again, licking her teeth this time.
>What the actual hell is going on right now!?
>The wolfess, apparently named Ayashe, turns away from you, sniffing around the room.
>"Mm. Den is strange. Why up in sky?"
>You can only watch as she pokes around the room, sniffing everything in sight. She stops at your bed, taking a few extra seconds to sniff it more thoroughly.
>"Smells good..."
>Okay, that's it.
>Doing your best to seem assertive, you stand up straight, puff out your chest, and walk over to her.
>Okay, it's time for her to leav- OH GOD
>She grabs your shoulders once again, planting her muzzle against your neck and sniffing you deeply.
>"Smell nice! Human's name?"
>She lets go of you, sitting down on your bed and smiling at you.
>What the fuck...
>You tell her your name, Anon, to which she tilts her head at you.
>"Hm? Anawn? Strange name. Not sound familiar."
>Yeah. You -really- need to get her out of this place. This is getting too fucking weird.
>She looks at you with a steady smile, and you can see her tail wagging behind her.
>Ok, at least she seems somewhat friendly... You're confident that your face is going to stay intact. For now, anyways.
>God, and she even ate your dinner. That was the last can of corned beef hash, too...

>You stand in the middle of the room, staring at the Wolfess as she sits on your bed, who was currently staring up at the lightbulb hanging there as if she was in a trance.
>"Anawn, how does small fire work? I not see flame..."
>She'd been sitting there for maybe a half hour now, asking questions about every little thing she saw.
>"How did big shelter get made? Anawn make it?"
>No, you just work here-
>"Why not sleep on ground?"
>As soon as you answered a question, she threw another one right back at you.
>You had been pretty scared of her at first, but now you were just annoyed.
>It was late, you were hungry, and now you were tired.
>Before she could speak up with another question, you quickly interject, putting on your most authoritative tone possible.
>You quickly tell her that while you enjoyed the company, you'd really rather prefer if she leaves for now. You tell her that you had stuff to do, and you'd rather be alone right now.
>It was a lie of course, but she wouldn't know any better.
>You immediately regret your actions, as she gives you a look that could kill a man. Fuck fuck fuck, she's going to rip your damn heart out!
>Or at least you -thought- she was, until she turns her head away from you, and whines a bit.
>She uncomfortably shuffles, her feet thudding against the floor as she moves to stand up.
>Instead of standing up straight like before, she seems a bit hunched over now. She looks at the ground, only moving her eyes up a bit to look at you.
>She stops whining for a moment, speaking slowly.
>"Y-Yes. Ayashe leaves now..."
>Without another word, she shuffles over to the door, keeping that same low whine as she opens the door and leaves.
>You can hear her heavy footsteps thud against every step as she slowly moves down.
>Eventually, you stop hearing her steps. She's gone.
>It seems you made her sad or something.
>Not sure what to make of that, you sit on your own bed.
>Well, that was easier than you thought it would be. Sure, your heart is still pounding, but it could have gone worse.
>You've lost your appetite at this point, really only wanting the day to be over at this point.
>Your head thumps against the pillow, and you sigh.
>Running your hand along the bed, you feel something strange. What the Hell...?
>Aw Jesus, she left hair on your bed. You were gonna have to wash these blankets soon...
>Whatever, you could do that tomorrow.
>You get back up for a few minutes, only to strip down to your sleepwear and shut off the light. You also make sure to actually lock the door.
>Laying back in bed, it doesn't take long for you to fall asleep, listening to the nighttime sounds of the forest.

>You yawn, sitting in front of the wood stove as you heat up some late breakfast. Or maybe it was just an early lunch. Probably both.
>You had elected to sleep in today, not bothering to get up until 11.
>Sure, it may make you feel like a lazy little shit, but who was around to stop you?
>Nobody, that's who.
>For breakfast, you were frying up a nice can of potatoes.
>Sure, they may not taste as good as fresh ones do, or even crisp up the same, but that's nothing a little ketchup and hot sauce couldn't fix.
>Oh well. At least you had something to eat this time.
>Heh. Maybe if you were lucky, nothing would try to eat the potatoes except you.
>Soon enough, you're finished cooking the potatoes. After a liberal application of seasoning and condiments, you've succeeded in making it halfway palatable.
>You make sure to wash it down with a nice glass of sun tea.
>Setting the plate and glass into the sink for later, you decide to get on with today's business.
>Alright, time to go through the checklist. You had to fill out this tiny piece of shit paper every morning and evening, a menial task which you've come to greatly dislike.
>Getting out the paper, you quickly scan over the questions, writing in the answers as you saw fit.
>Do you see any fire?
>Nope.
>Do you see any smoke?
>Nope.
>What are the current weather conditions?
>It's pretty cool out, and from looking at the sky it seems like it'll probably rain later.
>Do you, with confidence, believe that there is any danger of fire?
>Nope.
>Alright, and with that, your duties for the morning are finished. Woo-hoo.
>Tossing the clipboard onto the desk, you unlock the door and step out for some fresh air.
>Ahhh. You loved that forest air.
>You walk down the wooden steps, quickly descending the tower in order to check on the equipment below.
>You frequently monitored the generator, as the last thing you wanted was no lights and no water. Once in a blue moon you would see a tribal sniffing around at it, and once you even saw one of them pawing around at it.
>Lucky for you, they didn't damage it, and seemed to flee quickly once you started to yell at it. Damn things.
>Currently though, everything seemed to be normal.
>It was running well without issue, and according to the gauge, the oil level was still pretty nominal.
>You don't bother checking the water pump, as it's never given you any problems. If one thing was for certain, that thing was built to last.
>As you stand there, about to head back up the ladder and play some games on your phone, you hear some noises from behind you.
>At first you think it's just another forest critter, but then you hear it.
>"Hullo, Anawn! It's me, Ayashe!"
>Oh no.

>You stood at the base of the tower, once again staring into her intense blue eyes.
>She wore the same smile from yesterday, seemingly forgetting the conditions under which she left last night.
>Ayashe, as she was apparently called, sniffed the air, before licking her lips.
>"Anawn cooked? Can smell."
>She tapped her nose, flashing a toothy grin.
>You stood at the base of the tower, once again staring into her intense blue eyes.
>She wore the same smile from yesterday, seemingly forgetting the conditions under which she left last night.
>Ayashe, as she was apparently called, sniffed the air, before licking her lips.
>"Anawn cooked? Can smell."
>She tapped her nose, flashing a toothy grin.
>Aw, Jesus. Her again...
>You sigh, rubbing your face as the large wolf woman takes a few steps closer to you.
>Just as you're about to greet her, she lunges at you, your face suddenly full of her warm chest fluff.
>From within your soft prison, you can hear her speaking in her rough, awkward English.
>"Good to see friend Anawn... Missed you!"
>You can hear (and feel) her sniffing your head, her cool nose brushing against your scalp.
>She quickly lets go after you start to struggle, taking a step back as she continues to smile at you.
>Grimacing, you remove a hair from your tongue. Gross!
>You give her an unenthusiastic greeting, but she doesn't seem to care. She probably doesn't know much about Human social cues...
>"What Anawn doing on ground? I thought Human stayed up in sky home? Anawn want see forest!?"
>Ayashe's tail was wagging a mile a minute, and she was intently staring at you, waiting for your response with bated breath.
>You told her you were just down here to look around, make sure everything was still in working order.
>"Mm? Ayashe help Anawn?"
>She'd probably just break it... Or try to eat it and get electrocuted.
>You decline her offer, to which she seems to lose a bit of her enthusiasm.
>"Ah... Ayashe... Ayashe show Anon forest? Promise will be fun!"
>She seems to bounce right back, her tail already wagging at Mach 1 again.
>You sigh, running your hand through your hair. Well, your options seemed like you either get to get dragged through the woods with a Wolfess that you found annoying, or hang around in your tower all day doing fuck all.
>Eh. Why the hell not? Sure, she might be a little grating, but what else did you have to do?
>Slowly, you tell her that you agree to let her show you around.
>Before she can start happily shouting again, you stop her.
>You make sure to let her know that you didn't want her to drag you halfway across the forest. If she was going to show you anything, you'd rather it be less than a couple miles away from the tower.
>She seems to be a little disappointed, but she still hastily agrees.
>"Anawn not want to go far? Ok... Will still show Human fun things!"
>Before you can say another word, she grabs your arm, gently pulling you towards the treeline.
>"Follow Ayashe! Will show Anawn nice things!"

>Twenty or so minutes later, you already feel like you want to die.
>You -REALLY- should've used some bug spray before you went out here...
>Plus, you're very certain that your legs are going to be covered in a rash from the poison ivy you've been stepping in. Shorts were a bad idea.
>You're going to have a lot of fun having mosquito bites on top of your poison ivy.
>At the very least, at least you were less bored than you would have been if you had just stayed at "home".
>Weary of the trip already, you asked the Wolfess currently gripping your wrist when you were going to see something "fun" like she had described.
>Ayashe turned back at you with that same smile, her tail still wagging. You're surprised that thing hasn't fallen off at this point.
>"Will see it soon! Very close now."
>She said that ten minutes ago...
>Soon enough though, within a few minutes, you reach a large clearing. It seems to be some sort of meadow?
>Ayashe lets go of your wrist, walking over to a strange looking shrub. It was tall, with clusters of small black berries growing on the end of each branch.
>She looked back at you, already starting to pluck off the small fruits and pop them into her mouth.
>"Anawn, come eat! Very tasty!"
>Well, if she could eat them without painfully dying... Ah, what the hell. You were hungry anyways.
>You walk over, and Ayashe directs you to a lower hanging branch, sagging under the weight of itself.
>Slowly, you pluck off a berry, before popping it into your mouth.
>Hm... It didn't taste half bad. Tastes kinda like elderberry jam. Is this an elderberry tree? You've actually never seen one before.
>Looking around, you can see that the clearing is filled with all sorts of bushes, many of which have berries hanging off of them.
>Raspberries, more elderberries, and you could even see some grape vines hanging from a nearby tree branch.
>Jeez, you should've brought a basket or something.
>You feel a paw on your shoulder, gently squeezing.
>"Anawn like? This one of Ayashe's favorite places..."
>You gotta admit. This beats the hell out of the fruit cocktail you've been eating.
>Ayashe seems thrilled at your reaction, pulling you into another tight hug. This time you make sure to keep your mouth closed and avoid a mouthful of fur.
>Your voice muffled through a blanket of fur, you ask her to let go of you.
>She laughs a bit to herself as she lets go of you.
>Dammit, she got berry juice on your coat...

>The two of you stayed there for another half hour, both of you gorging yourself on the berries.
>You had a particular weakness for the grapes, even if they did have big seeds inside of them.
>Currently though, Ayashe was once again leading you by the wrist to another location.
>You ask her if you were still within a couple miles of the fire tower. If it was going to rain later like you thought, you didn't want to get completely drenched before getting back to the tower.
>"Anawn, what is a my-uhl?"
>Goddammit.
>Well... You're sure you could find your way back. Ayashe would probably be able to find it at the very least.
>You ask her where she's taking you this time, but when she looks back at you she has a bit of a confused look.
>"Mm... Ayashe not know what Human word is...
>So in a nutshell, you're basically being dragged away from your home by a Tribal Anthro you met only yesterday to an unknown location through woods you're unfamiliar with.
>You're not sure how you let things get this fucked.
>When you voice your concerns, Ayashe just smiles at you, squeezing your arm a bit as she leads you along.
>"No worry, Anawn! Ayashe knows the way."
>While you preferred to sit in your clean, warm, safe tower, you had to admit that the forest was kinda nice. Sure, you may be covered in Poison Ivy and bug bites, but it almost seemed worth it.
>For now though, you just wanted to know where the hell you were even going.
>Just as you're about to ask her to stop, she looks back at you with a smile.
>"Ayashe hears it! Anawn, hurry!"
>In a flash, she's almost running, almost making you trip as you desperately try to match her pace while she still firmly grips your hand.
>She stops running after a few minutes, chuckling at you as you catch your breath.
>"Heh. Anawn so slow..."
>You give her an annoyed look, but she just cocks her head at you in innocence.
>Halfway exhausted from the trek, you ask her where we are.
>She turns and points to what seems to be a hole in the ground.
>"This Ayashe's den!"

>Currently, you were sitting on a dirt floor, wondering why you bothered getting out of bed this morning.
>You were listening to the sounds of two things. The pattering of rain onto a corrugated metal sheet, and the loud clacking of rocks.
>You were inside Ayashe's den, which was apparently inside a collapsed section of some old mineshaft. The entrance was via a section of tunnel that had collapsed in on itself. Both ends were sealed by rubble, creating a sort of small room.
>Your fears becoming reality, it had started raining just as soon as she ushered you inside. It wasn't all bad though. You weren't wet, as Ayashe propped up a rusted sheet of metal on top of the hole as a sort of makeshift roof.
>Her "den" wasn't much of a home, to say the least. It looked barely livable, and smelled of mold.
>There were few furnishings, only a small firepit sitting directly under the entrance, a mat made of some sort of woven bark, and a small bundle of food.
>Ayashe was sitting next to you, tossing rocks at the earthen wall. Apparently she found it entertaining. Before each throw she would smile at you, pointing a rock out to you if she thought it looked interesting.
>You wanted to murder somebody.