I had a lot of fun writing this chapter, Stizz and T have such a nice natural chemistry. No sex yet, but the two do end up with a sweet moment or two. Also in this chapter, T questions his sexuality after a small talk with Stizz. Maybe the two will get together, maybe not. You gotta wait until chapter 3 to see!

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Stizz and T strolled on for a moment, out of the alleyway into the open sun. After meeting but a few minute ago, they held paws almost as if the two of them were a couple. But T, being as uncultured in modern civilization as he was, only took it as a sign of closeness between the two. But Stizz, despite his own knowledge, said nothing to deter his new companion.

"I've been here a little less than half a year, didn't know anyone so... I guess you could say I was lonely. I managed to get a hold of a bit of 'dollars' and get an apartment" T explained as the two walked, as best he could considering his still limited timeframe of understanding within the cityscape. Stizz began leaning in closer, but T simply took it as a compliment that his stink was on point, which he wasn't used to receiving. And he wouldn’t dare bring it up, for fear of making his new friend uncomfortable "Enough about my life though. Tell me about your family. Why did you move here?" He questioned.

Stizz smiles gently to T, answering as he escorts his new friend out into the open plaza, past the open gate of the alleyway. "My family left the country when I was still pretty young. Probably no older than 5. My dad was doing some business with this country and I guess he thought we would be happier growing up here. I moved to the big city a few years ago for school. I'm almost done with that, so I could stay here or I could go home." He scratches the white fur on the back of his neck. T didn't know what a country was, but the stink lizard reasoned he would learn later on.
"I guess I... didn't get the same tribal life as you” Stizz continued. “Going through your rites of passage, appeasing the elders, getting into stink fights with your rivals. I kind of missed out" he adds, trailing off. Stizz had always wanted to learn more about his culture, but reading outdated literature could only carry one so much. "But, it's not all bad here. Just... different. Some rules you have to be aware of that…” He paused. “Make things difficult for stinkers like us."

Stizz raised his arm and drapes it up and over T's shoulder, letting his fresh armpit funk waft out unintentionally. Stizz caught his companion leaning into his scent (similarly to himself), but thought nothing of it all the same. “But, I can help you get on your feet. In return... maybe you can show me the traditions I've been missing out on." Stizz explained. He had always wondered as to whether he'd meet someone who could compete with his scent. As far as stinking goes - it was almost a secret passion, at this point. He had breathed on, farted on, sprayed, and stunk out more than a handful of bullies, bystanders, and pleasure-seekers in his time. The one thing he had never experienced before is the receiving end. Stizz considered that maybe T would be his chance. The green lizard gently guides T across the crosswalk, making sure he obeys the signal and watches for traffic, gesturing around and explaining various aspects of them. He then went back to his previous line of conversation. "What about you T? Any reason you left the old country?" he asks, putting a fake (somewhat Italian) accent on for the last couple of words. It was cheesy, but endearing nonetheless.

Subsequently, T beams at a chance to talk about himself. Even though he tended to be on the shy side, he was at least a bit vain in the sense he liked to talk about his own life experiences. But as he spoke, he realized that this story was indeed not something to be proud of. "Well, the reason I left the old country? The tribe pushed me out, in a way. You see, being the son of a chief--" He stopped for a moment, getting distracted by a passing bird. Silly, for someone so big to have an attention span so small. "Sorry. Being the son of the chief, you have to live up to certain standards. While I like to think of myself as a big stinker, my dad was the best. He would tell me things like..." T paused yet again, thinking to himself. "I needed to spray my own tail more to attract a mate, or I need to travel more and find new scents for my body." He sighed a bit as they walked. "From what I've seen, he wasn't the nicest person. People here may refer to him as 'abusive,' but it was just tough love. At least, I like to think it was." As he finished, he slightly lowered his eyebrows. Then let looked back to Stizz. "What's with the arm? It's a thing I see furs doing all the time here, what does it mean?" He asked, finally questioning the arm.

Stizz chuckles. "This?" he asks, tilting his head toward his draped arm. "It's a sign of trust, I suppose. Closeness. I know it looks like an open invitation to sniff someone's musk,” T nodded “But sniffing of any scent is usually frowned upon in this city. Especially if it stinks as badly as ours." He gently lifts his arm off T's shoulders and clutches it back to himself.

As Stizz attempted to remove the arm however, T quickly pulled it back over his shoulders and chuckled. "If it's a sign of trust, then don't take it back. I rather like this closeness, especially since I can smell your pit musk now without having to blatantly lean over." He explained. "You couldn’t make me uncomfortable Stizz, never ask to be close! We're practically stink lizard family.” T explained.

"I'm sorry if it made you uncomfortable, though. I should have asked. And..." Stizz answered, swallowing nervously; he is so far removed from his own people's culture, he isn't quite sure how to encourage the other stink lizard. "And, I'm sorry they pushed you out like that.” He recovered, drawing the two back to the true issue. “Your tribe sounds a lot more traditional than mine was. It sounds like they expected a lot from you. Maybe it's good that you get a chance to take it easy now." Stizz smiles reassuringly, while still resisting the urge to drop to all fours and sniff up everything this stink lizard has to offer, which was ever present.

"After the coffee, do you, um... want to get your things, and come back with me? You know... just for the night, maybe. Or longer, if you need it. Just so you have someplace safe to sleep." Stizz scratches his chin. "I have a spare bedroom since my old roommate graduated and moved out, so that can be your territory, for as long as you want." He had never invited a stinking stranger to live with him before, but he felt obligated to someone of his own kind, regardless of their tribal structure at home. And he did have to admit, the spare room was just going to waste.
“If the offer is open, I would be happy to take that open room" T answered, getting a bit excited to finally be with someone who truly appreciated his scents. "If you don't mind, I would love to take that open room off your claws. My territory!" T laughed more, amusing himself. "It'll be great sharing a home with someone like you who knows the culture here. I've been here for almost a year, but I still barely grasp it"

Stizz chuckles and re-establishes his grip over T's shoulders. "Alright, then! Sniff away! You seem very nice, so I didn't want to come on too strong." He invited. The scent of fresh roasting coffee is finally enough to overpower the wake of Stizz's body odor however, as he stops outside of the little shack by the street side. "I've been here almost twenty years, and I'm still figuring things out. Don't worry. I'll help ya out." He guides the other lizard towards a small circular metal table with two matching chairs, and plants him in one of the seats. "Wait here. I'll get us something good. If anyone gives you trouble, give them a good spraying." Stizz teased. "You know that by now, though." He pivots and heads for the glass door, which rings a little bell as he opens it and heads inside to get in line.

T sat patiently, enjoying the overall scene of the relatively tranquil coffee shop. It was quant, a nice break from the hustle of the usual city, and reminded him a lot of home. T figured he would be sitting here for a while, so he thought it only fair to look over the menu himself, especially since the overpowering scent of the roasting coffee beans made it difficult to detect any smell at all. He swiveled around in his chair, seeing a conveniently placed wall listing of all the foods available. T decided to commit the list of various coffee brews to memory along with prices and the wide array of sweets, he felt as if the coffee shop would be visited often by the two.

Stizz reappears a couple minutes later, carrying a small tray with a pair of steaming styrofoam cups along with a couple of doughnuts. He gently sets the tray down onto the table and smiles, noticing T was reading over the menu. "I'm sorry, I should have asked what you wanted.” He apologized. “Slipped my mind, so I got the usual. I try to get in and out of there fast, and keep it simple, so my breath and musk don't stink out the place." Stizz chuckled and gingerly sets the drinks before each of their chairs. "I can go back and get you whatever you want if you see something that you like. Just let me know." Stizz slides into his padded seat, letting his wide, skunky tail hang out of the back and lay against the sidewalk while sipping his first bit of coffee. The warmth of such spreads through the green lizard body, making him shudder. "Mmm, that's nice.” He exclaims. “So, did you have any plans today after we get you settled in? I don't have classes until this afternoon, so, I can stick around if you want the company." Stizz offers from behind his cup as he takes another sip.

T shakes his head as his paws took steady hold of the coffee placed before him. He returned Stizz's warm smile with one of his own. The coffee was extremely hot, he had to take care not to burn his paw pads as he had many times before with this place. "It's no problem. What you have here looks good Stizz, and I'm happy to receive anything. Sharing a coffee like this is nice, makes me feel... Normal in this city" He explained. "I wouldn't want to keep you from your... Classes, was it? But if we have the time, I would love to get back to the apartment you mentioned and set it up a bit more to my liking. 'Every lizard needs a territory different than another's, and every scent in that territory must be unique' my father said.’ T thought, slowly lifting up his coffee after a moment, and took a small sip, again as to not burn his tongue. He was extremely careful to this, it was obvious to anyone watching that this act was awkward to him.

Stizz chuckled and scoots the tray of cream and sweeteners toward Turner. "Coffee novice, huh? Some of these might help. The little cups make it less bitter, those are called cream. And the packets make it more sweet, those are called sugar. I would start with two of each and see if it's to your liking." He explains. "Go easy on the cream, though. It's dairy, and you know what that does to our digestion!" He laughs once. "Or maybe you don't! I don't mind a little gas around me, though. In fact, I..." Stizz stops himself and hastily takes another sip before he sounds too awkward. He grabs a piece of pastry between his claw tips and shoves it into his maw, then washes it back with another sip.

T hesitantly took two of the strange packets of cream, and poured them into the coffee after lifting the lid off. That would help the heat disperse, he reasoned. And then, he slit the top of two sugar packets open with an exposed claw and spread them into the coffee as well. "Do I have to stir or...?" He asked, but rather than waiting for an answer he took one of the strange red sticks sitting along the tableside and began to stir the mixture up.

"Did you use the sugar, or the fake stuff? If it was real sugar, then, yeah, you should stir it a bunch," Stizz says with a sweet smile. "Interesting hair, by the way. I wish mine would grow that straight." Stizz pipes in, commenting on Turner’s bold upstanding white mohawk. Stizz was having a good time as he realized he's found someone he could really connect to.

"My hair doesn't naturally grow this way actually! I have to style my hair like this, but the part going down my back does grow that way. My people always said it was odd how I fixated on my hair, but then again, most of them have too much hair to even begin to shave!" T replied, laughing boldly. This unfortunately (or fortunately for Stizz) caused an almost nauseating wave of halitosis to flow into the fellow stink lizard's nostrils.

Stizz leans in and listens to T's hair care tips, but is suddenly blown back by the eruption of bad breath to his face. His nostrils flare violently, and can't help but sniff the rotten breath uncontrollably, almost panting through his snout as his brain craves the foul odor. The scent of coffee was no match for the wave of stink, and Stizz squirms in his chair a little bit. It wasn't that T didn't notice Stizz's strange response to his breath, but he felt as if commenting about the act would only cause his new companion to become embarrassed, and this was not his goal.

Stizz clears his throat, coughing a bit, and tries to regain his composure. "I've heard of some stink lizards who shave their fur.” He recovers. “It seems, I dunno... strange to me." He pats the area around his chin and jaw. "My dad has fur on his face. He probably shaves it a bit to keep it neat. I wonder if I'll ever grow any like that." Stizz chuckles, then takes another sip as the heavy smell of T’s mouth scent around him finally starts to dissipate. "How is it now?" he asks, referring to the purple lizard’s coffee.

T leaned in slightly and sipped at his warm beverage once again, wincing yet again at the heat. He then put the coffee down, immediately took three more sugar packets, and poured them into his coffee. After taking a final sip, he nodded to himself, finally satisfied. "I would never shave my fur" He went on, keeping to the topic of hair and fur. "I would look like a wild animal! It would definitely come off as strange, regardless of the lizard. And besides, fur helps to better preserve smells" He ruffled his tail slightly, previously resting against his back as a form of cushion, to emphasize his point. The gentle ruffling of the other stink lizard's tail fur was more than enough to release some potent musk and send it wafting towards Stizz, who clears his throat and tries definitely not to notice, though the scales on his throat are beginning to blush orange slightly. Stizz paws at his face again and frowns. "And I'm sure you'll grow face fur in no time. All the lizards in our village did by at least 20" Turner finishes.

"By 20, huh? Maybe I'm in the clear, then. Or maybe it's something you guys eat down there." Stizz chuckles again, and feels the fur on his tail beginning to puff out on its own as the pheromones in Turner's tail-musk trigger a defensive reaction. Stizz's body wants to assert its natural dominance, completely out of his conscious control. His tail fluffs up and releases some of his own scent from deep within the hair, where he had sprayed it and let it dry at some point in the recent past. He feels the tingling of his fur standing on end, and doesn't exactly know what to make of the feeling, so he gently scoops up another piece of pastry and pretends like nothing is wrong. His scales start to itch all over, and he feels like he's about to start sweating, so he clamps his arms to his sides and hope the feeling passes. "I noticed you have, um, different scales than me," Stizz says, steering the conversation back toward appearances. "Do all your family members look like that? N-not that there's anything wrong with it," he adds gently.

The strange behavior Stizz was exhibiting only continued, which only served to further T's confusion. Was this typical of people in the city? To be nervous around those with a scent akin to their own? But as Turner saw the bright orange blush appearing on Stizz's cheeks, T understood immediately. Or, at least he thought he did. The fellow stink lizard liked his scent. But the way Stizz was acting was somewhat akin to how a female lizard would act around a male successfully wooing her. This confused T once again, as the concept of homosexuality had never once been introduced or explained to him. As the new scent of Stizz furrowing his tail flowed into T's nostrils, everything because simple again. He took a long, openly deep breath before shaking his head slightly and glancing back at Stizz. "All of our clan was purple. I was about to ask you the same thing actually, I've never seen a green stink lizard before. Is that something you see a lot? I would assume so, since my purple scales seemed to draw you."

Stizz scratches at the hair on the back of his neck. "My family is green, and it's been a while since I lived in a village, but I think most of the adults I saw back then were green, too. But um,” he stuttered. “I mean, you're beautiful. I-I mean, I think the color is great! It's very pretty!" Stizz stammers a bit more, then picks up his drink and hastily slurps it, ignoring the scalding heat so long as he can keep his mouth shut. "Funny, huh? I would have walked right past you if I could only see you, and not smell you. Smell... your scent, I mean. Mmmf." He takes another long sip.

Turner chuckles as well, watching Stizz slurp up the scolding hot beverage as he did before throughout his stammering mess of compliments. "Well green seems to be your normal, but... Beautiful? Pretty is one thing. But beautiful is a huge compliment." T wasn't quite sure how to reply to the compliment. Stizz thought he was beautiful? Wait... Was Stizz a female? He didn't seem like it but... It would explain his lack of facial hair, and the strange behaviour. "Stizz, to be sure. You are a male, correct?"

Stizz's throat scales take on a deep crimson blush, and he turns his head away with a shy smile. "Y...yes, but, I, um, haven't been... breeding as I should, if you know what I mean." His smile fades, and he squeezes his claws and stares at the tabletop distantly. Stizz worried he may have ruined his chances by being much too forward. "I'm sorry. If I... put you in a place you didn't want to be. I just... got ahead of myself, with the scents and all, and... well, you can still have the extra room. I promised you that. I'll just, um, not make things any more uncomfortable for you. I didn't mean to..." He trails off, seeming to lose his words entirely now, thinking he'd totally blown it.

T was now totally baffled. None of what was happening made any sense to him. Stizz was a male, T was a male. What did he mean by not 'breeding as he should?' Did that mean breeding with other males? How would that even work? Turner was suddenly filled with so many questions he simply didn't have the answers to. But he knew that this little lizard would be his answer to a lot of them, even though he happened to be the cause of... Most of them. He reached over the table and took Stizz's paw, something he had seen men to do woman many times. It was worth noting T had never experienced romance of any kind in his life. "If the room is still up for grabs, I'm still moving in. You haven't made me uncomfortable, just a little... No, a lot confused" he tried his best to reassure his new friend Stizz he had done nothing wrong to Turner. "I guess I'm... Flattered?"

Stizz chuckles quietly, picking up on the lizard’s confusion before he even spoke. "I guess you don't know what I mean, then. I'm..." He sucks in a deep breath through his triangular teeth. "I don't prefer the company of females. Of any species. I never have." He pats T's claw with his other paw and looks off to the side. "If I had stayed in the village like you did, who knows? Maybe they would have cast me out too. My dad... probably knows. He doesn't seem to care either way, though. I should be thankful for that." He lets out a heavy sigh, inadvertently stinking up the air with his strong halitosis and a bit of his coffee breath. "If that doesn't bother you, then, yes... please, share my home with me. I won't ask anything more of you."

T sniffed slightly, the scent of Stizz's breath drawing the purple lizard in again. "Well, I guess I'm the perfect roommate then. You're the first stink lizard I've ever seen in this city, so living here must be unbearable for you. There are so many species here, and all sorts of woman" T went on, teasing Stizz. "Your dad might have been another good candidate for taking the room, but I would be more than happy to share your home with you Stizz. I promise to be a good friend to you, and in turn maybe you can answer some of the many new questions I have." Turner was becoming excited now, not only had he met another of his species and gotten a place to live in one day flat, but now he had a whole new subject to learn about! If Stizz didn't like women, that had to mean he liked men by process of elimination. It only made sense, Turner reaffirmed.

Stizz looked back up to T and smiles shyly again. He has to admit, T's obvious enthusiasm is rubbing off on him. "You're the first I've ever seen here, too. So, if I'm acting all weird, that's probably why. It's... kind of a shock." His smile broadens into more of a grin, and he sits upright once again.

A neatly dressed waitress floats by, carrying a carafe of steaming coffee. "Refill for you gentlemen?" she asks.
Stizz nods eagerly. "Thanks," he pipes up, and she refills their cups to the top. "I didn't know they gave refills here," he says, as she wanders off to the next table. "I usually just take my cup home with me. We should come more often," he jokes, all smiles. He takes a sip of the freshly-hot brew, and sighs slightly. "So, what sort of questions do you have? What's eating at you the most right now? Figuratively speaking, I mean."

Turner glanced up to the waitress as she strolled off, not even getting a chance to thank her before she was gone. "Yes, we should definitely come here more often" T replied, returning Stizz's smile with a warm one of his own, trying his best to make Stizz feel welcome, and make the situation comfortable. "Well, first of all... Why don't you like woman? I assumed that means you like men then...? What's that like, do you ever find men like you here in this city? And most importantly, how do you... Mate?"

"'Most importantly'?!" Stizz sputters, before laughing hysterically. "Cut right to the chase, then! Ahh, well, I don't know. I just don't feel the same attraction. If I had grown up around any female stink lizards besides my mother, then, that could be different? I don't think so, though. And it's not like I don't... like women. You saw, I was very nice to the waitress. I'm just not... interested... in breeding with them." Stizz blushes some more and looks away shyly, then swallows his pride and decides to educate his curious friend further.

"So, yes, I do like men instead. But, I've never found one who will let me, um, near them. Because of my stink. Most furs don't smell like we do, and even fewer like smells like we do. There might be someone out there who could look... or I guess, smell... past that, but, I haven't found them yet, and I'm not exactly going out and looking for them.” He elaborated. “As for the mating part... well, if it's like other furs who prefer males... um, it happens from behind. One guy goes at a time. Unless they're using some other body part. There are these videos that, um, explain how it works." He laughs again; it really does sound rather ridiculous out loud. "But, my scent glands do still spray on their own when I am, um, sufficiently pleasured. I just don't have a mate to scent mark, in those cases. It's usually just my chair, with some plastic wrap put down so I don't ruin the carpet." He sighs to himself, slurping down another mouthful of coffee after having to explain all that. "'Most importantly'," he echoes again, sarcastically. "You crack me up."

T smiled more, his ears flicking excitedly as Stizz spoke. He was happy that he had managed to entertain his new friend, and hoped he could pull off more of those jokes in the future. Despite his typical optimistic attitude towards things, this was still a whole lot to take in. It was a new lifestyle and a whole new way of thinking that Turner was previously unaware of. "That sounds kinda hard" He replied, then quickly caught himself. "No pun intended! But, how do you go about that kind of thing without making people uncomfortable? I imagine it's difficult enough with your scent but... How common is liking other men in a city like this?"

"How common? Well, it's hard to know. Most furs don't really talk about it to complete strangers. It's, um, usually pretty private." Stizz sits back in his chair and looks around. There are a small number of other customers on the patio, including a pair of male foxes at another table. Stizz tilts his head in their direction. "They could be together. Or, they could just be brothers. It's not really something that makes people uncomfortable, though. That's what's nice about living in this city. You can live however you want." He turns his head back and smiles. "Unless you're stinky, I guess. But, even then, there will be at least someone out there who understands." He drapes his claw over T's paw on the table again and pats it gently.

The claw-on-paw contact made T feel warm inside, as if someone would be looking out for him. It was also a sign of affection, he had learned. And in an attempt to show his care for Stizz, he turned his paw over and held it sweetly. It was a soft grip, but genuine nonetheless. T looked down to the fellow stink lizard, still holding that warm understanding smile on his face. "Of course, the city is a huge place. And if I hadn't met you today in that alleyway, I doubt I would have ever met you at all. So... What I'm trying to say is... Thanks for being stinky" He chuckled, his cheek scales turning a soft pink, mirroring Stizz's previous orange cheeks before. "You wanna head back to this apartment you keep talking about? I wanna get to see it some time after all"

"My pleasure. It's what I do best," Stizz says with a smile. He takes one last piece of pastry and shoves it in his mouth, then snaps the lid on top of his coffee cup as he stands, preparing for what might be the best day of his life.