The news had broken.

I found the first articles and videos starting to pour in that evening. They ranged from professional: "Emerging viral outbreak affects recipients of cancer treatment" to the outright false "US government suppresses enemies by making them PETS??"

I was only able to watch a few videos and read a few things before it became too frustrating. Most of the news outlets were making up absolute nonsense. They didn't know what was going on, and in the absence of information, they spat out explanations that meant nothing.

I thankfully found that none of the coverage was on me, Jackie, or any really specific patient zero. It had slowly come out from many places on the planet that this was happening. Generation itself wasn't even specifically targeted - many companies and institutions had worked on the initial cancer treatment.

There was one bright touch of malicious joy. Because no sane person who was becoming more like a dog wanted to show their face, a certain online miscreant that annoyed me, Larson Peters, was being subjected to all this as well. However, the attention hungry idiot willingly put his face everywhere. He probably didn't care at all. He just wanted clicks.


Jackie and I played more Stardew Valley as we continued to change. I felt dark pads slowly growing on my fingers as I nudged the thumbsticks. The fur continued growing everywhere. While it wasn't fully grown in a number of places, I no longer had any places on my body that were smooth skin anymore.

After spending an hour rearranging our farm to look more nice with the less activity of winter, I set down my controller on the TV stand.

"What?" Jackie asked, "c'mon, we need to do some fishing."

"Sorry," I said, yawning... like a dog. "I'm a bit tired for now. Don't you want to do something else for a bit? Like read your books?"

She was silent for a moment. She collected some jelly from preserve jars in-game.

"I think... I think I want a break from those books for a while."

I looked over at her pile of books. I perused the titles. They were all in paperback, and had dark, monochrome covers. The titles had a similarly dark tone. From the cover, I was unable to tell what genre they all were.

"These look... depressing," I noted.

Silence again for a time. "I guess."

"I personally prefer... more optimistic stories."

"Optimistic stories don't have anything meaningful to say. Neither do optimistic movies or music. It's crowd pleasing stuff. Everything's happy in the end, or they even have comedic songs - it's never criticizing anything. It's never trying to make the world a better place."

I met her eyes incredulously. "Really. All these movies and stuff that people enjoy, that are just a fun time, in not a single example, are the creators trying to make the world a better place?"

She rolled her eyes. "Of course you're taking my words to the extreme. Even so, I think that even if the author, director, whatever has good intentions, it doesn't amount to much. People don't change for the better when they feel comfortable, when they're content. You need to read something challenging, watch something that causes you discomfort."

"But why?" I asked.

"Why what?"

"Why should we be compelled to wallow in sorrow all the time," I said, "in movies and media that's depressing about everything? Why can't we have media that's realistic, and optimistic?"

This time Jackie's silence was not followed by an answer. I felt that I could almost read her eyes - because optimism is not realistic.

"I feel like I've read and watched things before that picked me up when I was having a bad day. It caused personal reflection on how I could be like my favorite heroes in fiction."

"But those heroes are fictional," Jackie said, "it's a waste of time to try to emulate them."

"By that logic fiction doesn't accomplish anything because it 'isn't real.' It feels like you're drawing the line just where your personal taste lies. If you don't like something, that's not a big deal, but don't go around claiming that it's objectively the only good piece of media."

Jackie huffed, the nostrils of her snout flaring. "I read a lot of non-fiction too - true stories. People that actually exist."

"Depressing stories?" I asked.

"Reality isn't a smooth sailing perfectly happy ride like some fantasy story."

Okay. This was getting on my nerves now. "So you really think that people like fiction like Star Wars or Lord of the Rings because the characters never have any challenges? Not because the things people care most about are relatable characters that they cheer for as they try to succeed?"

"There are so many problematic things about Star Wars and especially Lord of the Rings that I could cut into," Jackie said, "but I'm getting kind of tired of this conversation."

I did not press her. Despite the fight response screaming in my head to go to battle against the one that would criticize my beloved fantasy, I wisely held my tongue.

I looked at some of Jackie's books again. As she had said, there were many that attested to be true stories or based on ones. Stories of refugees, or political dissidents - and then more political stuff criticizing this or that thing.

Then I found something... interesting. A cover with a dark forest on it, and a full Moon with a wolf.

"Oh my gosh," I said, "do you read werewolf novels?"

Jackie dropped her controller, and for a moment was stunned as she made sure that she hadn't broken it after it struck the floor. She spun around and snatched the book out of my hand.

"Okay that's enough of that," she said. "If you need to know, I was... researching."

"Researching?" I laughed, "How?"

I had already found another one of them in her book pile.

"Get out of my stuff," she ordered, "and mind your own business."

I held my hands out defensively in front of me. "I'm not making fun of you, I swear, I'm just saying, you're talking highly when -"

"I get it," she said. "Leave me alone."

I noticed, unpleasantly, that she was growling slightly like a dog. She realized what she was doing, and cried out in frustration.

"Look," I said, "I'm serious, I'm not making fun of you. You can read what you like. I just think that it's kind of weird that you're reading this... when all this is happening."

This silence lasted an extremely long time. Jackie had her head down, looking at the book in her hands. It looked like she wanted to say something. But ultimately she didn't. I slyly glanced at my watch. It was past midnight. I really considered getting up to brush my teeth and going to bed.

We had sat there for at least five minutes in complete silence. Then, she finally spoke.

"I'm a furry."

I blinked. I had not been expecting that.

"I... I like...," - she was tearing up. "I... I like anthropomorphic animals."

"So...," I said carefully, "you mean... like in a... certain way?"

Her head snapped up with glaring eyes. "I am not going to answer that."

"I'm not gonna shame you or anything," I said, "just... just think it's... interesting."

Jackie turned around on her cot, and I heard her swear under her breath.

"Whatever," she said, "yes. Okay?! Fine. So I am that way. Not everything about this is... connected to that."

"It's alright," I said talking to her despite her back facing me. "I'm not judging you. I just... I just never would've figured you to be that kind of person."

I wasn't going to clarify what I meant by that. I wasn't sure exactly if I could. All my other experience with furries though... they had not been like Jackie.

"Just because I'm.... a furry," she strained to say, "doesn't mean that I'm parading around in a costume. I've liked drawing myself as a dog in the past. Okay?"

"Wait...," I said, "Does this mean... you've been... enjoying this?"

She pressed her hands against her face in exasperation. "No. Turning into a literal real life animal is not the same as being some cartoon character. I... I'll admit that... this started when we were playing the game that night. When... when you were pretending to be a dog."

As soon as she said it I felt really, really weird. She'd admittmed her... feelings about this. I wasn't sure how I felt that she'd found my acting like a dog to be... uh, 'attractive'.

I stood up and saw that she was sobbing. I gingerly put my arm around her. I could feel the fur underneath her clothes.

"It's okay Jackie," I said, "really. Honestly, you being a furry is far down on the list of weird things happening right now."

"I know," she said quietly.

I glanced over to the TV. Stardew valley was still on pause.

"You've enjoyed playing Stardew Valley right?"

Her brown eyes turned towards me with confusion.

"Everyone in the town in game is kind, and helpful to each other. They don't reject someone just because they're different."

"Why are you talking about this?"

I gripped at her fur tighter. "I think that there are people in the world like those in stardew valley. They will accept you regardless of whether you're a furry, or well, a real life furry. They care more about the person you are -"

"-on the inside," Jackie rolled her eyes, "wow you're so original. And what have I got on the inside Matt? A cynical depressed little girl that just wishes that everything was elementary school again."

"Jackie."

She looked me in the eyes.

"We're sixteen."

"Oh yeah," Jackie said, "and I've also just got horrible melodrama in me too. I should be just a carefree high schooler that doesn't care about politics or anything like that. Thanks for reminding me of the hysterical woman - dog person, that I am."

"No," I shook my head, "I'm just saying that we've got plenty of life. We still have time to mature, to grow, and to change."

"And what kind of a life will that be?" Jackie posited, "a life where we're laughed at on every street corner? A life where I'll never feel comfortable, even around people like me?"

I met her eyes again. "Do you believe that? That you won't be able to feel comfortable around me, or any other dog people?"

She closed her eyes, and hung her head. In response, I pulled her against me and hugged her. She started to sob more readily on my shoulder.

Oh my gosh. I was doing it. I was somehow helping someone with emotional problems - and a girl too.

Despite my feeling of being completely lost at the moment, Jackie seemed unable to unwrap her arms from me. Our fur pressed against each other and we felt warmth between us. She breathed slowly against me as her tears subsided. I then had an impulsive ideas.

It was a moment before Jackie responded to me scratching behind her ears. I noticed her tail waver around a bit.

"I... am trying to decide," she said, "if this is crossing the line or not."

A few moments more however, and I saw a smile begin appearing on her face. It seemed also that she could no longer hold it back, and began wagging her tail. She started panting happily.

There seemed to be a drastic change over her when there was actual light in her eyes and not a downcast look on her face. I had the surprising realization that I found her dog-like cheerful smile actually looked kinda cute.

And then she licked my face.

She froze for a moment after what she'd just done - but then I licked her back. She then proceeded to lick me without restraint. I felt suddenly extremely happy and wagged my own tail. It took a moment to pick through these instinctual feelings, but I felt like it was a feeling of acceptance. It was the feeling a dog might have when they've made a new friend.

I stopped licking her. And started kissing her instead.

My excitable dog emotions suddenly mixed with my human nature in an interesting reaction - I had kissed a few girls before - but I'd never made out with someone like this. It was an amazing moment. In a way it also felt like an acceptance of my canine instincts as well. I wanted to wag my tail.

After some amount of time, we both pulled away. We panted quietly for a moment.

"I'm sorry," Jackie said," for all the mean things I've said, and just... just being a stick in the mud."

"So am I... for about the same things too."

I gave her a few more licks to the face, and she pushed me away, giggling.

"Oh gosh," I nervously laughed, "they have security cameras on us."

I saw Jackie blush through her fur.

"It's okay," I hugged her briefly.

"Thank you," she whispered. "I... I feel insane right now. My body is warping into this new way, and I feel like I should just be nothing but upset..."

"Don't second guess it," I said, "just enjoy it."

She pulled closer to me.

"You make a cute dog," I said.

She smiled. "So do you. I... I always liked golden retrievers... and I think that's what we're becoming."

I felt a sudden crack in my jaw, and placed my hand up against it.

"You've been feeling it too," she said.

"I... I had hoped that it wasn't going to change further," I said.

"Well whatever happens," Jackie said, "I... I want to have... have you with me."

I gave her one last goodnight kiss.



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