Pilou had gone to the toy shop for himself. Unlike other teens his age he wasn’t there looking for a gift for a younger sibling or friend, although he tried to act nonchalant and make it seem as if he was. His nervous disposition and embarrassment were obvious though. He wanted to explore that new and fascinating aisle carrying a brand new collection of hypno toys.
Milo certainly noticed him. The fox was about the same age as Pilou and was working as a shop assistant to supplement his pocket money. As bored and frustrated as he was he wouldn’t have paid the wolf boy any mind if he hadn’t seen his red-tinted ears.
Milo started to follow the wolf boy at a discreet distance. It was a slow Saturday (a Saturday he could have spent with friends instead), and there wasn’t much else for an idle shop hand to do.
Pilou’s secret cub tendencies were revealed a few moments later when, on kneeling down to examine one of the lower shelves (set at cub height), his t-shirt rode up enough to reveal an inch or so of white plastic poking up from his shorts. Suddenly everything clicked for Milo. He had heard about baby furs, patrons who liked to ‘cub out’, and he now knew exactly what to do.
He slipped into the hypno-toys aisle, slipped on a pair of spiral glasses and waited in ambush.
A few minutes later a rapidly shrinking and regressing wolf pup stood in the aisle. His clothes slowly slipping off his diminishing frame. Pilou had started to feel lost and afraid just like any pup separated from his parents in a store so Milo had ducked into the next row and returned with a teddy—a companion to help the lil wide-eyed pup feel less alone.
Of course what all cubs his age wanted was the love and safety of a caretaker, a parent or a big brother.... A role that Milo would be happy to fill for the new cub. Art by
