Tinisian Tails (Tinis only)

[The Union of Tinis]

I first noticed something was up when my brother came in with his fur dyed black. And I mean pitch black all the way to the roots. If he was wet it would look like some one dipped him in a vat of oil.

He came in late that night, well past midnight. The only reason I was up was because I still had thirty pages to read for literature class. I was in the front room, trying not to let Epic of figrost put me to sleep when I heard the door. Peeking over my tome I stopped the black figure. At first the idea that some stranger had wandered in for the night passed through my head. It had happened before and we were always happy to house good people passing through. But after a moment I recognized the behind the dark exterior was the caninid features of my older brother Sergi.

"Hey," he said.

"Hi. Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm perfectly fine. Better than ever."

He slipped off to his room before I even realized I should ask about his fur directly.

The next morning when I was leaving to catch the train to school, I could hear the argument between dad and Sergi.

When I got back from practice around dinner time I came in and said hi to my folks. In return they both said hi then went back to reading.

At dinner Sergi was the last to show, still in black. Mom and dad weren't talking at first, but after I asked them about their days, they seemed deeply interested in recounting ever detail. When I asked Sergi about his day he simply said he didn't have one. He soon stopped eating his half finished meal and slinked off.

Mom and dad waited a few minutes after we heard his door shut before starting.

"Sorry hunny, we're just a little upset," said mom.

"About him dying his fur?"

"Sort of," she replied.

Dad shook his head. "You know we are both supportive of anything you do and will always love you."

"I'd hope so."

"And the same goes for Sergi. But..."

Mom finished, "He's doing his best to test our commitment to you two."

"Its not his fur is it?" I asked.

Dad shook his head. Mom answered, "He's joined... a group. A group we don't much approve of."

"Your sixteen so I don't think we should beat around the bush with you," said dad. "So we'll be blunt. We think he's joined the Skin Slicers. Do you know who they are?"

I did. There were three in our grade that I knew of. Sometimes they did the black fur thing, but goths do that to as well as some punks and other random people. I nodded.

"We asked," he continued. "About his fur. He was evasive. We asked him if he had been hanging out with a new crowd. He said he didn't want a crowd. We asked if he had found a mate, he said he had not. We ran down the list of benign things that could be going on. None of them fit. Finally I asked him about the slicers. He didn't answer at all, just looked away."

So my brother had become a fur supremacist. Yeah, just great.

Mom said, "We asked him to stay with us for the day so we could talk about it. So that we could understand what was going on in his life. He said okay, but that didn't go anywhere. He wouldn't talk and eventually stormed out. Came back a few hours later and hid in his room."

"We think he's just going through a phase."

The problem is, I'm the one who's supposed to be rebelling under the pressure of my hormones and stress, not him. At eighteen he's supposed to be over this stuff.

"I want to talk to him."

They looked at each other. A few moments later they gave their consent.

I went to his room and knocked. No answer, so I let myself in. He looked at me, sighed, and put his dirty book away.

"What?" he asked.

I shut the door before answering. "Just thought you'd like to talk to someone other than mom and dad."

"I don't want to talk. Leave."

I almost did.

"No. They told me what they think you've gotten into. I don't think they know what they're talking about," I lied skillfully. "But you got me worried."

"Sit down," he ordered. I complied. "Yeah. I joined the Slicers. What of it."

I sighed. "Why?"

"Why not?"

"That's not an answer."

A moment of silence.

"I just did okay?" he said. "Its my business and not yours, so why are you being such a snoop?"

"Hey, you're the one that dyed yourself black. You could of lied to us for all eternity and we wouldn't of noticed with how mopey you've been since, well, a couple years ago. Why in the world do you suddenly hate humans and scalies then?"

Another pause. "I don't know," he said finally, very quietly.

I wanted to say more but couldn't. He just starred off into space for a while. I took my leave.

It was a few months later, about a week after he graduated when he moved out. We didn't hear from him in months. When we finally did he was asking for a place to stay. Mom and dad refused to. Yeah, they'd let strangers sleep on the couch, but not my brother sleep in his bed. In some ways I agreed with them. He had let them down.

It was fall of o-five when I saw him last. Every once in a while they'd be a march by some extremist group or another in our town, comes with having a mid level academy near by. The funny thing was that it wasn't a skin slicer march that he was marching in. In fact he wasn't marching at all. But the anti-war group Taw was. I didn't really care actually, but they were marching between home and the train station so I had to pass by.

When I was trying to cross the street between groups of sign waving hippies I noticed him standing with a group of similarly black died furs hanging out near the high market. On the far side of the street I paused and watched them for a moment. I don't think he noticed me.

Three others joined their little group, one with a back pack. I looked down the line of marchers and noticed that two groups behind the one next to me was a small group of humans waving signs reading 'humans need rights too!' and 'no hate against sentience'.

I had to leave. The last I saw of Sergi was him pulling a pipe out of the back pack one of the newly arrived slicers had brought. I ducked into an alley and began to job away.

When I heard the sirens I had to stop. I spent probably an hour huddled in an alcove in that alley, crying.

[The Union of Tinis]

The young wolf stared at me from across the table, half in tears. I didn't know what to say, but I tried any way. "Sorry. I didn't know. But you signed a contract and I can't change the script at this point. I could let you go if that would make you feel better."

I knew it wouldn't. Harvey had failed to achieve top marks on his entrance exams. He had lied to his parents in order to keep them from being upset about another pup going astray. Damn over achievers. What's wrong with mid level? Well, he could be lying about even that.

"No no. If its impossible to change it, I'll say the lines and do my best."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, yes. I will." This time he was looking me in the eyes. A challenge for wolves, and most others, in a situation like this. I accepted it as a seriousness and stared back, accepting his honesty. At least I hoped he's being honest.

"You finished then?" I asked after a bit. His plate was picked clean as usual. The young are always so hungry.

"Yes."

"Then we should get back to the set."

I thanked the restaurant's patron, who swiped Harvey and my meal cards. A short walk later and we were back at the set. The primary set had been converted into what seemed to be a sewer. There was even a trench with foul looking liquid and overhangs that dripped muck into it.

I found my way back to the director's chair and grabbed the master script and started flipping back to the current scene. I finally found it, 'Act 1, Scene 18.4: Sewer's of Kasa'. In that scene, a young Dykon is discussing with some fellow revolutionaries the merits of bringing other groups into theirs. Dykon, played by Harvey, ends up accepting several possible alliances but turns down the humans flatly, which historically he did. I'm not proud of where the writer took it, and it certainly isn't sitting well with Harvey, but it makes sense in how the character is portrayed at this part of the movie.

Harvey and the two important associates came back from makeup. Harvey now looked like his fur has a good deal of dried blood. The extra's gathered about and set and the principals took their positions.

"Everyone ready?" I asked. Thumbs up from all around signaled readiness. "Okay, when you're ready."

"The House of Genius: Act one, scene eighteen point four."

Harvey, as Dykon, starred at the floor intently. I really wished he would read the next day's scenes a little earlier than he did, but his cramming didn't seem to hurt his ability to act. I just hoped he wouldn't run into another surprise like that day's script again.

-------

"Hey, good leader," speaks Myron, played by Discren-Fel Mabitisri. "We've been a little worried of late."

"Indeed we have," adds Dygesh, played by Sofie Aldrigal. "The last few missions have gone less that perfect as we all know. The authorities are watching out for us wolves."

Dykon lifts his gave and glares at Dygesh. "Are you saying we should not act? Because its too difficult now?"

"Not at all," answers Myron. "But we would like to suggest this. We've got quite the reputation. And others want to join us. Others who aren't wolves."

"So? What could they add to our efforts?"

"Well, that's the thing, they aren't wolves." Dygesh is still locked in a gaze with Dykon. "They won't be expecting say a cat or rabbit to unfurl our flag on the castle wall."

Myron adds, "Of course we'll be with them."

"I see," says Dykon. "So who are you suggesting we should let in?"

"Well," says Myron. "Several groups have asked in the past. The other canids mainly. A group of elk anarchists. A human secret society has expressed interest."

Now the gaze is on Myron. "No humans. They have their own lands on the far side of the world. We don't need their filth infiltrating us. If we let them in now when Pargalo is ours, they'll call their imperialist allies overseas and take over. No humans. Ever. In fact, from now on, if we find any guards that are humans, don't hesitate to kill them. Understand?"

----

I couldn't help but be spooked by Harvey's performance. I could feel my legs shake a little. I glanced over to the only human on set, Erbert, one of the grips, his face was pure white. Amazing since his skin is usually a bit tannish.

I was so unsettled that I almost forgot to call out cut, but I did and Dykon vanished from our set. I got up and walked up to the group.

"That was brilliant," I said in an incredibly calm manner. "Harvey, you were more Dykon today than you have ever been before. I wonder if you were more Dykon than Dykon was."

He nodded and glanced away.

"The rest of you, amazing as well. That was certainly a spooked Dygesh Sofie. And Fel, as perfect as ever. Thank you all. Did we get that?" Film nodded to me. "Good good. I think you all deserve a break then. It is difficult for us to get it right on the first take. Take ten, okay fifteen."

Smiles and cheers amongst most of the cast signaled a happy group. By Harvey didn't participate in the revelry, just walked off.

"What's up with him?" asked Sofie as the others were departing.

"He didn't like the script today."

"Not surprising. Dykon was a bastard when he was young."

"Aye, but apparently Harvey has known similar bastards when he was young. It hit a little close to home if you know what I mean."

"Oh."

[The Union of Tinis]

"Come in," says Harvey after the knock.

His back is turned to the door as Sofie enters. She walks up behind him, grabs his head, and gives him a noogie.

"Hey hey hey!" he yelps before she stops.

"Why you so down? Its just a movie."

Turning around, Harvey says, "Oh? I already talked to Mr. Bigshot director. Talk to him if you want the gossip."

"I don't want the gossip. I want to know what's bothering you."

"I really don't feel like telling the story twice today."

Sofie pulls up another chair and sits, "That bad huh?"

He nods, barely looking at her.

"Why did you try out for this part anyway then?"

"Needed work. Didn't really want to go into factory work, which with my skills was almost the only thing left I could try and hope to not fail at. Except this."

"And you are a fine actor," says Sofie, trying to cheer him up. It doesn't seem to work.

"Yeah, I can act. I think I might continue it after this, but no more roles like this."

"So why did you sign on to this picture then? There's more than one movie being produced right now."

Harvey looks up to her with a weird look. "Yeah, Taskmin's Revenge Part Seven? Growth of Cultures and Nations: An Indepth Look at the Rise of Great Big Wet Thing? Warriors of Dusk: The Apocolpyse?"

"So the field is a little poor as to quality movies to star in. Okay, then why did you try for lead?"

"I didn't. I tried for Myron and Scoogar."

Sofie pauses before saying, "Oh."

They sit for a moment. Harvey's personal dressing room is fairly bare with the exception of the closet full of period cosutmes and a mini-shower stall in the far corner.

"Maybe Rob saw the skill we saw today then?" says Sofie finally.

"Maybe."

"Hey! Harvey! Stop this I'm so depressed crap. You seem down almost all the time. It would hurt you just a little bit to look on the bright side of things? You're one of the principals in what could be the biggest movie Tinis has ever produced! You gotta be proud of that."

"But I'm not."

Sofie growls. "Why not?! Is your hatred of Dykon that much that you'll never be proud of your role?"

"Sure."

"That's not an answer. Harvey."

"Okay, short version. My brother is an anti-human bigot. In the fall I saw him right before a riot back in my home town. He's probably in jail now, or worse, has killed someone. There wouldn't be any skin slicers if Dykon hadn't been such a bastard and let his followers be like that. They were wolves, I'm a wolf, my brother's a wolf, most of the skin slicers are wolves. Coincidence?"

Sofie frowns. "Harvey. Its not that simple."

"Whatever. You can't deny that there is a root cause there."

"I'm a wolf too you know," she says in a slightly quivered voice, knowing what he's finally hinting at. "I'm certainly no bigot. Just because your brother shares your tendency for emotional weakness doesn't mean you're a bigot just waiting to happen. Just because we are what we are doesn't mean we have to follow Dykon's intolerance. He isn't the boss of us. He's not our savior or ideal. He was a ideaolog. Nothing more. He's probably quite dead now to. His actions and words don't define us."

Harvey looks her in the eyes. "But if I play Dykon, he is defining me. Everyone will know me as Dykon from this movie. Please leave now. I have to get ready for the next scene."

Sofie gets up and starts to leave. "People are smarter than that Harv. They know its only a movie, even if it is trying to be slightly historical. They'll know you're no bigot." She leaves.

"I hope so," he mutters, going back to reading the script.