As Fred was being examined, Lex took a moment to organize his thoughts. There was no doubt that an investigation needed to be put into the tablet and what happened at the museum, but then came the subject of the human. Since he appeared just after the explosion, suspicion would fall upon him. Eyes would go to him already seeing that he's an unknown creature that seemingly came out of nowhere.
Fred's emotional state was also a problem, as he seemed to almost instantly crack when questioned. When Lex walked in, he looked as if he were completely lost. Luckily he was able to coax the boy out of his shell and get more answers than Hector could. Though, one big question was constantly nagging him...
What will they do with him next?
"Lex?"
He perked up, looking behind to see the medical examiner, a white wolf, along with Fred. The wolf was holding a clipboard in her paws, looking at it carefully.
"He seems to be perfectly normal, at least in terms of health. His body structure is similar to our own, with the absences of a tail, fur, or scales."
"Anything else?"
"He also has omnivorous teeth, which brings up the question of his eating habits. There are other things as well, but they aren't as major."
"Right. I'll need to talk to the chief about what to do next."
After that, they made their way through more hallways. Fred noticed that there were a variety of anthros: dogs, wolves, foxes, even raccoons! He already had a feeling it would be diverse, so he wasn't that surprised. Even so, it still intrigued him to see so many animals as bipeds. It also made him scared because of how lethal some of them are. They could easily kill him with little hesitation, and that fact alone terrified him.
They eventually made it to a large room, a desk at the end with a giant window behind it. The view was incredible, tall buildings and birds reaching towards the sky. The sun practically bathed the room in its golden light, purifying anything in its grasp. As they got closer, they noticed someone in a chair at the desk. It was a black coyote wearing a fine suit. His eyes were focused on a document in front of him, skimming around it briefly before noticing the pair.
His eyes were a glowing yellow, seeming to shine just by being contrasted with his fur. Everything about him screamed authority, even as his expression stayed unreadable. Fred had to resist the urge to shudder, an uneasy feeling rising in his stomach. He wanted so badly to just run, but he knew that would do more harm than good.
"I see you've brought him.", the suited canine noted, his voice laced with an eerie calmness that sent a shock through the human's spine.
"Yeah...", Lex replied while scratching the back of his head, "The medical examiner didn't find anything wrong with him, but she found that he's somewhat similar to us furries. I'm not sure what to do now."
The coyote sent a glance to Fred, making him jump slightly and avoid his gaze. The canine couldn't help but stare at him for a second. He looked so innocent, much like a child who was way in over their head. He didn't show any signs of lying, just an overall nervousness. It's obvious he can't fend for himself in this world...
A thought came to his head, causing him to skim over the document before stopping midway.
He let out a small breath and spun his chair to the side slightly, "I've been thinking about that as well..."
His ears twitched a little before he pulled an arm up, moving it over to reveal a wristwatch. Pressing a button on the side, it flipped up, causing the boy to raise an eyebrow. He muttered something into it before closing it and turning his chair back. From there, he mostly asked questions about what was found out about Fred, as well as giving back the boy's phone. He introduced himself as C, the leader of an organization that investigates strange occurrences.
They were still in the middle of the discussion when the door opened. Looking over, they spotted a black bear walk into the room. It wore a red plaid shirt with a brown overcoat, along with blue pants and dress shoes. There was a small tuft of fur atop his head that looked disheveled. Walking deeper into the room, it noticed Fred was in the room as well, causing its ears to twitch slightly. Curious hazel eyes were reflected by brown ones as the two stared at each other. It seemed to snap out of it before addressing C in a deep, yet smooth voice.
"You wanted to see me, sir?"
"Yes, it actually concerns our friend here.", the coyote said, gesturing to Fred, who tilted his head along with the bear.
"We're still investigating the tablet, along with what information we got from Fred.", he once again gestured to the human, "The problem with this is that the media is in a panic trying to find out what's going on- not to mention the furries present at the museum at the time. I need someone to look after him while we continue investigating."
"And you think I'm the one for it?", the bear asked.
C nodded, "Technically you're retired, so nobody outside knows you work here. This will keep your chances of being suspected low. Plus you're the one who found him first, so it would make sense that you'd take care of him.", he added with a small shrug.
"I suppose so..as long as he's okay with it."
Fred had to think a little for this one. A large advantage of living with a bear was that he'd have a bodyguard in a way. Additionally, he didn't seem that bad, just curious about him based on how he looked at him. The only downside he could think of was that the ursine could quite possibly swallow him whole with little to no effort and cause an untimely and very painful demise. Although that wouldn't happen, right?
He reluctantly nodded after his internal debate. He'd much rather prefer being in a house than a high-tech facility.
"Right, I'll have the medical examiner compile all his information for you.", C said with a small smile, "I hope it's no trouble."
"It's alright, I'm just a bit surprised.", the bear said with a smile of his own.
~~*~~
The car ride was awkward at best. After sneaking out and into the bear's- whose name was Jack, light blue mustang, they made their way down the road. Fred was mostly engrossed by the scenery of the city, tall and short buildings around him with furries everywhere. He could've sworn he even saw a Starbucks at one point! It made him think of this world as a different version of his own, given the jarring similarities between the two. While his eyes were focused on the road, Jack's mind was spinning.
He had to take care of this creature? The boy at least showed intelligence, but the bear worried that something might happen. His windows were tinted, so Fred could safely look out the window with little trouble, but he had to sit in the back due to the windshield being lit. Jack almost chuckled at his fascination, reminding him of Tom. As soon as the young bear crossed his mind, he mentally hit himself. He was still at home! He dropped him off after making sure he was alright and went to the OSI building to check out what was going on. Even if he was retired, he still had special access. He broke his wandering thoughts and decided to try and start a conversation.
"So...", he said, "I'm guessing furries aren't in your world."
"Not exactly...", the boy said as he still looked out the window, "If anything, they're mostly fantasies. Bears can at least walk on their hind legs in real life."
"Ah...", he mused, "That does explain how calm you were when I walked into C's office."
Silence followed that. It wasn't that they didn't want to talk, but there just wasn't that much to talk about. They could discuss what humans are like, but it would most likely be the same information the medical examiner compiled. The large skyscrapers shrunk into small houses, grass and trees starting to sprout up. It brought a mellow smile to the human's features, a nice rural area was relaxing as opposed to the hustling and bustling of the city. Jack noticed this and smiled as well, seeing that they were closing in on a yellow two-story house with a garage.
The front had a few small windows at the bottom, along with a door and light. A few larger ones were located on the upper level, the sills a classic white. The grass was lively and was only broken by a few stones that went from the front door to the sidewalk. The bear slowed the car down and went up the driveway, opening the garage door with a pocket switch.
"By the way, my nephew lives here as well.", he said as he closed the door and turned on the lights, "I may need to fill him in on everything."
As they got out, Fred took a look around. The garage was a decent size, the car being able to fit with relative space. There was a bench near the front with discarded tools and a few shelves on his side. The other side held more shelves and a door. He noticed that the light was dim and flickering slightly, but brushed it aside as he followed Jack through the door. It led to a medium-sized kitchen with a tiled floor. It had what you'd expect in one, even a microwave.
From there, a doorway led to the living room, a pair of stairs to the right with the front door across from it. The living room had a beige carpet, a red couch sat in front of a coffee table with a flat screen TV mounted to the wall. There was a window on the left wall with black curtains, as well as a lamp in the corner. Another doorway sat to the other side, revealing a hallway. Fred noticed that connected to the TV was a black console with a red X on it, a controller on the table with the same logo lit up.
"Tom?", Jack asked aloud, "You around here?"
"Yeah.", a voice replied from the hall as a shorter bear walked in. He looked to be about the human's height, wearing a gray shirt and dark blue shorts. His green eyes widened when he saw the third being in the room. The boy gave a nervous smile and a small wave as the bear looked at Jack with a half worried-half confused expression.
"This is Fred. He'll be staying here for a while.", the larger bear explained, "They're still investigating what happened at the museum, so he needed to be hidden somewhere to keep the media from finding out."
The two simply stared at each other for a time, an awkward silence taking over. Fred still felt uneasy, even though his stuttering stopped. It seemed to be a natural thing that humans had: a general uneasiness when they know their lives are in danger. Even if he was lightly mellowed out by Lex, that troubled sensation still remained. The big question that plagued him was how others would react when- and if, he were to be revealed.