Scavenging for love

>Be Anon, living alone in a comfy little home near the edge of a town
>You're well liked by your neighbors, and you like them too
>Except one person, this Vulture anthro that keeps picking at your trash at night
>Literally only rifles through your trash in particular
>It's winter, why the hell are they even outside during the night
>Get idea, trap that feathery fuck and ask why
>Set master plan into effect
>You go inside for the night and wait for the trap to be set off
>SLAM
>There it is
>Running outside you see the Vulture anthro covered in gunk and trash
>GuessWhatChickenButtlol.png
>She stares up at you with pleading eyes, but doesn't ask any questions
>Remembering your plan you ask her why the hell she was going through your trash
>"W-well... I don't have a home of my own and you're the only person not to shoo me off."
>Aw fuck, now you feel awful for trapping her up like this
>Rubbing the back of your head you think of something to say
>"Ehm, would you like to come in and get cleaned up? You smell like actual unwashed ass."
>She chuckles at the remark and nods to your question to come in
>Before taking any steps she shakes to get rid of the junk off of her feathers
>Most of it flying off without a hitch, looking clean enough to walk inside your home without you cringing at the thought she'd leave dirt marks
>You walk into your home, motioning the Vulture to come in after you
>She gives a little nod before scurrying inside
>With her inside you shut the door and suddenly shiver, not realizing how cold you were
>Quickly pacing towards the bathroom through the hallway, looking at the photos of your family hung around
>Reaching the bathroom door you push it open and urge her inside
>She takes a few hesitant steps in before reaching the center of the bathroom, then looking back at you confused on what to do in here
>You gently grasp her wrist, your fingers slightly sinking into the moist feathers
>Ew.
>You realize just how thin she was when you grabbed her wrist, she's malnourished though you're surprised at how composed she is
>Pulling her towards the shower you push the glass door open and lead her hand into the shower
>Taking your sign she walks into the shower and stands there looking at you with a nervous gaze
>You give a small genuine smile which eases her tense pose a bit
>After a bit of checking the bathroom for necessary ways for an Anthro to clean themselves you wave to the Vulture in your shower
>"Hey, stand back a bit, this is gonna be cold for a sec!"
>Taking the warning seriously she backs up, pushing herself against a wall
>Huh, must really not like the cold
>Twisting the handle of the shower a stream of water comes pouring out with the distinct sound of water hitting tile
>You look over to the woman who was now awestruck, slack jawed with eyes the size of saucers
>You're slightly confused by it but shrug it off, adjusting the temperature for the Vulture
>Once it reached a satisfying degree of heat you tap the woman on the shoulder shaking her out of the trance she was in
>"O-oh, sorry that happens whenever I see something cool, did you need me t- Oh the water is done?"
>She looks straight ahead to the falling water inching towards it until finally she plunges in fully
>She tenses and freezes up but a moment later she let out a groan of satisfaction
>Looking at her now, the layers of filth and trash that caked her feathers were now mostly gone which revealed her thin body for everyone (you) to see
>The water turns a murky green color as she washes herself off... Ugh you're gonna need to clean your pipes later
>Putting aside the pipes you needed to get her something to eat
>You keep blankly staring at her body before she clears her throat, snapping you out of your stupor
>"Mister, can you stop staring please? It's making me uncomfortable..."
>OhFuck.webm
>You quickly turn away and walk to the door, blurting out an apology
>"Hahasorryillleavenowhavefun!"
>Closing the door behind you, you let out a loud groan hopefully inaudible to her
>"Yeesh, i'm an absolute fucking moron. Ugh..."
>You walk into the kitchen, wondering if she'd see you as some creep now
>You open the refrigerator looking inside for something that she'd be fine with
>Wait, she's a Vulture she'd be fine with anything... Do anthro Vultures work like that?
>With a shrug you pull out some bagel bites and open the box
>Shit's cash dude
>As you're placing the bagel bites onto a tray you hear clicking behind you, prompting you to look back
>It's the Vulture woman, she's soaking and naked staring at you while covering her body with her wings to preserve warmth.
>Now that all the gunk and grime is gone you can see the color of her feathers now
>She looked like a bearded Vulture if you remember correctly, they had the weirdest diets does she have the same?
>Wait, she's naked still, GAH!
>You look away and use your hands to block out the indecency that wasn't covered by her wings
>"WOAH! I'll get you a towel and some clothes."
>You shuffle to your room, grabbing a towel and a shirt you rifle through your drawer to find some pants that would fit an Anthro
>Fuck it, you just grab a some shorts and skitter back to her
>She shivers while standing in the same exact place before you left.
>Wrapping the towel around her you walk to the kitchen table and place the clothing there
>"T-thanks..."
>You give her a small smile and a nod at her meek comment
>You pull two chairs out and sit on one, motioning her to sit on the other
>She complies and comes over, sitting down and rubbing her feathers dry with the towel
>Thinking of conversation starters your mind goes back to food, wait the bagel bites
>Standing up you walk over to the tray and grab it, sliding it into the oven
>Turning the oven on you head back to the feathered woman staring at you from across the kitchen
>Sitting back down you ask her
>"You ever have bagel bites? They're fucking amazing."
>She looks down at the floor, shaking her head slightly
>"No, i've always just ate whatever I could get... Which was almost always just rotten food and roadkill."
>Yikes
>Trying to lighten the mood you say something to get her away from the topic of eating rotten dead stuff
>"Well, you're gonna love these, I could even make more if you really like them."
>She perks up at this and looks at you with a glimmer of happiness in her red and black eyes
>After chatting for a few more minutes you stand up and walk towards the oven, saying something to her while you walk
>"You should get dressed, I don't want you walking around naked. Unless you want to hah!"
>You immediately regret adding on that last part
>Keeping your vision forward you silently drown in embarrassment and shame
>The tapping of her talons slowly get softer until they're inaudible, you groan and slouch down slightly
>Reaching the oven you grab a pair of tongs and mittens to open the oven's door
>Bringing the tray up you place the pizza bagels on a plate then place the tray back in the oven, closing the door after you slide it in
>You grab the plate and bring it over to the table, laying it on the table you sit back down and wait for your guest to come back
>Hearing the distinctive tapping of talons of wood you look to the hallway leading to your room with the Vulture woman turning the corner, now thankfully fully(?) dressed
>She's wearing one of your old hoodies that was much too big for her, the bottom of the jacket almost reaching her knees
>Feathery chest fluff sits just above the jacket, blocking out most of the logo on it
>Cute
>You give a quick wave and pat the empty seat next to you
>She picks up the pace speed walking to you now, sniffing a bit at the newfound scent in the room
>Taking the seat next to you she starts sniffing at the tiny cheesy bagels
>Stopping abruptly she looks up at you, tilting her head slightly
>"Uh, I can have these right, you said that?"
>You give a nod and gesture to them
>Immediately she greedily eats most of the bagels, you're slightly worried that she may choke on one of them
>With a cough she stops, looking back up to you then away to a wall
>"Mister, can I get some water I uh haven't had any today..."
>You give a nod and go towards your refrigerator
>"Call me Anon, by the way."
>Inwardly facepalming you realize you forgot to ask for her name this entire time, you really are retarded aren't you?
>A quiet voice pulls you out of your self-insulting
>"...People just call me a dirty scavenger, so I just shortened it to Scavver and i've gone by that for the longest time now."
>You lament the name she's given herself instead of her real one
>You feel like you hear someone whisper "For those we cherish, we die in glory..."
>You get chills up your spine, eugh
>Creepy
>Shaking the whispering voice out of your head you grab a bottle of water and go back to your feathered houseguest
>Setting down the bottle and sitting down you wonder why you were doing this, why you were letting in a homeless anthro, a Vulture no less
>Was it because of her plight or was it something else
>Shoving the thoughts aside you look at your phone to check the time
>12:34 AM
>Oh jeez, you didn't even realize how fast time flew by you needed to get to work tomorrow
>You look at Scavver gingerly sipping at the water and catch her attention in doing so
>"Hey, Scavver it's getting late, i've got to get to work tomorrow. You ready to leave?"
>She stares back at you with those red eyes looking into your soul and letting out a half hearted response
>"Y-yeah... i'm ready to go, i'll um... return your clothi-"
>You give a dismissive hand, interjecting with your own condolences
>"Ah no, keep them i'm not gonna just throw you out with nothing, I don't want you freezing!"
>You say with a slight grin
>"Just knock on the back door if you wanna come in, i'll see you tomorrow."
>You stand up and grab one of her wrist, gently pulling her along to the front door
>Pulling open the door you motion her to the outside world
>She follows the motion, walking out of your house then turning back around to look at you once she clears the doorframe
>"We'll m-meet again, r-right?"
>You nod and give another smile
>"I promise."
>She returns the smile, looking pepped up after you said that, turning around and walking off into the darkness outside
>You close the door and saunter down the hallway to your room
>You were going to keep this promise, even if it killed you
>Hopefully it won't... hopefully.

>...
>Beep, beep, beep
>Ugh... 5 more minutes...
>You groggily wave your hand around, trying to find the accursed alarm to stop the beeping that was droning on
>Finally hitting it, you sit up rubbing your eyes to get rid of the last bit of drowsiness lingering around
>Swinging your legs off the side of the bed you get up to do your daily routine of getting ready
>Shit, shower, shave the most practical of practical ways to get ready
>Walking into your kitchen you start up your coffee machine while getting a bowl of NON-COMMERCIAL BRAND CEREAL (TM)
>You forget to even eat last night, how did yo-
>Oh right, the Vulture lady, Scavver
>Hopefully she was doing fine you think while mindlessly munching on cereal
>A knock on your patio door pulls you out of your thoughts and you hop in your seat slightly
>Who the fuck would be knocking on your back door at this time of day
>Probably a bunch of thieves trying to divert your attention, ugh
>You carefully sneak your way to the back door, making sure no one would be able to see you from it
>Peeking over all your previous assumptions are thrown out the window when you see a familiar Vulture standing there, nervously looking around and fiddling with her wings
>Standing to your full height again you walk into view and give a little wave to her
>Her nervous expression is almost instantly gone and replaced by a happier one with a reciprocating wave
>You open the patio door and beckon her in, giving a warm greeting
>She quickly skitters in, sitting on the couch nearby
>Closing the door you look back to her
>"I kind of thought you wouldn't even bother to open the door..."
>Her tone is jokey, but you feel like she's being serious about it
>"Don't be like that. You're welcomed around here, you haven't stolen anything so i'd say you're pretty trustworthy, ha!"
>You can see her happy expression falter a bit, but returns fully a second later
>Okay Anon, that was a bit retarded to say
>Time to defuse the tension, don't fuck it up again you autist
>"So... you ever had coffee before?"
>Of course she hasn't, she's homeless for god's sake
>"No, sorry I haven't. Do you want me to try it, Mister Anon?"
>You give a nod and lead her to the kitchen, thankfully the coffee pot is just about full and still warm, nice
>Grabbing two cups you pour them both full of coffee, making one for yourself with some cream and a bit of sugar and hers a bit more cream and much more sugar
>Picking up the two cups again you bring them over to the table placing down the cups for each respective person
>You sip down your coffee, feeling disgusted by the bitterness but slightly more awake
>Scavver on the other hand was taking big gulps of hers, almost finishing it in under 30 seconds
>Ouch, that must burn
>She's bouncing slightly in her chair and takes another gulp and placing her cup down
>You chat idly with her for a few minutes until you realized how cold it got in the winter
>You inwardly grimace at the thought
>"Hey, Scavver do you have any... shelter, so to speak?"
>She looks up at you then to something else in the kitchen
>"Like, what do you mean by shelter specifically?"
>"Uh, somewhere to stay safe during the day or night, where you sleep, stuff like that."
>She looks down into the brown liquid pouring steam out of the rim of the cup
>Her bouncing stopped and was replaced by a somber look on her face
>"I stay in whatever I can get, let it be in trash cans or just in the forest under some leaves."
>You stare in slight disbelief, but the look in her eye tells you otherwise
>"Where do you stay during the winter? It's basically a death sentence during this time."
>She shakes her head, not wanting to talk about it
>WellShit.png
>You chug down the rest of your coffee and stand up, readying to leave to work
>Standing up you look at Scavver, she was still was staring at the liquid
>With all the courage you could muster you place a hand on her shoulder
>Oh this is gonna be a bad idea, but fuck it
>"Hey Scavver you can stay here while i'm off working, it's gonna be freezing today and I don't want you out there."
>She immediately looks up from the cup to you, obviously surprised
>Giving a smile you walk to the front door, leave and lock it behind you
>Great, you just left a homeless person stay in your home for a few hours by themselves
>Alright, whatever Anon it's fine she won't take anything
>Sighing you start the trek to your job in the biting cold
>You quickly push open the door to your job's building, rushing inside and closing the door behind you
>You shudder and look around to some of your co-workers walking around and chatting with each other while they wait for the work hour to start
>A few of them noticed you and give a wave and continue on their conversation, you give a wave back and go towards your post
>You're walking down the halls thinking about Scavver and if she even knows to how cook anything
>Fuck.png
>You're pulled from your thoughts as you walk into a wall, a very plush and fuzzy wall
>You back up and look up at the unknown fuzzy "wall", as they do they turn around to face you
>Slowly but surely, two big smiles spread across your faces
>Anna, a St. Bernard anthro that helped you out in your first few weeks of working at the place and introducing you to human and anthro alike
>You move your arms out of the way and invite her into a hug, which she happily takes
>Wrapping both arms around your back she picks you up, squeezing so hard you feel like your spine would snap if she put any more force into it
>She lets you down and you give her your own quick hug and chat for a few minutes while you go to your workpost
>When you finally reach your destination you say your goodbyes to each other and leaves to where she's needed currently
>The hours seem to fly by as you worry about the vulture woman back at your home, you check your phone for the time
>3:30, only 30 minutes of work left
>Standing up from your chair, you stretch and pop a few joints with a relieved sigh
>You walk down the hall to the restroom still thinking how Scavver was getting along in your home until the familiar voice of Anna rings out
>"Hey Anon! Boss said that we could leave early blizzard is coming in, you need a ride home?"
>By ride you knew she meant carry you home, you weigh the options against each other walk out alone in freezing cold temperatures or walk out with a large fuzzy St. Bernard and NOT freeze to death
>You choose the latter without a second thought
>"Sure, i've just got to get to the bathroom real quick."
>She nods and you run off to the bathroom to take a well deserved piss break
>Shaking off the last droplets of water from your hands you walk out of the bathroom to see Anna leaning on the wall with your bag in hand
>"Didn't want you taking longer than you had to, don't want you to become a flesh popsicle and make me drag your ass home and nurse you to health like all those Bernard stories i've read about."
>Chuckling at her comment you raise your arms in mock surrender and grab your bag, chatting with her as you leave the building
>The walk home was rather uneventful, but very very warm
>Reaching your house's door you thank Anna for walking you home give her a quick hug and say your goodbyes
>Before you could turn around she puts a paw on your shoulder
>"Oh yeah, work's out tomorrow due to the blizzard so enjoy your day off, Anon."
>"You too, Anna."
>With that she starts leaving, soon disappearing into the white haze
>Turning to the door you think of a way to check if Scavver was still in your house, opting for the simplest solution of knocking
>You raise your hand and knock on the door four times in a somewhat slow manner
>A thud followed by a groan is heard after
>yep she's there still, phew
>Clicking of talons on wood gets more audible as she gets closer to the door, then it completely stops
>The door doesn't open as expected but you hear slightly labored breathing from the other side
>"W-WHO ARE YOU? WE DON'T WANT Y-YOU HERE!"
>You feel like you should play a sick joke on her and scare her
>but on the other hand her stuttering voice and hitching breaths just break your heart, you couldn't do that to her in this state
>She was probably having a panic attack too, so that was also a reason
>You opt not to scare her into a heart attack and just say something to her instead
>"Hey hey hey, it's just me Anon calm down, would you mind opening the door? I'm freezing my ass off over here."
>A sigh of relief is heard from the other side alongside the sound of her fumbling with the door lock, but soon enough she has the door open
>"Thanks Scavver, I knew I was right putting my trust in you."
>Closing the door behind you as you enter you take off the heavy jacket and hang it up, turning to look at the Vulture woman that was looking rather embarrassed
>"Y-yeah thanks for trusting me A-anon, erm sorry for yelling out at you..."
>You just shrug at it, walking to the kitchen
>"You hungry? I don't think you could cook stuff yourself."
>She meekly nods and says something that was barely audible
>"Y-yeah I just ate some bread instead..."
>"Well come on over, we can talk after I get settled back down."
>She shuffles your way taking an empty seat and sitting in it, looking at you with feathered hands in her lap
>You think for a moment about what you should make this afternoon
>How about spaghetti? You already make it in copious amounts every day
>Inwardly shrugging you go with the idea of spaghetti, it was tasty anyway and you're sure she'd appreciate something more filling than bagel bites
>Rifling through your cabinets you grabs the ingredients for the pocket ruiner and toss them on the counter humming to yourself in the meantime
>Scavver silently waited for you to grab the items while staring at her lap, possibly thinking of something but you're not too sure
>You go into a daydream like state feeling like hours pass by as you wait for the noodles to soften but snap out of it when you hear bubbles popping
>You pour the boiling water out into a colander and turn off the stovetop, leaving the sauce to cook a bit more on the still hot pan
>you grab two forks and plates, quickly filling them with spaghetti and skittering off to the table laying a plate in front of Scavver who instantly started to sniff at it
>You pull a chair and sit next to her with your own plate and motion her to start eating, she moves a shaky hand towards the noodles past the fork
>"Woah woah, hey stop-"
>Your comment startles her and she jolts a hand back on her lap, staring at you in fear and embarrassment
>"...You can use the fork so you don't get all dirty."
>You grab your fork and twirl it to demonstrate how to use it, with her eyes intently trained on the bundle of bundle of noodles she nods
>With the dilemma out of the way and you two idly munching on the finest cuisine the Italians can offer you feel like you should ask some questions
>You look up to Scavver wolfing down the meal and clear your throat, her head perks up a bit with her eyes shifting to you
>"Scavver, would you mind if I asked about your history?"
>You really needed to clear the air of mystery that surrounded her, or at least some of it
>Her eyes flick away for a second before returning back to you, letting out a slightly exasperated sigh
>"Just let me ask a few questions first, Anon. This feels too good to be true... like a dream."
>You tilt your head in confusion at the last part of her statement but give a nod to her original request
>"Why are you doing this for me? People don't just let a random homeless person into their home and do this without some sort of scheme going on."
>You open your mouth to respond but she cuts you off
>"I've been on the streets for most of my life, seen how cruel people are and how they can just shove people off just like that. From the point i've met you I thought you'd be like he rest of them, heartless monsters..."
>You listen intently to the vulture's thoughts being said
>"But you've constantly shown me kindness and... and, I want to believe you're doing this because you want to and not just to use me for something, just... if you're going to roll your plan out into effect do it now that i've dropped everything for you."
>You push your chair away to stand, the screech of the legs dragging on the floor making her tense up a bit
>You kneel down to her and wrap your arms around the Vulture woman, even if you only knew her for like three days
>"Of course i'm not planning some diabolical scheme, I just want to help you out of the hole you're in."
>You keep your arms around her as she murmurs something inaudible to you, then gently rocks back and forth
>Why are you doing this? You have no clue, was it the best idea? Probably not but you're determined to get her fixed up and ready for the world again
>You feel like you've had your arms around her for an hour, she starts pulling away so you release your grip on her and step back
>Realizing your shirt was now slightly damp you look to Scavver looking thoughtful and much happier than before
>You look to the stove with the sauce still in the pan, probably cold by now...
>Just as you expected, everything is cold now you wonder if Scavver ate enough but shrug off the thought, quickly packing the leftovers in plastic containers and shoving them into the fridge
>A shiver reminds you of your still damp shirt and freezing weather, you shuffle off towards the stairs with Scavver's gaze following you up the steps
>Creepy
>You pull off your old shirt and put on a fresh one along with a jacket, you can't bothered to change your jeans to something else but you've always been most comfortable in them
>Walking down the stairs you see Scavver in the living room sitting on the couch, facing the blank TV screen
>Sauntering over to her you tap her shoulder to catch her attention, with a yelp... or squawk and a little jump she snaps her head to you
>"Hey, a blizzard is rolling in you want a blanket or something?"
>Motioning towards the slightly frosted over windows as you speak
>With a curt nod she turns back to the TV screen while fidgeting with the feathers on her wings
>Grabbing the remote sitting on armrest of the couch you turn on the TV so she at least has something to keep herself entertained
>After flipping through a few channels you stop on a movie channel and place the remote back down
>You catch a glimpse of Scavver who had the same awestruck expression she had when in the bathroom
>Deciding not to bother her about it you walk to your room, pushing the door open you search around for an extra blanket to give to your guest
>Opening your closet you find them, reaching up you hear a loud screech ring throughout your home spooking and throwing you off balance
>With a few bundles of blankets lying on the floor with you, you hastily pick one up and run down to the source of the screech
>Which of course, to your expectations is Scavver on the floor quivering with her wings covering her head
>Glancing up at the TV you see Shawshank Redemption playing as Andy is crawling out of the sewage tunnel
>... Did the lightning strikes spook her?
>You look down to the still quivering Vulture and clear your throat to get her attention
>"Eh... Scavver, i've got the blanket you okay under there?"
>She pulls her arms away from her face and cranes her head to look at you, giving a meek smile and nod
>Picking herself up, she sits back on the couch and looks in your general direction but not at you directly
>"T-thanks for worrying about me, Anon."
>You give a smile and hand her the blanket that has been sitting on your arm for the past minute, with a quick stretch you look to your windows now completely opaque from frosting over
>Your mind drifts back to the question you asked hours ago, where did she stay in weather like this
>You skim over the multiple options she would probably have... Dumpsters... Squatting in some abandoned house... Some alley...
>"Bah, I shouldn't be thinking like that"
>A cleaned out dumpster does seem rather comfy under some circumstance though
>The feathered woman sitting on your couch turns to face you with a puzzled look on her face
>"Thinking like what?"
>You freeze in your tracks, did you really say that out loud?
>"Nothing, nothing. You don't need to worry about it just some personal stuff."
>With a dismissive wave you hope she bought that shitty little excuse of yours
>Peeking down at your watch you check to see how quickly time flew by
>...9:20 already...
>You didn't really expect to see an almost 5 hour time gap
>"Woah it's already almost 10, how in the hell." Looking to the Vulture woman sitting on your couch you grab her attention with a slight whistle
>"I'm gonna be in my room, probably reading or something get me if you need me."
>With a stretch and a yawn you get a positive from her in the form of a quick nod
>Quickly making your way up stairs you enter your room and collapse on your bed
>You can't help but have this one thought cross your mind
>'...You should probably turn on the heater...'