James walked slowly down the street, wandering aimlessly among the shoppers as he stared blankly through the store windows. The first few flakes of winter snow had begun to fall from the cold, gray sky. The change of season came a few weeks early. James was caught unprepared. He shivered and thrust his hands into the pockets of his thin, fall windbreaker as he turned the corner and headed for the subway. There were just a few more blocks to go and he would soon be riding home.
James' attention was caught by a light in a shop window at the end of a dim alley. He had passed this way a hundred times but he never noticed it before. He stopped abruptly and peered down the alley. There was a sign in the window. It said, "ะะตั ะฐ." James felt an irresistible urge to investigate. He walked down the alley and tried the door. The knob turned freely. The door was open.
A moment of indecision passed over him. James didn't know whether he should go inside or keep heading home but, almost as if something was controlling him, he went inside. He stood in the entry, shaking off the cold as the creaky door closed itself behind him. It took a few moments for James' eyes to adjust to the dim light but he soon got his bearings. It gradually dawned on him that he was standing in the entry of an opulent fur salon.
James turned to leave but, before he could turn the doorknob, a woman's voice called out from the back room. "Ah! Welcome," she said in a thick foreign accent. He spun around and saw, a tall, dark woman dressed in a long, black dress heading toward him. She was an older woman but she was strikingly beautiful. Her long, black hair flowed over her shoulders and her long, low cut dress clung tightly to her figure. "I am Tatiana," she said. "James," he replied with a sheepish voice.
"I'm sorry," he said, "I didn't mean to intrude."
"Nonsense," replied Tatiana, "You come inside, get warm. Is cold outside."
The woman put a firm hand on James' shoulder and ushered him inside. "You like something to drink," she asked?
James tried to turn her down but, before he knew it, the woman thrust a tall glass into his hand. He raised the glass and sniffed. It smelled strong and sweet.
"Russian vodka," she said. "It will make strong man out of you," she said with a smile.
James tasted it. The vodka was strong but he liked it. "Very good," he said, taking another drink.
"What can I show you today," Tatiana asked?
"Umm, I don't know," James stammered.
"This is your first time to see a furrier. No," she asked?
James nodded. A feeling of embarrassment came over him. He took a long sip of vodka to hide his shame.
"Do not worry," said Tatiana. "I will show you furs."
The woman took the glass from James' hand and set it on the table then led him to the racks full of furs. She picked out several coats, one by one, and showed them to James. She looked at each coat, then at James as if she was carefully sizing him up.
James vision became a little blurry. The vodka he drank was taking effect. He stood there, silently, listening to Tatiana explain everything about fur. She talked about the type of fur, the color and how well each one matched his complexion and hair color but her words went in one ear and out the other. He could only stand there with a blank look on his face and nod while a sense of numbness creeped over his face. James' surroundings started getting fuzzy and it seemed like there were furs floating and dancing all around him. He could only hear an occasional word as Tatiana spoke. "Mink" and "Fox" and "Russian Sable" were the only phrases that he could make out.
James snapped back to reality as Tatiana tugged at his jacket. "Here, try this one," she commanded. He obediently took off his windbreaker and laid it across the arm of a chair. Tatiana moved behind him and, before James realized what was happening, she enveloped him in a large, floor-length fur coat. He let out an audible gasp as the fur wrapped around him. James ran his fingers through the warm, soft fur. Tatiana smiled, knowingly, as she moved in front of him and buttoned the coat shut. "You like," she asked? She ushered him toward the mirror so he could see himself surrounded on all sides by the soft, luxurious fur.
James felt warm and comfortable in the fur. He looked at himself in the mirror and thought about how good it made him look. He couldn't stop running his hands through the deep fur. He felt like he could easily get lost inside this furry cocoon. He closed his eyes and submitted to the effects of the alcohol, once again.
A soft sensation brushed over James' neck and the sides of his face. He opened his eyes in time to see a deep, furry hood envelop his head in soft, darkness. Tatiana smiled as she rubbed the fur over his face. James inhaled the sweet aroma of the fur. The musky scent filled his nostrils, slowly overcoming him with a hypnotic effect.