The Fox that Wished to be Human

Chapter One

Trotting down the moonlit jungle path, Yeou the gray fox had several things on her mind. Her first priority, naturally, was the avoidance of the large Bengal she had scented nearby. The next item on her list was ensuring that her buried meal from earlier had not been uncovered. Her third worry, however, was not about herself. Well, not completely.
  There was a girl. A human girl, with strange teal hair and wild vermillion eyes. The girl hadn't caught sight of Yeou, but the fox had a sneaking suspicion that her pelt would look nice as a pair of boots to her. Yeou was quiet, and rather clever, so she understood that this newcomer would mean her own departure. She didn't know much of humans, in these harsh jungles, but her mother had told her they were nothing but trouble. She had nothing to lose by leaving, anyway. There weren't many foxes in these parts.
  Yeou hopped onto a low-hanging tree branch, scored with years' worth of claw marks. She proceeded diagonally, until she entered a hollow within the trunk. This was the Hometree, her chosen den. Yeou had had many different homes throughout her life; this was by far her favourite, but it was replaceable. Everything is, and anyone who should think otherwise is sorely mistaken.
  As she curled up in her jungle apartment, images of the human girl swirled around in Yeou's mind. There was something about her that piqued her curiosity. What could it be? Humans were trouble. She knew this mantra by heart, and yet, she couldn't help but feel an itching to find the girl again.
  The girl was strong. She could swing from the vines with ease, and was able to climb trees by the bark alone. Her clothing carried proof of her toughness. Stitched together with sinews, a dress of pelts adorned her body. Yeou had shuddered when she saw it first. A patch of grey by the shoulder made her wonder if she had once known anyone that was now in the dress.
  Smelling strongly of tigers, Yeou had to wonder if the girl had defeated one of these beasts, too. All around the girl lingered the sour scent, as if she regularly wrestled with the beasts. Tigers didn't usually take much issue with foxes, but Yeou didn't want to take that chance.
  Yeou's choice of home wasn't only due to the added security of sleeping above the forest floor. From her position in the hollow, she had a perfect view of the night sky. Her eyes fluttered as the moon drifted past. Spirituality was a human concept, her mother had taught her. These words did not ring true. There was something else here. There had to be. Yeou didn't know what these feelings meant, but she did know that the moon was at the centre of it all. Foxes do not worship, Yeou's mother whispered in her ear as she drifted to sleep.

  The morning passed Yeou by rather uneventfully. Her buried mice were in the right spot, and there weren't any large predators around. She had not much else to do for the day. Inactivity could be dangerous.
  Slinking down the same path she had traversed the other night, Yeou wanted to make sure of something. If the girl had decided to move on after all, then Yeou could continue life at the Hometree. She didn't want to give it up if she deemed it unnecessary. A bare footprint in the soft dirt stopped Yeou in her tracks. This was new.
  It smelled fresh. The footprints lead from the path to a tree. The fox's eyes followed this progression up the trunk of a kapok tree, where the girl must have climbed. The girl is certainly a primate, Yeou thought. She was ready to dismiss the girl as long gone, when something made her look up.
  Yeou didn't have much time to process the net that fell upon her. As soon as it hit, she crumpled to the ground. Her instant reaction was to begin frantically clawing at the woven plant matter. Flexible sticks made up the net, weighing her down. They were green with youth. Her teeth could not snap the soft fibres. Her cry could be heard from the treetops, as birds flew away from the struggle. Yeou rolled to her back in a panic. She batted at the net with her paws. Her eyes rolled in her head, trying to think of every possible escape plan. The net was weighted with rocks. She couldn't lift the net. She wasn't strong enough. Shapes moved above her. She shoved her snout through the largest opening. Something brushed her nose. She yelped.
  This was it. She had gone looking for trouble. No good fox would do such a thing. Curiosity had the same effect on foxes as it did cats. Her last thought, as the weight lifted from her body, was a hope that she would make cute boots.
  No death blow came. Yeou didn't realize her eyes were closed until she opened them. Staring her in the face was a pair of vermillion eyes. To her surprise, they contained no malice. The human, on all fours, leaned over Yeou's face. The two locked eyes. Was there a trace of softness?
  The girl breathed heavily. She slowly rose to her feet, never looking away. She smelled strongly of tigers. Her mouth formed sounds, sculpted words of a language Yeou did not speak. There was a kind of understanding between the two. They fascinated each other.
  The net removed, Yeou did not so much as twitch until the girl was out of sight. She picked herself up and moved slowly homewards. Why would the human waste a trap on her, only to allow her to leave? Though small carnivores did not possess quality meat, her fur was soft and valuable. Her mother told stories of the market stalls lined with fox pelts in the human towns. Yeou was not sure if this girl attended these markets. She had the appearance of a jungle animal herself.
Back at home in the hollow, Yeou sat still and closed her eyes. She enjoyed a healthy amount of self-reflection every so often. The girl reeked of tigers, a detail that Yeou could not understand. Bengals were bloodthirsty monsters who hunted anything that moved. These thoughts swirled around in her head, never mixing into a cohesive conclusion.

  The moon, full in form, rose into viewing position before long. Yeou perched on a tree branch, gazing out at the ethereal figure. Darkness enveloped the jungle, finally quieting from the days' activities. A beam of moonlight seemed to slice through the gloom, landing perfectly on Yeou. The soft glow scattered in her fur, making her feel as though she belonged with the celestial body.
  Something felt different tonight. Yeou looked down at her black paws. She lifted one, only to notice that it left no shadow in the light. She looked back at the moon. It seemed larger than usual. She looked all around. The rainforest was quiet. Not another animal stirred. Where were the nocturnal animals? The birds should chirp, even in the night. Beetles still clicked and squirrels still chittered when the sun went down. But tonight, all Yeou could hear was her own breathing.
  There was a voice. A light, breathy voice. It spoke directly in her ear, but when she turned to look, there was nothing. The voice was that of a young woman, but it spoke a different tongue than the girl she had encountered that day.
"The Mistress of the Moon has been watching you, dear fox," the voice began. "You have been faithful to us."
Yeou took a step backward, hackles raised. Was this a trick?
"No need to fear, young one. I am the Moon Rabbit Songpyeon, messenger of the Mistress. We deliver only gifts and knowledge. Please, listen to what we must say."
She peeked out from the hollow. The voice continued,
"Fox, do you know of your lineage?"
Yeou did not speak. The tongue being used was different from her own fox-speak, yet she understood it perfectly.
"No, I thought not. Dear fox, an ancestor before you was a Kumiho, a fox spirit. She was a loyal patron of the Mistress. Her blood runs deep within you, dormant."
Yeou tipped her head to the side, searching the moon for any sign of change.
"But you have awoken the powers of the Kumiho. Your wish, to connect with the humans, will soon become accessible to you through the grace of the Mistress of the Moon. I leave you with the gift of tongues. Good-bye, young kumiho. May the moon light your path."
  Just as soon as the voice had appeared, it slipped away.