The Fox That Loved

Ch. 1: The Fox

Feeling the wind on my paws was so refreshing it made me feel complete. I closed my eyes to feel like I was flying.

A huge rustle of feathers caused me to jolt my eyes open. My ears perked towards the direction of the disturbance. I twisted my head towards the direction my ears were pointing.

Tucked under a branch, there was a goose bleeding tremendously. My pupils expanded and I sprinted towards the wounded goose.

This will be my dinner. Thank you, Fox Slana. (Fox Heaven where Fox-Walkers go when they die.) I thought to myself as I tackled the goose.

The goose honked and thrashed but quickly stopped when the neck bone snapped. The light faded from its eyes as I dragged it away from its original location.

I slung it onto my backside and sprinted across the field towards my den. The sun is going down, I better eat this fast.

I threw the dead body of the goose into my den and feasted on the limp meat. Feathers got into my mouth and I spat out some, blood covering the feathers.

After feasting on the goose, I laid down on the hard, damp rocky floor and waited for the feeling of sleep to wash over me. It never came.

I picked myself up with a full belly. I walked out of the cold cave, my eyes blinking slowly. The harsh wind stung my eyes, forcing them shut.

I searched for a light, or anything to distract me enough to fall asleep. I was about to go back in when a light flickered on in the distance. It started to move through the trees, it looked like it was headed nearby my den.

Should I follow it?

My paws seemed to lift off the ground and followed the light, like a moth to a flame. I hid behind a big rock covered in moss as the light drew closer.

It was a man. He looked about my age in human form. I was about to approach him, but an older man came up behind him with a rifle.

The old man spoke, "Johnny, I told you why we're hunting this late. Can you repeat what I said?" The man named Johnny spoke, "You said, 'I'm taking you hunting to kill foxes.'"

My eyes widened with fear. They're coming to kill me? I stopped myself from yelping out in fear just as they walked past me. The men walked off in a direction away from my den. I booked it back to it in record time, grabbing moss off the rock.

I threw it onto the mouth of the den and entered it. I laid down on the ground, whimpering myself to sleep.

I haven't had this emotion in a long time, I thought to myself. I was scared.