A Treefox and a Watersnake

Part 1: Mist

It was an awesome morning, like it usually was. Mist, a treefox of 9 years old, bounced agilely from branch to branch of the thick forest towards the river. If he hurried, he'd get some fish and return home before his mother woke up. The weather was warm and, although air was always a little humid, it rarely rained more than a thin drizzle here and there during the dry season. But the forest certainly made up for it during the rainy season.

There were three sentient, humanoid races in the great forest. Treefoxes, living in the mid- to higher layers of the trees, the birdfolk, living at the treetops, and the burrowers, who made their homes under the great roots and inside the earth. Not that Mist had ever actually seen a burrower, but he had heard they only came out of their hiding during the night.

Treefoxes were relatively small in build, 3 feet on average, making it easy for them to maneuver high above the ground. The trees were safe for them - the carnivores focused on even smaller prey -, whereas on the forest floor prowled many predators who'd love to make a snack of any stray treefox. Their village, their dens, was also built high up, for the females and genderless cubs to live in. The males transformed into animal-like shapes upon sexual maturity and left the village, only coming back every five years when they regained their original shapes for a full cycle of the moon to sire new cubs. Which was also one of the reasons Mist was particularly excited - he'd get to see his father again soon, for the second time in his life!

As appearances went, Mist was a pretty regular treefox, with bushy tail and furry, pointed ears at the sides of his head. The paw pads at the soles of his feet made it easy to run also on uneven surfaces, and he moved on all fours almost as easily as on two feet. His short hair was a mix of reddish brown and sandy brown locks, he had hazel fox-eyes that glowed in the dark, and there were freckles all over his nose and cheekbones. And he was 2'8'', almost reached adult height.

Soon enough he reached the river, stretching endlessly both upstream and downstream and probably as wide or even wider than their entire village. Deep too. He couldn't see to the bottom, nor did he wish to dive in to find out where it might be - treefoxes couldn't swim. That was why fish was a rare treat.

But Mist had his secret fishing spot. A big tree had chosen to grow too close to the water, and with time some of the earth under its roots had fallen away. As long as he was careful, he could creep along the large roots and reach the water's surface.

He left the bag he carried tied to his back with a wide strap across his chest on the shore, jumped to the roots, twisted his legs around a suitable one and flipped upside down. A fish swam right under him, probably thinking it was safe in the cover of the tree roots.

*splash* And now the said fish was breakfast.

Mist twisted the fish's neck to make sure it was dead and tossed it to the shore. He wanted at least two more - one for himself, one for mother and one for his younger sibling.

His ears perked at the sudden, strangely straining sound. What was that?

Then he felt his perch tilt dangerously, water splashing against his body. Oh no! The tree was losing its hold on the remaining earth completely. He tried to flip back upright and get back to solid ground, but too late. He was caught in the tangled roots and was pushed underwater, into the currents under the tranquil-looking surface.

~*~*~

Author's notes: Yes, I do use masculine pronouns for a genderless character. My native language (Finnish) has only one third-person pronoun for people (and another for animals and objects), so I have always seen pronouns as genderless. When I learned English, I defaulted to "he/him" (I actually still have to sometimes correct it when I write female characters).

I respect people's own choices for pronouns and try to follow them. If I ever write a story with a character who identifies as any kind of trans person, I will probably carefully pick a proper pronoun.

But the thing is...Mist doesn't care. For him gender truly does not exist. It's something that's relevant only for adults. So the default it is.