Talk to the Fox
You weigh your options for a moment longer, but your eyes keep flickering behind you where the fox is just sitting, watching on. Curiosity gets the better of you, and you turn around to face the strange fox. Without a word, you slowly move toward it, wondering if it will run away the second you get too close.
It does not. It remains where it is, looking relaxed and at ease.
You end up standing before the fox and study it. It doesn’t seem to be like you, you think, since it’s the normal size for a fox. But it keeps looking at you with bright human-like eyes, until it smiles wider, baring human-like teeth. It unsettles you at first, and you flinch a bit. And yet, though you are freaked out by the sight, you note that the smile isn’t malicious or unkind at all. It appears quite friendly, and both the chill posture and the look in its eyes mirror this.
“Having fun in your new form, are we?” the fox asks. Its voice is distinctly feminine, enough to where you wonder if it’s a vixen instead. You don’t know.
You gawk, however, when your mind processes the fact the fox just spoke. “What?”
The fox giggles. “Come now. You heard me. Yes, I am a fox. And yes, I am speaking to you.” It’s tail slowly swishes about, and it cocks its head to the side, studying you in a thoughtful sort of way. “You aren’t dreaming, or going crazy, or imagining things. Well. You aren’t dreaming or imagining things. Can’t really confirm whether or not you AREN’T going crazy.”
You continue to stare at this talking creature, absorbing the fact that, well, it’s talking in the first place. Part of your brain registers the insanity of this, and yet, you also think that you’re currently not even human any longer because you put a weird costume on. So, you decide that ship has sailed.
“You have questions, yes?” the fox asks. “They always do in these scenarios. You aren’t the first human to end up like this.” It uses one paw to point at you. “Nor will you be the last. Folk like you always find the doors, and they always end up going through to see what’s on the other side. Curiosity, eh?”
You rub the back of your neck with your paw. The sensation is still a bit foreign, but, you’re growing used to it, you think. “Who are you?”
“Not so much a ‘who,’ but a ‘what,’ dear child,” the fox replies. It giggles again, as if it’s amused by its own answer. “Think of me as a guide for this realm you’ve stumbled into, here to offer you advice. A trickster guide, yes, but, an earnest trickster guide, I’ll have you know.” It winked. “Next question.”
Written by Hollowpages on 13 December 2019
