FOX — Vadim P. Chernyshev

The fox looked exhausted. Her fur was matted in clumps, her gaze empty. The animal seemingly understood she wouldn't survive without human help. Maybe that’s why she came to die on my doorstep. The sign on the door, "Veterinarian Chernyshev V.P.", had worn considerably over the years. The front garden, piled high with fallen leaves, evoked a sense of melancholy.

"You really picked the wrong time," I muttered, examining the forest guest. "Who did this to you?"

A wound was visible on the redhead's flank. Either from a knife or she had snagged on something.

"And they say animals can't read," I added to myself. "Of all the houses, she chose mine."

I lifted the poor creature and carried her into the examination room. The predator behaved calmly, allowing me to inspect the wound. Only then did I remember that I hadn't put on protective gloves or muzzled the fox. A strange feeling of inner calm spread through my body. For some reason, I was sure she wouldn't bite. And then there was that intelligent gaze of the furry guest. A strange case, to say the least.

Two dogs in the inpatient cages wagged their tails and whined piteously at the sight of the wild beast. As if they recognized her as one of their own. Only the cat watched calmly as I stitched up the wound without any caution.

"I hope it doesn't hurt?" I spoke to the fox, assuming the anesthesia was already working.

After the operation, I placed the patient in a spacious cage. Rest was the best medicine for her now. Before leaving the operating room, I tightly closed the window and turned off the lights. The world outside the walls of the house fell silent, preparing for sleep. I turned on the TV, laid out some snacks on the table, and began flipping channels in search of something worth watching. Each subsequent program induced more boredom than the last, and I had already despaired of finding something entertaining when suddenly a documentary about Eastern myths caught my attention.

"Kitsune... a mythical yokai creature in Japanese mythology and folklore, a fox possessing supernatural abilities... In Japanese folklore, foxes possess great knowledge, long life, and magical powers. Chief among them is the ability to assume human form. A fox, according to legend, learns to do this upon reaching a certain age... Kitsune usually take the form of a seductive beauty, a pretty young girl..." I listened with half an ear to the announcer's voice between sips of tea.

"Right," I said to the TV. "I have one of those in a cage right now, she walked into the appointment herself. Just waiting for the transformation."

Night took its toll, and eventually, I surrendered to the mercy of fatigue, wrapping myself in a blanket. I had never seen stranger dreams in my life. A colorful, sensual world with whimsical animals and trees surrounded my house. My soul felt light and joyful. Not a soul around, only the singing of birds and hope for the future. Someone put a hand on my shoulder. I looked back. A girl of unseen beauty smiled at me and whispered something in an unknown dialect. Drowning in her blue eyes, I clearly realized that I had known her for a thousand years. My heart rejoiced at the meeting. I reached out and embraced the beauty. My palm slid down, unexpectedly finding a scar on her flank.

"Fox?" I screamed in my sleep and woke up in a cold sweat.

My thoughts were in a jumble. Outside the window, a raven sat on a branch, watching me. Against the backdrop of a full moon, it was quite a sight.

"Some kind of devilry," I thought. "I'll go see how she is."

Drinking some water on the way, I headed to the working area of the house where I usually receive patients. The dogs slept peacefully; the cat stared at me with an indifferent gaze. Turning to the fox's cage, I went numb. The door was wide open; the wounded beast had vanished. I frantically searched every corner of the room, but the vixen had mysteriously slipped out of the house. All windows and doors were tightly shut.

"Is this madness?" I spoke to myself. "She couldn't have just evaporated."

Abandoning all attempts to find the missing beast, I lay down in bed. Thoughts slipped away into the void in a chaotic train until I finally lost touch with reality.

In the morning, I went around the whole house again but found no trace of the runaway. A week later, I forgot about the incident. You never know—the cage opened, the beast ran away, the window slammed shut by the wind... it happens.

The beginning of October turned out to be surprisingly cold. The climate had become unpredictable. Ground wind covered the foliage; the garden was transformed. The feeling of expecting something new did not leave my soul. A stable life is good in all respects, except for its stability. Sometimes you want colors, like in that amazing dream.

The doorbell snapped me out of my thoughts. Throwing on a robe, I trudged to open the door with a disgruntled look. I can't stand being disturbed on non-working days, especially when I plan to sleep.

Opening the door, I was dumbstruck. On the threshold stood the girl from my dream. A light smile on her face, a sharp nose, and bottomless blue eyes reminded me of my night visions.

"Is it you?" I squeezed two words out of myself.

"I am Mei Lin," the stranger from another world chirped modestly. "I came to thank you for saving me."

I stared at the beauty like a ram at a new gate, unable to say a word. Social norms forced my brain to wake up, while my memory frantically searched for an instance when I had saved someone even remotely resembling the guest.

"Would you like to come in?" I mumbled in reply. "When did I save you? I am a veterinarian. I treat animals."

Mei Lin walked into the house, looking around in surprise. The cat, who hated everyone but me, began rubbing against her legs with loud purring.

"Bought a new coffee table?" the beauty asked in a quiet whisper.

"Do we know each other?" I persisted. "Although, it seems I saw you in a dream. Is such a thing possible?"

"Vadim, why do humans, upon experiencing a real event that does not fit into their concept of existence, deny it in every possible way? Write it off as a dream, for example."

"You don't mean to say that a were-fox is standing before me right now? I may be a veterinarian, but I am still a doctor, a man of science. This cannot be, because it cannot be."

The girl sat down on the sofa and, with a fluid gesture, invited me to do the same.

"It all depends on the time of year, transitional vibrations, and His Majesty Chance. I have been looking for you for a long time. And you were reborn here, in this body. Do you not remember me at all?"

"I am seeing you... sorry, thee, for the first time. I..."

"You are a yokai. Just like me..."