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Of Fox and Wolf Chapter 1: Water and Blood

*Bang*. *Crack*. *Clap*. James awakens to the sound of rushing water falling onto the house, like a torrential current which now occupies the airspace above. Panting awake and gasping for breath, James quickly takes note of his surroundings. His big bushy tail stands bristled, and shock goes down his spine. 'That fucking dream had been so real,' he thinks to himself. He first glances down at his paws and he sighs in relief as he recognizes his distinct red and white fur pattern, one akin to many of the Vulpine folk. Once he confirms that he is still the same fox as the night before, he looks about at his immediate dwellings.

Panic goes through his mind as he fails to recognize the room that he is in. Everything is wrong. The walls are a stark steel silver, the bed is of deep oak wood, and the desk, well, he didn't even own a desk! Fear threatens to take over him as his mind processes these images.

"Shit," James whispers to himself, in the darkness of the room. The voice of this young boy dies into the night, extinguished quickly and quietly.

James gets up and walks over to the nearest wall. Using moonlight as a guide, he traverses along the structure, and locates the light switch. He flicks it, and light illuminates the room. With the room now lit, James can take a deeper look at the area in question. To his right stands a mirror about 5 feet tall, the same height as the boy, and on his left the bed. James investigates the mirror and assesses his features.

He sees his baby blue eyes looking back at him and proceeds to scan the rest of his slender body. James' fur pattern is red with white accents, his tail red with a white tip. His paws are white as well, just like his torso, the color spreading up to just above his nose. Many would say he looks like the text book definition of a red fox and this would be true, were it not for James' unique white stripes which decorate his face.

Just as James begins to wonder if he is being vain for staring into the mirror for this long, he is startled by a noise originating within the same room.

*Sigh*. "What are you doing this time?" inquires a mellow and distinctly female voice. James looks over to see a nearly pure black wolf groggily stand up from her sleeping bag to the side of the bed. She is clearly still tired and very sure she did not get her preferred 8 hours of sleep.

James is instantly calmed by the sight of the beautiful wolf. He takes comfort in her familiar black coat and recognizes her spots of white that speckle her fur. "Victoria! Thank the Gods I recognize a friendly face. Sorry I woke you up in such an unpleasant way," James apologizes to his friend.

Victoria, now at her full height of about 5 feet, straightens out her pajamas, unbunching the fabric which gathered around her small breasts. She sighs and focuses her vision on James, making out the emotions that his face is displaying. The wolfess sees the genuine remorse in the fox's face and instantly perks up, not trying to make him feel bad. "S'all good, James, but what are you doing at the mirror, and especially at this time of night?" Victoria responds.

"Well..., and I know this is going to sound like a stupid question, but...," James pauses and looks down at the floor, almost ashamed for the query. "But do you know where we are?"

Victoria laughs in a hearty way, not at all of spite, but of surprise. "Hahaha, well consider our team boned if my partner can't even remember the place that he laid his head the night before."

Victoria notices that James' face appears to grow slightly crestfallen at the laughter, and she eases up on the poor confused fox. "Hey James, don't feel bad about it. To be fair, you were extremely tired yesterday after we hung out," she says sweetly, not meaning to make the fox feel sad. "But how can you not remember this place? This is my room..." Victoria begins but trails off.

She looks around at the room, more intently now that her eyes are focused. Suddenly, Victoria rushes over to James, so fast that she nearly knocks him down. Clearly surprised, James' eyes widen, and he begins to freak out.

"Shh, don't speak. Just listen," Victoria says, her voice now heavy with a seriousness that James has seldom seen. "Damnit, this means it has already begun. Okay, James, listen, what you see now is not real. But don't worry. Remember this one thing and we will make it out of this, alright?" Victoria pauses before speaking low and stoic. "I am the only one you can trust. You understand?"

James looks deep into her blazing emerald eyes as he drinks in the words Victoria has told him. He thinks about all the times that they have had each other's back. All the adventures that they went on, those which were simply fun, and those which were life changing. He especially thinks of one moment, the single event which propelled these two unlikely friends together.

*Flashback*

Four years ago, at Stone-ridge Park, a young fox cub of 11 years is on the receiving end of a vicious beat down. His attacker is a proud yellow lion who, in his own eyes, can do no wrong. This includes being forgetful and misplacing 20 dollars, of which he accuses the fox of having a hand in.

"Augh!" James exclaims as he falls to the floor. Pain shoots through his body, his muscles aching from exhaustion. Blood falls to the ground from the wounds on his marred face. He struggles back to his feet and can barely stand with his own power. James' mind works to process the scene unfolding in front of his eyes.

Towering over him, stands the lion, a full 2 feet taller than the fox cub. Flanking the lion are a hyena and a jackal, both delinquents who would be utterly lost, were it not for their craven leader. All wear a face of contempt for the cub. The two lackeys laugh as the lion rears again for another punch.

"I know that you stole from me, you little bitch," said the lion, his voice filled with malice. "I am going to show you what happens when you mess with your superiors."

*Crack*. The punch connects with James' face and sends the fox straight back to the floor. The fox gasps for breath as the wind leaves his small chest. The air seems too thin to the fox and threatens to choke him. Even so, the aggressors refuse to relent.

"You think you're in pain now? This is nothing compared to what I have in store for you," spits the lion. "Hold him down," he instructs to his minions.

The jackal and hyena approach the fox who is writhing in pain. The hyena grabs James's arms and holds them at wingspan. The jackal performs a similar action with the fox's legs. The lion grins as he takes his slow walk over to the fox.

"You know, I had heard that foxes were supposed to be extremely clever. Though, that appears to be a lie, considering the position that you are in," sneers the lion. "How about we start a new saying? It can be that foxes are not only scum, but they are fragile too."

The lion lifts his leg to his chest and propels it back down with great force, directly onto the outstretched arm of the fox. *Crunch*. The fox screams out in agony as the bones in his left arm shatter in an instant. James' limb is on fire and the pain begins to threaten his consciousness.

"Damn, that was almost too easy!" roars the lion with a sick sense of accomplishment. "But you know, I am surprised that you haven't blacked out from the pain yet. I guess this means that you are ready for some more."

"Uh, hey, Alex, I don't know about this man," spoke the hyena. "I mean, haven't we done enough to this kid? We don't want to take this too far you know?"

At this the lion seemed to become truly enraged. "Shut the fuck up, Jake!" snarled the lion. "If you ever question me again, I will personally fuck you up. Understand?" The hyena simply cowered in fear at the lion and nodded his affirmation. "Good. Now I can finish what I started," said Alex.

The lackeys grabbed James' limbs once again, save for the freshly broken arm. "I think we should even him out. Not going to be any good at stealing without your arms, now will you?" remarked Alex. The lion approached the fox's right arm this time and reared up again to deal damage. James shut his eyes and braced himself for the coming onslaught.

*Thud*. James waited but the attack never came. Instead, he heard a body hitting the concrete next to him. The fox opened his eyes and was shocked to see that the form had been that of the lion, who now lay on the ground, unconscious. Looking up, James could have sworn that he now saw an angel standing above him.

A black wolfess regained her stance from a high kick that she dealt to the lion's head. Her green eyes were on fire as fury radiated from her body. "You," the wolf pointed to the hyena. "Grab this piece of shit's body and get away from here. Now."

The scent of fear was heavy in the air, as the jackal and the hyena simply looked on in horror at their leader who was lying face first on the ground, looking lifeless and cold. At the words from the wolf, the lackeys quickly grabbed the lion and scrambled out of the area, running faster than they thought they ever could in their lives.

With the danger now passed, the wolf let out her breath and sighed a heavy relief. She had been worried that the other two would be willing to fight, and without the element of surprise on her side, she had doubts in her ability to fight a two on one battle. 'Glad it didn't have to come to that,' she thought.

The wolf turned her attention now to James, who looked to be in an extremely bad shape. "Oh no, you are hurt bad!" the wolf exclaimed. She tried to lift the fox to his feet but stopped as James screamed out in pain as she touched his left arm. "Damnit, your arm must be broken. Okay, I know what to do but you may not like it," the wolf explained to the fox.

With this, the wolf scooped up the beaten fox in her arms and began to run in the direction of the hospital. At this point, the pain and the blood loss compounded and the adrenaline that James felt from the fight wore off. His body finally gave up on him and he drifted into a deep sleep. The last thing that he saw were those bright green eyes of his savior, their glow awash with determination.

It's been six hours since the fight and the wolfess, her head in her hands, tears falling down her face, is replaying the scenario in her head, over and over. 'If only I had been quicker, if only I had more warning, I could have prevented all of this. I could have saved him,' the wolf thinks with great sorrow. Lying in the bed in front of her is the fox, who hasn't woken up since. Despite her actions, despite how she tried to help him, it seems to have all been in vain.

James opens his eyes to the sound of sad sobs filling the room. 'Where am I?' wonders the fox. He looks over to his left and sees his arm in a cast, monitors beeping steadily as they measure his vitals. 'The hospital? How did I get here?' questions continue to ponder the fox. 'Hospitals give me the creeps. They are only ever filled with sick people or those on the verge of death,' thought James. That last word resonated with the fox, as he realizes that he himself was probably close to dying. Chills go down his spine.

Sobs had once again filled the ears of the fox. He now set his sights on the right side of the room and can't believe his eyes; his angel is sitting right next to him! But now the fire in her eyes has died, instead tears of mourning fill its place. Emotions well up inside James' heart. 'Why would anyone cry because of me? Me, the lonely fox, the one who is constantly on the end of every joke. Me, the one who is looked upon with distrust and hate, simply for being alive.' With all these thoughts, and compounded by the pain, James finally lets rain fall from his own face.

Victoria finally calms down enough to stop crying. But despite this, she continues to hear weeping. She lifts her face from her hands and sees what she perceives as a miracle. The fox boy who she thought was never going to wake up, is now not only conscious, but crying.

"You're finally awake!" shouted Victoria, her voice filled to the brim with happiness. The wolfess immediately rushes over to the bedside and encompasses James in a broad hug. James is taken aback by this action. Not only did this stranger help him out in his darkest hour, but she cared enough about him to stay by his side till the end. Can he really trust the wolfess and her good intentions when so many before were so cruel to him?

James gathers his emotions enough to control his voice. "Th... thank you! Thank you so much. I would be dead without you," he wretches out between sobs. "But why me? Why would someone like you ever choose to help a shifty fox like me? I don't deserve it. To everyone I have ever met, I am the scum of the Earth. A blight upon society who should have never been born. How is it that you can dare to hug me, and not feel the same way?"

Victoria was in somewhat of a shock at finding out that these were feelings that the fox harbored. She knew that life could not be easy for the fox, especially after what she witnessed today, but she had no idea it was this bad. Though, she did know what it was like to be alone. She herself was viewed as an outcast, all because she was a black wolf. She saw the looks given to her by the eyes of others. She felt the disdain, the hate, radiating from their prejudiced bodies.

"Stop," Victoria said low and stern. "Look, I understand how you feel. I know that it can get rough, especially when it seems like the world would be better off without you. I know the anger that you have bottled up deep inside of you. I know, because I have been through the same exact thing. But please just stop. Stop doubting yourself, stop feeling like you are less than nothing. Most importantly, stop thinking that you owe anyone a single thing. You have worth. You are special. There is no one in this world who can tell you otherwise."

At those words, James' walls broke down. His cries grew heavy and fierce as he came to realize that Victoria was different. She really was a good person, and someone who did not see differences, only people. He tried to form words, but sobs and hiccups were the only things to leave his mouth.

The wolf also recognized what the fox was experiencing right before her eyes. It is a shocking thing to learn that there is someone else in the world who truly understands the pain that you feel inside. As if on cue, Victoria drew the weeping fox into her bosom, knowing actions would speak much louder than words right now. "I'm sorry!" muffled the fox through the wolf's silk fur.

"Shh, its okay. Its okay," cooed the wolf. "Just let it all out. All the hurt, all the pain, all the suffering. Let it leave your body and have only your joy remain." James simply buried his head deeper into her chest and lost the want for words. For all Victoria knew, the fox could keep releasing for hours. And that was okay to her. She felt that by doing this, she was giving the fox something that he had yearned for all his life. Love.

Eventually, James' body could not endure anymore. He was exhausted. Being completely drained of his tears and still afflicted by the pain of his injuries, he drifted off to sleep in the arms of the wolf.

Victoria holds onto the poor fox a little while longer after he passes out. She then rests his head back on the pillow and tucks him back into his bed. "Sleep easy now, my fox. For now, you have a guardian angel, me," Whispers the wolf to James. As she finishes laying the fox, Victoria catches her eye on the clock. 2 am reads the digital display.

'Damn, I didn't realize how late it had gotten,' thinks the wolf. She sighs to herself and begins to gather her things to leave the fox in peace. Victoria now feels relief that the fox had woken up while she was here and knows he will be better by the time he reawakens. Before she leaves, the wolf grabs a notepad on the side of the bed. She jots down a couple lines before she places it on the strewn-out shirt that belonged to James. "See you in the morning," whispers the wolfess as she exits the room.

*End of Chapter 1*