Fox Eyes

The fox sniffs the outside of its den before cautiously climbing out.  A shadow above warns it of potential danger, and the vulpine hides among the emerald bushes.

An owl lands on a branch, its talons digging into its lofty perch. As the full moon illuminated the ancient forest, its amber eyes scanned the evergreens for any sign of movement.  A rustle in the bushes below caught the wise bird’s attention.  

The majestic red fox trotted out of the bushes, ears twitching as to detect the faintest sound.  It perked its rusty head up when it heard the call of the owl above.  It darted for cover whilst the owl took off.  The owl looked at the vulpine, seemingly debating whether the chase was worth it.

It flew off course when it heard a small vole scurrying on the forest floor.

Quietly, the owl swooped down, reaching out its talons, and catching the vole in one swift motion.

The bird turned and clambered inside a hollow tree.  Rasping, the owlet called for food.

The mother owl took the vole into her beak and dropped it into her young’s awaiting beak.

As the owlet began eating, the mother owl preened her chick, taking care not to hurt her baby with her razor-sharp beak.  When the preening was complete, she took off into the night again.  Scanning the trees all the while, not letting one movement out of her glimpse.  Her large eyes reflected the moon’s glimmer.

When the fox saw the great horned owl soar off in a different direction, it came out of the tree root cavern.  Sniffing the air for the scent of food, it found a sweet smell wafting from the north.

Jumping from rock to rock, it scanned the area for any sign of danger.  Finding none, it looked into the cold lake, the violet stars brightly shimmering in its reflection.  Slowly, it lowered its head closer to the cool waters, lapping it up with its pink tongue causing ripples.  When satisfied, the fox bounded off into the bushes.  The small vulpine gingerly made its way to the brambles ahead.  Carefully, the fox ate the sweet blackberries off the thorny vines.  It strayed too close to the vines, and got a thorn on its muzzle and legs.  It whined in pain, searching for anything that could remove the thorn.  It stiffened when it heard footsteps through the trees.  Fear freezing the poor creature in place, too panicked to move.  As the sounds got louder it saw a tall figure trod out of the treeline.  “Oh you poor thing!” The tall creature whispered.  To the fox’s growing horror, the creature came closer and closer, overshadowing its small frame.  “Easy there, I’m not here to hurt you, I simply want to help.” The thing reassured the animal.  Unfortunately for the fox, the fear got too much and it promptly passed out.

The vulpine opened its eyes, spotting the odd creature sitting down.  Surprisingly, it found the thorns gone, and a bit of herbal-smelling stuff there instead.  

It whimpered from the lingering pain.

The firelight cast a warm glow on the forest floor.

It pondered why the human hadn’t killed it, and why it got rid of the thorns.

Gingerly, it sniffed in the creature’s direction, smelling pine, smoke, the herbal salve, and cooked fowl.  The vulpine’s mouth watered at the scent. The creature poked around in its pockets and pulled out a bag of the chicken that the fox smelled earlier.

The creature crept closer and placed the chicken on the ground.

Slowly, it backed away and returned to where it was sitting.

The fox got up, its ears twitching, taking in its surroundings before cautiously walking forward to eat the chicken.

Keeping its slit amber eyes on the human, it scarffed the cooked meal down.

Bowing its head low, it bound off into the trees. 

“Take care, little one,” The human smiled.