Moving soundlessly, I follow the blur of orange and white.
Cunning with cat-like swiftness; despite out differences we are the same; we are the Children of Fall.
It veers left. I veer left. Under a log. Over the log.
It is a tradition in Autumn, this dance of human and animal. To chase and to catch, but never to harm. I can hear it breathing, or maybe that's just me.
My sisters and I have been practicing for use, the first Trial of Soldiers task and none of us have ever caught one.
Someone's coming up on my left, they've spotted it too. I can't let them get there first. I pick up my speed, pumping my fists, and grinning a wild-eyed smile.
Left. Right. Around this tree. Through these bushes. Never tiring.
I'm within inches now. My finger's brush the tail. I leap, arching my body into a cage.
I feel movement between my arms and then it stops. Slowly, cautiously, I sit up; releasing the animal.
The fox, not much older than a year slinks out from under me and sits down. It cocks its head, looking into my eyes.
"Come on," I whisper getting up and heading back triumphantly to the court yard where the chase began.
When I reach my destination whistles are blown to signal the other competitiors that the chase is over.
There hasn't been a catch in several years, so everyone is crowding around me trying to get a look at the new recruit. None of us, except the royal family, know how it works, but there is some type of magic in the foxes that when they come into contact with humans they instantly become attached to that human. Only soldiers and soldier prospects are allowed to compete in the Chase. So since Caught Foxes do their best not to leave their companion's side, they end up being used as war animals helping their companion with whatever duty they are assigned. And if a prospect happens to get a catch they are instantly ranked as a soldier, which is what has just happened.
I smile down at the little creature wrapping itself around my ankles. "His name," I start responding to the question someone asked, "Javed."
He looks up at me as if he knows I was talking about him. I nod in reply, "Let's go." And with that we head over to the training yard to begin our first day as soldiers.