Hatee-Ho friend! The fox has edited chapters 1-3 of this story, so if you've read these before read em' again. Trust me, you'll get so much more from the edits! And once again, thank you so sooooo much for reading this silly fox's ideas and sending your reviews! They are most helpful 3~ Hope you enjoy what I have to offer!~

The Curious Incident of the Fox-Woman in the Nighttime

Nighttime crept up on me like a murder of ravished crows swooping in on their soon to be meal. I had lost my way in the evergreen thicket and began to question the voice in my head taunting me; telling me to keep on my feet and that everything would be fine. This was man-hunter territory. Everything was NOT going to be fine. My wound was still seeping despite the crusting that offered very little stop to the blood flow. Every inch of my body had filled to the brim with prickly sensation. I couldn't feel myself limping along the dirt but my mind assured me that I was moving. Even still, I could feel my consciousness gradually slipping away. I knew I was not going to last very long after a few minutes of aimless wandering passed and I starting seeing lights. Mother once told me that the entryway to the afterlife was through a tunnel of light. Knowing very well I was dying, I followed the lights with what little will power I had left in my body. This was strange light. It was pale and dim. Why was it closer to this open grey ground? Wasn't heaven supposed to lead skyward?

I tried to trudge further to find the entry to the tunnel of dim light, but my will deteriorated half way there. I was so close, and yet so far from my destination, lying limply on the cold gray floor. I registered a loud screeching noise coming closer to me before I was met with more light. I could make out the image of a man who was pointing a weapon at me, muttering nonsense I could not understand. He looked different than the man who caused me this fatigue but alas, another man with a gun who wants to take my life! I began to question whether I was going to heaven or hell. This man with a gun owned the light, so he must be the keeper of the afterlife. But which afterlife? I weakly stared at him, trying to figure out what kind of gatekeeper he was. Would his gun promise me an afterlife of pain and suffering or lead me into the land of light? He stared back at me just as intently, blood red eyes that seemed to teeter between steeliness and pity. I witnessed pity win them over as he lowered his gun to the ground angrily returning to the light; leaving me in this spot to die.

I was perplexed by all of the sensations in my dying body, but one thought stood out above the rest. I did not want to be left alone. I wanted to follow this man into the light to see where it went. So I cried out to him before I let sleep overcome me, forgetting that it was most likely in vain to do so; for man could not possibly understand a fox.

Soul could not believe what he was seeing. Was he alive this all happening for real? He pinched himself roughly on the arm, thinking that he would wake up from some hallucination he might have been having. He still saw what he thought; a naked fox...chick? He bit himself, completely forgetting his shark tooth trait. He winced and noticed a little drawn blood. Glancing at the ground once more he still saw a naked woman-fox- the hell if he knew!

"I have utterly fucking lost it…" he drawled out still slack jawed and wide eyed from what he just witnessed. What the fuck was happening to him? Either he was insane, in the middle of some crazy magician type shit or he really needed to get laid. Like, REALLY get laid if his dreams were becoming this ridiculous and lucid.

His brain yelled at him to get in the car, drive off, and forget any of what he saw ever happened, but his legs were on a different agenda. He found himself inching closer and closer to the naked woman. Soul knew he was wrong for this. It just felt wrong to stare at a woman in all her naked glory while she was unconscious, but he was all sorts of confused and curious. He couldn't help but let his eyes wander a bit. She had the appearance of a goddess; the way her cream colored locks fell over her shoulders and her petite frame graced the grey concrete with its presence. She was gorgeous, he thought, and that alabaster skin of hers really made her glow in the nighttime. Soul would have ogled her longer if the scent of drying blood didn't bring him back to his senses on her condition. He allowed his arms to come back to life as they reached to feel for a pulse point. Sighing heavily, glad that she was still breathing, but barely, Soul decided that even though what he was seeing was absolutely absurd, he had to do something. She wasn't just some mangy fox on the verge of death now. She was (somehow) a woman. He wasn't the kind of man to drive off and leave a helpless lady out in the cold to die of a bullet injury. Or was she even a woman? He was absolutely puzzled on the whole ordeal.

Suddenly aware that this all was happening on an open road where anyone could drive by and see them, he quickly but carefully snatched up the fox woman into his arms and gently placed her down on the back seat of his truck. Worried that she could catch a sickness, he rummaged around in the trunk for the spare blanket he used for camping out in the woods and hurriedly draped it across her unconscious form before hopping back into the driver's seat and taking off. It would've cause a lot of confusion and mess if any stray vehicle caught sight of them.

"I can't believe I just did that. I can't believe I'm doing this." Soul managed a quick glance at his mirror to see how the fox lady was faring, only to be met with the view of the blanket riding up on her rather enticing rear end. Fuuuuuuuuuuuuck.


Soul would like to think that the best part of his day was the drive back to his cabin from work or from hunting. He wasn't a very social man in town; kept his distance from people who looked at him funny; probably due to his albino-like traits. He only really found it meaningful to chat with Black, Kid and everybody else who worked at the gun shop. They understood him; his thirst for the thrill of hunting. They were the only ones who accepted some his quirky ways aside from his older brother Wes, who had passed away a few months ago and left him on his own.

The Evans family was known to be loaded; so it's no surprise the cabin that Wes and Soul lived in was probably the most luxurious piece of property around. It had a rugged lumberjack look on the outside, as most cottages usually have, but the inside was beautifully pristine and flawless from the rust colored walls and fur covered furniture to the glossed mahogany flooring. He and Wes needed an escape from a life where people had money sticks driven so far up their asses it rendered them incapable of seeing the brighter side of life. Their cabin house in the backwoods, secluded from society, is where they found it. Here there were no rules. No priorities except to live life and be as free as the wind blows in doing so. He thoroughly enjoyed being away from the world in his cabin, and with Wes it was easier because he had someone to share the bliss with. His house smelled of vivid memories and brotherly adventure, but without his Wes's presence, Soul felt pangs of loneliness once in awhile. Black had Tsubaki to keep him company and sometimes seeing the two together stirred up a twinge of jealousy in his gut. Whenever he felt empty, he'd just sit in his favorite armchair with a bottle of vodka as his company. Booze knew how he felt, and knew how to cure him of his bitterness even if it was only for temporary. He wasn't sure his pals at the shop could do the same, even if they were willing to help. The truth was that his brother was dead and that could not be reversed. No matter how many friends he had, no one actually understood him and his struggles quite like Wes did. Long had he wished for the heavens to send his brother back to earth as a reincarnation, to share his thoughts and wildest dreams with like the good ol' days. But instead, some crazy force of nature sent him this predicament.

"What kind of sick joke is this? I ask for a companion and I end up dragging a half dead naked fox- woman-whatever she is into my house. Am I really this desperate for friends?" Soul sighed in his chair by his bed, where he had situated the object of his confusion. What on earth was this female with the forest green eyes and ivory hair? Were there more creatures like her out there that could turn into animals? Was he shooting humans this whole time for fun!? The many questions stirring about in his head made him feel sickly, but the feeling quickly subsided when he glanced at her calm sleeping face.

He had already cleaned up the girl by dressing her in some of his old clothing that couldn't fit him anymore; a pair of blue plaid boxer shorts and a black t-shirt he thought was small until he saw that it almost entirely engulfed her whole body. He had never dressed a naked woman before in his life; needless to say when he had to dress her wound and put his own clothes on her, he was a little more than flustered. The tent in his pants that formed in the process, grew tighter every time his arm brushed against her breast and his eyes occasionally wandering to her nether regions did NOT help his cause either. It'd been awhile since he felt like he wanted to explode in a sexual way, but he had to constantly remind himself that this was not a regular woman and that he should not have these sort of feelings for animals. Especially animals that hunters like him kill on a daily basis.

Soul also didn't need the talk of the town being that he'd gone soft because he couldn't kill a half dead fox. No sir. He had a reputation as a stone cold hunter, and no wimpy fox was going to take it down that easily. At least that's what he hoped, as he watched the fox-girl in deep slumber.

She was a tiny thing; seemed pretty damn young too. She wasnt 'baby' young, but somewhere on the cusp of what a woman would look like in her mid twenties. Soul noticed she was trying to position herself to sleep like a fox; attempting to curl her non-existent tail around herself. It was pretty hilarious, as she was clearly not comfortable in that position as a human, but also kind of cute. She mumbled something in her sleep, probably from a bad dream or the pain in her left side. It brought him back to his senses yet again on her condition. That wound wasn't a paper cut; it needed to be examined by a doctor. He wanted to call the town's doc Stein right away, but by the time he arrived home, the docs hours were over and there was no way in hell on a Friday anyone in their right mind was going to take a house call. So, he did the best work he could with his first aid supplies and antiseptic. She seemed to be faring fairly decent for someone having just been shot, probably because she wasn't a normal girl. He'd call the doctor in the tomorrow.

"You are quite the soldier, fox lady." Soul muttered in admiration as he absentmindedly petted her hair. "But you confuse me to no end right now. What are you? Where do you even come from? Arg, I need a damn drink!" He'd figure this whole shit out in the morning. The television and the couch were practically screaming his name, but the bed, now seeming more inviting with the fox lady sprawled out on his sheets, howled at him the loudest. "Where the fuck did I put that Grey Goose…"


A lone timber wolf trotted across the jutting stones of the grassy grotto, in search of the shrill cries that answered his conversation to the moon. His ears perked up and in the distance he could make out the small opening of a den. He knew this place. The foxes resided here.

"Fox pups, are you about in the den?" the wolf called out. In the pale moonlight, he could make out three heads popping out from the dark hole in the ground. Eyes wide with excitement.

"HEY GUYS IT'S ELDER!" one of the kits shouted in excitement. All three of the foxes ed him to this place hopped out of the den, eagerly sniffing and nuzzling about their well known friend. "Elder Free we were so glad to see you! It's nighttime and we are very hungry!" One of the fox's stomachs rumbled noisily.

The wolf named Free was like a father figure to the kits, being that their father had passed away long ago, along with their mother.

"Where is your elder sister fox pups?" It was a simple question, but the tone in Free's voice scared them stiff. He sounded pretty upset about not seeing their sister.

"We do not know Elder Free," one of the foxes responded. She promised us each a brownnut hare and grapes when she went out to hunt, but it is nighttime and she has not returned to the den. We are very hungry now."

Free eyed the three young foxes. Even though he referred to them as pups, they were not the same little ones he knew. They have grown into three handsome adolescent males, and soon it would be time for them to leave this den to make a life of their own. Or perhaps, tonight was the night they would become adults.

"Little ones. You are young no more. It will soon be time for all of you to leave the den and live your own lives. Tonight I will supply you each with a brownnut hare as your sister had promised. Come sunrise you will leave this den."

The foxes gasped. They were finally ready to leave and hunt on their own! It was an exciting news, but also terrifying. What If they were not ready yet? What if the woods swallowed them whole like an offered sacrifice?

"Elder Free, are you sure we are ready? What if we can't hunt well and we starve? What about our sister?" One of the kits questioned.

"Your sister has left us all if she has not yet returned."

"Our sister is...dead?" The fox kits lowered their heads in sadness.

"I apologize for being the bearer of bad news, but such is life. The elders die when it is time, and the youth rises to take their places. Now, you will listen as I say. You will each have your last feast before you leave the den to explore. Do NOT ever return. Do you understand me pups?"

The foxes looked at each other with frightened expressions. How were they to survive in the woods by themselves? They could only hope that their sister's and the timber wolf's training would be enough to survive. They had to be strong for themselves now. For Elder Free and for their sister. "Yes Elder Free."

"Good. Wait in the den until I return with kill. In the morning, all three of you will become handsome Silvers."


"Okay, oooooookay-WHOA-uhhhhhh, staaaaay foxie, stay-NICE FOXIE!"

Soul knew attempting to cook breakfast in the morning was a bad idea, as he had successfully awakened the she-beast from its slumber with the delicious smell of fried eggs and bacon. How stupid can he be really? His morning munchies got the best of him, and now here he was holding his hands out in front of him afraid that the wild animal was going to go to town on him for trapping her in his house.

The fox lady, no longer in lady form, snarled and hissed at him from the doorway of the living room. He was going to wake her up later expecting that she would be somewhat sluggish and compliant from fatigue enough to hear what he had to say about her sleeping in his house. Of course that plan went to shits when she was awoken by the scent of his breakfast, sleepily followed the smell into the kitchen and was startled by seeing a shirtless man in front of her with a knife and fork. He understood that this environment was very much new to her and she must be terrified to be in the same surroundings as a human. Nonetheless a hunter; one that had apparently gone soft. He tried not to think about that as it bruised his ego, but he wished she would calm down. She had bitten his hand in an attempt to faze him and scurry out of the house. Lucky or rather unluckily for him, Soul had shut all the windows and locked all the doors last night; didn't want her injured ass to escape and hurt herself even further. Foxes were known to be crafty little fuckers. He was sure this one was no exception, and hoped to god the fox didn't have rabies the way she seemed to slightly foam at the mouth as she snarled.

Then she started yipping frantically at him and Soul found the angry sound to be quite annoying, but didn't dare chance a comment, fearing for his physical health. After awhile, he began to notice that the fox's yipping had a sort of pattern to it. Almost as if she was trying to talk to him. He cocked his head to the side dumbly and she stopped her infernal yipping. She stayed quiet and still for a minute and then yipped again, but only once and it held some annoyance it it as if she was asking him, "What?"

"Fox lady, I cannot understand a damn word you are saying," Soul spoke slowly and cautiously. The fox now cocked her head in annoyance.

"Can y-... can you understand me?"

The fox stayed silent and stood her ground.

Soul sighed in exasperation. "Listen you crazy cottontail, I cannot understand you unless you-you do the thing." The fox cocked her head a second time and squinted her eyes, waiting for a better explanation of "thing." He seemed to catch on. "You have to turn into a human, like you did the other day...alright?"

Oh. She had completely forgotten that she had woke up in her undesirable form. Her mother had been aware of this trait she possessed and tolerated it, but always warned that it could potentially put her in danger. She grew up hating this ability. And now a human stood before her, asking her to transform so that he could understand her when she spoke? How could a human possibly understand a fox? She didn't understand this man, but needed to make her statements clear. The morphed back into a human as Soul asked. She was beginning to wonder if it was the right thing to do, because the man held his nose, turned around and yelped, "SHIT….shit fucking damn ugh…..I'M SORRY I-fuuuuuuck," in response.

The fox lady examined herself. She looked normal, in this form at least. So why was the man with the white hair and crimson eyes turning away?

"Do not apologize for seeing such hideous things."

Soul froze, stunned by both the dark velvety sound of the woman's voice and her choice of words. Did she just say-did she just call herself ugly? Soul dared a glance at her face and fought an intense battle with his bodily urges to keep his eyes only on her face. 'I'm a good boy', he chanted 'I am a very good boy'. What the hell was wrong with her. She clearly was very attractive.

"You," he started, taking note of how deep his voice had gotten. Damn hormones. "You are NOT hideous." He walked over to his couch to retrieve his fluffy red blanket and walked back to the woman cautiously as he closed his eyes, hung his head low and stretched it out to her. "I happen to think that you're kinda cool cottontail, especially now that I can understand you." What was he talking about! He didn't want to say 'cool'. She was beautiful. He wanted to say beautiful! But he couldn't risk it. She might bite his head off.

The fox woman inched backward into the room, confused by this gesture. She looked at the blanket, but did not take it.

"Of course you would like this form, man-hunter. This form is human. Humans are ugly creatures and therefore are fascinated with other ugly things. Mother said they should not ever be trusted. Especially man-humans."

Soul opened his eyes a bit to look at the dampening left size of the gauze pad around her mid drift, but kept his head down. He understood where she was coming from, but her opinion of humankind was totally skewed in the wrong directions.

"I have learned my lesson." She looked down to the gauze pad around her and poked it, hissing when she felt stinging in the area. "Why is this here, and why do you insist on covering my body with abnormal material? Is my ugliness too much to bear man-hunter?"

Soul ground his teeth together in annoyance at the fact that this beautiful young woman before him, thought of herself and all of humankind as ugly. Yeah there were some rotten apples in the bunch, like the guy who put a bullet in her side, he'd decided. But not all people were bad, and not all men were assholes. Soul oddly found himself wanting to prove that to the fox woman, but how could she come to understand it? She was a fox. People hunt foxes all the time. She probably thought humans were some kind of demonic creature.

"I am handing you this red blanket to cover yourself because in the human world, it's called respect," he started carefully. The woman seemed to be listening. "Men respect women by not invading their privacy. At least the good ones do."

Taken aback by the man-hunters words, the fox decided to do as he wished and cover her body with the red cloth he provided. She figured she should do as he commanded because he could kill her if he wanted to. He had a gun. She did not like guns. It was after she'd fully wrapped the blanket around herself that he asked for permission to lift his head and look at her.

"There is not much to look at man-hunter, so I do not see the problem," the fox woman snidely remarked.

Soul lifted his head to gaze at her expressionless face. If he starred very closely at the way her viridian eyes slightly shifted from him to the floor, he could detect a slightest hint of fear in them, and he understood where it was coming from. His ghostly white hair and blood eyes didn't do much to make him appear friendly, and he practically was holding her hostage in an unfamiliar setting. She was deathly scared of him and put on her steel face to keep herself together, but he wasn't going to play the bad guy role in this woman's story. He had to convince her that he was different than the rest of the men she had encountered in her past, and hoped that she would at least consider his words.

"But there is very much to learn about you, cottontail," Soul smoothly replied as the corners of his mouth twitched up into a cheeky grin. She flinched at seeing the man-hunter bare his sharp teeth. They put her on edge. Since when do humans have that sharp of canines? "And I have a name you know, it's Soul. You got a name fluffy?"

The fox lady grimaced at the man-hunters confidence. "I am NOT a cottontail, man-hunter who calls himself Soul! Cottontails are rabbits. They are my meals at sunrise, middle day and sunset; very easy kill. I can fight back, so I am not easy kill!"

Soul stifled a giggle making its way up to his throat. This girl-fox-whatever she was, was damn cute. Here she was trying to act like a tough ass in front of him, only to be reduced to a ranting forest nerd who couldn't take a little teasing. She turned away from him in anger, her face in a pout. Yep. She was fucking adorable.

"And my name is Maka. It is what mother called me."

Maka. Maka. What an interesting name for a fox; had a nice ring to it. Then again when he thought about it, the name Soul wasn't really normal either. Well that was one thing he and this woman had in common. They were far from being normal. A few moments of silence passed between the two, and Soul raked through his mind for something to say when he finally remembered that he had cooked enough breakfast for two people, well... one person and a hungry fox.

"So, Maka," He started as he motioned for her to join him at the kitchen table. "You like bacon?"