A big brown bear entered his office, where a perky ewe looked up at him with a full smile.
"Did you enjoy your lunch, sir?" she asked.
"Immensely, Bern," the bear nodded.
"Oh, by the way," Bernice whispered loudly, pointing across the room, "your two o'clock is here."
The bear turned his head to regard a young vixen sitting there in a chair, looking up at him with a timid edge in her warm brown eyes. She was in her late teens, early twenties at the oldest. She even had a dirty blonde head of hair, an occasional curiosity among foxes.
"Ah, you must be Brittany Voxen," the bear smiled. "Have you been waiting long?"
"Not really," Brittany responded. "I'm- I'm still early."
"Well, we can start now, if you'd like," his expression was warm in that way a large fluffy bear could really sell. "My name is Justin Brown. If you'd rather wait until the appointed time, we can do that, too."
"Nice to meet you," the vixen replied in a perfunctory way. "But that's okay. I can- we can start now."
"Shall we?" Justin indicated the interior room of his office, and the two walked in. Brittany took some time to notice the various accolades the bear had on his wall. He specialized in family psychology, so the room was intimidating in its size; it could probably have safely seated several elephants. Nonetheless, there were a variety of seating arrangements around the room to provide comfort, and Brittany took her seat on a small couch that looked comfy to her.
"So, would you tell me a little about yourself, then?" Justin effortlessly scooted a larger chair over to her, sitting a distance away so as not to crowd her, but close enough that they could make easy eye contact.
"Well, I'm just an average vixen, mostly," Brittany's feet kicked subtly. "But... I'd heard you come recommended from one of my friends. She was- her family was affected by the Savage Crisis."
"Ah, yes," Justin nodded seriously. He shook his head, blinking slowly. "Unfortunately the wounds caused by that incident are still fresh, and will take time to heal. Were you... also affected?"
Brittany shook her head. "No... I'm here because I... I'm afraid. W-well, more specifically, I have a phobia."
"Yes?" Justin tilted his head. "What of?"
"Of fire."
"Fire, hm..." Justin nodded, looking up briefly. "A destructive force, to be sure. Do you have a history with it?"
"Oh, yes," Brittany nodded firmly. "I accidentally started a fire when I was young. It consumed a good bit of my family's first apartment. I can still remember it all... the unbearable heat, the smell." Her nose scrunched. "I had to be saved by a firefighter."
"That is a terrible thing for anyone to endure, much less a youth," Justin adjusted himself in his chair, leaning forward. "Do you often encounter signs of your phobia in day to day life?"
"Nh- not always," Brittany's eyes wandered away to a bookcase on his wall with various psychological texts. "But... I mean, even seeing a lit hearth can make me cringe and yelp. The smell of something burning makes me want to curl up into a ball. Even your receptionist's name, Bern- Bernice, I guess? It kind of made me feel just the slightest bit ill, just for a second. I- I know it's ridiculous."
"I'm afraid trauma isn't always so rational in it's effects on us," Justin frowned. "You feel strongly enough about this phobia that you've sought the help of someone such as myself?"
"I just think- I dunno," Brittany sighed. "It's kind of- kuh..." she sighed, rubbing her temples with her fingers.
"Am I upsetting you?" Justin asked gently.
"No, no," Brittany shook her head firmly. She wobbled her paw back and forth. "I guess my family has something to do with it. They kind of try to joke it off now, and I kind of see why they do. 'Haha, better be careful of flicking that lighter around Brittany, y'know she's scared of fire'. Earlier on they were more sensitive, but I... I guess they just feel like I should have grown out of it by now."
Justin shook his head. "It doesn't often work that way. Have you confronted them about this?"
"Tch, no," Brittany rolled her eyes, folding her arms. "Mostly because it's such a dumb thing, and it's not like seeing or smelling fire is a thing that happens all the time."
"But still it concerns you," Justin mused. "Do you wish to become a chef, perhaps? The sight of flame would be more commonplace there."
"No, not really," the vixen said, looking pensive. "I um... I actually kind of want to be a firefighter. Hh-haven't fully committed to it yet, but..."
"Really," Justin looked at her with something like marvel, then he seemed thoughtful. "You wish... you wish to take your revenge on fire."
"P-pardon?" Brittany looked up at him, puzzled.
"Fire harmed you in the past," Justin shook his head, "and though outwardly you show no signs of damage, inwardly it's still present. If you became a firefighter, you'd be taking control of the situation, and you'd get to deal a blow back to fire."
"Kind of ridiculous to personalize fire like that..." Brittany scoffed.
"Yet it's what we often do to cope with such situations," Justin explained with his paws open. "A fire doesn't feel or think, but it can do damage. We mammals in our need for justice and balance can try to assign mammalian traits to non-sentient things."
"I mean..." Brittany rubbed her arm, looking away. "Maybe that's part of it... but..." Her teeth slightly showed as she looked a little upset, and very thoughtful.
"By all means, continue."
"I got the chance to meet the buck that helped save my life," Brittany looked up at the bear. "Rodney Greenfield. Really... heroic-looking. But, you know, it never occurred to me at first, but when I saw him when I was... I was thirteen when I saw him again at a firefighter's function. He remembered me..." She trailed off, looking wistful. "I wanted to hug him and break down crying, but I kept it together. But then I noticed what was different about him. He had no antlers. I asked him why, and he said they just got in the way of his job, so he had them taken off."
"That does sound logical," Justin considered. "Antlers will always just grow back."
"I'd heard that antlers are a really... I dunno, 'proud' symbol for a male deer," Brittany shook her head, huffing. "But here he had taken them away, just because they got in the way of his job. His job of saving mammals. I... I dunno, it just sounded so selfless and heroic. I... I want to try to do that too. I want to save mammals; I want to help them."
"It sounds like you have that spirit of selflessness in you, as well," Justin smiled. "I'm sorry for thinking your vendetta against fire was the only driving factor."
"But my fear of it," Brittany frowned. "I... I don't think I could ever do that. If the moment came where I had to do a crucial thing, and then I just couldn't... I'd be the worst kind of failure..."
"Fear is an unusual thing," Justin looked off into the distance. "Often attributed to prey, but all mammals experience it, even the largest predators. In a way, it's a feeling that unites all of us. And... in most cases it serves as a protection to us. To tell us what is dangerous; what we should avoid. It's only when it kicks into overdrive like what has happened to you that it hinders us."
"Fear... protects us?" Brittany looked dubious, narrowing an eye.
"Sure," Justin nodded. "It's a mechanism that impels us to action, usually to run away. But it doesn't always have to be like that. A famous mammal once said: 'Courage is resistance to fear. Mastery of fear, not absence of fear'."
"Wh-what do you mean by that?" Brittany blinked.
"Though I will certainly do my best to help you, your fear of fire may not ever truly go away," Justin explained, joining his paws together. "But you need not worry that that will prevent you from pursuing your career goal, if you so desire."
"You think so...?" Brittany looked up at him.
Justin nodded. "Heroes can, and often do feel fear. But you can learn to use it like a weapon to fulfill your goals."
"I... I think I'd like that," Brittany started to grow a small grin. "Will you help me to learn to do that?"
"I will do my best, Ms. Voxen," Justin smiled.