Waking up to a fox thrust in my face, growling of all things was definitely not on my list of things I wanted to do today. But, then again, neither was burning alive. Or dying for that matter.

I don’t really remember what happened, just a lot of flames and pain and agony and HUR-

Yeah, I'm not doing that.

The majestic creature in front of me stood there, silver eyes peering into my own. I felt weird too. Weaker and smaller. And why is the fox so big?

I was surrounded by what looked like black sand and bits of wood. It smelled charred, like a campfire that had gone out in a wisp of smoke. Was I in Hawaii?

Their massive fur coat seemed to ripple in the wind, their ears twitching while they cocked their head at me. Its fangs were pulled back now. Its growl had sent me into a state of shock. There was so much power in that voice!

I didn’t know what to do. Maybe if I just played dead it would go away? I shut my eyes and leaned back, acting dead and limp, hoping it would leave.

Silence. The gigantic fox wasn’t moving. I was already scared, but this was fraying my nerves. Why aren't they moving!? What's happening?! I can't see!

I had no time to think about my predicament, only that I was in danger.

The minutes ticked on agonizingly slow as the silence stretched on. I could feel my heart beat fast in my chest, my breath caught, and my eyes held just the faintest twitch I hoped they wouldn’t notice. I could feel the fox's gaze, probably sizing up how big of a bite it would take to swallow me whole. My muscles felt dead, unresponsive. I want to cry. Why do I want to cry?

Ever so slowly, I heard padded footsteps on the sand, approaching me. Getting closer. My heart beat faster and my body broke out in cold sweat. I heard an intake of breath and a sense of danger that set my instincts on a roller coaster.

I was going to die. Again. First to... Fire? I can't actually remember what happened... and now, I was going to die in the paws of a massive fox.

But contrary to my screaming instincts, I felt myself being lifted up, swung, and taken into light arms. I didn't dare open my eyes. I felt like I was floating and the minor breeze in my face told me I was moving.

Oh great. I was going to be eaten. Probably fed to a bunch of evil fox babies. That's sooooo much better. The fox which I assumed was carrying me, swung me back and forth on the winds that buffeted my face, tickling my nose.

The sense of power radiating from above me, swirling with… Something kept my attention though. I didn't dare relax. My fear must have been prevalent as eventually, we stopped. The chirping of birds in the background and the rustling of leaves did little to distract me.

I made no sudden movements, afraid to disturb the predator, hoping I wouldn’t be eaten as my consciousness was dominated by primal terror.

I was so tired. I needed sleep, but I dared not. How were you supposed to sleep in this kind of situation? Wait, I don't even know what kind of 'situation' this is! What is going on!?

Slowly, I opened my eyes, looking up to the clamped jaws of the fox, holding what looked like nothing. I was so startled, my eyes just happened to be wide enough to draw the ire of the beast in question.

They turned their head towards me, red fur rustling, and made eye contact before I clenched my eyes shut, and tried to steady my panting breath. Great. Know they knew their prey still had warm fresh blood coursing through them. A light puff of air drafted onto my face, making me want to sneeze. It smelled of berries and raw meat, definitely not something I would want to take a whiff of in the morning. Great. Know they knew their prey still had warm fresh blood coursing through them.

But it had… A sort of ethereal quality to it, one that made my clenched eyelids loosen, and my already faded consciousness begin to fade. And before I could even protest, darkness edged into my brain and claimed me as its own…

“Waaaaa!” The piercing wail woke me up, loud and clearly upset. I was awake again. Though, I have to say, if anyone had to be upset, it was me! I was hungry and tired and… Wait, why does it sound like a baby is crying? Is that…

I opened my eyes again and looked at my chubby hands flailing around. Why were they so tiny? They actually looked more akin to stubs rather than human hands.

The wailing quieted down as I stared in bewilderment, the cave walls and small firelight making a stark contrast to my pale-ish skin. I couldn’t move my head, so I only saw flickering firelight cast upon the cave walls. My wonder turned into confusion and then terror as my wails went from zero to ten. I was confused enough to scramble around for 5 or so minutes, scampering within my mind for some kind of answer.

The fox! I remembered. The massive jaws that carried me in what looked like and felt like a gust of wind. The powerful voice, the Fire.

It came crashing back again down as I screamed. I had died. I was sure of it.

But I was here now, in a… Cave? Foxes den? The abyssal pit where all the naughty children go? I was somewhere.

After around 7 minutes of screaming and wailing, I regulated my breathing as I had once taught, a literal lifetime ago, and started to calm down. Okay, so I wasn’t eaten yet. I wasn’t really hurting anywhere, and my body was different than normal. This is fine.

I took deep breaths, trying to settle myself into the cold surface I laid upon. It wasn’t exactly the most comfortable, but I was alive… I think.

I let my thoughts drift, imagining a river flowing through me, taking my panic with it. I acknowledged my feelings and feelings of helplessness, trying to get some of the stress and tension in my muscles.

When I felt calm enough to not freak out, I opened my eyes and stared at the very same fox dipping its head to look at me. I had seriously had enough of fox face here.

They didn’t seem to notice I had seen them, so I quickly shut my eyes again. They were scanning something, something I couldn’t see. I steadied my breathing again and imitated sleep, calming my beating heart and adrenaline rushing to my aid.

I heard the rustling of fur against the stone and another gust reached my face, blowing my sparse hair back from my forehead. My hand rested at my sides, cold and clammy.

Something lifted me up again, by the clutches of the wind itself as I was lifted up. A rustling flickered below me and just as fast, I was lowered. A cloth wrapped around all but my face now.

A chuckling huff sounded out from the giant beast as they left what I assumed to be the room. The blanket around me heated up my body slowly, as heat from the dreaded flame licked the air, tasting, and searching... I shivered, trying not to cry again.

Okay. So, I’m a baby? A Child? Can’t say the idea made me very happy. I had had enough trouble as a child, just growing up. By some miracle, I had managed to survive through not only childhood, but [email protected]%&ing puberty. I became an adult. And now that was gone.

Alright! Let's recap here. There's a big scary fox that wants to eat me. I'm surrounded by a… Forest? Cavern? This is confusing... Not a very good recap.

I didn’t have it in me to stay awake for long. As much as I hated the fire, it was warm. Which in turn made me sleepy, whether I wanted to or not. I don’t remember being this tired... Ever. Which is impressive because I often worked 18 hours a day. I drifted off once again into the darkness…

The next time I woke up, I was somewhere else. I was staring at a different ceiling, and the cold floor below me was gone. It felt… Sharper. Like I was laying on loose rocks instead of a cave floor. Not exactly an improvement.

The fire was gone, and I could see faint hints of sunlight snaking around the cave entrance, threading themselves into my view.

The disorientation of waking up somewhere else had me sorting through my memories. Just for a second, I flashed back, thinking of the burning and the fir-

No. I told myself. Not going to do that again. Breathing slowly, I began to calm down for what must have been the 7th time just this week. I tried to cycle the meditation I had managed yesterday as it was helpful last time. I opened my eyes feeling much better thanks to the meditation.

The cave ceiling was rough and uneven, unnatural looking as I’m pretty sure most caves don’t have glossy smooth ceilings. The height of the cavern looked about 20 feet, but I was sure it was shorter than that, due to my tiny body perception and all.

I considered the cave for a second. Okay so, the fox only came after I had cried and calmed down. Were they attracted by my wailing? If so, that was a damn long time to respond. It took over 10 minutes! Maybe they only happened to check up on me when I was meditating? And what is with these stupid rocks!

I struggled against the sharp prickly things on my back, squirming back and forth in discomfort, thinking of ways to leave.

Yeah, fat chance of that happening. I can’t even lift my head. Which was true. My entire body except for my tiny arms and legs seemed mostly unmovable. I couldn’t even get myself onto my stomach.

Yikes. Is this how babies feel? Trying to move but having to stay put? I thought sourly. I took a deep breath, feeling the flow of thoughts and feelings pass me, and calming down. My emotions simmered out and I was left with only the sound of my tiny breaths.

Okay, so what do I actually know? I thought about it for a second. Well, for one thing, that fox certainly was no simple beast. There was a gleam of intelligence in its eyes, reflecting awareness and perception of its surroundings. Also, didn’t they carry me in a sling of… Air?

Yeah, that's not normal. I paused suddenly as a thought sprung into my mind. Magic…? No, there's no way… I trailed off. Thinking back, there were a couple of things that didn’t make sense with my scenario. Like, how the hell did I become a baby? How was I in Hawaii? Did someone dress up in a fox and kidnap me, only to bring me here as a prank? If so, I am going to sucker punch the Youtuber that pops out saying ‘It's just a prank bro!’. I’m terrified though. As in, I’m going to piss my pants terrified. There are so many things I have questions about, I don’t even know where. Or who for that matter, to ask. My train of thought derailed again, thinking about peeing my pants made me realize I didn’t have any pants. Or clothes for that matter.

My cheeks flushed a little red at the thought. Here I was, the naked infant, in a cave with a magic fox… Yeah, that Youtuber is going to get a firm smacking to the face, and a mouthful of terrible reviews about the plot of their video.

Although, now that I think about it, this was kind of similar to those reincarnation stories I read on the web sometimes. Which was odd because those were fiction and this was real… Right?

I really need to stop freaking myself out. I thought. I did my best baby version of a sigh, which sounded more like a wet wheeze, and closed my eyes in dread.

I'm not in Hawaii, am I? My breath caught for a moment. Well, I mean… It wasn’t exactly the nicest life, but at least I could actually move my limbs.

So far, I rate this experience as a negative five out of five. And I don’t really think things are going to get better. Especially since I could hear the fox once again, paw on stone, clinking forward with unseen claws.

I suppressed a shiver, trying not to move much. I just couldn’t think rationally when they came near. Their aura just seemed to squeeze the air out of my lungs. It was too much for my tiny Infant brain to handle.

When the footsteps (pawsteps?) came to a stop, I slowly opened my eyes, looking up to the same silver irises. Their ears were cocked forward, barely visible in the little light. I looked into them, feeling their judgemental stare. I felt something suddenly poke my consciousness. It edged its way around my mind, poking and prodding my mental bubble. It wasn’t a skull-crushing prod, more like a gentle tap with a deadly subtlety. My opinion on my foxy assailant wasn’t improving.

I stiffened at their touch, still trying not to move, praying they would go away. I shivered and let loose a light sob as the sudden and invasive prodding stopped. Their eyes glinted and I was lifted up once again, by what I now assumed to be wind.

It was light and gentle, wrapping my arms and head in a protective gesture as the fox physically grabbed onto the air itself. I was in the same weird sling as I was before, and I was calming now, observing the winds before me, swirling in a small ripple just about visible.

Of course, this shouldn’t be possible, so I just chalked it up to the magic I was being shown. I was still fascinated by it, and I was momentarily free from my fear, but the big red form above me didn’t let me forget.

I was brought out of the cave, padding by in a blur. I didn’t even glance at the stone shelves and little trophies that looked like they were from an old arcade machine hunting game. I was put into a small clearing full of trees with sunlight streaming down. The chirping was audible again and I took a breath in, admiring the forest air that was infused with the smell of autumn leaves.

I let myself smile a little.

I was set down onto the ground, on some a grassy piece of dirt, feeling tiny less intrusive needles poking my back now. I closed my eyes again, feeling a little sleepy, even with the fox a couple of meters away, doing god knows what.

The air felt… Different here. It smelled of ozone and felt thicker than usual. I frowned a little. It was way harder to move too like someone had turned the gravity dial up a bit. The tiny bits of fuzz on my head stuck up, goosebumps prickling my skin.

I didn’t really think about it much, just resting for a second, going back into my meditation again, trying to calm down. If I kept running to meditation any time I was stressed, it would probably become a habit in less than a week.

My thoughts flew past me like water, running through my mind like a river this time, then exiting the other end, dissipating past my mental boundaries. I reinforced the image, sinking deeper into the current. But as I did so, I felt something change. The air shifted around me, growing more chaotic, weighing down my limbs for a second.

The river of thought abruptly stopped as I opened my eyes, feeling the weight come off me and my breathing resume its regular pace.

That was odd… I thought as I frowned. I couldn’t exactly brush off the experience like it was nothing or ignore it. Something had Definitely happened, I just didn’t know what.

My meditation didn’t do that before… The fox was still doing something, seemingly not noticing what had just happened. I thought for a second, not coming up with anything explanations. Was I just tired?

Hmmm. I thought. I reluctantly steadied my breathing, which was more difficult than usual because of my anxiety and curiosity. I breathed in slowly and deeply, Imagining the flow of water passing through my thoughts, seeing it slowly trickle in and out.

All at once, the feeling returned, a little steadier than before. I didn’t stop it this time. Curiously, my body began to heat up, as the heaviness pressed down on me. My head was kind of hurting too.

A yelp and the sound of paws coming forth shook me from my meditation as I was startled to see the fox come forth, an angry snarl on their face. They stood above me, their fangs bared slightly. I shrank back. Or, at least tried to as I couldn’t move.

My eyes were wet again. Trying not to cry only made it worse as my voice protested with a pathetic whimper.

They stopped, noticing my tears and its expression turned contemplative for just a split second, before returning to… Well, whatever you call a foxes blank expression. I guess I had looked pathetic or something. Glad at least they had some form of emotion.

They huffed, blowing against my face in what… Felt like a reassuring gesture? Give me a break, I don't know anything about magic foxes.

I guess my grassy fun time was over as they picked me up and brought me back to what I managed to catch was a hay bale, the prickly pointy stuff. There was a thin cloth over it, tan in color, and ragged. It probably hadn’t seen use for a while. The entire thing looked more like what a horse would eat than someone would sleep on.

I was carefully levitated back on, before the thin cloth around me wrapped me up in a cocoon, bringing back my warmth. They retreated after I was tucked in.

I'm a little ashamed to admit that I did cry for a couple of minutes after they left, but I literally couldn’t help it. If I felt even a little upset, I would start to cry. Just part of being a baby. I fell asleep soon after that, in the poorest excuse of a bed I'd ever felt.

The next morning, I was taken outside again and laid on the opposite side of the small clearing. I actually haven’t gotten hungry in a while, which was weird. I think it's been… Two days? Maybe more, since I had gotten here.

I didn’t feel the need to eat, drink, or even go to the bathroom (Thank god for that) since I had been here.

This morning, on another heavy patch of grass, I laid there. I didn’t do my meditation, as I was pretty sure foxy wouldn’t like that. So I did nothing, trying not to cry again. The air was still a little heavy, but not that much compared to before.

The fox was keeping an eye on me. I could feel their gaze boring into my side. I still didn’t know if I was going to be eaten.

Something weird I had noticed was the energy. Yesterday, I had felt mostly exhausted. The constant fear of a certain furry quadrupedal wasn’t exactly helpful either.

Recently though, I had been feeling restless. I had more energy to move than I knew what to do with and I couldn’t do anything with it… Which just made me want to cry even more. Ugh.

I also was having second thoughts about the fox. They hadn't eaten me yet… If anything they were making sure I was alive. Now I just need to teach them the prospects of psychology, with maybe a comfy bed on the side, and I'll be golden. I was getting better about not crying when they got near. The more I was around them, the less I wanted to throw a tantrum.

There was also something really weird about this forest. If I listened closely, I could hear the faintest giggling coming from the trees. Which made me more nervous and confused. If anything though, what soothed me was the foxes' annoyed look at the sound, so it must not have been too bad. Ironic since they had been the source of my troubles so far.

There was clearly magic. The fox had proven that repeatedly. There were a couple of things that made me suspicious, like my lack of bodily functions. But I still breathed and slept, so that was good.

I stared up at the sunny sky, the faint yellow rays coming through the leaves of the forest floor, which created a fantastical effect. I breathed in slowly and steadily, keeping my thoughts in check to calm myself down, but not far enough to go into meditation. The fox really didn’t like meditation when I was outside.

Around 15 minutes later, they had come back, looking me over, and poking their nose into my side and stomach, checking for something. Bugs maybe?

I was levitated into the air again, staring fascinated at the shimmering air, not paying attention to the fox. I was placed back down on my not so comfy haystack, where the fox promptly left me there, mostly in the dark.

I didn’t sleep this time though. Breathing in deeply, I focused on my mind, imagining the flow of thoughts, which was coming easier and easier as I did it. The fox didn’t come this time. Maybe they couldn’t see me do it? I still had no idea.

If I was being honest with myself, it was mostly for my mental health. I was bored, scared, and very very curious about everything and I couldn’t do a thing about it.

Oddly enough though, something actually happened when I thought of that.

*Your attempts at alleviating yourself in stressful situations, as well as inherently absorbing mana, have garnered you the skill Meditation! Meditation grants the ability to absorb mana at a much faster pace, as well as giving accelerated thought speed and some mental resistances while the skill is activated*

It took me a second for that to sink in. I had gained a skill? What the hell?

The words had just popped up into my brain. I couldn’t see them, or hear them really, it was like a memory had popped up from somewhere. It was weird, especially because it didn’t have the fuzziness and lack of detail most memories had. The words were just… There.

I left my meditation, keeping my eyes closed. I paid no attention to my surroundings, hoping the fox didn’t notice anything wrong.

Mana? I thought. The blue magic fuel stuff from games? I thought. Okay, so I had gained a skill, and now I was a wizard. I’m totally a genius now. I thought. Who needs years of study and magic wands when you can just breathe a little?

The words permeated my brain and something clicked into place, changing something. There wasn’t an instant gain of knowledge or some instinctual response. I had a sense that it just told me what I already had, filling out the gaps.

Cautiously, I slipped into the half-sleep state of meditation I had been doing a couple of seconds ago. Feeling the flow of thoughts swirl around me, pooling into my mind before dripping out, like how a funnel would capture water and let it slowly pour out of a tiny hole at the bottom.

It was really weird. The point of the meditation was to ‘let go’ of your thoughts and acknowledge them, stating that you're human and not infallible. You're meant to find solace in your lack of thought. This was still happening, but my thoughts, feelings, and emotions were mixed with something else…

It was colorless, formless, and didn’t have a real presence really. But what it did have, was weight. It was heavy and seemed to bend my little brain, as it followed pre destined pathways. Mana, I guess. I thought, confining the thought to be eroded by the river.

The same weight from before settled on me, around the same scale as the first time I had done it.

This time I was able to notice the colorless stuff, flowing faster, like a torrent, carrying my thoughts faster, which just accelerated my thinking.

I was fascinated by this change. I had the sense that the colorless stuff had always been there, I just hadn’t been able to see it.

I sunk deeper into myself, ignoring the weight of the shimmering air, pressing into my skin. In a sudden bout of understanding that I might even call enlightenment, I pressed the formless substance, squeezing it together and pushing it through my form.

I slowly guided it along my body, pushing it through, coaxing it into my blood vessels. It wormed its way through them, making me feel like I was pushing pressurized helium into my veins. Not a painful experience, but not exactly comfortable.

It converged where my heart should be, seemingly not affecting it in the slightest, and disappeared. I just didn’t feel any of it anymore. Whether that was good or bad, was debatable.

Another drop squeezed through my thoughts, coming back down to my heart, a little denser this time. I decided I should probably stop as I had no idea what I was doing.

I released the now much easier-to-use meditation, and the first thing I noticed was the smell of smoke. I froze, terrifying images of flames lapping at my body passing through me for a second, before an even more terrifying image came to mind.

It wasn’t really in my mind though, as in front of me was a very angry fox.

Uh oh. Was the only thing that I could manage to think of without collapsing in a pile of terror. They were most definitely not happy seeing as their eyes were narrowed, ears pulled back, fangs bared, and they were all clearly directed at me.

I just couldn’t help myself. I let out a mournful cry, containing all the stress of the past couple of days, venting it at the very face of my red nightmares. I was flailing my limbs around, grabbing onto the air like a drowning person would grab onto a life jacket, dangling in their face.

Instead of a life jacket though, my hand tapped and grabbed the snout of my assailment, who went still, very suddenly. My eyes were jammed shut and I put my other hand onto them, like it was the last pop tart in the house, salty tears streaming down my eyes. I took gasping breaths, and let out another wail, grating on the very soul.

A small part of me was smug at my savior/kidnapper's annoyance. Immaturely cheering on at their misfortune. But the much bigger part of me was very, very much afraid.

However, contrary to my expectations, instead of my inevitable death like I expected, a gentle breeze lifted me up and put me in front of the furry face.

They looked almost… Sorry? Was that concern?

Sure enough, looking into their silver eyes, I could see them concerned for me, poking their snout in my face, like they were checking to see if anything was wrong.

Of course, something is wrong! I wanted to shout. My crying just got louder though.

I floated back a bit, eyes wide open and cries not stopping, when they let out a soft whine that filled my ears and dulled my senses. A soothing wave of calm echoed in my mind, bouncing back and forth until I realized my drooping eyelids were already closed.

I welcomed the feeling, letting the remaining stress come out that my meditation hadn’t gotten. In the back of my mind, I recognized the familiar feeling of power coming from that whine, but at that moment, I was much too focused on my exhaustion to really identify it.

By the time, I had been set back down onto the hay bail, I was already fast asleep.