FOX FIRE IS NOW A SEPERATE FIC!

Read here:

http://archiveofourown.org/works/9347084/chapters/21172928

Fox Fire

Summary: Kris is an ex-soldier making a living as a hunter deep in the forbidden mountains. Despite the stories of monsters told in the village at the base of the mountain, Kris finds living in the feared forest peaceful; That is until something begins chasing away the game, leaving behind ominous claw marks…

Notes: I can’t remember the name of the manga that inspired this, but it was adorable and the art was beautiful! This was also inspired a little bit by The Gu Family Book. 
 

“Ya know, it could just have been knocked over in the storm.” Baekhyun said with a nonchalant shrug. His pretty features showed his obvious disinterest, and if Yifan were more attuned to others, he would have noticed the way the smaller male’s eyes darted around the forest a bit uneasily.

Yifan looked the smaller man over with an incredulous expression on his face. “You think this-“ He pointed to the completely smashed chicken coop, the wire distorted and errant feathers sticking to the splintered wood completed the look along with the occasional smatter of blood. “-is the result of a simple rainstorm!?”

Baekhyun sighed and ran a hand through his hair as he met Yifan’s gaze. “I know you are a stubborn man, but will you just listen to me for once?”

Yifan ignored him and crouched next to the ground to inspect a marking in the dirt. ‘It looks familiar…’ Yifan thought to himself as he grabbed a pinch of dirt and rubbed the gritty soil between his thumb and forefinger. The mark in the dirt was large, though Yifan was sure his hand span was able to dwarf it. It was almost as if a handprint were dragged through the dirt-

“Hey! Are you even listening to me?” Baekhyun was leaning over, obnoxiously pushing his face close to Yifan’s and blocking the taller man’s line of sight. “Instead of digging around in the dirt, we should be down in the village drinking and maybe I could get that new traveler to-“
Yifan ended Baekhyun’s rant by using his hand to shove the other male’s face away, making him stumble and fall back on his , legs splayed in the dirt in front of him. “Shut up, dog.” Yifan said in a playful tone.

Baekhyun was known for chasing after every man worth something in the village, not to mention all the girls.

“You stupid brute!” Baekhyun sputtered in anger when he finally got his bearings and stood up, dusting himself off fastidiously. Yifan laughed and almost threw in a quip about animals rolling around in dirt but he was stopped by the familiar sound of hooves pounding on the ground.

Surprised, Yifan ignored Baekhyun’s plea for help and watched as a small legion of imperial troops appeared over the crest of a far off hill. “Are those soldiers?” Baekhyun asked, his voice surprisingly close to Yifan’s ear.

“Yes.” Yifan replied grimly, noting the way the smaller male stiffened briefly before he relaxed into his usual stance, his expression was most likely calm and blasé enough to make him seem bored.

Mud splattered onto the pristine white socks of a large, imposing horse when a soldier pulled on the tasseled reins. Three other men stopped behind the well armored man, flanking him with similar attire and bred horses. The morning sun peaked behind a persistent storm cloud, and as if on cue, shone upon the gilded purple and gold banners trailing on the backs of two soldiers, highlighting the crest of the emperor stitched elegantly with silver thread onto the silk fabric.

Yifan stayed silent, his face falling into a stony mask of indifference that he couldn’t shake off without making a conscious effort to smile. It seemed that he couldn’t exactly escape his past.

Silence fell uncomfortably onto the assembled figures and Yifan sighed as he made an effort to not appear rude. He really didn’t need any more soldiers appearing for any other reason. “To what do I owe the honor of your visit, Captain Huang?”

The tall man on the first horse smiled briefly before he schooled his expression and greeted Yifan with a wry tone, hinting at something distinctly threatening. “Captain Huang?” The dark haired man repeated with an amused laugh. “Why Yifan, I thought we were friends? Why so formal with your former student?”

Yifan snorted as he gave the man sitting on the horse an unimpressed look. “I wouldn’t dare to address an imperial soldier above my station in such a rude manner.” He said, voice dripping with sarcasm that was blatantly obvious to all present.

A soldier seated on the captain’s right growled in indignant anger. “Watch how you speak to the Captain, peasant!” Yifan glanced at him lazily as he scratched the back of his head and yawned. “For your transgressions upon the emperor’s own soldiers, I would be glad to behead you!” The hot headed soldier declared as he drew his sword and yanked on the reins of his horse, prepared to attack Yifan.

The horse reared and Yifan tensed and fell into a familiar stance fluidly, his eyes sharp and his mind focused. Baekhyun gasped from behind him, and Yifan mentally went through several different moves he could execute in time to stop the incoming attack and protect Baekhyun. ‘Damn!’ Yifan cursed mentally when the horse began to fall back on all fours, prepared to run down Yifan and Baekhyun. ‘I shouldn’t have left my sword behind!’

“Sehun, enough!” The captain ordered in a tone that promised punishment if his orders went unheeded. Sehun immediately pulled the reins of his horse and turned to gape at his superior. “But sir-“

“I will not repeat myself.” The captain said with a glare. Sehun fell silent and the young soldier cast a scathing look in Yifan’s direction before he moved back into formation.

Yifan let out a sharp laugh, making Baekhyun look at him like he was crazy while the soldiers appeared to be somewhat miffed.

“Having trouble keeping your lapdogs in place, Zitao?”

Tao appeared calm, but his smile was sharp and brittle as he dismounted and walked to Yifan, his hand reaching to his waist while maintain eye contact. “It is not of your concern, though this-” Tao pulled out a scroll from the sash tied around his waist and handed it to Yifan with a cold gaze. “-Is of importance to you.”

Yifan took the scroll, raising a brow at the official crest stamped on it. “Delivering the Emperor’s mail, Zitao?”

Tao stiffened and Yifan saw his hand twitch toward his sword before he let out a small growl and clenched his hand into a fist. “Well, being an official envoy captain is still far more lucrative than toiling away in the dirt like an animal.”

“Speaking of animals, doesn’t running in circles at the beck and call of a master something only a dog does?” Yifan scoffed and placed the scroll on the inside of his robe, the rough linen brushing against his knuckles with the movement.

Sehun let out a growl and he made another movement toward Yifan, but he was held back by other officers. Tao only curled his lip in a sneer and spat at Yifan’s feet. “Better a dog than a traitor.” With that, he spun on his heel, his purple robe swishing with the movement and flashing a burst of silver thread as he mounted his horse again and threw Yifan one last look of contempt. “I hope this is the last time we meet on these terms. You would look better hanging by the neck.”

Yifan watched as they rode off, disappearing over the hill again. ‘Zitao, he’s changed a lot.’ He thought with a grim expression on his face, memories of a bright eyed boy fading into the scowling countenance of a young captain.

“Well that was severely unpleasant.” Baekhyun interjected, startling Yifan a bit with how loud his voice was in the early dawn.

Heaving a sigh, Yifan decided that he’d read the scroll later and get back to the matter at hand. With that plan in mind, Yifan crouched back down at his desecrated chicken coup and went back to inspecting the dirt.
Baekhyun looked at him in confusion. “Aren’t you going to see what the scroll says?”

Yifan sighed again and looked up a Baekhyun with a serious expression on his face. “I can’t read.” Once the surprise and disbelief was registered on Baekhyun’s face, Yifan let out a chuckle and went back to inspecting the claw marks left in the dirt.

“Yah! That’s a lie there’s no way imperial soldiers would go through the trouble of delivering a scroll to an illiterate peasant-! Hey, are you listening to me?”

-✿❀✿-

Yifan let out a yawn as he flopped down in bed, not bothering to change his day clothes, even though he was covered in dirt and sweat and aching to take a bath. The sound of crickets reached his ears from outside, the late summer heat making his small home humid and uncomfortable. An owl hooted as Yifan mustered up the energy to shift onto his back. The thatch ceiling came into view, along with the wooden support beams of Yifan’s handmade dwelling.

‘I should catch that bastard now.’ Yifan thought in satisfaction, the slight ache in his muscles a small price to pay in exchange for catching the fox that was messing with his livestock.

It had started in the beginning of spring. Yifan would wake up every morning to a hole dug under his chicken coop, a few hens missing from the flock. It pissed him off to no end that the sneaky fox had evaded him for months and over time the smug bastard began stealing other things from his garden. But at the end of this storm, Yifan had had enough. He had set up a trap earlier that day (after chasing Baekhyun back to the village), but this was different. Instead of his usual simple traps, Yifan decided to use an elaborate set up that he had to use when he was a soldier, it was usually implemented to catch criminals, but it should still apply to a fox.

‘At least my skills are useful off the battlefield…’ Yifan thoug