Characters: Kitsune!Baekhyun and You

Genres: Romance, Supernatural, Fluff

AU: Japanese mythology

Sunlight filtered through the treetops, painting pretty patterns of light and shadow on the snowy forest ground. It was a sunny winter day, wonderful for a little hike through the nearby woods. You hadn’t hesitated to leave the house as soon as you had been done with work. Wearing a pair of comfortable ankle boots and a warm winter coat, you made your way deeper into the forest, having a destination in mind.

Not long ago, you had moved to this quiet rural area in Japan, and you had quickly come to appreciate the serenity of the woods. It was a stark contrast to the bustling city of Tokyo where you had lived before. Leaving your friends behind had been difficult at first, but you had promised each other to meet whenever your schedules allowed it.

The soft snow crunched under your shoes as you walked. Your eyes darted over the trees surrounding the path, taking the snow-covered scenery in. The peaceful sounds of a small stream reached your ears, and soon you laid eyes on it as it s through the trees. Parts of it were frozen over, covered in a thin layer of ice. Some frost flowers bloomed at the edge, glimmering in the sunlight.

You smiled to yourself, putting your hands in the pockets of your coat to keep them warm. When the path made another turn, you reached your destination. It was a small Inari shrine made of wood and stones, decorated by two fox statues sitting left and right of it. Covered in moss and snow, the tiny structure was almost hidden from sight.

It looked just like your neighbor had described it to you and using her instructions, it hadn’t been hard to find. You kneeled to take a closer look at it, and that was when you heard it. A strange sound reminding you of a cry. Bewildered, you gazed around but found that you were alone. Nobody was near you, and yet you were sure you hadn’t just imagined the sound. Your curiosity compelled you to follow the strange noise. Walking into the undergrowth, you left the shrine and the path behind.

Each step made your shoes sink into the snow. The cold was beginning to seep under your clothes, causing you to shiver. You ducked under a low hanging branch and spotted something unusual. Curled up on the snow was a small fox. Its silver-white fur made it blend in with its surroundings, though its golden eyes glimmered like the sun, capturing your attention at once. Elegant red markings framed its eyes. They were unusual for a fox to have and you were sure you had never seen one like this before.

You froze, afraid to scare the fox away, but it did not move and simply watched you. Its ears were perked up, its fluffy tail curled around its body. The poor thing was shivering, and you wondered why it would lie down in the snow when it was freezing cold outside. Just when you wanted to turn and leave, you noticed something. The animal had blood on its front paws, indicating that it had hurt itself.

Frowning, you tried to get a better look at the bloody fur but were reluctant to approach it. What if you scared it? Then again, it looked more curious than anything and didn’t seem to view you as a threat. Its gorgeous golden eyes were following your movements calmly. As you got closer, a strange feeling washed over you. You had never experienced anything like it—it was a mix of serenity and a sense of safety. Encouraged by this, you crouched down in front of the white fox.

“Hello,” you said quietly, holding out your hand and letting it sniff it. The fox bopped your hand with its snout, letting out another whiny noise. Now you were sure that the animal had been the origin of the cry you had heard earlier. It was odd that it wasn’t in any way concerned by your presence. Usually, the forest animals would take off as soon as they sensed a human nearby, but this one seemed special.

Seeing it injured and shivering in the snow, a pang went through your heart. You couldn’t ignore a soul in need of help, whether it was human or animal. Not needing long to make a decision, you took off your warm wool scarf. The fox stayed perfectly calm as you wrapped it in the scarf with care. It let out a sigh when you picked the bundle up carefully and cradled it to your chest. You let the fox rest its injured front paws and its head on your shoulder and supported the rest of its body with your arms. Thankfully, it wasn’t particularly heavy, and not much bigger than a cat.

“I’m going to help you out, little fox,” you smiled and patted its back. Returning to the Inari shrine, you couldn’t help but think how odd it was to find a white fox close to the shrine of the fox god. It was a weird coincidence, but you didn’t think about it for long, instead making sure you didn’t lose track of the snowy path ahead of you.

The walk back home took slightly longer since your new companion was a bit difficult to carry for a long time. And on top of that, the fox was a cheeky one. It snuggled its head under your hair and sniffed your neck. The sensation of a wet tongue on your skin made you squeak.

“You little devil, I’m going to drop you!” you chided it and used one hand to push its snout away from your neck. The fox whined heart-wrenchingly like you had just stolen its favorite treat. You made it a point to push its snout away as much as the fox made it a point to your skin whenever you didn’t pay attention. Why it was dead set on doing that was beyond you. It acted very familiarly towards you as if it already knew you. Weren’t wild animals supposed to be scared of humans?

“Rascal,” you huffed. “I want to help you, and this is your thanks?”

For a brief moment, you thought that the fox sounded like it was laughing at you. How weird was that? Shaking your head at the strange idea, you pushed it aside.

The houses of the small town you lived in became visible behind the tree line. From here on it didn’t take longer than five minutes to reach your small and cozy home close to the woods. Since this area was very remote, living here was much cheaper than in Tokyo and the rent for your house was easy to pay. Furthermore, it was very beautiful, connected to nature in a way that you’d never seen while you had lived in a large city.

Reaching your front door, you unlocked it and let yourself in. Then you slipped off your snow-covered boots and headed into the warmth of your living room. You set the fox down on your couch. It had stopped shivering a while ago when you had carried it, and now it looked comfortable. Judging by the yawn it let out, it was either in a lazy mood or tired.

Leaving it for a moment, you took off your jacket and headed into your room to change into cozier clothes. Before you went back to the fox, you fetched antiseptic and a wet cloth to clean the fox’s wounds. It was sprawled over the sofa, gazing up at you with golden shimmering eyes.

For some reason, you felt drawn to this animal. The sense of familiarity it evoked in you was puzzling. It was like you knew this fox from somewhere, but you couldn’t place your finger on it. You couldn’t grasp why you would feel like this around an animal you had never seen before.

“You probably won’t like this too much,” you began as you sat down next to it, “But I need to take care of those wounds.” Meeting its eyes, you reached for its left paw and carefully held it in your palm. It was small and soft, and since the fox kept its claws retracted, you didn’t feel them. The fox observed your actions as you cleaned the bloody fur and added a little bit of antiseptic. Then you repeated the process with the second paw.

During the whole procedure, the fox didn’t fight or give any indication that it was uncomfortable. It baffled you. For a wild animal, it was surprisingly tame. Maybe even tamer than some pets. Had it perhaps been domesticated before? By someone in town? Just as you finished the thought, the little rascal over your fingers, drenching them in slobber.

“Ewww, what the…? Stop me all the time. Don’t tell me you love me that much,” you grumbled and glared at it.

The golden eyes of the fox gleamed as if it had understood what you had said. However, just like before, it didn’t listen to you and the back of your hand.

“You silly fox!” you said annoyedly and got up, hurrying to the bathroom to clean the slobber off. That fox didn’t have any manners… Then again, why expect it to? It was an animal, not a human. By the time you headed back to the living room, the fox had curled up on the sofa and closed its eyes. You let it be, walking to the kitchen to make dinner.

A few hours later, night had fallen and the sky had turned dark. The stars were hidden behind clouds—perhaps it would snow tomorrow. The thought of that made you smile. You loved snow and seeing how it transformed the scenery completely. It appeared like someone had put a soft white blanket over trees and rooftops.

You were about to go to sleep, exhausted from the long day, but since the fox stayed with you, you were unsure what to do. The animal had eaten earlier, and you’d offered it water too. It had looked content since then and snuggled up to you on the sofa as you’d read a book. The warmth of its body and your comfortable position had made you sleepy. Gazing at the fox and seeing that it wasn’t in a hurry to leave, you opted to let it stay the night. It was lying on the sofa unbothered, so you turned off the lights and entered your small bedroom.

You lay down on your bed and tucked yourself in. However, only minutes later, you heard a quiet tapping. Then, your door creaked and you opened your eyes to spot the fox putting its head into the room. As soon as it saw you, it came in and elegantly jumped on the bed. Surprised, you gasped, being face to face with the animal. Its golden eyes glowed in the dark, boring into yours. You were taken aback, noticing for the first time how intelligent they seemed. Like this animal knew exactly what you were thinking just by reading your startled expression. Odd.

But what was even more peculiar was its white fur. It had a slight shine to it, radiating soft shimmering light. Rubbing your eyes in disbelief, you took a closer look at it, but it remained the same. The fox was glowing? You had to be hallucinating, there was no other explanation.

It bopped your nose, surprising you once more when its snout touched you. After that, it curled up next to your body like it was the most normal thing to do. You could only stare at it in astonishment. It looked like a glowing white furball with cute ears and a fluffy tail. Its eyes formed crescents when they were closed, the red markings around them standing out.

“You’re so pretty,” you mumbled, entranced by it. Your hand touched its back, raking through its silky fur. This time, you were sure you heard a chuckle. Soft and mischievous. Where could it have come from though? There was nobody else in the house, and foxes didn’t chuckle like this. They didn’t have pleasantly silky voices. You were probably too tired to think properly.

Yawning, you hugged the fox by instinct and it pushed its body closer to you. With your new companion at your side, you fell asleep soon.

That night, you had a very vivid dream. Maybe the clearest you had ever had.

You stood in front of the Inari shrine you had visited hours before. The snow surrounding you should have been cold considering you were in your pajamas, but you didn’t feel the freezing temperatures. You were warm as if this was a summer day.

Your attention was drawn by a person appearing in between the snow-covered trees. It was a man you had never seen before yet felt an unexplainable connection to. Petrified in awe, you didn’t move an inch, watching him come closer with bated breath. The first you noticed was his white hair that had a silver shine as the sunlight bathed it in its warm glow. Two fox ears protruded from his head, prompting you to stare in fascination. The red hakama he wore was made of expensive silk, as was his white kimono. He was taller than you, had a lean built.

When his golden eyes met yours, you had an epiphany. “I-Inari?” you asked, stuttering nervously.

Could it be that he was the fox god himself? The red marks under his eyes were identical to those you knew from Inari masks sold at festivals. You didn’t have any other explanation for what you saw—he had fox ears, glowing eyes, even wore traditional clothing.

He tilted his head, his lips curving up amusedly. “Not quite,” he replied.

You didn’t dare speak another word as he came to stand in front of you, fearing that your voice would break. As if he knew what kind of effect he had on you, he smirked confidently. His hand took a lock of your hair. He placed a kiss on it before letting it fall. Leaning closer, his mouth hovered next to your ear. You were engulfed in his unnatural aura, felt it prickling on your skin.

“I’m Baekhyun. Don’t you remember me, sweetheart?” he whispered, his lips grazing the shell of your ear. The moment you touched marked the abrupt ending of your dream. Your consciousness faded as you fell into a deep sleep.

The next morning started very chaotically. When you walked into the kitchen to make breakfast, you were met with an evil surprise. The fox had made a mess, opening a drawer without trouble. Many different kinds of sweets were strewn across the counter and the floor. Somehow, the little brat had managed to rip open the plastic with its teeth, snacking on chocolate and candy alike. When it saw you, its eyes became wide, but then it just sat down and watched you innocently, its tail wagging.

Your eyebrows raised and your jaw dropped. “What the actual ?!” you screeched. “Fox! You… How… just how?! Look what a mess you made!”

The fox had the audacity to yawn, blinking at you with its golden eyes. You cursed silently and went to gather the candy all over the floor to put it back where it belonged. The fox watched you and let out a weird noise that could have been a laugh, had it been human.

“Yeah, make fun of me, you rascal,” you grumbled, picking up the last chocolate bar and putting it back in the drawer. “This is very unhealthy for an animal.”

“I’m not an animal.”

You froze. Icy fear seeped into your heart as you turned, expecting to see the owner of the male voice standing behind you. A burglar, a robber, or even worse… However, you were met with an empty kitchen safe for the fox. You stumbled back and held onto the counter for support, your knees weakening.

“W-What was that?” you forced out.

The fox studied your fearful face closely and whined at you. It got up and rubbed its body against your legs to comfort you. Your racing heartbeat calmed. Again you made your mind responsible for the weird things that had been occurring to you since yesterday. Since you’d picked up the fox.

Your eyes moved to it, and when you saw its golden iris, you were reminded of the dream you’d had just hours before. The man in that dream—Baekhyun—had had the exact same eye color. Was that merely a coincidence? Had your mind conjured him up somehow?

You willed your weird thoughts away and concentrated on the task at hand, preparing breakfast. After that, you took another look at the fox’s wounds only to find that they had healed. There was not a trace of them left. You made sure to check both paws, and they were fine. How was that possible after only one night?

“Looks like you’re okay no