Wooden houses pushed against a dirt road that ran straighter than any forest trail. What looked like thin stone covered the tops of the houses. The houses looked different from what Mitsu imagined. He expected houses made from tree logs. Instead, the houses were made from wood that looked as smooth as a river pebble. Maybe Father was wrong about humans using trees to build houses. The closeness of the houses struck Mitsu as strange. He couldn’t understand how humans could live so close to each other. Don’t they need room to run? Where do they find that odd stone for their roofs?
People moved among the buildings. Mitsu expected to see more than the few that scurried about their various chores. When he focused closer on the humans, he blinked in surprise. The humans didn’t look anything like Father and Mother’s transformations. They wore drab clothing and stood shorter than Mitsu thought they would. They lacked the long graceful limbs and hair Mitsu expected. Perhaps it was because foxes were more graceful than humans were. Mitsu guessed that would make naturally graceful human transformations.
Kitsu flopped on the ground. “I’m tired. Can we take a nap before we go in?” He yawned.
“I like that idea,” Mitsu said.
Something rustled in the brush around them, and a twig snapped with a resounding crack.
Suddenly, a rope net fell onto them. Father bellowed something, and Kitsu screeched as the weight settled over them. Humans armed with spears dropped down from the trees standing above the foxes. They landed and surrounded the foxes. They held their short spears at ready.
Mitsu’s thoughts jumbled as he struggled against the thick, heavy mesh that held him to the forest floor. How did Father not smell or hear them? How did they know where we were? He kept one eye on the spear points and fought down his panic. The net refused to budge. He sank his teeth into the course straw rope, hoping to bite through the weave. However, the straw held. I can’t give up. He saw Kitsu biting and tearing at the rope as well. Their father sat on his haunches, staring at the men as if ordering them to remove the net.
Why doesn’t Father do something?
The hunters moved closer. Mitsu growled and snapped through the net at the closest man. The man didn’t flinch. Instead, he smiled and smashed the blunt end of his spear into Mitsu’s head.
Darkness shut out the world.
