Aina pulled her coat tighter around her shoulders and huddled against the rain. How had she managed to forget her umbrella at home and her wallet at work? She grumbled quietly to herself as she walked faster. She would've gone back for her wallet and the train pass therein but she had already been staying late and the place was locked tight after she was out the door. The train usually took her from the heart of Tokyo to the Jiyugaoka station. On her feet, it was better than three hours to get home. Her body shivered and she gave a great sneeze.
"Today of all days. Big account on a short deadline. Can't afford to get sick." She groaned, looking up at the dark grey sky.
The sidewalks were largely empty besides herself. Only a few few cars buzzed by during her walk. It was a cold September evening and it had started drizzling around midday. She continued shuffling along, almost back to her apartment when she saw something odd.
A streak of orange-red disappeared around the corner ahead of her and down a side alley. She hurried her step and looked down where it had gone. Hidden in a knocked over trash can, a small red fox huddled out of the rain. Aina was immediately curious and crouched down beside it. She had always had a soft spot for things cute and fuzzy.
The fox cringed back further into the can and whimpered softly. It held its paw tightly against its chest and stared fearfully at Aina. Its entire body shuddered in fear and cold.
"How did you get here? Did you come all the way from the mountains?" Aina asked, holding a hand down slowly.
The fox tried to get further away from her. She pulled back her hand and looked closer. Its injured paw was pretty clear and Aina felt sympathy for the little creature. She didn't want to do it, but the poor thing needed help. So she pulled her coat off and held it out in her arms, "Come on now. I won't hurt you. I can help."
Her words seemed to have got it to pay attention. It sniffed and stepped forward slowly. Aina held very still and let it smell around her coat. She nodded, "Go on. I've got somewhere warm you can stay."
The fox apparently trusted what she was saying because it crawled into her coat, very wary of its paw, and curled itself up tightly. She wrapped the coat up softly around it and held it close to her chest. It shivered pitifully in her arms and burrowed its nose in the folds of her coat.
"Let's get you home." Aina hurried along, trying to be gentle with the injured fox.
Twenty minutes to get home, and she climbed the stairs to her third floor apartment door. It took a bit of juggling to keep the wet and whimpering fox cradled in one arm while getting out her keys. Once she was inside, she sighed happily, "Finally home. Let's see about getting you dry, little guy."
The fox raised its muzzle to the warm air and turned to her. Aina was surprised to see its eyes were a shockingly bright sky blue. There was an intelligence behind them that captivated her. This fox was something special. It would've been bad luck to leave it to its fate out there.
Once she had gotten the fox settled down in a dry bed of a blanket and a towel, she gingerly looked over its injury. It was then she realized that it was hurt far worse than a cut paw. It had been into a bout with some large animal because hidden in the wet mat of its fur was a terrible gash. Once the rain stopped washing it away, the blood started to darken its fur.
Aina had a moment of panic and called an emergency veterinarian while holding the towel tightly over the wound.
The vet showed up quickly and tended to the fox. They marveled at how it had stayed alive so long and how lucky Aina was. No time was wasted though and soon the fox was stitched up. The vet gave it a pill hidden in a little piece of meat. He then gave Aina a bottle of six more and told her to feed it one a day.
"Thank you." Aina bowed to the vet.
"Look in your email for the bill. Call my office if you need to work out payments. We have options for emergencies." He said as he left.
Aina sighed as her door closed. She knelt down beside the sleeping fox and looked at the shaven spot on its side where ten stitches were holding the wound closed. What had inflicted such a terrible wound? Maybe a neighborhood dog?
Whatever did it, the fox was safe now. She got up and headed into the bathroom to get out of her damp clothes and have a bath. She'd been wearing them since she got home more than an hour ago.
In the mirror, she looked herself over. Her short black hair was plastered to her face and still dripping. She had been wearing relatively nice business attire made up of a charcoal skirt and coat over a teal blouse. She was pretty but not really above average. Guys at her work took notice sometimes but she didn't turn tons of heads. The only thing that stood out was due to her largely sedentary job, she had a bit of a plump butt on her. Nothing obscene, but it did cause her heart to pang in desperation a bit every time a skirt or a pair of pants made her hold her breath to fit into it.
As she slipped out of her wet clothes and got them in the little washer in the corner of her bathroom, she sneezed powerfully and groaned.
She'd be sick for sure.
*******
The next morning, Aina's fear had been confirmed. Her nose was stuffed and her head throbbed. It didn't matter though, she couldn't afford to stay home. She doggedly forced herself through her morning routine, stopping two or three times to check on the little fox. It was doing well but was unwilling to move. She decided the towel would be an okay sacrifice if the fox needed to do its business.
Drawing out a little piece of cold chicken, she pushed a pill into a cut of it. The fox ate it with a quick snap of its jaws.
Aina giggled, "Hungry, aren't you? Well, how about some more?"
She slowly tore the piece of chicken from last night's dinner into shreds and fed it to the fox. By the last piece of chicken, the fox was getting full. She held it out and the fox seemed to debate eating it. Apparently it knew it needed food to recover its strength and it swallowed down the last piece with a lazy bite.
"Good fox. I forgot to ask if you're a girl or a boy. I guess we'll find that out later. Don't panic or get lonely. I'll be back later." She gently rubbed the fox between the ears. It accepted her touch happily and lazed back into the fluffy towel and blankets.
She sniffled, wrapped a coat tightly around herself, and slipped on a sick mask. It wouldn't do to share this with anyone at work. With a few yen coin from her change jar in hand for the train, she headed off to work.
It was miserable. Her head hurt all day and her cold didn't get any better. Her co-workers expressed a polite concern for her but none of them really cared. Even if they didn't say it, she could tell. They just wanted to make sure she was getting her part of the work done, that they wouldn't be expected to pick up the slack. That was fair. She wasn't certain she would feel much differently if the roles were switched. She had a professional relationship with them, not a personal one. The most personal she got was the occasional work party with drinks and food.
Thankfully though, the train delivered her close to home and the rain had broken during the day so the walk was dry. She got home and slumped through the door. Her feet barely managed to carry her to the couch and she fell onto it. The headache had upgraded itself to full body ache.
There was a soft sound and a wet tongue lapped at her fingers. She just about jumped out of her skin and looked down to see the fox sitting at her side. It was staring intently at her and then glanced at the door. It looked back at her and then turned to the door again.
"You want out? Alright. Just come back. You're still hurt so you need to rest." Aina groaned, pushing herself up off the couch. Everything screamed at her to lay back down and her mind clouded with the ache. She pushed through it and opened the door. The fox slipped out quickly and headed for the stairs. It seemed to understand completely. Aina knew there had to be something special about that fuzzball.
She shrugged it off and went to get undressed. A hot bath sounded monumentally good right now. She didn't bother taking the time to wash herself before filling the tub and slipping into it. Her body sighed a long relief as the heat eased her muscles.
It took some time but she eventually decided that sleep would prove better than continuing her bath. She heaved herself to her feet, her chest catching and throwing her forward in a hacking cough. She grabbed at the edge of the tub and wheezed. Her head spun as she pulled a ragged breath and dragged herself out of the tub. She got a towel and gave herself a half hearted drying.
As she left the bathroom, there was a slight scrabbling at the door. She wobbled to it and let the fox back in. It gave a little yip of excitement and tottered into the living room. Bad luck to leave it outside, so perhaps there would be good luck in it staying. A weak smile touched Aina, "Guess you're going to stick around. Alright."
She reached into her fridge in passing and retrieved a piece of cooked sausage. The fox looked up and wagged its tail excitedly. Unlike a dog, it had a larger, fluffier tail so the wagging was little more than a wiggle through its length. She dropped it in front of the fox before slumping into her bedroom. Any strength recovered by the bath had been sapped by her short walk and her legs shook as she knelt into her futon. She curled up tightly and dragged the covers over her head, slipping into a fevered sleep.
*******
Her sleep was restless and not helpful at all. It was troubled by strange dreams full of nightmarish sights, difficult sounds, and terrible stenches. It went on for hours and every time she opened her eyes, the room was still dark around her. It felt like the night dragged on and on and on. Sleep seemed to last forever but everytime she looked at the clock, only minutes had passed. Her body was coated in sweat and yet she shivered despite the heavy blankets across her.
Sometime in the morning though, it stopped for some reason. She swore she felt a soft hand on her head. Her dreams just vanished and she sunk deeper into an actually restful dark.
When her eyes finally creaked open, she could see morning light streaming through her bedroom window. Her throat burned and her body was still fevered. But the sleep had helped keep her sane.
A glance at the clock sent a jolt of panic through her. It was well past nine and she usually got to work shortly after eight. She hurled of the sheets and there was a yowl as the fox curled up on the futon at her side was shoved over.
