Hank the Were Rooster #10: Cute Foxes
Hank used to love fluffy mammals. He had a cat as a boy, and he loved to play catch with dogs. Sometimes, when his parents weren’t watching, he sneaked into pet shops to cuddle the rabbits and ferrets.
Many things have changed since then, since he changed. When Hank sees a cat or a dog now, his instincts scream predator! He has to fight to keep himself under control. No one saw him flee the geriatric cat down the block, fortunately.
Urban sprawl is the cause of many problems in the world. Sometimes, Hank cares about it, but never for an extended period of time. He would have continued not to care, except that it became his problem.
Nowadays, there’s all manner of critters creeping around. Raccoons get into the garbage, coyotes attack small pets, and someone claims to have seen a wolf. The worst are the foxes.
“I can hear them having sex in the backyard!” one of Hank’s coworkers says, and then does an impression of the sound a fox makes during orgasm. Hank doesn’t think that sound is correct, but he never wants to hear it again.
He tries not to think about the foxes, and he succeeds until he spots one in his backyard. It’s in the evening when the small creature darts away into the bushes, its fluffy tail vanishing a moment later. Hank stares for a bit, hoping it was a cat or a squirrel. His instincts say otherwise.
Other mammals are bad, but the fox is his natural enemy.
He checks the backyard but finds no evidence of the fox.
He’s got two weeks until the next full moon, so he has time to work. He visits the local home improvement store and comes back with material sticking out of the car windows. He has to cancel all his plans that weekend, even his date with Stacy, but he finishes. Now he’s got a high fence all around his yard, with no holes at the bottom. It will give him extra privacy during full moons, he thinks, pleased.
A few days later, in the evening, he hears a sound from the backyard. There it is, right in the middle of his yard, bold as you please. The fox stands there, staring at him.
It’s so cute! the human part of him thinks. The rooster part of him thinks, Kill the evil bastard before it gets you! Hank is pretty sure normal roosters aren’t that attack-happy. It must be because he’s part human.
He runs out into the backyard, shouting. The fox leaps away, fitting through a crack Hank hadn’t noticed before.
He’s got one weekend left until the full moon. He works both days, from early in the morning until late at night. The fence definitely has no holes or gaps now, and there’s chicken wire besides. Chicken wire is a powerful, almost mythical thing. Hank holds it carefully, dread mixed with wonder. If it can keep him out, it can keep anything out.
The chicken wire surrounds his entire yard. He hates it and loves it, but he hasn’t seen any foxes in days. Two days before the next full moon, Hank hears a weird noise. He looks out the window. Something is moving beyond his yard. This close to the full moon, he’s got good instincts about it. It can’t get in.
The noises move from the back to the front. Hank switches to another window. The creature darts across the driveway. As if it knows he’s watching, it stops and turns to look back.
The fox’s face is painfully cute in the failing light. Hank’s instincts are too close to rooster. He yanks open the front door. “Monster! Get out!”
The fox flees. Hank will never be able to appreciate a fluffy mammal again.
