Stop pulling on my tail!

"Change back. You are making mom and dad cry!"

But I like being a fox. I'm not bad.

"You just don't want to change back because you get all the attention! We hate you! You should go away and never come back if you have to be a stupid animal!"

Fox jumped to his feet, suddenly completely awake. His eyes adjusted easily to the darkness as he panted heavily. After only a few moments the living room came out of the darkness and into focus.

Oh. Just a dream.

It had been a long time since he'd thought about his siblings and parents. His heart ached against his ribs as he tried to shove the mental images away. He'd left, just like they'd wanted. It had been the day before his eighth birthday.

Thirsty.

Wandering over to the water bowl using the dim light filtering in from the back sliding doors, Fox was slightly surprised to see it completely full. He lowered his head slowly and lapped up a good portion of the crisp liquid before sitting back and staring down into his blurry reflection.

Is it so bad being what I am? Should I hate that I'm an animal? Should I want to change back?

The questions were the same as always, and just like every other time they'd found their way into his thoughts, he had no answers to give. He'd thought that being what he wanted was what his parents had always wanted for him. He'd loved it when he'd first shifted at five years old. His parents and older siblings had been so proud. In no time at all he'd mastered the change, too, and often switched back and forth between his two entities.

By the time he'd turned six, however, he was staying in his fox form more than his human one. At first, it had simply been dismissed as a phase. He could still shift back and forth, so there was no issue. By his seventh birthday, however, he'd remained an animal for three months straight. Doing so caused him to miss school and eventually forced one of his parents to remain home with him during the day and also bring in a mental health doctor to try and figure out why he'd continuously refused to shift. He'd only changed back to his human form one more time after that, to leave his parents a note with a single word out.

Sorry.

Shaking his head hard, Fox flicked his left ear and lifted a paw. With a quiet grumble he swiped at the water, destroying the image of his fox reflecting back up at him. When the image started to reform, he gave a frustrated squeak of a growl and lifted his other paw to take a swipe at the water.

Stop it.

The image reformed again and he quickly lifted both paws, digging out the water in a flurry until the entire bowl was bare... yet his blurry reflection still stared back at him.

"Hey there, little fox."

Noah's whispered voice drew Fox's attention to the entryway behind him. The light was turned on as he moved, but thankfully dimmed quickly after so that neither of them went blind.

"Whoa, was the water bad, buddy?" Noah asked as he got a cloth from where it hung on the stove door and walked over to kneel down and start cleaning up the mess.

Fox stepped back, but then realized that he would be tracking water around if he up and left. He also couldn't just sit down. He didn't want to get his bum wet.

"One second, Fox. I'll get you," Noah said as he finished up with the spill, then grabbed another cloth and knelt in front of him with one hand out.

The tired smile on the man's face made Fox nudge aside his hesitance and lift a paw. It was tiny compared to Noah's hand, but he was gentle as he rubbed the cloth over it, then gestured for the other paw, which he was given after a moment.

"There we go. I'm sure your back feet aren't too bad, so we can leave those be," he said as he got back up and headed out of the room.

When Noah turned off the light on his way out, Fox flicked his tail and tilted his head, then slowly jogged after him. He was awake now, so sleep likely wasn't going to happen just yet. Noticing that Noah was heading back toward his room after he'd tossed the two small towels into the laundry room, Fox ran ahead of him and pawed at the slightly ajar bathroom door.

"Huh? What is it?" Noah asked as he changed direction toward the bathroom.

Flicking his ear excitedly, Fox relieved himself on the newspapers set out for him.

"Oh, right. Well, I guess it's better that you told me you had to go now so that it doesn't smell up the bathroom. I appreciate it," he said as he quickly cleaned up the mess, then put down clean paper.

He was just getting back up to leave when Fox yipped and hopped into the bathtub. The second Noah was looking at him he put his chin on the edge of the tub and glanced sideways towards the spigot, then back.

Noah didn't look impressed.

"It's two in the morning, bud. Not gonna happen," he said, making Fox flatten his ears for a brief moment before flicking them back up and hopping out of the tub... then scrambling right back in when his jump didn't quite get him over the rim.

When he turned back around and set his chin on the edge again with an added whine for effect, Noah stifled a laugh and walked over.

"You think you're being cute, huh? You still ate my cat, buddy, or did you forget?" Noah chastised with a shake of his head as he leaned over just enough to poke Fox's nose.

Backing up abruptly, Fox snorted, then licked his lips several times. Oh yes, he definitely remembered having eaten the cat.

Too bad I couldn't keep it down.

"I'm beginning to figure out your expressions, and I know that you aren't the least bit remorseful," Noah said, making Fox lick at one of his paws. He was only remorseful that he hadn't gotten to enjoy the meal. It hadn't been his fault that the guy had left his pet outside.

Sighing, Noah grabbed a towel that was hanging up on a bar next to him. Fox perked up immediately, only to freak out when the large towel was thrown over his head and he was picked up.

"Oh hush, I'm just taking you somewhere and I don't want your claws in my arm while I'm doing so," Noah scolded as he moved.

He wisely made the trip quick, and when Fox was set back down, he quickly squirmed out of the towel. Surprised at his new surroundings, he took in the big room with a twitch of his whiskers.

"I'm not giving you another bath right now, but if you want to be really warm, I have a heated blanket under the comforter," Noah said as he got underneath the aforementioned blankets and yawned.

I wasn't asking for another bath... just a nice baking.

Figuring that he wasn't going to get what he wanted, Fox hopped off the bed. The heated blanket did sound tempting, but he'd already exceeded his ability to be close to the man, or any human, for at least a week. After one more quick look around he sauntered out the open door and headed back to the living room.

He was nearly back to the dog bed he intended to use when he heard footsteps behind him. Stopping beside the bed, he looked up, taking a few steps away when Noah walked over. He was carrying a folded blanket.

"I'm really not cold tonight, which is odd... so I thought that you might want this," he said as he knelt down and, after plugging in the blanket, set it up on the dog bed.

"I'll see you tomorrow, Fox. Get some sleep."

Once Noah was gone, Fox turned his attention to the blanket.

You don't need that. You slept in the snow for years. In the rain. In storms.

He flicked his ears and looked out the door leading into the backyard. It was snowing softly, the light of the moon reflecting off of each flake as it descended.

Turning his attention back to the blanket, he noticed something that had him finally taking a step forward.

I just wanted to sleep on the bed. It was bought for me, anyways. It's not my fault that he put the blanket on it.

With his thoughts goading him onward, Fox slowly moved forward until he'd managed to slip beneath the folded warm blanket. It was definitely no scalding shower, but as he closed his eyes and sighed out his remaining stress through his little nose, the only part of him visible at the edge of the fabric, its added warmth began to feel like a comfortable hug... one that he hadn't felt for over a decade. It was kind of nice.