Why Did I Make Another One 💀

The sun overhead sparkled between the leaves as the midmorning light spread over the valley. It was unusually hot for spring and life in the forest seemed to slow to a dreamy standstill. The trees were budding early and the scent of flowers mixed with the unseasonable warmth, casting a lazy spell over the forest and its inhabitants.

Rin yawned as he stretched out his long legs, wishing his silky fur wasn’t so thick. Though fox by blood, his kind walked upright like humans, their bodies partially covered in thick fur with long expressive tails. He knew he should be out searching for his daily meal, but it felt much nicer to lay about in the shade. 

Rin was warned before he left his village not to wander this close to human territory. Although his brothers and sisters much preferred the shelter of the hidden river, Rin was a bit more opportunistic. This stretch of woods was full of fat little birds and rabbits that made for an easy hunt and a satisfying dinner.

Finally, the handsome fox decided his desire for food outweighed his lazy nature. He stood up on his hind legs, his pale skin gleaming in the dappled sunlight as he brushed his dark fur out of his eyes. The pond was just a few minutes away and usually had all manner of helpless animals he could choose from. Stretching his lanky arms, Rin smiled to himself as he whistled a cheerful tune, silently congratulating himself on being such a clever hunter as he strolled towards his next meal.

Sure enough, peering through the long reeds, Rin could spy several plump ducks paddling about, casually fishing for minnows. It was the easiest thing in the world to wait patiently on the bank for them to eventually waddle up to shore. 

Right when the fox was about to treat himself to a quick nap in the tall grass, he spotted something out of the corner of his eye. Underneath a weeping willow, it looked like a human had left a small parcel behind! Rin had never seen humans at the pond before and was very curious. He double-checked to make sure the ducks were too preoccupied to notice his movements and then crept over to investigate.

The parcel was small and wrapped in brown paper, and whatever was inside smelled delicious! Rin looked around to make sure the coast was clear before he hastily opened it to reveal a lovely cut of ham! This was a much better treat than waiting for those silly ducks to swim back to shore. The fox congratulated himself on his cunning and gobbled the ham up in a few bites. 

It wasn’t long before Rin started to feel a bit strange. The warmth of the day seemed to creep deeper, making his long legs feel unsteady. He decided to sit down and rest against the weeping willow as the sky started to swirl unnaturally overhead. Rin’s eyes soon grew heavy as they drooped shut, inspiring strange feelings of something getting wrapped around his body and being gently repositioned. 

That was the last thing he remembered before suddenly becoming aware that he wasn’t alone anymore. Rin’s eyes snapped open as a human voice cut through the fog in his brain, “As suspected, the sleeping agent was mild enough to subdue the subject and did not induce extreme fatigue.”

The instinct to flee was sudden and Rin tried to leap to his feet, finding he could no longer move freely. His tail swished nervously as he tugged at thick bindings that held his arms tight above his head. It began to dawn on him that this human had strapped him to the trunk of the willow! His knees dug into the soft clover as he realized his ankles were bound behind him. The cool bark of the tree pressed into Rin’s back as he tried to twist away. 

“Let me go!” Rin struggled harder as a male human wearing spectacles appeared from behind the willow. “I don’t like this!”

The man smiled politely at the fox, speaking aloud as he jotted down notes. “Subject appears to be vocalizing in a language I do not yet understand. It would seem I was correct that his species is indeed highly intelligent.”

Rin bit his lip in apprehension. Apparently, the human couldn’t understand him. The fox was familiar enough with Humanish to understand the man with spectacles, but he had no idea how to speak it. He thrashed harder in the bindings, hoping his captor would take pity on his struggle. “Please, let me free!”

“Hm, the subject seems to be experiencing distress, yet the way his tail is wagging suggests he’s experiencing some underlying pleasure. I posit that this particular specimen might enjoy the state of helplessness. Further research could help confirm this.”

Rin’s black-tipped ears pressed flat against his head at those words as a hot blush began to spread on his face. “I’m not enjoying this…! I insist you let me go!”

“A purple blush! You truly are a remarkable specimen. I wonder if your species all exhibit this coloration when their sympathetic nervous system is triggered.” 

The spectacled man crouched down to gently cradle Rin’s soft jaw, admiring the purple fluster and how his soft pale skin transitioned into thick dark fur. “A humanoid fox. I’ve been observing you for days and am so thankful for the opportunity to study you closely. Don’t worry, I’ll be gentle.”

Rin tried to ignore how maddening it felt to have the spectacled man’s fingers softly tracing his jaw. To his embarrassment, a startled laugh escaped him when the man lingered too long above his collar bone.

“What an interesting response.” The man paused to jot something down in a little journal, “The subject appears to be quite sensitive, raising the question to what extent and how localized that reaction is.”

The fox pulled harder on his bindings. Out of his entire clan, Rin was known for having a particular weakness. It wasn’t unheard of for the bigger foxes to trap and tease his paws whenever Rin was too lazy to help in their village. “You don’t need to test anything!! Just let me go… I’ll leave this forest and return to my kind!”

“Subject appears to understand his predicament. What a remarkable creature! This should prove to be an exciting bit of research.” The spectacled man said calmly as he brought both of his hands to the fox’s underarms.

Rin barely had time to squeal before a set of human hands descended softly on his exposed armpits. High-pitched giggles immediately poured from his mouth, making him blush harder. “P-please…!!” He struggled to get the words out between bursts of laughter. “Don’t t-touch me there!!”

“Fascinating. This species of fox exhibits the same gargalesis that humans do when stimulated similarly. Perhaps even more so.” 

The spectacled man continued dancing his fingers inside the soft hollows, eventually running them up the fox’s stretched arms and slowly trailing them back down, skittering over his ribs, down his sides and lingering on the tops of his thighs.

Rin’s fluffy tail swished wildly as the fox broke down into frantic laughter. He had never been restrained like this and tickled so thoroughly. The man’s hands felt different from the other foxes of his clan. They were bigger and more dexterous, wiggling wickedly into his soft sides and big enough to span his bare ribs. “P-p-please…… no m-more!!!”

“It’s a shame I can't understand your vocalizations,” The spectacled man paused, stroking Rin’s soft ears which were still pressed meekly against his head. “You are a very special subject. Don’t worry, I promise no harm will come to you. Besides, the way your tail is wagging suggests a certain amount of enjoyment… so I will continue my research.”

Rin tried not to whimper as the spectacled man strolled behind the willow tree to settle himself next to his bound ankles. “Fascinating. Although the subject has humanoid hands with opposable thumbs, his feet resemble actual fox paws. Quite unique for a bipedal species.”

“No!!” Rin barked out suddenly as the maddening fingers began toying with his toe pads. More heated laughter flowed unbidden as he struggled helplessly against the tree. “Don’t do that…!!”

The fox tried to flex his paws shut but the spectacled man coaxed them back open gently. “Ah ah ah, let’s not get stubborn now. You’ve been doing marvelously. There we are, keep them open so we can get through this. My, listen to how much louder you get when I wiggle my fingers between them! Is everyone in your species this sensitive, I wonder?”

Rin wished he could block out the sound of the man’s calm voice. The best he was afforded was sometimes his laughter would pitch so loud that it drowned out the human’s voice. Every time the fox was able to clench his foot or wiggle it away slightly, the man simply repositioned it with tender insistence. Time seemed to lose meaning as every inch of his trapped feet were explored, giggles and laughter blending in with gasping pleas that the spectacled man ignored.

Finally, his fingers stilled as Rin hung limp in the bonds. The spectacled man came back around, admiring how much deeper the purple flush was on the fox’s face. “Such an unusual color. I believe many would describe it as beautiful.”

The man stroked Rin’s soft ears as he slowly undid the bindings, “You are a magnificent creature. You should probably go back to your home now, so you can be amongst your kind. I’ll leave you some extra ham too. I brought some that wasn’t laced with the sedative.”

Rin slumped weakly underneath the willow tree, gazing up at the human, his eyes wide with wonder from what he endured. The spectacled man could tell the fox wasn’t feeling steady enough to journey back to the safety of his village and settled down next to him. “Alright then, I’ll stay with you a bit longer. If you’re feeling up to it, maybe you can at least tell me your name.”