The Kitsune Giggle

One Normal foxes only had one tail, but there was a certain kind that could grow up to nine. I enlarged the picture to get a better look at Kiki, the resident kitsune at the Griffin Sanctuary and the next animal in need. She had a long, curious snout and six voluptuous ginger tails that ended in white tips. The combination of the soft fur and long legs gave her an adorable but elegant look. I studied the rest of the profile of the kitsune while making my way through the Griffin Sanctuary. I couldn’t afford to be late but I also didn’t want to arrive without being well-informed. As the newest apprentice veterinarian, I couldn’t afford to embarrass myself in front of my seniors. I hesitated at one of the crossings, searching for the colourful signs and markers that helped visitors navigate their way through the park. The kitsune habitat was in a particular part of the sanctuary that I didn’t go to very often, except to visit my friend at the lupin enclosure. “Evening!” a voice chirped and fellow apprentice Tamara joined me on the crossing. “Hello,” I smiled, relieved I’d be working with her. While I didn’t have anything against the other apprentices, she was definitely the friendliest of the bunch. Besides that, she was only a trimester ahead of me in the program so hopefully, if I worked hard, I’d be able to make up for lost time. “Coming or going?” Tamara asked, matching her pace to mine as we continued along the path. “Coming, I’m on the night shift to work with Kiki. I’m curious what she’ll look like in real life compared to her picture. Which way am I supposed to go?” “I’ll walk you to it. I haven’t seen the kitsune in a while so I wouldn’t mind saying hello and I’ve got a couple of hours left before I get to go home.” We reached the enclosure and Tamara flicked her badge against the scanner. “Have you not seen her yet?” “No. I saw a pair leaving the Sanctuary to go to a reserve but I haven’t seen Kiki,” I said, pulling the gate shut behind me. “What’s she like? I read her profile but it doesn’t really mean anything.” Tamara thought for a moment as we entered the facility. “Stately but playful.” That was an interesting description. I spotted our supervisor waiting for us by the back entrance to the habitat so I didn’t have time to ask her to elaborate. “Evening.” Gwen, the middle-aged headkeeper greeted us with an enthusiastic wave, making her full head of copper curls bounce. “Where’s Maria?” Tamara inquired, scanning the area in search of the senior veterinarian. “Oh, there was an emergency at the mini griffins but she left your assignment with me. Follow me,” the woman said, proceeding us to the glass window that gave us a look into the kitsune den. “Mini griffin emergency?” Tamara whispered to me, sounding eager. “That sounds fun. I wonder why she hasn’t asked one of us to assist. Your shift only just started and I’ve got a couple more hours left on mine. Oh well, at least she doesn’t play favourites like Duran.” The two of us joined Gwen by the window and unlike Tamara, I didn’t feel any sadness about not being present at the mini griffins. The sleeping red kitsune in her den was so adorable and cute, I was excited to spent more time with her. Gwen grabbed her phone from the pouch in her overall and tapped her screen a couple of times. “You can’t quite see it now that she’s curled up, but Kiki has become very thin. We need to find a way to get her back into good health so you two will be here to observe and study her.” I leaned closer to the window, studying the ball of fur. “She looks very peaceful.” Our supervisor chortled. “Wait until she wakes up, you won’t say that then.” “I can handle it,” I chirped eagerly. “Yes, you can count on us,” Tamara added. A smile twisted my lips up. Her energy reminded me of Felicity but Tamara’s attitude was a whole lot better. That being said, I couldn’t wait to tell Felicity all about Kiki and trade news in exchange for updates on the silver blush unicorns she was taking care of. Gwen put her phone away. “Great. I’ll leave you to it, then. I need to check on the rest of the wing but I’ll be back later. If there’s an issue, you can page me or the veterinarian on duty. You’ll have to take on some of the keeper duties since it’s just me at the moment but I’m sure you’ll manage. Especially you, Charlotte.” She looked directly at me and smiled. “You know the drill from when you were interning at the unicorns, right?” Even though taking care of kitsunes was entirely different, I felt honoured to be considered reliable. “I can do it.” Gwen seemed confident enough in our abilities and left us to it. For a moment, I felt paralysed by the independency but I quickly regained my footing. “I should check the schedule for the night first,” I said, moving over to the work area. A metal table with a set of scales looked like the food station and the tablet next to it confirmed it. I swiped to unlock the screen and scanned the log. “Okay, first portion of food should be offered at seven, then we’ve got a treat at twelve, and then we do enrichment at three.” I glanced at my companion. “Can I ask you something? Why did you say Duran plays favourites?” “Because he does. Patricia is his favourite student at the moment.” Tamara glanced around before she waggled her shoulders. “You know.” “I don’t know.” “You know.” “I don’t.” “Oh? You really don’t know.” The vague exchange was quickly exhausting me. “No, that’s what I’m saying.” With a impish grin, she made some crude hand gestures. “You know.” “They’re sleeping together?” She facepalmed. “Way to ruin the mystique.” “Why wouldn’t you just say?” I shook my head and went over to the window to observe the sleeping ball of red fur. “She looks really cute. Does she usually sleep this much?” “I’m not sure.” Tamara hopped onto the bench next to me, her legs swinging back and forth. “Do you think he’s hot?” “Who?” “Duran.” I shot her a confused look. “I’m not into men.” Tamara chuckled. “Oh, you’re gay? I didn’t know that but nice. My cousin is too. Marnie. Do you know her?” “How would I know her? We’re not all related or something.” “I don’t know, she always claims she knows everyone in the area.” Tamara hopped off the bench and crouched down to look at the kitsune. “What are we supposed to do here? It doesn’t look like she’s waking up.” “I could try to feed her?” I glanced at my watch. “It’s almost food time.” Eager to take the initiative, I grabbed the prepared bowl for Kiki. It looked very different from what we fed the unicorns or even the phoenixes. Pieces of red meat, a fresh raw egg, and some pieces of cubed vegetables. Not exactly appetising but also not the worst breakfast imaginable. If I threw it all in a pan, that’d become something tasty. But as it was, no thanks. Tamara opened the gate to the enclosure and I stepped in, my first time in this habitat. The ground was soft and slightly sandy but with some nice grassy patches and bushes for the fox to hide under. It looked like a place of wonder and adventure for the six-tailed fiend. “Breakfast, Kiki. Or I suppose, dinner?” I announced, setting down the metal bowl in front of the next box. I waited for the little kitsune to hop out or wake up from the smell, but no movement. Was she not supposed to be awake? I knew they were nocturnal but with the falling evening and the fading light, surely the little fox should be getting ready to rise? I rattled the bowl, hoping to draw out the kitsune with the smells of raw meat. “Wakey, wakey?” No reaction. I didn’t know why I expected anything else when Gwen literally just said Kiki wasn’t eating properly. “Lucky, you can probably just sleep all night.” Tamara yawned and stretched her arms. “My last shift, one of the lupins was throwing up in the clinic. Not. Fun.” “You don’t like lupins?” “I like them fine, but I want to sleep through the night shift, not be up the whole time.” I frowned. “Isn’t that the point of the night shift?” “No, we’re here in case there’s an emergency or something.” She gestured to the hidden den underneath the log. “This is not an emergency, is it? Now whatever is happening with the mini griffins, I bet that’s fun.” Her lamenting didn’t really mean anything to me. While I’d prefer to be in bed at night, this was a nice way to shake things up. A new creature to get to know and study, and hopefully, help. I just hoped Kiki would wake up soon so we could work out what was wrong.