Love is a game (Love in the air collection)

Kumiho: A Tale of a Nine Tail

1200 years ago

The fox kit shivers and tries to make himself as small as possible in the far corner of the bamboo cage. This human place is too loud and there are too many humans, these look like gigantic monsters to the little fox. Some humans come and stick their faces next to his cage and make weird excited sounds he doesn't understand. For the first time in his life he feels scared and alone, he wants to go home to his den, he wants his mama and his den siblings. He has a vague notion that his family are all too far away, that he can't get back to them even if he could escape this cage. After he had been captured he had been carried away from his den for days then there had been a trip across the great water that had made him feel extremely sick. Even if he can find a human vessel to travel back across the great water he has no idea which one might take him back or how to get home from there. He whimpers at the thought of never seeing his family again.

A human, smaller than the others, comes and looks in his cage. From the human's size he guesses this one might be a kit like him. Still the fox tries to pull back even further as the human kit babbles excitedly to the tall human beside them. The tall human looks in his cage and puts a hand on the human kit's head affectionately. It reminds Rain of how his mama would lovingly groom him. Through this gesture the fox feels his first connection to this strange human world around him.

Malai smiles down affectionately at the little girl. Kai is her daughter, but she has cared for her since the day she was born. Today the girl was turning eight and her parents have sent her to the marketplace to find a birthday gift. The instructions Malai had received from the girl's doting parents had been to get the girl whatever her heart desires short of an elephant. This statement had elicited a giggle from the little girl. The child would never demand anything too extravagant. Despite being indulged by family and servants from birth Kai doesn't have a spoiled bone in her body. Kai's personality is bubbly and full of sunshine, a delight to all who know her.

The girl's eye has been caught by the fox kit and Malai can't blame her. The kit is a beautiful creature with coal black fur except for the tip of its tail which was snow white. Malai has never seen a fox of this color before, so she decides to ask the shopkeeper about it.

"A rare color variation indeed," he says with a salesman's grin. He can sense a sale, he has begun to worry because many people had been interested in the little fox, but the kit was very expensive. The price can't be reduced without losing money and his brother-in-law will kill him if that happens. It had cost a lot of money to smuggle the kit in from Silla. They had been sure the kit would make them a huge profit because of its unique coat color, but everyone until now had shaken their heads with regret when the price was named. Now though he can see this woman is obviously a servant of a very rich family, and the little girl's dress is made of very expensive materials. Finally someone who can afford the fox. He tells her, "Most foxes are red but sometimes a kit is born with silver hair, even rarer is one like this little guy with black hair. He was brought all the way from Silla and once tamed will make a wonderful and unique pet for the little miss."

Malai nods, the kit is young and with gentle handling will probably not be hard to train. Kai is old enough that she can do most of the training herself. The fox will make a good companion for the child. Malai senses that Kai is sometimes lonely because there are no children near her age that she can play with. "Is this what you want for your birthday?" She teases the girl, "You don't want a pretty new dress or one of the dolls from the vendor down the street?" She already knows the answer from the way the girl's eyes are shining as she looks at the fox.

"I want him." The girl says excitedly. "I don't want anything else for my birthday, just him"

"Well then I guess you better name him then," Malai tells her.