Wild at heart

I work alone

I was on the brightly lit streets for the second time in my life. The moon had just begun it descent. No humans were out side of their dens and the warm ice was dark. Around me the other fox pairs had fanned out and were making their way towards their assigned dens. The look out hawks were soaring above our heads, ready to warn us of coming danger. The snake attacks had been far from success full. Only half the rattle snakes sent out had returned to the forest. 25 humans were bitten but the spy hawks told us that only one of them perished, the rest came out of the large den completely fine. As the predators ground spies, the foxes were required to decipher what the humans planned to do. It was a dangerous job but at least the rest of them have a partner. I'm the only exception, because of my tag, I work alone.  A sharp cry pierced though the silence. I leaped into the bushes and flattened myself against the ground. A large human was walking drowsily down the street. Around me I felt the other foxes struggling to stand still. I had no trouble. Many nights had I spent standing completely still at the edge of the forest. Staring at the streets that would take me home but not daring to step paw on them. Now I was with my companions sneaking through the shades together. Although not one of them acknowledged my presence it was still nice to have them nearby. The human stumbled  past us without a second glance. He smelled strongly of some vile subs tense and looked very dizzy. I wondered if he was ill. He hobbled up the steps to his den and fumbled with a small object which he inserted into the wall. Once he was safely inside his den the foxes of the forest burst from the bushes. As one we conquered the streets, slinking off to our individual locations. I found my assigned house with ease. I peered through the warm ice reluctantly. The last time I'd done this it hadn't worked out so well. To my relief no humans were in this part of the den. I quietly made my way to the bushes to wait. In the morning they'd awake and I'd be waiting. I hoped these humans were active because I didn't want to leave without any information. I'd run if they saw me though, you only make that mistake once. I wrapped my tail around me to stay warm and rested my head on my front legs. I could rest but not fall asleep. I subconsciously marked all possible escape routes, if I was caught again I'd be prepared. Morning approached and I remained alert. I could hear the fox on the opposite side of the fence snoring loudly, his partner was breathing deeply beside him. Stupid fools, they were going to get themselves killed, or worse. The humans were still asleep, I don't get how humans stay inside so long. I can't spend half a mayfly life in a closed area. The air starts getting hard to breath and the walls start closing in on me. When I was a cub I'd go down only to sleep and burst out the second I woke up, always panting and drenched in sweat. My brother loved the den, my mother had to drag him out each day as me and other siblings laughed. No one knew about my hatred for the den, now they never will. The stupid humans still weren't out. The sun was high in the sky, they probably weren't home. I sighed as I dragged myself up drowsily, I was in for it when I got back but there was no way I was staying in this death field any longer then I had to. I flattened myself to the ground and waited near the edge of the yard for darkness to come. Too many humans roamed during the daytime. I could see two other foxes waiting on the street across from me. They were out in the open and easy to spot. Luckily humans are extremely unobservant and hadn't noticed them yet. Other wise they'd be dead meat by now. Night finally came, the 20 hours of sleep I'd missed were finally catching up to me.  I suppressed a yawn as I padded my way down the street. The other foxes all looked bright and alert, when you have a partner to keep watch you can sleep for as long as you want. I must have been really tiered because I suddenly felt the ground shaking beneath my feet. Silly me, the ground can't move. I heard voices screaming around me but I felt like I was in a dream. I felt extremely nauseated maybe I could just lie down here and fall asleep for just a minute. The ground looked soft, like moss. The perfect bed.

"GET OFF THE ROAD!" The desperate cries finally got through to me and I hobbled unsteadily to the grass just as the metal beast sped by me. The world went into slow motion. The car spun off the road heading straight into the forest. I heard screams coming from the forest. Suddenly the screams stopped, as if someone had just muted the whole world. No one moved a muscle then more screams and a loud crash. The world went into full motion again as I saw worried foxes gathering around me. I heard them talking but I couldn't understand what they were saying. Their babbling sounded exactly like the humans. I was about to tell them but I couldn't talk. Their faces blurred and the world around me went black.