An Autumn Fox

Chapter 9 - I'm Clearly Not

Avery

Okay, maybe I wasn't so subtle when I was looking at Josiah's body. But, how could I not look? He clearly changed a lot and wasn't the same Josiah I remembered weeks ago.

I mean, his arms and legs have scales instead of fur! He has a dragon tail! Dragon horns and wings! He looks like he lives at the gym!

How is it not hard to stare at that?! Just to clarify, I am straight. Not a slight interest in men at all. 100% interested in women only!

You can't say anything that would say otherwise. Still, that was really unexpected. I never heard of transformations before. Not until Josiah's father had told me.

It was rather strange because it only happens to dragon hybrids.

They look like normal furs. Fox, wolf, bear, etc. That is, until they've reached a certain day in their lives. It can be any day at any age. Recorded transformations found the youngest had been 6 years of age and oldest had been 45 years of age.

During that phase, they'll start changing to match with the dragon genes.

Honestly, a rather scary and painful experience even if I didn't undergo it. The only strangest part about Josiah's transformation was apparently his temper. Dragons and dragon hybrids don't usually have such a short fuse.

Well, it didn't matter if I find it scary or not. I still have to go to work and face Josiah.

I'd rather face a snide comment rather than his full blown wrath.

I had already reached the workplace and entered. A flash of my ID card at the scanner and I was let inside. I've been here for just a few weeks and I'm already tired of the place.

The place just looks so mundane. White walls, grey carpets and beige tiles. Boring.

"I see you've made it just in time. Better be quicker or else...", I hear a voice behind me. It made me jump as I turned around to face him. A bored expression on his face.

It made it hard to pinpoint an exact emotion he was feeling. Though, I can guess he was in a snarky mood.

"Yes, sir. Sorry", I said.

"Don't call me sir and don't apologise. Only apologise when you really hurt someone", he says before leaving.

Well, okay then. I set my stuff down at my desk. Oh god. I have to go meet him.

I regret taking this job offer. I can only blame the stupid curse for everything that happened to me. In any case, I reluctantly headed to Josiah's office.

"Um, excuse me", someone said, making me stop in my tracks.

I look behind me to see the four other recruits standing together. I don't have a good feeling about this.

"Avery, right?", the raven asked. I nod.

"We were wondering, who was that new guy you were talking to? A friend?", the horse asks.

First of all, why the hell do they care if I knew anyone? Second of all, I'd think it's plainly obvious that was our Senior Executive aka Josiah.

"Uh, that's our Senior Executive", I replied before sprinting out of their.

I don't know what their intentions were but I don't want to be near them at the moment. Just, all of them together like that just spells danger.

Well, I was safe for now so I decided to take my time getting to his office.

It was nice to have a moment to myself in this place but all good things must come to an end. I neared his office, only to find the door open.

I let myself in, hoping that I wasn't intruding on anything important. I mentally berated myself for not knocking.

But, it wasn't necessary since Josiah seems transfixed on his phone.

"Mmm, looks cute in that", he says.

"Would love to bury myself in that", he says a few seconds later.

"Um, hello?", I say.

With that, he starts to fumble around with his phone before regaining his composure.

"Ah, you're here. Take a seat", he says. It wasn't commanding nor monotonous but rather, inviting. It was like I was prey to him. I don't know if I should feel scared or act cool in those moments.

I sat down in the client's chair with my head down.

"Don't do that. You need to look professional, kit. Look at me", he scolds.

I could feel my ears fold back as I raise my head to look at him. The stare he was giving me could have killed me on the spot. It was as if he was actually glaring daggers at me.

He sighs in frustration. He stands up and walks over to me. That made me confused.

"You're not gonna convince anyone with how you look. You look like you are just waiting for your turn to be punished in Hell", he says.

What type of analogy was that?!

"See, you want the clients to think you're confident. You need to really convince them that", he adds.

With that, he firmly grasps my shoulder and starts pushing them down.

"Relax your shoulders. You're too tense here", he says.

I do as he told and relaxed my shoulders. Now the only thing I can feel is his hands crushing my body with his sheer strength. Luckily, he removes his hands from my shoulder.

Next, he grabs my ears. I tried my hardest to hold back a giggle. I can't help it, my ears are really ticklish.

"This is a big problem. The clients will know right away that you aren't even sure of your own words. This and also this little snake here", he says as he grabs my tail.

"Don't feel too intimidated by the clients. The clients only know the general info about our company. Our job is to fill them in even more complex details of our company. The more you look scared, the less likely they'll trust you", he says.

Then, it was silent for a bit. For a few seconds, we did not say anything. Suddenly, he speaks up again.

"But, of course, the employees health matters above all else. If you're feeling depressed or are starting to feel stressed out, just come to me. I'll ensure you seek the medical treatment you need and give you the days off", he says. I look at him to see a big toothy grin staring back at me.

This feels strange. I thought he would be snarky and aggresive because of his temper. But, this was the complete opposite. I don't know what to feel at this point.

After that entire thing, he went back to his side of the desk and sat down. He clears his throat before speaking again.

"I may look intimidating but know that I value everyones physical and mental health. Just to remind you, I'm scary but not a monster", he says.