It was stupid of her. She's better than this. She's smarter than this. A creature revered as a deity in some areas and she got caught in a human trap. A dumb human trap. Nari'd been playing with some other foxes (perfectly normal foxes. Real foxes. Not that she isn't real but she's also... not) when they found something they seemed wary of. While part of her was curious about what seemed to upset the other foxes so much, a much larger part of her was just disappointed that it was interrupting their playtime. So she went to check it out herself so she could ease their fears.
All she did, however, was confirm their fears. She got too close and got one of her legs caught in the foothold trap. It's not one of those big angry bear traps with the teeth, at least. But it still hurts. She's sure it's broken her leg. If she could take on human form, she might be able to get herself free but she's in too much pain to even consider it. It's all she can do to keep up the illusion of having a single tail. Besides, she's not sure she wants to find out how it might end for a fox leg shifting into a larger human arm inside of this trap.
Nari whines every time she tries to tug her leg free, every time fresh pain shoots through her entire body. She cries every time she feels her bones try to heal and then break again. Something both unfortunate and a small mercy is that her body tries to heal more and more slowly each time the leg breaks again, as though to conserve her energy until she gets free. If she gets free.
When she hears approaching footsteps she opens her mouth wide and flattens her ears to her head, making an unnerving mix of growling and screaming sounds to ward off whoever's coming too close. The owner of the trap, perhaps. She tugs harder, with more desperation to try to free herself before anyone can get their hands on her.
Not the owner of the trap. Seongho doesn't hunt; and if he did hunt, he wouldn't do it so cruelly. He doesn't like other people near his abode and does his best to chase hunters away by removing or ruining their traps. It seems he's missed one. He sighs quietly at his oversight as he approaches the poor creature it's trapped.
His step slows when he sees the injured fox in a defensive posture. Seongho knows he has to get her out and quickly. Even if the trap isn't lethal, the injuries she sustained from it could be. Or worse, she might starve before the one who set the trap returns. Seongho's no stranger to helping the ill and injured wildlife in this area. There's a bird who nests at his cabin because he nursed her broken wing.
Though he knows (thinks!) the fox can't understand him, he speaks to her anyway. His voice is a low and scratchy, but also soft and soothing.
"I'm not here to hurt you, little one." He doesn't move any closer yet, in the hopes that he can acclimate to the fox to his presence so he can set her free.
For just a moment, she quiets a little and raises her ears, wanting to hear what he's saying over the sounds of her own distress. It appears that she may merely be listening to the soothing sound of his low, scratchy voice, momentarily distracted enough by the way it hits her ears to pull her out of her own misery. Who would ever think that she's listening to him and not just the sound of his voice? Who could imagine that the animal in front of them could actually understand exactly what they're saying without first knowing that animal isn't what it appears to be?
It only lasts a moment, however. Nari flattens her ears and starts making a lot of noise again. She scrabbles to get free, three of her four paws digging uselessly into the ground while she continues to tug at the fourth. She knows it's not going to work, that she needs hands to pry the trap open. Hands that this stranger has, but hands that she doesn't trust. He says that he isn't going to hurt her but is she really about to trust him? Where she not injured, she could let him free her and turn on him before he got the chance to act upon his potential ill intentions, but as it stands, she doesn't trust herself right now to be quick enough.
Nari isn't usually afraid of humans. She's stronger than them. She's capable of things they probably can't even comprehend. She's a supernatural creature the likes of which humans write stories about and craft legends around! But right now, she's a little afraid. She's vulnerable. She gets why so many other animals are fearful of them. They can be such awful things.
She bites at the trap, once in a while looking back toward the man as she does, then flops onto her side and starts to kick and push at it with her back legs. She stops her kicking and biting only long enough to scream at the man. A plea for help or a warning to keep his distance? Is he actually going to help her, or is he just going to try to hurt her? Excellent questions.
Of course he has no idea she can understand him. Though Seongho is familiar with people who have supernatural abilities, they're all very human. If he's ever met a creature from myth and legend, he's not aware of it. He wouldn't disbelieve they exist, it just never occurs to him that they do exist.
"Hey, hey, shhhh," he tries to soothe. "Moving around will only hurt you more." As he speaks, he takes one slow step closer. He keeps his hands in sight, holding one out in front of him so she might catch his scent more clearly.
Who would ever assume that the fox in front of them is more than just a fox? Especially a fox that's gotten itself so completely ensnared in a trap. What mythical creature would ever do such a thing? What legendary creature would allow itself to be trapped so easily? Well, Nari would. Clearly. Nari would because she was disappointed and annoyed that her new friends no longer wanted to play with her.
Nari rolls back onto her belly, her ears perking up a little once again as he speaks. Of course, it doesn't last. They flatten to her head when he starts to approach, but she doesn't try to back away (not that she can go far). She just watches him and continues to make a lot of noise. The growls are lessening, however. She needs this man. Regardless of what he intends in the end, she needs him right now.
When he reaches one hand toward her, she initially considers not responding to it. Or snapping at it. At least he's not sticking his hand right in her face like she's seen so many other humans do. It's not the kind gesture they think it is, allowing the animal to sniff them while the human looms over them with their hand shoved into the poor animal's face. This man, though, is at least doing that part right and with a little more consideration. She's still not sure if he really is trying to free her, or if he'll skin her once she's out of the trap, but he gets some points, at least. She cranes her neck, sniffing the air in front of his hand. She doesn't really smell anything on him that's cause for alarm, at least. That doesn't mean that he isn't up to some shady things, but for the moment it's enough for her to give him the benefit of the doubt.
Nari's sounds grow even quieter and they no longer seem to contain any hints of warning. Just distress. She stares up at him as she once again bites at the trap. She wants it off. She's trying to tell him that she wants it off.
The change in her tone tells him that she, at least for this moment, is trusting him enough to help set her free. What happens once the trap is off her is anyone's guess. He hopes she doesn't run off to die. He'd like to take care of the injury, if he can. But a fox isn't a human being who can understand his intentions (little does he know this particular fox can and does understand!).
"It's okay, I'm not here to hurt you," he assures. As he moves closer, he ensures he's not approach her straight on. No, he's coming from the side so she can watch him without feeling as much threat. He's slow in his approach so as not to startle her, until he finally crouches down beside the trap to work on prying it open.
"You'll probably run away once I get this open, but I hope you won't."
Not that the human is aware of it, but Nari won't so easily die. Though she can certainly (unfortunately) be killed, it won't be by succumbing to her injuries. She'd run off to lick her wounds, and wait for her healing to finally kick back in and mend her broken bones. Or is her healing like that of a regular fox now, simply because her leg has taken too much damage in too short a time? So she won't die so easily but whether or not she'll try to run off once she's free is something that not even she is sure of.
Nari stays close to the ground as he approaches, shuffling her body away from him as much as she can but no longer trying to pull her leg free to get away from him. She makes small whimpering and whining noises, watching him get closer, her eyes never leaving him as he crouches down and gets to work on the trap. She bites and paws at the trap again as though in an effort to help him until she starts to feel it move. The last thing she needs is to get her other leg or muzzle stuck in the trap too. It's bad enough that she got one leg stuck in this stupid human contraption.
Ears perking up at the sound of metal scraping against metal, Nari pulls her leg free as soon as she's sure she can, as soon as the pressure is relieved. She quickly (or as quick as she can) moves herself a few feet back from the trap, but that's it. She doesn't run. A surprise, really! Even though she didn't know what would happen, she would have put money on her running. This helpful human with the calm voice could still be dangerous. What if he tries to hurt her further or take her coat? What if he finds out that she's a gumiho that holds knowledge of things he couldn't even imagine? Humans get so greedy when they learn what she is.
But she just sits, licking at her wound. Her beautiful black and white coat is stained red where the skin on her leg tore from the trap, and her tugging and pulling. Just wait until she heals. She'll come back and do away with this trap for good. And then she'll find out the owner of it so she can do away with him as well. It won't be her own blood she'll be wearing when that happens.
Nari looks down at her leg, sitting at a sickening angle, and then up at the human. She starts to make a lot of noise again (chittering and whining sounds, but still no angry warning growls), tail swishing back and forth on the ground behind her. She's not running away so what now, human?
Once Seongho pries the trap open, he’s surprised the fox doesn’t bolt. Maybe she can sense the has doesn’t have any malicious intent. Non-human animals are keen like that. They seem to know human’s emotions well, better than other humans.
Not only does he pry the trap from Nari, he tugs it up from the ground so no other unfortunate animal will fall prey to it. He’ll take it apart with his tools to repurpose what he can and scrap the rest. It’s his part in keeping hunters and trappers away. They don’t like it when they come up empty handed and lose their traps, too.
Glancing back to the fox, he breathes out at the sight of her poor stained fur.
“If you stay here, I’ll come back with some food.” He didn’t dare try to scoop her up and carry her. That might cause her even more distress.
Or just maybe, she can understand what he's saying, not that there's any way for him to know such a thing. To him, she's just an ordinary fox. To all but the ordinary foxes, she's an ordinary fox. She smells different and she sounds a little different, but those are the sorts of things a human wouldn't be able to pick up on. No, he's not likely to know that she can understand exactly what he's saying unless she decides to come out and tell him.
Even though she can understand him, and even though she does have a sense for his good intentions, Nari doesn't fully trust him. He's doing well so far to get in her good graces though. Not choosing to try to pick her up certainly helps (even if she doesn't know that's a choice he made). It would've been distressing. Chances are good that she wouldn't have tried to hurt him or anything simply because he chose to pick her up, but she might've hurt him as she tried to get back down. And potentially herself. She doesn't want to be picked up by some stranger.
He doesn't have to worry about her staying here, though, and he doesn't have to worry about trying to bring her along with him. Once he starts to leave the area, he'll notice her limping along behind him. She'll be keeping a lot of distance between herself and Seongho, but following along behind him none the less. His mention of food made her realize just how hungry she is. She spent a lot of time earlier playing with the other foxes and then got herself trapped so she hasn't had much of a chance to eat. He said he's going to come back with food, but if she goes with him maybe she can get even more. Whether it's given to her or she steals it and makes off into the woods doesn't matter. She's hungry and needs food. Get her strength back up so she can start healing and get away from here.
Trying to pick up a wild animal is stupid to begin with. That's not even factoring in an injury. She might hurt him or herself trying to escape or possibly even more on the now dysfunctional trap he's carrying, too. Bad ideas all around. Which is exactly why he opted not to attempt it. Even if his arms were free, he wouldn't have tried.
The she begins to follow him is more than a little surprising. Seongho does nothing to discourage it. He's a friend to his neighbors in this forest. Once he realizes she's behind him (if at a distance), he doesn't even look back too often lest she get startled. If she's willing to follow him for a meal, maybe he can get a better look at her injured leg. He may have to find a vet if she's bad enough off (little does he know).
On the walk back to his cabin, a solitary place nestled in the woods near a small creek, he does talk. More to himself than to her, but so that she can get used to his voice. He discusses his plans to disassemble the trap, to repurpose whatever of it he can and sell the rest as scrap. That's what he does with all the traps he finds. Though, he's not always lucky enough to find their victim in time to save them. As they get nearer, Nari might catch the scent of the vegetables growing in his garden. A few more human scents are present, too, though not in any amounts that his fellow humans would detect: soap, vinegar, even a faint scent of kerosene to power his heater in the midst of winter when a fire alone isn't enough.
Seongho speaks and Nari listens. She hangs on his every word as he leads her back to his home. Her ears twitch this way and that as she picks up on other sounds that make the walk back unique from the rest of the woods, but they mostly stay trained on him. Her nose is pulled in every direction as it catches scents that differentiate this area from others (once she leaves here, she'd like to know how to return in case he has food worth taking), but she doesn't miss a word he says.
The fact that he seems to be talking to himself instead of her makes it feel less like he's performing for her. It makes it feel like just maybe, he's being sincere about what he plans to do with the trap. Maybe the trap really isn't his and he's ridding the woods of it once and for all. Or it could simply be that it is his and it's past its prime now and the disassembly is meaningless, since it'll just be replaced with another. She'll just have to continue to keep an eye on him to see which route he ultimately takes.
As they grow ever closer, Nari catches the scent of his garden. Not her preferred meal but she likes fruits and vegetables well enough. Besides, produce like that tends to be within reach of a thieving little fox which can make it worth its weight in gold under the right circumstances. Then comes the other scents. The soap she's familiar with. She smelled it on him when he presented his hand to her. It actually gives this place a sense of familiarity. It takes away some of the anxiety of being at the human's home. The vinegar and kerosene, well, she could certainly do without those. The vinegar stings her nose a little. Both scents she knows from being around a wide variety of humans in her time. Both scents she knows aren't really in the woods except for when a human takes them there. Another way for her to find her way back should she so desire.
Once Nari feels she's travelled far enough and once she feels like she's gone as close as she currently dares to the human's home, she lays down to alleviate some of her aches and to try to start nursing her injured leg back to health. She doesn't need a vet, she just needs a little bit of time. And a decent meal or two.
Seongho disappears into the cabin. He didn't expect the fox to follow him as close to the house as she'd come, but he's glad. He discards the trap to deal with at a later time. A stew's been cooking most of the day. Nari might also catch the scent of that. It's easy for him to fish out some larger chunks of rabbit and a few of the vegetables. He spoons a small measure of broth into the dish as well, but he plans to bring her water.
When he appears once more, he glances to where he last saw the fox. She's still there. He's slow to approach, a dish in each hand. He clears about half the distance between them before crouching to set down the dishes. Then he returns to the safety of his porch to observe her at a distance.
Oh she mostly certainly smells it. She sniffs at the air, catching the scent of the cooked rabbit and stewing vegetables. She almost gets up and follows him inside to get closer to that delicious smell. If she had four perfectly working legs, she might. She could grab his food and escape easily. She could steal every piece of food he has and be long gone before he ever even noticed.
Alas, she has to wait for him to hopefully return with the food. Waiting to be fed like some common pet. She licks at her injured leg with an annoyed huff and a soft whine. That is until Seongho returns with some dishes in hand. She lifts her head to watch him and his approach. She watches every step he takes, thick tail swishing over the ground behind her. She lifts her snout to start sniffing at the air again. So he really is bringing food to her. It's in one of those dishes he's holding!
Nari climbs to her feet (three of them. The fourth she holds awkwardly up in the air), only limping her way forward once he gets himself settled onto the porch. She keeps her eyes on him even as she lowers her head to better smell the food. It doesn't seem like there's anything untoward in it. Not like it would harm her if there was, but it would likely expose her for the normal fox she isn't, and she's in no condition for surprises right now.
Keeping her eyes on the man, still, Nari eagerly snaps up piece after piece of the rabbit, trilling happily with every bite. She largely ignores the vegetables for now but don't worry, she will get to them. Give her enough time and she'll clear both dishes.
Seongho doesn’t want the fox to move too far for her meal, injured as she is. If she eats all of what he’s served her, he’s happy to give her more. There’s plenty to go around. The stew would feed him alone for several days. It’s easy to pop in a pot and reheat, so he cooks it in larger amounts. That tends to be how Seongho eats.
He doesn’t stare her down while she’s eating. Most wild animals don’t enjoy that. So he busies himself rocking in his chair and just looking over his garden beside his cabin. “You just let me know if you want more, little one,” he muses as much to himself as to Nari. “You’re always welcome here for a meal. If you want to stay close, I can build you a shelter, ‘til that leg’s healed.”
The food and water seem safe enough, even if she were just a regular fox. Nothing tastes off about it. And he seems intent of leaving her to her meal. He's keeping his distance. He's not trying to move in on her and he's not crowding her. He doesn't even seem to be looking at her. Though she's still far from trusting him, maybe he isn't the worst human she's ever come across. At least not currently. She's still waiting to find out what he'll actually do with that trap.
Finishing off both the food (see? She ate the vegetables too!) and water he brought out for her, she barks to get his attention then noses one of the dishes forward before finally retreating to a safe distance. Back to where she'd been sitting previously before he came out with the meal. She doesn't know how she feels about the shelter but she'll gladly take him up on his offer of seconds.
The bark gets his attention and he can't help smiling when he sees her nudge the dish forward. At least his cooking is palatable to other living things, too. He likes to think his cooking is decent enough to feed to others, be they human or not.
"You want some more, huh?" He murmurs to alert her to his actions. Again, he's not sold on her understanding him, but at least if he speaks before he moves, it won't seem to sudden or unexpected. "Alright, I'll get you some seconds." There's plenty so he doesn't need to be stingy about it.
Seongho's still careful when he walks toward her, taking deliberate steps closer and reaching out long before he's close enough to crouch and pick up the dishes. And then, with just as much care, he retreats with the dishes to refill them. This time, there are fewer vegetables and more meat for her. She'll need her strength to recover from that trap.
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All she did, however, was confirm their fears. She got too close and got one of her legs caught in the foothold trap. It's not one of those big angry bear traps with the teeth, at least. But it still hurts. She's sure it's broken her leg. If she could take on human form, she might be able to get herself free but she's in too much pain to even consider it. It's all she can do to keep up the illusion of having a single tail. Besides, she's not sure she wants to find out how it might end for a fox leg shifting into a larger human arm inside of this trap.
Nari whines every time she tries to tug her leg free, every time fresh pain shoots through her entire body. She cries every time she feels her bones try to heal and then break again. Something both unfortunate and a small mercy is that her body tries to heal more and more slowly each time the leg breaks again, as though to conserve her energy until she gets free. If she gets free.
When she hears approaching footsteps she opens her mouth wide and flattens her ears to her head, making an unnerving mix of growling and screaming sounds to ward off whoever's coming too close. The owner of the trap, perhaps. She tugs harder, with more desperation to try to free herself before anyone can get their hands on her.
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His step slows when he sees the injured fox in a defensive posture. Seongho knows he has to get her out and quickly. Even if the trap isn't lethal, the injuries she sustained from it could be. Or worse, she might starve before the one who set the trap returns. Seongho's no stranger to helping the ill and injured wildlife in this area. There's a bird who nests at his cabin because he nursed her broken wing.
Though he knows (thinks!) the fox can't understand him, he speaks to her anyway. His voice is a low and scratchy, but also soft and soothing.
"I'm not here to hurt you, little one." He doesn't move any closer yet, in the hopes that he can acclimate to the fox to his presence so he can set her free.
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It only lasts a moment, however. Nari flattens her ears and starts making a lot of noise again. She scrabbles to get free, three of her four paws digging uselessly into the ground while she continues to tug at the fourth. She knows it's not going to work, that she needs hands to pry the trap open. Hands that this stranger has, but hands that she doesn't trust. He says that he isn't going to hurt her but is she really about to trust him? Where she not injured, she could let him free her and turn on him before he got the chance to act upon his potential ill intentions, but as it stands, she doesn't trust herself right now to be quick enough.
Nari isn't usually afraid of humans. She's stronger than them. She's capable of things they probably can't even comprehend. She's a supernatural creature the likes of which humans write stories about and craft legends around! But right now, she's a little afraid. She's vulnerable. She gets why so many other animals are fearful of them. They can be such awful things.
She bites at the trap, once in a while looking back toward the man as she does, then flops onto her side and starts to kick and push at it with her back legs. She stops her kicking and biting only long enough to scream at the man. A plea for help or a warning to keep his distance? Is he actually going to help her, or is he just going to try to hurt her? Excellent questions.
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"Hey, hey, shhhh," he tries to soothe. "Moving around will only hurt you more." As he speaks, he takes one slow step closer. He keeps his hands in sight, holding one out in front of him so she might catch his scent more clearly.
"Can you be still so I can let you out?"
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Nari rolls back onto her belly, her ears perking up a little once again as he speaks. Of course, it doesn't last. They flatten to her head when he starts to approach, but she doesn't try to back away (not that she can go far). She just watches him and continues to make a lot of noise. The growls are lessening, however. She needs this man. Regardless of what he intends in the end, she needs him right now.
When he reaches one hand toward her, she initially considers not responding to it. Or snapping at it. At least he's not sticking his hand right in her face like she's seen so many other humans do. It's not the kind gesture they think it is, allowing the animal to sniff them while the human looms over them with their hand shoved into the poor animal's face. This man, though, is at least doing that part right and with a little more consideration. She's still not sure if he really is trying to free her, or if he'll skin her once she's out of the trap, but he gets some points, at least. She cranes her neck, sniffing the air in front of his hand. She doesn't really smell anything on him that's cause for alarm, at least. That doesn't mean that he isn't up to some shady things, but for the moment it's enough for her to give him the benefit of the doubt.
Nari's sounds grow even quieter and they no longer seem to contain any hints of warning. Just distress. She stares up at him as she once again bites at the trap. She wants it off. She's trying to tell him that she wants it off.
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"It's okay, I'm not here to hurt you," he assures. As he moves closer, he ensures he's not approach her straight on. No, he's coming from the side so she can watch him without feeling as much threat. He's slow in his approach so as not to startle her, until he finally crouches down beside the trap to work on prying it open.
"You'll probably run away once I get this open, but I hope you won't."
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Nari stays close to the ground as he approaches, shuffling her body away from him as much as she can but no longer trying to pull her leg free to get away from him. She makes small whimpering and whining noises, watching him get closer, her eyes never leaving him as he crouches down and gets to work on the trap. She bites and paws at the trap again as though in an effort to help him until she starts to feel it move. The last thing she needs is to get her other leg or muzzle stuck in the trap too. It's bad enough that she got one leg stuck in this stupid human contraption.
Ears perking up at the sound of metal scraping against metal, Nari pulls her leg free as soon as she's sure she can, as soon as the pressure is relieved. She quickly (or as quick as she can) moves herself a few feet back from the trap, but that's it. She doesn't run. A surprise, really! Even though she didn't know what would happen, she would have put money on her running. This helpful human with the calm voice could still be dangerous. What if he tries to hurt her further or take her coat? What if he finds out that she's a gumiho that holds knowledge of things he couldn't even imagine? Humans get so greedy when they learn what she is.
But she just sits, licking at her wound. Her beautiful black and white coat is stained red where the skin on her leg tore from the trap, and her tugging and pulling. Just wait until she heals. She'll come back and do away with this trap for good. And then she'll find out the owner of it so she can do away with him as well. It won't be her own blood she'll be wearing when that happens.
Nari looks down at her leg, sitting at a sickening angle, and then up at the human. She starts to make a lot of noise again (chittering and whining sounds, but still no angry warning growls), tail swishing back and forth on the ground behind her. She's not running away so what now, human?
no subject
Not only does he pry the trap from Nari, he tugs it up from the ground so no other unfortunate animal will fall prey to it. He’ll take it apart with his tools to repurpose what he can and scrap the rest. It’s his part in keeping hunters and trappers away. They don’t like it when they come up empty handed and lose their traps, too.
Glancing back to the fox, he breathes out at the sight of her poor stained fur.
“If you stay here, I’ll come back with some food.” He didn’t dare try to scoop her up and carry her. That might cause her even more distress.
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Even though she can understand him, and even though she does have a sense for his good intentions, Nari doesn't fully trust him. He's doing well so far to get in her good graces though. Not choosing to try to pick her up certainly helps (even if she doesn't know that's a choice he made). It would've been distressing. Chances are good that she wouldn't have tried to hurt him or anything simply because he chose to pick her up, but she might've hurt him as she tried to get back down. And potentially herself. She doesn't want to be picked up by some stranger.
He doesn't have to worry about her staying here, though, and he doesn't have to worry about trying to bring her along with him. Once he starts to leave the area, he'll notice her limping along behind him. She'll be keeping a lot of distance between herself and Seongho, but following along behind him none the less. His mention of food made her realize just how hungry she is. She spent a lot of time earlier playing with the other foxes and then got herself trapped so she hasn't had much of a chance to eat. He said he's going to come back with food, but if she goes with him maybe she can get even more. Whether it's given to her or she steals it and makes off into the woods doesn't matter. She's hungry and needs food. Get her strength back up so she can start healing and get away from here.
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The she begins to follow him is more than a little surprising. Seongho does nothing to discourage it. He's a friend to his neighbors in this forest. Once he realizes she's behind him (if at a distance), he doesn't even look back too often lest she get startled. If she's willing to follow him for a meal, maybe he can get a better look at her injured leg. He may have to find a vet if she's bad enough off (little does he know).
On the walk back to his cabin, a solitary place nestled in the woods near a small creek, he does talk. More to himself than to her, but so that she can get used to his voice. He discusses his plans to disassemble the trap, to repurpose whatever of it he can and sell the rest as scrap. That's what he does with all the traps he finds. Though, he's not always lucky enough to find their victim in time to save them. As they get nearer, Nari might catch the scent of the vegetables growing in his garden. A few more human scents are present, too, though not in any amounts that his fellow humans would detect: soap, vinegar, even a faint scent of kerosene to power his heater in the midst of winter when a fire alone isn't enough.
no subject
The fact that he seems to be talking to himself instead of her makes it feel less like he's performing for her. It makes it feel like just maybe, he's being sincere about what he plans to do with the trap. Maybe the trap really isn't his and he's ridding the woods of it once and for all. Or it could simply be that it is his and it's past its prime now and the disassembly is meaningless, since it'll just be replaced with another. She'll just have to continue to keep an eye on him to see which route he ultimately takes.
As they grow ever closer, Nari catches the scent of his garden. Not her preferred meal but she likes fruits and vegetables well enough. Besides, produce like that tends to be within reach of a thieving little fox which can make it worth its weight in gold under the right circumstances. Then comes the other scents. The soap she's familiar with. She smelled it on him when he presented his hand to her. It actually gives this place a sense of familiarity. It takes away some of the anxiety of being at the human's home. The vinegar and kerosene, well, she could certainly do without those. The vinegar stings her nose a little. Both scents she knows from being around a wide variety of humans in her time. Both scents she knows aren't really in the woods except for when a human takes them there. Another way for her to find her way back should she so desire.
Once Nari feels she's travelled far enough and once she feels like she's gone as close as she currently dares to the human's home, she lays down to alleviate some of her aches and to try to start nursing her injured leg back to health. She doesn't need a vet, she just needs a little bit of time. And a decent meal or two.
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When he appears once more, he glances to where he last saw the fox. She's still there. He's slow to approach, a dish in each hand. He clears about half the distance between them before crouching to set down the dishes. Then he returns to the safety of his porch to observe her at a distance.
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Alas, she has to wait for him to hopefully return with the food. Waiting to be fed like some common pet. She licks at her injured leg with an annoyed huff and a soft whine. That is until Seongho returns with some dishes in hand. She lifts her head to watch him and his approach. She watches every step he takes, thick tail swishing over the ground behind her. She lifts her snout to start sniffing at the air again. So he really is bringing food to her. It's in one of those dishes he's holding!
Nari climbs to her feet (three of them. The fourth she holds awkwardly up in the air), only limping her way forward once he gets himself settled onto the porch. She keeps her eyes on him even as she lowers her head to better smell the food. It doesn't seem like there's anything untoward in it. Not like it would harm her if there was, but it would likely expose her for the normal fox she isn't, and she's in no condition for surprises right now.
Keeping her eyes on the man, still, Nari eagerly snaps up piece after piece of the rabbit, trilling happily with every bite. She largely ignores the vegetables for now but don't worry, she will get to them. Give her enough time and she'll clear both dishes.
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He doesn’t stare her down while she’s eating. Most wild animals don’t enjoy that. So he busies himself rocking in his chair and just looking over his garden beside his cabin. “You just let me know if you want more, little one,” he muses as much to himself as to Nari. “You’re always welcome here for a meal. If you want to stay close, I can build you a shelter, ‘til that leg’s healed.”
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Finishing off both the food (see? She ate the vegetables too!) and water he brought out for her, she barks to get his attention then noses one of the dishes forward before finally retreating to a safe distance. Back to where she'd been sitting previously before he came out with the meal. She doesn't know how she feels about the shelter but she'll gladly take him up on his offer of seconds.
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"You want some more, huh?" He murmurs to alert her to his actions. Again, he's not sold on her understanding him, but at least if he speaks before he moves, it won't seem to sudden or unexpected. "Alright, I'll get you some seconds." There's plenty so he doesn't need to be stingy about it.
Seongho's still careful when he walks toward her, taking deliberate steps closer and reaching out long before he's close enough to crouch and pick up the dishes. And then, with just as much care, he retreats with the dishes to refill them. This time, there are fewer vegetables and more meat for her. She'll need her strength to recover from that trap.
"Here you go, little one. Eat up."