Chapter Text
Scarlet painted across the white canvas one cold winter morning. The sound of a viscous liquid hitting the snow, a soft crunch with every drip, warmth meeting the cold. A young fox cub was being carried by the scruff of its neck across the mountain slope.
Uneven footsteps made their way to the top of the mountain, where a humble architecture lay hidden behind the trees. Carefully laying down the whining cub, the bigger one nosed at it in an effort to comfort its young little brother.
Projecting his thoughts onto his younger sibling, he pleaded.
‘A-Yuan, ge will go back down to make sure the humans don’t enter the mountain alright? Stay here.’
‘No. I don’t want to. Take me with you. It’s all because of me. Ge please!’
‘Listen to me. You’re still too small to outrun them if anything happens. The mountain barrier will keep you safe. Don’t leave it!’
Incapacitating his younger sibling with an immobilisation spell, the adult fox demon made its trek down the mountain. His brother would be safe as long as he stayed on the mountain.
Despite his injuries, he needed to make sure the humans did not trail after them into their safe haven. He had to divert their attention and lead them to a separate location. The mountain should remain hidden, with no humans coming by to sniff around the place.
Shen Yuan watched his brother disappear into the white of the snow. The fur melding seamlessly into the icy landscape. Except for the red dripping from one of Shen Jiu’s tail, or where it should’ve been. Tears burning his eyes, Shen Yuan wailed and wailed, he wailed long into the night.
The spell would remain for a few more days still. As soon as it wore off, he would run in search for his brother if he didn’t return by then. Scared and alone he wept until no more tears would heed his call.
By the third night, the young fox spirit descended the mountain. Only to be refused exit from the place. The barrier that had previously protected them from unwanted strangers entering, now stood as both a sanctuary and a jail, confining and suffocating him in its safety.
The bamboo sprite that kept vigil near the border told him of his brother’s instructions.
‘Shen Yuan is to not leave this mountain. The mountain will protect Shen Yuan and whatever needs he has, the bamboo spirits shall provide.’
All this was said while his brother used up the last remaining reserves of his spiritual power to stitch in additional spells and charms to keep his brother from leaving.
After spending one whole night banging and yelling at the barrier and the bamboo spirit, young Shen Yuan made his way back to their home. He would wait for Jiu-ge to return home. He would definitely return. The far reaching eyes of the spirits did not see him breathe his last, that meant he was alive.
Day after day Shen Yuan would sit just outside the house, waiting. When it became clear that Shen Jiu would not be returning, he cried. The village down the mountain heard in their hearts the gut-wrenching cry of a Fox spirit that night as they slept.
Guilt and fear consumed their mortal souls. The village would fall to ruin soon, they had committed a grievous crime. Their sin would bring about the inevitable downfall of the village. The bloodshed that they partook in would come to collect its debt. Whispers akin to these were heard in every household, behind closed doors.
The next day, the village folk built a shrine for the Fox Demon, lighting incense, offering up food, clothes and money in exchange for their safety. When no calamity fell upon their little village, the humans concluded their offerings had served their purpose.
From that day on, they would repent and worship the fox demon they had wronged.
Their unwelcome and incessant prayers would eventually give rise to a new deity.
Decades later, the fox spirit was no longer a demon in their eyes but a deity that protected their lands. But in their hearts, the whispers of doom still lingered across the many generations.
Shen Yuan spent every single day looking back to that fateful night. He had snuck out in hopes to see the human festival. His brother refused to let him leave in all the years they had been staying on the mountain. So, young and curious as he was, he changed into his human form, hiding his tails and ears, and he snuck out.
Long into the night, just as he was about to go back up the mountain before his brother returned from his hunt, he caught the unwanted gaze of a few humans. The stench of liquor filled the air as they swarmed around him.
Unused to having bulky men surround him, his fox ears came out in his fear. Eyes widening with stretched grins, the men pounced on him.
“Fellas, we have ourselves a little fox demon here. They say if you cut open its heart and eat it, you’ll gain youth and immortality. Not to mention never-ending fortune. Dragging the scared cub, they got the attention of some more villagers.
With the congregation of the drunken men and fearful mob combined, they all agreed to sacrifice the little fox for the prosperity of the village. The ones who had caught it would have the pleasure of consuming its heart. A token of appreciation, they said.
Scared for his life Shen Yuan naturally reverted back to his demon form to make his escape more agile and easier. But before he could make his escape, a loud growl broke through the cacophony of the crowd.
Shen Jiu had appeared, fangs bared to rip the throats apart of whoever dared to hurt his little brother. In a vicious fight, he managed to snatch Shen Yuan away from the maddening crowd. But not before one of the brutes of the village landed a blow.
Vision unsteady, he was unaware of the person coming up behind him with a meat cleaver, cleanly chopping off one of his snowy tails.
Shen Jiu, a proud fox spirit, revered by his kind for his prowess lost one of his tails that night. But at that moment, his only concern had been bringing his brother back to safety. Breathing hard and heavy, he paid no heed to his bleeding tail. Running off for the woods, he found enough time to rip his robes and stop the bleeding.
No trails, he could not afford to leave any trail behind for the humans to track them down. Just until they reached the safe embrace of the mountain, he told himself over and over.
And so he did, ambling up the slippery plains of snow, the morning sun welcoming them home. He had saved his brother from the clutches of the greedy and cruel villagers. Humans were not to be trusted. That was what the elder who raised them had told them repeatedly.
The same warning he passed down to his young brother.
A warning that was ignored.
On that night, a young naïve fox spirit learnt the nature of humans, just as he learnt the importance of heeding the words of his brother. But at what cost?
One too great, too high and far too cruel.