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A soft breeze blew by a kitty named Kuji, the wind cooling her warm calico fur from the bright Spring sun. She puffed her fur in delight, the wind bringing the scent of pollen and pine from the nearby forest. The hills Kuji sat on were blindingly green, the grass thankful to breathe after the winter the forest had experienced.
At Kuji's side was her close cat friend, Spot. Her friend's fur was pitch black, a contrast to the green grass under her paws. It wasn't uncommon for Spot to complain about the heat of the day, her black fur catching the warmth faster than most animals, but today she was happily quiet.
Spot passed the rat they were sharing over to Kuji. It was delightfully fat, probably enjoying all the new growths of nuts before Kuji had caught it. She bent down, taking a bite out of the rat's flesh and then passed it back to Spot. The rats tasted good this season, the juicy flavor making Kuji's mouth water with delight.
The meadow that stretched ahead of the two girls was peppered with colorful flowers soaking up the sun's rays, their petals bright colors of blues, greens and pinks. Kuji swallowed her food and sighed as she tilted her head back, her whiskers drooping in immense satisfaction.
When she opened her eyes, Kuji spotted a distant brown shape moving across the meadow. Focusing on what it was, Kuji realized it was a fox - and not just any fox, but her friend Lucky. His head and tail were held low as he moved across the field of flowers, too distracted to notice Kuji and Spot.
Kuji smiled and took a breath in as she was about to call Lucky over. Before she could, she heard Spot groan beside her. Glancing to her friend, Spot's gaze was locked on the fox in the distance. Kuji's ears twitched as she wondered what had upset her friend.
"Ugh, it's Lucky." Spot huffed as she eyed the fox, "We should move if he walks over here."
"What? Why?" Kuji blinked, her blue eyes dark with confusion, "What did he do wrong?"
"Nothing. It's just..." Spot flicked her tail back and forth in irritation as she searched for the right words, "well, he's weird and I don't want his bad luck to rub off on me."
Kuji flinched in surprise as she eyed Spot, never having heard her friend say something so rude before. Spot's yellow eyes flicked to Kuji as the awkward silence hung in the air.
"How could you say that?" Kuji questioned, her voice seasoned with disappointment, "That's cruel."
Spot's ears flattened in shame and she looked away, her eyes downcast as she avoided her friend's gaze. Kuji sighed, slightly angered by her friend's neglect and cruelty to the poor fox.
Lucky was known within the forest to be particularly unlucky, despite his name. He had lost both his parents at a young age, leaving him to fend for himself. Other than Kuji, Lucky didn't have any friends to play with, and the only friend he did have before her had used him and then taunted him.
After that, Lucky had become very antisocial and usually avoided groups of animals unless there was something interesting happening. Lucky was incredibly thin as well, his hunting almost always leaving him empty-pawed and sometimes starving for multiple days. Kuji had often brought him food so he wouldn't go hungry.
Perhaps the only lucky thing to ever happen to him was being the only survivor of a litter that went through one of the harshest winters the forest had ever seen. It seemed all his luck was used during that time, because he never had it anywhere else. It didn't help he was even bullied by the animals of the forest for being so unlucky, and they had started viewing him as a bad omen.
But even after all that, Lucky still had a weak smile every time he saw Kuji. She saw him less as an unlucky fox and more as bright and playful when his personality shined through. Adventurous as well, although cautious given his luck. His appreciation for Kuji made her very fond of him, and she admired how thankful he was for her.
***
After Kuji finished her meal with Spot, she followed Lucky's scent into the forest. The scent trail was fresh, so she knew he had to be close by. Kuji followed it until she was lead to a rock wall where a few animals had gathered at its base. Her eyes widened as she saw Lucky pressed against the wall, three animals encircling him like hungry wolves.
"We don't want your bad luck here." A golden retriever, presumably the leader, growled at Lucky, "We told you what we'd do if you didn't leave the forest."
Kuji shuddered. The other two animals at the golden retriever's side, a fox and a cat, looked equally mean and strong. She shook her head to clear it, Kuji was not going to allow her friend to be bullied.
"Excuse me!" Kuji interrupted as she stepped forward.
The golden retriever spun around, the other bullies following as they stared in surprise at Kuji's sudden appearance.
"Every animal is welcomed in the forest, you have no right to say if he stays or leaves." Kuji hissed, her tail held high as she confronted them.
"I don't care," The golden retriever spat, "he's a bad omen which brings misfortune upon all of us."
Kuji's fur bristled with fear as the dog took a menacing step forward. She wondered if these bullies would stoop low enough to attack a female, but she wouldn't put it past them. Kuji glanced to Lucky, noticing his eyes wide with worry for her. She knew she was putting the both of them in danger, but she had to remain firm.
"If you don't leave him alone, I'll report you to Skull!" Kuji threatened, her eyes narrowed in defiance.
The bullies' faces turned from confident and smug to anxious and surprised in one short second. None of them wanted to answer to the black bear that guarded their forest, as messing with him was messing with the forest itself. The golden retriever took a hesitant step backward, glancing over his shoulder at Lucky before looking back to Kuji.
"Tch!" The golden retriever huffed, "Fine, you deal with his bad luck then."
With a nod, the dog led his companions away. Once they vanished through the thicket of a bush, Kuji stepped up and approached Lucky. She looked him over, happy to find the bullies had not hurt him.
"Lucky, sorry about them... are you okay?" Kuji asked.
"Yeah, I'm fine..." Lucky nodded and eyed Kuji seriously, "but why'd you save me? T-They could've hurt you..."
"Well, I didn't want them to hurt you either!" Kuji playfully retorted.
She leaned forward, pushing her tongue over Lucky's ear to comfort him. His hazel eyes were soft with affection as he gazed at Kuji.
"Why don't you stick with me?" Kuji suggested, "I can take you to one of my favorite spots in the forest!"
"Uhh... sure!" Lucky nodded, already more expressive.
Kuji turned and walked in the opposite direction, flicking her tail in signal for Lucky to follow. She turned back, impatient for him to start following.
"C'mon," She urged, "it's this way!"
Lucky followed at Kuji's side as she led the way. They made small conversation, Kuji offering to catch him some food if he hadn't eaten. Lucky declined, instead trying to lighten the mood with bad jokes. Although she didn't find them funny, Kuji still smiled at the effort Lucky was trying to give to make her happy.
In the middle of their journey, Kuji spotted a puddle of mud. She mewed in warning to Lucky so he could avoid it, but she was too late. Lucky slipped and fell face first into the mud, the splatter flinging it across the grass and some of it landed on Kuji. She grimaced, using her paw to wipe it off her chest before glancing up to see if Lucky was okay.
Lucky slowly got to his paws, his face and chest fur completely covered in mud. His ears drooped in shame as he flicked some of it off his paw. The positivity he was beaming with seconds earlier had vanished, tears starting to form at the corners of his eyes as he looked down in embarrassment.
Kuji felt her heart wrench as she saw his happiness torn from him. She stepped forward, helping Lucky out of the mud before sitting down in front of him. Kuji used her paws to wipe off some of the mud from his face and muzzle, her gaze gentle as she worked.
"Shhh... it's okay. Don't cry." Kuji hushed, "Come on, we're nearly there. I'll take care of the mud."
She wiped off most of it from his face, then got up and urged Lucky to keep following. Kuji led him the rest of the way there, the sound of gushing water getting louder as they got closer to their destination. Finally, a river came into view, the water sparkling against the blades of light that penetrated through the canopy of leaves above.
Kuji guided Lucky to lie down next to the edge of the river. Once he was settled, Kuji dipped her paws in the cold water as she thoroughly soaked them, then turned to Lucky as she cleaned the mud off his face and chest fur. She repeated this a few times, dipping her paws in the water to wash off the mud and re-soak them, and then turning to Lucky to clean the mud off him.
After a few minutes, the mud was entirely gone and left Lucky's fur wet and glistening with river water. Kuji leaned forward, pushing her tongue across his head as she worked to flatten and dry his fur. Lucky leaned into her licks, his eyes closed as he enjoyed her attention. Kuji's licks slowly became small kisses and nuzzles as she purred into him.
Eventually she lied down next to Lucky, pressing her muzzle into his chest as she breathed in his scent. She closed her eyes, sighing contently.
"I love you." Kuji whispered.
Kuji giggled as she felt a loving tongue run against her ear in response. She whispered soft nothings as she leaned against the fox, Lucky's brown fur against her calico. The two wordlessly lied together, the river gushing next to them. Kuji felt herself yawn, her constant purring having made her exhausted. Eventually her world went black as she fell into peaceful sleep at her lover's side.