Chapter 2

One morning, Kitsune was chasing a field mouse for breakfast. She zigzagged through the meadow, her humongous tail billowing out behind her wake.

At last, Kitsune pounced upon the mouse. She snapped up the small creature in her pointy jaw.

But instead of tearing into the mouse's tender flesh with his sharp teeth, Kitsune stopped herself.

The mouse struggled furiously in Kitsune's grip. Its little claws tickled Kitsune's rough tongue.

Kitsune spat the mouse out. She pinned him to the ground with one paw.

Kitsune

Field mouse—I will make you a deal. If you can tell me why my tail is so fluffy, I will let you go free—for today.

Mouse

Squeak! How would I know? I am just a field mouse, squeak.

Kitsune sighed.

Kitsune

I thought perhaps you were privy to some sort of secret wisdom.

The mouse, who had been squiming this whole time, stopped struggling. He wanted to give the impression that he was earnest in his forthcoming answer.

Mouse

Maybe your tail is that way because you eat too many field mice, squeak.

Kitsune

But I eat just as many mice as my fellow foxes. And my tail is far fluffier than theirs.

Mouse

Maybe if you let met go, squeak, your tail wouldn't be so freakishly fluffy!

Kitsune, who was of course a fox—foxes being among the cleverest creatures in the forest—thought that the mouse's statement was an uncouth attempt at manipulation. It was clear the mouse didn't know anything.

And Kitsune hadn't eaten in a while. So she snapped up the field mouse in her snout again and ate him.