[BotB] Chapter 24

Sohwa, stunted by malnutrition, was more fragile than the young tiger. Once, a race to the ridge left her severely ill for days. 

Her gaunt appearance after nearly glimpsing death roused a hint of pity. 

"Shouldn't a fox be carnivorous?" 

Feasting on cherries, crabapples, and jujubes had left her weak. Even stealing eggs seemed beyond her, let alone hunting. 

She would have been better off living among humans, but she lacked even that basic sense of survival. 

If left alone, she would surely die. 

The audacious fox was Dohwi's to devour, yet he worried she might perish on her own or fall to another predator first. 

Every time Sohwa fell ill, his concern deepened. 

Days passed and she recovered slightly, but a raccoon appeared, smelling of musk, suggesting she abandon Dohwi. 

"If you truly become a tiger, you can just leave him then." 

Leave the fox before he could consume her? Unacceptable. He couldn't be abandoned first. 

How could he ensure his place by Sohwa's side? 

He wanted to provide for her, to warm her frail hands as she washed clothes by the frozen stream, to shield her face from the dust as she swept. 

Struggling with these thoughts, Dohwi transformed into a human with all his might. This reassured the foolish fox. 

"We belong to different species, so there's no concern of mating, and you're gentle and kind. Perhaps we can live together. What do you think?" 

He resolved to consume the fox once he grew larger. It had been 20 years since he made that resolution. 

Dohwi never did devour Sohwa. 

Instead, he was the one consumed by the fox, becoming a harmless and gentle domesticated creature without fearsome teeth or sharp claws. 

How had it come to this? 

As time passed, he realized life without Sohwa's dazed morning face didn't feel like morning at all, and nights without a glimpse of her sleeping face felt sleepless. 

He wanted to pluck stars from the sky if she found them pretty, and regurgitate his own meals if she was hungry. 

Thoughts of devouring her faded, replaced by desires to care for her. 

"I'll let her go once she's grown," Sohwa had said to the monk, but Dohwi had never contemplated such a separation. 

Yet, the anxiety of their differences grew as their bond deepened. 

Feeding was an issue. Sohwa could eat human meals, but Dohwi preferred hunting as a tiger. 

He relished the hunt, the chase, the overpowering of his prey, more than the consumption of meat itself. 

"I've already eaten a sparrow. If you're still hungry, go pick some cherries," he told Sohwa. 

Yet, small birds and fruit did nothing to satisfy a tiger's hunger nor his pride. 

"You're strange, Dohwi. How can you dislike these delicious persimmons?" 

Dohwi hunted at night on Ihwang Mountain, eventually depleting its wildlife, and then ventured to Ihwang Mountain at dawn for deer and boars, maintaining his vigor. 

Yes, being industrious solved his dietary needs. But as winter approached and Sohwa's mating season neared, the challenge intensified. 

The fox's estrus was brief but intense, and during this time, Sohwa's temperature and scent were unmistakable. 

She preferred her fox form, perhaps seeking a male, and Dohwi worried she might meet one without his knowledge. 

The thought of another male marking his territory near Sohwa vexed him.

Sohwa, a girl, was worried about establishing a happy family as soon as possible, feeling the weight of her concerns like a mountain. She would often mutter about having a 'happy family' every time her mating season approached, which only made Dohwi, a male, even more anxious due to this habit of hers.

Thankfully, after some inquiries, they found that even for couples of different kinds, there were ways to have children. But the question remained: how could he, a small and timid fox, be matched with Dohwi? As his worries deepened, Dohwi feared he would lose his mind every winter, the start of Sohwa's mating season, especially when the stench of other foxes in heat outside made him want to go out and kill them. 

It was on a hot summer day when Dohwi first became aware of 'that scent'. Sohwa was leisurely eating grapes on the porch, their sticky sweet juice coating her white fingers and red lips. She had a habit of carelessly reading and eating, but strangely, Dohwi found himself unable to look away from her that day. The small thing that barely reached his chest seemed so endearing to him, and he found her especially cute for acting like an adult without realizing he, himself, was a thousand-year-old tiger. 

The grapes' tangy aroma made his body react strongly, and even a dive into cold water didn't help, as he worried the chill might make his fox sick. Despite the heat and a warm bath, the lingering scent from Sohwa was irresistibly sharp.