There was a knock on the door.

Four loud raps. My eyes flew open, just as Kat's did. We parted and stared at each other for a moment before her hand left my chest and my hand left her neck.

The room had gone deathly quiet. Stallion and Mutt were watching us again. Mutt was smiling, Stallion's expression was unreadable.

"Maybe next time, Romeo," Kat said, her face settling back into its comfortable stillness.

"Right."

She turned away from me. Her body language was as unreadable as her face. My body felt stiff and awkward as it followed after her to the door.

She opened it and there was a tall, husky figure in a dark cloak. From his clean shaven, pudgy face to the shortly cropped dark hair, I recognized the distinct figure of Mr. York right away.

His wide forehead wrinkled and his nose turned up when he looked down at Kat. "Something funny?" he asked.

It had been awhile since I had last seen him, but his deep, gravelly voice was still quite capable of expressing the disdain forever smeared across his bulbous face.

Kat stepped back a bit and her head lowered. I recognized the feeling well. Despite Mr. York's attempt at smelling fresh, whatever new cologne he chose for the day was always too strong, too heavy, and only added to that oppressive feeling one would have when just a little too close to him.

"Just a funny joke Foxy told, Mr. York," she said in a low voice.

I tried to hold my ground when his fierce and beady eyes switched over to me. I wanted to be mad at Kat for throwing me to the wolves like that, but I couldn't blame her.

"A funny joke, is it?"

I bit my tongue to stop myself from saying something I might regret. Instead, I nodded and mumbled: "Yes, Mr. York."

"A pity then that Fawn was incapable of ridding you of all of your undesirable traits. Ms. Louise will not be pleased."

"Sorry."

I felt his burning glare on me for a few moments more before he stepped aside, allowing space through the doorway. "Right, come on, you lot. Your Masters are ready for you."

Kat walked past without a word. Her shoulder closest to Mr. York reflexively angled away as she passed. I followed after her. His smell was truly as powerful as ever. I tried to hold my breath, but it didn't do anything to stop the oppressive feeling from just being near. My body was shying away from him as if it was a natural reaction.

The sun had to be minutes away from leaving us. It would have been difficult to see if it weren't for those unnatural torches that had been set up around us, burning with a light that could not be seen by know-nothings, but appeared as fire to us. Fawn once explained that Wildwood had with them a lot of Knowledge that did not originate from any currently registered Knowers. Some free witches, some once community witches who left service but whose Knowledge still remained. It was near impossible to separate which Knowledge belonged to which Knower.

Mr. York walked with us. I wasn't entirely sure why he was there. Perhaps his tea wasn't the limit of his Knowledge.

Currently, there were exactly twelve registered Knowers in the community, not including the free witches. Out of all of them, I only, vaguely, knew of a small handful: Mr. York, Jamie, Mr. Copper, and Edgar the Overseer. Even after all these years, I knew next to nothing about any of the others, hardly even seeing any of them besides those four. It never really set me at ease. That, even after all this time, I was still kept in the dark about so much.

We all walked in a straight line, as we were instructed. Kat in the lead, then me, then Mutt, and finally Stallion with Mr. York trailing behind us. From his position, Mr. York could assure there was no talking or 'any other such nonsense' as he would call it. Not that it seemed like any of the others were inclined to say anything. It was silent behind me, save for the steps and the tapping of Mutt's cane that echoed through the empty train station. Kat had straightened out her back and was taking long, purposeful, strides. I tried to resign myself to the truth of things.

This might be our last few moments together. Silent, distanced, acting like we had never met before. The conviction I had back in the ticket booth was slowly leaking out of me with every step that we took towards our fate.

I stared at the back of Kat's dirty-blonde head. The hair bounced with each step. From behind, I wouldn't have thought this was Kat, if not for those clothes. Why did Maple want her to wear those? To get a rise out of the rest of us?

Kat suddenly stopped moving and I nearly ran into her. Before I could ask what was wrong, I saw them. People coming out of the woods.

It was like a procession. Four people walked in a line, similar to how we walked. There were four smaller figures flanking them, two in front and one on both sides. They were smaller than the adults in the center and my heart leapt up in my throat when I saw them.

"Spread out like you were instructed," Mr. York barked the order. "Now!"

Kat remained where she stood while me and the other guys lined up beside her, keeping a good seven to eight feet between each other.

The procession moved up the stairs to the platform a ways down from us. The children were carrying the torches, lighting their way. A part of me wanted to run to them, knock the things out of their hands, and wrap them up in a big hug. My arms even twitched, but I held my ground. It would only do more harm than good.

Gust and Leaf led the procession so they were the first I got a clear view of when they reached us. I had no idea what kind of life they and their brother and sister led with Kat all these years.

Gust's black hair was kept short, like when he was younger. He kept up a brave face, more so than the others, and seemed to hold the torch with pride. He also seemed determined to avoid looking at any of us. Probably instructions he had, but it hurt terribly when he didn't even acknowledge me. I wondered again if he really still cared about me like Kat thought he did.

Leaf's hair was longer, past his shoulders. He had also grown taller than Gust, almost a head taller. Despite the growth spurt, his wide eyes and the tight grip he had on his torch betrayed his age. He was still a kid, thrown into this nightmare.

Our eyes met and my heart leaped into my throat.

Thankfully, the procession reached us right then and he moved to the side, no one seeming to have caught our exchange. In his place, I recognized the taller figures at the center to be our new Masters.

Maple led them.

She hadn't changed much since the last time I saw her. Still tall for her age, skin still dark from the sun, her wild and frizzy hair cut short, just above her shoulders. Her black eyes were calm. Her features a blank.

She did not seem to notice the younger girl who held a torch beside her. Someone who looked strikingly similar to Leaf, minus the slightly shorter hair and scowl on her face. Her own sister, Lilly, who was ignoring the rules and glaring daggers at her. But Maple did not see her sister. She had only eyes for Kat.

I looked over to my friend. She held her ground and held Maple's gaze with that silent, collected nature of hers. For a split moment, I was impressed with her stalwartness, but then Maple broke her own façade with a little smile and Kat flinched.

Maple chuckled softly to herself as she took her place across from Kat. I still couldn't risk moving, but I tried to glare at the girl with all the hate and anger I could. She seemed to notice when her smile vanished and she locked eyes with me. I knew she was silently trying to intimidate me with her own calculated glare, but I didn't falter. She was no Master of me.

My attention was split however when the procession continued to fan out before us. Lilly and Leaf looked more alike than I remembered. Long, dark hair, thick lips. They both even had the same growth spurt. But I could still tell them apart. Leaf was the one whose eyes darted every which way, somewhat hidden beneath his bangs. Lily was more collected, holding her torch loosely and eyes focused on the path ahead. They followed after their older brother and two witches stopped, one before me and the other before Mutt.

It was my first time seeing Mutt's Master, though I had heard a lot about her over the past few years. Madame Terrebonne. From all the horror stories, I was expecting someone...taller. She was short and plump, her voluptuous curves tightly packed in a flowing dress of many bright colors. Her blonde hair was done up in long, elaborate curls which stuck out in various directions and her round face was plastered with even more makeup than mine. She batted long eyelashes and wiggled her pudgy fingers in Mutt's direction. Mutt smiled big back at her, which caused Madame Terrebonne to giggle like a school girl.

I was about to look away, quite repulsed by the whole thing, when the two large dogs that sat obediently on either side of her caught my eye. Another blast from the past. One of them was a German Sheppard.

But it couldn't be the German Sheppard. This one was panting, looking around at all the people like a regular, excited, dog would. If she had as many dogs as they said she did, there was definitely a possibility she had more than one of the same breed. What were the odds that-

The dog met my eyes and my thought process came to an abrupt stop. His mouth slowly closed, then it slowly smiled.

Of course it was the same one.

I expected the dreaded winking to follow, but Hero just went back to panting, back to acting like he was just a normal dog. Was he supposed to be undercover, like Hornroot had been? If so, why had he been messing with me for so long? Did he just think it was funny?

I was distracted from my train of thought by the feeling of someone watching me. I was then reminded of my own Master, who was standing directly across from me. For a moment, I wondered how I missed her, but, in comparison to the elaborately designed Madame Terrebonne, by own Master was quite plain.

My Master appeared to me as a young, incredibly pale woman. She was slender and dressed in a long black gown. She looked more like a shadow than a person with how it hid just about every detail from the neck down. Her face was plain. Not attractive but not ugly, either. Her eyes were pale blue (even dimmer when compared to Madame Terrebonne's baby blues) and her shoulder length hair was almost as black as the gown.

But whereas Madame had this overpowering aura that could rival Mr. York's, I did not feel uneasy about my Master. She looked at me as a stranger would look at another stranger. Our eyes locked for the first time, but I did not flinch. I did not feel the need to look away. She did not smile, or frown, or change her expression at all. In fact, there was something about her that seemed...tired.

"Hey, Stallion, right? What's with the shirt?" a new voice broke through our silent exchange.

All eyes turned to the final Master- Stallion's Master. Someone I did not recognize nor had heard any stories of. She was a brown skinned girl, someone around our age, maybe older, with a closely shaven head and dressed in faded cargo pants and a ratty jacket with the sleeves rolled up. She had her hands on her hips, various bracelets of different shapes and sizes rolled down the arms and collected around her wrists. Stallion fidgeted in place while she stared at him.

"I...just..." Stallion muttered.

"Off with the shirt," his Master said, snapping her fingers. "Hurry up with it. I ain't got all night."

"I assure you, this community molds your desired specifications for familiars to the letter," Mr. Copper said.

He and Mr. York stood nearby, the two representatives of Wildwood to watch over the proceedings.

"I'll believe it when I see it," Stallion's Master quipped, not bothering to take her eyes off of Stallion. "Off with the shirt."

Watching Stallion slowly remove his shirt was even more uncomfortable than Madame's flirting with Mutt. He held his shirt in one hand and stood stiff as a board, his face downcast, while his Master approached him, walked around him, and looked him over. Something about the way she studied him had me fighting my desires again. She shouldn't be looking at him like a hunk of meat. She shouldn't be making him uncomfortable like that.

But then I noticed the child behind her. Trout. The young boy held his torch in one hand and Mouse's hand in the other. Probably breaking regulation, but no one seemed to mind. Trout's torch was angled towards the ground, barely held in his free hand. His dark eyes were wide as he stared up at the starry sky. He was probably miles away from the rest of us.

Empty. He looked empty.

It hurt. It hurt to see him. To see how scared Leaf was, how pissed Lily was, how hard Gust was putting up a brave front for all of them. Seeing them like this made me feel empty. Something was missing. There was no father to guide them and protect them. There was no oldest sister to keep an eye on them. And there was no sweet little sister to hold them all together.

They stood side by side, one behind each free witch. They couldn't be more than six or seven feet apart, but it was like they were miles away from each other. From me.

"Good. I can work with this."

Stallion's Master interrupted the moment with those words and a clap of her hands. All at once, the frustration returned when I saw her nodding approvingly at Stallion's body.

"I'm glad you find him to your liking," Mr. Copper said.

I couldn't stop the low growl in my throat. Mr. Copper had always been a reminder of the life I wanted to forget. Even though he played a somewhat smaller role compared to the others, he was the only one who hadn't changed in the years since then. Still a small, wiry guy for his age. Still had on his oversized brown trench coat. He even insisted on keeping the disfiguring scar across his left eye, despite the witches having the ability to heal it. I used to despise having to see him, having to look at him and be reminded of everything. But tonight it was just his callous attitude that was pissing me off.

"Feel free to inspect your familiars as thoroughly as you like," Mr. Copper continued. "As of tonight, they officially belong to you. On behalf of my Overseer and all of Wildwood, I assure you-"

"Oh, my sweet, precious boy!" Madame Terrebonne cried out, cutting into Mr. Copper's speech she rushed over to Mutt and swept him up in a back-breaking hug. His crutch clattered to the ground as she swung him around in the embrace, her dogs barking and jumping excitedly around the two of them.

"Oh, you are just the most darling little thing!"

Stallion's Master leaned up against him like a wall and looked on at the display with a raised brow. The children were watching as well, all except Trout. Leaf's eyes were wide, his hands shaking as they gripped the torch. Lilly was whispering something to him. Gust just looked irritated.

"Hello again, Elizabeth."

I snapped my head back to the other side. Maple was standing right in front of Kat. Despite their age difference, Maple was almost as tall as her now. She was wearing a large t-shirt, splattered with mud and debris that hung on her body like loose skin. From this distance, I could see the muscles in her arms and legs. They were stringy, but this close up I could see the power one had from living years in the wild.

Kat swallowed. "My name is-"

"Silence."

Kat's mouth snapped shut. Maple smiled again as she wiped her hands, coated black with ash, on the front of her stolen shirt.

"Do not talk while I inspect you."

Her hand reached out and firmly grabbed Kat's jaw. She shoved her head from side to side. After that, she squeezed the muscles in Kat's arms and her legs. Kat's face remained passive.

I clenched my fists. I was fighting a losing battle.

"The time you've spent with my brothers and sister hasn't made you soft, physically," Maple said, straightening back up. "But what about the rest of you?"

Kat locked gazes with her.

"You may speak."

"I am yours to command as you will, Master," Kat answered. Maple's grin set my blood boiling.

"We'll see."

Maple then took notice of my glaring. I straightened up, looked away, but I could still feel her eyes on me. I could feel Kat's glare as well.

I had to get it under control. Maple believed, just like the rest of the witches, that none of us have any memory of that night at the cabin and anything before that. If she even suspects otherwise...

Well, who really knows what could happen, but it couldn't be anything good.

"Keep your eyes on your own Master, fox," Maple spat before shifting her attention away.

I breathed a silent sigh of relief. But that reminded me; my Master should be inspecting me right now. Had I really forgotten her again so soon?

When I found her, I could see why. She hadn't moved from her spot. She was still watching me, though, and I mentally smacked myself. Who knows what she saw when I was staring right at Kat and Maple.

But, if she noticed anything, her face didn't give it away. One of her arms had moved behind her back and, when our eyes met again, she waved me over with her free one.

"Come over here, please," she said. Her voice was light, wispy, and only added to my image of her being more shadow than person.

I walked over to her, slowly, not sure what to expect. I was not short, by any means, but the closer I got the more she seemed to loom over me. By the time I was standing before her, I felt like a small, shivering creature huddled beneath a tall, dark tower.

Still, her face remained free of judgment. Free of hardly any emotion at all. When the corners of her lips turned up slightly, my first thought was that she was in pain.

"You are truly as beautiful as they have said," she said, and I realized she was smiling.

Beautiful? No one had ever called me that before. I almost didn't know what to say.

"Th-Thank you," I mumbled, lowering my eyes.

I had to hold in a cry of shock.

Someone was hiding behind her. The arm she had behind her back had a hand resting behind this new person's head.

"There's someone I would like you to meet," my Master went on, gently pushing the small person out from behind her.

It was a girl. A kid. Right away I assumed she was my Master's daughter. She had to be. Her hair was straight and black like her mother's, but longer, her skin and eyes just as pale. She even wore a dress that was as black and plain as her mother's. Her arms were locked in place to her sides and she swayed back and forth, her eyes downcast.

"This is my daughter, Rosetta," my Master said, confirming my belief. "And she will be your new Master."

"She's what?!" a voice screeched out. I didn't recognize it until I saw Madame Terrebonne, her face red and chest heaving, and I quickly put two and two together.

But her outburst was overshadowed by my own feelings when I looked back at the little girl. She was my Master? Not Lady Louise? Not the all powerful free witch with the deadly streak, but her daughter? This shy little girl?

"Go on, darling," Lady Louise said to her daughter, ignoring Madame Terrebonne's exclamation and gaping stare. "Greet your new familiar."

Rosetta gripped her dress. Her face was red. Though she was on the shorter side, she had to be on the verge of her teenage years. About the same age as Gust...and Maple.

I hid the sudden ache behind a smile as I knelt down in front of her. She squirmed a bit when I did, but when her mother did not protest I lowered my head.

"It is an honor to finally meet you, Master." I peeked and saw she was watching me so I raised my own head and went on: "You may call me Foxy, if you desire."

I kept my smile going, but Rosetta wasn't smiling back. No, in fact, she seemed quite troubled. Her brow was furrowed, her head tilted, her eyes searching my face with an aggression I wasn't expecting. The red flush of her skin was long gone.

"Are you a boy?"

Her voice was the only thing about her that was unlike her mother's. It was rough, sharp, and hit me with a strength I was also not expecting.

Before I could answer, Lady Louise knelt down beside her, two pale hands on either of her child's slender shoulders. "The Overseer did his best, my child," she said, her voice even, though I could see how serious her expression had become. "This was the best they could do. I promise-"

"Are you a boy, Foxy?" Rosetta repeated, shaking off her mother's hands and stepping up to me, so close I had to stand.

I looked to Lady Louise, who had slowly stood back up as well. She merely looked back at me. She said nothing, but her silence told me enough. It was in my hands now. Rosetta stood right before me, her hands balled into fists at her side, glaring at me, almost daring me to answer her.

"Y-Yes," I said, still trying to find my voice. "I am."

Rosetta let out a frail gasp. She backed up a step. She stared at the ground, her hands shaking at her sides. I was at a loss of what to do. I didn't even know what was happening.

"Darling, please," Lady Louise spoke up, walking to her daughter. "There is no need for this."

Rosetta hiccuped, then sniffed. She was crying. Her mother must have realized it too as she had stopped moving, her eyes wide. I bit my lip and made to walk over to her.

A few things happened at once.

Lady Louise raised her hand to me, trying to stop me, and Rosetta raised her head. There were tears flowing down her face, her cheeks were aflame, and her eyes... I froze when I saw her eyes. It reminded me of all the other times people had looked at me like that.

Like they wanted me to just die.

"Rosetta, don't-!"

"CHANGE!"

I lost complete control of my body. I tried to take a step back, but instead my leg caved underneath me. When I hit the ground, I tried to reach out, pull myself back up, but my arms weren't cooperating. I tried to spot them, to find out what was wrong, but I couldn't find them.

Instead black little paws danced around in my field of vision.

There was a rush of noise. Panicked cries. Pounding echoes that hurt my ears. I couldn't understand the noises. It was gibberish. Nonsense. I craned my neck around, but all I could see were feet- large feet and shoes. Where was I? Was I sent somewhere?

I was swept up in someone's arms a moment later. I came face to face with many people. Kat, Mutt, Stallion- their eyes and jaws wide open. Maple and Stallion's Master were sharing their own wicked smiles. And Madame Terrebonne, her mouth wide open as she laughed a terrible laugh, crying out things I could not understand.

Mr. Copper and Mouse came between us and them. More gibberish from his mouth. Letters and words that made no sense. I was brought up close to Lady Louise's face. Her demeanor was awash with horror. She said something to me, directly to me, but it was impossible to understand. She grabbed the wrist of my Master and we were running.

The wind whipped back my hair. I wondered how Lady Louise had gotten so big. How she was carrying me with one arm with such ease. We were running from the train station and into the woods. I tried to look back, get one more look at everyone, but my body wouldn't cooperate. I flipped and flopped and Lady Louise had to hold me tighter to keep me from just falling out of her arm.

I tried to ask her to stop, but my voice wasn't working, either. I tried to scream, but something unfamiliar came out and Lady Louise shushed me. We soon came out the other side of the trees, to a dirt road and a shiny black car. A tall, grizzled man with a brown and white beard and dressed in clothes very similar to mine was standing beside it, like he had been waiting. When he caught sight of us, he hurried to the backseat door.

But, before he opened it, I finally saw what had happened to me.

In the glass window, by the last light of the setting sun, I saw the creature in Lady Louise's arms. It stared wide eyed back at me, its eyes a startlingly bright blue. Its small black paws clung to the sleeve of Lady Louise's dress. Its body was awash in fiery red fur, its bushy tail whipping out behind Lady Louise.

I screamed and it screamed back. A high pitched, whiney noise that could wake up a sleepy evening. I found my strength and tried to fight the grip Lady Louise had on me. When she tried to hold me with another arm, I bit it. She cried out, released me, and I was on the ground, scrambling to find my footing, to escape, to get away from the thing in my reflection.

Then a shiny black shoe connected with my side. I was flung from the ground and hit the side of the black car.

I crumbled to the ground, my body already spent. But I still tried to move. My eyes scanned all around the dark trees, up and down the dirt road.

Lady Louise was gripping her arm, blood staining her torn sleeve and her pale hand. Her daughter stood nearby. My Master. Holding on to her mother's dress. Staring down with me with that same hateful look.

This was her fault.

I tried to crawl across the ground towards her, snapping my jaw at her. Her cold eyes did not even blink.

Don't look at me like that.

I was almost to her when the man with the multi-colored beard stepped between us. He had a black bag in his hands. His burning yellow eyes stared down at me with un-masked contempt.

"How very disappointing."

He brought the bag down around me and I was swept up in soft darkness.

I thrashed and snarled and fought against my binding. It did not give an inch. It had to be more than just a bag.

Still - I bit, I clawed, I used every ounce of my remaining strength to fight.

Why was I back here? In this position? Just when I was starting to accept things.

The bag and I were thrown harshly against something and the pain shut down any last will I had. My body-no, not my body-this body was finished.

Where had it all gone wrong? When did I take the step that sent me down this rabbit hole? Did I ever have a choice? I had to know. Before everything else was taken from, me I had to remember when and where this all began.

Then I remembered...I remember...

The fog. Thick, cloudy, and cold. A dog winking and smiling. A boy too forward and too eager. A girl too mysterious and beautiful. A club that was just a front to train normal teens into becoming animals. An insane duck. A trusting mouse and horse. Witches who could open portals and control plants. A world gone mad.

And, in the middle of it all, was a guy who became a fox. No memories of his family, friends lost in their problems and trapped with powerful, dangerous witches.

He was alone. He was scared. He had no hope of ever escaping.

And, worst of all, his troubles were only just beginning.

...

*Author's Note*

Well, it took an entire book and nearly the entire first arc of the second book, but our main man Alex Foxy has finally turned into an animal. Though, it seems that this first transformation wasn't something he expected...or wanted, entirely.

What do you guys think will come from this sudden transformation? Is Alex doomed to slowly (or quickly, as is the case) slip into madness? Can he somehow learn to cope with a brand new body? Whatever your thoughts, I would love to hear em!