So that's where the fire was hidden, not easy to find.

"Gr

rrrumble."

Fox stole a glance at Red Panda, hoping Red Panda hadn't heard the sound from his stomach.

"Oh oh, I thought you'd eaten quite a lot." Red Panda walked beside him, ears twitching.

Fox said nothing, lowering his head slightly.

"So you gave me everything to eat, didn't you?" Red Panda laughed. "And you lied to me that you'd already eaten?"

"I..." Fox thought for a moment. "I'm not hungry. I can go two or three days without eating and be fine."

"I'm not that weak either." Red Panda said, tilting his head to glance at Fox. "You think I can't stand going one day without food?"

"No no." Fox hurriedly denied it. "I just felt... you're not used to walking on the road anyway, and you still have to keep up with me, always having to trot..."

"Small problem, small problem." Red Panda waved his paw. "This way we go a bit faster. I can still take it. But you on the other hand..."

Fox shook his head slightly and said nothing.

Red

Panda stopped in his tracks: "Wait, what's that smell? Fox, do you smell it?"

Fox also stopped, sniffing carefully. "Still just the smell of green grass... did you smell something?"

Red Panda shook his head. "I don't know either, but it feels a bit familiar. Come, come over here."

Fox didn't follow, but sat down instead, looking up at the sky.

The sun had already set, and the orange-red at the horizon had faded to a thin line. The sky turned blue again, from light blue to deep blue, until the black of the distant horizon behind him. Some stars had already woken up impatiently, slowly blinking their eyes, gently gazing down at this land.

A soft breeze carried the coolness that only night brings, brushing through Fox's fur. Fox smelled the scent of the river, the scent of green grass, and the scent of little bugs in the grass. These scents layered together, yet were like a key opening the door of memory. Behind that door, Fox saw himself lying on the grass with Rabbit and Beaver, chatting. Fireflies flew past, their three glowing spots on their bellies clearly visible.

"Grrrrumble." It was his stomach protesting, and only then did it pull Fox back to reality.

Red Panda had already walked some distance ahead, wrinkling his little nose and sniffing carefully. "Aha!"

Fox strode after him. "Found something?"

"There's food. Right nearby. I smelled it." Red Panda's eyes sparkled. "Right over there!"

Fox looked in the direction Red Panda pointed, and vaguely saw something. Not trees, not houses, but rather a patch of thin, tall grass. If it were a bit thicker, it would look like something climbing up a passion fruit trellis.

"So..." Fox swallowed. "Is it passion fruit too? Why is it so thin?"

"It's not." Red Panda laughed and twitched his ears. "You didn't smell passion fruit either, right? It's a kind of grass, but it also climbs on trellises. Smelling this scent, I think I'm right."

"Grass..." Fox scratched his ear. "Can it be eaten?"

"It'll be a bit troublesome..." Red Panda's voice was a little hesitant. "But since we're hungry, there's no other way."

Fox nodded, asked no more, and followed Red Panda toward those thin trellises.

Only the rumbling in his stomach grew louder and louder.

"Hmm..." Red Panda asked, that same hesitation in his voice again. "Are you afraid of fire?"

Fox was stunned for a moment. He hadn't seen any fire nearby, nor smelled any smoke.

"I... have seen it." Fox said slowly. "From a distance in the forest. The whole forest was burning, it looked terrifying. I also saw it in Rabbit's stove, but I was quite far away."

Fox

turned to look at Red Panda, baffled.

"There's no other way, since you're hungry." Red Panda raised his head, looking into Fox's eyes. "If you're scared later, just stay a bit farther away."

"Is there... fire here?" Fox looked around, still finding no sign of fire. "I haven't smelled or seen any."

Red Panda stopped, thought for a moment, as if making up his mind. "I can make fire."

Fox's eyes went wide. "You can make it? Where? Be careful, don't get..."

Red Panda pulled out two stones. One was somewhat glossy, the other just black-gray, showing nothing special at all. "This is it."

Fox looked at Red Panda's eyes, then at the stones in Red Panda's hands. Fox carefully reached out a finger and touched them, then quickly pulled back.

Cold.

"This isn't fire." Fox breathed a sigh of relief. "Fire is hot, runs faster than the fastest animal, burns trees and grass..."

"Mm." Red Panda said. "The fire is hidden inside here, you'll see in a moment. To eat that kind of thing, you need fire. So, we have to make some preparations."

Fox stared wide-eyed at Red Panda. Red Panda's expression hadn't changed. Fox looked again at the stones in Red Panda's hands, and shook his head.

"Alright." Fox said. "What preparations do we need to make?"

"We need to find some big stones, and something that can hold water without leaking." Red Panda carefully put the two stones away. "And an open patch of ground, not too big, just dry and without grass."

Fox turned to look, and at a glance spotted a white ox skull, half-buried in the grass. "Mm... that should be no problem...

"Leave the rest to me." Red Panda clapped his paws. "Just put everything on the open ground."

Fox

nodded, watching Red Panda walk toward that patch of thin trellises on his little short legs.

Fox pricked up his ears, listened to the wind, closed his eyes and thought, picked a direction, and set off at a run.

A small patch of sandy ground, it should meet Red Panda's requirements. Fox pulled out the few remaining blades of grass and tossed them aside. After thinking a bit, he pulled out a blade of grass and held it in his mouth.

Rabbit often did this. Fox smiled.

By the time Red Panda came back, Fox had already gathered everything. Several big stones were scattered on the sandy ground, along with a huge ox skull, its long horns stuck in the ground.

Red Panda dumped the pile of things he was carrying in his arms onto the sandy ground, and took a careful look at the ox skull. "That should work." Red Panda clapped his paws in satisfaction. "Fill this thing with water."

Fox nodded. There was a small river nearby, he could already hear the water. Fox dragged the ox skull toward the river, and saw Red Panda stacking several stones with a gap left in the middle.

By the time Fox came back, the water he'd filled was already down to half. "So heavy." Fox panted, about to complain a bit more, but froze.

Red Panda had already lit a fire among those stones. The flames flickered, casting shifting shadows across Red Panda's face, completely different from the daytime Red Panda.

This really was fire. Fox gazed at the leaping flames. Had Red Panda really made fire from those two stones?

Red

Panda came over to help Fox, and together they put the ox skull on the fire. Seeing the dazed expression on Fox's face, he furrowed his brows into a question mark. "What's wrong?"

"The fire..." Fox asked in a low voice, stepping back a few paces. "You really made it from those two stones?"

"Yes." Red Panda answered. "It's just that many animals are still afraid of fire, so I rarely bring it out..."

"Something that terrifying, and you carry it with you?" Fox's voice trembled a little. "Rabbit keeps fire locked in the stove..."

"Mm, actually it's not scary when you carry it." Red Panda waved his paw. "Next time I'll teach you. The water's boiling."

Red Panda broke off something from the grass he'd brought back and threw it into the water, feeding the rest to the fire. The crackling sound grew louder.

"If this kind of thing could be eaten raw, and you weren't hungry, I wouldn't have taken it out." Red Panda's voice sounded a little embarrassed. "Did I scare you..."

"No." Fox took several deep breaths. "Being scared is secondary, it's more that I'm amazed. To actually carry fire with you... that's amazing..."

"Really?" Red Panda raised his head, full of anticipation. "Is it really amazing?"

"Mm, really amazing." Fox nodded. "Such a powerful force..."

Red Panda seemed not to hear the second half of the sentence; he was busy fishing the things out of the boiling water with two twigs. "Wait until it cools before eating, careful not to burn yourself."

Fox didn't continue, just gazed at what had been fished out and swallowed. "What is this?"

"Pea pods." Red Panda kept fishing. "They're pretty tasty when cooked. I picked a lot. This time don't hold back for me."

Fox bit into one and tasted it. Then he ate another, and then a third. "Mm..." Fox had no time to say a complete sentence.

Red Panda laughed.

Only when the water was down to a thin layer and the fire had burned down to ashes did Fox let out a long sigh. "Delicious."

"Right." Red Panda sat to one side, rubbing his belly. "So... fire... are you afraid of it?"

Fox

thought for a moment, and shook his head. "Looking at it this way, there's no need to be afraid. It only burns inside the stones... in winter, it would be quite useful."

"Yes." Red Panda said. "As long as you don't get too close, it's fine."

"Next time, you teach me..."

A crack startled Fox. Fox turned to look, and the ox skull on the stones had split in two. Water fell onto the ashes, hissing and steaming up a cloud of vapor.

Red Panda and Fox both laughed.

"To think it could even do that..." Fox gazed at the split skull, and suddenly an idea popped into his head.

"Sure, next time I'll teach you." Red Panda smiled. "But don't tell the other animals, since many animals are afraid of fire."

"So this is... a secret?"

"Mm, a secret." Red Panda nodded. "Our secret."

"Mm!"

To be continued