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The sun streamed down through the leaves of the forest as the young man made his way through the thick underbrush. He stopped just at the edge of a clearing, looking around and listening for the slightest movement in the forest. His patience was rewarded as he heard a small snap of twigs. Kneeling down behind the brush, the man readied his bow as a stag entered the clearing in front of him.

The deer seemed to sense something else in his domain, looking around and sniffing the air to find the disturbance. Satisfied, the stag moved further into the clearing and began grazing. The young man carefully selected an arrow from his small quiver and, as silently as possible, nocked it to the string. Pulling the string back, he lined up the shot.

Slowing his breathing down, the young hunter prepared to shoot. He was so focused on making the kill, he never noticed the other person sneak up behind him. The deer seemed to sense another presence, alert and looking in the direction the archer was hiding. Just before he made the shot, the young man froze as the cold, sharp steel of a sword tickled the back of his neck.

"Well, well, well, what do we have here?" The stranger asked the young man kneeling before him. The stag, sensing the growing tension in the air, bolted deeper into the woods. The young man slowly released the drawn bowstring, laying the bow and arrow down to the side and raising his arms. "That was a wise choice, lad. Now, I want you to stand up and turn around."

The young man did as he was told, keeping his arms up. The blood drained from his face when he saw who had caught him; it was none other than Sir Guy of Gisburne. The current Lord of Locksley was known to be cruel and ruthless. Rumor had it that he was also close to the Sherriff. No matter what he said, there was no way for him to get out of it this time.

"So, you know who I am," Sir Guy stated. "This will make things a little easier then. Come with me." Deftly, Gisburne moved towards the young man and picked up the bow on the ground. Sheathing his sword, Gisburne grabbed the young hunter tightly and began leading him away from the clearing and deeper into the woods.

The young man didn't pay attention to where they were going, keeping his head down. It didn't matter where they went; he was in the hands of Sir Guy. Whatever punishment awaited him wouldn't be fair or kind. His mother had always warned him against hunting in the forest, but he never listened. They needed the meat, and he had always been careful not to get caught. He had gotten cocky about it, and that lead him to become careless. And now he was in the hands of one of the cruelest men in all of England.

Before long, Sir Guy had led his captive to the road, where a large group of men stood waiting. About ten of the men were sitting on horses. One of the others held the reins of a horse. The young man fell to his hands and knees as Sir Guy shoved him forward. Looking up, he noticed the men riding the horses were all wearing clothes of green and yellow, stitched with gold and silver. One man, with red hair and neatly trimmed goatee, wore chains and rings of gold with precious gems in them. The rest of the men were clothed in blue and dark green, with a falcon stitched in gold on their chests.

"What strange beast have you brought us, Guy?" The red-haired man asked Gisburne.

"This boy was trying to poach a deer, Your Highness." Sir Guy told the man, bowing slightly. "I have his bow here." The young man was shocked when he heard this. He was in the presence of Prince John himself! The rest were the prince's closest companions, lords from across England. Whatever punishment he met would be harsh indeed!

"Poaching? Well, we can't have that, now can we?" The Prince asked. "Stand, boy, and tell us your name!" The young man stood and looked around, trying to find the courage to face the stern-faced men around him.

"My name is Tenric, Highness." Somehow, he had found his voice to answer the question.

"The boy has some manners after all!" Prince John said to the rest of the group, causing his companions to chuckle at the jest. "Now, Tenric, you understand the law, don't you? What the punishment for poaching?" Tenric nervously licked his lips. He couldn't speak, so he just nodded his head before looking at his feet.

"Nothing left to say, boy?" The man on the Princes left asked angrily. "The Prince asked you a question! Speak!"

"I am not a boy!" Tenric burst out. He was angry and scared. The guards immediately dropped their hands to the hilts of their swords, ready to pull them out and protect their prince. "I am fifteen, and more of a man than anyone here!"

"Impudent brat!" The man on the left yelled. He pulled his sword out of his sheath. "I will teach you some manners!"

"Enough, Gerreth!" Any mirth Prince John had left as he commanded his comrade.

"He insulted your honor, Majesty." Gerreth told the Prince. "He must be punished!"

"And he will be. I will personally see to it. So put up your sword!" Seeing this side of the prince was frightening. Tenric knew he had incurred this anger upon himself, and the rumors of the prince's cruelty and creativity with punishments were known throughout the entire country. Whatever punishment Prince John conceived would not be pleasant for Tenric.

"It seems you have some spirit, Tenric." Prince John turned his attention back to Tenric. "It would be a shame to kill you for that. However, you must still be punished. So we will play a little game. Since you were caught hunting in the kings forest, it seems fitting that we hunt you. If you can survive, and make it out of the forest without getting caught, you may live. But if you get caught......" There was no need for the Prince to finish the sentence. Everyone knew what would happen.

The cloudy look on Sherriff Gerreth told the others what he thought of this plan. He wisely held his tongue as the prince motioned to everyone to make room and step away from Tenric. Soon, it was only Prince John who stood in the path facing Tenric.

"Go ahead. Run. We'll give you a bit of a head start." Quickly grabbing his bow, Tenric didn't think as he sprinted, running headlong into the trees before the prince changed his mind. There was hope. All he had to do was escape the forest alive.

As the group watched the boy run, Gerreth walked his horse up to the prince. "Don't worry, Sherriff. I have a plan." Prince John spoke before Gerreth could ask or say anything.

"Letting him run free, with a chance to escape?" Gerreth asked the prince. Prince John didn't answer, instead looked over at another companion, an older man with a short beard and white hair. The prince nodded his head, and the man just smiled, closing his eyes and began chanting under his breath.

"It doesn't matter if he makes it out alive. He will still be punished." The prince just stated simply. The sheriff smiled as he realized what Prince John was doing. "Sir Guy, you may wish to mount your horse if you wish to join the chase."

Gisburne took the reins from the servant and mounted, ready to run at the given signal. "Shall we hunt, Highness?"

Before he answered, Prince John looked over at the wizard, who merely nodded. "It is done, My Lord."

"Very well. Let the hunt begin!" With that, the men spurred their horses forward, chasing after Tenric into the woods. They split up as they hunted their quarry, a young peasant.

The trees blurred as Tenric raced past, jumping the occasional branch or limb. Leaping, he slid down a hill as dirt and loam rolled down around him. Finding a small hole hidden by a fallen tree at the bottom, Tenric climbed in and hid as he tried to catch his breath. Soon, he heard the beating of hooves race over the top of the hill. It wouldn't be long now before they found a way down. He had to move. Placing his hands on the side of the hole, he prepared to bolt out and run. Tenric didn't notice his hands had become darker, blacker. The nails were now longer and sharper, while his palms had become tougher, more calloused. Without thinking, he burst from the hole and began running as fast as he could through the trees. Suddenly, a man riding a chestnut horse tore through the bushes and headed straight for the running young man. Raising a bow, the lord took aim at the frightened lad. As he shot, Tenric dodged to the side and into a dense clump of trees that the horse couldn't get through. He wasn't fast enough as the arrow imbedded itself in his shoulder. Crying in pain, he reached back and broke the arrow, leaving the head still buried in his flesh.

As he ran, the changes continued. Pads had formed on his palms, and his nails were now claws. Black fur covered his hands and up his arms to just below his elbows. Though he couldn't see it, orange fuzz had begun growing from where the black left off, moving up his arms and around his shoulders. Now slightly pointed, his ears had slowly started to move up the sides of his head, as a slight black fuzz growing on them. Tenric was completely unaware of these changes as his mind focused on one single though: survive.

Tenric slid to a stop as he heard hoof beats from different sides. Looking around, he saw the shadows of about three horse riders in the woods. They hadn't seen him-yet. With the sound of hooves ringing in his now triangular ears, he sprinted in the on direction he knew was safe. He could feel the fear starting to rise, fear that he would not make it. He did his best to drive the thought from his mind and ignore the sudden pain that had erupted in the small of his back. His legs burned with pain and exhaustion as he panted through his open mouth which had also started to throb dully.

Suddenly, Tenric tripped on a root and fell head first into the river. Soaking wet, he started to rise when he noticed his reflection in the water. What he saw shocked him. His face was mostly covered in orange fur, with white on his chin and throat. His face had started to push out into a short muzzle, which grew slightly as he watched in fear. The black, triangular ears were now positioned on the top of his head. His nose had started to blacken as well, becoming moist and textured. Tenric brought his hands up to explore his face, which now resembled a fox than human. Even his eyes had begun to change from dark brown to a lighter golden color.

Tenric looked at his hands, scared of how far the changes may have gone. They were now covered thickly in black fur, and were now somewhere between human hands and the paws of an animal. Quickly, he pulled his shirt up just enough to see what else had changed. A sea of white fur on his chest and stomach ringed by orange met his fearful eyes. Reaching behind, Tenric felt a tail beginning to grow. Tenric then knew his punishment. It wouldn't matter if he survived and escaped the forest. He would likely spend the rest of his life as a lowly beast.

Tenric unconsciously flicked his ear as his enhanced hearing picked up the sound of hoof beats and the shouting of men. This brought Tenric out of his shock. If he didn't move fast, they'd find him. And he still wanted to live-even if it was the life of an animal. Looking around, Tenric found he could smell everything. All the new scents assaulted him at once, almost making Tenric gag.

Looking back in fear, Tenric dove into the river as quickly as he could and began swimming. Maybe, if he made it out, he could find some way to reverse the spell. But he had to make it out alive, and still able to talk.

Tenric was pulled out of his thoughts as arrows began piercing the water around him. Some were getting uncomfortably close. Tenric tensed, expecting every second to feel the pinch of the arrow that would end his life.

Suddenly, the current picked up as the swimming half-fox reached the rapids. Tenric broke the surface and gasped for breath as the water swirled around him. Muffled, Tenric could hear the men shouting: "Line the river! Get to the end of the rapids!" "He has to come out sometime!" "We have him now!" The rapids would keep him safe for now, but they were right; He had to come out at some point. They would likely fish him out at the end, just before the waterfall. But before that, he had to worry about surviving the treacherous rapids first.

Tenric struggled to stay afloat as the swift water surged over him, causing him to swallow a mouthful of water. Trying to find the surface, Tenric never saw the large boulder he was headed for. He felt a quick, sudden pain before giving in to the rising blackness.

Two figures were stalking through the woods, weapons at the ready. They were scouting their domain, keeping a watch on everything. Not even the smallest detail escaped their attention. They couldn't afford not to be. Their lives, and the lives of others, counted on their vigilance. One was human, and his companion was what could only be described as a half-wolf.

The human slowly made his way to the riverside, making sure to watch all sides. Rumor was going around the camp that the Prince himself was hosting a hunting party in these woods, and had even found a victim for his cruel sport. A flash of orange amongst the reeds caught his eye. Carefully, he pushed the reeds aside as he made his way to the bank. What he found, lying half in the water, was the figure of a young man half-turned into a fox. The man quietly looked to his companion and waved her over. She quietly padded over to see what the man had found.

"What is it?" She whispered. It was apparent she was more than a little worried at the idea of being out in the forest while the prince and his lords were hunting.

"Take a look for yourself," he replied. The wolf gasped slightly as she saw the prone figure before her. "Seems like we found Prince Johns latest victim."

"Poor thing," the wolf gently stroked the foxes head. "He looks so young, too. Do you think we should take him back with us?"

"I don't think we have any choice," he replied after pondering the question for a couple of minutes. "We don't know how far the spell will go without the intervention of a mage. Besides, we don't want to let the Prince have his fun, do we?" The man grinned at his companion as he said this.

The wolf just smiled as she picked up the unconscious fox and draped him over her shoulder. The odd couple then made their way quickly into the woods, the man even more on alert than before. He had to keep an extra eye out to be better able to protect his companion. Their movement was so swift and quiet that there was no trace of them ever having been there.

Tenric moaned as he slowly came to. His whole body ached, and he had a headache. Opening his eyes, everything was blurred. Tenric heard someone shout "He's awake!" It sounded distorted, and far away. Looking around, it looked like he was in a cave of some sort. Sunlight fell from some hole above. Struggling to rise, Tenric rubbed his head with a hand. When his hand reached his triangular ear, Tenric sat straight up. The mugginess of semi-consciousness was immediately gone as panic and fear filled its place. Tenric felt his head with his hands, exploring the new ears and muzzle. Looking down, he found the only clothing he had was a blanket around his waist. This allowed him to see the white fur covering his torso, ringed by orange.

Tenrics was distracted when he smelled three people coming towards the cave. He could tell two were female, and the third male. One of the women and the man were humans, Tenric wasn't sure how he knew, but the third was different. There was a strange scent coming from her, but he couldn't tell what it was.

Tenric scrambled back in fear as they came in. He wasn't surprised when he saw that two, an older woman who and the man, were indeed human. The biggest shock was when the third walked in, and Tenric saw she was a wolf. Tenric scrambled to grab the blanket and hold it close to his body, striving to better cover himself. His ears pulled back as a low, canine whine of fear escaped his muzzle.

"Oh, don't bother. It ain't nuttin' I haven't seen before," The older woman told the frightened young fox. "Now, if you don't mind, we got to see how your doin'. Not very often I get to look after someone reckless enough to brave the rapids after fallin' on the wrong side of Prince John's law."

"Wha, what's going on, where am I?" It took Tenric a while to find his voice. It shocked him when he did. It was slightly deeper, slightly raspier.

"Oh, so you can talk, can you?" The older woman had begun prodding him with her fingers, feeling for any breaks. "Now, do ye have a name?"

"Tenric." He had to swallow slightly before answering. Tenric was starting to calm down, but was still frightened and confused at what was going on.

"Tenric," she repeated. "Well, I'm Martha. I'm currently the healer of this ragtag camp. Well, one of them, anyway. The man is Leon, and the lovely wolf is Selene." Martha didn't pause in her work as she made the introductions, simply nodded her head in the direction of the other two. "You have those two to thank for savin' ye. Found you in the river, they did. No broken bones. Lucky you, only injury from the rapids is that bump on yore head. Even the arrowhead buried in your shoulder has been removed. All that's left is a small scar."

Tenric reached up and felt his shoulder, feeling the scar beneath his fur. He looked up at them. The pain, fear, and confusion were evident in his eyes.

"But, why do I still look like this? Isn't there a way to change me back?" Tenric asked, looking around at the other three. It was Selene who took answered him.

"Tenric, we did our best. But there wasn't any way to remove the spell. Our mages were able to stop it from progressing. They found a way to keep your form like this, but that's all. The spell was too strong, had too much influence. There's no way to make you fully human again." Tenric's head fell as he heard this, tears trailing through the fur on his face as he began to cry. Selene gently placed her paw on his head, wiping the tears with her finger. "I am so sorry." Selene held Tenric close as the young fox began sobbing. They just sat there, as the wolf did her best to comfort and soothe the young fox as he grieved his lost life.

After a few minutes, Leon put his hand on Selene's shoulder. Glancing over her shoulder, she gently extracted herself from the fox and stood up. Leon knelt down in front of Tenric.

"You okay, kid?" Leon asked. Tenric just nodded, not trusting his voice. "Good. Listen, I know this is a shock, this change and all, but if it's all right with you, we'd like to show you around the camp. Meet the group. Think you're up to that?" Tenric didn't answer. "Just let us know when you're ready." Leon got up, and the small group started to leave the cave.

"Wait!" Tenric called to them. "I-I'm ready. I want to see the camp." After looking at the others, Leon started back towards the fox.

"Great!" Leon was smiling. "Your clothes were dried and mended. We had to make some.....alterations to them, but they should still fit. They're over there." Leon pointed to the corner closest to Tenric. "Get dressed, and we'll talk to you when you're done." The three others turned and walked out of the cave's mouth to leave Tenric with some privacy.

Tenric stood and walked over. Reaching down, he picked up his clothes and looked at them. His shirt was unchanged, but his pants now had a hole in the back for his tail. Tenric sighed, and began dressing. After a few minutes of confusion, he managed to figure out how to get his pants on. Pulling his white shirt over his head, Tenric then pulled on his brown vest and tied it. Looking around, Tenric couldn't find his boots, before remembering he wouldn't need them anymore. Looking down at his now paw-like feet, Tenric felt a twinge of sadness and grief wash over him. Closing his eyes, Tenric waited for the feeling to pass before making his way outside.

Tenric stepped out of the cave and gasped at what he saw. Mouth open, he looked around in awe. The cave he had just come out of was one of many in the stony cliffs that ringed the large, wooded valley. People were coming in and out of the various caves scattered about. Smoke rose from huts and cottages scattered about. Everywhere he looked, Tenric saw people busy at work. There were also various creatures walking around, working with the humans. A rat was helping a squirrel and a man repair the thatched roof of one of the huts. A large bull was seen working the smithy with the help of an equally large man. And not far away, in the shade of one of the huts, he could see various woman sewing clothing and gossiping with one another. Tenric had never seen anything like this before in his young life.

"Tenric! Hey, Tenric!" The fox turned to look when he heard his name. Leon half-jogged over to Tenric, while Selene walked at a slower, more dignified pace. "What do you think of our little camp?"

"You call this a camp?" Tenric asked, gesturing at the settlement. "This is more like a small town." Selene had caught up to them by this time, and smiled when she heard what Tenric had said.

Leon just laughed, and, placing a friendly arm around Tenric's shoulder, began leading the young fox around the camp. Selene and Leon introduced him to just about everyone, and everyone was warm and friendly towards him. There were so many names and faces that Tenric wasn't sure he'd remember them all.

There were two that stuck out. One was a raccoon, who was about the same age as Selene. The other was a vixen, and was the same age as Tenric. When they told him they were siblings, Tenric had a confused look on his face that made everyone laugh.

"Not by blood," the vixen told him. "We met about seven years ago. We had both just lost our parents, and were just wandering the woods alone. We've been together ever since. He looks out for me like a big brother."

"If she didn't get into trouble, I wouldn't need to look after her," The raccoon said with a grin. He extended a paw to Tenric. "The name's Joshua. My sister's name is Rachel." Rachel smiled and curtsied slightly as Joshua introduced her. Tenric found himself staring at her, and quickly looked away, causing the others to laugh. Tenric felt heat rise as he began to blush.

"Better look out, Joshua," Leon joked. "Otherwise, you may just find Tenric here stealing Rachel away."

"I'll have my eye on him," Joshua laughed. "If he thinks of laying just one finger on her, he has me to deal with." Even Tenric couldn't help but laugh.

"What's all the laughing about?" A man wearing a deep green tunic walked up to the group. He looked to be about twenty-seven, with shaggy brown hair. He had a short, trimmed beard, and green eyes. The smile on his face told Tenric that the man was easy going. "And who's the handsome fox here?"

"Tenric, sir." Tenric introduced himself, glad of the interruption. The man just laughed at this.

"It's not 'sir,'" he told Tenric. "You can just call me Robin. I guess you could call me the leader of this camp." Robin folded his arms and looked at Tenric. "Now, one thing you need to know is that everyone here contributes in some way to the camp. If you expect to stay, you will have to help out." Tenric just nodded dumbly, still in shock that he was meeting Robin Hood. "As I understand it, you were found with a bow and some arrows. Are you any good with it?"

"Good enough." Tenric had to swallow before he could answer.

"That's good to hear. We'll find a group for you to join on scouting missions. You will also be expected to help with the hunting. But that can wait until for a few days. Rest up, get to know the camp and the people." Robin clapped his hands on Tenric's shoulders. "Welcome to my little band of merry men."

Robin and a small group of three men walked away to check the other parts of the camp. After they left, Leon and Selene took Tenric to find a place for him to stay. The caves, Tenric quickly found out, were set aside more for medical uses. After finding a small hut for him to stay, Tenric laid down on one of the beds and almost immediately fell asleep. He still had to recover his strength from all the magic that had been used on him. As he drifted asleep, Tenric reflected on the direction his life had taken. Whatever happened now, it would all be for the best. After all, how bad could working with Robin Hood's band be? And someday, he would find a way to get his revenge on those who had done this to him. Even if it took him the rest of his life.