Interesting. Eerie. This might be a short for you, but I think this is pretty good. The feeling in the middle parts of the story, when all the animals and people start to die... you are very near to horror there. The story pinned me onto my chair. The ending is fitting, although it is very mysterious, this isn't actually an easy short story to analyze. What is it that comes and kills those animals and people? Cold? Some illness? And why those who are after the fox never come? If it is an illness, maybe the farm is in guaranteed zone, and they are the few survivors. Maybe these odd motives are a metaphor... but let's not venture there... The ending is happy, the fox survived.

Very interesting little piece. Please do not answer to any of my questions, I want to figure the story out on my own. Let the reader do the thinking. Anyway, great piece, one of the best of your recent Thursday Prompt responses, I truly enjoyed reading this. Very good work.

Thank you. I value your comments because they are so often well thought out.

Hmm... An epidemic carried with the freezing cold, but short lived. Maybe wrong, but whatever. Lacking in the details and short, but I think that helped with the feel on this one.

Very nicely done. ^_^

Thank you for your comment. The distant thump rumble is the clue in this,

Did you ever figure out what killed them?

Z

short - simple - and I loved it... so very good.

V.

Thank you *hugs*

Z

Did you ever figure out what killed them?

Z

wow... this is from some time ago Z... I'm thinking bird flu or maybe swine flu since the chickens were first and the Fox was never bothered.

V.

Talk of war.
The thump rumble is distant explosions.
The fox is sheltered in an underground Seller.
The younger and larger animals survive.
but the smaller ones die first.
Utilities are cut.
Those effected sicken and die quickly those who survive recover slowly

Radiation burst and Fallout from atomic attack

Z