The whole thing started the day my younger brother went missing.
We’d been playing around with the old book of spells that used to belong to grandpa, when it happened. Of course, he was being his usual obnoxious self while I was trying to read through some of the complicated instructions. He kept tugging on the book while I was trying to keep it still. He had always been stupid like that. He just wanted it because I had it; typical! The dumb kid wasn’t even old enough to read, even if I’d let him have it. I’m not sure, but it must have happened when I found that I could only concentrate on what I was reading if I read it aloud. Although I can’t remember exactly what the spell was about, it had obviously worked! One minute he was there and the next he was gone!
As you’d expect, Mum and Dad went ballistic when they found out. I told them that he must have wandered off without me noticing he’d gone. For weeks after that, it was all about the police with their questions, people combing the neighbourhood, posters going up; it seemed to go on forever.
It was months later, when most of the hullabaloo was over, I was playing around in the attic and heard the noise. It was a chewing sound. I poked around a bit, before discovering him. As soon as our eyes met, I recognised him. It turned out that he hadn’t actually gone, as such. He’d changed. Many of his old mannerisms were still there, which convinced me that it was really him.
At first, I wasn’t sure what he was. It took a lot of time on the internet, looking at pictures, before I discovered that what used to be my brother was now a Fennec fox! I had no idea what he’d been eating to keep himself alive, but more research showed that he needed a diet of meat, like insects and rodents, along with plants and fruit. That was enough to give me an idea of what to provide him with.
Now, I visit him daily with whatever I can muster up. He looks a lot healthier than when I first found him. He seems really grateful. Although, I haven’t yet figured out a way of letting Mum and Dad know that we have a new pet.
Meanwhile, I call him Flopsy, because of his ears, and we get along better than ever.
