Chapter 5: W-who is this kid?!?!

Jacob had no idea how long he simply sat and stared at the ground, but he knew he needed to get his bearings together. He had to know who he was.

It was clear as day that the lingering feelings of sadness would be a large part of his new life, at least for the next year maybe. He couldn't forget what he loved and lost, it would be downright cruel of him.

He decided to take in the room before him and well, it was just strange to say the least. He was used to simplicity, but this? This was a lot for him.

Plants covered a majority of the room, all different species he had never even seen before. Well, that right there proves this couldn't be Earth. The walls were made of log, most likely meaning the entire home was made of log. If he stared out the window, he could see a forest full of..was that glowing fungi??

He continued to stare like a fool before taking a second to put his mind back on track. In the far right corner of his room, right next to possibly the blandest desk he'd ever seen, especially in context to the rest of the room, was a long mirror.

He slowly stalked over to it with his eyes closed and arms out. He braced himself for the inevitable, he couldn't ignore his appearance, nor could he ignore who exactly he was.

As he opened up his eyes, the only thought he could really make out was:

Oh god, who is this 12 year old child and why are there ears. Oh my god there are animal ears. HE HAS ANIMAL EARS. No, he has fox ears. He wasn't sure that made anything better.

He slowly reached out to behind himself and he could feel it. The tail. Oh god, he wasn't even fully human. What kind of joke is this?!?

His appearance overall wasn't even THAT bad. He was cute for sure, but not fairy boy cute. He may be gushed over but no one in their right mind would treat him like a child or some idiot. His body also wasn't awful, from what he could see at least. He had muscle, but he also wasn't muscular. Dainty, yet masculine in his own way. His hair was, well, a change. Long hair as white as snow that reached the bottom of his neck. His eyes were..doe?? They were a bit too cute for his comfort, but at least the eye color was interesting. It seemed to alternate between a light brown and amber.

Overall, he was, well satisfied because he wasn't unattractive but, it wasn't him. He didn't feel like himself at all and that thought hurt as though a bullet suddenly pierced through his heart.

Before his thoughts could suddenly spiral out of control, he heard a knock at his door and promptly freaked out. He had NO idea what his name was because he wasn't thinking and now he had to talk to someone who would for sure know his new personality better than he did?? This was a disaster waiting to happen.

He slowly opened his mouth before uttering a soft, "C-come in." Oh god, he sounds 12. Why'd he stutter, oh my god he's doomed. He'll just stand there and die at this point.

As the door slowly opened, a stunning woman came into his frame of view. She had curly white hair, just like his and golden eyes that felt as though they saw right through him. She was smaller than he was, as he stood at 5'2" and she stood at maybe 5'0". He had NO IDEA who this was, which was just great. Fantastic.

"Hun, you haven't been downstairs all day and- oh dear, you have to put your ears and tail away Ev, we don't want those humans to ever know that fox kin live right by them. Come downstairs to eat dinner when you're ready, ok? I'll see you in a bit," she spoke softly yet, her voice carried throughout the entire room. After having spoken her piece, she closed the door and went back downstairs.

Ev, if that was his name or it could be a nickname, just spluttered. There was so much to unpack in that small statement that he felt as though he were way over his head. Humans? Ok that meant there was a species similar to his from back on Earth but fox kin? He had no clue what was going on. He thought his maybe mother had no fox features, but clearly they were hidden.

The only weird part of that entire encounter for him was this woman clearly ignoring the self-harm scars that were in fact, very noticeable. There was a chance that the concept of mental health was simply unimportant but, one would think that if they saw that on their child or sibling, they'd be shocked. He'd think on that later, as the most important aspect was figuring out who he was.

As soon as those thoughts crossed his mind, he was assaulted by a wave of memories.