Here's a short story about an unexpected friendship:

The Garden Visitor

Mrs. Chen hadn't expected company in her garden that morning. She was tending to her prized tomatoes when she first noticed the movement—a slight rustling among her cucumber vines.

"Probably another rabbit," she muttered, reaching for her spray bottle of diluted vinegar. But as she approached, she found herself face-to-face with something entirely different: a small red fox, its leg tangled in some discarded netting.

The fox's eyes met hers, wild with fear but also exhaustion. It had clearly been struggling for hours.

"Oh, you poor thing," she whispered, setting down her spray bottle. Mrs. Chen had lived alone since her husband passed three years ago, and while she wasn't usually one for strays, something in those amber eyes spoke to her.

Over the next hour, she worked carefully with garden shears to free the fox, speaking to it in soft tones. The creature remained surprisingly still, as if understanding her intentions.

Once freed, the fox didn't bolt as she expected. Instead, it limped a few steps away and looked back at her, almost quizzically.

"Well, I suppose you could use a meal," she said, surprising herself.

That evening, she left a small bowl of water and some leftover chicken by the garden gate. By morning, it was gone.

This became their routine—the fox would visit at dusk, and Mrs. Chen would leave small offerings. Sometimes, she'd catch glimpses of russet fur among her vegetables, but the fox never disturbed her plants.

Her neighbors thought she was peculiar for feeding a wild animal, but Mrs. Chen didn't mind. In a world that often felt too big and too lonely, she had found an unexpected friend in her garden visitor.

They were both a little wild, a little wounded, and somehow, that was enough.