Legends of the Fox-wife
Tale 1: Origin

Once there was a woodsman who roamed the wide wide forests, strong and sure and swift, and had everything he needed except a companion. He spent the seasons longing for someone beautiful and understanding and finally he met her one evening in a clearing.

"Will you marry me?" he asked.

"If you trust me," she answered.

And so it was, and they lived for awhile happily and well, devoted and true. But woodsman had a hound who became more and more hostile to the lady from the woods, and one day it attacked her so viciously that she lost her human shape.

The fox ran, frightened, leaving her heart behind. The woodsman tried to follow, but she was swifter still.

"You may be a fox," the woodsman yelled into the forests, "but I love you! I love you! Come back when you can; you will always be welcome!"

Eventually she heard.

And every evening thereafter she stole back and slept in his arms.

end

AN: This will be a series of KakaNaru/NaruKaka one-shots loosely based on the fox-wife legend, which I'm very fond of, since it's one of the few myths where a spirit married a human where they're actually happy together. The above story is a rewritten version of the variant of the legend I found.

If you have an idea/request, I'd like to hear it! I'll credit you in the story I use it in. =)

Edit: Certain tales have been split off into their own fic, or grouped under a different name, the changes are noted below.

Tale 2: Follow Me Down moved to Are You Man or Ghost? (new non-pairing oneshot archive)

Tale 4: And I Would Walk 500 Miles, Tale 5: And I Would Walk 500 More, Tale 6: To be the Man who Walked a 1000 moved to it's own story page. See My Stories tab, under And I Would Walk 500 Miles.

Tale 15: Strike While The Iron Is, Tale 23: Strike While The Iron, Tale 24: Strike While The moved to it's own story page. See My Stories tab, under Strike.

Tale 17: Void moved to Are You Man or Ghost? (new non-pairing oneshot archive)

Tale 22: Conversations at the Memorial Stone moved to Are You Man or Ghost? (new non-pairing oneshot archive)