Leaving school for the day, seven-year old Taichi finds a baby fox alongside a road in rural Hokkaido. The two bond, and Taichi decides to leave the fox with the police as a lost item. The policeman on duty takes a reluctant Taichi and the fox to the local Yajima Veterinary Clinic. It turns out that Taichi has begun to live with Ko, the vet, and his teenage daughter Misuzu after his free-spirited mother Ritsuko has gone to Micronesia to work as a photographer. Many people have abandoned animals with Ko, and paying customers are few with most of his income coming from frequently boarding a friendly dog that is almost part of the family. Taichi feels abandoned as well, and clashes with Ko when the vet sees the new arrival as a burden, especially after discovering that the fox is deaf and blind. However, Taichi names it Helen after Helen Keller and attempts to bring her back to full health while teaching her about the world as sort of a young Annie Sullivan. Even though Taichi gets her to eat, Helen suffers increasing fits stemming from her damaged brain.—Brian Greenhalgh