phantom-thief-kid:

It took a while, but he eventually changed back to human form, blood still splattered on his face and neck. He was still asleep for a bit, but he woke up and looked around, incredibly disoriented.

Several things ran through his mind at that moment. Why was Hakuba in his room? Why the hell was he naked? And, more worryingly than the rest, why was he covered in blood again? Oh, gods, did he kill someone?

“Hi, Hakuba… What… what’s going on?”

Hakuba had stopped recording before Kaito woke up, and had returned to his research. It hardly seemed dangerous in comparison, letting the thief sleep after all of that. He glanced over, blinked, and very calmly crossed one leg over the other, leaning back in the desk chair.

“It appears that you’ve been shape-shifting into a lion, which explains the reports, and your phonecall the other night.” The detective frowned as he looked Kaito over, lips pursing. “I’m sorry, I should have cleaned you up… I hope that the blood doesn’t stain the blankets too badly.”

So calm, so serene. Relieved, really. 

“How are you feeling?”

phantom-thief-kid:

The lion yawned and watched his human for the moment. So he didn’t eat any of it? Maybe he’d already eaten. Either way, he closed his eyes for the moment and kept listening. Just as long as his human didn’t spend his time staring at him like a predator in wait or attack, he could stay.

Hakuba had learned the first time that staring was as impolite for lions as it was for the British, and soon settled in the chair with cell phone in hand. He could watch the window this way, and keep a vigil for the hopefully soon to be sleeping lion. And while his phone battery wouldn’t last forever, it would surely give him some very valuable research time.  He typed away, ignoring that the deer leg had left blood on the desk. He’d deal with that later… probably after lecturing Kaito, if he ever transformed back. 

phantom-thief-kid:

Kaito walked, tail in the air, still ignoring the humans he saw. He was utterly uncaring of them at this point and would much rather sleep. Maybe his human would come with and eat what he gave him. (For a human, he did look a bit scrawny and pale.)

He went back into the Kuroba residence through the window and laid down on the bed. The birds were squawking again and the small kitten was now hiding again. He set his head down. Though his toe still bothered him, he was otherwise comfortable. Much better than falling asleep out by that deer last time.

It was with some difficulty that Hakuba managed to get through the window and into the house, but manage he did. The detective, once inside, looked back through the window and moved to close it – but thought better of it. The lion was full as far as he could tell and, according to his research, that meant it was time for a nap. As if lion lying on the bed weren’t indicative of that. Besides, he didn’t want to risk annoying the lion or making it feel caged in; that certainly wouldn’t do. 

So instead he went to Kaito’s desk and set the deer leg upon it, taking a seat after. 

phantom-thief-kid:

Okay, good. Now he was behaving. Kaito finished up the bite he was working on and ripped off a foreleg. He took it over to his human, waiting for him to grab the leg. Then he’d set off for his den. If his human followed, he didn’t particularly care.

“Oh… ah, thank… thank you.”

Hakuba took the leg, gulping hard against the turn of his stomach. He’d seen many gruesome murder scenes in his time, and always dressed his own kills while hunting, but something about the rather savage nature of the break in flesh, offered so sweetly, made him pale a little. The amount of discordance at work in his head rattled him as he tried to put every bit of information in its place. 

As the lion moved, the detective followed. Stumbling at first, dizzy, then more calmly, taking the leg with him. While he didn’t want to be seen carrying the piece of bloodied animal, he didn’t exactly have anything else at hand. No weapons, no lures, no evidence that the blood that stained the mouth and fur of the lion had been animal, not human. But now he did. 

But where was the lion off to now? Hakuba regretted leaving the deer behind; there was still good meat there, and it was wasteful to leave, but… but the lion was more important. The waste would just have to be taken into consideration for the future. 

phantom-thief-kid:

The lion looked up for the moment. His human staring at him and it was rather annoying. He let out a small growl and went back to eating, not taking his eyes off his human.

If his human wanted to join in to eat, he was welcome to (Kaito had already eaten quite a bit and was working on one of the hind legs now), but he would have to cut that out. This was Kaito’s territory and, though his human smelled like a mate, trying to challenge Kaito was about one of the stupidest ideas his human could have.

“Er…”

Well, all right, if he were honest, Hakuba would admit that the particular look, coupled with the growl, that the lion was giving him was distinctly unsettling. He nervously averted his gaze and instead looked around the area, wishing that he knew more about lion psychology.

Oh, but he had his phone on him. He fished for his mobile again, then began his research, glancing from the phone to the lion every so often to make sure that he hadn’t left. 

phantom-thief-kid:

After getting as close as he could to his target, he bolted for it. As soon as he could, he latched his jaws to its’ neck and snapped it, felling the deer. This, naturally scared the other wildlife off, but Kaito lion didn’t care. He started eating, working on the internal organs first and blood coating his jaws.

Hakuba had learned to accept quite a few things in the last few weeks that he never thought he would have ever had to do. Watching a lion hunt, kill, and begin to eat a deer, so close to the city in Japan of all places, was… was something else. Especially considering that that lion was mostly likely his… er, thief, as it were. 

He took a seat a few yards off and watched, still working away at ideas. Capturing a lion would not be easy. He’d worked with horses, his hunting dogs, his hawk, and he’d been hunting several times, but none of that really made him qualified to tangle with an adult male lion. Any lion, really. But it wasn’t like he could call animal control. At best, they would traumatize and capture the Kaito lion and drag him away to some zoo. At worst, they’d kill him. 

Neither were really ideal. Particularly since… well, Kaito couldn’t stay a lion forever, could he? Factoring in what they’d discussed on the phone earlier, there was some crazy magic involved and… Well, it was rather like a werewolf. 

God, he was thinking about were lions and how to seriously deal with them, now? So much had changed since he left London. What in the.. 

At least Hakuba wasn’t negatively effected by watching the lion eat. 

phantom-thief-kid:

Kaito looked back for a moment. So his human was following him. That was all well and good, so long as he kept quiet and out of the prey’s field of vision. He stalked around, crouching low and sneaking around trees. There were a few deer and he wanted to get one.

Hakuba recognized the shift in posture and gait. The lion was hunting. He hung back, keeping his eyes on the beast, He didn’t want to get too close and risk upsetting KidLion, but there was no way that he was just going to let him wild. The area had wildlife, sure, but there were also people on occasion. It wouldn’t do for him to attack a human. Not at all. 

So, while observing, he began devising plans. 

phantom-thief-kid:

He looked around. Interesting tone change and it was unexpected, though not really startling. Kaito yawned, his tail twitching back and forth.

Speaking of hunger, his stomach grumbled. He wandered off, heading for the park. Whether or not his human would follow him was up to him. So long as he didn’t scare off the prey animals lurking about and didn’t try eating first from the kill, Kaito didn’t care.

“H-hey! Don’t just walk away from me!" 

Typical of that damned thief. Hakuba got to his feet and went after, keeping his pace measured and careful. "Was it something I said?”

Okay, clearly the lion was somehow Kaito, Kaito, but a lion, who didn’t seem interested in listening to human languages. With him wandering off, that meant that the lion had other things to be doing. And this, like most things, worried Hakuba. But a lion loose in Japan was not a good thing for anyone, Kaito and his bizarre immortality tricks, or otherwise. 

So he followed after.