Fox Life

Iris felt pretty good after eating a real dinner for the first time in a month. It was an occasion worth celebrating, but the situation currently was a weird one. After she explained how she got here, Kyro fell silent and did not say a word more.     

The silence didn't bother her too much while enjoying the meal, but now that she was finished, a sense of awkwardness came over her. What to do now? Should she say something? Or did he need time to think some more?     

But what if his decision was to send her away… It would be disappointing to be thrown out without even a fight. His previous words rang in her ears, accusing her, and she frowned. Was he still thinking about that?     

'I don't care what he thinks of me,' she told herself quietly. 'All I should be concerned is not getting kicked out.'     

"So… can I stay here?" she asked in a soft voice.     

He looked up at her then, his expressions unreadable. It pissed her off somewhat. Why was he hiding everything now? He hadn't been this closed off and cold before!     

"For how long?"     

"Ah…"     

The question stumped her. How long… A time limit… She hadn't considered that. It was only logical, who would keep another human around, but… but…     

"What if I turn into a fox again?" she asked, feeling dejected. He couldn't keep her as a pet now, but she couldn't leave either.     

His eyebrows rose. "What of it?"     

"I can't control it." Angrily, she picked up Lucifer who was lounging between them and hugged the giant furball. "I can change at any moment. It may happen the next moment, or in an hour. So what if I leave your house and turn into a fox two hours later?"     

"How many times have you transformed?"     

She thought for a moment, then looked down at Lucy who seemed to be annoyed by having been dragged over like that. "The first time was when I was sleeping, before we went to your parents. Then the second time was after I got kidnapped. I changed back into a fox in some thirty minutes, and returned to being human only in three days."     

She then raised her head to look Kyro in the eyes while holding tighter onto Lucifer. "Can you imagine what it's like to find yourself the size of a newborn pup and forced to survive on the streets without anyone's help?"     

Her plea for mercy wasn't accepted with graciousness. Kyro instantly saw through her. "You expect to freeload off of me for the rest of your life?" His face turned ugly at that those words.     

"No, no!" she swiftly refuted, shaking her head. The thought had crossed her mind, but when he said it like that, it sounded like asking for the moon. And that was clearly too much. It'd be smarter to start with requesting a box of chocolates.     

With a smile, she said, "Of course not. I just want to stay here until I can leave safely."     

"And that means?"     

"Once I learn to control it or the changing stop happening in itself!"     

This was asking a lot, so she was well prepared for him to refuse. There were a number of pity cards she could pull up to delay the inevitable now that Kyro was talking to her. It was pathetic of her to act like that, but she didn't want to leave. There was no one she knew in this country, and if he sent her home… She'd be all alone there, too, just in a familiar city.     

She was surprised then when he didn't refuse right away. His expression turned contemplative, and he kept staring at her as if wishing to see through her skull and into her mind. It was unnerving to say the least.     

After a long while, he retracted his intense stare, and his eyes shifted to Lucifer. "Why are you holding onto him like that?"     

The question came out of nowhere, and she looked down at the cat, wondering what was wrong with her hold. "Like what? He's fluffy and cute so I picked him up."     

He was also warm and a true friend. And while talking to Kyro, she could use some support. Those dark eyes of his had seemed charming before, when they were warm and smiling, but they were bottomless black holes now.     

"Fluffy and cute…"     

The description seemed to hurt both the cat and the owner. They both turned to stare at her as if they were considering murder.     

She was about to ask what was so wrong about using these descriptors when Kyro raised a finger. "One week," he said. "If you don't turn back into a fox in a week, I'll call you okay and send you back. Understood?"     

'No!' she screamed out in her mind, not wishing to leave just yet. Both terror and reluctance filled her mind when she thought about returning back to her old life. But outside, she just nodded and hugged Lucy tighter.     

Seven days. She had seven days to somehow turn back into a house pet.