Shirayukihime and The Lost Fox

Chapter 24: Cat and Kit

Third POV

It was a curious sight to the young man when he saw the young boy sitting up in the tree. It was even more curious when he saw that the boy had fallen asleep. Following his cat-like curiosity, the young man quietly slips into the tree, taking care not to wake the boy. Though he saw that there was no point in trying not to wake the boy. He clearly saw the exhaustion drawn on the boy's face, how he was sleeping so deeply that the man was sure nothing could wake him up anytime soon.

The man sat on the branch about a foot away, and watched the sleeping boy. He felt oddly drawn to the boy, though he couldn't say why. He was cut out of his musings when the silver-haired boy began to quietly cry in his sleep. "Mom... Dad..." the boy whimpers, "don't go..." The desperate and broken tone of him struck a small chord within the man.

When the boy began to shift in his sleep, the young man suddenly grew worried that he was going to fall. His worry was proven right when Akira started to tip off the branch. The man quickly grabbed him before he could fall. He knew what this boy was going through, he's seen it happen before.

Hesitantly, the man brought the boy into his chest and started to to hum quietly under his breath. He knew that this was one way to comfort people who suffered from nightmares. Though he wasn't sure if this was alright to do with a stranger, much less one of his targets.

Slowly, the boy began to relax in the man's grip, his sleep talk ceasing. The man slowly ran his fingers through the boy's silver hair, further pulling Akira into a dreamless sleep. When the man carded his fingers through the silver hair again, he accidentally pulled on the black headband the boy wore. He stops for a moment before deciding it best to take the headband off.

A pair of fluffy white ears pop up from underneath the headband. The man stops his humming, frozen in shock. "Eh?" The boy began to shift around again, seemingly starting to wake up. The man snaps out of his momentary shock, picking up on his humming and slowly carding through the boys hair.

It was impossible. Nothing could explain this boy in any aspect. The man stared at the fluffy fox ears before rubbing one and scratching behind the ear. To the man's surprise, the boy subtly began to purr, a low and deep sound that rumbled through his chest. He shook his head in disbelief, not quite understanding what he was seeing. Still, he smiled and continued to hum quietly. "Little kit," he murmured. "Why did you leave your burrow?"

When the man saw Shirayuki walking down the second level corridor, stopping to stand against a pillar, he subtly stopped running his hand through Akira's hair. Without stopping his humming, he quickly but gently tied the boy's hands together with twine. He took a piece of cloth from one of his pockets and gently opened the boy's mouth. The man saw the sharp teeth, but left it at that after tying a makeshift gag.

Though, just to see his reaction when he woke up, the man left the headband off and continued to card through the boy's hair in a relaxing manner while watching the red-haired girl.

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Akira POV

The first thing I register is the sound of voices. They're bothersome, and I want nothing more than to go back to the blissful nap I was having. The second thing I register is the feeling of someone running their fingers through my hair. It was relaxing, and I probably would have fallen back asleep if I didn't remember that I fell asleep in a tree.

I open my sleep-filled eyes and see a young man dressed in tan clothing sitting just about a foot away from me. His gloved hand absently played with the hair hanging in my eyes, though he was focused on something else. I turn to follow his gaze and see Shirayuki standing in front of Lord Haruka. Their voices carry out to us in the tree, though I could hardly concentrate on what they were saying after I notice the cloth in my mouth and the twine around my wrists.