ToRA (Kekkai Sensen Fanfic)

Chapter 3

Work, as usual when one is a part of Libra, was extremely eventful. A Blood Breed appearing downtown, a not-so-pleasant meeting with the police department about our roles, Leo nearly being kidnapped again, and the usual Femt fiasco was just a sample of the day.

I was more than tired enough to simply go home and slink into bed after a warm shower, but the eyeing from the officers at the police department as I walked by deterred me from the idea. I had a man-eating tiger to find, and new clues to work with.

Chain had been curious about the lavender sash, curious enough to give it a good look over and make the acute observation that it wasn't a sash at all. It was ribbon, made from the same sort of material as a sash would have been, but notably shorter in length. She'd also given me a suspicious look about where it had come from, but after explaining that it had to do with an assignment from the police, she relented.

I wasn't completely blind to her feelings for me, just uninterested.

I wanted to bring Leo with me, but Chinatown was no place for him, especially with his eyes. I wanted his help to find him, but I didn't want to scar his mind with all the brothels and drug houses around. At least now I was certain that the perpetrator was indeed a tiger, and also male.

I started in the section of Chinatown that was the least defiled, where most of the former humans worked and lived. They were much easier to work with than the beyondians who occupied the other sections. After inquiring to a few shops, I was pointed in two directions. One was a tiny newspaper company, and the other was shop that sold traditional Chinese clothing. The woman who told me about them had mentioned seeing tiger-folk near both.

I took notice of the choice of 'tiger-folk', rather than just 'a tiger man'. It was clear that there were multiple in the area, if you knew where to look. A side trip to the newspaper company found them closed for the day, so I made my way to the shop. Even if I found no tigers there, they could likely tell me who the ribbon belonged to, or if they themselves had made it.

It seemed I was still holding as much luck as I was in the early morning, as when I entered the shop, there were three tiger-folk inside. They were all situated to one side, two busy with one in traditional dress, with another young woman who was clearly no longer human as well. It was she who parted from the group to assist me, her robin's egg blue skin and neon yellow eyes highlighted by her outfit.

"Welcome! How can I help you?"

"I wondering if you could tell me about this ribbon."

I pull the light lavender piece of cloth out of my pocket, handing it to her. I can tell in her eyes that she recognizes it, her hands deftly moving across the cloth. She looks up at me after a few seconds, a sharp curiosity in her eyes.

"What would you like to know?"

"Did that come from this shop?"

"It did, yes. It was a special piece."

"Who did it belong to?"

"I will have to ask the owner. She will know much better than I."

She moves back towards the group, allowing me to get a good look at the other three. At first glance, it looks as if there's only one man. He leans against the wall, clad in worker's clothing, his short brown hair tousled from sleep despite the critical way he eyes the one in the clothing. The other is an older woman, her black hair pulled up and styled with neat precision. It reveals the back of her neck, her own clothing also quite traditional but with more subdued colors than that of the third. A model, guessing by how she stands quite still as the older fusses with the garments.

No, not a she at all. When he raises his face to look towards the returning woman, his sharply angled jaw speaks of a male anatomy. His face is youthful, almost femininely perfect. Too perfect, as many humans would say. He, as did most former humans, had a mystical perfection closer to that of something out of a myth.

His expression, however, said almost too much. The second he spotted the ribbon, his face whitened as if he'd seen a ghost. It was carefully hidden just a fraction of a second later, but I'd seen it.

He didn't look very much like the youthful man from this morning, but it was clear he at least knew him. That man had long black hair, while this one had short hair that fell to his shoulders. The relaxed way he lifted his arm to adjust the collar of his outfit also told me he wasn't injured, as that man certainly would have been.

I watch as the two women converse, the older male tiger turning his head to stare evenly at me. It only lasts a few moments, and he turns away to close his eyes in the eternally nap-ready way all cats seem to have.

This time, it's the older tiger woman who approaches me, with a dignity befitting that of a lady of high status.

"Where did you find this?"

"A tiger folk dropped it, but he was in a hurry, so he was gone before I could return it to him. It doesn't look like he's here though."

"Yes, Kaju isn't here. I can give it to him when he stops by next. What is your name? I'm sure he would like to know who returned it."

"Starphase. Steven A. Starphase, miss."

"Thank you for your kindness, Mr. Starphase."

It's clear she sees the interaction as over, so I leave the shop. I don't go far, however. It's clear it was recognized by the model, and I intend to get some information out of him.

I don't have to wait very long. Only half an hour later, he exits the shop. Now dressed in a red changpao that reaches to his knees and black pants that bunch at his ankles, it's overly clear that he's not female in the slightest. His tail flicks as he pauses, looking up and down the street warily. It's what he does next, just before he heads down the street, that tells me he doesn't just know the perpetrator.

He rubs his right arm with a wince. A wince of pain, which tells me enough. He knew I saw his face, so he cut his hair to be less recognizable. The movement of his arm must've been a show earlier. I move to follow from leaning against the wall of an alleyway, and do so from enough distance to keep out of the range of those rotating ears and watchful eyes. Once we're alone on a side street, however, I close in.

The moment he notices me, he darts into a sidealley, and I prepare myself to be outmaneuvered once again. However, sprinting to catch up, I get a boost of confidence upon seeing the alley he chose to flee into.

He trapped himself, most likely unintentionally.  It's a dead end, and mesh of metal above the alley, likely to keep out vermin from the dumpster against one side of the alley, keeps him from scaling the walls and getting out. He backs into the shadows at the end, until the only thing that's visible is the glow of his eyes. It's hard to tell his expression from here, but it doesn't really matter.

My job isn't to befriend him.

It's to eradicate him.