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His father took Shinra to vivisect a boy his age.
The boy was lying on the table, keen eyes fixed on Shinra, mouth closed, completely naked.
“Don’t be disturbed by his appearance. In reality he’s between four hundred and five hundred years old. He’s hardly a child not even by the standards of his species. I figure he took the form of a boy your age to make me feel guilt for what is about to happen. Seeing as human medicine does not seem to work on him, so anesthetics are out of the question.”
“What is he?”
“Hm? Oh, right. A kitsune. Now to get to work.”
The kitsune did not cry out, his wounds healed quite quickly, and his dark eyes kept being fixed on Shinra.
-
“What is your name?”
Shinra snuck down to the lab, and down there, around a bed, there was a protective circle. Keeping the kitsune in, who was still in his young boy form.
“Does that matter?”
“No, not really! I just want to call you by some name.”
The fox shrugged.
“Then call me Izaya. I don’t care.”
“Izaya! That’s an interesting name. I’m Shinra.”
“I don’t care.”
Shinra sat down to the other side of the protective circle.
“Soooooo~”
“Why are you here?”
“Hm? I’m just here to talk, of course!”
“I don’t want to talk. Go away.”
“There sure needs to be something you want! Or need?”
Izaya moved, slowly crawling closer to the circle, dark eyes fixed on Shinra.
Shinra couldn’t look away.
“Your father hadn’t let me out since the vivisection ended so--”
He couldn’t finish, Shinra’s hand already reached out to the circle - only to be stopped by a hand on his wrist.
He didn’t notice when did his father enter, but then he dragged him out, and Shinra still felt those dark eyes on him.
-
“You absolutely cannot trust the fox. No matter what it says. Do you understand it, Shinra?”
“...huh?”
“I have him bound to my will, so he has to obey me - but foxes are tricksters. Kitsune are worse. They are foxes who just can take the form of a human, and I have his abilities held back, but he is still dangerous.”
Shinra blinked twice, and Shingen straightened himself.
“So… does that mean I can’t talk to him anymore?”
“Oh, I did not say that. Talk to him if you wish. Let him out, even. But it can trick you. I can control him to an extent, but it is possible he might break out of my control.”
-
Honestly, even if Shingen had told him otherwise, Shinra still would have went down.
And probably would have let the fox out either way.
The day he did it for the first time, the entire building lost electricity, Shinra felt something rush by him, and then he heard a loud crash from the living room.
When Shinra ran outside, he saw Izaya on the floor, and Shingen standing above him.
“You are not allowed to leave the house. I thought we had estabilished that.”
If looks could have killed, Izaya’s glare would have already ripped Shingen apart.
-
“How does my father keep you under control?”
“He doesn’t keep me under control” Izaya splat. “I just cannot disobey him. As soon as I see a loophole, he is dead.”
“Oh. Will you kill me too?”
“Haven’t decided yet.”
“Oh, alright then. So then there’s still hope for you to marry me instead.”
Izaya looked taken aback.
“Are you aware that I just told you I would kill your father?”
“Yup! And to be honest, you are hardly the first one. And the things he does, he kind of has it coming. But you didn’t answer how does he keep you under… sorry. So how does he ensure that you have to comply.”
The kitsune shrugged, while fooling around with a gaming board, putting on multiple pieces of various board games on it. Shinra was pretty sure he saw a top hat piece from Monopoly too.
It was Shingen’s favourite piece.
Shinra was pretty sure it was intentional.
“How much you know about kitsune myths?”
“Oh, a lot! Foxes for a hundred years, then able to shapeshift. Although most myths state that human disguise can fail a lot, like showing a tail. Do you have a tail?”
“I have four, but no, you can’t see them.”
“Awwww. So yeah, things like this.”
“Have you heard about a kitsune’s ball?”
“You mean an item that if taken by a human, they get a wish, because it’s the source of power? I did but I always found it kinda silly… oh… oooooooh.”
“Oh, indeed. I don’t suppose you know where your father had hid mine do you?”
“Nope! Can I join you in the game?”
“No.”
-
Growing up with a kitsune in the house was not as exciting as Shinra thought it’d be. There were no funny animal-noises, he was unnervingly good with his human disguise, and he never changed forms even once.
Okay, he did it once.
Shinra heard a voice.
“Hey dad, so you can control Izaya can’t you?”
Okay, that was probably his own voice, so he followed it - and in the living room, he saw himself, and his father.
Then Shingen looked up.
Then back at the other Shinra.
“Izaya, you are absolutely not allowed to shapeshift into Shinra anymore. Ever.”
The other Shinra’s form shimmered, and got longer, and suddenly there were two Shingens in the room.
The first Shingen shrugged.
“If you wish.”
“You tried to trick my father!”
“Obviously” Izaya was back in his usual form, spinning on a chair, bored. “I’m a trickster, after all.”
-
Shinra had to go back to school, and he noticed Izaya got agitated every time he went back.
“You miss me?”
“Your father is basically gone. I don’t like being alone” Izaya huffed, and Shinra’s face lit up.
“You missed me!”
“Shut up, Shinra.”
But Shinra noticed.
Shinra noticed how some days, especially around weekends, there was sun on the sky - and as soon as he reached the building he lived at, there was rain coming down from the clear sky.
-
Fox’s wedding. Also known as sunshower.
Impossible situation, feeling tricked.
Also a fox’s wedding would occur at a time like this.
Or simply, a time when a kitsune’s emotions are heightened.
-
“You have a friend?” Izaya basically spat.
“Yes! His name is Shizuo, and he’s interesting like he has his super strength, and…”
“Humans don’t have super strength.”
“Hmmm, I don’t think that’s it… I think he lacks any natural…”
“I don’t care about your explanations, Shinra!”
Outside, it was still sunny, but Shinra could swear he heard a thunder.
“Are you jealous, Izaya? Do not worry, my heart only belongs to you and you alone!”
“As if I care.”
“You know, you not caring would be a lot more convincing, if sparks wouldn’t be flying from your fingertips.”
“Shut up, Shinra.”
“Seriously, I think the cards are about to catch fire…”
-
After finishing grade school, Shizuo went into a different school, and Shinra had an idea.
For it, he had to call his father.
“Hmmm. So you want me to let him out?”
“I think socializing would do him good!”
“Alright, alright. Pass him the phone.”
So he did, and he saw Izaya’s eye widen as he hung up. When he looked at Shinra, he still had wide eyes.
“Why did you do that?”
“I think we could go to middle school together!”
“I’m almost five hundred years old, I don’t need to go to middle school.”
“That’s why you still look young like me?”
Izaya looked at him, and Shinra just smiled.
-
Obviously he did go with him.
Which, in retrospect, setting a kitsune free in the city of Ikebukuro might not have been the smartest idea ever.
-
Izaya quickly filled himself in in the life of the school - oh he did not have friends, or anything like that, but he did start to pay attention to other humans.
And starting to do his things.
Which… concluded in the accident in the biology lab.
“You idiot! You complete idiot! Why would you do this? I would have healed!”
Izaya’s hands were shaking, and Shinra smiled.
“That would have blown your cover. You are supposed to pose as a human aren’t you? Besides… I guess I just wanted to be your hero a little bit.”
Outside, there was a storm going on, and this time, there wasn’t even a ray of sunlight, even though the weather forecast had been saying it was supposed to be a nice day.
Then again, ever since Izaya had been in the city, weather forecasts had been pretty unreliable.
After that, well.
Nakura had learnt what it meant, crossing the path of a kitsune.
It was a long, painful, and hard lesson.
“Oh? So you say that Izaya got pissed at a human?” Shingen’s voice conveyed some geniune interest.
“Yes. I had never seen him like that! And there was a storm outside! It’s so interesting, I thought kitsune can only control fire or maybe lightning, but the weather like this?”
“Well, that’s why research is important. We still know so little of these supernatural creatures… but after all the sunshowers that had been happening around him, weather manipulation isn’t that far off. Hmmmm… Shinra, I want you to document what he does to Nakura after this.”
“Eh?”
“There had never been a reliable scientific report about what a kitsune does to a human they wish to see suffer.”
So Shinra did. Not like he really cared.
All he cared was how Izaya looked, anger and pain on his face, and his eyes, his dark eyes…
They were glowing with an almost otherworldy, amber glow, as if they were on fire.
Shinra had never seen anything that beautiful before.
-
There was really no stopping Izaya after that.
Not that Shinra tried.
-
“So I see, that the rumour of foxes not liking dogs and vice versa, are true…”
“Shut up Shinra, and how about you help me?!”
“And I am not a dog!”
Shinra blinked a few times, as he took on the scene more in front of him.
Izaya on top of the lamppost.
A group of dogs around him.
And one of them - a chihuahua ended up talking. In an indingant tone.
Izaya pretty much bared his teeth.
“Shut the fuck up, Wol, what the hell are you doing in Japan either way?”
“Oh. It’s you. I was enjoying my vacation, when I smelt a fox. In the city.”
“Nice going, mutt.”
“I am not a dog.”
“Yeah, and I’m not a fox either.”
Shinra sighed and just sat down to one of the stairs, taking out his homework.
Judging from Wol’s snarl, he figured it would take a while for Izaya to get down.
“Stupid dog. If I were on full power, that would not have been a problem.”
“What was he, either way?”
“Hm? A vampire with delusions. Not worth talking about. I suppose you still don’t know where your father keeps my ball, do you?”
“Nope!”
-
Izaya seemed to grow attached to attending school, and they both went to the same high school.
With Shizuo Heiwajima.
And boy, did that one go wrong.
-
“That thing. That protozoan is not human.”
Izaya was pacing up and down in their home and there was thunder outside.
“Oh, he allowed me to get some samples and stuff, and we tested it with my father. He is human, just unusual.”
“No way. No way in hell he’s human.”
“Well, Izaya, you aren’t human either…”
“Well no, but I’m owning up to it.”
“Why are you this angry about it either way?”
Izaya stopped by the window, and a lightning had stuck outside.
Very dramatic.
Totally not on purpose, Shinra assumed.
“He’s not human. If you are not human, at least own this fact.”
“You know, I thought that you were just saying that you love humans, but you do mean it don’t you?”
“Why wouldn’t I?” Izaya smiled and the sky started clearing outside. “Humans are fascinating. Come all shapes and forms, and always, so very unpredictable.”
Izaya walked forward, and knelt down, putting his hands over Shinra’s hands.
“Also… you are human.”
By the time their lips touched, the sky outside was completely clear, but it was still raining.
-
One day, Shinra got home to furious typing, and when he glanced over Izaya’s shoulder, he saw part of a chatroom.
Tsukumoya Shinichi
I had heard about foxes longing to be human before. That’s why a lot of kitsune enchant humans to marry them. Maybe that’s why you adore humans that much, because you also wish to be one of them?
Orihara Izaya
You couldn’t be further from the truth.
“So you don’t want to be a human?”
Izaya looked back, smiling a little.
“Obviously not. Why, do you want me to be?”
“Of course not! I think you are perfect the way you are.”
“This is just a random face I use, you know.”
“I know. But you seem to be attached to it. And no matter how you look like, I would recognize you.”
In the next few weeks, Izaya seemed to try to test out this theory.
Izaya would took up forms of various classmates, including in one spectacular occasion, Shizuo’s (which ended up with two Shizuos running around Raijin, it was a very interesting day indeed), and a few teacher’s.
Basically everyone got tricked at least once.
Never Shinra.
-
“Are you sure you don’t know where your father hid my ball?”
Izaya was kneeling over Shinra in the bed, pulling down his jacket, and grinning. Shinra was really, really distracted by Izaya’s collarbone.
Izaya really paid attention to age his body the same pace as Shinra after all… and he aged well. Puberty did him a lot of favours. Or… fake-puberty.
“No. I really don’t know.”
“Would you tell me if you would know?” Izaya was still cheerful, pulling off his shirt.
“Probably not~”
Izaya laughed, leaning forward, brushing their lips together.
“You are an awful human being, Shinra Kishitani.”
He didn’t seem to complain much more about that, though.
-
Shinra became a back-alley doctor.
Izaya became an information broker.
Officially, Izaya moved out - unofficially, he still spent a lot of time in Shinra’s apartement.
-
“You know how he is, Shinra.”
Shizuo was smoking, sitting on the side of the fountain, exhaling the smoke.
“Oh? But you are in good terms with Kururi and Mairu aren’t you not? They are both also foxes. A lot younger, barely over hunded, but still.”
“...yes, I am aware. They think if they will give me their brother to kill, I will give them my brother to date. And they see nothing wrong with this logic. But they are still not as malicious as Izaya is” Shizuo gave Shinra a pointed stare over his glasses. “Are you prepared to deal with whatever hell is your boyfriend unleashing over the city over and over again?”
Shinra smiled - a honest, small smile.
“For Izaya… yes. Even if he destroys Japan with his storms, I will still love him.”
“Are you sure you can trust him?”
“Trust… it doesn’t matter. What matters is what I feel for him. Even if he uses me, I don’t mind, as long as he lets me love him. And he seems quite happy to let me do that.”
-
“What would you do if you’d get your ball back?”
Shinra was sitting in Izaya’s lap, feeding him hotpot from a bowl. It was just the two of them, and they were all alone, Izaya’s arms around his waist.
“Hm? Why do you ask?”
“You’d leave wouldn’t you? The ball keeps you here in Ikebukuro.”
“...our kind isn’t exactly known to like to being tied down, Shinra.”
That, they weren’t.
All the myths and research agreed. Kitsune hated being imprisoned, and Izaya had been here for about twenty years, bound to the Kishitanis. Even if things changed, it was originally still against his will.
Whatever was about to happen, when he got his full powers back, it was not about to be good.
-
And it wasn’t.
-
When Kasane Kujiragi stormed in, kissed Shinra, and cut him with Saika, something inside Izaya snapped.
“This isn’t exactly supposed to happen.”
Shingen Kishitani mused, with Emilia holding onto his arm, and the two of them looking up to the sky.
The sky was full of thick clouds, there was no rain, but it was lightning heavily. And somewhere above the buldings, there was a woman fleeing, and a shape following her.
A young man with a flaming aura chasing her, with the determination of a hunter chasing down its prey.
“Is this his full power?”
“No, not really. But he does seem to honestly love my son, I guess. As much as a being like him can feel love. Interesting… I wonder what would happen if he would get his ball back, in his current state.”
-
Shizuo’s hand closed around the glowing ball. It was strangely warm, with a pulsing warm, orange light.
“So. This is the source of Izaya’s power?”
He was kneeling in the wreckage that was the Kishitani apartment, and he felt Vorona’s presence next to him.
“Suggestion: destroying the ball would neutralize Izaya Orihara. Shizuo-senpai would be able to get rid of his archenemy for once and for all.”
“...it would kill him?”
“Uncertain. Possibility is strong that it would just take away his powers. But potential for death is still high.”
“...do you think I should kill him?”
“I do not think Shizuo-senpai needs to become a murderer. But caution is advised. Once Izaya Orihara realises Shizuo-senpai has this, hostility will most likely increase.”
“...thanks Vorona. I think I know what will I do. Take care of Tom, would you? This storm might get bigger.”
“Affirmative. Shizuo-senpai. One more advice that is probable to be useful…”
-
Izaya bounced back. Painfully.
He got closed into wards.
He got tricked.
That damned woman…
Then he heard footsteps - maybe she was back. Maybe Shinra got away, maybe…
…
It was him. That damned protozoan, that beast - and in his hand… in his hands…
“Give. That. Back.”
-
“Huh. So it is yours. I was wondering whether Shinra’s old man had bound other kitsune too.”
Shizuo knew he was playing with fire. Almost literally now, as Izaya’s aura really made him look like he was on fire, and his eyes were glowing with a fiery light as well.
“I’m gonna give this back to you.”
Now this made Izaya’s light shimmer down, eyes opening in shock, and Shizuo continued.
“But first, you gotta promise me something.”
“...you got to be kidding me.”
“No. I really don’t get all your rules and stuff. But Vorona told me that kitsune are honour bound. You promise something, even the most michevious ones of your kind have to stick by it. I will give this back to you. If you promise to me that whatever will you do in your anger, you will not take it out on Shinra.”
“...what.”
“Look, I know what your kind is like. And I know what you are like. Even the less malicious ones of your kind would become vengeful after being bound for twenty years, and as Shinra told me, you always had a more malicious streak either way. But I don’t know about you, but Shinra cared about you. He might have taken the worst ways to show it, but he does. So when you have to take your revenge, do Shinra no harm.”
Izaya gave him a blank look - before throwing his head back and laughing. He laughed, with a laugh that sent a chill down on Shizuo’s spine, and the thunderstorm without a rain did not stop, at all. When Izaya looked back at Shizuo, he was grinning.
“Very well, beast. I promise I will do no harm to Shinra Kishitani at any way, nor will I cause harm to come for him - directly or indirectly. Does that please you?”
And with that, Shizuo threw the ball towards Izaya.
But before he could catch it…
There was another body, throwing himself at it, intercepting the ball, and just falling to the ground, hugging it to himself.
And Izaya looked at him, eyes glowing with his fiery gaze again.
“Shinra!”
And then there was rain - with a wind so strong that it knocked Shizuo back, and obscured his vision.
He called out for Shinra, to Izaya, but whatever was there, the wind completely carried away their voices.
Then the wind stopped.
And so did the storm, the sky clearing up.
And on the ground, there was Shinra Kishitani, sitting all alone and with no new injuries.
Izaya and his ball both gone.
-
Life in Ikebukuro shortly rearranged even without Izaya Orihara being there. His sisters remained, but when asked about their brother, they just shrugged. Not like there had been a big connection between them.
So of course, Shizuo visited Shinra, helping them fix up the apartment, everyone avoiding the topic of the elephant in the room. Or the fox not in the room.
After being done, Shizuo just grabbed Shinra’s arm.
“Are you alright?”
Shinra looked up at him with a small smile.
“Yes. Yes, I am.”
“I mean… I know this must be hard for you.”
“Oh, you’re concerned? Aren’t you happy he left?”
“...well. My life will certainly be easier without him, but I know he meant a lot to you.”
“Do not misunderstand. He’ll come back.”
“Shinra, he’s…”
“A fox, yes, I know. But I know he’ll come back.”
-
“I can’t give this back” Shinra smiled sadly, looking at Izaya, in the middle of the windstorm, lightning stricking the ground over and over again. “I can’t let you leave me.”
“You stupid… idiot!”
“I know!” Shinra’s smile was almost proud. “But I love you, Izaya. You know I do.”
“You idiot! Why do you think I… don’t you think I do as well?!”
“But you’d leave. You’d leave because that’s what you do.”
Izaya was quiet, and then just walked closer, as close as he could, with the protective wards still around him.
“Do you trust me? Wait, don’t answer that. I’m asking you to trust me.”
“Izaya… it’s not about this. I know what you are like. You hate being in one place. It wouldn’t even be malicious as you can be. That’s just how you are.”
“...Shinra. Listen to me. Very carefully. I promise I will come back to you.”
-
“See it now?” Shinra smiled. “He promised.”
“...oh. Well, that’s… good? I guess?”
Shinra’s smile didn’t disappear when he looked out the window.
“...that said he didn’t say when, and I’m sure you know what kitsune is like. Promises are almost like with genies. Taking things literally. He said he’d come back, but who knows when? Maybe tomorrow. Maybe he’ll just visit me on my death bed.”
“...oh. I see.”
“But it doesn’t matter” Shinra looked back at Shizuo, still smiling. “I’ll wait for him, as long as it takes.”
-
Months had gone by, and life really went back to normal - well, as normal as Ikebukuro can be.
Shinra’s apartment was empty - Shingen and Emilia had went away, and Shinra really didn’t mind not having them around.
After patching up some people from the Awakusu-kai, he walked back to his home, tired, and just went out to his balcony, stretching his arms.
It was a warm, sunny day, but he still felt the raindrops on his skin, despite not seeing a single cloud on the sky.