59 Perils of Miscommunication (1)

The ringing of an alarm clock blasted Iris awake. She blinked a few times, trying to comprehend what was happening. Today was Saturday, so why was the cursed noise still around?

With a sigh, she got up and bit Kyro's ear. He jumped right away, and she lay down to sleep once more. Today was the weekend, what kind of idiot was he to have forgotten to turn off his alarm. It was a serious sin to do something like that.

The bed underneath her moved, and she opened her eyes to see that Kyro was actually standing up and getting out. What in the world? Wasn't he the one who would even sleep through his funeral if no one bothered to wake him up? It made no sense for him to get up this early.

'Well, whatever, I'm not gonna be this crazy.' She closed her eyes and fell asleep again.

When she woke up again, the sun was already high in the sky. It looked like the perfect time to get out of bed, so she yawned, stretched, and jumped off. After the morning rituals of toilet and eating a few still cringe-worthy insects, she went to the living room to look for Kyro, since she hadn't seen him in the study.

He sat on the sofa, staring into the turned off TV with unseeing eyes. Something was on his mind, so Iris didn't bother him and instead looked over the room. Nothing was out of place but for the pet carrier. What was it doing out here?

She searched for Lucifer, but he was nowhere to be found. The cat probably decided to hide the moment he saw the carrier. Deciding that he had the right of it, she went to her favorite spot under the bed. There was no better place for her to hide than there.

Ten minutes later, though, she was bored. Kyro hadn't moved yet, and just sitting and doing nothing was driving her crazy. Why couldn't he hurry up with what he had planned?

Just as she thought that, his phone rang. It was the sound of the alarm clock she was already intimately familiar with, so he must have set it to remember to do something. But what was it?

From under the bed, she listened then watched as he came into the bedroom and stopped for a moment. His legs went into the study and after that back into the living room. When he didn't find what he was looking for there, either, he called her name, "Iris!"

Her first instinct was to run over to him, but then she remembered the carrier and stopped herself. It was a bit silly to hide here like this, but maybe, just maybe, he wouldn't take her out if he couldn't find her for long enough.

In her eyes, there was no good reason to go outside. She didn't want to go to the vet, while other possibilities were even worse. Could he have gotten tired of her? It didn't seem likely, but why would he be taking her out if not?

Soon, Kyro's face showed up at the edge of the bed. He extended his hand and beckoned for her to come. "Iris, Iris, come."

But she didn't want to… She whimpered and pushed even harder against the wall behind her, as if trying to become one with it. Could she, just this once?

Reality wasn't that kind, though. Kyro stood up and moved to the head of the bed, from where he could reach her, so Iris shot out through the other side. The study was a death trap, so she rushed into the living room and jumped onto the sofa. From the back, he wouldn't be able to see her right away.

In the meantime, she desperately looked around, searching for any kind of shelter. However, the apartment was very minimalistic. In the living room, there really wasn't much else besides the sofa, TV, couple shelves underneath, and two large flower pots by the window.

When Kyro came in and got close to the sofa, she jumped off and circled around him. It was no genius plan, but it could waste time. He was too far to make a grab for her, and she rushed into the bedroom.

He came after with a frown etched onto his face, his voice full of irritation. "Iris, stop this. Come. Iris."

As if she'd fall for something like that. She backed away into the far corner, seemingly hiding behind the curtains. However, as a fox, she didn't really need to see to tell the predators movements—her ears were aplenty for that. The moment he was about to reach her, she dived under the bed and ran out the other side and back into the living room. It was the biggest room, so even if it had to place to hide, she had the most maneuverability there.

Her dash took Kyro by surprise, and he was slow in running after her. With a moment to spare, she lay down in the middle of the room, facing the door through which he would come. Her breath was slightly labored from the sudden exercise, and she hoped to regain it with this moment of rest.

Kyro stopped in the doorway, watching her with narrowed eyes. "We're not playing tag," he told her seriously.

'Who's playing with you! I'm running for my life here!'

For a moment, the two of them were still, a man and a fox just staring at each other. In another world, their contest of wills might have resulted in something, but now, it was just a waste of time. The next moment, Kyro rushed at her, and she jumped to her feet and ran to the side, leading him on a merry chase around the room.