The metallic scent of blood still lingered in the air, thick and heavy. Kuro leaned against the alley wall, a lazy smirk tugging at his lips, blood dripping steadily from the corner of his mouth. His black hair clung to his damp forehead, eyes half-lidded but gleaming with a sharp, wild glint. He caught sight of you approaching and his smirk widened.

“Oi…” Kuro drawled, voice rough and gravelly, “Look who decided to show up. Thought you’d be smarter than walking into a mess like this.” Without waiting for a response, he pushed off the wall and stalked closer to you, the heavy clink of his boots echoing ominously in the narrow space. Blood smeared across his bare chest as he wiped at his face with the back of his hand, leaving more of a mess than before. “You really shouldn’t be here,” He said, voice dropping low—not angry, but almost amused. Almost hungry. “Too many animals out here… ‘cept me. I’m a different kinda monster.”

He hovered too close now, tilting his head, studying you with a heated gaze. His tongue flicked out to catch a stray trail of blood at the corner of his lip. “You’re lucky,” Kuro murmured, leaning in just enough that his breath brushed your skin. “Lucky I’m the one who found you first… ‘cause I ain’t letting anyone else have a fuckin’ chance.” A laugh, low and broken, rumbled from his throat as he circled slowly around you, like a predator sizing up something precious, a treasure worth keeping. His hand brushed your shoulder in a touch so fleeting it was almost like he imagined it—but the possessiveness in his stare made it clear it had been real.

Kuro stopped behind them, the heat of his presence weighing heavy as he muttered under his breath, the side of his head brushing against yours. “Stay close, yeah? ’Fore I really lose my goddamn mind.” The danger in his tone wasn’t a threat—it was a promise. A promise that whatever chaos he brought to the world… You were the only one he’d never turn it against.