An American Ghoul in Tokyo

A small form of nostalgia coupled with curiosity and maybe a bit of restlessness led Uta to once again stalk through his old hunting grounds that night. The sky was clear enough to see the stars against a midnight blue canvas and the temperature was crisp enough to raise the fine hairs on naked skin. It was a perfect night for hunting, but he wasn't hungry. Nor was he in a bloodthirsty enough mood to kill simply for fun.

He was wandering, but not aimlessly. No, this night he had a clear goal in mind. Itori had been rather giddily informing him of all the newest rumors floating around for the past week and a half, but mostly just one in particular. It was the one that caught his attention the most. Apparently, there was a young new ghoul haunting the 4th Ward and stirring up the ire of a few of the older inhabitants.

This newcomer was, surprisingly enough, not hunting in others territory or causing any unnecessary fights. He, or she, because no one could get close enough to tell the ghoul's actual gender, was simply flitting here and there, never staying in one place for very long. The rumors had labeled the ghoul "uncatchable", due to their ability to always outwit any and all other ghouls that tried to hunt and or capture it.

Putting the rudimentary tactics and limited intelligence of the 4th Wards usual ghouls aside, Uta had to wonder if the new ghoul was actually a sly fox or just a scared rabbit. A few days' worth of thinking it over, and the compartmentalizing of even more outlandish rumors he was sure to be lies, finally gave him enough incentive to go see this new troublesome ghoul for himself.

As it turned out, the young ghoul was quite cunning and talented at hiding itself. It left only the faintest trace of its scent in very few places and admittedly it did take him quite a while, but in the end, he did find the so-called "uncatchable" ghoul. Nonthreateningly he'd managed to "corner" the unmasked ghoul in a dark, dead-end alley.

Upon first inspection, he was almost disappointed with his discovery. He'd gotten his hopes up, just a little, and had expected more. He had, just a little bit, been expecting a fight, short though it may be. Instead he only sensed fear and the desperate desire to flee from the ghoul. His quarry was just a scared rabbit after all.

As it turned out it was a young, foreign male ghoul of indeterminable age. He was dressed in simple dark, well-worn clothing that had seen its better days but could still pass as acceptable. The hood of his sleeveless hoodie was pulled up, helping to hide the majority of his youthful features and he clutched an unadorned, simple-made yet sturdy black mask in his left hand.

But, when the boy didn't immediately flee for his life when Uta gave him the chance, he began to second guess his initial thoughts. Perhaps there was something different about this ghoul, after all. Uta knew this for certain when the one uncovered blue iris not hidden by long dark blond fringe locked onto his exposed kakugan and he saw recognition.

Now that was something interesting, and dangerous.

The boy, with very little effort, could see right through his well-maintained mask. There was no hiding ones true nature from this frighteningly insightful young ghoul. Uta's first thought was to kill him right then and there, just to be safe, but curiosity held him back. Though he could sense plenty of fear from the boy, Uta could also sense a great deal of loneliness as well.

He didn't want to be alone anymore. That was why he hadn't runaway yet. Since Uta hadn't acted aggressive towards him, the thus far mute boy wanted to see if he could find a companion in him. This intrigued the older ghoul and even though the younger ghoul could see through him, Uta smiled kindly and offered his hand and a greeting.

After a long pause of consideration, his efforts were rewarded and a smaller surprisingly warm, slightly calloused hand slipped into his own in acceptance.

"... Ravinn. My name... is Ravinn." The boy-Ravinn spoke in Japanese, though it was slow, broken and quite simple, like a child just beginning to learn. He seemed to have little trouble understanding Japanese, but speaking it proved difficult and Ravinn would certainly have issues if he were to go into a more civilized Ward. But that was of little importance now; Uta would help him with the language barrier later so conversation between them wouldn't be so tedious.

The first thing he was going to do was get the boy something to eat. Ravinn didn't look it, or act like it for that matter, but Uta could see the beginning signs of starvation. Uta had many questions for the young ghoul but they could wait. He also wanted to get a better, deeper whiff of his scent but considered that such action might scare him off. For now, Uta was content to return to his studio with his new companion. Or was Ravinn more like a "pet", possibly a... "boy-toy" as Itori would put it. All three labels amused him greatly; he'd have to think on it later.