It is a leaf. It is a cat. Leaf Cat.
Except it’s called Stray Cat. I would have liked Leaf Cat better. Or Plant Cat?
I remember when I first read these chapters that the leaf cat was probably the weirdest thing I ever saw. But now it’s one of the more tame things in Jojo’s. It’s really cute, too. In the usual strange way, of course.
This episode is a simple one. Shinobu found a stray cat that jumped into their basement from their window and she tried being friendly with it but she got angry with it and started waving a broom around. Creepily, it clung onto the ceiling and saw that it had a hole in its throat. She runs upstairs to Kira and tells him this so he can check it out. turns out, Shinobu accidentally killed it in the craze and Kira ends up burying it in the backyard. A few days pass, a strange plant grows where the cat was buried. When we see, it’s a plant shaped like a cat and it has a mind of its own. No surprise, it’s the very same cat that was dead, but had somehow turned into this plant. Kira comes across it and knows that it really was shot by the arrow and is a Stand user. It doesn’t show any hostility towards him, but it does when Shinobu comes outside. It attacks her and then starts attacking Kira when he protects Shinobu.
What is this feeling…in my chest? Kira, uttering the most shoujo line in existence, wonders why he’s worrying so much over Shinobu. He shields her with his body and takes all the hits from the air bubbles and debris from the explosions, and he actually felt relief when the cactus needles didn’t pierce her eyes. Personally, I would like to think that the feelings of rabu were starting to fill Kira’s evil little heart towards his (not)wife, since Shinobu is such a cute. But just like he immediately said afterwards, he could just be going out of his way to protect her so no attention comes upon the house and cause enough suspicious that the Stand Squad would check out the place and risk having his identity revealed. But the fact that he had to repeat “That must be it…” over and over to convince himself makes me think otherwise! Of course, just like with Mikitaka’s mystery, this is all up to people’s interpretation. This feeling in your chest? It’s love, Kira. It’s love.
So one cat fight later, Kira takes Stray Cat and puts it into a pot and hides it in the attic. Hayato has been observing his “father” and noted the weird differences he’s been noticing. The fact that he’s bought different size shoes, uses a shoehorn, was writing his name over and over, eating shiitake mushrooms, and him getting along with Shinobu. Which is a little sad, that his parents getting along is weird. 🙁
Hayato, still having the camera in his parent’s bedroom, checks the video of Kira taking soil and cat food into the closet. He’s noted all these strange things in his home and goes into the closet to see what’s going on, and then goes into the attic. He lets light inside and sure enough, he comes eye to eye with Stray Cat and gets attacked. Kira noticed Hayato’s hat still on the coat rack when he left so he goes back home and when he hears noise from the attic he knows it’s Hayato there. Hayato was able to quickly realize air bubbles were restraining him so he pops them with his pencils and then makes a scene to make it look like Stray Cat made a mess to get food, and Hayato hides. After hearing Kira monologuing to himself, Hayato is dead sure that he’s not his father.
Will Hayato confront Kira about this or just keep observing him from afar? Will Kira officially keep Stray Cat as a pet? Will Kira give Shinobu a goodbye kissu? More and more strange things keep happening in the Kawajiri household, but Kira is doing well keeping these things hidden, but Hayato is a smart kid and he already knows that he and his mother could possibly be in danger. But what can a regular kid like him do?
Also, if anyone was curious what all the text said about Stray Cat in the eyecatch, you can read it here, right at the beginning of the chapter. Basically just the anatomy of this strange kitty thing. Also, it was pink in the manga, which I liked more, but I guess the anime team went with the blue because the cat was a British Blue, which makes sense.
