Animal

.:12:.

He ran. His feet slid against the wet concrete, and he went sliding halfway around the corner. As he tried to stop himself, his hands slammed down in order to decrease the speed. Instead of doing that, pain sliced through him as his skin was opened by the sharp concrete.

"Fuck!" he yelled out, gasping loudly and gripping his arm to his chest. He felt dread wash over him when he heard howls and vicious snarls follow after his curse. Fuck!

Running was his instinct, the instinct he was feeling to be the most dominant in the current situation. A small prick of emotion also said to stay and fight, but it did not win in his mental battle of what to do. So he ran faster.

His feet splashed into puddles, soaking his pant leg, but he did not care in the slightest. No, his attention was focused on getting away from them.

His heart was pounding to fast. It ached each time a new beat pounded against his chest, and the blood rushing to his veins burned like wild, unstoppable fire.

He turned a sharp corner and went through the alleyways, glad he was thin and quick so that he could slip through crevices. He did this many times until he was sure he was deep enough in the alley way maze that they wouldn't find him. The rain and water would be helping to mask most of his scent, thus making it difficult to track the boy.

However, the animals are determined. They are out for his blood, they desire to please their leader. The "leader" was a bulky man, with scars criss crossing his face, and a bald head. He was stony faced, and he controlled every single one of the mongrels.

"Line up!" he roared when he noticed the disfunction of animals as they rapidly sniffed around like lost puppies. "Now!"

They immediately started doing so by number, their name. Each animal was named with a number, and they were trained to line up in order of number.

"Stop sniffing around like a bunch of lost kittens and search," the man growled, walking up and down the line of still animals. "It isn't that hard, I've been training you."

Silence. "Am I clear, Trackers?"

Synchronized barks sounded from the group, and he flicked his hand. They began to be more orderly with their search, and then one of them howled when it picked up the boy's scent.

Meanwhile, the boy slowly dragged himself against the wall, his heartbeat slowing down as he relaxed.

He heard nothing, scented nothing. It seemed clear for him to go, so he slid out and looked around.

He heard a low, throaty growl, that he swore he could feel vibrating under his feet. The sound was familiar; not of the animals that were initially after him .. But different .. More feline like.

He slowly turned around, a lump in his throat. His fear came true when a large lion stepped out of the shadows, looking magnificent in the moonlight. It's golden mane was ruffled, but it held no shed of blood. Unlike the animals that were chasing him, the lion's dark brown eyes were filled with warning, alarm, and danger. Not bloodlust and desire. But this did not reassure the boy, it only made him more uneasy.

As he took a step back, the lion gave a loud roar and lunged at him with its teeth bared.

-:-

"Wake up!" I jerked awake, a stinging sensation tingling along my cheek. I blinked rapidly, shooting upwards in my seat.

"What the--" I snapped my head to Jada, who had her palm up and her head tilted. She had a look that told me she was irked and wasn't afraid to give me another slap. "Why the hell did you slap me?"