Beastars: Full Moon

Hunter and Prey

The schoolyard stood frozen in the silence of the night's darkness. The burbling of the water fountain murmured quietly.  The chirping of crickets sliced through the silence. The towering school buildings were nothing more than looming dark shapes. Moss seeped through the cracks, embedding the stone with greenery. A thick mist swallowed the yard, becoming a blanket of the earth. It stripped the colour from the world.

Hazy orbs of amber flickered through the grey mist for any signs of movement. Broad shoulders heaved up and down beneath the amber gaze. A wolf stepped out into the light of the moon. His grey fur ruffled in the wind. The breeze held a faint sweet scent of prey. The wolf's pitch black nose twitched and his pupils narrowed. He drew his hunched shoulders back until he was at his full towering height.

"A herbivore," his deep voice rumbled in his throat.

The wolf wore a navy blue vest over a white undershirt. He fidgeted with his grey tie. As his muzzle crept open, white fangs flashed in the night. Power coursed through his veins. The wolf's confidence was only boosted by the dark. His ears flickered as the clicking of shoes alerted him. The sweet aroma of herbivore filled his nostrils, fueling his inner instincts. The wolf's muscles tensed, bracing him to run.

"I can't do this," the wolf clenched his hands as his voice grew raspy. "I can't do this."

The wolf's body went completely numb. A debilitated hunger for flesh overtook him. The predator launched himself forward in a grey blur. The world became swirls of monochrome colours as he rushed into the courtyard. The hunger clawed at his stomach, sending waves of pain throughout him.

He could barely focus on the small shape fleeing from him. He pounced, striking his prey. The wolf held onto the small animal, his sides heaved as he panted. The prey was a small rabbit. She was shivering with fear. He wrapped his arms around her tightly, feeling her feeble body. The quickening heartbeat of the rabbit increased the burning hunger within the wolf.

"I can't," he mumbled.

"If you're going to eat me, do it. Do it!" the small rabbit shouted with a shaky voice.

The rabbit's soft fur brushed against the wolf's rough course hands. Her white fur stood out against his grey fur. The prey's ears quivered. The rabbit craned her neck behind her to face the hunter. Her beady black eyes reflected a crazed drooling wolf. The wolf's heart sunk. This reflection could not be his own.

"I'm sorry." the wolf whispered.

Wet tears dropped onto his hands. Were they his? Or were they the rabbit's? He could not tell. Fighting his instincts, he released the rabbit. She scurried away, never once looking back. The wolf watched her leave with his tail tucked beneath him.