An Oddity Among Beasts (BEASTARS)

Screaming Heart

The air became hot, Alan's body shaking slightly as he kept his glare up. If the panda had any sort of reaction, he didn't show much of one. He only gazed back with the blackness of his eyes, not paying any mind to the human's tone or body language. Legosi's ears lowered a bit, recognizing the look in his friend's eyes and unsure of what to do.

The panda stepped forward and gazed at the picture in question, "That one's from a few years ago. Did you know him?"

"You could say that.", Alan's glare softened slightly. "How did he act?"

    Legosi took a chance to look at the photo, seeing what looked like an adult wolf in a similar position to himself. His fur was disheveled, wearing a trench coat that covered most of his body. The wolf's ears were lowered, gaze away from the camera and body slouched. His eyes were a dulled yellow, almost dead-looking.

Could he be...

"Depressed, more than anything.", the panda rumbled. "He didn't even try to snap at me when he woke up. He was married, killed his wife, and was trying to rationalize it."

"There is no rationalizing it!", the human snapped. "What he did...it goes beyond simple predation. He committed the ultimate sin against someone he was supposed to love!"

"Why are you so interested in him?", the panda retorted. "You wouldn't know because you're human. You should see it as a blessing you have no carnivorous instincts."

"You're wrong...", he growled.

"What?"

    Alan pulled his gloves off and held a hand up, making the panda recoil slightly. His nails were sharpened again, a few of them holding bits of fabric from the gloves. His glare relaxed completely, turning into a blank face. He slouched his shoulders, leaning his body to the side tiredly as he gazed down at his hand.

"I know it because I lived with it.", he said quietly. "It was four years ago, I was 11 when I heard the screams..."

Legosi gasped, "Alan, that wolf..."

"Why did you think I got so angry back then? I was okay with the rules of this world, I didn't think they'd affect me. But then he did what he did..."

The panda took a long drag from his cigarette, "His wife was human, and you're their child..."

"You call it a blessing to be human. Well, I call it a curse.", his glare returned as he clenched his fist.

"Do you have any idea what it's like? Looking human and yet you have to live with the fact that your father's a killer? If that's not enough, he somehow managed to avoid getting locked up! He had to isolate himself, live far away from the human town. Even then, that's not why I hate him..."

"Alan...", Legosi said.

"It was how he acted when we met up again.", his body shook. "He was calm, distant! Then those words, those damn words!"

He punched the wall again and sighed heavily, "'I only want you to understand. This is the world you were born into, of predators and prey. You may not have to take a side when you're older, but you must realize that it's a reality we animals must face.'"

The room was silent, air heavy as the realization dawned on the two animals. Legosi could now make sense of the human's behavior in a new light. Their first meeting in the wolf room, Alan's intervention in the Drama Club's performance, his meltdown in front of a handful of club members. Even earlier, when he was caught and they all discovered The Ghetto. It all pointed to something he was hiding, deeper than just being part-wolf.