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How Not To Become Lunch: 97 - Don’t Be On The Wrong Side
*RIIIIING*
Jack let out a breath he hadn’t even fully realized he was holding. Mrs. Caster’s class was always stressful, especially the ones where she ended up eyeing him for a delicious lunch- which was often. But it was even more stressful when he also had other things on his mind distracting him.
Things like a several-hundred-pound teenage bear who had promised to personally take him off the menu for good if he didn’t somehow figure out how to cheer up an angry frog girlfriend. Seriously, how was he supposed to know how to do that!? He didn’t even know Lily that well.
I need advice. Maybe I should ask Fiona when she gets here? But the idea instantly spiked his nerves. He couldn’t explain the situation to her, not with the threat of Grizz’s angry stomach ready to churn him into paste for telling his secret. So what was he supposed to say? ‘Hey, if I had a pred girl who was upset with me, what should I do?’. Nope. She’d instantly start worrying and prying. ‘If I was dating a girl who was a predator, how would I-’ No, no way. That could very easily come across in some… unintended ways…
His mind drifted momentarily to the memory: out on the side of the road, dripping with hot, acidic slime, arms wrapped around each other as they said those words…
He realized after a moment that he’d lost his train of thought, and rather than start it over for the tenth time, he just sighed again and finally stood up from his desk.
“Jack.”
The marked boy flinched, but quickly caught his cool.
“Arin, hey,” he greeted, mildly apologetic for not having noticed his classmate sooner.
“Over here,” the other boy urged, terse as always. But they’d gotten to know each other well enough, so Jack followed without much thought, over to a corner of the emptying classroom, like he’d seen other mages do sometimes when they wanted to chat. It was instinctively safer from passing predators; walls on two sides.
Not quite as safe as invisibly leaving the room in a hurry, though, which is what Arin had always been so quick to do before. Jack smiled a touch despite himself. Was the anxious mage finally calming down a bit? Or just that excited for them to talk some more? Either way, it was nice to see.
“What’s up?”
“We need to talk,” Arin began, a bit more seriously than expected, “about Fiona Lupella.”
“Oh.” Jack had been thrown off for a moment by the tone, but now he instantly understood. He quickly gathered his thoughts; this was far from the first time he’d had to give this explanation. “Okay, so, just getting this out of the way: Fiona is actually my best friend.”
The blunt statement triggered an instant shift in Arin’s expression, but that had been so expected on Jack’s part that he hardly even paused and just continued talking.
“I know that probably sounds crazy or something because I’m a marked human and she’s a werewolf, but it’s true. She’s actually really nice: she looks out for me while I’m here at school, we have sleepovers at each other’s places. We’ve been friends since we were little kids, actually, and…”
Jack continued his explanation, with a heartfelt tone and small smile gradually growing as he went on, almost forgetting his troubles for a moment. Meanwhile, Arin’s face slowly shifted through various colors of shock and disbelief. His brows furrowed, then shot up, then repeated several times; mouth drifting open and closed as if he almost had something to say, only for his classmate’s next statement to steal the words from his throat.
The marked boy did his best to be thorough and honest, though without necessarily going into the more touchy portions of their misadventures. The incredulous expression of his peer, though something Jack had gotten used to, only motivated him to explain further. Yes, it was strange, but the two of them really were friends! And that was the truth! No matter how impossible it sounded.
“…And, yes, she is still a predator, she does still hunt other humans. But that’s just part of who she is, you know? And she-”
Something caught both boys’ attention: a sudden rush of fur in their peripheries which instinctively pulled their gazes toward the classroom door.
“Oh, that’s her actually,” Jack said, smiling wider. “Perfect. I was about to say she promised not to hunt any of my friends, so I could introduce you to her and you’d be a little…”
But before he could finish his sentence, he heard the hasty muttering of an incantation, and by the time he turned back to his classmate, Arin was nowhere to be seen.
“…safer…” Jack frowned.
“Oh, good,” Fiona breathed, panting lightly as she rushed into the room. She’d clearly been running, though whether that had just been in her recent P.E. or also on the way over was hard to say. “I was starting to get worried. I tried to find you after my science class but you weren’t there. Then Grizz had your scent on him with that big belly in pred class and I almost lost it before I realized it wasn’t you. He told me you were fine, but then Mr. Gold took us to the hunting grounds and I couldn’t get back in time to check on you before next period, and-”
“Hey, hey, Fi, it’s fine, I’m okay,” Jack soothed, reaching out and putting a hand on her shoulder. She let out another big breath and reached up to put her hand on his. Her belly gave a passing grumble- it was lunch time now, after all- but they both ignored it. She didn’t quite smile, but she seemed less stressed.
“Um, who was that guy you were talking to?” she asked, glancing around. She’d seen the boy disappear in a blink and knew what that meant.
“He was…” Jack faltered, a bit disappointed, “…someone from my magic class. I was gonna offer to introduce him to you.” He noticed Fiona half-intentionally sniffing at the air, canine nose twitching. “Think you’ve got his scent at least?” the marked boy asked.
“Not sure,” replied the werewolf. “Lots of humans were just here, don’t really know which one is his.”
*sigh* “Oh well.” But Jack noticed his friend’s frown deepening. “Don’t worry, it’s fine,” he assured.
“No, it’s not that, it’s…” But this time it was her turn to falter. “Can we walk and talk? Invisible mages sort of make me uncomfortable.”
“Oh, um, sure.” With no sign of Arin anywhere left in the room, Jack had assumed his classmate had bolted with silenced speed toward the door the instant the path was clear. But now that she mentioned it, he could just as easily still be there with no trace, right? That was the point of concealment magic, after all. Jack still thought that was pretty unlikely, but considering Fiona regularly went up against advanced mages in her pred class, he could kind of understand why the possibility might be troubling.
So he let her lead the way, back out into the halls and into the mass of students flowing toward the cafeteria. As they fell in line, keeping close to one another for safety, she took another breath and spoke softly under the dull roar of chatter.
“…Ozzy came to talk to me.”
“He did!?” Jack exclaimed with surprise. Last he’d heard, he didn’t think the once-friendly mage would even willingly share a room with the werewolf, let alone a conversation. He was immediately a bit hopeful, but something in his friend’s eyes also kept him a bit apprehensive.
“Yeah, he, um, wants me to do something for him… Something to help make up for… you know.”
Both of Jack’s conflicting feelings intensified, along with a flurry of embers from his own memories of that day. Ozzy had been even more upset. What would he be asking for that might measure up to that? What would make Fiona seem so uneasy? The marked boy listened intently, gaze fixed.
“He wants me to eat one of his classmates. A naga, named Viper,” she finally revealed.
“Oh,” replied Jack calmly, if a little confused. “What’s so bad about that?”
“Good afternoon, Fiona, Jack,” came a new voice, injecting politely into the conversation. Both turned to see Sarabeth, quickly approaching from behind with a composed stride and a mannerly wave. It seemed she’d just noticed them and was attempting to catch up. (Certainly seemed that way, at least.)
“Oh, hello, Sarabeth,” Jack greeted quickly.
“Hey,” went the less-composed werewolf.
“I do apologize, but I of course simply could not help overhearing some of your discussion on my arrival. However, I do believe I must have misheard some detail. Young Ozma has requested that you do what?”
Fiona seemed even more uncomfortable now that Sarabeth was listening, but still, she repeated herself.
“Eat a naga from his science class.”
“…I see…” The vampire’s expression darkened just a shade, and Jack thought he caught a hint of something like fury dance through a corner of her eye, though she remained so composed that he couldn’t be sure. “…Please, pardon me for just a moment.”
Her face calmly turned away, and then in the literal blink of an eye, she was basically, suddenly gone. Jack turned his head, just as a scream filled his ears, and found her three steps away: fangs sunk deep into the neck of a passing human boy.
“Aaaaah! N-No!”
Ozma has done WHAT!? Sarabeth screamed in her head as she buried her bite further into her prey’s delectable skin. I provide the courtesy of my advice and THIS is how he chooses to act!? Putting my dear Fiona up to such a detestable task!
She felt her meal quickly shrinking away in her grasp, shrieks growing shriller and yet softer as the human’s size was siphoned away. Baring her teeth and flexing her fangs, she let her fury flow and express through the guise of her hunting instincts, ruthlessly devouring the human’s stature until said stature was fitting for a proper devouring.
Sarabeth glared down at the substitute schoolboy while she was still turned away from her friends with her face out of their sight. Then she quickly composed herself and turned to face them once more. Returning the few steps to where they stood, she casually lifted the tiny teen above her head as she tastefully tilted up her chin and parted her jaws.
“No! No no wait! Don’t-!”
*glrk* … *sigh*
The vampire let out a mildly agitated breath, ebbing into calm as it faded.
Jack gave a small swallow himself, of the nervous kind, as he watched the little lump disappear down the girl’s neck. No matter how many times he saw it happen…
“Apologies, I was feeling particularly peckish,” Sarabeth said pointedly, gesturing for the trio to resume walking. “Please, do continue, Fiona. Tell us of Ozma’s ridiculous request. How exactly did he go about demanding you demean and endanger yourself for his own satisfaction? I assume he brought up our departed Zachary’s end, I’m sure.”
“Sarabeth, come on,” Fiona finally responded, “it wasn’t like that.”
The vampire’s belly grumbled as the meal within stirred, but the girl herself fell silent for the moment, replying instead with only a pointed look and a raised eyebrow.
“Okay, yes, he did bring up Zach, and he could have been nicer about it, but… I get it. I think… sometimes it takes doing something hard and… really uncomfortable to prove that you actually do care. Especially after making it seem like you don’t…”
She half-glanced at Jack. He frowned. Was she still trying to prove herself to him? Did she still worry that he might doubt her? That he’d think she didn’t really care about him unless she made nice with his friend too?
No, he realized, just before he opened his mouth. That’s not what she meant at all; he caught the truth in her eye. She was remembering that moment, with her very best friend crammed inside her stomach, when she’d somehow managed to turn it all around despite everything she’d done. She was trying to show Ozzy now what she’d shown Jack then- just very much not in the literal, physical sense.
“…So you accepted his request, then,” Sarabeth replied, a bit more softly. She didn’t necessarily agree- personally she thought that Fiona’s continued insistence on protecting the boy’s life was more than fair compensation- but she would respect Fiona’s judgment.
The werewolf gave an uncomfortable nod.
“…Do you… know this Viper guy?” Jack asked softly, wading tentatively through the unease in the air.
“No,” Fiona answered unhappily. “I’m not even sure what he looks like.”
“I have seen him,” Sarabeth offered, in the same uneasy tone. She recalled the loutish naga Ozzy had been glaring at the other day. “He shares our lunch period. I could point him out to you. Discretely, of course.”
Wow, preds really don’t like the idea of eating each other, huh… Jack pondered. Of course he already ‘knew’ that, but really seeing his friends’ reactions was something else. He could remember how ‘unhappy’ Sarabeth had been when she’d saved him from that hyena… I guess it’s not really that different from humans, he figured. After all, the idea of having another human in his own belly wasn’t exactly pleasant; a feeling he was sure he shared with most of his kind, barring a subset of mage preds. And on that subject, those mage preds who were known to go after other humans were usually given a pretty wide social berth too.
“Thank you, Sarabeth,” Fiona replied, clearly appreciative of more than just the information. She’d been a little worried when the vampire had first overheard the topic…
“I can understand and appreciate the circumstances,” the other predator replied. “It would require far more than this to impeach your character in my eyes.”
“Yeah, we have your back,” Jack added. He saw Fiona’s frown shrink a bit, and felt better for it. Better, but not good. Now if only I could figure out how to get some help with- “Wha-!?”
Completely out of nowhere, the marked boy felt his balance fail. One moment he’d been walking, the next he was tripping, threatening to tumble forward into the flow of other students.
Naturally, though, by the time he’d started moving his own legs to try and catch himself, the werewolf at his side already had her claws around him. Though not in the way an unfamiliar bystander might expect.
Fiona’s instincts to pounce on a stumbling human and to look out for her friend worked in tandem. She had a firm hold on him by the time he was only an arm’s length away, and she was already putting him right again by the time he fully realized he’d been about to fall.
Jack cleared his throat uncomfortably. “Um, whoa, sorry,” he muttered, embarrassed and slightly confused. He glanced down by his feet but saw nothing that would trip him up. “Um, thanks.”
“Don’t worry. You’ve got my back, I’ve got yours, right?” Fiona replied.
Jack was a little unnerved that he’d been clumsy enough to somehow stumble over nothing- that was not the kind of thing a human in high school usually let happen- but he decided to shrug it off. He was probably just distracted worrying about Grizz. Yeah, that was it.
Definitely.
…
…Friends? …Friends… They… they really are friends… The fact had been sinking in for Arin slowly as the minutes passed. Every new surge of denial was crushed by the memory of the words, still fresh in his mind, or even more so by the sight right before his invisible eyes.
Jack Eten, the Cafeteria Hero, walking shoulder to shoulder with a predator. Friends.
He’d only barely come to accept it, and then came the vampire too! All three of them just… walking together, talking as if it were no big deal. He’d nearly flinched and lost his concentration when she’d suddenly darted out and snatched some poor kid right out of the crowd.
But Jack… Jack had hardly seemed to mind. Another human, shrunken and devoured right before his eyes, right there in front of him, and he just… went with it. Just kept up the conversation, even while the predator’s stomach began to churn and work over the living student within.
Arin had come to admire the marked boy for his bravery, but this…
You… How…
He felt the grip on his wand tighten, felt his brow twitch as his face contorted into a glare.
How can you be friends with a predator?! How can you just walk down the hall with- They devour us without a second thought! That vampire is digesting another human right now! And you…
He wasn’t close enough to hear them, not over the roar of the halls, but he could see their faces- or at least a few glimpses when they turned their heads. He saw the werewolf frowning, and then Jack said something and he saw her brighten up a bit.
Jack was… consoling her? Encouraging her?
He… he’s on their side?
He looked so… calm, next to her. So relaxed.
You can’t… You can’t just let your guard down around a predator and be fine. You can’t survive like that! It’s not possible! It’s not fair! You can’t! I’ll show you!
He didn’t give it more thought than that. He simply aimed his wand with the precision of a practiced spellcaster, and quietly uttered the incantation through invisible lips.
From his distance, in the din of the crowd, he barely even heard Jack’s exclamation as the marked boy lost his footing. It was the perfect way to inconspicuously shatter that false pretense of security and pull those predatory ‘friends’ from their social facades.
So Arin was quite surprised when he hardly even saw Jack stumble; the marked boy not even catching himself, but being caught by the wolf!? The stunned mage froze still for a moment, just enough time for his instincts to scream at him to move again, so no one bumped into his invisible form.
He opened his mouth to mutter, but managed to keep himself quiet, voicing the words only in his mind.
You can’t just… You can’t.