Christian's P.O.V.-
Coach yelled at us for almost an hour before we had to start getting ready for the game. The Chargers had arrived, and their coach was currently arguing with our coach about something stupid. Meanwhile, the rest of us were getting dressed and prepped for the starting whistle. I saw Paul had something like a scarf tied around his bicep; he wore whatever it was super proudly. "Hey, Clayton! Nice pink ribbon you got there!" An elephant teased Paul about it. I looked and realized something. It was the strangest thing; I could have sworn that the scent from the pink cloth he had on was familiar. Very familiar and wonderful… Pink- it smelt the same as its colour. It was faint, just enough for me to barely detect; certainly too faint to put my finger on the exact smell. But whatever it was, it smelt lovely even from here. Lovely, just like her….
That smell was immediately drowned out when Jack entered the room. He didn't smell like he did when he first got here; there was something different about him, something…. odd. It appears that I'm the only one to notice it too; none of the other carnivores even looked his way. Well, I suppose I am the only wolf and therefore have the strongest nose on the team. But Jack stared at me right away the moment I spun my head around. Neither of us were smiling, and my eyebrow raised suspiciously at him.
He must have known that I knew something was wrong since his eyes narrowed onto me. "What's wrong, Christian?" He had the gall to inquire. To show emphasis, I stood up, facing him head on in a dominant position; it's one I don't like to use around herbivores but he's a tiger. I think he knew that's why I was suspicious of him. "What's your problem, Grey? You're acting weirder than usual." "What's my problem? Why do you smell so…..?" That's when it hit me. That scent- that's something I've smelt before, recently actually. I know that smell…. and that's when I discovered the monster Jack truly was.
The offensive lineman had had enough. He shoved passed me, making his way towards the bathroom. I followed right on his heels, getting ready to demand some answers. The door slammed behind us, and I was angered that I could hear my heartbeat inside my ears. Who gives a damn if he's stronger than me? I wanted answers, and I wanted them now! Jack spun around to glare at me, also shifting into a predatory stance. "Seriously, dude? What's your deal? Why can't you just leave me alone?" "What's my problem?" My hand balled into a super tight fist. I took a threatening step towards him, literally not afraid of him at all. All the rage pushed out any fear I might have had.
"How dare you?" "What?" "How dare you bring that on school grounds? What the hell is the matter with you?!" Jack watched me for a very long minute before sinisterly chuckling. "No use hiding it from you, I see; not with that nose of yours. So you know what this is, do you?" I did… deep down I did, but I still prayed I was mistaken. My heart dropped out of my chest and onto the floor when he pulled up a vial from his back pocket. It was tiny but I could still see the thick, dark red inside. It only made matters worse when his smirk slithered wider in delight. He was clearly happy with himself.
"Beautiful, isn't it? You can try some if you want." "That's….!" I couldn't bear to say it; I didn't want to think it, I didn't want to believe it. "Lamb's blood- the tastiest blood in the animal kingdom," Jack proclaimed with vile. Now, I don't know what happened to me next; that was another experience I'd never had before in my life. My spine straightened up by itself, my arms fell down at my side. The world around me morphed to this thick, breathless red which was suffocating me. I swore my eyes were so concentrated that I thought they had visibly turned pure crimson. This wasn't lust or hunger I was feeling- oh no. This was different. This was new, this was burning hot….. and this was powerful.
Jack witnessed this transformation in me but didn't let it phase him. While I wasn't scared of him, he wasn't afraid of me either. "What's the big deal? It's not from a student or anything; I didn't even know the guy. A friend got it for me at the black market; thought it might help with tonight's game." Shut up, I don't give a fuck about your reasoning. My jaw clenched harder and harder. I didn't see that asshole just then; no, instead I saw only one figure. And she was standing among a sea of flowers. That could have been her blood….. Someone could have harvested her for her blood.
My brain officially shut off at this thought, letting my body take complete control over my actions. I marched forth without comprehending what I was doing. Then, without forewarning, I lunged at Jack. He gasped as I pinned him up against the wall using both my hands. I snarled in his face, more than ready to claw his eyes out. But he stopped me, grabbing hold my arms. "Wait, hear me out. Unlike you, who's content to live in the shadows, I want to live in the light! I didn't choose to be born this way! I never asked to be an apex predator! But what's wrong with that? It's just a stupid lamb! Why should I deny myself the most delectable food when it's right there for the taking? Consider this some real doping! All the great carnivores do it." Jack finished off by yanking me around and tossing me into the wall. I landed with a thud, still glaring daggers at him. But he shot me a warning look before leaving the bathroom. He left me there, and I was so enraged I thought I might die… The worst part? I hate him so much because I can see a piece of myself in him. The memory of catching the lamb that night flowed unwillingly through my brain like water. I'm a predator too, hard as I try to block it out…
But there's one difference between me and Jack. I will never, ever actively hunt prey again. Never.
The first half of the game was brutal and a blur to me. Gigantic lights kept shining on the field and the crowds were really noisy. Paul and the others seemed to be having a good time, but I found my attention keep shifting back to Jack. To Jack, and how much I wanted to hurt him. To rip that blood away from him before he could drink a drop. I'll skip to the part where shit hit the fan in the second half of the game; that's all I really remember from that match anyway.
Coach yelled at me to make a run, and I had to go passed Jack; it was the closest we'd been to one another since the bathroom. Jack glared at me through his helmet, which I returned. But when I failed to catch the ball and they moved closer, my body had enough. The last thing I saw was Jack tackle one of the other team's larger herbivores. As he stood up, I stepped over to him. I could hear this ringing in my ears, and it got louder and louder. Pissed off… Jack had just enough time to remove his helmet and turn his head towards me. So pissed off. My fist rose up into the air behind me. I can't believe how pissed off I am.
No one noticed right away when I punched Jack square in the face. It was with enough force to send him back a couple of steps, but not knock him over. He wiped off his cheek and looked at me so furiously….. His hands balled up as he brought them up in front of him. "So, this is how you wanna play, is it?" I responded by punching him again; this time harder. Nothing about this was playing- someone had to die for that blood you carry.
The second time, everyone noticed. There was a loud gasp from the stands. "Grey! Hyde! What do you think you are doing?!" Coach demanded from the side lines. Of course we didn't reply, only focusing on each other. I guess I hit Jack so hard that it flew the vial from out of his shirt onto the grass. I ignored it, taking in a deep breath as I walked menacingly in his direction. By now everyone had stopped playing and was watching us with huge, dumbfounded stares. "Ok, Grey. I get it; you're serious about this," he said with zero remorse. This bastard… I proceeded to tackle him to the ground where I prepared to beat the ever-living shit out of him. "I'll never forgive you!" I growled, raising my fist up high.
Each time I hit him, a picture became clearer in my mind. More distinct…. She- she was there. I could see her; I wanted to see her. The lamb's back was turned to me with her head slowly spinning so she could look over her shoulder…. I see her…. I can see her. She's….
I was able to get a few good hits in; the audience shrieking each time I landed a blow. Jack didn't put up with that for long though, throwing me off him much too soon. "Christian! Jack!" "What are you doing?! Stop it!" "What's wrong with them?!" Members from both our and the Chargers team were calling out. "Someone, stop them!" "No, don't get any closer! They're apex carnivores, don't forget!" "Yeah, it's not safe!" Jack and I kept beating the crap out of each other with everyone around us too terrified to intervene. Someone did intervene eventually however, and you can guess who that was.
"Stop it! Stop it! What's wrong with you guys?!" Paul was the only one with the courage to get in between us. "Out of my way, rhino," Jack hissed; he looked like he was ready to kill me now too. "Stop it, Jack! Christian, are you ok?" Paul's head spun to me. I growled, wanting nothing more than continue this; I was not grateful whatsoever for Paul's interruption. I wanted to keep striking him until I was no longer able to move. But it looked like my fighting was done for the night. Paul gave Jack the angriest of glares.
"What's your problem, Hyde?!" "Me?! He attacked me first! If anyone has the issue around here, it's him!" Jack's finger pointed at me accusingly. "Why did you punch Jack, Christian?" I didn't say anything, but I knew Paul would find out soon enough. I simply had to look down… Paul followed my eyes' gaze down to the grass, where he found the bottle. He curiously reached down to pick it up. His expression went from confused, to shocked, to horrified and irate.
"Is this yours?" He asked Jack in a low, dangerous tone. "It's uh… uh… So what if it is?!" Jack stupidly went on the defensive. "What's that?" "Is that blood?" A few players asked, eyeing the vial and gathering around. Jack grinded his teeth together viciously, glaring at Paul and myself. "I asked you a question, Jack. What the hell is this?!" I think Jack could feel the pressure build around him. He tisked, finally yanking his eyes awake. "It's blood, happy?" "Blood? What kind of blood?" Paul just wouldn't let this go, though I understand why; he has herbivore friends too. Jack's eyes met Paul's again- this time with a hint of pride and contempt. "Lamb's blood, if you must know."
Paul's demeanour completely altered, just like mine back in the bathroom. The hand holding the bottle dropped, crushing the container in his palm; the blood dripped out from his fingers onto the ground. He didn't audibly react right away, though his body language said it all. Every muscle, every inch of him stiffened and flexed at the same time; he looked like he doubled in size. His eyes didn't move off Jack- not by a centimetre. And judging by what happened to me when I first saw the blood, I knew what was coming next. Even Jack understood, and for the first time tonight, he looked a little frightened.
No one dared to get in Paul's way when he started to walk steadily towards Jack. His walk became a run halfway through. Jack's foot stepped backwards nervously. Fighting a fellow carnivore- even an apex predator like me- was one thing but fighting a tank like Paul was another. We all knew what was going on once Paul reached him. For the first time in my life, I'd seen an herbivore go in full-on protective mode. "You think we're so weak that you carnivores think can abuse us like that? Let me show you how weak we are!"
I'd heard that getting hit by a rhino- or elephant or hippo for that matter- was akin to being hit by a moving train. I was inclined to believe it too after witnessing the carnage that ensued. The moment Paul's fist collided with Jack's face, the ripple sound effect of his bones breaking echoed through the field. He literally went flying through the air some twenty feet or so. And when he landed, he did not get bad up again.
This set the field and all present- minus the coaches and all other adults- into a frenzy. Teammates began attacking other teammates on both sides. "Damn herbivore!" Some poor fool tried to one up Paul in revenge for Jack; it didn't work. One lion from the Charges even bit Paul on the arm. I tackled him off my friend, but once biting was involved, there was no going back. All the herbivores in the audience made a run for it while some of the observing carnivores joined in. The coaches kept yelling at us to knock it off, but that wasn't happening any time soon. The fighting, particularly between the carnivores and larger herbivores ensued until everyone involved was bloody and battered. The only one ironically not to take part in this massive brawl was Jack, who remained unconscious until the fight was coming to an end. By then I was covered in bite marks and scratches, not that I felt any pain.
No, the thought of her numbed all that.