"So why did you do it?"

Haru's voice snaps me from my thoughts, which mainly consisted of how I would be avoiding all kinds of confrontation when finally arriving back at my dorm.

"Huh? What do you mean?"

"You know what I mean. Why did you take the fall for me? You could've easily avoided it."

You can hear the sadness in her usually chipper voice, the little edge that people use when they're expecting you to lie or when they think they've got you backed into a corner. Her tone of voice was familiar to you and reminded you of the time one of your friends, or more so acquaintances, asked you if you were fooling around with her boyfriend. Although you truly weren't involved with him, she chose to end all contact with you, not that it necessarily bothered you. People tend to stay away from you for a multitude of reasons. That's just how society works.

"So? Are you going to answer?"

"Oh- What? Sorry, I must've spaced out again," you apologize, "Well, I.... I don't really know why I did it. Before, I told you that I just have a habit of getting myself into those kinds of situations and that's true, there's some sort of instinct in me that wants to protect others. A-And I like you, I mean as a friend, you're pretty chill to be around because you don't look at me like I'm some sort of alien."

You pause and let the silence settle between the two of you, listening to Haru's shaking breaths. Then you continue, your voice softer than before.

"You're nice.... And I don't have much experience with nice people or friends for that matter. I don't have much luck when it comes to...getting close to people. So I wanted to protect you against those bullies and take the hit because that's what friends do."

Man, this is only a platonic confession and I'm still sweating buckets! This is hard as hell!

Haru stays silent for a while longer, leaving you to dwell in the awkwardness of the whole situation. You pick up on the sound of her uniform rustling, as if she's gripping it as some sort of support. Her breathing is still uneven and quivering and a part of you wants to leave the bathroom stall and check up on her, despite only being in your underwear and a tank top.

"Haru? Are you okay?"

"Why?" The small rabbit asks in a quiet voice, "Why do you care? We've only met today and you've seen how everyone avoids me. Why would you willingly be around me and knowingly put yourself in harm's way like that? I'm just a dwarf rabbit....I'm not worth that much trouble, Y/N."

For a moment, you're unsure of what to say. Non-existent social skills, a very mundane and introverted lifestyle and the habit of ignoring and suppressing your emotions are not great circumstances when you need to comfort someone. But you knew a part of you could relate to her more than you wanted to admit.

This small rabbit....her and I are so alike in a way. Only that I distanced myself from everything around me but she stayed within the chaos. She kept on swimming whilst I let myself drown.

"You're worth it for me, Haru." You say eventually.

"You're right, we've only known each other for a few hours but that's enough for me. You're worth the trouble Haru and I will not leave you alone until you get that terrible mind-set out of your head. Okay?"

The small rabbit giggles quietly and you can imagine her smiling softly to herself as she usually does. "Y/n, do you know why these girls were bullying me?"

"Not really but from what I know now, you're a little more of the promiscuous type of girl....which isn't a bad thing, it's your body. And from what I gathered, that harlequin rabbit's boyfriend came onto you."

She sighs and you pick at your nails as your ability to sit still whilst waiting for your clothes to dry slowly deteriorates.

"All the guys take one look at me and tell me they want to protect me and be by my side, like annoying pests. When they realize their fantasy was wrong, they take what they want and just run away."

The lack of emotion in her voice tells you enough to know how hurt she really is by that. Knowing that someone will only be around you because they think you are a certain way, only to abandon you when they realize they were wrong. No wonder she'd continue to fool around with those guys if that's basically the only way she'd feel valued and acknowledged.

"I've been living my life as a plaything for all kinds of guys. Well, it doesn't really matter does it?"

Of course it does, Haru. You matter.

"It does, Haru. I'm not going to stop you from being involved with others if you genuinely want that but... but it's hurting you, even if you don't want to admit it. This is your life and you shouldn't be living it to appease other people, nor should you feel the pain for someone else's stupid fantasies."

You stand up and lean against the door, hoping that it would somehow make her understand you behind all of those walls she build up.

"I think you should ask yourself what you really want, Haru. If it's sleeping around and having that sort of fun, then I'll support you. If it's suddenly becoming a nun and pledging abstinence, then I'll support you. If it makes you happy and you're not hurting other people, I'll have your back, okay? But I won't support you giving yourself away if it hurts you the way it does, just because you think that is the only way others will value you as a person."

Whilst Haru is too busy fully comprehending what you just said, you take out your phone and look at the time. Running a hand through your hair, you sigh tiredly as you realize way more time has passed in this bathroom than you expected.

"You should head back to your dorm, Haru. It'll be dark soon and my uniform hasn't fully dried yet so I'll be stuck here for a little longer. No offense but with resent events, it's safer for me to be outside in the dark than it would be for you."

You hear her start to protest but you interrupt her with a friendly giggle," Relax, I'll be fine, I can handle myself fairly well. I'm not stupid. Besides, your dorm is closer than mine, so even if we walked back together, one of us would be alone. Might as well make sure one of us is safe, you know?"

When you don't hear her respond or move, you playfully poke your head out of the door and give her a delighted smile. It only grows when Haru herself starts to smile.

"Really, you don't have to worry about me. I'll meet you tomorrow by the cafeteria after school and then you can show me the gardening club. How does that sound to you?"

The dwarf rabbit's eyes gleam in surprise and excitement as she eagerly nods.

"Just promise me that you'll be careful, okay Y/n?" she gently pets you on the head, which is possible because you're bent down so that only your head pokes out the door and nothing else.

"I promise."

Then she leaves and you're alone with your thoughts.

Gently, you close the door again and check your uniform.

By that rate, I'll be here till midnight. Man, what I wouldn't give for a blow-dryer right now.

There's no mirror in the stall but you don't need one. Curiously, you glance down at your chest and check under your tank top.

There they are.

Two bullet wound scars decorate your chest, around the area of your heart. One is directly on the edge of your bra, barely hidden by the fabric. The second one is located beneath your heart, exactly where your left lung would be.

You shudder as you remember the feeling of immense pain that rushed through your body as the bullets made contact with your flesh, tearing through muscle and invading your body. It had been quick, yes, but in your head, it seemed like you had taken an eternity to die.

The irritated tissue is redder than your s/c skin and rough to the touch. An ounce of shame settles inside of your heart; how would you ever explain them if such a situation occurred?

Oh yeah, I just got shot and died and got transported to another world, no biggie. Just your usual taco Tuesday, am I right?

"What am I even doing here?"

You have a habit of voicing your thoughts; it makes them appear more real to you and easier to analyze.

Sure, you feel good knowing that you have a chance at friendship with Haru, something you basically avoided like the plague after too many failed attempts back in your old life. But at what cost?

You wouldn't ever see your family again. You're completely and utterly alone in this world. Hell, even your chances of love are dangerously low, ignoring the fact that you are a mess at flirting and have the romance skills of a tarantula. The possibility of meeting another human are low as it is, meeting one that you could fall in love with are basically non-existent.

Even if you would lay down your morals and consider dating an animal, would any of them even find you attractive or desirable? Even apes have standards for goodness' sake. Not to mention that there's a serious case of segregation in this world; society expects you to mate with your own species only, even though a hybrid child would be biologically possible and would have no biological disabilities. Even if two different animals decide to just date and not procreate, society shuns them for their love, even if they're not harming anyone.

In a way, this world is still stuck in one of the darkest eras of your own. The different species are akin to one's social status, the elite was supposed to only mingle with each other and so on, whilst carnivores and herbivores seemed to resemble mankind's races. Though they have bloodthirsty instincts thrown into the mix, the way carnivores are treated is very similar to the way people of any colour other than white were treated back then and still are to this day.

You remember the protests happening before you died, the final breaking point of the black community in the United States of America. The murder of George Floyd had been the grenade to ignite the explosion against police brutality. And as no surprise to anyone, the police fought back with even more police brutality, even at peaceful protests, fatally injuring many innocent people and even throwing teargas at children.

Unfortunately, you would never see the end of those protests but you hoped that the violence would end and people would finally realize that everyone is equal, regardless of skin colour, gender or sexuality.

Everyone bleeds the same blood.

Your actions define you, nothing else. Not your background, not your grades. Only your actions mattered at the end of the day.

And you hoped at least someone would remember you for your one act of bravery.

***

After what felt like hours, your uniform was finally dried. Pulling it over your head, you open the door and leave. When you make it outside, goose bumps erupt on your skin as you're engulfed by the cold and fresh night air. The stars shine brightly against the midnight blue sky and the full moon glows peacefully above the clouds.

"Well, time to go back to the dorm and catch some sleep. Hopefully I won't wake up to four pairs of eyes on me again."

Or a deer holding a gun to my head for not joining the drama club.

You chuckle quietly at your own thoughts.

Bambi the sequel: Bambi strikes back, now in cinemas near you.

You continue to walk through the night, passing by a certain fountain as your thoughts stray about in your head. Like always, something's on fire, someone is screaming and there's a giant dog with laser beam eyes causing havoc in your mind.

Humming happily, your footsteps and the rushing of water are the only things you can hear.

Then, all of a sudden, you freeze.

Alarm bells go off in your head, screaming at you to run.

Fuck.

Legoshi really regretted agreeing to Louis to guard the back entrance. His thoughts are running at a thousand miles per hour as he paces back and forth on the porch.

If we get caught, drama club's gonna get shut down and then I'd get ... suspended. Hmm... C'mon guys, hurry up! Security's been patrolling a lot ever since the incident.

Suddenly, he hears rustling in the bushes and flinches, his ears perking up as his gaze wanders across the area. Within the dim yellow glow of the lanterns, the blue gleam of the fountain stands out like an ominous ghost. The wind passes through his ears, only enhancing the creepy atmosphere.

Yet, he sees nothing.

Until he notices a small grasshopper.

Immediately, Legoshi calms down and he crouches down to the bug, reaching out to the small insect.

"Hey there little guy, what are you doing out here? Huh, that's what I should be asking myself. "

Feeling that the wolf doesn't mean any harm, the grasshopper climbs onto Legoshi's hand and enjoys finally being taller than the other insects. He'd have to tell his grasshopper friends about it when he got home. The grey wolf on the other hand, is similar to a child in a way; completely entranced by the small bug, who isn't afraid of him like basically every other animal in CHerryton Academy, safe for a couple exceptions.

Then, he smells it. That heavenly scent.

Hmm?

It calls to him, beckons him to follow it and find its source.

Legoshi's gaze follows the scent and he is sure it comes from the fountain.

He breathes in deeply, inhaling as much as possible, as if it's a drug. Well, to Legoshi, it is. The scent, so pure and delicious, awakens something deep inside of him. A primal urge to follow, to hunt.

An herbivore? No....an omnivore.

It's his instincts.

Like scorching lava it burns through his veins and awakens something so animalistic and primal in him, Legoshi finds it difficult to form a clear thought. His muscles seem to have a mind of their own, tense and ready to lunge. His ears are perked and his eyes search for any sign of his prey in the cold night.

The moon is no longer peaceful but more so a menacing observer in this tragic play.

You curse every god that you knew for setting you up like that again.

Is this some sort of cruel joke? A test to see how good I can fare in this world? To see how many times I can die before mentally breaking?

But you knew it isn't, this isn't a joke. Any second now, you'll have to run for your life. You couldn't stay here, frozen like a fearful bunny just waiting to be eaten. But you couldn't fight either.

A beast had awoken.

And as it lunged at you, like a predator in the night, your body ran faster than you thought possible, to keep you alive.

Even when you realize, that you cannot escape because they're faster than you, built for the hunt, you continue to push yourself to your limits.

When their arms, muscular but lithe and decorated in soft fur, wrap around you and you tumble to the ground, your heart skips a beat. As they cage you in with their body, so much taller than you, with a canine snout right beside your face, your body wants to fight.

It wants to trash around and try everything it could to get away, to keep running.

But you feel the quiver in your legs, the fear in your heart that keeps you frozen in place.

Because you know.

This isn't a fight I can win.

***

WE MADE IT TO CHAPTER 5 FRIENDS! And finally, we reached the first peak, when Legoshi attacks the reader. I got carried away in the middle but I felt like it was needed to use this story, about a manga that targets that topic perfectly, to talk about the discrimination in this world. Especially in consideration to George Floyd, may he rest in peace.

I'm not american but for everyone who is and is attending the protest, I hope everyone stays safe.

I hope the violance ends soon because the sooner the american police gets a redesign, the better. It's like a bad book that you wrote when you were ten and now look back at and think, jesus christ that's illegal!

For example, I once wrote a werewolf story that had a love story between a 15 year old girl and a 3000 year old werewolf man o_o What was wrong with my brain?

Anyways, I hope everyone is okay and healthy.

I hope you enjoyed this chapter and before I forget it, don't be shy to use the comments, I'd happily talk with you guys about this story or just about anything you want really :3

See you in the next chapter!