How can one person have that much bad luck in one day?

Tremors shake your body to the very core, you can barely keep the tears at bay. You wouldn't cry now; no, you couldn't.

Because crying means weakness and weakness means you've given up. Crying means, that you have surrendered yourself to the predator caging you in their arms.

But you haven't surrendered; you haven't given up.

Of course, you couldn't change your body's natural, fearful reaction to finding itself in yet another life-threatening situation but you could sure as hell change your mind's reaction.

Breathe in. Breathe out.

You need a clear head for this, Y/n.

Otherwise, you'll panic.

Panic means death.

You know that your chances are low but you refuse to die again. You don't want to feel the pain again, the agony and the terror. You don't want to fade away again.

You couldn't die again.

You promised Haru, your friend, that you'd be safe.

I don't break promises.

Legoshi's arms are tightly wrapped around your small form; he knows it is you, the human. Your scent is unlike any other, he couldn't forget it even if he tried. He feels your heartbeat and the soft breeze of your breath on every little strand of grey fur on his arm.

This sound...is it mine? Is it yours?

The thumping sound of your heartbeat rushes through his ears.

She feels so...warm and small. She moves around a lot. Her breath is making my arm wet.

Your hair, a mess from the fall, tickles his face. One of your delicate fingernails is digging into his arm but he welcomes the minor sting of pain.

Your body is tense and unbeknownst to the wolf, you're not frozen anymore.

You're ready to run.

Under her clothes....What's...under her soft skin?

Stop! What should I do? What....Should I?

His large hand begins to shift around on your lower body, over your skirt. It trails gently over the fabric, like a child discovering something for the first time, mixed with adult lust and attraction. His hand leaves a trail of warmth and tingling sparks behind.

You're unaware of Legoshi's dark thoughts regarding you.

How satisfying will it feel it my mouth? The warm flesh? My hands....won't stop!

Suddenly, his clawed hand grips your arm in a tight hold, leaving no room to wiggle around and escape.

If I don't figure something out soon, I'll be royally fucked.

Instincts take control for a second and you cannot keep your body from curling in on itself, trying to make you appear even smaller. If you could, you'd disappear.

Would you understand if I told you what happened to me? What I've been through?

You're sure your attacker wouldn't care but if you couldn't escape this wretched fate of yours, then you want that heavy burden off of your chest.

The burden of not belonging in this world and having been abandoned by your old one.

You choke down a sob but you could not refrain your body from flinching. The low growl in his throat freezes you once more, as it shakes your entire body to the core.

And in your core, a small flame ignites.

That's how it should be.

The young wolf snaps his head up, lost in the void of his mind. Alone with his inner beast; the one he knows as his instincts. The instincts to kill and hunt, the ones that differentiate carnivores from herbivores.

In his mind, he sees a dark shadow approach him, forged from total darkness.

You have struggled your entire life....and now...you've reached your limit.

Go away! Stop!

You've suppressed your feelings ever since you were a kid...and you've lived quietly in the darkness, haven't you? Is that sadness you're feeling? Or is it...frustration?

"Stop!" the wolf whimpers desperately. He doesn't want this. Your ears catch the small cry for help.

What's going on here? Why...why hasn't he devoured me yet? Or even bitten or scratched me?

It's neither. You feel joy from the bottom of your heart.

No, stop! Stop!

Look at me!

The shadow being has settled right in front of Legoshi.

Face yourself! Don't look away! I'm growing bigger, can you see?

I won't look! Go away!

You feel the wolf twitch around behind you, rocking your body in sync with his. If you time this right, you could get out of this alive and unscathed.

I know you're ready. The fun part is just starting.

The shadow being, once no smaller than the human, has now grown into a gigantic wolf threatening to suffocate Legoshi in its madness.

All it takes is one bite! You longed for this taste for seventeen years!

Stop! Just end my misery.

And it does because soon enough, the being merges with him. Now, his instincts have fully awakened.

Something is wrong. Something is very, very wrong.

His throat releases a growl that brings new horror into your blood; an icy chill runs down your spine. The wolf reveals his fangs and terror strikes you as they gleam menacingly in the night. You wince once you notice the stinging pain in your arm as his claws dig into your skin.

A drop of your blood drips onto the ground. The sound shatters your eardrums like a tsunami.

Fuck! No....No! No, it cannot end like this! I don't want to die again! I don't want to die!

White noise fills your ears, your head, your mind. You're lost in the void.

You're lost in your mind as the train station invades your view. You know where you are.

You turn to her.

You hear the gunshots.

You feel the pain, the blood in your lungs.

You know the darkness.

The beast raises his jaws, lined with deadly fangs ready to tear through your flesh.

This is it.

You'll be dead in a few seconds now, you know it.

I'm sorry, Haru. It seems like I broke my promise.

Don't forget me...please.

You don't register the wolf's name being called. But you notice him freezing.

You don't feel the pain in your arm as he rips his claws out of it. However, you realize that his hold on you has loosened.

In the blink of an eye, you're running.

You don't remember much else, you just remember running, the echo of the gunshots ringing in your ear and the pain in your chest forcing you to heave and cough as you flee.

You don't look back to see your attacker. You just keep on running.

***

The dorm is dark when you enter. Everyone is asleep and frankly, you're thankful they are. Quietly, you make your way into the bathroom, where the school keeps the first aid kit. The light, a dim white glow that reminds you of unpleasant visits to the hospital, flickers on and wakes a small moth. It flutters around and lands on your head, causing you to lazily glance up.

"Hey there, buddy."

It flies away again, disappearing in the nearest hiding spot. You don't have the energy to really care about the small, harmless insect.

Right now, you have to worry about your bleeding arm.

Your uniform is ruined; it's drenched in your own blood and the stench of iron, cold sweat and fear. You're glad the school provides you with enough to last about two weeks.

The metallic smell lingers in the small bathroom and as you hold it over the sink to wash most of the blood of and to clean it, you finally get a good look at the wound. It's deep and bleeding heavily. Four scratch marks. You're lucky your attacker, a wolf you presume, only got the upper side of your arm.

Or you'd have bled to death by now.

Running a shaking hand through your hair, you sigh.

I'm exhausted. It's only been the second day. Is this...is this what I have to get used to?

You don't remember running home or even entering your dorm building. Honestly, you don't even remember much from the incident, other than the fear, the blood and the feeling of warm fur around you. You remember the white noise, the static and the memories.

Damnit, you just wanted to forget it all.

Like a child, you wanted to curl up in loving, safe arms and stay there until you felt safe again. Until you felt okay.

You worked quick, disinfecting the wound and bandaging it. When you were finally finished, your limbs burned from exhaustion and your frail human heart did its best to support your heaving body.

Not a second later, you're on the toilet, emptying your stomach of all its contents. You heave and cough until there's nothing left inside of you, knuckles white as you grip the toilet seat.

When...How...How did my life turn into such a shitshow?

The events of the day have taken their toll on you; so much that you cannot suppress the sobs anymore. You cry and the scorching liquid irritates your fragile skin, leaving it red and splotchy. Your back leans against the tiled wall as you hug your knees as tight as you can.

In an attempt to muffle the wails threatening to escape you, you bite your hand.

Your body quivers and shakes in unspoken sadness, grief and longing.

Sadness because you're all alone. Grief because you haven't grieved the loss of your life and loved ones. Longing because you want to go home.

I just want to go home. Please! Please, just let me wake up in the hospital tomorrow, back at home! I want to go home!

A lot has happened in the last three days. You died, got transported to another world, got enrolled into a school full of animals, made a friend, got assaulted by a carnivore-hating deer and almost died again.

What had you done to deserve this? Who had you angered?

What kind of cruel entity would put you through so much shit? Is this hell? Or Purgatory? Is that what it feels like, to suffer for eternity?

You realize too late that the door opens, so when Aisha, the white greyhound, tip toes in, you try your best to hide your tears and sobs. For some dragging, awful moments she just stares at you in silence, whilst you deliberately focus your gaze on the tiled floor.

It's no use to hide my misery....I know she can smell the blood.

"You're crying."

"Yeah, no shit Sherlock," you snap before you can stop yourself, "Sorry...it's been a long day."

"I can tell." Her voice is soft, yet strangely careful and distant, like she's talking to a porcelain doll. Slowly, she comes closer, stopping shortly when you flinch before finally crouching down in front of you. Her snout is in your direct line of sight and for a second, you're reminded of your attacker's snout.

It's okay, Y/n, she won't hurt you. You're safe.

"Why are you crying?" She asks and those four words break the damn. More tears flood your eyes as you whimper, weep and sob even worse than before.

"Shhh, it'll be okay, I've got you," she takes you into her arms and rests her head on yours. Your arms wrap around her waist and hold onto her like a lifeline; she continues to soothe you by rubbing a hand on your back and petting your head.

"Look....I know we don't know each other really well but I'm still worried about you. What happened to you?"

Aisha's eyes grow fierce with concern when she feels your arms around her tighten, but not in an uncomfortable manner. Nonetheless, it worries her, especially with the heavy scent of blood in the air and the bloody bandage around your arm.

"Please don't leave me alone right now," you sob, your shoulders violently shaking with every breath, "I'm not okay. I thought I was, I want to be but I'm not. I'm not okay."

More sobs rock through your small form like an earthquake.

"I'm not okay."

"Don't worry, alright?" The greyhound follows her natural instinct to bury her muzzle in your hair and surprisingly, it comforts you, "I'll stay with you. You might not be okay now but you're going to be. You'll be okay, Y/n."

Minutes pass by, the two girls still hugging each other as the human continues to be rocked by violent sobs.

"Aisha?" the young girl chokes out.

"Yes?"

"Thank you."

And the two of you stay there, until your sobs have silenced. Then, Aisha brings you a set of pyjamas and helps you get settled in your bunk bed. Like a big sister, she stays by your side until you're ready to let go.

Before she fully disappears in her own bed, she hears you whisper one last time.

"Thank you." 

****

Ey yo, it's chapter 6! We got the first major scene out of the way!

I'm sorry if someone thinks I overdid the mental health problem for the MC, but I'm a big sucker for those kinds of things. Literally almost every main character of every book I've ever written has some form of trauma, only now, I'm gotten decent at describing it and writing about it.

I also needed this scene because I wanted to strengthen the bond between Aisha and the reader, mainly because they're roommates, they're likely to be close.

I'm hoping that up until now, my writing made sense and that I haven't written entire nonsense because stuff like that really annoys me.

Alright, I hope you are all in good health and mind!

See you in chapter 7!