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How Not To Become Lunch: 29 - Don’t Leave The Pack
The thumping heartbeat was loud in Jack’s ears, but still managed to be overshadowed by the high-pitched crackling of mucus as the quivering interior of the throat pressed against his head, delighting in his presence. A sudden pressure squeezed his shoulders tight, flowing up over his neck and face and dragging him deeper into the eager gullet, toward the waiting pit of digestive juices below.
*GULP*!
He could feel he was in up to his belly now. He had his wand in his hand, but his predator held his arms firm, and his panicked mind couldn’t even think of a spell to cast, let alone remember the words. He thrashed his legs instinctively, but whether those instincts hoped to strike his predator, or throw them off balance, or even just slow them down, the result was the same: nothing. Nothing but wasted time and energy and another inevitable-
*GULP*!
*guuurgle*
The unmistakable sound of a hungry belly. It was close. Very close. Way too close. Using the tiny bit of breath he still had, he opened his mouth and yelled.
“FIONA!!”
But with no space to form the words, they sounded muffled even to him. The inevitable thought crossed his mind again.
Is this the day it finally happens? If this one finally manages to get me down into their belly, will anyone be able to save me even if they want to? They won’t even be able to find me…
And then Jack heard a sound, distant at first, but quickly rising above the heartbeats of both himself and his predator, and even above all the squelching and gurgling of his predator’s innards: a harsh, abrupt, threatening, repetitive cry.
*RUFF* *RUFF* *RUFF* *RUFF*!!
He felt the body around him tense up, not for another gulp, but out of fear. He heard words, furious and snarled; nothing that he could make out, but he recognized the voice, and it sent a wave of relief through him about as strong as any swallow.
There was a tense moment of silence between the three of them as his predator considered their next move, but another few choice words and a rather ferocious snarl seemed to make up their mind.
*SQUELCH*
The fleshy walls pressed in on Jack once again, but differently this time. He felt himself begin to slide upward instead of down; the stomach somewhere below receding away from him. He continued to flail whatever parts of his body he could move, as if his instincts thought it might somehow get him out faster.
And then suddenly he was falling. And then suddenly he was still.
Coughing, he opened his eyes, and through the slime he caught a glimpse of the neko he’d just been inside of, as they closed their mouth and turned to run. The hall lights above him seemed blinding and strangely out of place, almost like a dream. He brought up an arm to wipe his face, and only then became aware of the arms that were holding him up, one beneath his back and the other beneath his knees. Fiona’s head peeked into view.
“Geeze, another close one. You still with me, Jack?”
The sound of her voice helped bring him back to his senses. The strange stupor that being swallowed alive put him in was somewhat familiar to him at this point. He could almost say he was used to it. But it still managed to grip him every time.
He tried to sit up in her arms, so she lowered him gently to the floor where he could move freely. He shook his head lightly, unintentionally sending drops of warm mucus and saliva spattering out onto the floor.
“Ugh…” he grunted, looking himself over and regaining his bearings. “I am definitely not a cat person.”
Fiona smiled wryly.
“No, you’re a human, remember? The cat person was the one who just tried to eat you.”
He looked up at her.
“Ha ha ha, very funny,” he replied sarcastically, but with a genuine- if weary- smile of his own. He flicked a bit of slime from his hand teasingly in her direction.
She gave the tiniest flinch of disgust, and considered objecting, but quickly realized that she was already pretty well covered in the stuff just from holding him. Not that it really mattered. Sure, it was a pain to clean out of her fur and smelled pretty bad, but she was used to it by now, and it was a small price to pay for keeping her best friend in one- undissolved- piece.
She reached out her hand in a familiar gesture and smiled. Jack smiled back and took hold.
“Thanks,” he said, pulling himself back to his feet- only to fall back on his butt a moment later, when she suddenly looked off in another direction and her hand abruptly let go of his. “Fi! What the-!?”
“Oh! Sorry Jack!” she apologized, clearly flustered. She quickly reached out and hauled him up, as if helping him was now something she really just wanted to be over with. She looked back in the other direction again, and Jack followed her gaze.
Oh, Arthur… he thought, and that strange mix of friendly understanding and uncertain loathing crept up from inside him.
Oh, Arthur! she thought with a potent mixture of excitement and dread, He’s coming right up to me and I’m covered in drool and smell like cat vomit! She quickly brushed off what she could- some of which ended up landing back on Jack.
“Hello, Fiona,” said the other werewolf with a handsome smile. “How was your weekend?”
“Oh, hi Arthur,” she replied, smiling a bit too wide. “It was nice. Had a visit from my grandma, spent a sunny afternoon in the park.”
Your grandma’s visit was ‘nice’? Jack couldn’t help thinking.
“Had a good meal, by the look of it,” Arthur added approvingly.
“Yeah,” she said with a hint of surprise, as butterflies exploded in her belly and her tail fluttered happily. There was hardly anything left on her of that jogger girl from yesterday, just a slight bit of bloating from the final remnants which had yet to be absorbed or disposed of. Just how close of an eye had he been keeping on her figure? Fiona reveled in the thought.
“What’s your next class?” Arthur asked, tactfully filling her silence.
“Oh, um, Science,” she answered.
“Would you like some company on your way?”
“Sure-! *cough* That would be nice.”
Arthur just held his welcoming smile and motioned politely for her to follow before starting to walk himself. Fiona was just about to take a step when she remembered-
“Oh, Jack! You’re all good, right?” she asked, clearly eager to keep up with Arthur.
“Yeah, I’m fine,” he said, putting on a smile. “See ya around.”
She smiled back at him and then trotted off quickly after the other werewolf, her tail wagging happily as she went. Jack watched her go.
Hopefully she remembers to stop at the bathroom to wash up first, otherwise she’ll spend the whole period smelling like a bad science experiment, he thought with a wry smile, but it quickly faded. Guess I probably won’t be seeing too much of her today. Well, at least Ozzy will be around to help me through magic class.
…
“Fiona! Help! I can’t find Ozzy anywhere! He wasn’t in magic class! Have you seen him!? Did any other preds in your class have full bellies?!”
Fiona was so startled she nearly yelped. She’d just finished sharing advanced predator class and then PE with Arthur, only splitting up to go to their respective locker rooms. Walking through the halls, her mind was so focused on the thought of him waiting for her at their table that it took a few seconds to collect herself enough to reply.
“Oh! Um, yeah- no- I don’t think I’ve seen him. Maybe he’s already in the lunchroom?” That’s definitely where she wanted to be.
“But he wasn’t in magic class!” Jack repeated. “Do you think he got eaten?”
Fiona felt a twang of sympathy. A human going missing did usually mean they’d taken a trip to a predator’s belly. Ozzy had been nice, he’d helped keep Jack safe, and she was sad to think Jack might’ve lost a friend. She did owe that kid a favor; maybe she should sniff around for him? But if he’d been gone for that long, the odds of him still being, well, undigested, weren’t very high, and Arthur was waiting for her.
“Um… Ozzy w- is a pretty good mage. I’m sure he’d give any predator a good fight. Maybe he just ended up in the nurse’s office?”
Jack thought for a moment. It was uncommon. Usually, humans either made it out in one piece, or came out in several later. But it did happen sometimes that a human got away with an injury. And if they could make it to the nurse, they were usually safe. She was serious about predator education and insisted that pred students work to catch their prey; she didn’t tolerate anyone getting an easy meal in her office.
“So let’s go in and get some lunch,” Fiona continued before Jack could finish thinking. “He’s probably already there.”
“…Yeah, alright…” Jack conceded.
Fiona smiled, partially to show genuine encouragement, and partially because she could finally continue walking toward Arthur.
Jack followed her through the doors. He looked over to their usual table, hoping despite the unlikely odds that he’d see Ozzy, but the boy wasn’t there, nor could Jack see him anywhere else in the room. He did, however, see a number of preds with very large bellies.
The two of them walked into the lunch line together, waited through the queue, and got their respective meals. Still no sign of Ozzy. He turned toward their usual table and hesitated.
“Don’t worry, I’ll keep an eye on you from the advanced pred table,” Fiona said, seeming to assume that he was worried about his safety without Ozzy around.
Jack nodded with a frown. It wasn’t really his safety he was worried about. Though, in retrospect, it probably should have been.
The two parted ways. Fiona’s attention instantly fixed on Arthur, already sitting at her table, now with nothing to distract her. Jack’s mind stayed on Ozzy. They both sat down. Fiona took to chatting between large chomps and gulps of her meal. Jack sat in silence, picking at his lunch slowly without much of an appetite.
If anyone could make it to the nurse it’d be Ozzy, he’s a great-
Jack’s thought was interrupted by a not-too-distant scream. He glanced over and saw a neko a few tables down, the same one who’d had him in their gullet a few minutes ago by the look of it. Except this time they were holding a different boy. As the furry, feline jaws opened wide, it seemed clear that the cat definitely had a heart set on a human meal.
As the boy’s head was engulfed in hungry, red flesh, he dropped his wand; a mage defeated.
Jack stood up. He couldn’t just sit there worrying about Ozzy and doing nothing. He glanced toward Fiona and saw her laughing. She seemed so happy there, too happy to disturb. He looked away, toward the doors, and started walking.
To his credit, his bravery lasted him all the way through the first hallway. It took him that long before he realized what an impulsive move he’d just made, and started clutching his wand at the ready.
Fiona was probably right, he thought, trying to reassure himself. I’ll just pop by the nurse’s office to make sure he’s doing okay, and then straight back to the lunchroom where she can see me.
Another few steps through the mostly empty halls brought increasing anxiety.
Everyone’s either in class or at lunch by now anyway, there probably aren’t even any preds around.
Of course, it only took his paranoid mind a few moments to tear down that comforting idea.
…On second thought, maybe I’ll fake a stomachache or something and stay with the nurse, probably safer than trying to make it back to the lunchroom, I wasn’t really that hungry anyway.
He started to turn the corner but then froze as he caught sight of an inhuman figure. He recognized the predator quickly as a frog girl, standing a short distance down the hall, with her face buried in her locker.
After a tense moment, Jack let out his breath.
Oh, it’s just Lily, he thought with relief. She’d nearly eaten him a couple times now, which you’d think would make him more afraid of her, but she and Fiona were friends, and Fiona had made Jack’s position quite clear to the amphibian over the past few days. Not that she’d have any qualms about gurgling him, but she didn’t seem the type to put a meal over a friendship.
Maybe she’s seen Ozzy? Jack thought. I might as well ask; not like I’ll be able to sneak by her anyway.
He continued around the corner and approached her, putting on a smile to try and cover his nerves. He opened his mouth to speak, but just as he did, Lily closed her locker, revealing her face. The frog girl looked his way, her amphibian nose twitching.
Jack’s blood ran cold.
That’s not Lily…