Cutie & the Beast - Part 2
Nino stood up from the ground and rubbed his eyes a few times. Was it really Kaibutsu Kun who stood in front of him right now? Was he the one who attacked Nino? But, why?
That's it! This must be a dream, then. He must be sleeping in the lecture hall right now. Well, then…
Nino slapped his own face, trying to wake up from this dream. He felt pain but it didn't rouse him from his sleep. Kaibutsu Kun was still standing in front of him. Yuri was beside the monster, looking at him with a smirk.
"Little Kazunari," Yuri said mockingly. Nino's eyes widened to hear what she said. Little Kazunari. That's what Kaibutsu Kun called him. How did she know?
"Meet my betrothed, Ohno Satoshi," Yuri continued. Nino gasped when he heard that. She called the monster next to her Ohno Satoshi. It frustrated him. Why was everything that happened right now reminded him of something that he tried to forget?
"This must be a dream," Nino mumbled. He slapped his face again, hoping this time it would wake him up from the dream.
"It wasn't a dream," Yuri laughed drily. "Sorry for lying in the restaurant just now. I don't like you. I just want to get close to you because I'm looking for the prisoners,"
"Prisoners?" Nino asked in confusion.
"Yes, my king's prisoners. They flee to this world. I thought they would go to you,"
"Why would they go to me?"
Yuri didn't immediately answer him. Instead, she stared at him in amazement before she laughed again. It irked him and he didn’t know why. Maybe it’s because he was still stuck in his dream. Or, he was annoyed at Yuri for talking about things that made no sense.
With her staying silent, it allowed Nino to calm down. Everything here looked real so it wasn’t a dream as he thought. The only thing out of place was Kaibutsu Kun. But, it could be explained. It was just a costume. As to why Yuri was talking nonsense about things that were related to the dream he once had, Nino had no answer. But, it wasn’t something he wanted to think about right now.
Without waiting for her response, Nino turned around. Rather than staying here with her, it’s seemed sensible for him to go home. However, after he took a few steps, he was stopped by Kaibutsu Kun who was suddenly in front of him. Nino tried to move past him but the person wouldn’t allow him.
“Look…” Nino said, not bothering to hide his annoyance. “It’s late and I’m tired. So, let me go home, okay?”
But, the man in the weird costume didn’t budge at all. Instead, he continued to stare blankly at Nino. No emotion at all on his face.
“He won’t move, Little Kazunari,” said Yuri’s voice from behind. “He would only do things that I want him to do,”
“So, ask him to move, please. I am in no mood for your shenanigans,” Nino pleaded. “And, don’t call me Little Kazunari,”
Nino turned around to face Yuri. However, he couldn’t believe the sight that greeted him when he did so. What stood in front of her was not Yuri. It was a hideous monster with blue skin and long frizzled hair. Her eyes were red and almost bulging.
“Surprised to see my true appearance?” The monster said. Her voice was eerily similar to Yuri.
“Yuri san?”
Nino knew she wasn’t wearing a costume. He had just taken his eyes away from her mere minutes ago. It’s impossible for her to change into a costume within that time. Slowly, he started to believe that this was real and Yuri came from the monster realm, the world that he had accidentally entered years ago. The world wasn’t just his mere imagination as he was led to believe.
"What are you?"
Yuri smirked at him. A smirk that sent chills down Nino's spine. He could feel his courage forsake him.
Yuri came closer, touching his cheeks with her long, dirty nail. Nino flinched the moment she touched him.
"I am fond of you, Little Kazunari," mocked Yuri, pretending to sound sad. "So, I don't know what to do. Should I kill you or let you live?"
This whole situation was a mess. Why was she after him? What did she want from him? Nino had nothing to offer her. His fear intensified as he felt Kaibutsu Kun near him. It’s weird, though. Kaibutsu Kun was someone he longed to meet. But, why didn’t he feel happy at all to see him again? For one thing, Nino was nauseated because of the smell from this Kaibutsu Kun. The smell… urgh… it was unpleasant… like something rotten and spoiled. The Kaibutsu Kun that he met years ago didn’t smell like this. His scent was delicate and it comforted Nino.
“Hmm, I made my decision,” Yuri drawled, bringing Nino back to his current problem. “You’re going with us,”
Before Nino could react, his surroundings became dark.
Nino woke up feeling sore all over his body. He wasn’t sleeping on a bed nor was he in his own room. Instead, he was in a cell, sleeping on piles of straw. Eh, how did he end up here?
“Stop moving!” A gruff voice yelled at Nino. “You make too much noise when you move. I cannot sleep because of it,”
Apparently, Nino wasn’t alone in the cell. He cannot see who the other person was because it was too dark. But, from the shadow near the corner of the cell, it seemed like his roommate was quite huge.
“Where am I?” He asked the other occupant. “How did I get here?”
There was a groan but Nino received no answer. Didn’t care if he would irritate the person hiding in the corner, he asked the same question again.
“You’re annoying!”
“I will continue to annoy you if you don’t answer my question,” Nino said, walking to the corner to get a better look. “Why are you hiding…”
Nino trailed off. What he saw shocked him. The creature wasn't a human. It’s a beast. A very big beast. At first, Nino thought it was a wolf. However, when the Beast stood on its two legs upon seeing Nino, he realized what it was. It’s a werewolf. And, to make things weird, he wasn’t afraid of the Beast that towered over him. Instead, there was something familiar about the Beast.
Yuri...
The name popped out in his mind as he stared at the Beast. He tried to recall what happened after dinner. He was attacked by a person who looked just like his Kaibutsu Kun. Initially, he thought the person was simply wearing a costume. However, when Yuri transformed herself into a monster, he started to have a doubt. And now, after digesting all the things Yuri had told him, the realization dawned on him.
"Is this the monster realm?"
Nino asked the Beast for confirmation. Yes, this was real. Nino was in the monster realm again. What happened when he was a kid wasn't just his mere imagination. The transformation by Yuri proved that. But, why did Yuri bring him here, though? Who were the prisoners she was looking for? And why would they come to him?
The Beast didn't answer him. Instead, he tugged Nino’s arms to get closer and squinted his eyes to look at Nino properly.
“What are you doing here?” The Beast growled.
“Let me go,” Nino said, trying to push the Beast away. The Beast’s grip on his wrist was far too strong so it's hard for him to be freed from the Beast. When the Beast realized the pain that he had inflicted on Nino, he let him go rather violently.
"You're not supposed to be here," the Beast said in an angry voice, alerting the guards. Not long after that, running footsteps could be heard and Kaibutsu Kun appeared outside the cell.
“The princess wants to see you,” Kaibutsu Kun told them, looking straight at Nino. No emotion was detected in his expression. There was nothing to indicate that he recognized Nino. Thinking of how strange it was, Nino examined the monster. Even though he looked just like Kaibutsu Kun that he remembered, something was different about him. Because of that, Nino found it hard to believe this Kaibutsu Kun was the same monster that he met years ago.
“You’re not taking him anywhere,” The Beast behind Nino said as Kaibutsu Kun unlocked the cell. However, the monster ignored the Beast without even sparing a glance. This infuriated the Beast. Before the monster could take Nino away, the Beast stood between them.
“Move,” Kaibutsu Kun looked at the Beast lazily. But, the Beast refused to budge.
“As I said, you’re not taking him anywhere,”
Kaibutsu Kun tsked at the Beast, seemed ready to attack. However, the Beast was faster than him. Before Nino could blink his eyes, the monster was already on the floor, groaning. Everything happened too quickly. Nino couldn’t even see what the Beast did to Kaibutsu Kun. When he was aware of his surrounding again, he was running with the Beast gripping his wrist tightly. They were climbing the staircase when Yuri in her monster form appeared at the top.
“Going somewhere?”
Nino glanced at the Beast next to him who tightened his grip on Nino. The Beast wasn’t looking at him. Instead, his stare was fixed on Yuri.
“Don’t you recognize him, Little Kazunari?” mocked Yuri, unaffected by the intense stare from the Beast. “Well, it’s understandable. He looks different but I could help you with that,”
Using her hand, Yuri did a weird gesture. The Beast tried to stop her but he was too late. As she did the gesture, the appearance of the Beast started to change. He shrank to Nino’s size. All the hairs around his body disappeared, replaced by human skin. Nino watched the transformation anxiously, hoping that the person behind the Beast wasn’t who he imagined it to be.
However, before the transformation was complete, he knew it was futile to hope so. The person standing right beside him was someone he was familiar with. As he suspected, the person was Matsumoto Jun, his friend who left him all alone.
And, the only emotion he felt for his friend right now was anger.
A/N: Well, I hope this is okay. I like the twist I made in the previous version of this story. But, I don't want to use it again this time because it won't be a surprise for those who had read it. So, I thought of another twist. And hopefully, I could execute it well. Stay tuned for the twist, ne.
I want to ask something. When the Beast first appeared, do you expect it to be Jun? Or you expect it to be someone else?
Let me know what you think of this part, ne? Comment is very much appreciated :)