Chapter 5 - 5: Are These Real Ears? Quit Being a Baby and Take Them Off!
"Is this so kind of crazy... tribal status thing?" Isabella muttered under her breath, scanning their arms.
Her gaze flickered from one male to the next. She wasn't sure what those marks ant—so had two lines, so had one, and others had none—but she knew one thing for sure.
Whatever was happening here, it was going to end soon. She wasn't going to sit around and let things happen to her.
But God, she was exhausted.
Her entire body ached from wandering aimlessly for hours, and she felt—no, she knew—she looked like a complete disaster. She had always prided herself on her appearance, but right now? Right now, she looked like a woman who had fought a war with the jungle and lost miserably.
Her expensive golden-blonde hair, once glossy and styled to perfection, now hung in tangled, greasy clumps. Her once-flawless skin was streaked with dirt, her designer clothes long gone, replaced by a makeshift outfit of poorly-stitched animal hide that itched. The damn thing slled like a wet dog had rolled in sothing foul and then died.
And speaking of slls...
She stank.
She didn't even need a mirror to confirm it—she could feel the gri on her skin. It clung to her like a second layer, and every movent sent a fresh wave of sweat and filth wafting up to her nose. Disgusting.
Isabella had never in her life gone more than a few hours without a shower. Now, she didn't even want to think about how long it had been.
As she trudged forward, her leafy, makeshift sandals flopping awkwardly against the dirt, she was dimly aware of the way people were staring.
No—not people.
Beastn.
Tall, muscular, inhumanly beautiful n with sharp features, piercing eyes, and... animal ears. So had tails, others had horns, and so had markings across their skin.
It was like she had walked straight into a fantasy novel.
The whispers started almost imdiately.
"What is that?"
"Is she... one of us?"
"No way. Look at her. She looks... unwell."
"I've never seen soone so—"
"Slly."
The last voice cut through everything, and Isabella stiffened.
Oh, hell no.
She knew she looked bad, but slly?! How dare they?!
Her lips curled into a scowl, but before she could snap at anyone, she noticed sothing else—the n were not looking at her the way n usually did.
She was used to admiration, awe, and maybe a little bit of obsession.
This?
This was fear.
Isabella blinked as she took in their expressions—wide eyes, cautious stances, even a few subtle steps backward.
A flicker of irritation sparked in her chest. Excuse ? What the hell were they scared of? She was the one surrounded by them!
Her frustration only grew when she noticed so of the won in the crowd. Unlike the n, they weren't afraid at all. In fact, they looked downright smug.
One woman, a brunette with wild, curly hair and sharp eyes, smirked at her. "Looks like soone got dragged through the forest."
A few others giggled, covering their mouths as they whispered to each other.
Isabella's left eye twitched.
Alright. That's it.
She needed to prove that this was all fake.
She needed to find the mastermind behind this elaborate joke, rip those stupid fake ears off soone's head, and demand an explanation.
Her eyes scanned the crowd before locking onto her target.
A male standing off to the side.
Unlike the others, he wasn't engaged in the festivities. He stood rigidly, shoulders stiff, almost as if he didn't want to be noticed.
Isabella's lips curled.
Perfect.
She stord toward him, her steps fueled by irritation and exhaustion.
Each step sent dust puffing into the air, making her already ragged outfit look even worse. Her hair flopped wildly around her, so strands sticking to her sweaty face.
The closer she got, the more wrong this felt.
The man... the Beastman—had deer-like ears. Deer ears? Seriously?
He had an awkwardly nervous posture, his gaze darting around as if looking for an escape route.
Oh, he knew he was caught.
Isabella smirked.
She stopped right in front of him, planting her hands on her hips. "Are these real?"
The poor man flinched.
Isabella raised a brow. Oh? Why was he acting like she had just threatened his life?
Not waiting for an answer, she reached up and grabbed his ears.
The Beastman froze.
She pulled.
Nothing.
She pulled harder.
Still nothing.
Her smirk faltered.
Okay. No big deal. They probably used so really strong glue. She just needed to pull harder.
And so, she yanked.
The Beastman let out a strangled noise—a mixture of panic and pain.
Isabella scowled. "Oh, quit being a baby. Just take them off and tell
who's behind this."
He shook.
His entire body trembled under her grasp, and when she finally let go, he stumbled backward so fast he almost tripped.
The fear in his eyes was unmistakable.
Isabella's smirk disappeared completely.
Slowly, she reached out again, this ti more gently.
She ran her fingers over the base of his ears.
Warm.
Attached.
... Oh.
Her breath hitched.
Her hand snapped back like she had been burned, and she took a sharp step away from him.
Her heart slamd against her ribs as her mind finally, finally caught up.
This wasn't fake.
These weren't prosthetics.
They were real.
A strangled noise escaped her throat—half gasp, half strangled scream—as she stumbled backward, her foot catching on a rock.
She landed hard on her butt.
The clearing went deadsilent.
Every Beastman stared at her.
The deer-eared man rubbed his ears, looking at her with sothing between confusion and horror.
Isabella's breathing turned shallow.
Oh my god.
She had assaulted a real man.
A real Beastman.
This wasn't a prank.
This wasn't a dream.
This was—this was—
Her entire body locked up.
A deep, looming dread settled in her stomach.
She swallowed hard, barely noticing the way the other Beastn slowly began inching closer.
Their eyes weren't just filled with curiosity anymore.
There was sothing else.
Sothing dark.
Sothing hungry.
Isabella's mouth went dry.
She wasn't sure what was worse—the fact that she had just made a complete fool of herself...
Or the fact that she was now trapped in a circle of very real, very predatory n.
And none of them looked ready to let her go.
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