[ The whole walk through the park Max spends desperately trying to keep focused. Or...at least to keep from losing herself in the predator again. Feel the grass beneath her feet. Hear it crunch. Do not think about the racing breath of the boy, any of the boys, nor her trembling hands, nor how hungry she is.
Her mandibles quiver. She both does not and desperately needs to do this. When Basil comes to a stop, she keeps walking for a moment, almost bumping into the boy, who tries to jerk away one last time.
Max looks into Basil's eyes, hers fully dilated, and wordlessly nods. Every bit of her feels alert and on edge.
All she needs to do is focus on a point on the ground, and she chooses one around the boy, so Basil doesn't have to drag him any further. She feels bad enough making him do this already, the less he has to keep doing it—
Her jaw twitches as a ring of mushrooms grows out of the park grass. Basil will need to hold on tight, as the boy starts thrashing again. Starts begging, finally finding his voice again. It's directed not at Max, who he's watched kill his two friends, but at the boy holding him.
And that is, in the end, what cements his fate, as Max rushes forward and acts on instinct. She doesn't know how "energy feeding" works. Hasn't been able to wrap her head around it, even now. But all she knows is she has to—to keep this from hurting Basil anymore.
What it looks like is Max pouncing, her claws digging into the boy held immobile by Basil's vines. Except blood is...minimal. Just like scratches at the site of the puncture wounds, at his shoulders. The boy gasps and his struggling stops, wide eyes locking now with Max's as their breathing falls in sync. It's surreal, as all words just die on the victim's lips. It's unlike the hypnosis from before, though, he is clearly aware of what is happening.
But he can't stop it. None of them can anymore. Not as Max drinks in what feels like pure vitality, and the boy starts trembling instead. ]
cw: the cannibalism
Her mandibles quiver. She both does not and desperately needs to do this. When Basil comes to a stop, she keeps walking for a moment, almost bumping into the boy, who tries to jerk away one last time.
Max looks into Basil's eyes, hers fully dilated, and wordlessly nods. Every bit of her feels alert and on edge.
All she needs to do is focus on a point on the ground, and she chooses one around the boy, so Basil doesn't have to drag him any further. She feels bad enough making him do this already, the less he has to keep doing it—
Her jaw twitches as a ring of mushrooms grows out of the park grass. Basil will need to hold on tight, as the boy starts thrashing again. Starts begging, finally finding his voice again. It's directed not at Max, who he's watched kill his two friends, but at the boy holding him.
And that is, in the end, what cements his fate, as Max rushes forward and acts on instinct. She doesn't know how "energy feeding" works. Hasn't been able to wrap her head around it, even now. But all she knows is she has to—to keep this from hurting Basil anymore.
What it looks like is Max pouncing, her claws digging into the boy held immobile by Basil's vines. Except blood is...minimal. Just like scratches at the site of the puncture wounds, at his shoulders. The boy gasps and his struggling stops, wide eyes locking now with Max's as their breathing falls in sync. It's surreal, as all words just die on the victim's lips. It's unlike the hypnosis from before, though, he is clearly aware of what is happening.
But he can't stop it. None of them can anymore. Not as Max drinks in what feels like pure vitality, and the boy starts trembling instead. ]