A Prey Among Predators

At a large, casual sushi restaurant, music fills the atmosphere as waitresses carry trays filled with rice, fish, and salads. Each black table is occupied by excited omnivorous kemonomimis looking at menus, talking, or eating. In the middle at their own table is Carter and Nolan, who are sitting across from each other.

Nolan, now without his jacket, scans the options of dishes with large, shocked eyes. The black menu displays pictures of thin, red raw meat rolled up with rice, topped on salad, or by itself on a bed of shredded radish.

“Mmmm...that sashimi looks delicious!” Nolan hears Carter exclaim. “Salmon, tuna, halibut, red snapper, mackerel, yellowtail, and albacore! I’ll take that platter!”

Nolan darts his eyes around the terrifying pictures and descriptions of food. Red meat lays on a bed of rice. White meat lays in a puddle of sauce. An array of different colored meats lay in a roll on a plate.

His eyes then land on the bottom right corner of the menu, where a section of salads are located.

“You know what you want, Patty?”

Nolan lowers his menu to look at Carter. “Huh?”

With his menu on the tabletop, Carter asks, “You know what you—?”

“Ready to order?” the sweet voice of the waitress asks to Nolan’s left.

Carter whirls to the waitress with the round, black ears of an Asiatic black bear. “Oh yes! An order of the twenty-one-piece sashimi platter, please.” He pauses. “Make that two.”

The waitress nods and scribbles on her notepad. She then turns to Nolan.

Nolan peers out from the menu. “I’ll have the green salad appetizer, please.” He holds out the menu.

The waitress nods while writing it down. She then takes Nolan’s and Carter’s menus.

“It’ll be out in a few minutes.” She whisks away.

Nolan faces the table again, only to find Carter gaping at him.

“...Salad?” Carter croaks out.

Nolan freezes with trepidation.

“Why would you get salad at a sushi place?” He holds his hands out from his sides, as if showing the array of fish around the restaurant. “There’s FISH.” He reverts his outstretched hands to him. “You LOVE fish! All the fish you want is here!”

Stuck in fear, Nolan just stares at him.

Carter then sinks into his booth and lowers his hands. He chuckles in assurance. “It’s okay. Us bears eat roots and grasses and what not.” He shrugs. “So you’d rather have plants. That’s cool.”

Tension slips out from Nolan, letting his eyes cast down.

Carter keeps his eyes on him, intrigued. “So are you…” He leans over the table to get eye contact from him. “...trying out the herbivore diet then?”

He peers up and nods.

Carter raises his eyebrows and leans back. “Nice. How’s that going for you so far? Any benefits?”

He shrugs. “I like it.”

“Is that why you go so fast? Since...you eat just plants?”

Nolan giggles. “I guess.”

Carter presses lips and nods while looking to aside. “Mmmm...maybe I should hop on this herbivore diet to actually save one of your shots.” He gazes back at him.

Nolan gives him a bashful smile.

“You’re really good.” He crosses his arms. “Every time you went up against me, you smoked me like a piece of salmon.”

Nolan titters and dips his head.

Carter frowns at his action. “Oh sorry, that’s an omnivorous joke.”

He peers back up at him. “It’s okay.”

Carter sighs and looks to aside. “Those penginmimis though…” He looks back at him. “...they gotta loosen up and take a joke, y’know? I mean, they eat fish too—”

“Two sashimi platters?”

Carter spins to the waitress, who is now holding a black tray with two plates and one bowl. “Oh yes, right here!”

She plucks one large sashimi platter at a time and places them in front of Carter. Carter gazes down at them with delight glimmering in his eyes; he licks his lips.

“And salad.” The waitress places the small bowl of salad in front of Nolan.

“Enjoy!” She then whisks away.

Nolan picks up his fork, pinches a slice of lettuce and nibbles on it contently. He flicks his eyes ahead and freezes.

He watches Carter nab a stack of red-colored meat slivers with a pair of chopsticks and stuff it in his mouth. Carter then slumps against the backrest of the booth, chewing, while gazing up, content.

He then swallows. “Delicious.”

Carter reaches out to take a pale pink stack of meat and dump it in his mouth. He relaxes even more, being taken up by the utter bliss of raw fish.

Nolan keeps his shocked eyes at him. He manages to continue nibbling his single lettuce leaf then darts his eyes around in discomfort.

Notes