[Mar. poll] Bitter and Sour

[Story]

1

Beastmen are a race that possesses both human and beast traits. As a result, their bodies experience problems common to humans as well as those unique to beasts.

Inside a room with the windows and curtains closed, Michiru was scrolling through her smartphone, researching the changes happening to her body. Although her current phone was capable of bypassing Anima City’s firewall, the Anima City website remained the most detailed source of information on Beastmen. Michiru scanned through the relevant symptoms and case studies, and when her worst fears were confirmed, she instinctively flung herself onto the bed.

Heat. She had vaguely suspected that such a concept might exist for Beastmen as well, and it turned out to be true.

Since symptoms can now be suppressed with medication, it’s considered a socially acceptable phenomenon, but naturally, Michiru didn’t know that and didn’t have any suppressants. She knew she should get them from her landlord or a pharmacy (or, as a last resort, from Mink), but for someone who wasn’t born a Beastman, it was too embarrassing, and she couldn’t bring herself to take that step.

A few days later.

Michiru had thought this symptom would go away if she just slept for two or three days, just like a cold. However, as the days passed, the symptoms worsened steadily, becoming unbearable.

To be honest, she had even tried to comfort herself. She carefully touched that part of her body, which had become far more sensitive than usual, and brought herself to orgasm, but far from subsiding, her body ached intensely, craving even stronger stimulation.

A voice came from outside her room. It was Shirou. Their landlord must have been worried about Michiru, who hadn’t left her room for several days, claiming to be unwell. Michiru gave the same reply to Shirou’s voice telling her to at least show her face. However, her door opened immediately afterward. Shirou wasn't the type of guy to double-check with the other person in situations like this.

Shirou thought it had been careless of him not to use his sense of smell before checking on her.

He had completely let his guard down, assuming that since it was Michiru, it couldn’t be anything serious. But the moment he opened her door, a sweet, rich scent like ripe fruit pierced his keen sense of smell.

The scent of a female in heat. It had been concentrated in the room, which had been sealed for several days, and the pheromones, growing stronger with each passing day, had been maturing within that enclosed space.

That scent stimulates the most primal instincts of a male beastman. That is precisely why suppressants are essential in Anima City. Shiro’s body began to transform into a wolf of its own accord, and he was struck by a dizzying vertigo that made his legs feel unsteady.

He confronted her, demanding to know why she had let things get this far. She explained her reasons, but she herself remained hidden, wrapped in the sheets.

Shirou stepped into the room to check on her. With every step he took toward her bed, the scent of pheromones grew stronger, so he held his breath as much as possible to suppress his sense of smell.

Then, when he grabbed the sheets and pulled them back, that concentrated scent burst forth again, this time at point-blank range. Michiru was sweating as if she had a high fever, her breathing ragged. The scent of sweat and tears—along with a distinct, female-specific bodily fluid—that had seeped into her clothes and sheets to release her elevated body heat threw Shirou into a state of intense agitation.

Michiru was just as affected by the scent. The moment she recognized Shirou’s presence and scent, the beastly instincts within her were sharply awakened. Just as a hunter targets its prey, her entire focus locked onto him.

Michiru unconsciously grabbed Shirou’s arm as he said he would fetch the suppressant right away.

She would have him fetch the suppressant. Or have him carry her to the hospital. Surely that would be the right decision for a beastman living in Anima City. A few days ago, she would undoubtedly have chosen that option. But, her primal animal instincts knew only one answer.

2

Shirou immediately rejected Michiru’s request. It was, after all, a completely ridiculous demand. Indeed, the way she was speaking now was as if she were drunk; her words lacked their usual vitality. He told her that her intoxicated state of mind had led her to come up with such a reckless idea.

Reason, age, status, their usual relationship—there were countless reasons. He felt that if they were to become physically intimate, especially if it happened under the influence of the heat of the moment, something they had built up until now would shatter with a loud crash.

Shirou tried to shake off Michiru’s hand, but that only made her grip tighter.

To be honest, Shirou wanted to get out of there immediately. With every word he spoke, he inhaled Michiru’s pheromones, which seemed to be concentrated in the air, and he was completely thrown off balance. His keen wolfish sense of smell—which was usually his ultimate weapon—was now working against him.

Feeling irritated, Shirou spoke more forcefully.

Michiru, having only recently become a beastman, simply wasn’t used to the concept of heat yet. If she couldn’t control it, she wouldn’t be able to survive in Anima City. Or do you plan to do that with just anyone…….

“It’s not ‘just anyone’!” Michiru cut Shirou off with a strong voice.

“I know I’m saying something weird myself. It’s terribly embarrassed, and I know I’m being driven by something other than myself. But I'm not such a loose woman that I'd ask someone I 'don't' want to do this with to do something like this!"

It sounded like gears had meshed together.

It was something reason had stopped, but instinct craved, so sinful, bitter, sour, so irreversible once tasted, like an abyss, like the ocean...

3

The place was surrounded by tall buildings, dark even during the day, a sleepless neighborhood illuminated by neon lights.

Michiru and Shirou were standing in front of a hotel there. Naturally, Michiru was not in a condition to walk the streets, so Shirou wrapped her in his cloak and carried her here by leaping over the rooftops.

To put it bluntly, this district was a place where a female emitting the same scent as her would not stand out much. There was no need to explain what the hotel in front of them was, so the two of them didn't say a word about it. They passed through the blindfolded reception area and hurried into one of the rooms.

4

After that, the two exchanged few words.

When Shirou did speak, it was almost always to ask Michiru, “Does it hurt?” or “Do you want to rest a bit?” His movements were as careful as if he were handling something fragile. For Michiru, this was unexpected in some ways, yet in others, it was exactly as she had expected. Even in this situation, Shirou never pounced on her like a starving beast; though clumsy, he was always gentle.

From time to time, she’d see him let out a low growl or close his eyes tightly as if suppressing something, and Michiru realized he was fighting against his own instincts. That’s why she didn’t want to push him too hard either. Though she felt a shiver run down her spine and was so embarrassed she felt like her head was on fire, she resolved to take the next step.

That said, even though she knew about these things in theory, when she actually saw them, she covered her eyes once out of sheer embarrassment. Shirou’s was shaped like a dog’s, and its size was quite large, matching his build. When Michiru asked if she could touch it, he gave her a puzzled look, so she hastily made up an excuse: “Since it’s going to be inside me soon, I just want to know what it’s like.”

While Shirou prepared a condom, Michiru touched it to get a feel for it. It was harder than she’d imagined, and she could feel his hot body heat directly through it. When she stroked it with her finger, it twitched slightly. She wondered if she should do something to prepare him, just as he had done for her, and searched her mind for any relevant knowledge, but she was too embarrassed to muster the courage to act on it.

And while she hesitated, Shirou finished getting ready and pulled her into his arms.

Their eyes met. The eyes of a beastman and a beastman. Eyes filled with the passion of instinct and unwavering trust.

The final question. The answer was already decided.

The act was a far cry from fictional romance—it was incredibly painful, agonizing, and didn’t go smoothly at all.

But it made her heart race far more than any fictional romance; she felt safe in his warmth and found herself filled with a sense of fulfillment.

For Shirou, this was an act to save her. For Michiru, it was an act to save herself. But somewhere in her heart, Michiru surely hoped that this would be an act for the sake of their future, forgetting everything about their past and present, or rather, accepting everything. She couldn't hear his true feelings now, and for now she had no choice but to leave herself to him, but someday, surely...

5

She felt lighthearted. It was a refreshing sensation, as if the ceiling blocking her view had been swept away, revealing a sky stretching endlessly into the distance.

As if the heavy, oppressive feeling she’d been carrying just moments ago had been a lie, the clouds in her heart vanished in an instant. But as she returned to her normal self, a flood of memories and realities overwhelmed her all at once.

She, naked and wrapped in the sheets, Shirou beside her, sharing one bed, and this hotel room. Then, memories and sensations rapidly rewinded to minutes, hours earlier. Voices, body heat, touch. His words, the words she had spoken. She pulled the sheets over her head and let out a silent scream of embarrassment.

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[Note]

Sorry to keep you waiting.

Actually, I only had a vague understanding of BNA, so I watched all the episodes of the anime in one day to understand their personalities and the world they inhabit. Thanks to that, I was able to flesh out their backgrounds more fully when developing the story, and I also got to study the anime’s art style, so it was definitely worth the prep work.

I’m really satisfied that I was able to draw the characters I’ve always wanted to draw. Now that my understanding of them has deepened, I hope I’ll have another chance to draw them.

Also, in this story, I omitted all dialogue except what was absolutely necessary. In reality, they were exchanging a lot of conversation and lines in my head, but I felt that putting it all into text would actually diminish the content. Michiru, in particular, is a character with a lot of lines. I thought that leaving these details implied would allow the readers to create higher-resolution conversations based on their own images of the characters.