Claws of Rage

Chapter 26 - Prey and predator

[Richard gets shocked by her tone and forces himself to obey her.]

Richard: [Yells while tearing up] I'm just scared you'll eat me like I'm your prey!

[He immediately backs away and cowers from his wife.]

Nicole: What?! No, Richard! I-

[Nicole sees her husband hiding his face and avoiding eye contact with her. She clenches her paws into fists and feels her anger growing into rage.]

Nicole: You just said I was fine! You said I was better than this... Then how can I possibly believe you if you don't believe it yourself?!

[Richard stays silent and his eyes widen out of fear. Nicole bares her teeth and her voice lowers its pitch.]

Nicole: Y-you still see me as a monster, do you?!

Richard: N-no honey, I- I just-

Nicole: [Yells while a roar accompanies her voice] I TURNED INTO A MONSTER AND WILL REMAIN ONE!

[Nicole storms off upstairs and in doing so, her now unsheathed claws tear the fabric of the couch. Richard gulps and stands next to the stairs. Nicole looks at her reflection in the mirror and pants. She lowers her head and snarls when she hears Richard's footsteps coming up the stairs. The fur on her back rises up when he suddenly hugs her from behind.]

Richard: [Whispers] I'm sorry, honey. I didn't mean to hurt your feelings. I- I of course still love you!

[Nicole tilts her head a bit and stares him angrily in the eye. To his horror, he sees that her eyes are glowing yellow and she starts trembling in his grip.]

Richard: [Trying to calm her down] N-no please, honey. D-don't get enraged, I beg you... Control it, control it!

[Nicole's rage starts mixing up with grief, but she can't handle what she's about to do. She grits her teeth as her fangs elongate again. Suddenly, she turns around and scratches Richard straight on his cheek with her claws. Richard screams it out and almost falls over by the power in Nicole's attack. Nicole freezes while she is bending forward and pants. Richard covers the three deep, bleeding slits in his cheek and turns his back towards his wife. Blood drips from Nicole's claws and she keeps staring blankly at the floor. She is still shivering and a shock runs through her body when she tastes some of the blood, which got onto the corner her mouth. Her instincts start to rise within her and she silently begs herself to stay calm. P-please... d-don't let this happen!, she thinks.

She no longer can think clearly as she gets on all fours. Richard looks behind his shoulder in terror only to see her drooling heavily. Oh gosh, what did I say?!, he restlessly thinks and hides behind the bathroom door like a scared child. Nicole still doesn't move a muscle and only her ears twitch a bit. She then closes her eyes and her heart starts beating faster. Richard, who thinks she's calming down, comes closer and wants to check if she's okay. But when he reaches out his paw, he immediately hesitates when he hears her growling. Richard shivers out of fear when his eyes meet hers. She then suddenly rises up, standing on her hind legs again and towers above the pink bunny. Her yellow pupils constrict further as she speaks words Richard rather forgets...]

Nicole: [In a deep, terrifying voice] You need to... RUUUN... NOW!

[Nicole pounces straight into Richard's direction, but he manages to dodge her and runs downstairs. Nicole crashes into the mirror above the sink due her velocity and glass shatters everywhere. She furiously gets up on all fours again and shakes the glass out of her fur. She proceeds chasing after Richard, until she can't find him anymore. She is downstairs, viciously looking around and on the hunt like a feral cat. Richard managed to run up the stairs again without her noticing and encounters the kids in their room after they woke up by all the noise.]

Darwin: Hey, Mr. Dad! We-

[Richard covers his adoptive son's mouth with his paw and shushes him. Anais and Gumball come closer and give him a confused look.]

Richard: [Whispers] It's the worst moment to be awake! Your mother has fully lost it again!

Gumball: [Whispers] B-but, how? I thought that meanie guy was gone or something?

Richard: [Nervously] Let's not talk about that. But no, it's not that anyway. Your mother... Well...

[Richard stays silent as he doesn't dare to finish his sentence.]

Gumball: What, Dad? You can tell us.

Richard: ...She... just still has troubles with her... not so sweet side.

Gumball: What does that even mean?

[Anais steps forward and takes a deep breath to speak.]

Anais: Mom is still suffering from all the consequences of the Limit-incident, which seemed to have gotten worse in this period. She goes through an extremely agonizing transformation into a monster whenever she reaches an upper point in her stress or rage. This all got provoked in the supermarket, but got worse by the sabotaged C.U.B.-core.

[The three boys' jaws drop open by astonishment and shock.]

Richard: How d-did you know?

Anais: [Sighs] I knew the entire time. I wish I never had to tell it, but I knew Mom's terrific grunting and screaming couldn't be any good.

Darwin: [Shivers out of fear] S-so, what now? Mrs. Mom i-is a werecat?

Anais: No, silly. Remember the rampage at Elmore Shopping? It's like that, but way worse.

Gumball: H-how aren't you scared, sis?

Anais: I am scared... terrified, Gumball. But deep down, I know this isn't the real Mom, guys.

[All four suddenly freeze when they hear a loud, deep meow coming from downstairs.]

Darwin: B-but that thing sure is a vicious hunter, ain't it?

Gumball: [Starts freaking out] What do we do, what do we do?!

Richard: We can't do anything but hide, or else we become cat food!

Anais: What?! How has it come this far?!

Richard: I-... I don't know. Our conversation got way out of hand.

Anais: Then what did you say to her?

Richard: I-

[Richard gets interrupted by Nicole suddenly bursting through the kids room's door.]

Nicole: [In a deep voice] You... see me as nothing but a dangerous predator!

[The kids scream and hide behind their father, whose mouth opens widely out of shock. Nicole stands on her hind legs, bending a bit forward and stares her husband in the eye. She growls, baring her teeth and violently unsheathes her claws as she slowly approaches her family.]

...