“Aw, man,” Jonouchi complained with a heavy whine in his voice, “just looking at those damn creatures gives me the creeps. How do they even feed those things?”

“Oh, don’t you know about the live-feeding lottery?” Ryou replied with a cheerful smile.

“The fucking what now?”

“The live-feeding lottery!” Ryou reiterated. “Anyone can enter their name on a submission form for a chance to be their meal!”

“Wait, those things eat PEOPLE?”

“E’yup!”

“And there’s folks who sign up for that?!”

“Would seem so~” Ryou let out a giggle.

“Shit, dude,” Jonouchi whined again. “What kind of weirdo would want something like that?”

“This kind of weirdo!” Ryou had the cheeriest smile on his face as he hopped toward the ballot box and dropped his slip in it.

“Ryou, NO!”

Too late; the slip was already in.

“Dude, what the fuck?!” Jonouchi scolded him. “What is wrong with you? What if they pick out your name? What then, huh?!”

“Oh, I don’t think I’ll have much to worry about then~” Ryou was still all smiles, walking with a spring in his step.

“Bakura-Kun! Jonouchi-Kun!” Yugi called out to them, a recently bought popsicle in his hand. “Hurry up! It’s almost time for the live-feeding!”

“Yugi, wait!” Jonouchi’s voice came out dripping with alarm. “You’re not gonna believe this—Bakura here just dropped his name in the ballot.”

“For the live-feeding?” Yugi raised an eyebrow.

“YES, he’s outta his fucking mind!”

“Welp, that sounds like something Bakura-kun would do.” Yugi shrugged.

“Tee-hee!” Ryou scratched the back of his head.

“Come on, let’s get moving before all the good spots are taken,” Honda chimed in as Ryou and Yugi followed.

“Wait, you guys just can’t—”

“You’re gonna get left behind, Jonouchi-kun!” Ryou called out to him.

“I think I’m going to be ill.” Jonouchi slumped his shoulders as he trudged along.

The group settled up at a nice spot with a clear view of the enclosure.

“You think it's gonna be a pretty girl this time?” Honda asked.

“Ex-fucking-cuse me?” Anzu stared daggers at him.

“No, err I mean—” A sharp knee to his sides interrupted him.

“Ugh, why do you guys have to be fucking weirdos.”

“Hey, chill out, everyone,” Yugi said, “the announcement should start soon.”

And just as Yugi said it, the speakers crackled.

Greetings, dear visitors! We will soon start drawing names for our live-feeding events! Raise your hands if you want to feed one of our lovely creatures!

Jonouchi was absolutely dumbstruck to see more than half the people in attendance cheer as they threw their hands in the air and waved them like they just didn’t care. He couldn’t help facepalming when he saw Ryou join in on the fuss as well. Welp, at least his chances seemed rather dim with so many weirdos around.

Excellent! Love to see the excitement! And today’s star of the show is—drum roll, please!

Jonouchi felt his heart in his throat as the crowd stood quiet and the sound of drums echoed in his ears.

Ladies and gentlemen, a winner has been decided! Fresh from Domino High School, at the tender age of sixteen, give it up for Ryou Bakura!

Ryou gasped in both shock and elation. “Wait, ME?!” He covered his mouth with both hands to keep himself from squealing. Jonouchi stood frozen in place.

“Hooray! Bakura-kun won!” Yugi said before grabbing Ryou by his wrists and giddily spinning around with him in a silly little dance.

In a panic, Jonouchi fell back to his senses. “Bakura! We need to get you out of here! NOW!”

“Why?” Ryou and Yugi stopped their dance, both staring befuddled at their friend.

“Didn’t you hear it?!” Jonouchi shouted at his friend, “They’re going to throw you in there and feed you to that thing! You’re going to fucking die if you don’t run!”

“Hmm, yes? I know that.” Ryou raised an eyebrow. “Why do you think I have a problem with that?”

“QUIT FUCKING AROUND!” Jonouchi was stomping and fuming at this point. “They’re going to be here soon and—”

Jonouchi suddenly stopped as Honda put a hand on his shoulder. He turned around to see the whole group just staring at him like he'd grown another head.

“Jonouchi-kun,” Ryou spoke first, “I’m not “fucking around”. Why are you so upset?”

“Yeah, take it easy, man!” Yugi said, “it really isn’t such a big deal—it’s just Bakura-kun. Plus, they kinda do this everyday around here.”

Jonouchi opened his mouth to speak but found no words. The boy was absolutely aghast at how dismissive his friends were of the whole situation.

Before they said anything else, two zookeepers showed up. “Mr. Ryou Bakura?”

“That’s me!” Ryou replied.

“Come with us please.”

“Well, I guess that’s it for me, huh?” Ryou scratched the back of his head.

“Aw, we’ll miss you, Bakura-kun!” Anzu said with a smile.

“I’ll miss you guys too! I mean, not for too long I guess, ha ha~”

Jonouchi couldn’t move from his spot as the others hugged Ryou and said their goodbyes, everybody all smiles as if the finality of the act completely flew over their heads.

“Jonouchi-kun?” Ryou stared at him.

“BAKURA!” Jonouchi’s voice came out far louder than intended as his whole body stiffened. “I-I mean, err—”

Ryou giggled and booped him on the nose. “Catch you on the flip side!”

“Wai—what the?” Before Jonouchi could say anything, Ryou turned around and went along with the zookeepers, leaving Jonouchi to stand as the picture definition of the word dumbfounded.

Ryou followed into the enclosure with a spring in his step, wondering which kind of creature would get to chow on him. Sure, he could ask the two zookeepers escorting him, but he really didn’t want to spoil the surprise.

Would it be something big and ferocious? Would it swallow him whole? Chew him? Would it rough him up a little—or maybe maul him completely—as a treat? Would his friends see him splattered all over the enclosure’s glass? To just think of his impending fate made him all hot and tingly.

Ryou nearly squealed with joy when he saw that his soon-to-be devourer was one of his favorites.

The giant land hydra sprouted from the ground as a fleshy, pillar-like stem covered in warts and bumps. A blossom of bright red petals sat like a crown upon its top, slowly unfurling to reveal a toothy maw in its center.

Though normally an ambush predator that would sit motionless before pouncing, visitor after tasty visitor made this one grow tame and spoiled. As soon as it sensed its food approach, it lowered itself and stretched out its tongue as if inviting its prey to hop on in and slide down its hollow stem toward the underground digestive chamber.

“Got anything in your pockets?” One of the zookeepers asked as he offered Ryou a small basket.

“Oh, righto!” Ryou fished his pockets for his wallet, phone, and house keys before dropping them in the basket.

The first zookeeper walked off with his belongings while the other made sure to tightly strap Ryou’s arms to his sides to avoid any indiscreet behaviors; feeding time was still a PG-13 attraction after all.

A tiny speaker played a prerecorded message.

We at the Domino City Cryptid and Anomalous Wildlife Park and Zoo deeply appreciate your volunteering to our live-feeding program! Please keep your arms and legs inside the creature at all times and refrain from struggling. Any person accompanying you may claim your undigested remains and personal belongings otherwise they will be incinerated and disposed of at the park’s discretion. We thank you for your kindness and wish you a once-in-a-lifetime experience!

The remaining zookeeper put a hand on Ryou’s shoulder. “If you want to back out, blink twice.”

Ryou simply shook his head, biting his lower lip as his toes curled. Thank god for the straps.

“Aight then, kiddo; headfirst or feet first?”

“Head!” Ryou lit up as he replied, “sunny side up if you’d please!”

The zookeeper nodded and helped Ryou to lie on his back, head facing toward the land hydra.

“You ready?” Ryou nodded. The keeper shrugged. “Bon voyage, then.”

With a small push, Ryou gasped as he felt the soft petals perch upon the top of his head. He shivered with anticipation, clenching his thighs as he felt the hydra’s undulating lips ready to slurp him up and drag him to his gastric demise. Ryou looked at the crowd and quickly spotted his friends, each one jumping and cheering except for a visibly distraught Jonouchi.

“Guys, look! I’m—mmmfhhh!” Only muffled moans and whimpers followed as the creature’s tight, rippling insides engulfed Ryou’s head. His body contorted in place, all muscles tensed up as his shoulders, then his chest slowly disappeared. His hands strained against his bindings as the creature approached his midriff, legs grinding together as his body writhed and wriggled.

“Hey Honda! Snap out of it!” Jonouchi grabbed his friend by the shoulders and shook him. Honda barely took notice, instead, he stared slack-jawed at the spectacle before him, a crimson flush creeping across his face.

“Oh my—so much for wanting to see a pretty girl, eh, Honda-kun?” Anzu teased him. Honda did not reply, his eyes remained transfixed on Ryou’s flexing, quivering legs, all the way until only the soles of his sneakers were left in sight.

“What the fuck is wrong with you guys?! Bakura is going to die and y'all just—”

The creature started bulging and rippling, making loud gurgling noises before suddenly ejecting what was left of Ryou. His cream wool sweater, green button shirt, skinny jeans, and navy blue sneakers, along with every bone in his body, flew up in the air and rained all over the enclosure, all of them covered in a thick gloop of saliva and digestive fluid.

“I think he already has.” Yugi chuckled. “That was pretty quick, huh?”

“H-how can you—” Jonouchi was left in utter disbelief at how casually everyone treated the death of a friend.

“Oh come on, we all knew it was bound to happen” Yugi replied. “If anything, it's kinda impressive that Bakura-kun still made it as far as he did.”

Jonouchi was completely stupefied. He looked at Honda, hoping against hope to find at least a shred of good sense there. Instead, he found his friend exiting the gift shop with a DVD case and a dozen or so large prints of Ryou gradually sliding into the creature's maw. “What the fuck? Why did you even get those?!”

“Dude!” Honda had a desperate sense of pleading in his voice. “They had multi-angle drone footage, how can you expect me to pass this up?”

“So much for wanting to see a pretty girl.” Anzu smirked.

“Como on, guys,” Yugi said, “let’s go grab his things before they shove it all in a furnace.”

“You guys can’t—” Jonouchi was at a loss at how his friends kept chit-chatting like they didn’t have a damn thought inside their heads. His mind grew foggy and the whole world started spinning as an unbearable buzzing started filling his ears until—

Bzzzzzzzzt, bzzzzzzzzt, bzzzzzzzzt

A groggy Jonouchi rubbed the sleep from his eyes as the buzzing from his phone woke him up. His hand fumbled across the bedside table, knocking down a filled ashtray all over his floor before he managed to grab the phone.

First that fucking dream, now this shit.

“...urgh, hello?”

“JONOUCHI-KUN!” It was Yugi. “You're not gonna believe it!”

“...ungh, yeah?”

“They're opening a monster zoo here in Domino!”

Wait, what?

“Bakura-kun is here and everybody else is excited to see it too. You coming with us?”

An uncomfortably long silence followed as Jonouchi found himself speechless.

“Jonouchi-kun?”

Jonouchi’s hand shook so much that his phone fell to the floor. He stared blankly at his bedroom wall, the corners of his mouth twitching as he took a deep breath and did the only sensible thing he could think of.

“AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!”

____________________________

I commissioned the amazing Cookiepearl to draw for me again! A comic page for my fic this time :D

As always, special thanks to my dear bubby Bluemoonhound for the confidence boost and help proofreading :)

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