# Estrus Week

Title: Estrus Week
Status: Complete
Characters: Anon, Reed, Spears
Rating: SFW
Classification: One Shot
Author: Anonymous
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I trudge to school, the early morning sun already making the thick humidity so much worse. Summer isn't far off, the last cool days of spring are long gone. I'm already starting to sweat, and the day has only just begun. I jump up the concrete steps in front of Volcano High, eager to get inside and enjoy the air conditioning. The front lawn is strangely deserted, only a couple dinosaurs still lingering outside. It takes my sleep deprived brain a couple seconds to remember why. This is the first day of estrus week. I remember a couple announcements were made over the intercom last week, reminding students and teachers that half their class would be absent for the next ten days or so. Apparently everyone was already used to this routine, there weren't any special assemblies or classes to attend, which unfortunately left me out of the loop. All I really knew was that some of my female classmates had been steadily trickling out of class, and now all of them would be staying home for the coming week. According to Trish, this was because the 'patriarchal institutions insist that women are too emotional too blah blah blah...', I honestly just tuned her out after a while. I at least know better than to believe all those stupid stories that circled around my favorite Bavarian yodeling forum. It will probably just be a week of half-assed classes held by bored teachers projecting documentaries or holding 'open study sessions'.
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I stepped through the front door, dodging a thrown ball of paper and turning down the hallway to my locker. Despite the less crowded halls, the noise inside seems somehow louder than it usual does. There's half as many voices, but they all seem to be shouting and yelling. I can hear lockers slamming in the distance, as well as other loud noises I can't identify. There's a faint smell too, like somebody hooked up the gym lockers to all the air vents. I can't help but feel tense, like everyone is watching my back as I walk by. I'm not sure what's going on, but there's an undeniable undercurrent of tension is the air just waiting to snap, my instincts screaming at me to stay on guard. I open my locker in a rush, quickly grabbing my bag and heading to class.
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Just as I think I'll get there without incident, I feel the floor tremble beneath my feet. I narrowly jump out of the way as an enraged triceratops charges past me from behind, his massive head and horns held low. At first I think he's after me, but he keeps running down the hall, slamming into another triceratops coming from the opposite direction. I can feel the impact reverberate in my bones as they collide, I'm surprised neither of them broke their necks doing that. They hardly seem fazed at all, continuing to slam their heads against each other. Their horns lock, their feet sliding across the linoleum as they push against each other like bulls. A crowd quickly forms around the two fighting linebackers as I try to scramble away, students cheering and shouting as they jostle to get a better view. I escape from the crowd and head down another hallway, determined to get away form that mess. I can hear the shouts of the crowd grow louder as I run, the fight no doubt inciting it's own set of brawls amongst the audience.
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Just as I think I've gotten clear, a blue and green blur of tails and feathers bursts from around the next corner and slams into the lockers. Two velociraptors roll around in a tight ball of flashing claws and pulled feathers, their jaws and tails snapping back and forth. I press my back against the far wall and slowly inch past, giving them both as much distance as I can before breaking into another sprint. What the flying fuck is going on? It's like everyone has gone crazy and reverted back into bloodthirsty animals. This couldn't be because of estrus week, could it? I thought that only effected females? Now that I think about it though, a horrifying hypothesis comes to mind. If all the female students are in heat, does that mean all the male students are in a rut? Am I trapped in a school with hundreds of enraged, testosterone mad dinosaurs?
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I don't belong here, I need to get out. I start heading for the principal's office, planning to talk to Principal Spears. He's human after all, so he should still be sane. I can ask him to be excused from my classes until things calm down. Heck, I'll take the stack of homework and assignments all the female students got sent home with last week if he really wants. Anything to get me out of this madhouse.
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The unmistakable sound of animalistic violence grows louder as I approach Spear's office, but that's starting to be true for the entire school at this point. Everywhere I look students are squaring off with each other, or already in the midst of some kind of fight. Nothing however, compares to the scene of absolute carnage in front of Spear's office. It looks like half the senior class decided to besiege his front door, all the largest predators and herbivores pushing and shoving past each other to get closer. In the center of the melee is Principal Spears, bellowing like an enraged god atop a pile of knocked-out and subjugated students. I duck out of the way as he tosses a velociraptor aside like a ragdoll, the other dinosaurs charging in heedless of their numerous defeated comrades. I don't know if Spear's position marks him as some sort of alpha to all these testosterone fueled nutjobs, but it's clear I won't get a chance to talk to him today. I quietly slink away before anyone can notice me, resigned to just get through the day. I just need to keep my head down, not make eye contact, and stay out of everyone's way.
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The first half of my classes are a nerve wracking disaster. The students have at least enough self-control left to sit in their seats, but the thick aura of impending violence is inescapable. Sitting behind a desk is torture, my instincts screaming at me to run away and escape from all the dinosaurs sitting around me. More than once, an exasperated teacher is forced to pull two students away when a brawl breaks out in class, the inciting incident as casual as a misplaced glance. Out in the hallways, chaos reigns. I sprint from class to class, dodging snarling carnivores and dueling herbivores. The noise is deafening. Ankylosaurs slam their clubs against lockers, pterosaurs screech at each other, and everyone is shouting insults and challenges. The cafeteria is only slightly better, if only because the intercom announced anyone caught fighting during lunch wouldn't get any food. Nobody forms a sensible line, everyone simply charging in and shoving each other out of the way as they snatch whatever food they possibly can. I'm nearly crushed between two large brontosaurus students as I grab the nearest sandwich I see, escaping from the mob as quickly as I can. At least with half the student body missing, there's plenty of room to sit as far away from each other as possible. I spot Reed sitting alone at our usual table, remarkably unscathed despite everything that's going on. He's waving me over, a big grin on his face, and I can't think of a good reason to sit anywhere else.
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"Hey Anon!" He smiles as I sit down, his own lunch halfway gone already, "You hanging in there alright dude?"
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"Hey Reed, good to see you're still sane at least." I reply, getting my first good look at the sandwich I grabbed. Lettuce and tuna, great. "Yeah, I'm surviving. Just about."
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"Yeah, I know it can be tough." Reed chuckles, unaware just how big an understatement that is as an empty lunch tray flies through the air behind him, "At least you're keeping your head down. You should be fine."
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"Oh yeah?" I ask, warily checking over my shoulder for the millionth time today, "Why is that?"
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"Cause you're a human, moron." Reed replies with a smirk, "Most people are only interested in their own species today. Just don't look anybody in the eye or piss them off, and you should be fine."
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"Is that why you're not trying to claw me to death?" I ask, earning another laugh out of Reed as I take a reluctant bite of my sandwich.
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"Nah man, I've got my own remedy." Reed smiles, waving his thermos in the air. That explains a lot, Reed is just too stoned right now to be an angry hormonal maniac. I never thought I would say it, but thank God for his insatiable drug habit.
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"Well that's a relief." I sigh, running my hand over my head, "Wait, so how do you avoid fights? You don't look like you've been mauled yet today."
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"Oh well..." Reed laughs, "The others guys don't really see me as part of the 'competition', you know? They don't have to worry about me, so they leave me alone."
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Wait, what the heck does he mean by that? I feel like there's an implication here that I'm not quite grasping. Why would Reed not be considered a threat by the other students?
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"You know..." Reed continues, his voice dropping into a husky tone. He bats his thick eyelashes, looking me in the eye with an uncomfortable intensity. His tail lazily sways in the air behind him, the feathered end fluffed up to it's fullest. "If you wanted someplace to hide, I know a couple spots where nobody would find us~."
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His hand slides over to mine, our fingers intertwining together. I jerk my hand away as everything suddenly clicks into place. Why Reed wouldn't be considered competition by the other males. How he could hang out with two girls for years and not date either of them. Why he is staring at me now with a debaucherously 'come-hither' expression.
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"Dammit Reed, not you too!" I shout, grabbing the last of my sandwich and sprinting out of the room.
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I've nearly made it. I just have one more class to get through, then I'm home free. Unfortunately, it's the one class I've been dreading most all day: gym. The packed locker room is practically a ticking timebomb of impending violence, the smell even worse than usual. I bashfully decide to change in one of the toilet stalls, just to avoid literally getting caught with my pants down. Luckily nothing happens, if only because everyone anticipates an opportunity to settle their differences soon enough anyway.
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Everyone files into the gymnasium, shoving and elbowing each other out of the way. I can feel the hot breath of the dinosaur behind me on the back of my neck, the the joints in his fingers popping as he clenches his fists. Oh sweet Raptor Jesus, if you get me through this, I'll swear off porn for the whole month.
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"Alright you friggin' morons, listen up!" Mr Delewski shouts, blowing hard into the silver whistle around his neck. Everyone stops their bickering and pays attention, although I get the impression some are just debating if they could take him in a fight.
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"Now I know you're all a bunch of friggin' stupid, pumped up horn-dogs today!" Delewski shouts, several of the students snarling and beating their tails against the ground in response. What the fuck is this guy doing, does he want to get killed?
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"So, in order for you all to 'work through your energy' and 'find new outlets for your aggression' we's doing something different today!" Delewski continues, forming finger quotes in the air. He reaches into a nearby bin, pulling out an iconic red rubber ball and pitching it to the nearest student.
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"Dodgeball!" He announces with a maniacal grin, a lead weight dropping into my stomach. "Now form your friggin' teams!"
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The last bell rings for the day as everyone pours out the front doors and into the sun. It seems most of everyone's aggression has finally been burned away, some of the usual cliques chatting away normally. A few students are still literally butting heads, but it could almost be mistaken for the end of a typical school day. I trudge out with the last stragglers, aching all over from the innumerable bruises I'm soon to develop. Nobody even followed the rules in that insane bout, they just kept throwing balls at each other for the whole hour. Dropping heavily to the concrete steps, I take a seat and bask in the hot afternoon sun. It's over, finally over. At least for today anyway. I don't know how I'm going to survive a whole week of this. Consequences be damned, I think I'm just going to stay home for the next few days and wait for this all to blow over.
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I hear footsteps behind me, and I nearly jump up as a large shadow looms over me. I calm down as I see it's just Principal Spears, smiling down at me. He takes a seat beside me on the steps, his shoulders slumping as an uncharacteristic wave of exhaustion rolls over him. His suit is nearly in tatters, he's got scratches everywhere, and even one of the lens is missing form his glasses. Despite everything, he seems to be in a good mood.
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"So, Anon." He rumbles, his voice surprisingly deep every time I hear it. "How was your first day of estrus week?"
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"Horrible." I moan, unwilling to put up a tough façade. Spear chuckles, the sound like a friendly grizzly bear.
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"Yes, it can be difficult. I'm impressed you managed to get through the entire day." He slaps me on the back, making me wince and nearly sending me sprawling down the steps, "I'm afraid I must apologize, I meant to speak to you last week. As a human student, you aren't required to stay in attendance during estrus week. You may stay home if you wish."
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"Wait, really??" I ask, shocked and more than a little outraged. I went through all that for nothing? It was all pointless? I could have bailed at any time?
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"Of course!" Spears smiles, his teeth unnaturally large, "I wouldn't subject a human student to that kind of danger. Don't be ridiculous!"
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"Then why even have school open at all?" I ask, desperate for answers, "This place is a madhouse! Nobody is learning everything, they just fight!"
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"To tell you the truth, that's rather the point." Spears explains, conspiratorially tapping his nose, "We keep them all here to burn off their aggression on each other. Could you image if we let them lose through the whole town? At least this way they're somewhat supervised."
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I open my mouth to argue, but I have to admit it makes a certain amount of sense. Having a bunch of hormone crazed dinosaurs running loose would probably be a small scale disaster. Before I can ask another question, there's a loud buzzing from inside Spear's pocket. He pulls out an old flip phone, comically small in his oversized hands, and flips it open.
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Something on the other end roars loudly enough to make me jump, the speakers popping and crackling in protest. That thing isn't even on speakerphone, and it could probably be heard clear across a room. Spears seems unperturbed, simply nodding along as the roars continue unabated.
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"Yes dear, I'm fine." Spears replies once there's an opening. There's another set of roars, just as loud as the ones before it.
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"Yes dear, I know."
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Another roar, this one only slightly quieter, but still probably deafening in person
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"Yes dear, I'm on my way now."
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Spears flips the phone closed, putting it back in his pocket. He stands up straight, straightening the thin scrap of fabric that used to be his tie. I stand up with him, my abused back aching in protest.
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"Well Anon, I'll see you next week." Spears bids me farewell, stepping down the steps. He stops on the sidewalk, looking back up at me with a sly smirk.
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"Just remember, there's usually an upside to everything." He winks.